Hearing this, the two of them were stunned.
“Your Highness, what do you mean by this?”
Wen Zheng let out a long sigh, then respectfully bowed to them. Seeing this, Quan Minghao was shocked and quickly reached out to support him, trying to stop him.
“Your Highness, you are the Crown Prince! You must not perform such a grand gesture to your subjects. If word of this gets out, our Marquis’ household may bring disaster upon itself!”
Wen Zheng shook his head and gently pushed away Quan Minghao’s hand, insisting, “This bow, I must give. First, to thank you for taking me in during this time.”
Looking up at them, Wen Zheng’s heart was filled with guilt. “What you are about to face is because of me. That is the second reason.”
Zhao Qingrong, completely confused, urgently asked, “What’s going on? What’s about to happen?”
Wen Zheng let out another deep sigh. “The day before yesterday, my royal father summoned me to Yangxin Hall and assigned me a task—to bring him the head of General Zhenbei within three days.”
Upon hearing this, Quan Minghao’s eyes widened instantly. “How is that possible?! General Zhenbei is a great general of the nation. It’s thanks to him that we’ve kept winning battles all these years and held back the barbarian tribes at the border! I’ve been on the battlefield with him many times. His martial skills—he’s practically a war god! How can we kill a man like that?”
Wen Zheng nodded. “That’s exactly what I told my royal father. But he’s old now, and his paranoia has become extreme. He suspects the general’s rising fame means he’s plotting rebellion.”
Quan Minghao slammed his palm on the table. “That is absolutely impossible! The Yu family has been loyal for generations—so many fine men have died on the battlefield for the country. They still have fifty thousand soldiers under their command. If they had any intention of rebelling, they would have done so long ago—why wait until now?”
As soon as the words left his mouth, Quan Minghao suddenly realized he had misspoken. The person before him was the current Crown Prince, His Majesty’s eldest legitimate son. What he had just said could be considered inappropriate. He was about to explain himself when Wen Zheng spoke first.
“What the Marquis said is correct. But in Royal Father’s eyes, it is not so. Those fifty thousand Yu family troops have always been loyal only to the Yu family. In Royal Father’s view, they are a thorn in his flesh, a nail in his eye. Now that he has removed General Zhenbei, the next step is to eliminate the Yu family army.”
All the strength suddenly drained from Quan Minghao, and he collapsed into his chair. “Then what do we do now? If Brother Yu truly has died, and the barbarians on the border get wind of it, they’ll launch an attack in no time. The common people will suffer.”
Wen Zheng sighed. “Last night, while it was still dim before full dark, I led the people of the Zhenbei General’s Manor out of the city. That way, at least some lives can be spared.”
Upon hearing this, Quan Minghao finally breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s good. But… what about you? How will you report back to His Majesty?”
Zhao Qingrong added anxiously, “Yes, child. And you mentioned earlier that this matter also implicates our Marquis—why is that?”
Wen Zheng stood, lifted his robes, and knelt straight down.
“Royal Father told me that if I can’t bring back General Zhenbei’s head in three days, he’ll throw the entire Yongning Marquis household into prison!”
Zhao Qingrong almost couldn’t catch her breath. “What did you say?!”
Wen Zheng’s eyes were full of guilt. “I used to be an emotionless monster. Whatever Royal Father told me to do, I did. I was just a blade in his hand. It was Ah Heng who saved me. She taught me, who had lost all memory, how to be human. Only then did I begin to feel… and understand how vile Royal Father’s tyranny really is.”
“The more I tried to stop this, the more Royal Father grew suspicious. He believed I’d secretly colluded with the Marquis to rebel using the military power in your hands. He’s determined to break me. I came here today to tell you that I’ve arranged everything. You must pack up quickly—by nightfall, I’ll send you out of the city, far from this dangerous capital.”
There was so much information in Wen Zheng’s words that neither the Marquis nor his wife could respond for a moment.
Finally, it was Quan Minghao who spoke first, worried. “Then what about you?”
Wen Zheng pressed his lips together. “I’ll find a condemned criminal, disguise him as General Zhenbei, and deliver his head to my royal father. But this trick will eventually be exposed. When that happens, he’ll come after you all. You must flee—go as far as you can.”
Zhao Qingrong’s face was full of disbelief.
The current emperor was her mother’s younger brother—her own uncle.
A few years ago, he had already grown suspicious of the sister who helped him rise to power and forcibly sent her to a temple on the outskirts of the capital.
And now, he wanted to wipe out even the entire Yongning Marquis household?
Madness.
At that moment, she remembered something crucial and quickly asked, “You’ve arranged everything for us—but what about my Ah Heng? She hasn’t returned all day. Don’t tell me something’s already happened to her?”
Hearing this, Quan Minghao’s vision went black, and he nearly lost his footing.
Wen Zheng quickly explained, “No! Yesterday, Ah Heng was indeed nearly harmed. Royal Father’s men took her to a remote wilderness, intending to kill her quietly. Thankfully, I arrived in time and rescued her. It was already late, and she was frightened, so I brought her to a manor I had purchased and settled her there.”
