Facing such circumstances, Qin Yining’s expression inevitably grew grave as well.
Lu Heng was no ordinary person, and he harbored other intentions toward her, so naturally he paid more attention. Qin Yining didn’t know about others, but if she were facing someone she cared about, no matter how they disguised themselves, even if she only saw their back, she could recognize them immediately.
She nervously clenched her fingers.
This time she had only darkened her skin somewhat, nothing like when Xie Yue had disguised her so thoroughly that people couldn’t recognize her. She didn’t dare take risks in front of Lu Heng, because if he had the chance, he would certainly kidnap her again. How difficult would that make things for Pang Xiao?
“Master, what should we do?” Ji Yun’s lowered voice was very tense.
Qin Yining pressed her lips together and said quietly: “Look for a chance to escape.”
The people gradually approached the inspection area. Neighbors and relatives were frantically vouching for each other. Even those who had passed inspection and could prove themselves didn’t leave immediately, but stood not far away observing, lest they leave anyone behind.
Most people were so obedient, but a small portion still felt deeply indignant.
Even after the other side had made an example by killing someone, there were still some educated and courageous people who questioned: “What are you doing? Acting like this, how are you any more enlightened than the incompetent ruler of Northern Ji?”
“You’re disregarding the safety of the people under heaven, wanting to plot rebellion and usurp the throne?”
There were even those loyal to Great Zhou who swore to die rather than submit, stretching their necks to roar: “Surnamed Lu, acting like this, aren’t you afraid your descendants for ten thousand generations will be ridiculed!”
Lu Heng stood on high ground. Hearing these words, he couldn’t help but chuckle. “Descendants for ten thousand generations? The Lu family has already been harmed to this extent by the incompetent ruler. Where do we still have descendants for generations to pass down? I think you must be a spy from beside the incompetent ruler! Arrest him!”
“Yes!” Lu Heng’s subordinate troops were well-trained. Upon hearing this, they immediately roared in unison and tied up the speaker, taking him aside.
Seeing that Lu Heng didn’t continue killing, many people quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
But Qin Yining’s expression grew even more grave.
If Lu Heng had started with a massacre, it would mean he was only seeking revenge for the Lu family and didn’t necessarily have rebellious intentions. But now Qin Yining was even more certain that what he sought was probably much more! Otherwise, he wouldn’t have immediately changed his image among the people after establishing his authority.
Looking at it this way, continuing to wait would be useless.
Qin Yining instructed the people beside her that as soon as there was an opportunity, they should immediately rush out.
Just as Liao Zhibing and Jingzhe were carefully observing and looking for an opportunity, a commotion came from the direction of the city.
Qin Yining clearly saw Lu Heng standing on high ground listen to someone’s report, and his face stiffened for a moment. Immediately after, Jingzhe and the others discovered that the troops guarding the perimeter in less crucial positions were quietly retreating, seemingly heading toward the city.
Qin Yining’s heart stirred, and she immediately said: “Now’s the time!”
Liao Zhibing and several brothers from the Azure Sky Alliance reacted quickly, immediately roaring: “We can’t just let this go! That surnamed Lu clearly wants to kill us all! Fellow villagers, run quickly!”
The people were already worried in their hearts. Regardless of whether they could fully understand Lu Heng’s actions and their own situation, one thing was clear right now: Lu Heng was not above massacring civilians. He killed people and simply pinned more convincing crimes on them. Who could guarantee they wouldn’t be purged?
With someone taking the lead, others followed suit. The people who had been orderly waiting for questioning became agitated again. Everyone pushed and shoved, surging outward.
Qin Yining and her group took advantage of the situation to blend in, also rushing outward in apparent panic.
With some of Lu Heng’s men reassigned elsewhere, the encirclement wasn’t as tight as it had been initially. Qin Yining’s group chose the weakest point to attack and quickly broke through the siege with other people, fleeing outward.
With the people in such chaos, Lu Heng felt overwhelmed and hurriedly ordered his men to stop them. But he couldn’t order them to kill ruthlessly.
Killing one or two people could serve as a deterrent, but a massacre would make all the people of Huichuan County his enemies in the future. That would be difficult to control.
So Lu Heng could only order: “Try to capture them as much as possible, don’t harm their lives.”
With this command, facing troops that couldn’t kill, and since Qin Yining had brought elite fighters while the opponents’ abilities were mixed, they quickly found an opening and escaped.
Lu Heng turned to look toward where the crowd was in turmoil, just in time to see that familiar figure he’d noticed earlier wrapped among a group of people running outward.
His heart jumped, and he hurriedly shouted to those beside him: “Chase! Bring that woman back to me!”
His subordinates immediately responded, rushing in the direction Lu Heng pointed, leaving only a small portion to continue the inspection.
Although the people had strength in numbers, after Lu Heng again ordered two people killed to deter the scene, the people afraid of death ultimately didn’t dare be the nail that sticks out. They weren’t “suspicious persons” anyway—it was just mutual verification of identity. If there had to be an inspection, so be it.
Everyone swallowed their anger and cooperated.
This disturbance was quickly quelled, and the scene remained satisfactory to Lu Heng. But in his mind, that hurried glimpse of a figure kept floating up, and the more he thought about it, the more he felt it was Qin Yining.
Just as Lu Heng frowned, pondering sending more people to capture Qin Yining, her group had already encountered head-on the pursuing troops Lu Heng had sent.
Lu Heng’s subordinates were no mediocrities. With Jingzhe and Liao Zhibing protecting Qin Yining’s escape while not wanting her to suffer the slightest injury, the journey was extremely difficult. They ran east and west through remote alleys in the county town, almost losing track of the direction they’d come from.
Qin Yining was already breathing heavily from exhaustion. Seeing this, Jingzhe and the others were extremely worried and said quietly: “Master, running around like headless flies like this, we’ll probably be caught soon. We need to think of a way out. If he captures you, this subordinate fears he won’t be able to protect you.”
“Try to find horses. With horses we can leave this place. Relying only on our legs, we can’t outrun the pursuing troops.”
Everyone acknowledged this and headed even more desperately toward the inn, partly because it was relatively close, and partly because the horses they’d brought were still in the grass shed behind the inn’s courtyard.
The troops Lu Heng had sent in pursuit, seeing that such a small team had such exquisite skills and inconceivable ability to escape, became even more suspicious and pursued even more desperately.
The opponents had strength in numbers. Even though Qin Yining had brought elite fighters, how many nails could a good piece of iron crush? Everyone quickly realized that under the crushing pressure of the opponents’ numbers, they simply couldn’t escape smoothly. Wanting to go to the inn to seize horses was even more difficult than ascending to heaven.
Jingzhe and Liao Zhibing had to protect Qin Yining’s safety while charging left and right looking for a way out. They were at their wits’ end.
Qin Yining naturally thought of that scene when Sakura had blocked in front of her and died for her sake, and her heart immediately jumped.
No, this couldn’t continue! She couldn’t let her decisions harm the lives of those around her again!