Golden Branch

"Reinforcements? Auntie, who's coming to pick us up? Are they the two brothers and sisters you mentioned?"

The little girl is two or three years old, round and cute.

She nestled in Concubine Jiang's arms and spoke in a baby voice.

As the youngest daughter of Princess Li, she ranks eleventh among her sisters and is three years old this year.

During the past few months of following Concubine Jiang to visit her parents, the little girl has become very close to this "aunt" and calls her "Auntie" in a friendly way.

Although Concubine Jiang was anxious, she was still gentle and calm when facing Eleventh Lady.

She whispered to Shiyi Niang, "Shiyi guessed correctly, it's Brother Lou and Sister Wang."

"We are going back to the palace in Qi this time, and they happen to be in Yizhou."

"Auntie has already written to them, they will come to greet me as soon as possible—"

I just hope they can go faster and faster.

When leaving the capital, Concubine Jiang brought with her two hundred personal guards, as well as two to three hundred eunuchs, slaves, and servants.

After this escape, half of the team of nearly 500 people were lost.

They either suffered casualties or got separated from the main force, and only about 200 people were left with Concubine Jiang.

Among these people, there are only a few dozen combat-capable soldiers.

Concubine Jiang was worried that if she encountered "bandits" again, it would be difficult for her to escape with the two young nobles safely.

It's okay for her, even if she gets caught, it won't be a big deal.

At most, the reputation will be damaged——

Ha! Reputation? What reputation does Jiang have?

A woman who marries twice will bring disaster to her husband.

One more person trapped in a den of thieves, with his innocence at stake, is nothing.

Concubine Jiang knew that as long as she could protect Eleventh Lady and Little Sanlang, she would have accomplished a great feat.

Neither my husband nor my wife will treat him unfairly.

Even if his reputation is damaged and he can no longer flaunt his power, he can still spend the rest of his life in peace in Yang Chong's backyard.

This is enough!

For a poor person who has experienced troubled times and been sent here and there as a plaything, the best outcome is to have a rich and stable second half of life.

Concubine Jiang is a person who is easy-going and contented.

No matter whether it is good times or bad times, she will find ways to live a good life.

"...Those 'bandits' probably don't know that Eleventh Lady and Little Saburo are also on the carriage."

"Their target is me, the rumored Yang Chong's favorite woman."

Since leaving the capital, Concubine Jiang's motorcade experienced three or four robberies by bandits within a month.

Concubine Jiang knew very well that these people were pretending to be thieves and bandits, but in fact they were secret guards and assassins of certain people.

They "robbed" her several times, not to kill her, but to capture her alive——

At the critical moment when "war" with Yang Chong is about to begin, being able to hold Yang Chong's favorite woman in his hands is also a considerable bargaining chip.

At the critical moment, it may play an unexpected role.

A hint of mockery flashed in Concubine Jiang's eyes: These people actually believe that Yang Chong is a man blinded by lust.

Love the country but not the beauty?

what!

Not everyone is Lou Jin, and Yang Chong is certainly not a tyrant.

Yang Chong did indeed dote on her, but everyone also said that it was "doting" love.

What is "favor"?

From top to bottom, from master to servant, that is favor.

Their statuses are not equal, so how could Concubine Jiang dare to have any unrealistic thoughts?

At most, Yang Chong would "hold power in the world when awake, and sleep on the lap of a beauty when drunk." He would want both the country and the beauty.

If he had to choose between the two, Yang Chong would choose the former without hesitation.

Concubine Jiang didn't resent anything. In fact, the most important person in her heart was not Yang Chong.

To put it bluntly, not to mention her daughter, even Princess Li, her "rival in love", is more important to Concubine Jiang than Yang Chong!

Princess Li's promise made Concubine Jiang more convinced and dependent than Yang Chong's "favor".

"Don't worry, my lady. No matter what happens, I will protect your daughter and grandson!"

Holding the little girl tightly in her arms, Concubine Jiang's eyes were firm and she silently made up her mind.

……

boom!

Wang Heng stood up suddenly, and the stool beside her was knocked over by her, making a dull sound.

Wang Heng didn't care about all this. She lowered her head again and read the letter she had just received via carrier pigeon word by word.

Mother, you actually came to Yizhou, just on the official road dozens of miles away from the provincial capital?

Wang Heng had already known about Concubine Jiang's "return home to visit relatives".

Wang Heng also had some guesses as to why her mother suddenly left Beijing:

The "war" is about to begin, and the capital city and Prince Qi's palace will become places of trouble.

