After hurriedly exiting through the back gate of the courtyard, Concubine Fang’s steps slightly paused as she looked back toward the temple on the mountain.

Nanny Yu couldn’t help but stop as well, following Concubine Fang’s gaze. Puzzled, she asked: “Concubine, is there something else?” Looking in that direction, she only saw White Dragon Temple and a corner of the flying eaves of nearby White Cloud Nunnery, not knowing what Concubine Fang was looking at.

Concubine Fang smiled and shook her head: “Nothing, let’s go.”

She tightened her cloak, hiding herself from head to toe within it, then took Nanny Yu’s hand and hurried down toward the foot of the mountain.

Upon reaching the foot of the mountain, Concubine Fang instructed Nanny Yu to find and rent a horse cart or ox cart.

Nanny Yu went off in response.

After Nanny Yu left, Concubine Fang surveyed her surroundings, then pulled out an extremely ordinary-looking hemp rope from her sleeve. Standing on tiptoe, she looped the hemp rope around a crooked-necked tree by the roadside and tied it in a strangely-shaped knot.

Before long, Nanny Yu returned in an ox cart.

Without saying a word, Concubine Fang took Nanny Yu’s hand and got into the ox cart.

The ox cart turned around and headed back toward White Crane Town.

What Concubine Fang didn’t know was that not long after she left in the ox cart, a tall, sturdy man dressed in black emerged from hiding. He walked to the tree where Concubine Fang had stood earlier, stroking his chin as he examined the hemp rope knot on the tree for a while. Finally, he untied the rope from the tree and tucked it into his sleeve.

After completing this, he brought his fingers to his lips and whistled. Two people and three horses emerged from a small path.

The black-clothed, tall man made a hand gesture, and those two people leaped onto horseback, riding off in pursuit of the ox cart Concubine Fang had taken. He also mounted his horse and followed behind them.

Not long after Concubine Fang and Nanny Yu left, the woman who had accompanied the carriage returned. When she discovered something was wrong, there was no trace of Concubine Fang anywhere.

The accompanying woman asked Sister Jinju where Concubine Fang had gone. Sister Jinju only said that Nanny Yu had accompanied Concubine Fang to see a doctor, and refused to say anything else.

The accompanying woman was so anxious she was jumping up and down, but she could do nothing with Sister Jinju. She could only send someone to Yunyang City to report to Third Master and Third Madam while searching for Concubine Fang’s whereabouts.

After getting into the cart, Concubine Fang began calculating in her mind how she should proceed next to clear herself of Fifth Branch’s accusations, and how to negotiate with Old Master Ren to get him to stand on her side once again.

It was only after the cart had traveled for some distance that Concubine Fang realized something was wrong.

Sitting in the cart, she felt this journey was much bumpier than her earlier trip. At first, she thought it was because the ox cart wasn’t as stable as a horse carriage, but when she quietly lifted the curtain to peek outside, she couldn’t help but be shocked.

This road wasn’t heading toward White Crane Town!

Nanny Yu also noticed something was wrong and immediately shouted sternly: “Stop the cart! Where are you taking us? This road doesn’t lead to White Crane Town!”

But the driver outside remained silent, only focused on driving, completely ignoring Nanny Yu.

Nanny Yu felt both anxious and frightened, secretly regretting that she hadn’t been more careful when finding the cart. Earlier, fearing that Concubine Fang’s unauthorized departure would cause gossip if it went on too long, she had wanted to return quickly.

Seeing an ox cart parked by the main road that looked cleaner than the other carts and carriages nearby, with a stable and spacious carriage, she had chosen that one.

Now, seeing that this driver had taken them off the main road onto a small path, he had ill intentions. Not knowing what he might do to them, Nanny Yu was already covered in cold sweat.

Concubine Fang gradually calmed down. She removed a pair of pearl earrings, a jade bracelet, and the gold hairpin from her head, handing them to Nanny Yu while making eye signals to her. At the same time, she called out loudly: “I have some jewelry here, plus fifty taels of silver. Take them all. Stop the cart ahead and let us down.”

Nanny Yu took the jewelry from Concubine Fang’s hands and also brought out the fifty taels of silver she carried. Lifting the curtain, she tremblingly handed them out.

But the driver outside turned a deaf ear and didn’t come to take what Nanny Yu was offering.

Concubine Fang couldn’t help but frown and said again: “This is all we have on us. If you’re after money, just take these things and leave. I’m just a weak woman and won’t report to the authorities. If you’re after something else…” Concubine Fang paused, then continued in a calm tone: “We’re just two people – one a fifty-something old woman, and one a woman whose face has been ruined and is of no use at all. Even if you wanted to sell us, you wouldn’t get a good price, and you’d risk my family reporting to the authorities and sending people to chase you down.”

If it were an ordinary bandit, seeing this money and hearing Concubine Fang’s words, even if they didn’t immediately release them, they would at least hesitate. But this one acted as if he were deaf, showing no reaction at all, not even slowing down the cart.

Only then did Concubine Fang realize this matter wasn’t simple.

She immediately changed her tone and coldly scolded: “Did Lin Shi send you? Or Fifth Master? Since you’re working for them, you should know who I am. If my master finds out, neither you nor your family will live!”

As soon as Concubine Fang said this, the driver outside snorted with laughter and said cheerfully, “For a mere concubine, you sure have a big mouth.”

When Concubine Fang had gotten into the cart earlier, she had glanced at the driver and seen that he was a thin, short old man. But now hearing the voice, it sounded like a young man, making her increasingly suspicious.

“Who exactly are you? What do you want to do?”

But the young man outside became mute again, refusing to respond. No matter what words Concubine Fang used to probe, he just wouldn’t speak. Sometimes when he heard something amusing, he would giggle, finally leaving the usually versatile and resourceful Concubine Fang at a loss.

She felt for the dagger hidden in her sleeve, wondering whether she should fight desperately. Ever since that incident when she suffered at Lin Shi’s hands, Concubine Fang has always kept a dagger in her sleeve, never leaving it behind even when sleeping.

Listening to the voice outside, the person should be young, and his body doesn’t seem very robust. If she and Nanny Yu worked together, they might not be without a chance of escape.

Just as Concubine Fang was secretly making up her mind, she heard the sound of horse hooves approaching from far to near.

Both Concubine Fang and Nanny Yu felt joy in their hearts.

Nanny Yu immediately shouted at the top of her voice: “Help! Help! Murder and robbery! Someone save us!”

The driver outside indeed slowed down the cart.

Before Nanny Yu and Concubine Fang could breathe a sigh of relief, they heard the person outside giggling and saying, “Big brother, what took you so long? This woman is too talkative, I could barely stand it and almost went in to knock them unconscious! Oh, by the way, her heart is bad – she threatened to take my whole family’s lives!”

A hearty male voice laughed heartily: “Alright, leave them to us. You go back first.”

The young driver threw down his whip and jumped off the cart, laughing playfully: “It’s so far, big brother, you can’t expect me to walk back, can you? Let me come with you all and drive the cart for you.”

Hearing this from inside the cart, Concubine Fang’s heart sank deeper and deeper. Not caring that there were men outside, she abruptly pulled open the curtain with a “swish.”

She saw a dark-skinned, tall, and sturdy man sitting on horseback, smiling to reveal a mouthful of white teeth.

The driver she had thought was a withered old man had removed his worn felt hat from his head and pulled off the fake beard he had used for disguise, revealing a face full of childishness, though this face still had wrinkles on it.

Concubine Fang frowned.

The young man turned back to see Concubine Fang and made a face at her, then rubbed his face, scrubbing off some mud-like substance.