Huanzhu Time Travel: Yan Luo's Unbreakable Love in the Yong Dynasty

Little Swallow quickly replied, "Don't worry, Fourth Prince! I'll stay close to you and won't run off!"

Hongzhou rubbed his hands together, his eyes filled with excitement: "Ah, finally we're going to explore that secluded forest! I want to see what kind of tricks are hidden here!"

General Zhao Hui calmly said, "Fourth Prince, Fifth Prince, Miss Lin, although our journey to the secluded forest is to uncover the truth, danger is inevitable. We must be extra careful."

Hongli frowned slightly, his expression grave: "The general is right, everyone should be more vigilant. Let's set off now."

The group disguised themselves and quietly left the capital, heading towards the secluded forest in the suburbs. Along the way, Little Swallow looked around curiously, muttering, "The scenery in the suburbs is quite beautiful, but unfortunately, I don't have the leisure to appreciate it properly. Father's matter is the most important!"

Hongzhou joked, "Little Swallow, once this is all over, I'll take you on a proper tour of the countryside and let you see as much as you want!"

Little Swallow rolled her eyes at him: "Hmph, let's deal with the immediate problem first. Fifth Prince, stop thinking about playing all the time!"

Before long, they arrived at the entrance to the dark forest. The forest looked eerie, with lush trees and intertwined branches, and sunlight could only filter through the gaps to cast dappled spots of light.

Little Swallow shrank her neck: "Oh dear, this place looks kind of scary!"

Hongli patted her shoulder: "Don't be afraid, we're here."

With that, the group cautiously stepped into the secluded forest. As they walked, they suddenly heard a faint sound. Hongzhou immediately became alert and whispered, "What's that sound? Everyone be careful!"

General Zhao Hui gripped the sword at his waist, his eyes blazing as he scanned his surroundings. Just then, several men in black, all masked and wielding sharp blades, sprang from the bushes.

One of the men in black shouted, "Who are you? How dare you trespass into this secluded forest!"

Hongli stepped forward and said loudly, "We were just passing by and stumbled in by mistake. Who are you?"

The man in black sneered, "Enough nonsense! I don't care who you are, since you're here, don't even think about leaving alive!"

Upon hearing this, Little Swallow was furious: "Hmph, you guys are too arrogant! You think you can stop us? No way!" With that, she got into a fighting stance, ready to attack.

Hongzhou laughed and said, "Haha, I was just looking for a place to show off my skills, and you've delivered yourself right to my doorstep. Come on!"

The two sides instantly clashed. Little Swallow moved nimbly among the men in black, quickly defeating several. Hongzhou was equally formidable, his moves sharp and fierce. Hongli, though slightly less skilled, also fought back with all his might. General Zhaohui was even more valiant, his sword flashing like a dragon, forcing the men in black to retreat steadily.

But the men in black seemed endless; one group was defeated, and another appeared. Little Swallow cried out as she fought, "Oh dear, when will these people stop?!"

Hongzhou replied, "Who cares? We'll take them down one by one, or two by two!"

Just as the fight was reaching a stalemate, a sharp whistle suddenly rang out. Upon hearing the whistle, the men in black quickly retreated, disappearing without a trace in the blink of an eye.

Panting, Little Swallow asked in confusion, "Huh? Why did they suddenly run away?"

Hongzhou wiped the sweat from his forehead: "There must be someone directing things from behind. When they realized they couldn't gain any advantage, they retreated."

Hongli looked in the direction the man in black had left, lost in thought: "It seems there is indeed something strange about this secluded forest. They don't want us to go any deeper."

General Zhao Hui nodded: "Fourth Prince is right. We need to be more careful. There might be some traps or mechanisms waiting for us behind us."

After a short rest, the group continued deeper into the forest. They hadn't gone far when they saw a dilapidated wooden house ahead, faintly glowing.

Little Swallow whispered, "Look, there seems to be someone in that house. Could it be related to the person who harmed my father?"

Hongzhou lowered his voice: "Very likely, let's go and take a look quietly."

They crept closer to the cabin and peered through the cracks in the window. Inside, they saw several people sitting, one of whom, a richly dressed man, was yelling at the others.

The man roared, "A bunch of useless trash! You couldn't even stop a few people and let them barge into the secluded forest. If you ruin our important plans, none of you will get away with this!"

A man in black bowed his head and said in a trembling voice, "My lord, please forgive us! Those men were highly skilled in martial arts, we really..."

The man interrupted him: "Hmph, excuses! I'll give you one more chance. If they get close, we'll wipe them out in one fell swoop. We can't let them leave here alive!"

