The prince is more stable

Chapter 470 City-wide manhunt
At dusk, the inn was as quiet as usual.

After Su Shi moved into the inn, the inn became bustling day and night due to his celebrity effect.

In order to get close to their idol and create chance encounters with him, many powerful people used their connections to live in the inn like illegitimate fans and often invited Su Shi to dinner.

During this period, Su Shi actually lived a very comfortable life. It was not as hard and humiliating as one might imagine.

With Su Shi's character, even when he was exiled to a barren land, he still found ways to discover all kinds of delicious food and find all kinds of happiness in his life. Such a person would never treat himself badly.

At this time tonight, the dignitaries who had moved in actually gave Su Shi an excellent opportunity to cover up.

After the powerful and wealthy moved in, they inevitably needed servants to serve them, so the inn was always bustling with people coming in and out, and the staff was very mixed.

Zhen Qing pulled Su Shi into the house, dressed him up in a green robe and a green hat, like a servant, and ordered the servants to light the candles in the house to create the illusion that there was someone in the house.

Then Zhen Qing protected Su Shi, who was in disguise, from the backyard through a small bamboo forest and came behind a wall.

A ladder had been prepared behind the wall, and Zhen Qing helped Su Shi climb the ladder.

Like Ximen Daguanren who stole the fragrance and jade, Su Shi carefully climbed the ladder over the wall and escaped from the inn without anyone noticing.

Zhen Qing and his men were escorting Su Shi. Just as they climbed over the wall, almost a moment later, a cry of surprise suddenly came from the inn.

"The fire is coming! The fire is coming--!"

Zhen Qing and Su Shi turned their heads and saw that a huge fire had broken out around the room where Su Shi lived in the inn. The fire was abnormally fierce and it was out of control almost the moment it started. It was obvious that kerosene, straw and other flammable materials had been prepared in advance.

Outside the inn, Su Shi and Zhen Qing, who had just climbed over the wall, exchanged glances. Su Shi's face turned grim, and he angrily exclaimed, "These Liao people, don't they even bother to go through the motions? They're so brazen in killing the Song envoy!"

Su Shi was angry, but Zhen Qing looked frightened and his face was still extremely pale.

Fortunately, I ran away early. If I had run a little later, Su Shi would have been burned to death. How can I explain to His Royal Highness the Prince if I couldn't rescue him in time?

With God’s mercy and the blessings of my ancestors, my future is secured!

"Master Su, please leave quickly. We should not stay here for long. It will be troublesome if we are discovered by the Liao spies!" Zhen Qing pulled Su Shi into the intricate alleys next to the inn.

The group disappeared into the night of Shangjing, the capital of Liao.

That night, the fire in Shangjing Inn burned for several hours, but the city defense troops who came to put out the fire were slow and unhurried. They brought firefighting tools but surrounded the burning inn. They were not in a hurry to put out the fire, but instead strictly checked those who escaped from the inn, and did not let any escaper go.

This posture doesn't look like putting out a fire at all, but rather like encircling and suppressing rebels.

It was not until several hours later that the fire in the inn finally subsided and was finally extinguished. It was not put out by people, but it was extinguished by itself when there was nothing left to burn.

At this time, hundreds of Liao soldiers rushed into the fire scene and went straight to the house where Su Shi lived. They searched inside and outside for a long time, but unexpectedly found that there was no body remains inside or outside the fire scene.

Yelu Otera, who led the troops personally, panicked. He did not give up and ordered a thorough search again, not only of the house where Su Shi lived, but also of the entire inn.

The result was still nothing. It was obvious that Su Shi was not burned to death in the fire.

Yelu Otera was stunned for a while, and then he became furious.

He was in a bad temper and immediately vented his anger by whipping the imperial guards. After a round of violence, Yelu Otera finally calmed down and gritted his teeth and ordered the city gates to be closed and the whole city to be searched for Su Shi.

Now that things have come to this, there is no need to hide anything. Su Shi must die, even if he runs away, he must be caught and killed!
So starting from the next day, the Liao Kingdom deployed heavy troops at each gate of Shangjing City, and strictly checked people entering and leaving the city. Everyone who left the city was pulled in front of Su Shi's portrait for careful comparison, and they would only be released after confirming that there was no similarity.

