Chapter Nine: The Escape

Han Tianyue had unexpectedly caught the embroidered ball. While others might have considered it a stroke of luck, he did not feel that way at all. No matter how one looked at it, Mao Xuanzi was standing right there, and Mao Xuanzi clearly appeared far more handsome than him and was taller as well. How could the maiden possibly bypass Mao Xuanzi and toss the embroidered ball toward Han Tianyue’s direction?

Although it ultimately happened because a gust of wind had intentionally blown toward their side, causing Han Tianyue to catch the ball, he still felt that something was amiss. He kept these strange suspicions to himself and did not mention them to Mao Xuanzi, Fang Zhe, or Feng Shang. At that moment, Han Tianyue had already decided to flee.

Perhaps such a reaction was overly dramatic, but when venturing far from home, caution was paramount. Han Tianyue broke into a run, plunging into the crowd, with Feng Shang, Fang Zhe, Mao Xuanzi, and Lei Dong closely following behind.

After pursuing them for a short while and losing sight of Han Tianyue and his companions, the servants turned back in dejection. Seeing that they were no longer being chased, Han Tianyue came to a halt.

Feng Shang walked up, patted Han Tianyue on the shoulder, and said, "What on earth is wrong with you? Why did you run away like that over nothing?"

With a face full of fury, Han Tianyue retorted, "If it weren't for you, would any of this madness have happened in the first place?"

Feng Shang explained himself, saying, "I just wanted to mess around a little. Who told you to go and catch it?"

Lei Dong, however, intervened. "Let's not dwell on this matter right now. The embroidered ball you caught just now belongs to the City Lord's daughter. No doubt the City Lord is already aware of this. It would be best for all of you to stay at my place and not go out for a while!"

"What?" Feng Shang cried out in shock.

Meanwhile, Han Tianyue thought to himself, "Since she is the City Lord's daughter, this situation is even more complicated."

Following Lei Dong back to his dwelling, everyone sat down on wooden stools.

Feng Shang wanted to speak, but seeing the intense anger on Han Tianyue's face, he thought better of it and kept his mouth shut. As for Mao Xuanzi and Fang Zhe, they did not pay the matter too much heed, as they felt the entire fiasco was entirely Feng Shang's doing. Fixing their cold gazes on Feng Shang, the two of them remarked, "Feng Shang, you've really stirred up a hornet's nest this time!"

Feeling deeply aggrieved, Feng Shang muttered under his breath, "Originally, wasn't she planning to toss it to you? It was you who batted it away yourself, and I was merely acting out of courtesy to help things along. If there were a woman like her, I would gladly die beneath her flowered skirt!"

"What about Qingfeng, then?" Fang Zhe asked, having caught Feng Shang's muttered words.

Upon hearing the name Qingfeng, Feng Shang’s expression shifted drastically. "What are you even talking about? I have nothing to do with her whatsoever! Besides, she is a princess, and she went back to being a princess. We have no connection whatsoever!"

The mention of Qingfeng stirred a wave of nostalgia in Feng Shang, but he quickly checked himself, thinking, "That woman is a complete jinx. Every time I cross paths with her, misfortune follows. I must not think about her!" Feng Shang spat twice to clear his mind and finally fell silent.

At the same time, Han Tianyue thought, "Anyway, we’ve already escaped. If we lay low for a few days, surely the City Lord's daughter won't come looking for me anymore!" Although he tried to comfort himself with these thoughts, an undercurrent of unease still lingered in his mind.

Leaving Han Tianyue and the others aside for a moment, Lei Dong returned to his home, walked before the spirit tablet of Lei Min, and silently offered a few murmured prayers. He then stepped into a room and called out, "My home is rather small, so I'm afraid you'll have to endure sleeping on the floor!"

Stepping into the room, they saw only a single bed that could barely accommodate one person.

"How did you and Lei Min manage to live here?" Feng Shang asked, looking skeptically at the tiny bed.

Lei Dong smiled faintly and replied, "Actually, this wasn't originally my home."

"Oh?" Everyone turned their gaze toward him simultaneously.

Lei Dong fetched some straw from outside and spread it across the floor, then retrieved a blanket from a cupboard and laid it over the straw. He continued, "Originally, my uncle and I were part of the same household, and all the ancestral property was shared. Ever since Lei Min and I eloped, the City Lord awarded all the family property to my uncle. Coming back this time, seeing how destitute I was, my uncle kindly gave me this small ancestral retreat."

Lei Dong cast a fond glance around the tiny dwelling, clearly cherishing it. "I don't wish to run anymore. Having a small home like this, and being able to stay close to my wife—I am already thoroughly content."

With those words, Lei Dong gazed once more toward Lei Min's spirit tablet.

Whenever Lei Dong spoke of Lei Min, a blissful smile would light up his face. Watching that smile, Han Tianyue thought, "If the Crown Prince were by my side, I would willingly forsake the pursuit of the Human Emperor."

The thought passed quickly. Even though this was their first time sleeping on the bare floor, everyone felt deeply grateful to Lei Dong.

As the night grew deeper, everyone drifted off to sleep.

Taking advantage of the slumbering household, Mao Xuanzi quietly rose to his feet, walked out into the living room, and sat down cross-legged on the floor. Although much of the day's warmth had dissipated from the ground by nightfall, Mao Xuanzi absorbed whatever faint residual heat he could harness.

"Sister, I must become as strong as you; Boka, I must surpass you!" No matter how arduous or exhausting the path, Mao Xuanzi harbored no fear. Sweat once more drenched his garments, and within the beads of perspiration, a faint crimson hue grew increasingly intense.

Meanwhile, Han Tianyue had not fallen asleep either. Whenever everyone else drifted into slumber, he would mentally enter the ring's spatial realm. The moment he stepped inside tonight, he sensed Mao Xuanzi getting up and walking away.

Han Tianyue instantly snapped back to awareness and walked over to the edge of the room's doorway. Seeing Mao Xuanzi absorbing the surrounding heat energy, he thought, "I have no idea what he has been up to lately. He trains with such bitter intensity, yet there is not the slightest sign of improvement in his strength. Could what he said actually be true?"

Uncertain what side effects might arise from absorbing the power within the crystal ball, and with the elderly master still unable to wake up so he could ask, Han Tianyue could only worry silently for Mao Xuanzi. "Your Highness, how can I help your younger brother the way I helped you?"

Even if Mao Xuanzi never showed any improvement, Han Tianyue would never utter a single word of complaint. As long as he himself grew powerful enough, he would protect Mao Xuanzi, the younger brother of the Crown Prince, in the future. Yet Mao Xuanzi shared the exact same indomitable spirit as the Crown Prince—both possessed an unyielding pride and would refuse to lose to anyone.

Mao Xuanzi was fighting with everything he had.

Han Tianyue steadied his mind and resolved, "Since the brother and sister are fighting with all their might, why can't I put up a fight of my own?"

Returning to his sleeping spot, Han Tianyue closed his eyes and once again entered the spatial realm within the ring.