Chapter 47
Chapter 47
Zou Yong quietly swallowed and nudged Cui Jin with his elbow.
“Brother Cui, Li Si can talk all he wants, but why does he keep staring at us? He couldn’t have discovered something, could he?”
Cui Jin shot Zou Yong a sidelong glance.
“Idiot. Calm down. We didn’t leave any evidence behind. I’ve already dealt with the person who helped drug the food. Even if they investigate, they won’t be able to trace it back to us.”
No sooner had Cui Jin finished speaking than a shriek rang out from the rear courtyard of the courier station. “Someone’s dead! Someone’s dead!”
Now there was no need for Li Si to report it to the authorities; the people at the station had already run off to do so.
Li Si glanced at Cui Jin and Zou Yong, then strode toward the rear courtyard.
A man’s corpse was floating in the well there. From the look of it, he had not been dead for long.
Li Si returned and told Zhu Laosan and the father and sons of the Xiao Family what had happened.
Xiao Jingmo immediately thought of killing a witness to silence him. It seemed this poisoning incident was destined to become an unsolved case, just like last night when they had drugged Cui Jin. Cui Jin must have noticed something was wrong, but that man had already been sent away by them.
Cui Jin was not as softhearted as they were. He had simply killed the man to silence him.
The government officials soon surrounded the courier station, and everyone inside became a suspect.
After a round of questioning and investigation, the Xiao Family and the people Old Madam Zheng had brought with her were all cleared of suspicion.
The deceased had still been perfectly fine before breakfast, and during that time, both the exiled prisoners and the guests staying at the station had alibis.
Cui Jin and Zou Yong vouched for each other and managed to escape disaster as well.
In the end, Zhu Laosan said something to the constables. An hour later, they were allowed to leave.
Old Madam Zheng was still shaken, and at the same time, she grew even more curious about Jin Bao.
How had such a little child known the porridge was poisoned?
But she was not a meddlesome person and did not press for answers.
Before they set off, Old Madam Zheng handed Old Madam Xiao a token.
“Elder Sister, this is my Xie Family’s token. Your journey to the Northern Frontier will not be peaceful. As it happens, my Xie Family is in Jinzhou, two hundred li from here, and it lies along the route you must take. If you encounter any difficulties, you may send someone to ask for help.”
Old Madam Zheng was taking a risk by doing this. But the moment she saw Jin Bao, she felt the child might be her daughter’s reincarnation. She wanted to help protect the Xiao Family for part of their journey. Besides, the Emperor had not ordered the Xiao Family to die, so what she was doing could not really be considered defying the imperial will.
Old Madam Xiao nodded her thanks, then bid farewell to Old Madam Zheng at the entrance of the courier station.
As soon as Old Madam Zheng boarded her carriage, she gave an order.
“Send word to the Grand Chancellor at once. Have him investigate whether this daughter of the Xiao Family is truly Madam Xiao’s distant niece.”
Old Madam Zheng had lived to such an age; she was not some young girl who could be easily fooled. Nor did she believe that two people in this world could look so alike by sheer coincidence. More than that, she felt an inexplicable affinity with the child.
If the Imperial Consort had not died from difficult labor back then, then there had to be more to the matter. Newborns all looked more or less the same. Nothing much could be told from their features, and if one had been swapped, no one would have noticed.
At the entrance of the courier station, Zhu Laosan and Li Si led the Xiao Family out, only to run straight into a beggar.
In Suizhong, beggars were everywhere, so Zhu Laosan paid him no mind.
But when the beggar passed by Xiao Jingmo, his footing slipped and he nearly fell, crashing right into Xiao Jingmo.
“You stinking beggar! Are you blind?”
Li Si was already on edge because of the poisoning that morning, and the constables had not given any final conclusion. With nowhere to vent his anger, he spotted the beggar, raised his whip, and was about to lash him.
The beggar immediately dropped to his knees and begged for mercy. “Officer, I was wrong! Please don’t be angry, Officer. Treat me like a fart and let me go!”
Seeing that the sun was already high and they could not delay any longer, Zhu Laosan snapped, “Then hurry up and get lost!”
The beggar kowtowed again and again in gratitude before leaving.
Xiao Jingmo’s expression was unreadable. A slip of paper was clenched in his hand as he watched the beggar run toward the city gates.
Pei Wanqing hurried over as well and checked Xiao Jingmo up and down.
“Mo’er, are you all right?”
“Mother, I’m fine. You, Grandmother, and Little Sister should hurry and get onto the mule cart.”
Seeing that Xiao Jingmo truly was unharmed, Pei Wanqing finally carried Jin Bao and boarded the mule cart together with Old Madam Xiao.