Little Swallow's eyes widened, and she whispered to Hongli and the others, "These are definitely bad people. We have to find a way to catch them!"

Hongli pondered for a moment and said softly, "Don't rush. Let's hear what else they have to say. Maybe we can find out more clues about Lord Lin's poisoning."

At this moment, another man in black said, "Sir, Lord Lin has been poisoned by our specially made poison. He probably won't last much longer. Even if they find their way here, it will be too late."

The man sneered, "We can't be careless. Little Swallow and the princes are not easy to deal with. If they find out about our plan, we'll be in trouble."

Upon hearing this, Little Swallow gritted her teeth in anger: "They really are the ones who harmed Father! I'm going to rush in and settle the score with them!"

Hongzhou quickly pulled her back: "Little Swallow, don't be impulsive. If we rush in now and we can't defeat them, it will be terrible. We need to think of a more careful plan."

General Zhao Hui nodded in agreement: "Fifth Prince is right. We are outnumbered, and it would be too dangerous to act rashly. We need to find out their situation first before we can make our move."

Hongli looked at the people inside the house, his eyes filled with anger: "Hmph, no matter what forces are behind them, they will pay the price today! Let's go around to the back of the house and see if there are any other entrances, then we'll make our move when the opportunity arises."

The group quietly circled around to the back of the wooden house and found a small door behind it, but the door was tightly closed, and there seemed to be some mechanisms set up next to it.

Hongzhou frowned: "This mechanism looks pretty tricky, what should we do?"

Little Swallow's eyes lit up: "Let me give it a try. I've seen some mechanisms in the martial arts world before, maybe I can solve them."

She crouched down and carefully examined the mechanism's structure. After fiddling with it for a while, she heard a "click" and the mechanism was solved.

Little Swallow laughed triumphantly: "Haha, see, I'm amazing!"

Hongzhou gave a thumbs up: "Little Swallow, you're really something!"

Hongli said softly, "Alright, everyone, keep your voices down and let's go in and take a look."

They gently pushed open the small door and entered the room. The people inside were engrossed in their discussion and had no idea that anyone had come in.

Little Swallow rushed forward and shouted, "You villains, how dare you harm my father! I'll teach you a lesson!"

The people inside were immediately terrified, and the man shouted frantically, "Quick, stop them!"

In an instant, the room descended into chaos once more. But these people were no match for them, and were subdued in no time.

Little Swallow grabbed the man's collar and said angrily, "Speak! Why did you poison my father? Who ordered you to do it?"

The man stammered, "I...I can't say! If I do, I'll be dead!"

Hongzhou shouted, "If you don't talk, you're dead now! Confess now!"

The man hesitated for a moment, about to speak, when suddenly an arrow shot in through the window, striking him squarely in the throat, killing him instantly.

Little Swallow exclaimed in surprise, "Ah! Who...who did this?"

Hongli's face darkened: "It seems someone doesn't want him to tell the truth. We're still a step too late!"

General Zhao Hui looked out the window and said, "Fourth Prince, we should not stay here any longer. I'm afraid more assassins will come. We must leave quickly and then make further plans."

Left with no other choice, the group left the cabin and quickly retreated out of the secluded forest. Along the way, Little Swallow was filled with resentment: "We were so close to finding out the truth! It's infuriating!"

Hongzhou comforted her, "Little Swallow, don't be discouraged. We've already gathered quite a few clues, and we'll eventually find out who's behind this."

Hongli clenched his fist: "Yes, after we return to the capital, we will carefully sort out the clues and make sure to completely shatter this conspiracy and give Lord Lin justice!"

Meanwhile, Zhixi and Rong Mama in the capital were both shocked and frightened when they learned of their actions in the secluded forest.

Zhixi said anxiously to Rong Mama, "Mama, they've already gone to Youlin. If they find anything, we're doomed!"

Rong Momo frowned deeply: "Princess, don't panic. The archer was arranged by this old servant. Now that the man is dead, the clues are gone, and they won't be able to find anything for a while. However, we still need to find a way to continue to stop them."

Zhixi said worriedly, "But how can we stop them? They certainly won't give up easily now."

Rong Momo's eyes darted around, and she said sinisterly, "Madam, this old servant has a plan. We can stir things up at the Prime Minister's residence, create some trouble for them, and keep them from investigating the case..."

After returning to the capital, Xiao Yanzi and her companions, each with their own thoughts, prepared to continue their investigation into the truth. But what methods would the enemy lurking in the shadows use to counter them? This struggle surrounding the truth and conspiracy continues to escalate. Will they be able to overcome all obstacles and finally unravel the mystery?