The carriage galloped eastward, kicking up clouds of dust.
Two guards split the silver in half and stuffed it into their belts.
"Let's go for a drink when we're off duty tomorrow," one of them said. The other nodded.
Early the next morning, the disappearance of Prince Rui was discovered. In front of the palace hall, Mu Yefeng looked at Mu Yichen and asked, "Do you know that your elder brother is missing?"
Mu Yichen was worried that others might suspect him. Hearing Mu Yefeng's question, he immediately flared up. "What do you mean, Crown Prince? Do you suspect that I let him go?"
Mu Yefeng twirled the Buddhist beads in his hand and gave a faint smile. "Why are you so angry, Prince Qi? I'm just asking."
Mu Yichen snorted and stopped talking to him.
More and more officials came to attend the court session, but they waited for a while without seeing Mu Yanming.
Mu Yichen looked at Mu Yefeng. "Why hasn't the Regent arrived yet? Is he not coming to court today?"
Just as he finished speaking, Mu Yanming appeared in their sight.
Mu Yefeng stepped forward a few steps. "Brother, the prison was raided last night, and Mu Shengze is missing."
Mu Yanming already knew about this. He was late because he had sent people to investigate.
"There was a suspicious carriage last night. It left the city in the middle of the night. I've already sent people to chase it."
Mu Yefeng put away the Buddhist beads and wrapped them around his wrist. "A carriage? How could it leave the city so late?"
"Two audacious guards took the silver and let them out. I sent people to interrogate them. They said they saw the carriage going east when the city gate was being closed. If the carriage has been traveling non - stop, it should be five or six hundred miles away by now."
Mu Yichen suddenly asked, "Can we still catch up with them?"
He was secretly worried. They must catch up with Mu Shengze, or he would be the most suspected one. Now that Mu Shengze had been demoted to a commoner, he mustn't be implicated!
The two of them looked at Mu Yichen in unison. Mu Yichen felt that they were suspecting him from their looks.
"Why are you looking at me like this?"
Mu Yefeng turned to Mu Yanming and smiled. "Brother, do you think Prince Qi is feeling guilty? I think he seems so ill - at - ease today."
"All right, let's go in."
After entering the palace hall, the emperor was sitting high on the dragon throne.
The eunuch shouted in a shrill voice, "Those who have matters to report, step forward. If not, the court is adjourned."
The official in charge of the prison stepped forward slowly. "Your Majesty, there was a prison break last night, and... Mu Shengze is missing." He subconsciously called him Prince Rui, then quickly corrected himself when he realized his mistake.
The emperor scanned him up and down and slapped the imperial desk heavily.
"Outrageous! What are you all doing? How could you let him escape! Have you found out which direction he fled in?"
Mu Yanming looked at Mu Yefeng and signaled him with his eyes. Mu Yefeng received the signal and stepped forward to say softly, "Your Majesty, he fled eastward. Based on the time he left the city, if he hasn't stopped, he should be five or six hundred miles away by now."
The emperor looked at Mu Yefeng and nodded in satisfaction. "Good. Since we know the direction, send troops to chase him. We must bring him back. Crown Prince, I'll leave this matter to you. Also, find out who raided the prison and if there was any secret accomplice."
Mu Yichen's heart skipped a beat. Did the emperor also suspect that he had let Mu Shengze go?
"Your Majesty, don't worry. Your son will investigate this matter thoroughly."
The other officials also nodded at Mu Yefeng in satisfaction, their looks as if they were looking at a child they had nurtured finally growing up.
...
Mu Shengze slowly woke up and found himself tied up.
He was enraged and wanted to shout, but found his mouth was gagged. He tried his best but couldn't untie the ropes, so he kept moving back and forth in the carriage.
The carriage made a rattling sound. The horse was tied to a dead tree. The two black - clothed men, dressed as merchants, were roasting fish by the river.
Mu Shengze smelled the fragrance, and his stomach growled loudly at the right time.
After roasting the fish, the two men walked towards the carriage and lifted the curtain to look at Mu Shengze.
"Do you want to eat?"
Mu Shengze snorted and turned his head away. Although he had been demoted to a commoner, he was once the eldest son of the emperor, born with a silver spoon in his mouth, and the respected Prince Rui in the court.
He would never lower his proud head for a roasted fish.
The man holding the fish sneered and mocked, "What? Do you still think you're the high - and - mighty Prince Rui? You've been demoted to a commoner, don't you know? Also, although this is a dirty roasted fish, I'm telling you, if you don't eat, you'll starve to death. You surely don't want to be the first prince in history to starve to death, do you?"
His words were seductive, and Mu Shengze's stomach was growling uncontrollably.
He then turned his head and looked at the man.
The man put the roasted fish directly on the stool in front of the carriage, then climbed up to untie Mu Shengze.
After untying the ropes, Mu Shengze pulled out the rag in his mouth and threw it on the ground.
He picked up the roasted fish and looked at it disdainfully. Even so, he still closed his eyes and took a big bite.
The taste was actually not bad. He finished the fish in a short while, but his stomach was still very hungry. He looked at the man and asked angrily, "Do you have any more?"
The man put out the fire, then took the kettle and went to the stream to fill it with water.
"Your Highness, there's no more. Bear with it. There will be food when we reach the next town."
Mu Shengze looked around. He didn't recognize any of the places.
"Where are you taking me? And who sent you to raid the prison?"
The man finished filling the water, tightened the lid, and fastened it to his waist. "Your Highness, please forgive us. It's better for you not to know who saved you. As for where we're taking you, you'll know when you get there."
Mu Shengze guessed that it must be his mother who had sent people to save him. He couldn't think of anyone else who would care about him.
"What else did the person who sent you to save me order?"
The man smiled faintly. "Your Highness, don't try to get information from us. After we send you to the destination, we'll leave and never return to the capital of the Li State. And Your Highness, you'd better not go back either. The place we're taking you to is a place where the emperor can't find you no matter who he sends. So you'd better think clearly. Is it better to be imprisoned for life or to live freely?"
Mu Shengze was in a dilemma. He had to admit that the black - clothed man was right.
It seemed good to find a quiet place to spend the rest of his life, but that wasn't Mu Shengze!
He couldn't bear to live like this for the rest of his life!