Chapter 160: The Prince is injured!

As they set out again, the Prince was listless; Wei Shen teased him, but he didn't crack a smile.

After a long pause, he finally said, "Cousin, why do they want to kill me? I… really don't want to fight for that position; I just want to build Youzhou's city walls high, so everyone can eat their fill, raise some troops, and live peacefully in Youzhou without fear of the steppe."

The child's earnest look pained Wei Shen's heart.

"'It's because the walls are too high, making them uneasy; building an academy makes them think you're courting the elite clans; having even a few followers keeps them up at night. You say you don't want it, yet you're bustling in Youzhou, not loafing about—who would believe you? Bai Li Jing, your surname is Bai Li; you should be mentally prepared for this.'"

"'Hmph! I, the Prince, am just unhappy!'"

"'Alright, if you keep doing this kind of thing, you'll surely slip up; when we find out, we'll give you what for!'"

The Prince snorted: 'If it was the second brother who did it, I'd be very disappointed.'

Wei Shen thought it was uncertain, but he comforted him: 'It must be the eldest, who's been sly since childhood, or the Cui family.' He knew this sentimental child still held some hope for his second brother.

By then, the trip to Chang'an had opened Pandora's box.

In Shangdang and Hedong, each commandery suffered an assassination.

A boulder rolled down the hilltop for no reason; as the Prince passed a street vendor in the bustling market, the vendor suddenly attacked. Fortunately, it wasn't as large as the first attempt. The enemy likely thought two hundred assassins would guarantee success, but they didn't expect the Prince to be so tough, so they became more cautious, abandoning brute force for subtler tactics.

When the troupe arrived at Hongnong—the hometown of Wei Shen's late grandmother and the Prince's maternal grandmother—they sneaked into town to look around, asked many people, then went to the Yang family to view the maternal grandmother's former residence.

The country-bumpkin Prince said, 'No wonder they're a great clan—it feels like the Yang family occupies half the city. Cousin, are you sure the maternal grandmother's old home is here?'

Wei Shen lay beside him: 'Of course! My memory is excellent!'

Hearing this, the Prince quickly directed his bearers: 'Lift your feet, lift them a bit more—I can't see…'

Then Wei Shen beside him added: 'I heard from my mother that I returned with my grandmother to pay respects when I was over two…'

The Prince's little heart jumped with surprise, then fell to the ground in pieces: '…? You're teasing me? Two years old? What could you possibly know at that age!'

"'Anyway, this is the main branch's residence; the womenfolk live in the back. What's wrong with that? Grandmother surely came to this garden!'"

"'You! You liar!'"

The two were yelling while perched on someone's wall when the retainers spotted them; they acted as if the great clan's guards were dead… the Xiaoqi cavalry hoisted the Prince and bolted.

The Prince fell silent for a moment, then burst out laughing; the two brothers ran down Hongnong's main street, laughing as they went.

After letting off steam, they returned to the troop feeling refreshed, their spirits doubled.

Hongnong is right next to Chang'an—surely we're safe now?

Everyone thought that if the pursuit continued all the way to Chang'an, it would be too much of a slight to the Ningde Emperor's face—he's still alive, after all!

Who would have thought that after two more days, the usual assassination routine would strike again?

The Prince was near tears: 'Aren't you exhausted? Do I really have to die?!'

Wei Shen: ……

This assassination was unprecedented in scale—at a glance, two or three hundred men seemed to burst from the woods. The Prince again felt his life was precious, prompting them to spare no expense. A force of this size is certainly no rabble; it has substantial backing.

Chang'an is less than a day's journey away; this should be the last chance. The assassins came ruthless, and this time Lingyin lent a hand.

Outside, gunfire cracked for over twenty minutes; Wei Shen sat on the carriage's front shaft, while the Prince silently pulled the blanket over his head inside.

When the noise faded, he heard Lingyin's voice: 'Your Highness, it's all taken care of. But… judging by their attire and weapons, they're not much like the first batch.'

Hearing that, the Prince tried to dismount, but seeing Lingyin's sword reeking of blood, the horse grew uneasy the closer he got. As he was about to get down, the horse startled and stepped back a few paces; the Prince missed his footing and fell headfirst to the ground.

Even quick-witted Wei Shen couldn't grab him in time…

Lingyin knew the Prince's background, so he wasn't nervous; he just scared Zhao Ba enough that he almost followed suit and face-planted.

As the Prince fell, he was dazed; once his face hit the ground, he deliberately rubbed his cheek against the gravel. Being impervious to blades is a drawback—no wound, just pain. Can I myself create a wound?!

But after he deliberately rubbed the ground, he felt a faint sting—success? Turns out his deliberate rubbing could break the skin after all; who would've thought his tender cheeks could be so tough, yet even intentional rubbing could pierce them! There's a loophole! Mengmeng left him a window!

The tough Prince climbed to his feet, and the scene fell silent for a moment.

Wei Shen sucked in a breath: 'Good heavens! You've survived all those assassins along the way, only to trip and split your own face at the gate?'

The Prince's pale, tender cheek had a patch of skin scraped away on the left, revealing red threads of blood.

The Prince grimaced, feigning pain: 'Nonsense! I was struck by assassins! Relay my order—no cleaning up, no rest; march straight through the night and reach Chang'an by morning!'

Wei Shen hadn't thought of that much, seeing the Xiaoqi covered in blood and wounds: 'What do you mean? March like this?'

Even the formidable Xiaoqi bore some external injuries; this batch of assassins was clearly tougher than the first, their black armor soaked in assassins' blood—not everyone has Lingyin's skill, and aside from the Penglai Sword, not a speck of blood stained their persons.

The Prince sighed; it was hard on him too: 'I fear moving slowly—this facial wound had better heal by the time we reach Chang'an.'

Wei Shen: ……Understood.

Understanding the Prince's intent, the group didn't tidy up; they marched on, bloodied and disheveled, keeping their post-battle look.

And the Prince?

He refused Zhao Ba's offer to wash his face and apply liniment, instead lying in the carriage with a dirty, blood‑streaked little flower face.

When lying grew tiresome, he got up and used a stone he'd picked up to rub his clothes…

Yes, the Prince intended to turn his princely regular attire into beggar's garb.

He had Wei Shen drag the sword hilt to tear a big hole, then began grinding his knees and elbows with a stone.

His cousin winced: 'May I ask, Your Highness, are you trying to make your father believe you crawled into Chang'an?'

The Prince hastily replied: 'Not exactly—I'm not that ostentatious! Just like someone who's struggled and escaped death all the way will do.'

Wei Shen: ……My apologies.

You Bai Li lot have no normal people, do you!

——————

Author's chatter:

Gimme food! (pulling out a broken bowl~

Give me a boost! At the end, open 'For Love's Sake', watch three ads—just that! Each ad is 15 to 45 seconds; spare two minutes to save the Prince! (。ớ₃ờ)ھ

This series has high follow‑through, and the fans are sticky, yet I don't know why the traffic keeps dropping. (╥_╥)

Losing a thousand views a day breaks my heart! I see Little Sweet Potato—my follow‑through ratio is 1:1.7, which is high, but nobody reaches 1:4!

The day before yesterday I was still reading 100,000 per week; yesterday it was 9.9, today it's 9.8…… so angry!

Rotten eggplant! (If you say that, you'll be forced to change... the text?