Because of this incident, many people in Beijing suffered misfortune.

There are tens of millions of people in the world, and there are always some who look similar in appearance. But now, anyone in the capital who looks like Su Shi will be roughly arrested by officers and soldiers and thrown into prison, waiting for officials to identify them one by one.

Many people were inexplicably imprisoned, and the atmosphere in the Liao capital became panic-stricken, depressing and solemn because of Su Shi alone.

What’s even more interesting is that the Liao officials and police were not easy to deal with. Those who looked like Su Shi would be severely tortured after being caught.

How could the ordinary people and merchants who were captured bear this? After experiencing several torture instruments, they burst into tears and confessed that they were the real Su Shi.

So during the two days of the citywide manhunt, hundreds of Su Shis inexplicably appeared in the Shangjing jail, leaving the interrogating officials bewildered. During court meetings, they privately compared accounts with each other and wondered, "Eh? Is there a bit of an oversupply of Su Shis in our capital lately?"
Awkward and outrageous.

…………

Three days later, Feihu Bingmasi.

Zhao Xiaoqian sat in the main hall of the government office, frowning as he looked at a secret letter in his hand.

The secret letter was sent by Zhen Qing. The Liao Kingdom had strict inspections in the capital, so this secret letter was delivered with great difficulty. It took three days and three nights of non-stop running to finally deliver the secret letter to Zhao Xiaoqian.

"Su Shi is trapped in Shangjing?" Zhao Xiaoqian was a little uneasy.

From Zhen Qing's letter, Zhao Xiaoqian learned that the inspections in Shangjing were now very strict, especially for those leaving the city. Su Shi was placed by Zhen Qing in a dark room in a residential house in the city. The residential house had been searched several times by the Liao army, but the dark room had not been discovered, so Su Shi's situation was temporarily safe.

But the problem was that the inspections at the city gates of Shangjing were too strict. Zhen Qing used all his connections and means, but was unable to send Su Shi out of Shangjing safely.

Yelu Hongji's murderous intention towards Su Shi has not yet subsided, and the city-wide search for Su Shi is getting more and more intense. Zhen Qing is now as anxious as an ant on a hot pan, feeling very uneasy, fearing that one day the Liao army will suddenly break in and discover the secret room where Su Shi is hiding, which would be a big trouble.

The letter Zhen Qing sent at this time was actually a letter asking for help.

After reading the letter, Zhao Xiaoqian couldn't help but hold his forehead with one hand.

Now it was his turn to have a headache.

The Feihu Military Division was thousands of miles away from the Liao capital, and the two countries were still at war. How could he save Su Shi?

The old guy caused him a lot of trouble, mainly because they were too far apart and the two sides were hostile to each other. It was harder than climbing to the sky to rescue Su Shi.

Although the Liao Kingdom did not capture Su Shi, Su Shi was trapped in Shangjing, which actually made him a hostage in the hands of the Liao Kingdom, making Zhao Xiaoqian cautious.

Come to think of it, it was really retribution. Zhao Xiaoqian took the Liao emperor's grandson hostage in exchange for huge benefits, but the Liao Dynasty turned around and took Su Shi as a hostage.

Could it be that Zhao Xiaoqian had to give up some benefits in order to get Su Shi back? Of course, there was another hidden chess piece that Zhao Xiaoqian had laid in Shangjing, that was Xiao Wuna. Perhaps he could send Su Shi out of the city through Xiao Wuna.

However, this move is very risky. Given the current strict inspection situation in the capital, even if Xiao Wuna is covering for Su Shi, it will not be easy for him to leave the city, and Xiao Wuna might be exposed.

The cost of failure was too high. Not only would Su Shi be in danger, but the entire Xiao family would also have to suffer the consequences. Zhao Xiaoqian was a little hesitant and found it difficult to make a decision.

After thinking for a long time, Zhao Xiaoqian still couldn't think of a solution, so he frowned and walked out of the main hall.

Looking up at the clear and bright sky, today is a pleasant spring day with the sun shining brightly. There are lush leaves all around like a forest and birds singing.

Zhao Xiaoqian stood in the yard, took a deep breath, and suddenly felt relaxed and open-minded, and his mind became clear.

