Chapter 63: Crown Prince Holds the Former Consort of the Qi Prince

Rong Luoge, in a pleasant mood, returned to the residence, quickly gathered her belongings, and rested early; tomorrow would be the main event.

The night passed very peacefully; Rong Luoge slept soundly through it. Early the next day, after breakfast, she changed into a set of Hu‑style riding clothes, had the stables ready the horses, and then ordered to go out, for she was to leave today.

The Crown Prince's plan is for today; since she already knows the location is the relay station, she naturally must make complete preparations.

Before she could leave, Shi An sent a unfamiliar young eunuch, Yuan Bao, to deliver a message to her.

After hearing this, Rong Luoge learned that the Crown Prince had already set out; as Shi An is a close attendant of the Crown Prince, they must follow, so another person was sent to inform her.

Yuan Bao, swift and deft, rode alongside Rong Luoge, heading straight out of the city toward the relay station.

Not far from the relay station, Yuan Bao stopped, looked at Rong Luoge with respectful demeanor and said, "Miss Rong, I cannot accompany you further ahead; I must go ahead. Please proceed according to the plan."

Rong Luoge, knowing Yuan Bao is a person of the Crown Prince, feared being recognized, so she replied, "Thank you, you go attend to your duties; I know what to do now."

Yuan Bao smiled in acknowledgment, then spurred his horse and rode past the relay station toward the hunting grounds.

Rong Luoge watched his back and thought he was quite good at acting.

She recalled that the first time she met Han Xinglan was while convalescing at her old residence, and she wondered whether the one who injured her then was Consort Ming and Prince Qi.

Thinking of that, Rong Luoge's expression hardened; that mother‑son pair was certainly no good.

She skirted the official road, entered the woods via a narrow path, moved through the forest making herself look disheveled, and then headed to the relay station for help.

As a woman lost and wounded in the forest, the relay station was the only place she could rest, so seeking its assistance was natural.

Of course, the Crown Prince's plan did not intend her to be injured, but it was a performance—full‑scale acting. Han Xinglan had expended great effort for this, so she naturally had to cooperate.

Sure enough, the relay station staff, seeing a weak woman in such a disheveled state and wounded, let her inside, assigned her a secluded room to recuperate, but also warned her to tidy up quickly, for a distinguished guest would arrive today and she needed to make space.

Rong Luoge, of course, expressed profound gratitude and followed the guide to the farthest western courtyard.

Coincidentally, this courtyard was the closest to the hunting grounds; from the wall she could see the road from the hunting grounds to the relay station.

However, to avoid stirring suspicion and fearing the relay station might already be ambushed, she continued to appear delicate and obedient, carefully tending to her wounds and appearance.

To stall, Rong Luoge produced a silver note to bribe the relay station staff, asking them to fetch some healing herbs and bandage her wound; the excuse was perfectly reasonable, and the staff, having received the money, gladly lent a hand for the extra cash.

Rong Luoge used the bandaging to buy time, estimating that Han Xinglan would certainly not arrive at the relay station at the originally scheduled time; otherwise, when he came she would be driven out.

Thus, he would definitely look for a chance to come early, preventing the staff from having time to usher her out.

Rong Luoge's injury was not serious; it looked frightening only because she deliberately smeared the blood from a scratched arm onto her clothing to appear terrifying, though it was merely a shallow cut.

She deliberately wrapped her wound thickly, ensuring anyone would instantly see she was injured.

She waited quietly, and indeed soon heard the sound of horse hooves, followed by the bustle of the relay station.

Immediately a person ran over, looked at her and said, "Miss, you must not wander about; the distinguished guest has returned. Do not rush the guest. You cannot leave this courtyard; understand?"

There was no time to drive her away, so they could only have her hide, lest she be discovered and implicate the relay station staff.

Rong Luoge immediately agreed, and the person left relieved; after leaving, perhaps still uneasy, they locked the courtyard gate.

Rong Luoge's mouth twitched; that was indeed very cautious.

But with such caution, did the relay station staff know Prince Qi and Consort Ming's plan?

Rong Luoge closed the door, hearing faint voices from outside, but the courtyard was secluded, so the words were indistinct.

After about a quarter‑hour of silence, soon the outside erupted, and someone shouted, "Assassin! Guard the Crown Prince!"

They're coming!

Rong Luoge, forced into Dong Gong for the sake of reputation, now could not act on her own; she had to wait for the Crown Prince to be "pursued" to her, then be compelled to rescue the Crown Prince.

Just as she thought this, the courtyard door was suddenly kicked open; she immediately heard fighting sounds, followed by stumbling footsteps climbing the steps, and then a rapid knocking.

Rong Luoge, of course, could not open the door and had to feign terror, pressing hard against it.

The door shuddered violently; an assassin chasing from outside brandished a knife and lunged. Han Xinglan, maintaining his delicate Crown Prince persona, was frightened and slammed the door hard. The door, blocked by Rong Luoge, was forced open by the Crown Prince, sending her crashing to the ground, and the two rolled together in an instant.

At that moment the assassin's blade came down; Rong Luoge let out a startled scream, as if frozen with fear, and leapt onto Han Xinglan. In the tumble she subtly angled her left arm to present it to the assassin's knife tip.

Blood instantly soaked her clothes; Rong Luoge, feigning extreme terror, collapsed unconscious.

Before losing consciousness she clutched Han Xinglan tightly, watching Shi An and others rush in and pin the assassin to the ground.

Perfect!

Warm blood stained the back of Han Xinglan's hand; he lowered his head, looking at Rong Luoge's cut shoulder, and his expression darkened instantly.

He had not intended Rong Luoge to be injured in the plan, but evidently something went wrong and she was still wounded.

Han Xinglan immediately looked at Shi An and said, "Imperial Physician Xuan!"

Shi An, also startled, turned slightly pale, promptly sent for the Imperial Physician, then kicked the assassin, grabbed a cloth to gag him to prevent suicide, and ordered, "Take him away, examine him thoroughly; the Crown Prince has been stabbed, we must uncover the true mastermind!"

"Yes." The following guards hurried in to escort the captive.

At that moment, Prince Qi, along with King Shou and King Liang, rushed in; upon seeing who the Crown Prince was holding, their faces instantly went pale.

King Shou and King Liang instinctively turned to look at Prince Qi!

If they weren't mistaken, the Crown Prince was holding… the Former Consort of the Qi Prince!

Prince Qi was also dumbfounded: How is Rong Luoge here?

Today's plan was on the brink of failure; seeing her wounded and the Crown Prince unharmed, Prince Qi felt a terrible foreboding rise within him.