The Princess Cannot Escape: The Cunning Prince Is Not to Be Messed With

Chapter 293 Dragnet

Behind Xiahou Jue stood a bloated middle-aged man with a smile on his face. He stroked his goatee and said, "As expected, the Crown Prince is very thoughtful. I just wanted to give Prince Duan a big gift. After all, the big gift that Prince Duan gave me many years ago was not light."

Yin Quan realized that this guy and Xiahou Ying had a grudge in the past, which explained why he was so ruthless and wanted to kill them both.

"Lord Hao, you flatter me. If I had disregarded this cold-hearted family ties back then, I wouldn't have brought so much trouble upon myself now." Hao Gang's expression stiffened, and he narrowed his eyes as he looked at Xiahou Jue. "Your Majesty, I have long heard that Prince Duan is forming cliques and engaging in corrupt practices in court and stirring up trouble in the martial world. Even after the late Emperor's death, he refused to enter the capital and secretly gathered 50,000 troops to surround the capital. His wolfish ambitions are blatantly obvious. I implore Your Majesty to consider the greater good and execute Prince Duan."

Xiahou Ying unconsciously stepped in front of Yin Quan. Xiahou Jue saw his little action and looked at Yin Quan through Xiahou Ying. "Is this your sister-in-law? I remember that she fled while investigating an assassination case not long ago. Now that Father has passed away, it's better not to investigate this case. However, someone has disrespected the royal family. This matter must eventually come to a conclusion. Don't you think so, brother?"

"His Majesty is now the supreme ruler, the court is newly stable and the people's hearts are with him. Who would dare to be dissatisfied with the royal family? Besides, although it was the Yin family who assassinated His Majesty, the Princess Consort had already married into my Duan Prince's Mansion and was completely unaware of this matter."

Yin Quan noticed that Xiahou Jue's gaze was quite meaningful, like a hunter who had found his prey, making Yin Quan feel uncomfortable. She glared back fiercely.

"Oh? So you mean you know a lot about the assassination attempt at the Yin residence, brother? Or was it clearly your doing?" Xiahou Jue's expression turned cold, his lips drooped, and he was no longer the friendly man he had been just moments before. He said angrily, "For the sake of our brotherhood, I wanted to hear you admit your mistake yourself, but it seems that your constant sophistry is unacceptable. Guards, take Prince Duan to the Heavenly Prison. If he resists, kill him without mercy."

"Your Majesty, you are truly ruthless! If you didn't have something to hide, why were you in such a hurry to throw me into the imperial prison? And I advise you to think carefully. Even if you arrest me, you might not be able to defend this capital!" Xiahou Jue laughed wickedly. "Xiahou Ying, Xiahou Ying, do you know how long I've been waiting for this day? From the day you drove me out of the capital, I swore that one day I would take back what was rightfully mine. Isn't it just because I have some military power? Today I'll show you who will have the last laugh."

He clapped his hands twice, and a dozen soldiers rushed in from outside the door. The soldiers all wore black, hideous ghost masks, and each of them carried a black wooden box. Xiahou Jue nodded, and the dozen soldiers opened the wooden boxes. Yin Quan glanced at them and almost fainted.

Inside those wooden boxes were bloodied human heads. Xiahou Ying finally couldn't hold back his emotions any longer. "Impossible! How could you have done that in just ten days!" Yin Quan could see that Xiahou Ying's body was trembling with excitement. "You've already planted spies among them? Xiahou Jue, you would never have such thoughts. Who is it! Who is behind you?"

Xiahou Jue was in a great mood and clicked his tongue, "I never thought that the Prince Duan, who is so good at planning everything, would have such a day. Uncle, take a good look at his surprised face. Xiahou Ying, do you really think that Gu Lounan betrayed me? But have you ever thought that if he can betray me, he can also betray you?"

The people behind Xiahou Jue made way for Gu Lounan, who stepped out from the crowd. Yin Quan felt a thunderous roar in her mind, as if fireworks had exploded. Although she did not believe that Gu Lounan was wholeheartedly assisting Xiahou Ying, she could not believe that he was the one who betrayed them. Not only that, he had also sent more than ten soldiers to the executioner's block.

Gu Lounan kept his head down until he reached Xiahou Ying. He didn't care about Xiahou Ying's murderous gaze at all, but looked straight into Yin Quan's eyes.

As expected, she was utterly disappointed in herself, and gave a bitter laugh, "Little Quan Quan..."

Yin Quan felt disgusted just hearing him call her name. "Don't call me, I don't know you!" Xiahou Ying grabbed Yin Quan's hand tightly, trying to warm her cold palm.

Xiahou Jue was delighted to watch the show. "The princess has quite a temper. But I've heard a lot of rumors lately. It seems that our Duan Princess is no ordinary person. For the sake of our brotherhood, don't worry, I will definitely take good care of your sister-in-law. What are you waiting for? Hurry up and take down the Duan Prince!"

The masked warriors behind Xiahou Jue drew their longswords. Xiahou Ying grabbed Yin Quan and the two rolled to the window. Xiahou Ying hugged Yin Quan's waist tightly and asked, "Do you dare to jump down with me?" Yin Quan grabbed the window frame and looked at the warriors surging in. She couldn't care about anything else and gritted her teeth.