Under such bright sunshine, even the dark side of the heart seems to become bright.

Then Zhao Xiaoqian's expression suddenly froze, and he felt as if everything had suddenly become clear.

He seemed to have reached a dead end, and kept thinking of some shameful conspiracy to save Su Shi.

Why bother?

It would be better to ask the Liao Kingdom for the person who came back to you in a dignified manner. The envoys of the Great Song Dynasty are detained in Shangjing. What reason do you have to detain them?

The Song Dynasty today is no longer what it used to be, and Zhao Xiaoqian has every confidence in this.

Because what supports his confidence are the tens of thousands of invincible and victorious Dragon Guard soldiers under his command!

So, why bother with any conspiracy or intrigue? I just want the person directly, and if you don’t give it to me, I’ll be angry with you!

After thinking it over, Zhao Xiaoqian's mood suddenly became as bright as spring, and he couldn't help laughing.

"Come here, beat the drum and gather the generals!" Zhao Xiaoqian shouted.

After three drum beats, all the generals from the Dragon Guard Camp arrived at the main hall of the government office.

Zhao Xiaoqian sat in the main seat with his legs crossed, looking at the generals with a smile on his face.

"Everyone, I have a good job here. It may not be lucrative, but it will be recorded in the merit book. Who is willing to take the time to go on this mission?" Zhao Xiaoqian asked with a smile.

When the generals heard the words "merit book", their eyes lit up and they took a step forward almost as if by reflex, saying in unison: "We are willing to go!"

Zhao Xiaoqian was stunned for a moment, then waved his hand and said with a smile: "There's no need for so many people, there's only one spot available."

Just as Zhong Jianzhong opened his mouth, Zhao Xiaoqian said quickly, "Old Zhong, please sit down. You have nothing to do here. You are the commander of the Dragon Guard Battalion and cannot leave the camp."

Zhong Jianzhong sat down angrily.

The other generals took another step forward excitedly.

Zhe Keshi clasped his fists and said loudly: "Your Highness, this humble general..."

"Old Zhe, you should sit down too. You are too irritable and it's not appropriate."

Zong Ze stepped forward and said, "Your Highness, this humble general..."

"Old Master, please sit down too. You're quite handsome, and I'm worried that the Liao women might be tempted by your looks and take you abducted."

Zhang Rong stepped forward and said, "Your Highness, this humble general..."

"Old Zhang, sit down too. You're too ugly. You're damaging the image of the Song Dynasty."

Zhang Rong stared in amazement, then sat down with a hurt look on his face.

Looking around, Zhao Xiaoqian suddenly felt a sense of sadness.

I have many brave generals under my command. Can't I choose a suitable one?

I had no choice but to look around at the eliminated people again.

This is the only way to be the tallest among the short ones.

Then his eyes fell on Zhang Rong again.

"Zhang Rong..." Zhao Xiaoqian sighed helplessly.

Zhang Rong was stunned and stood up subconsciously: "I am here."

Zhao Xiaoqian said sadly, "You should go to the capital of Liao."

Upon hearing that he was going to the capital of Liao, Zhang Rong showed no fear at all. Instead, he was excited. He then asked doubtfully, "Didn't Your Highness just say that I... well, I'm actually not ugly..."

"No, you're ugly. Stop hiding it and admit it," Zhao Xiaoqian said bluntly. Then he changed the subject and sighed, "Although you're ugly, at least you're quite articulate and slick, making you suitable for verbal battles with the Liao people. I'll leave this matter to you."

Zhang Rong was completely devastated by the repeated pointing out of his ugly face. He could only swallow the humiliation and ask, "Why am I going to the capital of Liao?"

"Go and bring back Su Shi, the envoy of the Song Dynasty." Zhao Xiaoqian said directly.

Zhang Rong was stunned. "The Liao people have detained our Song Dynasty envoys? What if they refuse to give it to us?"

Zhao Xiaoqian sneered: "They will give it, if not..."

After pausing, Zhao Xiaoqian pointed at the assembled generals, a fierce expression on his face, and asked, "Are you vegetarians?"

The generals were invigorated and stood up and shouted, "I am not a vegetarian!"

(End of this chapter)