Chapter 21 - 2#

He didn’t want to stay here, nor did he want to stop. He only wanted to run forward, and it would be best if he could run to the south all at once!

Sugar cakes, there must be some in the south too! There are even more delicious snacks in the south!

He ran all the way to the city gate, just about to run out, when suddenly, a burst of hurried footsteps came from behind him, from far to near, slowly approaching.

Yanzhi was shocked and hurriedly looked back.

He saw a familiar military general, leading several hundred soldiers, running toward here.

The soldiers were wearing black armor and had a huge momentum, obviously the imperial guards from the palace.

In the next moment, Yanzhi suddenly reacted, turned his head, and ran in big strides toward the city gate.

Quick! Run!

In the next moment, the general raised his hand and shouted: “His Majesty has ordered to close the South City Gate! No one is allowed to leave the city!”

Two hundred imperial guards repeated His Majesty’s verbal decree: “Close the city gate! No one is allowed to leave the city!”

The soldiers guarding the city gate reacted, hurriedly stepped forward, stood behind the city gate, and together reached out their hands, using all the strength in their bodies to push.

The city gate opened inward, and the door leaves were tall and heavy, not so easy to push.

Even if pushed, to close it completely also took a certain amount of time.

Many commoners whose homes were outside the city, seeing the city gate about to close, also regained their senses and ran out the gate.

“Officer, officer, be kind!”

“It’s about to snow heavily!”

“We have to go home!”

Yanzhi took this opportunity to mix in the crowd and run forward without looking back.

Rumble—rumble—

At the moment the city gate was about to close, Yanzhi was tripped by someone, lunged forward, and lunged out of the city gate.

Bang—

Yanzhi fell heavily on the ground, and the “little dog” in his arms was pressed by him, letting out an “ao wu.”

Yanzhi regained his senses, hurriedly held the “little dog,” stroked it through the package, and climbed up from the ground: “I’m sorry, I’m sorry…”

He looked back, only hearing a loud “clack,” and the city gate slowly closed in front of him.

And that military general, also leading several hundred imperial guards, came behind the city gate.

At the moment the gate closed, across the gap of the gate, Yanzhi met the general’s gaze.

Yanzhi was startled, hurriedly raised his sleeve, covered his face, and turned his head away.

His heart was beating like a drum, almost jumping out of his throat.

These people aren’t here to catch him, are they?

He wasn’t recognized, was he?

In that glance just now, he was already recognized, wasn’t he?

Yanzhi’s legs were weak, and his body had no strength, but he still struggled, trying to climb up from the ground, ready to continue running.

No matter what, he was already out of the city, and he still had a chance.

Quickly run!

Just when he was about to leave here, he suddenly heard someone inside the city gate ask: “General Wang, should we send someone to catch back the person who just escaped?”

The person called “General Wang” thought for a moment and said: “No need. They’re all commoners whose homes are outside the city, they’re just going home, let them go.”

“Yes.”

Yanzhi sighed in relief, but didn’t dare to relax. He dragged his weak legs and feet and followed the commoners forward.

He originally thought that His Majesty had just appointed an Empress and would stay with the Empress for at least half a month before discovering he was gone.

He also thought that even if His Majesty discovered he was gone, he wouldn’t care much, anyway, when he was in the palace, His Majesty didn’t care much about him.

He didn’t expect that His Majesty discovered it so quickly.

His Majesty actually sent soldiers to catch him.

Luckily he didn’t go to buy an umbrella or sugar cakes, luckily he didn’t delay time and ran all the way.

Otherwise, he would have been locked in the city.

However…

It’s also possible that he was being sentimental.

Maybe these people weren’t here to catch him at all? Maybe the government was just chasing after a fugitive?

He wasn’t a fugitive, he just instinctively ran away.

Moreover, the general who came after him looked very familiar.

When he met his gaze, Yanzhi was seventy or eighty percent sure that he had already recognized him.

But he didn’t send anyone to catch him.

It shows that their target was not him.

Thinking this way, Yanzhi felt much more at ease.

Until he walked very, very far away, Yanzhi dared to unwrap the package in his arms and let the “little dog” stick its head out to breathe.

The cold wind blew toward his face, and the snow particles hit his face.

Yanzhi reached out his hand, and the fine snow particles like knives cut a small cut on his finger.

Suddenly, a matter flashed in Yanzhi’s mind—

In September at the Beiliang Mountain hunting grounds, he had helped a little girl and her little maid, and sent the lost girls back to the female camp.

The little girl said her surname was Wang, and her father was the Mighty General Wang Xing.

Before parting, the little girl asked him what his name was and told her father when she went back to thank him.

And the general who just chased after him was exactly the Mighty General, Wang Xing.

Yanzhi seemed to understand something, held the wolf cub tightly in his arms, and walked forward with heavy steps.

*

The wind blew harder and harder, and the snow fell harder and harder.

The climate this year was strange. It was winter but there was no snow for a long time.

Today, the sky changed suddenly, and it suddenly snowed.

At first it was just small snow particles, but in a quarter of an hour, it became large snowflakes.

After another quarter of an hour, the entire capital was covered with a layer of snow white.

Xiao Cuan was still wearing the wedding gown from the grand wedding ceremony, standing on the palace wall and gate tower.

