Chapter 634

All the way, Gu Jiu Ling truly found it hard to endure; she, Zuo Feichen, Old Master Zhang and the other three grain merchants were crammed into the green‑veil carriage.

The carriage rocked and swayed the whole way, and since the road was not an official highway but a mountain path, it was indeed very jolting.

The rest had already fallen into a deep sleep, but only she and Zuo Feichen remained awake, yet they had to pretend to be asleep.

On the journey she nearly vomited a few times, forcibly giving herself a few needle pricks to hold it down.

Zuo Feichen, on their side, looked deathly pale; this venture into the tiger's den was risky, yet it was the most effective.

Just as Gu Jiu Ling was truly about to give up, contemplating whether to seize a chance to escape midway, the carriage finally came to a halt.

The people inside the carriage slowly woke up; Old Master Zhang, still cursing, just lifted the carriage curtains, only to be seized by several black‑clad guards who burst in from outside like demons, and they promptly bound the newly awakened people tightly.

"You… what are you doing?"

Old Master Zhang's beard quivered with anger as he shouted, "Do you people have no sense of law? How dare you impersonate a commander close to Prince Rui and swindle?"

"I, too, was blinded; how could I have believed your lies? Let go of me! Let go!"

"Old Master, please do not be angry," a hoarse, ancient voice said slowly.

When Gu Jiu Ling heard that voice, her heart suddenly jolted; having attended several great clan banquets in Shang Jing before, she recognized it instantly as the voice of the elder of the Duan family.

Back then, the Third Prince was implicated in a rebellion, and Consort Shufei's self‑inflicted crimes made her unfit to live.

Emperor Longqing would not even give Empress Dowager Ning An any face; he outright exterminated the Duan clan.

However, Empress Dowager Ning An had employed some tricks at the time, secretly substituting several key Duan figures with the bodies of executed prisoners.

Now the Duan elder, who should be dead, suddenly appeared; his voice reached Gu Jiu Ling's ears, causing her to instinctively shiver.

Although she and Zuo Feichen were wearing human‑skin masks, the Duan clan should not recognize them.

Yet the Duan clan, being a top family of Southern Qi, has an elder far from ordinary; Gu Jiu Ling quietly stepped back to avoid him.

Old Master Zhang stared steadily at the Duan elder before him, clad in a dark brocade robe, a hint of coldness in his eyes; his heart gave a sudden thump, and a few strands of fear arose.

Old Master Zhang, too, was a traveling merchant who had roamed north and south; what kind of person hadn't he seen?

The Duan elder before him indeed gave a sense of danger.

His curses suddenly got stuck in his throat; although Old Master Zhang held some prestige among the grain‑merchant circles of Yanbei Pass.

But beyond these mountains there are higher mountains, beyond the sky there is higher sky, and beyond people there are others.

Now he can only swallow his anger and wait silently for what comes.

These people, in broad daylight, drugged the grain merchants with a soporific, bound them here, which must have some ulterior motive.

The Duan elder looked at Zhang and smiled slowly, "I have caused you suffering, Old Master Zhang; you are the head of the Yanbei Pass grain merchants. Today I have some matters I wish to discuss with you."

"The others, please move to the inn and rest properly. Attendants! Serve them well."

Gu Jiu Ling understood the implication; she and Zuo Feichen had no right to converse with the Duan elder, but that was also fortunate, for the fewer chances of exposure, the less likely they would be recognized.

The Duan elder only invited Old Master Zhang and a few other prestigious grain merchants to a private room in a tavern on the side to discuss matters.

The ones trailing behind, drinking soup, were taken to another inn.

Along the way they were not allowed to look around or move freely; although the ropes on them were removed, the guards escorting them wielded poison‑coated blades that were no joke.

Gu Jiu Ling also quietly surveyed the surroundings; it was an inconspicuous small town.

It was not very familiar, probably not far from Yanbei Pass, yet after traveling several hours they still couldn't reach Yingzhou.

The more Gu Jiu Ling looked, the more she was secretly astonished; she hadn't expected that a town so close to Yanbei Pass would be filled with people from the Eight Great Families.

It showed that the Eight Great Families had already infiltrated here; moving further south would form a counter‑encirclement against Xiao Yin.

She wondered whether Xiao Yin knew about this.

Xiao Yin now besieged Hengzhou, and on the outer side the Eight Great Families were also pouring in this direction.

Xiao Yin's Azure Dragon Army seemed wrapped like dumplings; Gu Jiu Ling felt a slight tremor in her heart and needed to find a way to get the information out.

She must do her utmost to help Xiao Yin win this war, a war that could change Xiao Yin's fate and let him lay his heart's knot to rest.

Their party was taken to another ordinary inn.

Because she and Zuo Feichen were brought by Old Master Zhang, their rooms were a bit more comfortable than the others'.

More fortunately, she and Zuo Feichen were placed in the same room.

Gu Jiu Ling indeed had not guessed wrong; the Eight Great Families did not wish to take their lives, after all they held the grain.

Even if they killed them, the grain would remain in the storehouses; killing would gain nothing, so they were better kept as hostages.

Only by binding people can they secure grain; the Eight Great Families are not foolish.

Gu Jiu Ling and Zuo Feichen entered the guest room; just as they turned, the door was shut from outside and locked.

Gu Jiu Ling gave a wry smile and looked toward Zuo Feichen standing aside.

Zuo Feichen still harbored resentment, feeling they shouldn't have let Gu Jiu Ling take such a risk.

But now that matters had come to this, they could only do their utmost to protect Gu Jiu Ling.

Zuo Feichen lowered their voice: "If anything happens later, I will protect you and flee. If I fall here, you go back and tell Princess Yalan that I left something for her on the island, so she remembers to look for it."

Gu Jiu Ling replied, "What's this? Are you trying to leave a will? Don't worry, I won't give you that chance."

Gu Jiu Ling walked to the bedside, lay down and said, "Since we're here, we'll make the best of it; they won't kill us."

Zuo Feichen nodded, and dared not say more—walls have ears.

The two waited in silence for a while; indeed, after two hours the door opened and a black‑clad servant brought in food, his attitude much softer than before.

Gu Jiu Ling sat at the table and smiled at Zuo Feichen, "People are iron, food is steel; skipping a meal makes you uneasy—nothing is more important than a meal."

Zuo Feichen hummed, walked over, casually took out a silver needle they carried and tested each dish; only then did they feel at ease to let Gu Jiu Ling pick up her chopsticks.

Gu Jiu Ling felt a slight stir in her heart; although Zuo Feichen seemed cold‑hearted, they were actually quite attentive when caring for others.

She also didn't know when the circumstances would settle, but when they did, she would arrange a grand wedding for him and Princess Yalan.

The two sat down to eat, and just as they were halfway through, footsteps sounded outside the door.