If her mother leaves at this time, it may be to protect her (or someone else).

Everyone says that the King of Qi loves Concubine Jiang the most.

Wang Heng also believed that the King of Qi must like her mother.

At a critical moment, the King of Qi might give Amu a way out without affecting his overall situation.

But, that's all.

Not all men are Lou Jin.

Yang Chong would not make choices for true love like Lou Jin did.

Well, okay, even though Lou Jin loved Dugu so much, he did not really give up his core interests.

He just didn't marry a noble lady of equal status, but still "married" into the Dugu family.

The only one he gave up was his eldest son, Lou Yu. He had other sons to inherit the family business.

The love shown by Lou Jin just looks a little more tender and pure than those men who only care about interests.

It is simply impossible for him to give up his family property and future for "true love".

Otherwise, a certain concubine back then wouldn't have dropped the ball and run away!

Women often have very sharp intuition.

Dugu ran away because she did not feel enough "sense of security" from Lou Jin, and knew that this man would not disobey his elders or abandon his family for her!

Lou Jin and Dugu, who claimed to be in true love, could not escape the pursuit of interests. Yang Chong, who valued interests more, would not give up his kingdom for a beauty.

There must be a reason why her mother left Beijing that she didn't know.

Could it be——

Wang Heng had a vague guess in her little head.

At this moment, the letter of help in her hand confirmed her guess—

If it was just A-mu alone, she probably wouldn't easily ask her daughter Wang Heng for help.

unless--

"...Whether it's true or not, the reality is: Mother is in danger!"

Wang Heng didn't think too much about it. After confirming the contents of the letter again and again, she strode out.

"Come here! Pass the order, assemble the guards!"

Wang Heng lived in the Lou family's fortress, and her slaves, guards, farmhands, etc. were also housed in the fortress.

As she walked out, she gave orders in a deep voice.

By the time she arrived at the front hall, the soldiers and guards who had received the order had already assembled.

Apart from Ah Hu and a few others who went to the capital to "cry out their injustice", Wang Heng still had three hundred strong men around him.

Some of these people were the troops assigned to her by Wang Lin, some were guards sent by Lou Yu, and more were people recruited by Wang Heng herself.

All three hundred people followed the training method Wang Mian gave her, training every day and conducting cross-country races and exercises regularly.

Wang Heng also followed Wang Mian's advice and provided very generous supplies for daily meals, welfare, etc.

After three or four years, these people may not have been to the brutal battlefield, but they are tougher and more obedient than ordinary guards.

Apart from anything else, just looking at the speed of the assembly, you can tell that they are really well-trained and disciplined.

"Jiu Niang, are you going out? Is there something important?"

The manager of the fort heard the noise and hurried over.

He bowed beside Wang Heng, asked softly, and gave cautious advice: "My dear, your Excellency is not at the fort. Should I send someone to inform your Excellency?"

Even if there is something important that requires help, you can let Langjun bring the Lou family army to help.

Wang Heng's three hundred men were indeed a lot.

But Hedong now is not the same as before.

With idiots like Cui Zai and Lou Rang around, the steward couldn't help but worry that if Jiu Niang confronted those people easily, she might suffer a loss!

"...Alright! Send someone to tell my brother there's a 'distinguished guest' on the official road forty or fifty miles to the west. I'll go and greet him!"

Wang Heng will not be arrogant.

Since we are going to rescue, the more reinforcements the better.

In fact, even if the steward didn't remind her, Wang Heng would have sent someone to find Lou Yu.

The steward spoke, and Wang Heng agreed.

The official road to the west?

Distinguished guest?

The steward began to make wild guesses, but he did not delay. While watching Wang Heng mount her white horse and lead the team away, he quickly sent someone to notify Lou Yu.

Da da da!

Wang Heng rode his horse out of the Lou family fort and began to gallop.

Of the three hundred men, eighty were on horseback, following closely behind Wang Heng.

There were more than 200 people who had no horses and had to run to follow.

It’s not that these people can’t ride horses, but that they don’t have horses.

War horses are rare.

Even though Wang Heng was rich and Lou Yu had connections in the Lou family's army, they could only get less than a hundred horses.

If it weren't for the matter concerning her mother, Wang Heng would have been reluctant to use these war horses.

If there is any damage, it will be difficult to make up for it.

Although the eighty knights were not numerous, they still made quite a noise when they galloped together.

On the official road, as they moved forward, a layer of yellow soil was stirred up, making a loud noise.

Boom! Boom!

The yellow sand rolled and the horses' hooves trampled.

