The once majestic and imposing General’s Manor was now sealed shut with official notices, standing silently in the bleak cold wind as it waited for its next owner.
After Jiang Kun regained consciousness, he too was fitted with a heavy cangue and shackles.
Under the escort of government guards and the sighs of the city’s citizens, the Jiang family was marched out of the capital.
As they passed through the city gates, Jiang Qingshu accidentally noticed a carriage parked beneath the wall.
Could it be that scumbag?
Sure enough, the curtain lifted, revealing two smug faces inside.
Xiao Lijing’s cold, disdainful gaze quickly found Jiang Qingshu among the prisoners.
But the instant their eyes met, he was secretly startled.
After four years apart, she had changed.
The youthful innocence she once had was gone. Her exquisitely beautiful features now carried the cool elegance and seductive maturity of a grown woman.
Only her eyes remained clear as water.
Yet even those no longer looked naïve—instead, they now held a faint sharpness.
Was this really the same fool from before?
He couldn’t help silently questioning it.
“Your Highness, did you get a good look at that bastard child?”
Mu Wanling’s reminder pulled him back to reality, and his gloomy gaze shifted toward the little boy with tied-up hair.
Though Xiao Lijing hated to admit it, Lin Bao was not only fair and handsome, but obviously intelligent and spirited.
His brows furrowed and his eyes darkened.
Suddenly, he turned toward Mu Wanling and barked furiously:
“Speak! Where exactly did you find that wild man for Jiang Qingshu that night?”
The air froze instantly.
Caught off guard, Mu Wanling held her breath nervously.
So he had known all along that she was behind it.
With a thud, she dropped to her knees before him. Looking up at him, tears conveniently slid down her cheeks.
“Your Highness, I only wanted to ease your burdens. You once said you never wanted to see that fool again, so I…”
“Shut up!” Xiao Lijing snapped. “Do you think I don’t know what you were really thinking? If I wanted to kill you, ten thousand deaths wouldn’t be enough! Tell me—who was that man?”
Mu Wanling finally let out the breath she’d been holding and collapsed weakly onto the floor as she recalled the events carefully.
“He was a strong old man with white hair.”
“You’re certain?” Xiao Lijing’s voice rose sharply.
Mu Wanling felt both wronged and confused. Never before had he interrogated her over Jiang Qingshu.
What was wrong with him?
“I’m sure. His hair was completely white, and he acted crazy and deranged. He definitely wasn’t normal.”
Hmph. If she intended to humiliate Jiang Qingshu, how could she possibly have found her a decent man?
A lunatic old beggar was the perfect match for that idiot girl.
“A crazy old man? What did he look like? Where did you capture him?”
Xiao Lijing simply couldn’t believe that some random madman from the streets could father such an outstanding child.
Mu Wanling thought back carefully.
Originally, she had intended to find a servant from within the prince’s manor, but once those useless cowards learned it was meant to disgrace the princess consort, every one of them chickened out.
So she had no choice but to send people into the streets to seize someone.
The man had disheveled hair, seemed mentally unstable, and had been drugged before being brought to the ruined temple.
Since it was already deep into curfew hours and the surroundings were dark, no one had paid close attention to his appearance in order to avoid drawing suspicion.
By the time they returned to the temple after things had quieted down, the man had already vanished.
“You didn’t see his face clearly?” Xiao Lijing looked suspicious.
“He was probably just some old beggar. I caught one glance at him—he was filthy beyond words,” Mu Wanling insisted confidently.
Xiao Lijing fell silent for a while before his expression slowly relaxed.
“Forget it. Whoever he was doesn’t matter anymore. They won’t survive long enough to reach the Northern Frontier anyway.”
His tone abruptly shifted.
“Now tell me where you went last night.”
Mu Wanling instantly felt as though she had fallen into an icy abyss.
A wave of panic surged through her heart.
She had secretly snuck back into the prince’s manor early that morning—
Yet he had still found out.
…
Twenty miles outside the capital, on the official road, Jiang Qingshu felt utterly exhausted after walking dozens of li in shackles.
The main problem was that this body’s physical condition was truly terrible.
If it had been her original body, this distance would have been nothing.
But then again, the original owner was beautiful.
