Who says the prince is weak and can't take care of himself?

In the next few days, Qinglan never saw King Chu Qi Xiao again. There were maids and attendants taking care of Tang Ling in the small courtyard. Doctor Zhou came to take Tang Ling's pulse every day. Qinglan carefully watched everything from the prescription to the medicine soup. There was no problem. Tang Ling got better day by day, and the smile on Qinglan's face became more and more. It seemed that in a few days, Qinglan would forget about King Chu and treat this palace as her own home. It was also because of Qi Xiao's previous instructions that the maids and attendants in the small courtyard responded to Qinglan's requests and took care of her in every possible way.

Tang Ling felt suffocated after lying in bed for a long time, so she went out for a walk. There were mountains, rocks, forests and flowers in the small courtyard. It was a place that was neither big nor small and quite interesting.

"I want to go out for a walk."

Qing Lan was stunned for a moment: "They didn't say they wouldn't let us go out."

Tang Ling smiled softly and said to the maid in the courtyard, "Would you please take us for a walk?"

"Sir, please call me Ayu. Please come in."

Outside the courtyard where Tang Ling lived was the back garden of the palace. Most of the palace's guards had been transferred to the inner courtyard to guard outside the courtyard. Tang Ling had not seen them while recuperating in the courtyard, but when she came out she realized how strict the guarding was.

"Miss Ayu, I wonder if your prince is in the mansion?"

"In reply to your question, the prince seems to have not gone out today. He is probably at the martial arts training ground at this time. Do you want to see the prince?"

"If it's convenient, please let Miss Ayu know."

"Then please rest in this pavilion for a while, my lord. I will go and report to the prince."

"Thank you."

Ah Yu walked out of the garden in small, quick steps. Tang Ling sat in the pavilion, watching the delicate but not gaudy blue lotus in the water, with a subtle fragrance wafting in the air. "Qinglan, the scenery here is delightful. Please sit with me for a while."

"Sir, why do you want to see the young prince?"

"We've stayed here for a few days. We've received such a favor, don't we owe him a thank you?"

"But who knows what he's up to? I don't think he has any good intentions. The State of Chen is full of dangers, and without Ye Huai by your side, I feel really uneasy. If that person has any intentions towards you, I can..."

Tang Ling couldn't help but laugh. "What's his intention? If he had any, why hasn't he shown up in the past few days? Qinglan, we've received a favor, but we're still making malicious assumptions. How petty!"

Tang Ling didn't think Qi Xiao was really a good person who did good things without expecting anything in return. It was precisely because she didn't know Qi Xiao's purpose that Tang Ling wanted to see him. He was in danger every step of the way in the territory of Chen State. If she blindly closed her eyes and covered her head, she would indeed not be able to see the danger, but if she covered her ears and stole the bell, she would not be able to deal with the danger, let alone save herself.

Not long after, Ah Yu returned and led Tang Ling to the west side of the palace. "The prince is at the martial arts training ground. Please follow me, young master."

The palace's martial arts training ground was very large, more than twice the size of the courtyard where Tang Ling lived. Eighteen kinds of weapons were displayed on the side, and there were several arrow targets at the far end. The barking of dogs could be heard one after another in the empty martial arts field. The guards in the palace were wearing thick armor, holding sticks and shields, but they were chased all over the field by three hunting dogs.

Qi Xiao used the whistle as a signal to command the hunting dogs to chase.

Tang Ling was stunned by the scene. He remembered the barking of dogs, the day he was attacked. His carriage had flipped down a slope, but thanks to Ye Huai's quick eyes and hands, he had pulled him out, saving him from certain death. The assassins were hot on their heels, and Ye Huai had him fleeing everywhere. But his lack of martial arts skills made him a liability, and they soon found him. Ye Huai was no match for over a dozen skilled assassins, and Tang Ling almost thought he was dead. Then, he heard the barking of dogs, and then others arrived, quickly joining the fray. Then, for no apparent reason, he fainted.

Later, Tang Ling asked Ye Huai about what had happened. Ye Huai explained that the men appeared to be friends, not enemies, and had helped him repel the assassins. But when he regained consciousness, Tang Ling had vanished. The men retreated quickly, disappearing moments later. He chased them for a while, but lost them due to unfamiliarity with the terrain. He then followed the barking of dogs, but instead of finding the men, he found Su Qin. Ye Huai was deeply puzzled. He then secretly followed Su Qin in his search. With the aid of the hounds, they should have been able to find Tang Ling quickly, but the mountains were filled with streams and springs, and darkness was rapidly approaching, making the search even more challenging. It wasn't until dawn the next day that they discovered Tang Ling unconscious in the woods.