Wang Heng did not control her speed, completely unleashing the potential of herself and the horse under her crotch.

When Concubine Jiang sent the pigeon message, the convoy was still sixty or seventy miles away from Hedong.

Her carriage was also running fast. After half a day, the fleeing convoy traveled about twenty miles.

Wang Heng estimated the time, speed, etc. and gave an estimate of forty or fifty miles.

Wang Heng's cavalry was not a caravan, and was not burdened by baggage such as carriages.

Let go of the speed and run at full speed, and you can run twenty miles in an hour.

Both sides are running towards each other, and the distance between them will be shortened as quickly as possible.

If you use a God's perspective, or use a drone to take aerial photos, you can see that on an east-west official road, there are two balls of "yellow sand" approaching rapidly!

Unfortunately, Concubine Jiang did not have a God’s perspective, and she did not know that her daughter was already more than ten miles “ahead”.

She could only see the pursuers behind her getting closer and closer.

Concubine Jiang hid her hands in her sleeves, her nails digging deep into her palms.

"Ma'am, they, they are about to catch up!"

Through the gaps in the fluttering car window curtains, the maidservant happened to see the ferocious "bandits" running at full speed.

The bandits became excited when they found themselves getting closer to the convoy.

While continuing to swing the whip, he howled like a wild beast—

"Caught up!"

"Quick! It's right in front!"

"Brothers, hurry up! Charge forward! Those riches and beauties will all be ours!"

"Ouch! Ouch!"

The bandits shouted excitedly, their voices breaking through the air and floating ahead.

Concubine Jiang tried her best to remain calm. She lowered her head, looked at the little girl who was already sleeping in her arms, and said in a deep voice to her confidant:

"Achu, the thieves are catching up!"

"If I really can't escape, I'll tell someone to stop the car."

"You, find a way to hide with Shiyi Niang and Xiao Sanlang, and try to delay the time, then Ajiu will be here!"

Concubine Jiang had lived in Yizhou for several years and could probably estimate the distance and use it to speculate the time when the "reinforcements" would arrive.

Concubine Jiang estimated that Ajiu would arrive in no more than an hour.

Concubine Jiang thought that it would be best if she could delay.

If he couldn't hold them off, he would let his confidant take the two young masters to hide.

There is no need for Achu and the others to run for their lives, they just need to find a way to delay time.

One hour, oh no, maybe just half an hour, they, they will be saved!

"Miss!"

Achu is a woman in her thirties with pretty face and gentle temperament.

She was Concubine Jiang's maidservant when she came with her as a dowry. She followed her to marry Wang Lin and then followed her to the Yang family.

Achu doesn't want to get married and just wants to stay with Concubine Jiang.

The master and servant grew up together, and their affection for more than 20 years has long surpassed blood ties.

"What about you?"

Ah Chu had tears in her eyes. She knew what Concubine Jiang meant: Concubine Jiang would lure the bandits away and buy time for Ah Chu and the others.

But, but if Concubine Jiang, who is so beautiful and graceful, falls into the hands of a thief.

Even if you are not hurt, your reputation will be ruined.

Even if the prince did not despise her, he still had to worry about the "gossip" and had to ignore her.

What would happen to his wife then?

Being ridiculed?

Live a miserable life?

"Their target is me. They probably don't know that Shiyi Niang and Xiao Sanlang are also here. As long as they catch me, they won't kill me."

Those people are not real thieves.

As long as they capture the hostage they really want, they will let go of the slaves and others.

After all, they still needed someone alive to run back to the capital to report the news, thus proving that the Prince of Qi's concubine was indeed kidnapped by bandits on the way to visit her parents!

Otherwise, if someone insists on saying that the Prince of Qi’s concubine is in the Prince of Qi’s mansion or has “died of illness” in order to protect Yang Chong from being threatened, then even if they capture a hostage, it will lose its value!

Never underestimate the cruelty of women. The bandits or their masterminds believe that Princess Li and Concubine Jiang are incompatible. As long as there is a chance, Princess Li will "take advantage of the situation" and kill Concubine Jiang!

Concubine Jiang: ...Luckily these people misunderstood, otherwise, we would have been "annihilated" this time.

"Madam~~"

Ah Chu's tone was already filled with tears, "You want to sacrifice yourself to save Shiyi Niang and Xiao Sanlang?"

Concubine Jiang didn't say anything, but silence meant consent.

Concubine Jiang didn't notice that the little girl in her arms had quietly opened her eyes.

She also listened to the conversation between Concubine Jiang and Ah Chu, the master and servant...