“Wait!”
The voice came from upstairs. Jing Hengbo looked up in surprise and saw Cui Jie and Jing Jun standing on the second floor, along with a little maid who looked somewhat familiar.
It was Cui Jie who had spoken. Ignoring Jing Jun desperately tugging at her sleeve from behind, she shouted loudly, “Hey, White Impermanence, I have no objection to you taking people away, but Da Bo still owes me several new outfits she hasn’t given me. Let her go quickly and get them for me!”
The parrot poked its head out from behind Jing Jun’s head and shouted, “Moonlight before the bed, two shoes on the ground—if you want to sleep with Da Bo, ask this old lady first!”
After quickly reciting this, it quickly swooshed back into hiding.
Jing Hengbo’s eyes immediately filled with tears—true friendship is revealed in times of trouble! Although the words were rather crude.
Cui Jie clattered down the stairs, followed by the anxious and uneasy Jing Jun and that little maid.
“Give me my clothes!” Cui Jie stepped forward to grab Jing Hengbo’s arm.
Jing Hengbo was overjoyed. Cui Jie had martial arts skills—if she could pull her over, she would have hope to teleport once more.
A hand reached over. Clearly the hand was on the right side, but somehow it bypassed Jing Hengbo and pressed down on Cui Jie’s sleeve on Jing Hengbo’s left side.
“Clothes?” the white-clothed man said indifferently. “Her belongings have already been packed and loaded onto the carriage. Since that’s the case, follow me to the carriage to retrieve them.”
Jing Hengbo’s heart sank.
Jing Jun desperately tugged at Cui Jie’s sleeve from behind, but Cui Jie lifted her chin. “Get them then get them!”
The white-clothed man seemed to chuckle softly, or perhaps not. He turned and walked slowly forward. Just as he turned, a gust of wind blew, slightly lifting his gauze hat.
However, few people saw it.
The tall, thin man supported Jing Hengbo’s arm and followed. Cui Jie hesitated for a moment but also followed. After walking a few steps, she turned back to see Jing Jun standing in place in a daze and said coldly, “Too scared to come? If you’re too scared, hurry back. The money Da Bo left for you is enough for you to eat ginseng for a while anyway.”
But Jing Jun seemed somewhat absent-minded, staring blankly at the white-clothed man’s back. Her face gradually showed a rare flush of red that, against her usually slightly pale skin, was as beautiful as rosy clouds.
Cui Jie was startled by this sight. Before she could react, Jing Jun had stepped forward to link arms with her, saying, “How could I not go? Da Bo and that young master look somewhat wrong together—we mustn’t let her be deceived and taken away. We’re sisters with her, so we should at least see things clearly.”
Only then did Cui Jie smile and help her out, with the little maid following.
The madam wanted to stop them but moved her lips without speaking. Those outside were not to be trifled with, and Cui Jie and Jing Jun couldn’t earn money anyway. There was also that little maid who refused to serve customers and had just been saved by Da Bo yesterday. Fenglai Qi had no use for them, so let them go.
Outside Fenglai Qi, there were indeed carriages waiting—one ox cart covered with hay and smelling sour and foul, and one horse carriage with carved saddles and decorated wheels, exquisite and luxurious.
Jing Hengbo naturally walked toward the horse carriage. As a queen, she was conscious of enjoying honors.
The next moment she was flying through the air, spinning a circle in the star-speckled sky before landing with a thud, her back hitting the thick hay.
The old ox mooed and slapped its tail across her face with a smack—quite smelly.
“What the hell! Why throw me! I don’t want to get on the ox cart! The horse carriage is mine…” Jing Hengbo shouted for a while, then suddenly froze, only now realizing she could speak again.
“Help…” She immediately raised her voice to shout for help.
“Thud.” A soft object crashed heavily into her chest, making her think her heart had nearly been knocked into her throat.
“Help…” The thing on top of her moved—it seemed to be a person, seeming to be the little maid’s voice.
“Thud.” Another one crashed down, followed by Cui Jie’s shout, “Let me go!”
“Thud.” The last one stacked on top, forming a human tower—it was Jing Jun, and her scream was different from the others, delicate and refined with melodic intonation: “Oh my, young master, please have pity and cherish beauty—”
Jing Hengbo could no longer scream.
Rolling her eyes and contracting her stomach, she gasped, “Quick… get… off… me…”
Cui Jie pushed Jing Jun down, flipped herself off, and pulled down the little maid, successfully rescuing Jing Hengbo from death by human stacking.
The four people squeezed in the ox cart, hanging with hay all over their heads, staring at each other.
They had expected some verbal sparring and back-and-forth arguing, but who knew this person’s methods were so rough—abducting one was abducting, abducting three made no difference.
The ox cart was already locked, with a short, fat man of unknown origin driving the cart. The thin man drove the horse carriage ahead, and the white-clothed man had presumably already entered the horse carriage.
There were riders both in front and behind the ox cart, of varying ages and appearances, but with one very consistent trait: killing intent.
The killing intent of wolves in the dark night that dropped temperatures wherever they passed and looked at people with eyes like predators. This was completely different from the comical Dahuang guards Jing Hengbo had first encountered.
Jing Hengbo saw the fat man lightly flick his whip, the whip cracking in the air with explosive sounds. The ox’s back shuddered, and without needing urging, it ran very fast.
She saw the thin man walk a distance, beckon with his hand, and a willow branch from a tree ten feet away came to the thin man’s hand.
She saw a youth whose facial hair hadn’t fully grown yet flick his finger to kill a large dog by the roadside that was about to bark wildly. What he flicked out were crumbs from a steamed bun he hadn’t finished eating.
Jing Jun was trembling, the little maid was still confused about what was happening, but Cui Jie’s eyes lit up as she gripped the cart door and stared unblinkingly at those guards.
Jing Hengbo sighed.
She had originally hoped that local officials wouldn’t allow such a group to enter and exit the city. Now seeing these people’s manner of having both money and martial force, where couldn’t they go?
She had also wanted to ask the guards how the great god could know she would teleport to the main hall and how he could intercept her there precisely. But seeing these guys’ tight-lipped appearance, getting answers might have to wait for the next lifetime.
Indeed, this entire journey they miraculously encountered no night patrol soldiers. When they reached the city gate, the gate was already locked. The carriages stopped far away, the thin man leaped up, and returned moments later with a large ring of gleaming keys.
Jing Hengbo covered her forehead speechlessly, thinking that Sanshui County had at least five hundred soldiers—how did they become like paper city walls under these people’s hands?
Her last hope was also shattered. She gripped the cart door and bid final farewell to Sanshui County in the night.
Then she stretched lazily, her eyes darting in all directions.
Everyone was traveling, the horse carriage ahead showed no movement, Cui Jie beside her was already sleeping carelessly, the little maid was also drowsily leaning against the cart door. Only Jing Jun was nervously staring at her with strange eyes.