This gate tower was where he announced the selection in front of Yanzhi on the day the army returned to the city.

It was also where he and Yanzhi watched the fireworks on the night of the victory banquet.

The black wedding gown was stained with blood, and the wild wind blew toward his face, messing up the hair that Yanzhi had combed neatly for him.

Xiao Cuan’s face was ashen, gritting his teeth tightly, staring firmly under the gate tower, not letting any passerby go.

The soldiers sent out one after another ran back to report—

“Reporting to Your Majesty, North City Gate not found!”

“Reporting to Your Majesty, East City Gate and West City Gate also not found!”

“Your Majesty, South City Gate also…”

Without waiting for the soldier to finish, Xiao Cuan clenched his fist and slammed it heavily on the battlement.

With a loud “bang,” the stone fragments on the stone wall flew.

Yanzhi… Yanzhi… Yanzhi!

Where on earth did he run to?!

Just then, another soldier came to report: “Replying to Your Majesty! The two small officials who checked the palace servants leaving the palace have come!”

Xiao Cuan turned his head suddenly, and saw two small officials wearing green clothes, being brought up by the soldiers.

The two small officials hurried to him, brushed their robes, and were about to kneel and salute: “Pay respects to Your Majesty…”

“Don’t kneel!” Xiao Cuan rushed forward in one stride, grabbed their collars, and lifted them from the ground, “Where is Yanzhi?!”

“Young Master Yanzhi…”

The commotion of finding someone was so big that the two small officials also heard about it on the way here.

“May Your Majesty judge clearly!”

“We didn’t know Young Master Yanzhi originally, and only acted according to Your Majesty’s decree. Young Master Yanzhi’s name was on the departure roster, and he also took out the deed of manumission…”

Xiao Cuan interrupted sternly: “Who gave him the deed of manumission?”

“It’s…” the two looked at each other, “It’s written by Your Majesty himself, so we thought it was Your Majesty’s intention…”

“Nonsense!”

Xiao Cuan instinctively denied it.

“When did I ever write a deed of manumission for him? When did I say I would let him leave? He secretly added his name to the roster and forged a deed of manumission himself—can’t you tell?”

“Even if you can’t tell the truth from the false of the deed of manumission, don’t you know that Yanzhi is mine? Yanzhi wants to leave, won’t you come to report to me?”

The two small officials timidly said: “Replying to Your Majesty, we really didn’t know… Young Master Yanzhi is Your Majesty’s.”

Xiao Cuan remained silent for a moment, and the hand grabbing their collars also loosened.

It’s true, he never told the outside world that Yanzhi was his personal attendant, his male favorite.

Yanzhi wasn’t his consort, let alone becoming his Empress.

Yanzhi didn’t even have a status. Except for the close ministers, who else would know that Yanzhi was his?

One of the small officials said again: “Moreover, we have seen the seal on the deed of manumission, it’s indeed Your Majesty’s imperial seal.”

“I still remember, it was written on the deed of manumission—”

“‘Now there is a criminal slave Yanzhi, with an ugly appearance, crude behavior, and poor service. He is specially pardoned to leave the palace.’”

With a “boom,” a sudden thunder exploded above Xiao Cuan’s head.

In an instant, Xiao Cuan understood everything—

Six years ago, on the night of Yanzhi’s twelfth birthday.

He forgot Yanzhi’s birthday and didn’t buy him puffs. Yanzhi’s favorability toward him dropped a little bit.

At that time, he was reviewing memorials and casually wrote a deed of manumission, threw it to Yanzhi, and said to him: “I specially allow you to leave the palace, no need to stay in the palace as a slave anymore.”

That little idiot Yanzhi, was moved to tears by this deed of manumission and his two sentences.

Yanzhi held him pitifully, saying he would definitely be loyal to His Majesty, never leave His Majesty in his life, and begged His Majesty not to drive him away.

The little bit of favorability that dropped was immediately made up, and it was made up more and fuller.

Xiao Cuan saw him cry, gave him another puff to eat, and didn’t care about him anymore, let alone the deed of manumission.

Anyway, Yanzhi’s favorability toward him was always full.

Anyway, Yanzhi would never leave him.

Anyway, Yanzhi would always like him.

But now thinking about it—

Yanzhi would even carefully collect the snack wrappers he had eaten, let alone this deed of manumission?

He must have collected it carefully too.

Not long ago, Yanzhi had just recovered from a major illness.

After waking up, he ran to the room and flipped out these old things.

Xiao Cuan thought at that time that this was evidence that Yanzhi liked him.

But now it seems that this is clearly evidence that Yanzhi intended to leave!

What Yanzhi was looking for at that time was not chocolate wrappers or jelly shells, but this deed of manumission!

Yanzhi had already decided to leave at that time.

Six years ago, the sudden thunder he personally buried finally exploded at this moment.

Exploded with world-shaking momentum! Exploded with flesh and blood flying!

Xiao Cuan’s face was taut, ashen, suddenly picked up the long halberd on one side, bypassed the two small officials, and strode down the gate tower.

Yanzhi! He had to go and find Yanzhi!

Tell him that the deed of manumission from six years ago is outdated! It can’t be used now!

He can’t use it!