Chapter 223: Stealing
Seeing that Zheng Dong was on the brink of collapse, Xue Ruhong ordered, "Archers, remain at your posts. Some of you, follow this general!"
"Yes, General Xue!"
Leading fifty soldiers, Xue Ruhong descended the city wall.
When Zheng Dong saw him approaching, he wiped the blood from his lips.
Noticing the unwillingness in Zheng Dong’s eyes, Xue Ruhong smiled faintly. "General Zheng, where are you going in such a hurry?"
Hearing this, Zheng Dong sneered. "Enough nonsense. If you want to kill me, then do it."
Xue Ruhong studied him for a moment, then ordered, "Hand him over to General Fan."
"Yes, General Xue."
As the soldiers bound him with rope, Zheng Dong glanced toward the city gate.
Noticing this, Xue Ruhong said, "General Zheng, you will meet your Seventh Princess again soon."
Zheng Dong’s eyes widened at Xue Ruhong’s words, and he asked, "What did you do to the Seventh Princess?!"
Ignoring him, Xue Ruhong ordered, "Drag him away!"
Struggling to free himself, Zheng Dong shouted anxiously, "Answer me! What did you do to the Seventh Princess?!"
As he was dragged away by the soldiers, Xue Ruhong commanded, "Inform the Great General that we have captured Zheng Dong."
At his words, one soldier clasped his fist and replied, "This subordinate will go immediately."
Meanwhile, the vice general and his unit had surrounded Jin Yan not far from the northern city gate.
Glaring at them warily, Jin Yan warned, "This princess is the Seventh Princess of the Jin Empire. If you dare lay a hand on me, this princess will make you pay with your life!"
Hearing this, the vice general looked at her without expression and said, "Give me the rope."
Following his instructions, a soldier took down the rope hanging on the horse and handed it to the vice general.
"What are you going to do?!" Jin Yan asked in horror as she saw him loop one end of the rope.
Before her words had fully fallen, the vice general tossed the rope over her. The loop landed neatly around her, and before she could react, he yanked it tight, binding Jin Yan’s arms to her sides.
Realizing she couldn’t break free, Jin Yan panicked. "Presumptuous! This princess orders you to release me!"
The vice general glanced at her without interest, then lazily ordered, "Return to the city."
Dragging Jin Yan along, the vice general rode back toward Xiqiang City, followed by his subordinates.
Unaware that their escape plan had already failed, another general of the Jin Army was anxiously waiting for Jin Yan and Zheng Dong.
After waiting until the moon hung high overhead, the general finally said, "Looks like they failed to escape."
Hearing this, his vice general asked, "General, what should we do now?"
Without Jin Cen and Shi Yixi, they had already lost their leaders. However, three generals still remained to lead the Jin Army, so they still had a chance to rescue Jin Cen, Jin Yan, and Shi Yixi.
After thinking for a moment, the general said, "Let’s go back first. This general needs to discuss this matter with the others."
With nothing else they could do there, the vice general could only agree. "Yes, General."
While the Jin Army’s general and his men returned empty-handed to their camp, two members of the Feng Clan’s shadow guards were hiding on the rooftop while spying on Ji Hui.
After waiting for hours, they finally saw Ji Hui and A Lu fall asleep. Exchanging looks, the two shadow guards nodded, then quietly slipped down from the rooftop.
One of them poked a hole in the window’s paper with his index finger, took out a thin bamboo tube, and inserted it into the hole. Opening the lid, he gently blew into the bamboo tube.
A second later, white smoke drifted into the room before quickly fading away.
The two shadow guards patiently waited until they heard A Lu’s snoring from inside, then pushed open the windows and slipped into the room.
Seeing both Ji Hui and A Lu in a deep sleep, they went to the wardrobe and silently moved it aside.
Squatting down, one of them pulled out a brick and reached into the narrow hole. Three seconds later, he felt the long wooden box and pulled it out.
Recognizing it as the same box they had seen before, the shadow guard opened it and saw the imperial decree inside. Handing the empty box to his partner, he unrolled the imperial decree.
After reading its contents and confirming it was the real one, the shadow guard rolled it back up and returned it to the box.
Thirty seconds later, the two shadow guards slipped out of the inn without leaving a trace. As they rushed toward the Feng Army’s barracks, the effect of the sleeping powder began to fade.
Twenty minutes later, they arrived inside Feng Xiyan’s tent.
Kneeling before him, they lowered their heads and said in unison, "This subordinate greets Master."
Looking up from the reports he was reading, Feng Xiyan asked, "Have you obtained the imperial decree?"
One of the shadow guards stood, placed the long wooden box on the table in front of Feng Xiyan, and said, "Master, this subordinate has checked it. It is the real one."
Feng Xiyan opened the box and examined the imperial decree. When he was done, he looked at them and said, "Well done. Go and receive your reward."
The two shadow guards’ eyes lit up when he heard that. Clasping their fists, they said in unison, "Thank you, Master."
"Go now," Feng Xiyan said as he returned the imperial decree to the box.
"Yes, Master."
After the two shadow guards disappeared from his tent, Feng Xiyan called out, "Someone, come!"
A soldier soon entered, clasped his fist, and asked, "Great General, what are your instructions?"
"Tell General Fan to bring fifty elite soldiers to the Xiqiang Inn and arrest Ji Hui and his men," Feng Xiyan ordered.
"Yes, Great General." The soldier bowed and left to find Fan Wanming.
Meanwhile, the sleeping powder’s effect had worn off. Groaning in pain, A Lu woke with a pounding headache.