Transmigrated into a cunning princess, she sets her sights on a celibate royal uncle.

The white smoke dissipated, and silence returned.

The men in black had vanished from sight.

But the sounds of fighting still lingered inside the inn, and those people discovered that Huo Jingxuan and Jiang Xi had run out, so they chased after them.

"This way!"

Huo Jingxuan dragged Jiang Xi into a small alley to the left of the inn.

After winding their way through the alley, the two arrived at a secluded grove of trees.

The two breathed a sigh of relief once they were certain that the pursuers would not arrive.

"I didn't expect you to have so many enemies!"

Huo Jingxuan stood with his hands on his hips, looking at Jiang Xi, who was slumped on the ground with a half-smile.

Jiang Xi looked up at him with a complicated expression.

She had always thought that Huo Jingxuan was the one who wanted to kill her, but she realized it wasn't him when she saw the poisoned arrow outside the inn.

So there were actually two groups of people chasing them, and Jiang Xi could guess who one of them was.

Yang Xuerou!

Having slept with Huo Jingxuan, given her personality, she definitely wouldn't keep him around.

But who sent the other group?

Why would so many people wage war against a princess who has no one to rely on?

I'm afraid they're only after Huo Jingxuan!

Jiang Xi's prediction was correct; Huo Jingxuan's disappearance had already reached the imperial court.

The young emperor, facing his court alone for the first time in the Golden Palace, appeared visibly flustered, with cold sweat even trickling down his forehead.

"Your Majesty, the entire capital is buzzing with rumors that Huo Jingxuan has imprisoned the Seventh Princess, showing utter disrespect for the royal family and audacity beyond measure. I beg Your Majesty to thoroughly investigate this matter!"

Imperial Censor Xiao had heard many rumors in the capital these past few days, so he drafted a memorial and submitted it directly to Jiang Gu.

I must report Huo Jingxuan to all the civil and military officials no matter what.

"Lord Xiao is confused. How can you take rumors seriously? Everyone knows that the Seventh Princess has been sent to Mount Wuhua for recuperation by His Majesty. Without any evidence, how can you make unfounded accusations against the Regent?"

The one who stood up to speak for Huo Jingxuan was Yang Tingzhou, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites.

As is widely known, Yang Tingzhou's youngest daughter, Yang Xuerou, is destined to marry into the Regent's Palace and become a princess.

"If the Regent truly has a clear conscience, why doesn't he come to court and argue with us?"

Imperial Censor Xiao refused to budge an inch.

"You know perfectly well that the Regent has mysteriously disappeared these past few days, and everyone in the palace is frantically searching for him. How can you come out and confront me now?"

Yang Tingzhou angrily turned and flung his sleeves.

Just as the two sides were locked in a dispute, another official of the fourth rank stepped forward.

"Your Majesty, the Regent's whereabouts are unknown. I suggest that the Four Pillars of State assist Your Majesty in overseeing the country. Other matters can be discussed after the Regent returns!"

"I second the proposal!"

"..."

This proposal was approved by half of the people in the court.

Jiang Gu had just ascended the throne and was not familiar with the affairs of the court, so he really needed someone to assist him. With Huo Jingxuan absent, the Four Pillars of State became the obvious choice.

Although Huo Jingxuan's men were unwilling, they had nothing to say at this point.

They could only hope to find the regent soon, bring him back to court, and reclaim the rights that belonged to him.

They could also feel a sense of pride and satisfaction.

Sitting on his throne, facing pressure from half of the court officials, Jiang Gu tried his best to maintain a calm tone.

"Then, as the ministers have suggested, the four pillars of state will temporarily assume the position of regent and assist in governing the country!"

The first thing the Four Pillars of State did upon taking office was to suppress Huo Jingxuan's former subordinates, using this opportunity to support their own forces.

The other three pillars of the state were not as bold as Xie Jiayun, so they held a banquet at their homes and invited Xie Jiayun to be their guest.

