After listening to his words, Ji Yinshu also began pondering deeply.

But—

There was one thing she didn’t understand. “The Personnel Ministry impeaching you was disadvantageous to Prince Yi, and now the court officials submitting memorials is also disadvantageous to Prince Yi, but in all this, it has helped you.”

Helped?

Jingrong shook his head, his expression growing even more grave. He held the opposite view from Ji Yinshu.

“This Prince doesn’t think so.”

“But at least the Emperor issued a secret decree summoning you back to the capital. Regardless of who’s behind it, they are helping you.”

“That’s precisely what this Prince is worried about. Whatever that person’s objective is, what can be proven is that the person they want to strike down is Jing Yi, but the person they want to help may not necessarily be this Prince.”

“How so?”

“When the snipe and clam fight, the fisherman benefits!”

Uh!

Ji Yinshu was startled, her eyes widening unconsciously.

She didn’t understand matters of court politics, much less factional struggles, but Jingrong’s words just now and that phrase “when the snipe and clam fight, the fisherman benefits” involuntarily sent a chill through her.

A cold shiver ran down her spine!

The topic ended there!

After the carriage reached the main road, the path became much smoother.

The recent weather was very suitable for traveling!

“Wow!”

Tang Si stuck her head out of the carriage like an exploding flower, facing the sunlight, revealing a mouthful of snow-white teeth, even exposing her gums.

The guard riding beside the carriage was startled, and the horse beneath him trembled as well.

The guard complained, “I say, Miss Tang, when you pop out like that so suddenly, you can easily frighten people. If the horse gets spooked, there’ll be trouble.”

“I just stuck my head out—how did that frighten you? How did that frighten your horse?”

Sharp-tongued!

The guard surrendered.

“Miss Tang, pretend I said nothing.”

Hmph!

She was about to continue picking a fight when a large hand suddenly grabbed her collar from behind and forcibly dragged her back into the carriage.

“Ah!”

A shriek like a pig being slaughtered.

Muruo was sitting inside with his eyes closed, resting. The noise was incessant by his ear.

“Can you be quiet?”

“Oh.”

Tang Si seemed to have suddenly become enlightened and actually shut up. She bit her lip, flicked her eyes upward to steal a glance at Muruo, then shuffled her bottom over to his side. With her pinky finger raised delicately, she lightly tugged at the corner of his robe.

“A-Muo, do you want to eat grapes? I brought lots.”

“No.”

“It’s fine, don’t be shy. I brought them especially for you to eat. Look, your lips are all chapped—how pitiful.” As she spoke with heartfelt concern, she couldn’t help but reach out to touch them.

Slap! Her hand was swatted away!

Muruo glared at her fiercely. “Don’t get handsy.”

“I won’t, I won’t. I just want to treat you to grapes.”

“I already said I don’t want any.”

“Just try them first. Wouldn’t it be better if you liked them?”

Tang Si was a stubborn person. She hauled out the box of grapes she’d brought from the carriage’s storage compartment.

As soon as she opened it, the black grapes inside were each large and plump.

She picked up a bunch, pinched off one grape, and tried to stuff it into Muruo’s tightly closed mouth.

“Open your mouth!”

He wouldn’t.

“Will you open it or not?”

He absolutely wouldn’t.

Tang Si got angry and finally shed that gentle, bashful demeanor of hers. She grabbed both his cheeks with one hand and forcibly pried his mouth open.

She tossed a grape in.

Gulp.

He swallowed it down.

It nearly choked Muruo to death.

His face flushed red as he glared furiously at the smug woman before him. “You crazy woman, what’s wrong with you?”

“Yes, I’m sick! That’s why I went out late last night to pick grapes, all because you like eating them. Anyway, I already brought them, so whether you want to or not, you’re going to eat them all.”

“You…”

The moment he opened his mouth, it was stuffed with a handful.

The entire carriage was filled with chewing sounds, shaking left and right.

The people outside watched with bewildered expressions.

“What are Young Master Muo and Miss Tang doing? Why so agitated?”

“What do you think they’re doing?”

“Oh my, how shameless.”

Everyone stared at that carriage with tinted eyes.

Over the next few days, the carriage convoy reached Bingjing, which was where Mingshan Academy was located.

However, this time Jingrong didn’t go to disturb them. He ordered them to quicken the pace and stopped at an inn in a forested area.

By this time, it was already quite dark.

The carriage convoy had just stopped when an enthusiastic waiter from the inn hurried out to greet them.

From afar, they could hear the waiter’s calls.

“You guests have come at such a fortunate time! A group just left our establishment, and several rooms have just become available.”

All smiles!

As if he’d seen gold.

The man happened to bow beside Ji Yinshu. She glanced at him inadvertently, her gaze landing on the waiter’s wrist. Her eyes involuntarily tightened, feeling troubled.

But she didn’t think too much of it!

Everyone followed the waiter inside, settled on several rooms, and had the carriages and horses taken to the stable in the rear courtyard.

There were many people in the inn—some eating, some drinking, and a few rough-looking men playing finger-guessing games.

Several waiters were busy running up and down serving customers.

When they entered, everyone stopped what they were doing, pairs of eyes staring over at them.

The stares made their hair stand on end!

Ji Yinshu deliberately surveyed the area.

Apart from those eating and drinking, there were also several tables in the inn where people sat neither eating nor drinking. One by one they sat there, brows furrowed deeply. Unlike those eating and drinking, even when they heard the commotion, they didn’t glance this way. Instead, their gazes were fixed on the chopstick holders on their tables.

Logically speaking, at this time, everyone should be eating, yet the tables before them were completely empty—not even a pot of tea.

Strange!

Ji Yinshu grew alert in her heart.

As she went upstairs, she happened to collide with someone. The back of her hand hit something on that person, and it hurt terribly from the impact.

It was like… bumping into a piece of iron.

That person wore coarse hemp clothing—just an ordinary traveler. After bumping into her, they left without a word.

Jingrong asked her, “What’s wrong?”

She shook her head.

“Nothing.”

Then went upstairs to her room.

Muruo had been burping all along the way, his complexion extremely unpleasant. As soon as Jingrong entered his room, Muruo quickly slipped in after him and hastily closed the door.

As if he’d seen a ghost!

“Hey, hey, hey, this is this Prince’s room.” Jingrong adopted the bearing of a host.

Muruo peered outside through the window paper. Only when he saw Tang Si enter her own room did he breathe a sigh of relief.

As soon as he relaxed, he burped again.

He plopped down and began drinking water.

He drank several cups in succession.

“What’s wrong with you?”

“I’m dying.” The shock still hadn’t left him.

Jingrong looked at him baffled. Had this fellow been possessed?

Muruo pointed at his mouth, then rubbed his stomach, saying miserably, “You have no idea—these past few days, I’ve been force-fed so many grapes by that wretched woman that I don’t even know the count. Now when I burp, it tastes like grapes. I don’t know where she heard that I like eating grapes. Tell me, isn’t she sick?”

Tears were about to fall.