Fine. She’d endure it.
Thinking of the journey ahead to the Northern Frontier—a distance of over two thousand li—even at their current pace, it would take nearly two months.
Jiang Qingshu sorted through the family members in her mind.
There were fifteen people in total.
Jiang Kun and Sun Yuluo.
The original owner’s eldest brother and sister-in-law, along with their two children.
Second Brother and his wife with their two sons.
Third Brother Jiang Chengyu was not yet married. He had once been interested in the Imperial Uncle’s legitimate daughter, but after this disaster, that engagement was naturally ruined.
Then there was herself and Lin Bao, her half-sister Jiang Luoyou, and thirteen-year-old Sixth Brother Jiang Lingfei.
This entire group—women, children, elderly, and sickly people all bound in chains—would be nothing more than fish on a chopping block once the assassins came for them.
So she had to find a way to escape the guards as soon as possible.
Fortunately, the words branded on their faces were only written in ink. Once they escaped, they could simply wash their faces and avoid the main roads.
With the vast supplies she possessed, she could easily lead her family into hiding in the mountains and live a wealthy, peaceful life.
For now, she needed to deal with the twenty-something escort guards and obtain the keys to their shackles and cangues.
As she walked, she quietly observed the guards.
Very quickly, she spotted a soldier carrying a large ring of keys.
“Elder Sister.”
A soft voice suddenly called from behind.
Turning around, Jiang Qingshu saw Jiang Luoyou move closer. The girl secretly reached out and slipped a preserved plum into her hand.
“Little Fifth…”
“Shhh~”
Jiang Luoyou pouted and made a silencing gesture before quietly slipping a piece of bean cake into Lin Bao’s palm as well.
Holding the warm plum tightly, Jiang Qingshu looked at her struggling family members and felt warmth bloom in her heart.
Even though the original owner had been born mentally impaired, every single person in this family had cherished her deeply.
“Mother, here… you eat it…”
Lin Bao lifted his flushed little face and offered the bean cake to Jiang Qingshu with his tiny soot-stained hand.
Jiang Qingshu froze for a moment.
Was this really the behavior of a four-year-old child?
“Crack—!”
Suddenly, a whip lashed through the air above her head and struck Lin Bao squarely on the forehead.
A deep bloody welt instantly appeared.
“Who told you you could eat? Hand it over!”
“I won’t!”
Lin Bao pursed his lips tightly and glared fiercely at the guard wielding the whip, his eyes blazing with stubborn fury.
“Lin Bao!”
Seeing the little boy injured filled Jiang Qingshu with both heartbreak and rage.
Even with her hands locked in the cangue, she charged recklessly toward the guard.
The arrogant guard was instantly knocked flat to the ground by the corner of her heavy wooden cangue.
When he fell, the back of his head slammed against a rock, and blood immediately gushed out.
The other guards rushed over at once.
Seeing their sister in danger, the three Jiang brothers hurried over to protect her.
“Are you all looking to die?!”
The lead guard roared angrily as he reached for the saber at his waist.
Just then, the sound of galloping horses suddenly came from behind them.
Jiang Kun looked carefully and recognized the newcomer immediately.
It was Liu Zhong—his most trusted former deputy general.
The two men had always been as close as brothers, and Liu Zhong deeply shared Jiang Kun’s sense of injustice over what had happened.
After catching up to the exile convoy, Liu Zhong handed silver to the escort guards.
Only after bribing them did he finally approach Jiang Kun.
The two old comrades faced one another.
Before either could speak, tears had already filled their eyes.
“General… take care on the journey.”
Jiang Kun said nothing.
He simply grabbed Liu Zhong’s shoulder and patted it heavily.
Liu Zhong’s timely assistance happened to resolve the Jiang family’s crisis.
But after this incident, Jiang Qingshu realized they absolutely had to escape immediately.
The longer they delayed, the more dangers would arise.
The exile convoy resumed its march and finally reached a mountain valley by evening.
“We’ll camp here tonight!”
The guards split into two groups.
One group went to start fires while the other temporarily removed the prisoners’ cangues so they could relieve themselves.
Jiang Qingshu narrowed her eyes.
The perfect opportunity had arrived.
Her escape plan was finally about to begin…