From the fake emperor to the concubine

Zheng Yi tucked the dagger into his waistband, turned around, and nudged Cao Fang's shoulder.

Cao Fang was fast asleep when she was woken up and jolted so hard she almost rolled off the bed.

"what happened?"

“There are people outside. A lot of people.” Zheng Yi’s voice was very low, so low that only Cao Fang could hear it. “They’re wearing armor and carrying knives.”

Cao Fang's face turned ashen in an instant.

"Who...who is it?"

"I don't know. But it's not a street vendor."

Zheng Yi kicked Chi Ya awake. Chi Ya rolled half a circle on the ground, opened his eyes groggily, and was about to speak when Zheng Yi covered his mouth.

"Don't make a sound." Zheng Yi pressed his hand against his mouth, quite firmly. "There are soldiers outside. Put on your boots and stay close to me."

Chiya's eyes widened instantly, all sleepiness gone. He nodded, got up from the ground, and hurriedly put on his boots, putting one on backwards, then took it off and put it on again.

Zheng Yi pushed open the door and walked into the courtyard.

The light in the main room suddenly came on—Shen Yuan had also woken up. She saw Zheng Yi standing in the courtyard through the window, immediately blew out the light, dressed in the dark, and opened the door. The moonlight shone on her face, and her expression was surprisingly calm, as if she had known this day would come all along.

"Soldiers?" she asked.

"Ah."

"how many people?"

"I don't know. At least several dozen."

Shen Yuan clenched her fingers on the door frame for a moment, then let go.

Where is Uncle Cao?

"In the back."

When Cao Fang came out of the east wing, his legs were trembling. He could barely stand by holding onto the door frame, his lips were quivering, and his face was as white as paper.

"Young Master Zheng... I didn't... I didn't tell anyone... I really didn't..."

His voice grew softer and softer until the last few words were almost a breath squeezed out of his throat.

Zheng Yi looked at him without saying anything, walked over, and grabbed Cao Fang by the collar.

Cao Fang was pulled forward and stumbled, almost falling to the ground. His eyes were wide open, filled with fear and grievance, and his eyes immediately reddened.

"Young Master Zheng! I really didn't! I swear to God! If I, Cao Fang, betrayed Yuan'er, may I be struck by lightning, may my whole family—"

"Stop talking."

Zheng Yi's voice wasn't loud, but it was firm, so firm that Cao Fang couldn't finish her sentence.

Shen Yuan came down the steps of the main house, walked between Zheng Yi and Cao Fang, and put her hand on the hand that Zheng Yi was holding his collar.

“Young Master Zheng, it’s not Uncle Cao.” Her voice wasn’t loud, but it was steady. “He wouldn’t betray me. My father trusts him, and I trust him too.”

Zheng Yi glanced down at Shen Yuan, then at Cao Fang.

Cao Fang's tears had already fallen, flowing silently, running down the wrinkles on her face, and dripping onto the back of Zheng Yi's hand.

Zheng Yi released his grip.

“I know it’s not you,” he said.

Cao Fang was stunned.

"Then why don't you—"

“There’s no time.” Zheng Yi interrupted him, turning to look at the direction of the courtyard wall. The firelight outside was brighter, and footsteps had moved from the alley entrance into the alley. Someone was banging loudly on the door next door. “The soldiers have surrounded the Cao residence. Whether you betrayed them or not, you won’t be able to stay in Huzhou after tonight. They will arrest you, interrogate you, and ask about your relationship with the Shen family. Can you hold out?”

Cao Fang opened her mouth, but no words came out.

“You can’t hold on,” Zheng Yi answered for him, his tone devoid of blame, simply stating a fact. “You’re an ordinary person in the grain business. You haven’t experienced those hardships. You can’t bear it. If you can’t bear it, you’ll tell them everything you know. You don’t know much, but it’s enough for them to know that Shen Yuan is still alive.”

Cao Fang's tears flowed even more fiercely, her lips trembled, and she couldn't utter a single word.

“That’s why I have to take you with me,” Zheng Yi said. “Not because you betrayed us, but because you’ll die if you stay.”

Shen Yuan's hand slid off Zheng Yi's and hung down at her side.

She glanced at Zheng Yi, her bright black eyes sparkling, but she said nothing, only nodded.

Chi Ya had already put on his boots, tucked the short knife behind his waist, and stood in the middle of the courtyard, his whole body taut like a fully drawn bow. His usual playful expression was gone, replaced by an expression Zheng Yi had seen in the North—the expression of a hunter before tracking his prey, when his blood was racing.

"Is there a way out from the backyard?" Zheng Yi asked Cao Fang.

