I have to say.
After they got these four fine steeds pulling the carriage in tandem.
The speed of Zhao Shuning and her companions increased significantly.
Just two days later.
They had already reached Linjiang.
Before Zhao Shuning even entered the city.
She could already hear a lot of noise.
She found a veil from the clothes prepared by Qi Yurou for her, tied it on to cover her true appearance.
Only then did she lift the carriage curtain.
Outside Linjiang City.
There were no less than hundreds of people queuing up for inspection.
Linjiang had a different status now.
Was the procedure for entering the city so grand?
To avoid arousing suspicion.
Zhao Shuning got back into the carriage and queued up for inspection like everyone else.
After a while.
"Tap, tap, tap—"
There was the sound of someone lightly knocking on the wooden door.
Zhao Shuning frowned.
She slightly lifted the curtain.
When the man saw there was a woman in the carriage, his frown eased a bit.
"Where's that rascal An Qing?"
The one speaking.
Was a bearded man in his fifties.
Zhao Shuning sized him up. His eyebrows, nose, and cheekbones bore a 70% resemblance to An Qing's.
Presumably.
This was An Yuan? Or someone related to An Qing.
She had miscalculated.
The carriage did increase their speed, but it was too eye - catching and easy for people who knew An Qing to recognize it.
Seeing that Zhao Shuning didn't answer.
Without a word.
The man was about to lift the curtain directly.
Feng Xiaobai stood up.
Zhao Shuning grabbed him.
"This is Linjiang City. Now that so many people have gathered here, don't act rashly for now."
Feng Xiaobai suppressed his dissatisfaction.
"That man is fat and has a big head. He must have extorted a lot of people's hard - earned money. His father can't be a good person either."
Zhao Shuning looked into the distance.
She smiled faintly.
"It doesn't matter. Someone will take care of him for us."
Zhao Shuning and her companions guessed correctly.
The man asking questions at the moment was indeed An Yuan. He had seen his own carriage from afar. He was on duty, but when he saw the carriage being inspected like ordinary people, he felt uneasy.
Something must have happened.
His son was good at eating, drinking, whoring, and gambling, but not at following the rules.
Unexpectedly, when he came to inquire.
He really saw a woman hiding in the carriage.
If the gang leader found out that there were still people living in such extravagance under his nose, his promotion in Shuiyunsheng would be extremely difficult.
Lifting the curtain.
An Yuan frowned.
In the carriage.
There was only this woman and a child. There was no sign of An Qing.
"Where's An Qing?"
Zhao Shuning didn't answer.
An Yuan immediately put his hand on the sword beside him.
Zhao Shuning's eyes turned cold slightly.
It made An Yuan feel scared.
"You're just a woman An Qing has had. Remember your place. If you dare to hide things from me, I, the protector, will never spare you."
Before the interrogation even started.
An Yuan had already convicted Zhao Shuning.
It was really laughable.
When did Shuiyunsheng become so lax in selecting protectors?
People of such low quality could even join the gang and hold such a high position.
"Protector An, the generals are here. They want you to transport the birthday gifts to the city as soon as possible."
"Got it."
An Yuan glared at Zhao Shuning viciously.
He didn't know yet.
An Qing had already died at Feng Xiaobai's hands.
An Yuan had sensed Zhao Shuning's spiritual power on the carriage before and was sure that she was just an ordinary person, so he felt a bit more at ease with her.
But he forgot.
Behind Zhao Shuning, there was Feng Xiaobai.
Feng Xiaobai.
Was the most dangerous one.
"You're quite a beauty. Remember to come to the posthouse to find me tonight."
Although he couldn't see the woman's face.
But her figure.
Those big eyes.
Were already enough to capture An Yuan's restless heart.
Zhao Shuning smiled faintly.
A hint of cunning flashed in her eyes.
"Really?"
An Yuan, who had already left, stopped in his tracks.
Zhao Shuning continued, "I'm afraid you don't have the luck to enjoy it."
An Yuan turned around.
His face was full of malice.
"Whatever I, the inspector, want, I always get."
Zhao Shuning lifted the curtain.
She looked into the distance.
There.
There were two valiant people on horses, looking at the common people coming in and out of Linjiang City coldly.
It was Chu Wen and Chu Nuan.
They were also the generals mentioned by the little soldier just now.
Chu Wen and Chu Nuan were now generals in the Eastern Ze Wilderness. Their identities were not limited to this. They also held extremely high positions in Shuiyunsheng.
This time.
They came to Linjiang to ensure the smooth progress of the 100th birthday banquet of the Zhao family's old master.
In a small town.
So many strange people had come.
Ye Xingrui knew that Chu Wen and Chu Nuan had a close relationship with the Zhao family, so he sent them here to guard.
Zhao Shuning got out of the carriage.
An Yuan cursed in a low voice, "You bitch, get back in. If you disrupt the generals' business, I'll make your life a living hell tonight."
The carriage got closer and closer to the two generals.
Zhao Shuning's eyes.
Were always fixed on them.
"Get in."
An Yuan almost gritted his teeth.
"What are you doing, woman!"
The carriage stopped beside the two generals.
Zhao Shuning parted her red lips slightly.
"Chu Wen, Chu Nuan, do you still recognize me?"
"You're crazy. How dare you call the two generals by their names directly."
An Yuan was furious.
Saying that, he was about to make a move.
But he was blocked by an invisible spiritual force.
Feng Xiaobai stood in front of Zhao Shuning.
On the carriage.
A veiled woman in plain clothes stood against the wind. Beside her stood a little boy in blue clothes, looking like a porcelain doll.
Seeing this, Chu Wen frowned slightly.
An Yuan was about to make another move.
Chu Nuan stopped him.
"You know us? An Yuan, isn't this your An family's carriage? Is she from your An family?"
An Yuan quickly shook his head and denied.
"I don't know them."
There were many people in the world who knew the two generals. Who were these two?
Zhao Shuning slowly took off her veil.
That stunning face.
Appeared in front of Chu Wen and Chu Nuan.
"Generals, don't worry. I'll arrest this woman and the child right away. I'll definitely give the generals a—"
This time.
Before An Yuan could even finish his sentence, Chu Wen and Chu Nuan quickly dismounted from their horses.
The two looked at each other.
There was disbelief in their eyes.
Zhao Shuning put the veil back on.
The people of the Zhao family might not have seen this face, but Chu Wen and Chu Nuan must have. It was on the Eastern Continent's Sacred Mountain when she saw them for the last time. She was using this face then.
"Brother—am I seeing things?"
"Chu Nuan, pinch me."
"Ouch—"
It really hurt.
Seeing this, the two quickly stepped forward and said, "Is it really you?"
Zhao Shuning nodded.
"It's me."
The two were about to kneel down immediately.
Zhao Shuning quickly supported them.
"In broad daylight and in full view of the public, there's no need for such a grand ceremony."
It was the empress.
It was really the empress.
But how was she still alive?
Moreover?
Why was there a child by her side?
"We'll discuss it later."