"We had no choice!" The two broke through the window and jumped down. Yin Quan closed her eyes tightly, and the whistling wind in her ears made her heart jump into her throat.

Fortunately, the two were not staying in a high place. However, there were also masked warriors lying in ambush outside the inn. Yin Quan dodged left and right in Xiahou Ying's arms, which distracted Xiahou Ying. Under the flashing swords, Xiahou Ying was like a nimble dragon, so fast that only afterimages could be seen. However, it seemed that the masked warriors could never be killed.

As soon as one batch fell, another would quickly surge up. Little Rong in Yin Quan's arms seemed to sense that Yin Quan was threatened. It jumped out of her arms, its fur stood on end, and its body instantly turned brown. Its body swelled to three times its original size. Everyone was stunned for a moment when they saw the huge rat.

Even Xiahou Ying had never seen Xiao Rong transform before, so he was quite surprised.

"Well done, Xiao Rong!" Xiao Rong seemed to be encouraged by Yin Quan and became exceptionally brave. For a time, those masked warriors could not get close to the two of them. Xiahou Jue saw everything clearly from upstairs. He originally thought that Xiahou Ying would have no chance of escaping this time, but unexpectedly, another rat appeared.

“You bunch of useless trash, if you can’t defeat Prince Duan, you don’t need to return to the capital. I will choose a good burial site for you here.”

Upon hearing Xiahou Jue's words, these masked warriors became as if they had been injected with chicken blood, charging forward recklessly. This time, even Xiao Rong couldn't stop them.

Behind them came Wei Jun's shout, "Your Highness, hold on! Our brothers who are lying in ambush nearby will be here soon." Yin Quan turned around and saw Wei Jun and Jing Yu fighting their way out of the inn. Both of them were soaked in blood, showing that they had also been through a bloody battle.

"Your Highness and Your Highness, how are you?" Xiahou Ying shook his head. Yin Quan was somewhat annoyed, wondering why she hadn't studied martial arts properly when she was at Tianji Mountain, so that she wouldn't be dragging the others down now.

"How long will it take for Wei Jun's reinforcements to arrive?"

"The fireworks signal was sent out a quarter of an hour ago, so we should arrive soon." Xiahou Ying looked around. "I remember there's a path leading to the Qilian Mountains behind this inn. We can easily hide in the woods and use it to cover the two of us as we retreat into the woods. Remember to mark the way as you go." Wei Jun nodded. "Don't worry, Your Highness."

“You can’t escape with me in Xiahou Ying’s arms. Why don’t you leave first? He won’t hurt me, he just wants to lure you out. Come back for me when you’re fully prepared.” Xiahou Ying looked at her with unwavering determination. “I will never let go. We’ll live together and die together. Yin Quan, will you regret this?” Yin Quan’s heart suddenly settled. Hadn’t she already made this preparation on the day she decided to return to the capital with him?

Xiahou Ying tore off a piece of his robe and used it to tightly bind their hands together.

Seeing the masked warriors charging forward again, Wei Jun and Jing Yu were the first to meet them. Xiahou Ying and Yin Quan fought and retreated, while Gu Lounan clenched his fists tightly, the veins on them bulging. But his reason did not allow him to rush out at this moment.

Xiahou Ying was already struggling to cope because one of her hands was bound by Yin Quan and she was also injured. Blood kept splattering on Yin Quan's face, but the warm liquid could at least warm her numb heart.

Just as a masked man was about to slash at Yin Quan, Xiahou Ying disregarded the enemy and stepped in front of Yin Quan to block the sword for her. The masked man behind her then thrust his sword at Xiahou Ying's ribs. Without thinking, Yin Quan turned around and hugged Xiahou Ying.

A cold touch swept across his arm, blood staining the cloth binding them both. Xiahou Ying roared to the sky, his eyes turning bloodshot, the air around him churning and hissing as the cloth binding them tore apart bit by bit. Yin Quan cried out urgently, "Xiahou Ying, don't!" But with a roar, Xiahou Ying had already charged forward, engulfing the masked warriors who rushed towards him. With a few hissing sounds, the masked men seemed frozen in place, then with a bang, they all turned into a bloody mist.

Xiahou Ying was like a demon crawling out of hell, his whole body stained red with blood. Seeing Xiahou Ying's bloodthirsty eyes, Yin Quan hurriedly went up to hug him.

"Xiahou Ying, please don't do this, please don't do this! You'll only make the poison spread faster." Seeing Yin Quan's tears streaming down her face, Xiahou Ying finally regained a sliver of reason, shielding Yin Quan behind him and forcing a smile at her. "Don't worry, I'll be fine."

A horse whistle came from afar, and Wei Jun was overjoyed, "Your Highness's reinforcements have arrived." Xiahou Ying finally calmed down a bit. Xiahou Ying's thunderous attack just now had also made those masked men fearful again, and they dared not go forward. Xiahou Jue flipped down from the building and picked up the sword of the guard beside him.

"You useless trash! Useless trash! If you can't kill him, I'll kill you all. Tonight, none of you will leave alive until this man is eliminated!" With that, he raised his knife and slashed the neck of a masked man beside him. Blood splattered all over him, but he was completely unaware, his expression bordering on madness.