Chapter 177: Looking for me?

Nan Jiyun and Nan Xueyin set out from Qingzhou; this matter was kept secret and conducted in the shadows.

However, after one day, Nan Xueyin sat in the carriage and raised her eyebrows slightly.

So soon, someone had already followed them.

"Little Xue, what is it?" Nan Jiyun observed the change in her expression and cautiously lowered his voice to ask.

Nan Xueyin did not answer immediately; she lifted the carriage curtain and took a glance outside. "Stop right here; I'm going to take care of some trouble."

"Stop here? There's no village in front and no shop behind us here..."

"Yes, right here," Nan Xueyin said. "There's no one around, so it will be quick to resolve."

Nan Jiyun ultimately listened to her.

The carriage came to a halt, and Nan Xueyin stood up. "Uncle, stay in the carriage; I'll be back soon."

Nan Jiyun gave an "ah" sound, and Nan Xueyin pushed open the carriage door and nimbly leaped down.

Through the wooden wall of the carriage, Nan Jiyun heard Nan Xueyin's cold, clear voice: "You can come out now."

In truth, his niece's voice usually carried little emotion, always calm and indifferent, but today it seemed especially icy and sharp, like a sword blade hidden in the darkness that was suddenly illuminated by a beam of moonlight, reflecting a chilling, cold light.

Nan Jiyun heard the sound of blades clashing, first the shouts of battle, then cries of pain and pleas for mercy.

Nan Jiyun very much wanted to see, but he was also very afraid of seeing wounds and blood, so he endured it firmly and just pricked up his ears to listen closely.

Fortunately, those sounds were clearly made by men, and he did not hear Nan Xueyin's voice.

Waiting with his heart in his throat, he did not know how long it had been, but finally, those chaotic sounds gradually grew faint.

Is it almost over?

At this moment, Nan Jiyun heard Nan Xueyin's voice again: "Who sent you?"

There was no answer.

That person bit their tongue and refused to speak.

Nan Xueyin was neither hurried nor annoyed. "Not talking, huh."

Following that, Nan Jiyun heard the man's agonizing, extreme screams and wails.

Nan Xueyin was torturing him; Nan Jiyun could not imagine what methods she was using.

But just listening to it like this, a dense layer of goosebumps rose all over Nan Jiyun's body.

Before long, the man ultimately could not withstand the torture and gasped out: "The... the Inspector! It was the Qingzhou Inspector who sent us!"

The Qingzhou Inspector, Nan Jiyun's superior, and also a supporter of Xiao Mingyu.

It seemed he had heard of Nan Jiyun leaving Qingzhou and guessed that the purpose of his trip was to topple Xiao Mingyu.

If Xiao Mingyu fell, those officials who relied on him were destined not to live long, so he had dispatched Assassins.

Nan Xueyin sneered and said, "Go back and tell your Inspector: this time, Nan Jiyun has someone protecting him. The person protecting him is named Nan Xueyin."

After saying this, she actually let them go.

Nan Jiyun waited in the carriage, terrified, for another moment before he finally waited for Nan Xueyin to return.

She carefully wiped the bloodstains from her palms with a clean handkerchief, then tossed the handkerchief aside and climbed into the carriage.

"It's all resolved; we can continue on our way," Nan Xueyin signaled.

The carriage began to move again.

Nan Jiyun felt uneasy and asked, "Little Xue, you just let them go back like that? And you even told them your name... this..."

Nan Xueyin calmly comforted him: "It's fine, Uncle, I have my own arrangements."

Nan Jiyun was silent for a moment, but ultimately listened to Nan Xueyin.

What surprised him was that for the next few days, the carriage party did not encounter any Assassins.

Thus, they drove steadily all the way into Fengdu.

Nan Jiyun was both surprised and delighted, and at the same time, he developed an even deeper curiosity and interest regarding his niece's identity and what she had experienced over those years.