Cao Fang wiped his face with his sleeve, took a deep breath, and forcefully suppressed the emotions welling up inside him. His voice was still trembling, but he could already speak in complete sentences.

"Outside the backyard wall was a ditch, not wide enough to jump over. Beyond the ditch was a narrow alley that led to the main road in the south of the city."

"Walk."

Zheng Yi led the way to the backyard, his steps quick but steady, his boots making a rhythmic, deliberate sound on the flagstones. Chi Ya followed behind him, his hand on the hilt of his sword, glancing back as he walked. Shen Yuan walked in the middle; her ribs hadn't fully healed, and running hurt, but she bit her lip, remaining silent. Cao Fang brought up the rear, his legs still trembling, but he was trying his best to keep up with those in front.

The backyard wasn't large, with a loquat tree growing against the wall, its canopy blocking out most of the moonlight. The wall, made of blue bricks, was about a person's height, covered in moss that shimmered with a dark green luster in the moonlight. Sure enough, there was a ditch outside the wall, and the soft sound of flowing water could be heard.

The footsteps outside were getting closer. Someone was knocking on the front gate of the Cao residence. They knocked three times, paused for a moment, and then knocked three more times, each time harder than the last.

"Open the door! Officers!"

Cao Fang's face paled even more.

Zheng Yi didn't go towards the back gate. He walked to the courtyard wall, squatted down, and clasped his hands together.

"Red Fang, go!"

Without hesitation, Chi Ya stepped on Zheng Yi's hand, and Zheng Yi lifted him up, using the momentum to propel Chi Ya onto the top of the wall. Perched atop the wall, he glanced down and muttered, "The ditch isn't wide, I can jump," before flipping over and leaping down, landing with a dull thud on the ground outside the wall. Zheng Yi turned to Shen Yuan.

Shen Yuan looked at the wall, took a deep breath, lifted her skirt and tucked it into her belt, revealing the cotton trousers she was wearing underneath, altered in the north. She walked to the base of the wall and, imitating Chi Ya, stepped one foot into Zheng Yi's hand. Zheng Yi helped her up, and she gripped the top of the wall with both hands. A sharp pain shot through her ribs, making her vision blur, but she gritted her teeth, exerted her strength, and flipped herself over the wall.

She sat on the wall for a moment, the moonlight bathing her in a silvery-white glow. She glanced down at Zheng Yi, her lips moved slightly but no sound came out, then she flipped over and jumped down.

Chiya caught her outside the wall and helped her stand up.

Zheng Yi turned around and looked at Cao Fang.

Cao Fang stood under the loquat tree, trembling all over. His lips were bitten raw, and beads of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth, but he didn't run away or back down. He just looked at Zheng Yi with something indescribable in his eyes—a mixture of fear, guilt, and gratitude.

"Manager Cao."

"exist."

"Are there any trustworthy maids or servants in your household?"

Cao Fang was taken aback for a moment, but quickly understood what Zheng Yi meant. He thought for a moment, and his lips trembled slightly.

"There was a maid named Chuncao. She had been working in my household for six years and was an honest girl."

Can she believe it?

Cao Fang hesitated.

“Chuncao…she should be able to trust me. Her hometown is in the north, and she has no relatives or friends in Huzhou. I'm the one who took her in—”

"That's enough." Zheng Yi interrupted him, walked back, squatted down, and said, "Get on."

Cao Fang stepped onto Zheng Yi's palm. When Zheng Yi lifted him up, he could clearly feel his weight—not light, but Zheng Yi's legs didn't tremble. Cao Fang's movements to climb over the wall were much clumsy. He leaned on the top of the wall and panted for several breaths before finally getting over. He stumbled when he landed and was caught by Chi Ya and Shen Yuan.

Zheng Yi was the last to climb over the wall. Before he did, he glanced back at the front yard. The front gate had been smashed open, flames flooded the yard, and someone was shouting "Search!" As he scaled the wall, he saw a soldier in armor rush from the front yard into the back, holding a torch. The torchlight illuminated his face—young, probably in his early twenties, with a cold indifference in his eyes unique to carrying out orders.

The soldier saw Zheng Yi on the wall.

Their eyes met for less than a moment in the firelight.

Zheng Yi climbed over the wall.

"Walk."

The four of them jumped over the ditch. The ditch wasn't wide, but Shen Yuan still stepped into the water when she landed. The icy water filled her boots, and she shivered, but she didn't stop. Chi Ya led the way, Zheng Yi brought up the rear, and Cao Fang was sandwiched in the middle, running breathlessly.

