The evening was peaceful, and the Zhu family noticeably relaxed.
On the rooftop, Zhu Changle watched her mother bustling about with others and said softly, "We can't move forward anymore."
Dingding nodded, "We can't fall into their trap. Let's wait for Little Golden to return."
Lying back, Zhu Changle lifted her feet and gazed at the faintly bright sky, pondering. Little Golden had gone too far from her and could only follow Lan Ping, but once it got close enough, it would be able to find her. It would definitely arrive before Lan Ping, and considering the timing, it should be soon. This slight delay was manageable.
"Changle, Ziming, come down for breakfast!"
"Coming!" Zhu Changle sat up and gave her companion a pat. "Don't say too much."
"I'm not stupid," Dingding rolled his eyes at her before leaping down.
Everyone knew that resting for another day wouldn't raise any objections. Even Zhu Maonian wouldn't make rash decisions in this matter.
"Miss, I'll go ahead to take a look," Aunt Feng said.
Zhu Changle lifted her gaze from the map to look at Aunt Feng. "How far ahead?"
"If they're lying in wait, they'll surely calculate based on our usual travel distance. It would be at the fourth or fifth relay station ahead."
Zhu Changle thought for a moment, then shook her head. "We can't be overconfident. If you alone step into their net, you might not be able to escape unscathed."
"They won't be able to hold me."
Zhu Changle closed the map but still shook her head. "You're not allowed to go. After several encounters, I've clearly sensed that the Black-robed Men's strength increases in stages. This is a common tactic used by Assassin Organizations. The people they send later will only get stronger. Right now, nothing is more important than my family's safety. Everything else can wait."
"Understood."
Zhu Changle rested her chin on her hand, lost in thought. "Judging from the pursuers we've encountered so far, it doesn't seem like two factions have joined forces. I wonder if they haven't allied, or if their people just haven't caught up yet. I was just looking at the map, and the area we're in now is no stranger to trouble."
Aunt Feng couldn't immediately grasp what her young miss was thinking. "Are you planning to use them, or do you think they've already been employed by someone else?"
"I'm preparing for them. When Lan Ping arrives, we'll use her status as the Canal Gang's little princess to borrow some manpower. If Prime Minister Zhu is determined to take my family's lives at any cost, the road ahead won't be peaceful, and... it will only get more difficult to deal with."
Aunt Feng considered the territories they would pass through ahead and understood. Further south would be Immortal Lady Wen's domain. "The Wen woman probably won't act personally."
"She will," Zhu Changle scoffed. "She's the most shameless person I've ever met. She's the one who started calling my master a Witch, then turned around and dubbed herself an Immortal Lady. With that level of shamelessness, do you think she'd hold back just because I'm younger? At most, she'd just try to be a bit more discreet."
Aunt Feng had to admit that her young miss had a point. Someone who could call herself an Immortal Lady indeed wouldn't care about saving face.
"How many people in the Martial Arts World, especially the younger generation, even know her real name now? The title of Immortal Lady resounds through the heavens! Tch!" Zhu Changle stretched lazily and called out towards the door, "If you dare kick my door, I'll kick you out."
Dingding's raised foot stopped midair. Not wanting to be intimidated, he lightly tapped the door open with his toe, satisfying his own pride while giving Zhu Changle no reason to find fault. It wasn't that he was afraid of her; it's just that women were too troublesome. Hitting a woman lacked chivalry, so he was just being considerate.
Having convinced himself, Dingding sauntered in with his hands behind his back. "You're always ordering me around, and you can't even pour me a cup of water?"
Zhu Changle gestured with her chin towards the tea set on the table. "Did you pick up any news?"
Resigned to pouring his own water, Dingding took a drink and squatted on a stool. "The nearest town is about twenty li away. Our brothers there say no strangers have come through, but there have been more people than usual these past two days."
"Locals?"
"Mm-hmm." Dingding stroked his chin thoughtfully. "I went further to another town to ask around, and it's the same story. Little Zhu, your enemy has invested heavily. There are about five potential troublemakers in this area. If they've bought them all off... we're in for a wild ride."
Beggar's Sect disciples were spread throughout the land, and with an elder backing him, fellow sect members wouldn't deceive Dingding. Confirming her suspicions, Zhu Changle nodded. "So we can't move. Little Bottle Cap needs to hurry. As long as you and she can help me protect my family, I won't have to be so restrained. I'm not afraid of anyone we might face."
"Don't brag. Given the grudge between Immortal Lady Wen and your master, she definitely won't miss this chance to kick you while you're down... Ouch!" Dingding rubbed his head and quickly added, "I mean she's despicable, and she'll definitely expose your official family background to cause trouble for your master."
"You think my master would be afraid of that? When she comes out of seclusion and finds out I've been bullied, she'll tear down that Immortal Lady's celestial abode."
Zhu Changle snorted, then felt aggrieved. She had been chased and hounded all this way, something she had never experienced in her life. Why hadn't her master come out of seclusion to help her seek revenge?
"Hmph!" She snorted heavily again to express her anger, then stood up and walked out. She needed to make some preparations to deal with the situation.
Although she had anticipated an ambush, the number of people who came still exceeded Zhu Changle's expectations.
The moon hung high, and the people outside didn't bother to conceal their presence at all. Zhu Maonian had once found Changle's roof-hopping endearing and had even suppressed a smile when she jumped onto the roof after angering her mother. But now, he felt only anger.
Looking back at his daughter, who had her head lowered, Zhu Maonian asked a question to which he already knew the answer, "Are all those people gone?"
"They've been gone since two attacks ago." Zhu Changle usually didn't wear her clothes properly, always rolling up her sleeves once or twice for comfort. But now her sleeves were down. She touched her wrist and looked up. "No matter what happens outside, don't open the door. It would distract me."
Zhu Changwang promised her, "Don't worry, we understand."
Zhu Changle stood up and placed a bottle of medicine in her father's hand. "These are antidote pills I got from the Old Monk. They can counteract most poisons, and even for severe poisons, they can buy time. I'm worried they might use underhanded tactics, so everyone should take one."
"Changle..." Lady Zhang was extremely worried, but after calling out, she didn't know what else to say. This time, Changle was more serious than ever before, indicating that the people coming were extraordinary. They could hide inside, but their daughter had to go out and face the enemy! If something were to happen...
"Mother, I'm very capable. As long as they don't capture you, I can take them down." Zhu Changle waved her arms and joked as usual to comfort her mother. At the door, she said to Aunt Feng, who had opened it, "Guard well, don't worry about me."
Aunt Feng remained silent. For her, the young miss was the most important; everything else was secondary.
Zhu Changle stared at her steadily.
Aunt Feng pressed her lips together and nodded. "Understood."
