By the time Mu Wanyu realized something was amiss, it was already too late.
A strange fragrance wafted into her nostrils. Before she could cover her nose and mouth, she fainted.
Just before losing consciousness, she managed to see who was behind her.
Disgust flashed in her eyes at the sight of that face.
This Xu Qun was incredibly audacious to dare to act against her. It seemed he was tired of living.
Xu Qun naturally didn't miss the emotion in the empress dowager's eyes, but he didn't care at all. All he could think about now was the princess.
As long as he could be with the princess, it was very likely that the whole world would be his. What was an empress dowager compared to that?
He stuffed the unconscious person on the ground into a sack, hoisted it onto his shoulder, and walked out of the alley.
At the alley entrance, a figure suddenly appeared. He felt a twinge of guilt and tried to back away, but it was too late.
"What's in the sack, General Xu?"
Cui Qizhou raised an eyebrow. He always felt that the man in front of him was acting strangely.
Just as he reached out to open the sack, Xu Qun dodged nimbly, which only deepened his suspicion.
This was a critical moment for Jiangnan City. No mistakes could be tolerated. He had to keep a close eye on everyone who might cause trouble.
Seeing the man's expression turning colder, Xu Qun forced a stiff smile.
"Your Honor, the national advisor, you're overthinking. I just caught a petty thief stealing food from the common people in the alley. I couldn't stand it, so I decided to take him back and bring him to justice. As for his face, it's really unsightly. You'd better not look. I'm afraid it might sully your eyes."
Cui Qizhou didn't think much of it. He was only half - convinced of Xu Qun's words.
"I've seen so many grand scenes. I'm not so easily scared by a petty thief. General Xu's dedication to the people is commendable. Well, I'd like to take a look and give you some advice."
His hand missed the sack again, and the man finally lost his patience.
He drew his long sword and was about to make a move.
"General Xu, are you determined to go against me today? Could it be that the person in the sack is not the petty thief you claim, but someone else?"
The deliberate pause made Xu Qun visibly flustered for a moment.
Although Xu Qun quickly regained his composure, Cui Qizhou still caught the tell - tale sign.
Could the person in the sack be someone important?
His eyes turned cold. He launched an attack and fought with Xu Qun.
Xu Qun knew he was no match for the man. He kept thinking of an excuse in his mind.
"Your Honor, the national advisor, you've misunderstood. I'm dedicated to the people. How could I do something foolish? You really don't need to see this petty thief."
"Ridiculous! Is there anything I'm not allowed to see?"
Cui Qizhou leaped forward and reached the sack. Before Xu Qun could react, his sword cut the rope.
Xu Qun had already prepared to fight back, but to his surprise, what he saw when the sack was opened was not the empress dowager he had just captured, but an ugly - looking man.
A flash of surprise crossed Cui Qizhou's eyes. He sheathed his sword.
Although Xu Qun didn't know what was going on, he quickly regained his senses and walked up to Cui Qizhou with a smile.
"See? I told you so. You didn't believe me, Your Honor. Now you should believe me, right?"
"If it's just a petty thief, why did you hide it like this? If you had let me see it earlier, I wouldn't have reacted like this."
Xu Qun bowed and scraped like a sycophant. But for now, he didn't care. As long as he could get through this safely.
"Your Honor is right. I was just afraid of sullying your eyes at first. Since you've seen it now, I'll take this man back first, find out his background as soon as possible, and bring him to justice."
After getting Cui Qizhou's permission, he fled from there as if his life depended on it.
When he thought he was at a safe distance, he disgustedly threw the sack aside and began to wonder what had happened. Could it be that the person had been lost on her watch?
He remembered clearly that he had carried the empress dowager on his shoulder from the beginning and never put her down. Why had it suddenly turned into that ugly man?
As if to answer his question, just when he was racking his brains, a figure appeared beside him.
"Fortunately, I had the foresight to follow you. Otherwise, you might have messed this up."
Xu Qun turned around abruptly and locked eyes with the speaker.
He slowly let out a sigh of relief, and surprise appeared on his face.
"Did you swap the person just now? But the person was always in my hands. When did you do it?"
Qin Feng rolled his eyes.
"Don't you remember when I suddenly appeared and stopped you? That's when I had someone make the swap."
He knew Xu Qun was not reliable at all. Fortunately, he had taken precautions in advance.
However, Xu Qun didn't take his disdain to heart. Instead, he eagerly asked.
"Now that I've done as you said, can you let me see the princess?"
Qin Feng frowned. He was being too impatient. After all, she was a princess. How could she be so easily accessible?
"It's too early. The matter here hasn't been resolved yet. After it's all sorted out, I'll fulfill my promise and take you to see her."
"Yes, yes, you're right. I was too hasty. Can you help me give this to the princess?"
With that, Xu Qun took out a jade pendant from his body. It seemed that he had polished it himself.
However, the jade pendant looked dull and rough. If he gave it to the princess, she would surely reject it. Qin Feng was a bit reluctant.
"You can give the thing to the princess yourself later. As a general, it's not appropriate for me to get too close to the princess."
This seemed to make sense. Xu Qun carefully put the jade pendant away again.
He had searched for this jade pendant in a wealthy merchant's house with great difficulty and polished it himself. He couldn't let it get damaged. Otherwise, he wouldn't even have a decent token of love.
"You said this isn't over yet. What else do you need me to do?"
Xu Qun was a bit curious. He had already helped solve the biggest problem. What else was there for him to do?
Qin Feng casually glanced at him.
"You still need to cooperate with me from the inside and outside so that the subsequent plan will be foolproof. Don't worry. I've sent a message to the emperor by carrier pigeon. The emperor has promised that as long as you can accomplish this, he will surely fulfill his promise. I heard that the princess is already preparing her wedding dress."