He endured and endured, but did not ask.

It was already dusk when they entered the city, and when the guards at the gate checked their travel permits, they took Nan Xueyin's permit and looked it over several times.

They looked at the permit, then looked at her.

Nan Xueyin was expressionless.

Nan Jiyun said good-naturedly: "This is my niece; may I ask if there is a problem with this travel permit?"

"The travel permit is fine, it's just..."

The guard hesitated for a moment, then came to ask Nan Xueyin, "Is that really your name?"

"Yes."

The guard looked at the permit again, then looked at her.

Nan Jiyun asked: "Is there something wrong... with this name?"

The guard did not know how to tell him; if he said this was a name the Crown Prince had urged them to pay special attention to, would it scare him?

At this time, the people behind them could not wait any longer and began to urge: "Why isn't it done yet?"

"We're in a hurry to get things done!"

"We can't be delayed! Please hurry up!"

The guard had no choice but to return the permit to Nan Xueyin and let the two pass, while on the other side, he reported the matter to his superior.

Elsewhere, Nan Jiyun took Nan Xueyin to stay temporarily at an inn, booking two adjacent rooms on the second floor.

"It's getting late today; tomorrow I will take the calling card of Commandant Yu to the Eastern Palace to request an audience with the Crown Prince," Nan Jiyun told Nan Xueyin. "You've had a hard journey, Little Xue, get a good night's rest first."

Nan Xueyin, however, said: "Uncle, go wash your face; I expect there will be no way to get a good rest tonight."

Nan Jiyun was slightly stunned. "Why is that?"

Nan Xueyin thought for a moment and explained simply: "Someone will be coming to find us in a little while."

Nan Jiyun was stunned once again.

He suddenly had a feeling that his young and beautiful niece did not seem to be visiting Fengdu for the first time...

Thinking back, in the years she had been away from home, she must have experienced many things that ordinary people could not imagine...

Nan Jiyun sighed endlessly in his heart, gave a response, and prepared to return to his room to wash his face.

Suddenly, a burst of noisy commotion came from downstairs in the inn.

"Where is the innkeeper? Make the innkeeper come out!"

An angry shout rang out.

Nan Jiyun looked down toward the ground floor.

He saw a luxurious carriage parked steadily at the entrance of the inn; before the noble person in the carriage had descended, a young man stepped down first to deliver the message.

Hearing the commotion, the innkeeper immediately walked out, guessing that the visitor had an extraordinary status, and smiled very ingratiatingly: "This guest, may I ask what you need?"

"I'm asking you, is there someone named Nan Xueyin staying at this inn?"

The innkeeper scratched his head.

Nan Jiyun, however, was suddenly startled.

This... was this someone coming to look for his niece?

He turned his head to look at Nan Xueyin beside him and lowered his voice, "Little Xue..."

Nan Xueyin merely frowned, "Why is he the one who came first?"

Nan Jiyun let out an "ah" sound, "Came first? Does that mean there are several other people coming?"

Downstairs, the innkeeper could not answer, as it was Nan Jiyun's name that had been used for the check-in registration.

Seeing him acting hesitant, the man did not ask any further and directly ordered those behind him: "Go in and search!"

"Yes!"

The guards brought by the Prince of Duan heard the order and instantly filed inside.

The innkeeper wanted to stop them, but these guards were all carrying blades; his face turned pale, and he was at a loss, "Guest, I am running a business here. You are barging in with people like this... what if this scares the guests?"

But no one paid him any mind.

The innkeeper looked as if he wanted to kneel down and beg.

Nan Xueyin on the second floor walked out two steps, stood high above, looked down, and called out: "Lin Bie."

Hearing the familiar voice, Lin Bie suddenly raised his head.

Nan Xueyin's expression was cold: "Looking for me?"

Before Lin Bie could say anything, the carriage behind him swayed, the door was pushed open, and Xiao Mingyu scrambled out in a rush.