Records of the Cattle and Horses of Chang'an

Her expectation was not wrong. The Feng family did not have many servants, let alone female relatives. He was probably afraid that people would know that he, a small eunuch, had a very large house and employed many servants, and would be criticized.

As for the strong men and other thugs and guards, there shouldn't be too many of them. This kind of three-courtyard house has four corner gates and one main gate. Someone must be assigned to guard each gate, and there probably won't be many people patrolling the house.

The fact was just as she expected. When she reached the last yard, she only saw four people patrolling from a distance. After she slipped into the yard, there was no one inside.

The ancients loved feng shui, and they were very particular about courtyard walls. Generally speaking, the courtyard wall of a house should not exceed two meters and eighty. If it exceeds two meters and eighty, it is used to lock people up. The courtyard wall of Feng Mansion, including the wall cap, is about two meters and fivety.

She couldn't climb to this height, but fortunately, the walls of this kind of house would have reliefs. This yard was uninhabited, so she could only grope along the outer wall in the faint moonlight.

Just as she touched a relief and had no time to be happy, there was a sudden commotion outside. The men's scolding mixed with the women's screams and the sounds of people running away and crying.

Jiang Shangxian's heart sank, knowing that one of the young ladies must have been discovered while escaping. She had no time to worry about them. She quickly grabbed the relief and tried to step on it, using both hands and feet at the same time. When she was on top of the wall, she found that her heart was pounding.

There were no relief carvings on the outer wall, so she couldn't use it as leverage. Seeing the moving flames all over the yard, and knowing someone was coming towards it, she didn't have time to catch her breath. She turned her head to look at the dim alley, made up her mind, and jumped down.

She was too inexperienced and her landing posture was wrong. The soles of her feet felt severe pain due to gravity (I jumped three meters and the soles of my feet were so painful).

The sound of her landing was a bit loud, and she just stood up awkwardly by holding the wall, and then she heard someone shouting loudly from inside the courtyard wall: "There's movement over here! Come quickly!"

People can temporarily ignore pain in an emergency, but Jiang Shangxian felt that this was probably false. Although she started running as fast as she could, the pain in the soles of her feet and knees was real and did not go away.

But I have no way to think at the moment. I only have one thought, which is to run.

Although she didn't know the exact time, she hadn't heard the curfew drum yet, so she thought it must be still before the hour of Xu. She ran towards the east gate of Laitingfang. This was a rectangular inner block, and the east and west gates were the closest to each other.

The reason for choosing the East Gate is that the Dali Temple is in Chang'an County, next to Banzhengfang.

In terms of distance, the West Gate is actually the closest, but if you go through the West Gate, you will pass by Yanxi Gate, Anshang Gate, Zhuque Gate, Sheguang Gate and Jingfeng Gate, or Anfu Gate and Chengtian Gate. No matter which one you go, it will circle around the imperial city.

The probability of encountering patrolling Jinwu Guards is highest at the edge of the imperial city. When the Jinwu Guards are on night patrol, if they encounter someone running on the street, there will be punishment.

Minor offenses will be fined, while serious offenses will be whipped.

She swore that she had never run so fast in her life. All she could hear were the whistling wind, the curfew drum, her heartbeat and the sound of running. Just as she was about to reach the gate, she heard the footsteps of many people behind her.

Jiang Shangxian didn't dare to look back. He struggled with his legs. Seeing that the gate was about to close, he ran out from the middle in one go. The gate was closed in almost the same instant.

The sound of footsteps chasing behind her completely disappeared after a minute or two. She still didn't dare to look back, but just gritted her teeth and ran for her life. Those young ladies were probably caught again, so she had to run fast, maybe she could still save them.

She ran all the way past Pingkangfang before she slowed down a little. She was really running so hard that her chest felt like it was being torn apart and she was afraid someone would die if she continued running. The most important thing was that after passing Xingdaofang and Wubenfang, she would reach Zhuque Street.

You have to look carefully first to make sure there are no Jinwu Guards before crossing the road.

This is the same as when you ride an electric bike without a helmet, you should pay attention to see if there are any traffic police generating income.

It was at this time that her confused mind finally became clearer. Her clothes were stuck to her skin and were mostly soaked with sweat. There was wind when she was running, but now that she started to walk, she felt extremely uncomfortable and stuffy.

Jiang Shangxian walked carefully along the edge, trying to stay in the dark, and was particularly careful with his weight with every step, trying not to make any noise.

It was already completely dark at this moment, and the drumbeats had stopped for who knows how long. The pleasant tunes in Pingkangfang, accompanied by the laughter of the dancers and the cheers of the guests, were carried far away by the sultry wind.

She listened to the music in silence, holding her breath deeply with her mouth slightly open. She didn't know how long she had walked before she finally arrived at the Dali Temple.

(Note to those who have traveled through time: this is for plot purposes, and the heroine must arrive. If you have traveled through time, do not wander the streets after curfew, and it is best not to go to the alleys in the neighborhood.)

"Looking for Cui Shaoqing? Cui Shaoqing is not here, he went home." The gatekeeper looked at her with a strange look. It was curfew, why was there a young lady looking for Cui Shaoqing?

As expected, he had the wrong idea. He touched his chin and secretly decided that the gossip that Cui Shaoqing finally had a romantic affair must be made known to all his colleagues in the Dali Temple!

I never thought that even with Cui Shaoqing's stern appearance, a young lady would come to visit him. This must be spread!

Jiang Shangxian wished he could die right there when he heard the news. He licked his dry lips and asked, "Shangguan, do you know where Shaoqing Cui lives?"

"This..." The yamen runner hesitated for a moment, but then he added, "Mr. Cui lives in Yanshoufang, but it's curfew now and the gates are closed. I'm afraid you can't get in, young lady. Why don't you come back tomorrow?"

Yes, the gate was closed. Jiang Shangxian felt that he had run too fast and was running out of oxygen. His brain was also numb. He stood there in a daze, gasping for breath. He swallowed and said, "I wonder if Cong Sizhi is here?"

She only knew these two people in the Dali Temple. If Cui Bianxu was not here, this one would do.

The yamen runner's face suddenly grew serious. What was going on with this young lady? Was she Cui Shaoqing's lover? Why was she looking for Cui Shaoqing one moment and Cong Sizhi the next?

"My dear, Cong Sizhi is already married." Seeing that Jiang Shangxian was still young and did not look like a romantic and amorous person, he kindly reminded her.

Jiang Shangxian: "???"

Well, what do you take her for?

She rolled her eyes, but couldn't help herself and raised her voice, "I want to report a missing Chang'an woman. I just escaped from the hands of the criminals."

Jiang Shangxian almost wanted to slap himself in the face. Why didn't she think straight just now? Why was she looking for an 'acquaintance' whom she had met three times to report the case?

"There are still nine young ladies in their hands. Shangguan, please hurry up!"

The yamen runner was shocked and didn't care about gossip anymore: "What did you say! There are nine more young ladies! Are you telling the truth? Quick! Follow me in!"

He became increasingly anxious as he spoke, and turned to walk inside, shouting, "Wang Wu! Zhao Kui! Where are the people? Come out quickly!"