When Shen Li heard that there was no sound outside, she lifted the lid a tiny crack. After a careful look around and finding no one, she lifted the whole lid, supported herself on both sides of the container and nimbly jumped out, landing steadily.
Shen Li clapped her hands and tidied her clothes. She looked around to find the trace of the black - clad man. However, since the guards had been there for a while, the black - clad man had already gone far away. Now that Shen Li had come out, she couldn't even see a shadow.
"He sure left quickly! It'll be hard to find him now," Shen Li sighed and walked towards the alley entrance a bit dejectedly.
But suddenly a teasing voice came from behind her, "What? Leaving so soon?"
Shen Li quickly turned around warily. She crouched down, ready to launch an attack at any moment, and stared into the dark alley. "Who's there?" Her right hand involuntarily grasped the whip on her waist.
"You're quite alert, little one. Can't you even recognize my voice?" A figure emerged from the darkness. With the dim light, Shen Li finally saw clearly who this man was.
After seeing him, the tension in Shen Li's muscles immediately relaxed, and she ran towards the figure. This person was none other than Xuan Yuanjue.
"How did you end up here?" Shen Li's eyes were full of joy at the sight of Xuan Yuanjue.
Xuan Yuanjue smiled, reached out his hand to tidy the stray hair on Shen Li's head, and said dotingly, "How could I not follow when you're doing something so dangerous, little one?"
Shen Li lowered her head and smiled, not offering any more explanations. Fortunately, only Xuan Yuanjue knew about this matter. Shen Li felt much more relieved, for sneaking into the palace was a capital crime.
On the way, Shen Li had been thinking about how to explain this to Xuan Yuanjue. Who would have thought that Xuan Yuanjue had known all along that Shen Li would enter the palace and had been following her all the time to prevent any accidents.
Suddenly, Shen Li remembered that her main task was to follow the black - clad man. But Xuan Yuanjue's arrival had interrupted her plan, and she had completely forgotten about it. She slapped her forehead hard. "Oh no, I've lost track of the black - clad man while talking to you!"
After saying that, she rushed outside, still holding out a glimmer of hope.
"Don't look for him anymore. He's gone to find Helian Shu. You'll see her tonight. Just go back to the Night Serenity Division obediently. Otherwise, your brother might think I've abducted you," Xuan Yuanjue grabbed Shen Li and stopped her from chasing.
"Helian Shu? The princess here for the peace - making marriage?" Shen Li asked with a hint of confusion.
Xuan Yuanjue nodded.
After thinking for a while, Shen Li clenched her fist and punched Xuan Yuanjue on the shoulder, complaining coquettishly, "How dare you! You knew everything but didn't tell me!"
Xuan Yuanjue suddenly grabbed Shen Li's wrist and pulled her directly into his arms. Shen Li was caught off guard and was taken advantage of by Xuan Yuanjue.
The two felt each other's heartbeats. Xuan Yuanjue whispered in Shen Li's ear, "If I told you everything, what if you got bored and caused other things to worry me?"
His magnetic voice echoed in her ear for a long time.
It wasn't until Xuan Yuanjue led Shen Li by the hand and sent her back to the Night Serenity Division...
Outside the palace, the black - clad man finally found the Seventh Princess of the Western Yue Kingdom in a clothing store on the street. As soon as he saw the princess, he quickly grabbed her and said, "Oh, Princess, this servant has finally found you. Please... please come back with me quickly."
The Seventh Princess of the Western Yue Kingdom had been in high spirits at first, but when she saw the black - clad man, her smiling face immediately fell. She angrily shook off the black - clad man's hand. "Don't grab me. We're still on the street. What if people misunderstand? I've heard that the customs in the Eastern Ling Kingdom are conservative. They say that men and women should avoid physical contact. Your current behavior is quite dissolute! Besides, I don't want to go back yet. I've finally come to this capital city. Everywhere is different from the Western Yue Kingdom. I have to have a good look around."
The black - clad man ignored what the princess said about men and women avoiding physical contact. He looked at the princess anxiously with a pleading look on his face. "No, Princess. If you don't go back quickly, there will be big trouble."
The Seventh Princess of the Western Yue Kingdom frowned unhappily and said, "I'm the eldest princess of the Western Yue Kingdom now. Everything should be up to me. What kind of trouble could there be? I'll take responsibility for anything. Is there anything that my title as princess can't handle?"
Seeing Helian Shu's fearless look, the black - clad man became even more panicked. "It's not like that, Princess. This matter is quite serious. The envoy told me that you must arrive at the palace before sunset. The emperor has set up a banquet to welcome us. You didn't go at noon. If you don't go tonight, it will be bad... Besides, you can have a good look around this capital city later, right? We can't miss this important matter!"
The Seventh Princess of the Western Yue Kingdom thought it made sense and then said to the black - clad man, "You wait for me first. I'll buy these clothes and then go with you. The emperor's matter is indeed an important one. My elder brother told me before I came not to cause trouble to the emperor of the Eastern Ling Kingdom. I'd better be obedient."
Hearing the princess's words, the black - clad man finally breathed a sigh of relief. On his way here, although he had noticed that there were many people following, presumably they were all Xiao Huaishi's men. This matter couldn't be hidden anyway, and with these people around, it would be easier to solve problems if something happened, so he didn't try to shake them off.
The Seventh Princess of the Western Yue Kingdom pointed at several very beautiful and luxurious clothes in turn and said, "This one, this one, and this one. Yes, pack them all up separately for me."
After saying that, she threw a bag of silver over, then threw the packed clothes to the black - clad man and said, "Okay, lead the way. Let's go."...
The emperor had sent a message asking Xiao Hanzhi to receive the Seventh Princess of the Western Yue Kingdom well. This made Xiao Hanzhi's anger flare up again.
He directly picked up the things beside him and threw them on the ground.
Suddenly, a servant at the door reported that there was a woman outside insisting on seeing the prince.
But Xiao Hanzhi was in a fit of anger at the moment and had no time to care about a woman.
"Can every Tom, Dick, and Harry see this prince? Why don't you just drive her out?" Xiao Hanzhi said impatiently.
The servant knelt on the ground hesitantly. After all, he had received money from the woman outside. But the prince was in a fit of anger at the moment, and he was in a difficult situation for a while.
Seeing that the servant didn't leave for a long time, Xiao Hanzhi glared at him. "What else do you want?"
The servant thought about the money he might get later, gritted his teeth, mustered up his courage, and continued to tell Xiao Hanzhi about the woman outside.