After a long while, Zhao Yuanqing's motorcade disappeared from view. Zhao Baozhu asked softly, "We're both princesses, so why is she living such a good life while I've fallen to this?"

Cui Yi answered carefully, "She...uh, she is the Queen's daughter, and her brother is the Crown Prince."

"But my mother is the head of the four concubines, and my brother is the third prince, not much worse than her."

"Uh... her grandfather is the Marquis of Zhenbei, and her uncle is the general who protects the country. They command a large number of troops."

"But her grandfather is far away in the northwest, out of reach, while my grandfather is Shangshu You Pushe, a second-rank official, not much worse than her grandfather, and my grandfather is in the capital, within reach."

Cui Yi pursed her lips, knowing that Zhao Baozhu was being stubborn again. She often got stuck in a rut and was very paranoid.

"Perhaps it's because she has so many followers and so many capable people around her. She can accomplish whatever she wants, whether it's making money or getting things done. Because she's so capable, people take her seriously, and men don't look down on her. Even the emperor tolerates her."

"Having many followers...being able to accomplish things...having great abilities..."

Zhao Baozhu seemed to have realized something. A single tree cannot make a forest. She also had to find some loyal and capable people, and then deal with other things slowly.

The wind started to blow in through the window, blowing the shawl on Zhao Baozhu's body up and covering her face. She was so cold that she got goose bumps.

Cui Yi shuddered, "Princess, it's getting cold, let's go back."

"Let's go."

The two people turned and left. After the Cui family died, only the aunt and sister-in-law were left. They seemed to be dependent on each other, and their relationship became better than before.

After two hours of walking, Zhao Yuanqing's convoy left the capital and entered the official road, where a disagreement arose.

Zhao Yuanqing told the emperor that she was going to Jiangnan to open a branch of Zui Xiang Feng, so she should go southeast.

In fact, Zhao Yuanqing wanted to go to Longyou Road, so he should go northwest, while Hatalon wanted to go to Wumeng Kingdom, so he should go north.

Zhao Yuanqing brought three groups of people: the emperor's, the prince's, and her own. The prince's people were considered her own people, while the emperor's people were here to protect her and also to monitor her.

Once Zhao Yuanqing heads northwest, this group of people will immediately send a message to the emperor, and the emperor will definitely send someone to stop her.

The northwest is where troops are stationed. Longyou Road, Guannei Road, and the northwest are three adjacent areas, all heavily guarded. They are important military locations. Even though Zhao Yuanqing is a princess, she cannot enter and leave these areas at will.

If the prince came in and out of here, he would be suspected of trying to win over the governor and rebel.

Therefore, if Zhao Yuanqing wanted to go to Longyou Road, he had to hide it from the emperor and others. Zhao Yuanqing already had a plan for this.

After walking for another half day, it was getting dark. They were now far away from the capital and arrived at a town.

Zhao Yuanqing booked the largest inn in the town. She and her close relatives lived in the inn, while the soldiers camped outside.

The horses were led to the backyard, eating grass and drinking water. Dozens of horses gathered together, neighing non-stop. Zhao Yuanqing's carriage was parked in the corner, and no one noticed it.

In the middle of the night, a man climbed out of the carriage. It was Hatalon. He had been hiding under the carriage for a whole day. When no one came out, Hatalon looked up at the sky and almost cried. After many years in the capital Chang'an, he could finally return home.

Meng Jiu had already been waiting nearby. She whispered, "Please follow me."

The two men walked through the night, entered through the back door, and arrived at Zhao Yuanqing's room.

Zhao Yuanqing had already been waiting there. Hatalon bowed deeply and said, "Thank you so much, Princess."

"Hatalong, I have done what I promised you. When you return home, don't forget what you promised me."

"Princess, please rest assured. I will never forget."

Meng Jiu handed Hatalon a bundle and said, "There are some clothes and silver in it, as well as a travel permit, which will facilitate your travels."

Hatalon opened the bundle and looked at the pass first. Zhao Yuanqing gave him a pass for a merchant from Wumeng Country, which matched his appearance and identity, so he didn't need to disguise himself.

Hatalon thanked Zhao Yuanqing and took out something from his arms. When he looked closely, he saw that they were two small waist drums more than an inch long, brown in color, with patterns engraved on them. The two small waist drums were connected by a leather string.

Hatalon pulled hard, separated the two small waist drums, and handed them to Zhao Yuanqing. Wen Qian took them and checked that they were all right before giving them back to Zhao Yuanqing.

"Princess, this small waist drum is made of birch bark. My mother made it for me when I was a child, and I have always carried it with me for so many years.

This time when I return home, I will undoubtedly face many dangers, and I certainly cannot trust many people. Therefore, when I contact the princess in the future, I will use this waist drum as proof. Only those who come to the princess with this waist drum are mine."

Zhao Yuanqing nodded. Hatalon was quite cautious.

"Then let's add another line of defense."

Zhao Yuanqing picked up the paper and pen on the table and wrote a poem, "No one helps me reach the sky, I walk through the snow to the top of the mountain."

She handed the paper to Hatalon and said, "When we meet again in the future, we will confront each other with this poem. I will speak the first half, and you will speak the second half."

Hatalon took it and repeated it several times in his mind, with a surge of pride in his heart. "Okay."

A real man does things without saying much. Hatalon clasped his fists again, then turned and left without hesitation, walking down the stairs into the night.

No one helps me to reach the top of the mountain, but I will climb to the top of the mountain by myself through the snow.

Hatalon repeated these words in his mind, crumpled the note in his hand into a ball, stuffed it into his mouth and swallowed it.

Ten years have passed. He has grown from a boy to a young man and is finally going back to his country. He just doesn't know whether his mother and friends are still there.

Inside the room, Meng Jiu asked, "Princess, he has been in Qing Kingdom for ten years and now he is leaving alone. The capital is far away from Wumeng Kingdom. Can he return?"

"Everyone has a few hidden cards. After all, Hatalon is the child of the Queen of Wumeng and the only legitimate son of the King. There must be someone on his side. Over the years, someone must have been secretly supporting him in Qing Kingdom.

If he unfortunately dies, that is his fate, and then the one in the capital will become real."

"Yes."

Next, it’s time to deal with Zhao Yuanqing’s own affairs.

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