Upon hearing this, the Marquis and his wife finally relaxed.
“In that case, call her back quickly. Let’s pack up together. If we hurry, we can leave the city tonight.”
Wen Zheng looked at them, finally making a decision. He lowered his head and kowtowed three times—each one heavy and sincere.
Zhao Qingrong was startled and stood up quickly. “Child, what are you doing? We cannot accept such a gesture!”
When Wen Zheng looked up, his eyes were red and filled with tears. “Marquis, Madam—if you trust me, please entrust Ah Heng to me. I will protect her.”
Zhao Qingrong was stunned.
“Madam, the emperor isn’t just targeting the Marquis household. More importantly, he wants to use Ah Heng to control me, to turn me back into that blade. If we don’t hide her, if she remains within Royal Father’s sight, she will face grave danger—perhaps even death.”
Tears welled in Wen Zheng’s eyes. His tone was sincere. “I love her. I want to protect her. Even if I must sacrifice my life, I will not let her suffer the slightest harm. For the first twenty years, I didn’t understand love. Because of her, I finally became human. I know this isn’t the right time to say it, but I still want to ask—please, entrust her to me. May I?”
“When the situation settles in the future, I will personally return to Yongning Marquis Manor, propose to her in proper form, and give Ah Heng the respect she deserves.”
Hearing this, Quan Minghao and Zhao Qingrong exchanged a long look and sighed together.
They had heard rumors of the Crown Prince’s cruelty in previous years. But after spending months with him, living together daily, they could feel with their hearts—he was not a bad person.
Though his temper could be volatile, it was always because Ah Heng was hurt, and he wanted to stand up for her.
His sincerity toward Ah Heng was evident to all.
At this point, with the entire Marquis household facing disaster and a life on the run ahead of them, Ah Heng’s health had always been poor. If she fled with them, she might not survive it.
Better to entrust her to him with peace of mind.
At last, Zhao Qingrong spoke. “If that’s the case, then you must protect her well. Don’t let her be heartbroken. Guard her for a lifetime.”
Wen Zheng nodded, his eyes red but resolute. “I, Wen Zheng, swear to protect Ah Heng for the rest of my life. If I break this oath, may the heavens strike me with lightning and never grant me peace!”
Quan Minghao personally helped him up. “Enough, child. You needn’t make such a heavy oath. My wife and I both believe—you will keep your word.”
Time was short. After exchanging a few more words, the Marquis and Madam went to pack their belongings themselves.
By dusk, the key members of the household had gathered. As night fell, they left the city together and headed straight for the outskirts.
Wen Zheng led at the front.
The ancestral home of the Quan family was in Jinling. Now, they would go into hiding and return to their hometown. As long as they reached the ferry safely and boarded the boat bound for Jinling, they would be safe.
But not long after they left the city, they were ambushed on a path outside the city.
The attackers were all dressed in black, but their moves were completely different from the assassins Ah Heng encountered yesterday. Clearly, this was a different group.
Very quickly, Wen Zheng and Quan Minghao were locked in battle with them. Though Quan Ye was still injured, the life-and-death situation forced him to fight too.
There were many enemies this time. Even with Wen Zheng’s martial skill, he couldn’t protect everyone.
The women nearby screamed in fear. Some maidservants and old women ran off on their own in panic.
Wen Zheng fought while protecting the others. Before long, he was wounded himself.
Soon, nearly all the black-clad attackers were dead—only one remained. Seeing the mission had failed, he decided to drag someone down with him.
He grabbed a young woman in noble attire next to Zhao Qingrong and fled toward the woods.
Everyone from the Marquis household cried out in shock.
Quan Rui was frozen in fear.
Before they departed, Ziyun had said she was Ah Heng’s closest sister and must not be harmed. On the run, the ones most easily targeted were those in fine clothing. To be safe, they had swapped outfits.
Quan Rui hadn’t thought much of it—until now.
Had they not switched clothes, she would have been the one taken.
She trembled all over, filled with fear and guilt.
She grabbed Wen Zheng’s sleeve and pleaded, “Your Highness, the one taken was Ziyun—Ah Heng’s personal maid. Please save her! If Ah Heng comes back and finds out her maid is dead, she’ll be heartbroken!”
Wen Zheng looked toward the direction the man fled, gritted his teeth. “All right. I’ll save her. You all stay hidden!”
With that, he chased after the assassin. He threw his sword, which pierced the man’s chest directly.
The black-clad man collapsed, his grip loosening. Ziyun lost her balance and tumbled down a steep hillside.
The slope was long and treacherous—terrifying.
Wen Zheng’s heart clenched.
If she rolled all the way down, she might not survive.
At that moment, the sound of clashing swords came from behind him again.
Wen Zheng turned. A new group of assassins had arrived. Quan Ye was fighting them but already faltering.
If he went to save Ziyun, he’d be abandoning the entire household. More than one person might die.
He had no choice but to give up on saving Ziyun and return to the others, fighting off the assassins once more.