Tang Ling didn't remember the situation that day clearly, but he was sure that someone took care of him at night. It was in a cave, with a fire and some people around, and it wasn't cold.

Tang Ling looked at Qi Xiao. Was Qi Xiao there that day? Did Qi Xiao save him? Or did Qi Xiao kidnap him?

Qi Xiao blew a long whistle, and the three hunting dogs immediately gave up chasing the palace soldiers and quickly turned around and returned to Qi Xiao.

"Be good." Qi Xiao took some dried meat from the bag and gave it to them. He handed the bag to Zong Sheng, "That's all for today. You can feed these three."

Qi Xiao walked up to Tang Ling and said with a smile, "It seems you've recovered well."

The shackles on Tang Ling's hands were still cumbersome, but he felt much better. This time, he raised his hands and bowed to Qi Xiao, with the same respect, but without the trembling and forced gesture as before. "I thank you, Your Highness, for saving my life. I also want to thank you for your care these days."

Qi Xiao's smile grew wider, and he turned his head slightly to glance at Qinglan behind Tang Ling. Qinglan's face showed a hint of unhappiness, which could not escape Qi Xiao's eyes. Qinglan's thoughts were much more straightforward than his master's.

Qi Xiao gently waved his hand and said, "Zi Yi, there's no need to thank me. You are a distinguished guest of our Dachen. You shouldn't have suffered such an injustice. I should also apologize on behalf of General Su."

"In that case, I wonder if Your Highness could remove the shackles from Tang's hands?"

Qi Xiao chuckled, shook his head, reached out and lifted the heavy iron chain, and said, "To be honest, Ziyi, this set of Chenyuan was forged by Master Panyun. It is indestructible. Without the key, it cannot be opened."

"The key... is in General Su's hands?"

Qi Xiao still shook his head: "The key to Chenyuan is a pair of yin and yang fish. General Su only has one of them, and the other is in the hands of General Lu. Now General Lu has returned to Yuanjing first. I will have to inconvenience you for a while. When you get to Yuanjing, you can get General Lu's other fish and unlock it."

Tang Ling couldn't help but show a hint of disappointment on her face, but it disappeared in an instant: "Thank you for telling me, Your Highness."

Su Qin used the Dust Fate Chain to lock Tang Ling, claiming he suspected the bandits were spies from the Zhou Kingdom. His goal was to abduct Tang Ling, thereby tarnishing the reputation of the Chen Kingdom and leaving her speechless. However, Tang Ling knew clearly that Su Qin's chaining him up would only tarnish the reputation of the Zhou Kingdom, and would truly tarnish the reputation of the Chen Kingdom, putting the Lu side in a difficult position. His reckless behavior must have other reasons.

Seeing Tang Ling's calm face and humble demeanor, Qi Xiao couldn't help but want to laugh. He raised his hand to cover his face before saying, "You're still not well. Don't stand here in the wind. Why don't you sit with me?"

"it is good."

Next to the martial arts arena was a teahouse, accessible directly from the side. Tang Ling's courtyard was heavily guarded, but Qi Xiao didn't have so many guards around him, and even fewer attendants.

Qi Xiao asked A Yu to stay and make and serve tea, and no one else was in the tea room.

Qi Xiao washed his hands and dried them with a towel, then picked up the teacup and drank tea leisurely. The young man who had been training dogs in the martial arts field suddenly became precious.

"You're new to Dachen, so you're not used to the local climate, are you? Just tell Ah Yu if you want anything to eat. There are two chefs in Yongcheng who can cook Zhou cuisine. I've tried it, and it's pretty good."

"Thank you for your trouble, Your Highness. Everything is fine and very thoughtful here."

Qi Xiao looked at Tang Ling with a meaningful smile. It was rumored that the son of Marquis Xun'an was very talented, but he had been in poor health since childhood and could not learn martial arts or draw a bow. Marquis Xun'an had made great achievements in battle, but he was good at literature but not martial arts, which was really a pity.

In his early years, a Taoist priest had read a fortune for the son of Marquis Xun'an, predicting that his destiny was metal and that he would inherit the legacy of the martial god Taibai. If it weren't for the recent war between Chen and Zhou, and Tang Ling, a military strategist with no official rank or military title, yet possessing a knack for strategic planning and tactics, causing so much suffering for the Lu forces, who would have remembered that a quack had said such a thing?

Isn't the work of Taibai Jinxing and the God of War the very meaning of war and chaos? Fortunately, Xun Anhou did not believe in the precepts of destiny.

"Zi Yi, you came here to ask something, right?"