Suddenly, a person squeezed to Qiao Mu’s side and reached out, pressing down toward Qiao Mu’s shoulder.
Qiao Mu’s brow creased. She was about to strike with her blade — when Xue Gu’s large palm came down and slid her half-drawn short blade back into its sheath.
In a single flash of an instant — a blink, truly nothing more — and yet in the blink after, all returned to calm.
Qiao Mu looked at the newcomer, and in a sudden rush recalled the portrait Xing Zizhou had once shown her. She narrowed her eyes, somewhat taken aback: “You…”
This person looked very much like the man she had seen in the portrait before — the Second Prince’s trusted aide, Yang Qin.
“This one is Yang Qin, a man of the Second Prince’s household.” Yang Qin cupped one hand in the other in greeting and said softly: “A word in private, if you would.”
Qiao Mu and Xue Gu exchanged a glance and immediately followed him away from the crowd.
“The execution is set for noon, and the First Highness will personally bring men to guard it.” Yang Qin looked between the two of them, his brow knitted with worry. “The First Highness appears to take this matter especially seriously this time. I believe he thinks the Ninth Prince’s people are still within the city.”
So the First Prince believed that the Ninth Prince’s people were still in the capital. Though it was Jiu’er, not the Ninth Prince, whose purposes aligned with the Ninth Prince’s — it was not entirely wrong to call them the Ninth Prince’s people.
The First Prince had likely suffered at the Ninth Prince’s hands before, which was why he was being so cautious about this matter. In truth, the person who had truly unnerved him was the Ninth Prince.
This time, Tuoba Keyan had been genuinely shaken by the Ninth Prince.
“We must rescue her. Chief Steward Yang — if you were able to come find us, have you perhaps already devised a plan for us?”
Qiao Mu fixed her gaze on Yang Qin, the resolve in her eyes plain for anyone to see.
She had made her own position clear as well. If Yang Qin intended to counsel them to stand back and endure, that was simply not going to happen.
Yang Qin was indeed struggling. “To be honest, I came to find you today without the Second Prince’s knowledge.”
Qiao Mu and Xue Gu said nothing. Their expressions, however, grew cooler.
Yang Qin said helplessly: “I know your hearts are set on rescuing her — but if all of you are captured, I fear it will be… unfavorable for the Second Prince.”
He served in his position and looked after his responsibilities — Yang Qin’s fear stemmed entirely from concern for the Second Prince.
Now that the First Highness had returned bearing accusations, even though those charges had yet to be confirmed, the Great King’s suspicions of him had never ceased.
At this moment, as long as the Second Prince made no missteps, the Great King would naturally lean toward trusting the Second Prince.
And this was precisely what the First Prince now had to contend with: he needed to create some trouble for the Second Prince — to erode the Second Prince’s credibility in the Great King’s eyes.
Only then could the First Prince’s own credibility be restored.
The Great King had only two sons. Either he trusted the First Prince or he trusted the Second Prince. In the end there would always be one he favored more — and everyone knew it.
“Are you asking us to stand by and watch a companion be put to death?” Qiao Mu clenched all ten fingers tight, her voice sharp with fury: “I cannot do that. Chief Steward Yang, please go back.”
Yang Qin knew that his words would provoke their resentment. But with things having reached such a critical juncture, and the Second Prince powerless to act, if he himself did not do something, he feared that everything the Second Prince had worked so hard to reclaim would vanish in an instant.
“Last night…” He paused before continuing: “That young woman endured an entire night of torment, and yet did not utter a single word. She kept her silence throughout. Afterward, she even… even attempted to bite off her own tongue and end her life.”
“It was the First Highness who stopped the girl from harming herself in time — though the First Highness only saved her in order to use her as bait to lure all of you out and capture you in one sweep.”
“Chief Steward Yang, you are afraid that once we are captured, someone will be unable to withstand the severe interrogation and reveal what concerns the Second Prince?”
The moment Yang Qin asked them to stand by and do nothing, Qiao Mu had already lost any goodwill she might have felt toward this man.
Yang Qin knew he had made himself disliked. But each person played their own part — they each served their own master. What else could he do?
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“Yes.” Yang Qin gave a nod, with not the slightest attempt to conceal it: “Though I was not present during last night’s interrogation, I know roughly how it unfolded.”
“That young woman…” In truth, Yang Qin had little contact with any of them. Who was who — he himself could barely keep track.
Had it not been for the portrait, and his particular attention to anyone in disguise, he would probably not have recognized this Qiao woman today.
“Miss, I understand how you all feel. But I truly hope you can consider carefully and not act rashly…”
“There is nothing to consider. If something happens to the Second Prince — what would you do then?”
Qiao Mu swept him with a cold glance, then looked at Xue Gu: “Senior Xue Gu, let us go.”
Jiu’er still had not returned. Whether Xing Zizhou had found her was also unknown.
Though there was still nearly two hours until noon, two hours was nothing more than a blink of an eye — it would pass before they knew it.
This time, Xue Gu said nothing. She fell into step with Qiao Mu, and in an instant the two of them vanished into the vast sea of people.
Once they disappeared this time, it would be nearly impossible for Yang Qin to find them again.
Watching the surging crowd ahead, Yang Qin’s face was a picture of anxiety — and helplessness.
What was to be done? If things continued down this path, the Second Prince’s affairs would inevitably be exposed.
And when that happened, the First Prince would regain the Great King’s trust — and from that point on, there would never again be an opportunity for the Second Prince to turn things around.
Everything had been well within their grasp, and yet in a single night, the First Prince had completely reversed the situation.
Where exactly had things gone wrong? Or had they simply underestimated the First Prince’s strength?
……
After leaving the alley, Qiao Mu and Xue Gu swiftly melted back into the crowd and quickly moved away from that area.
“At noon, at the south of the city, there will certainly be many skilled fighters. Senior Xue Gu, what if we…”
Qiao Mu looked at the figure walking ahead of her. She thought of Xiao Yingtao’s current state and felt a sudden wrenching ache in her chest.
She did not want to wait. She could not wait even a moment longer.
If the execution was to be at noon, then the guards at noon would surely be far more heavily deployed than they were now. Either way, they were going to have to force their way through — they might as well go now.
They could not wait for Jiu’er to return. And what was more, Jiu’er had been gone the entire night — she was likely in trouble herself, possibly even injured. Storming a place of execution was not something Jiu’er should be dragged into.
The figure walking ahead — Xue Gu — suddenly tightened her palm, and spoke in a low, resolute voice: “Good! I will follow you in storming it!”
In her life, she had given too much consideration to what was called the greater picture — it was the same when she had followed the general all those years ago.
In truth, whether it was the general back then or Jiu’er now, when faced with this kind of situation there was only ever one choice: save the person.
They were devoted people, every one of them — each just the same.
The greater picture Yang Qin had spoken of just now was almost identical to the words she herself had spoken more than a decade ago. Yet even setting the greater picture above all — what had the general himself ultimately gained?
Why must one uphold the greater picture?
Following these young people, one ought simply to let go and fight with everything one had. Passion — it was not something only the young could possess.
She quickened her steps to catch up with those ahead, and Xue Gu drew in a deep breath. She leapt suddenly upward: “Qiao Mu, move! If we cannot live together, then let us die together — otherwise, when Jiu’er returns, she will never forgive us!”