The alley was narrow, with high walls on both sides, so the moonlight couldn't penetrate; it was as dark as an endless tunnel. Four people ran in the darkness, their footsteps bouncing back and forth in the alley, creating a chaotic, indistinguishable cacophony.

Red Fang's voice came from ahead: "There's light at the alley entrance! It's the main road!"

They rushed out of the alley.

The main road in the south of the city unfolded under the moonlight, paved with smooth bluestone slabs that shone like a thin layer of mercury in the moonlight. On both sides of the road were the back walls of various shops, dark and windowless, with only occasional small doors embedded in the walls, their panels rotten and a rusty iron lock hanging on the door knocker.

Chiya stood at the intersection, looking left and right.

Which way?

Zheng Yi caught up, glanced at the terrain, and nodded towards the south.

"Leave the city."

The four men ran south along the main road. Zheng Yi had already checked the direction of the city gate during the day—the south gate was the smallest gate in Huzhou City, closed earliest at night, but had the fewest soldiers guarding it. He knew that.

Shouts came from behind, still far away, but getting closer.

Cao Fang was the slowest runner; his legs felt like lead, each step heavy, and his breathing was as labored as an old ox being chased. Shen Yuan ran ahead of him, her ribs still aching, her boots filled with cold water, but she didn't stop to wait or look back. She knew that stopping would be irresponsible to everyone.

Chiya ran in the lead, his long legs moving incredibly fast, like a horse finally unleashed from its reins. He would occasionally glance back at Zheng Yi to make sure he was going the right way, and then continue running.

After running for about the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, the city wall appeared in front of us.

It wasn't high, about two zhang (approximately 6.6 meters), and the city wall was covered with ivy. The withered vines formed a huge net, covering the entire wall. The city gate was on the left, the wooden door was already closed, and behind it were chevaux-de-frise and roadblocks.

"Climb over the wall," Zheng Yi said.

Chi Ya was the first to rush up, climbing the ivy vines with his bare hands. The vines were thick, some of them withered and crumbled easily when gripped. He placed his feet in the cracks between the bricks and, using both hands and feet, like an agile monkey, quickly scaled the top of the wall.

Shen Yuan stood at the base of the wall and looked up at it. It was much higher than Cao Fang's wall, and Zheng Yi wasn't there to support her anymore.

Red Fang sat on the top of the wall and stretched one hand down.

"Miss Shen, grab me!"

Shen Yuan tiptoed, barely managing to reach Chi Ya's fingertips. Chi Ya reached down and grabbed her wrist, while Zheng Yi supported her waist from below, pulling her up onto the wall together. Her ribs were bumped, and she let out a muffled groan, not loud, but Zheng Yi heard it.

It took Zheng Yi a lot of effort to get Cao Fang up there. Cao Fang was much heavier than him and was almost exhausted from running; she was as limp as a sack of flour without a seal. Zheng Yi gritted his teeth and pushed her up, while Chi Ya grabbed her collar from the top of the wall and pulled her up. Cao Fang's collar tightened around his neck, making his face turn purple, but he didn't utter a sound. He just kicked the bricks of the wall repeatedly, like a wild beast trapped in a trap struggling desperately.

Finally, it was Zheng Yi's turn. He took two steps back, ran up, pushed off the wall with his feet, grabbed a thick vine, and used the momentum to flip himself up. One vine broke, and his body dropped half a foot, but he managed to grab the brick edge of the top of the wall with his other hand, his fingers gripping the cracks in the brickwork, and pulled himself up.

Four people sat on the top of the wall, blown by the night wind, looking down at the city of Huzhou.

There were fires in the city, many fires, like a fiery serpent moving through the southern streets and alleys, heading towards the south gate.

“They know we ran south,” Chiya said.

“They may not know. But they’re guessing.” Zheng Yi flipped down from the city wall and landed on the soft soil outside the city. He looked up at the people on the wall and said, “Come down, don’t fall.”

Shen Yuan bent her knees slightly when she jumped down, but managed to steady herself. Cao Fang fell straight to the ground when he jumped down. Chi Ya helped him up; his palms were scraped, and blood and dirt mingled together, covering his hands.

Outside the city wall was a vegetable garden. Cabbages and radishes grew there; the cabbage leaves were wilted by the frost, lying on the ground like withered flowers. The radishes were still in the ground, their plump white heads half-emerging from the soil, gleaming a pale green in the moonlight.

The four people walked south through the vegetable garden, their feet sinking into soft, frost-covered soil that crunched underfoot.

After walking about a mile, the lights of Huzhou city behind them gradually faded into the distance. The city wall became a long, dark line stretching between the sky and the earth, like an old ruler forgotten on a table. (End of Chapter)