From Suizhong to Jinzhou was more than two hundred li. There were no courier stations along the way, and towns were few and far between.
After passing Suizhong, they entered a branch of the Yan Mountains. The terrain grew steep and treacherous, the roads narrow, with gorges appearing everywhere.
It was said that mountain bandits often haunted this area, robbing merchant caravans that passed through.
Because of that, when merchant caravans from inside the pass wanted to head beyond it, several caravans would usually travel together and hire an escort agency for protection. Otherwise, most of them would never return.
Cui Jin and Zou Yong supported each other as they walked out of the relay station.
The two of them had suffered diarrhea all night and were badly weakened. Even now, their faces were bloodless, and their steps were unsteady, as if they were floating.
When Li Si saw them come out, he gave a cold snort and climbed onto the mule cart.
Cui Jin and Zou Yong trailed at the very back of the group, practically draped over their horses.
Zhu Laosan raised his whip and struck the mule, and the group set off once more.
After they had traveled for an hour, Xiao Jingmo deliberately edged closer to Xiao Che.
“Father, that beggar earlier was delivering a message.”
Xiao Che lowered his eyes and glanced at the corner of the note peeking out from Xiao Jingmo’s hand. His heart began to pound.
They had received no news whatsoever throughout this entire journey. Who could be sending them a message?
Xiao Che leaned back slightly, just enough to block Cui Jin and Zou Yong’s line of sight behind them.
“Mo’er, hurry and see what the note says.”
Xiao Jingmo cautiously swept his gaze around. Seeing that everyone was trudging along listlessly, and even the people on the mule cart were already drowsy, he quickly pulled out the note, unfolded it, and scanned it. The moment he saw that familiar handwriting, his calm expression nearly cracked.
“Father, it’s from Big Brother! Big Brother is still alive!”
Xiao Jingmo’s voice trembled with excitement.
Xiao Che clenched his fists even tighter. It took him a long moment to steady his emotions.
“What did your big brother say?”
Now that he knew Xiao Jingxing was still alive, the weight that had been hanging over Xiao Che’s heart finally lifted. Even his steps seemed to grow lighter.
Xiao Jingmo took a deep breath. The contents of the note nearly stopped his breathing altogether.
His gaze fell on the mule cart, on the little bundle of pale yellow nestled in his mother’s arms. The shock in his eyes lingered for a long time. But soon, as if he had figured something out, his expression gradually settled back into calm.
“Big Brother wrote that Jin Bao might be the Star Maiden, and told us to protect her well.”
Xiao Che frowned. “Star Maiden? What is that? Why have I never heard of it?”
That was precisely what Xiao Jingmo could not understand either. This was his first time hearing of it as well.
“Big Brother said that many people are currently searching for the Star Maiden’s whereabouts. Whoever obtains the Star Maiden can decide the fate of the realm and rule the four seas. The Star Maiden can glimpse the secrets of Heaven!”
There was no need for Xiao Jingmo to say any more. With that final sentence, Xiao Che understood completely. Their Jin Bao was the Star Maiden.
They had already witnessed Jin Bao’s abilities. So Jin Bao was the Star Maiden?
“How did this news get out?”
Xiao Che found it very strange. If Jin Bao was the Star Maiden, why had people only started searching for her after three years?
“Big Brother said it involves palace secrets, and he hasn’t uncovered the full story yet. But he has already found out who is looking for the Star Maiden.”
As Xiao Jingmo finished speaking, a mocking sneer curved his lips.
“Prince Cheng?”
Seeing his son’s expression and remembering their earlier suspicions, Xiao Che asked with some uncertainty.
“That’s right. It seems Prince Cheng is scheming for something far greater than we imagined. He invited an astrologer, who divined that the Star Maiden had been born. That was why he cast a net across the entire nation. I heard he has already captured several thousand girls around the age of three. If Jin Bao hadn’t been exiled with us, she might have been taken already.”
Xiao Jingmo felt that Prince Cheng was utterly mad. For the sake of an uncertain future, he had cast aside all humanity. It was not hard to imagine what fate awaited those little girls after they were captured.
“This is bad. Cui Jin must have noticed something unusual about Jin Bao. If Cui Jin is one of Prince Cheng’s men, then Jin Bao…”
Xiao Che did not dare continue the thought.
“Father, it seems that to protect our little sister, we have no choice but to get rid of those two.”
A cold, murderous light glinted in Xiao Jingmo’s eyes.
Xiao Che’s face was filled with killing intent as well. If he had known about the Star Maiden earlier, he would never have left those two scourges alive. Now, the only thing they did not know was whether the two had already leaked this information.
No matter what, they had to protect Jin Bao.