Chapter 191 - 38: The First Strike! Prince Jin Completely Broken

"I wonder what’s up with the Governor. It’s just bandits, but he insists on dealing with them now. The murderous look on his face when he left, anyone would think he was going to suppress a rebellion!"

"..."

Prince Jin did not reply. In a sense, Qi Yuanliang was indeed going to suppress a rebellion.

The troops stationed there were meant for his own uprising.

Hopefully, there won’t be any issues.

Thinking about his arrangements, Prince Jin furrowed his brows and reassured himself that even if Qi Yuanliang found them, it shouldn’t be a big problem.

But at that moment.

A voice from the crowd suddenly shouted out.

"Look, it seems like the mountain is on fire!"

With that shout, many people turned to look.

"It’s really on fire!"

"The flames are huge."

"Wait, isn’t that direction Sanquan Mountain?"

"Luckily, Sanquan Mountain and our Prince Jin City are separated by a river. The fire won’t reach here!"

"..."

Discussions rose and fell.

Sanquan Mountain was close to Prince Jin City, but several rivers and a waterfall lay in between, preventing the fire from reaching the city.

Realizing this fact.

The citizens, who were initially a little panicked, calmed down instantly. Occasionally, they commented as if watching a drama.

But.

Prince Jin Yan Ze was far from calm.

He stared wide-eyed at the fire expanding over Sanquan Mountain, eyes filled with disbelief.

"Audacious! Truly audacious!"

He uttered these words through gritted teeth.

He never thought Qi Yuanliang would resort to arson to deal with the troops he had hidden on Sanquan Mountain.

With a blaze like that, even if his 100,000 troops survive, probably less than ten percent would remain.

"Damn it! It must be him!"

Prince Jin Yan Ze thought of the person behind Qi Yuanliang, who likely ordered him to do this to stabilize the court’s security. Understanding this wasn’t hard.

After all, he had long witnessed the ruthlessness of the opponent.

"What are you standing around for!"

Finally, Prince Jin Yan Ze couldn’t hold back.

He shouted at the people around him.

The atmosphere around instantly quieted.

"Gather the troops and head to Sanquan Mountain with me!"

No time to overthink; if this drags on, damn it, the entire Sanquan Mountain might burn down.

"Yes!"

The guards around the pavilion jumped into action after hearing Prince Jin Yan Ze’s orders.

The people inside the pavilion weren’t fools.

Seeing the situation, they realized something big was happening.

The citizens by the lakeshore were frightened by the gathered forces; the chaos felt like a pot of porridge.

"Sir, let’s leave first!"

Over by Zhao Feibai.

Listening to his subordinates, Zhao Feibai nodded. At times like this, ensuring personal safety was paramount.

However.

Zhao Feibai didn’t notice that after he left, Jiang Jing, a guard from Prince Jin’s side, also followed the crowd, trailing far behind Zhao Feibai and his men at a distance.

Taking advantage of his descent from the pavilion amid the crowd.

Jiang Jing lowered his head slightly and slipped next to Zhao Feibai.

"Make way! Make way!"

"Clear a path for me!"

Zhao Feibai’s subordinates were dispersing the crowd to create a path for him.

However.

There were too many people here, and clearing the way was slow.

Zhao Feibai was already visibly impatient.

Especially being guarded and occasionally bumped by the crowd, his expression turned even uglier.

"Damn nuisances!"

He brushed off the spot he had been bumped, his face full of disdain.

In the next moment.

Having squeezed behind Zhao Feibai amidst the crowd, Jiang Jing merely raised his hand and tapped the back of Zhao Feibai’s neck. Zhao Feibai’s vision went dark, completely losing consciousness.

Jiang Jing smoothly supported Zhao Feibai and headed in another direction.

With so many people, no one noticed Zhao Feibai’s unusual state.

Even if they did, they’d probably think he was just drunk.

"Sir, already,..."

Zhao Feibai’s subordinates had cleared some space by now.

They were about to signal Zhao to board a carriage.

But when they turned back, Zhao Feibai was nowhere to be seen.

"???"

The sudden event left them all looking at each other, none knowing what to say.

"Where is he?"

"No idea."

"Weren’t you watching him?"

Nobody spoke, but their glances said everything.

"Search!"

No time to overthink.

Failing to find him, never mind anything else, the Zhao family would never let them off.

They started searching frantically.

Unfortunately, with such a crowd, there was no clue where to start.

On the pavilion, the sudden turn of events left Qu Sisi looking a bit flustered. Yet, in the next moment.

A strong arm pulled Qu Sisi into a familiar embrace.

"Why panic? I’m here, am I not?"

At those words.

Such simple reassurance calmed Qu Sisi’s previously chaotic mind, as if all her fears vanished instantly.

"What do we do now?"

Qu Sisi realized.

This chaos surely involved Ye Liuyun, though she didn’t know what came next.

"Rest assured, leave everything to me!"

Ye Liuyun had no intention of involving Qu Sisi in his plans.

"I’ve arranged a carriage outside the city gates. You go there first. Once I’ve dealt with things here, I’ll take you away!"

"..."