The newcomers were none other than Jiang Zhizhou and Ouyang Lin.
Yet their faces were deathly pale, as though they had gone several days without proper rest.
"The people behind us will be here any moment. We need to leave."
Jiang Zhizhou said nothing more, merely motioning for Ouyang Lin and Bu Er to gather their things and leave at once.
Only after they boarded the carriage did Yang Qing turn to Jiang Zhizhou. "Who did you run into?"
There was a gash at the corner of Jiang Zhizhou's forehead. It had stopped bleeding, but in their haste, he had made no effort to tend it, leaving a bloody hole exposed.
He paid it no mind, merely fixing Yang Qing with a piercing gaze.
"That woman isn't in the Imperial Capital."
"Not in the Imperial Capital?" Yang Qing froze at his words.
"That's right," Jiang Zhizhou said. "The Lin Family Daughter's entry into the Imperial Capital was nothing but a smokescreen. Her real aim was to catch us all in one net."
As for the pretext, it was naturally their dealings with the bandits in the mountains outside the city.
This time, Yang Qing and his companions had been marked by the oriole lurking behind them.
"The moment we entered the Imperial Capital, we were already under their surveillance. Ouyang and I went into the palace intending to investigate in secret..."
Instead, they had found themselves surrounded by the Imperial Guards.
Fortunately, with their skills, even the depths of the imperial palace could not hold them.
"If the Lin Family Daughter isn't in the Imperial Capital, where did she go?"
The news left Yang Qing's mind swimming, but clarity soon returned.
As he considered everything they had encountered along the way, it seemed an unseen hand had been pushing them