Actually, they were trying to find out Xie Jiayun's plans.

"Xie Zhuguo, aren't we being a little too hasty in doing this?"

Among the four pillars of state, the usually mild-mannered Wang Changqing tentatively asked after the toasts and drinks had been exchanged.

Xie Jiayun is enjoying the song and dance performance.

It must be said that although Wang Changqing was timid and cowardly, the dancers he kept were all incredibly beautiful.

"Too hasty? This is a golden opportunity for us. With Huo Jingxuan away, we should seize the chance to bring down his influence in the court!"

Xie Jiayun put down his wine glass, his eyes following the dancers on stage, but his words were never ambiguous.

Wang Changqing beckoned the dancer over to pour wine for Xie Jiayun, and asked with a smile, "But what if Huo Jingxuan comes back?"

Xie Jiayun exchanged flirtatious glances with the dancer who was pouring wine.

"Come back? He imprisoned the princess, eloped with her, and disregarded all moral principles. Why would he want to come back?"

Wang Changqing sensed something amiss: "What does Xie Zhuguo mean?"

Xie Jiayun finally spared a glance for him and made a gesture of wiping his neck with his hand.

Wang Changqing instantly realized that Xie Jiayun was trying to take this opportunity to kill Huo Jingxuan outside!

At this moment, Huo Jingxuan also discovered something even more serious.

That means their travel expenses are still at the inn and they haven't taken them out yet!

When they returned to the inn at daybreak, they found it had been burned to the ground and was now in ruins.

Government officials arrived and cordoned off the area, investigating the whole story.

Jiang Xi secretly observed the corpses that were being carried out and found that Lu Ye was not among them, so she felt much relieved.

Worried that the officials there might recognize Huo Jingxuan and expose their whereabouts, they dragged Huo Jingxuan along and continued on their way.

She had lost her travel money, but she still had the bag of gold leaves on her person, so she wasn't in too much of a sorry state.

The two kept a low profile and hid in various places until they finally made it to the outskirts of Anyang City.

People lined up to enter the city and were checked one by one.

Jiang Xi, who was disguised, felt something was strange and grabbed an old man in front of her in line to ask him.

"Sir, what's going on in Anyang City? Why are they checking people so closely?"

The old man was a kind-hearted and straightforward person, and he turned around to explain to Jiang Xi.

"Not long ago, the princess's caravan encountered bandits outside the city, and the prefect ordered a thorough investigation."

"The princess has been kidnapped by bandits. The prefect should be leading troops to suppress the bandits. What can be found out by investigating like this?"

Jiang Xi frowned and asked.

The old man shook his head: "The bandits of Black Wind Stronghold are no ordinary bandits. Suppressing them? You'd be lucky if you didn't lose your life."

"Just set up a checkpoint at the city gate, enough of that!"

Jiang Xi gleaned two pieces of information from the old man.

First, the bandits of Black Wind Stronghold were extremely fierce, and even the local prefect could not do anything about them.

Secondly, such fierce bandits would certainly not return empty-handed after such an expedition.

I need to think of a way to go into the city and find out if Chun Tao is in the city.

If not, then they must have been captured and taken to Black Wind Stronghold along with the fake princess!

Thinking this, Jiang Xi habitually turned around to look at Huo Jingxuan behind her.

Although Huo Jingxuan was dressed as a farmer, his tall stature made him stand out from the crowd in the long line.

"Have you heard of Black Wind Stronghold?" Jiang Xi asked softly, covering her mouth.

Huo Jingxuan raised an eyebrow: "Never heard of it!"

Jiang Xi felt that he had asked a completely unnecessary question. He had lost his memory, so what could he possibly know?

It's good enough that they know how to eat and sleep!

"Okay, then go find a cool place to stay!"

"Hey, you guys in the back, hurry up!" the officers and soldiers urging them on.

Just as Jiang Xi was about to stride forward, Huo Jingxuan grabbed her wrist and pulled her aside.

"do not go!"