Besides lying down, I also know a little about power struggles

Chapter 139 I Should Care About You

"He had a bag of silver fish hanging from his waist."

According to Dazhao custom, all officials above the fifth rank were required to wear a fish token to prove their official status.

The bag used to hold fish symbols is called a fish bag. Depending on the rank of the official, there are goldfish bags and silver fish bags. Officials of the fourth and fifth ranks wear silver fish bags, while officials of higher ranks wear goldfish bags.

Fang Tong could see clearly outside the restaurant that the middle-aged man with Hong Xiao had a silver fish bag hanging around his waist.

She carefully recalled the man's appearance and said to Feng Twelve, "He has a square face, pale complexion, drooping ears, thick eyebrows, big eyes, puffy eye bags, and looks to be in his forties. He is of medium height and slightly plump."

She thought for a moment and continued, "He was wearing a crimson silk shirt with a lapel and a pattern of flowers and birds. I've seen similar patterns at Tianyixuan. You can ask Shopkeeper Ming to check the account book to see if anyone has bought this kind of ready-made clothes from her."

An official of the fifth rank or above, who had bought clothes at Tianyixuan and had been in and out of restaurants tonight and flirted with beautiful women, these characteristics were enough to identify the man.

Feng Twelve nodded: "I'll take care of this, you don't have to worry about it."

Fang Tong smiled and said, "I don't plan to worry about it. If I hadn't run into you tonight, I would have told Commander Wei about it and asked him to find someone."

Feng Twelve said: "You don't worry about it, but you still go to the restaurant to keep an eye on me?"

"The people from the White Bird Pavilion are related to me anyway," Fang Tong said confidently, "I don't know what conspiracy they are planning this time when they came to Beijing. I happened to see them, so how could I let them go?"

"Don't take risks without permission next time," Feng Twelve warned, "Your Kung Fu is not very advanced, so you won't be so lucky every time."

Fang Tong smiled and said, "I know I'm not good at martial arts, but you're speaking so directly, aren't you afraid of hurting my self-esteem?"

Feng Twelve paused: "I have no intention of offending you. You are very smart and have strong determination. You know how to adapt to danger, but not every enemy will give you a chance to react."

Fang Tong couldn't help but put his right hand to his face, frowning half of his eyebrows as if he had a toothache: "Your Highness, can you praise people properly when you praise them?"

"I'm not praising you," Feng Twelve said seriously, "I'm reminding you not to underestimate your opponent."

Seeing that he was serious, Fang Tong wanted to retort but swallowed it back helplessly.

Feng Twelve was right. Although she had waited for Hong Xiao tonight, she had underestimated her abilities, which led to her whereabouts being exposed.

Hong Xiao didn't kill her at first because she, like her, wanted to find out the other person's background. It was not until Hong Xiao realized something was wrong that she killed her.

Fang Tong was able to successfully counterattack because, firstly, she was lucky, and secondly, Hong Xiao underestimated her. If it was Qingluan, she might not have been able to succeed so easily.

Fang Tong lowered her head and reflected secretly. Was she thinking that the problem was too simple, relying on her ability to turn into a cat? If it really came to a life-and-death situation, was she sure that she could escape 100%?
She was lost in her own thoughts and remained silent for a long time.

Feng Twelve's expression became a little serious: "Sorry."

"Huh?" Fang Tong looked up in confusion.

"You've done very well," Feng Twelve said solemnly, "There are very few people who are as brave as you."

Fang Tong stared at him, blinked slowly, and laughed: "Why are you apologizing? I'm not stupid. I know you care about me."

She laughed heartily, and the dark color in Feng Twelve's eyes gradually warmed up.

"It's my duty to care about you."

"Why?" Fang Tong's eyebrows curved and he moved closer to him. "Because I'm smart, determined, able to adapt to circumstances, and brave?"

She spoke slowly and drawled out her tone, looking at him with a smile.

Feng Twelve stared at her smiling eyes, his expression normal, but his eyes turned away. "Yeah." He responded.

The response was crisp, yet somewhat perfunctory.

Fang Tong wanted to hear a few more nice words from him, but he suddenly became very frugal with his words, and she could no longer continue her joke.

Her smile faltered, she puffed up her cheeks, and slowly said "oh".

The atmosphere became a little strange, and the subtle feeling from before came back, even stronger than before.

Fang Tong cleared his throat and said, "By the way, when you were away from the capital, something big happened."

After she finished speaking, she paused intentionally, but she saw that Feng Twelve did not ask her anything important. He just looked at her intently, as if waiting for her to continue.

Fang Tong was silent for a moment, then continued, "One day I went to the downtown area and saw a mad horse that startled the Crown Princess' carriage. Fortunately, the Crown Princess shot the mad horse in time, so no disaster occurred. Tonight I heard from Hong Xiao that the mad horse was also their doing."

Feng Twelve frowned: "They attacked the Crown Princess?"

Fang Tong nodded: "That day, the Crown Princess went to the Imperial Temple outside the city first, and then went to her own villa to rest for half an hour. Hong Xiao and the others must have been following her, so they calculated the timing of her appearance in the downtown area and drove the crazy horse to hit the carriage."

Feng Twelve looked strange: "Why do you know the Crown Princess's itinerary in such detail?"

"Because after that, the Crown Princess invited me to ride with her and sent me back home," Fang Tong smiled, "We talked for a long time on the way."

"You were traveling with the Crown Princess?" Feng Twelve looked even more puzzled. "How did she recognize you?"

Fang Tong hesitated for a moment, then briefly recounted the story of how she was pushed under a horse's hoof that day and how she saved a child.

"The Crown Princess knows me because you mentioned me to the Crown Prince, right?" she asked Feng Twelve.

Feng Twelve did not answer. He said in a low voice, "You were almost trampled by a horse?"

As a person who has been riding horses for many years, he knows how powerful horse hooves are. On the battlefield, cavalrymen who fall off their horses often die from being trampled by horses' hooves rather than from enemy swords and guns.

Fang Tong touched the tip of her nose. She had almost forgotten about the matter, but Feng Twelve spoke of it in such a tone, as if it were a big deal. She felt a little embarrassed.

"I have been doing what you said these days to strengthen my body and consolidate my foundation," she said stubbornly, "so I was fine that day, not even a scratch."

Feng Twelve glanced her up and down.

Fang Tong spread his hands and simply turned them around for him: "If you don't believe me, just look."

The fluttering skirt swirled in the night breeze, rising gently like a dandelion and then slowly falling down.

Feng Twelve's eyes moved slightly, as if his eyelashes were brushed by the soft fabric.

Fang Tong put her hands on her hips and said, "Don't underestimate me. I have plenty of strength and means now."

What she said was nonsensical and no one knew where she learned it from. Feng Twelve just found it funny.

"If something happens to the Crown Princess, the Crown Prince will not ignore it. Since you have found out that Hong Xiao is involved in this matter, come with me to see the Crown Prince tomorrow."

Fang Tong said, "Why?"

Feng Twelve can just pass the message for her, why does she have to go see the prince in person?
"Since you are friends with the Crown Princess, you should visit the Crown Prince when he is injured." Feng Twelve said.