Gu Yan could tell that it was Zhao Shuyue's voice. He was surprised that she had followed him. He was afraid that she would be suspicious if she saw the corpses, so he walked towards the sound.
"Sister Ting, Sister Ting." Zhao Shuyue shouted as she looked for her. Gu Yan saw her and asked, "Why are you here?"
Zhao Shuyue looked in the direction of the voice. Sure enough, she saw Gu Yan leaning against a tree not far away. She walked over to Gu Yan and asked worriedly, "Sister Ting, are you okay?"
Gu Yan shook his head. "Why are you here?"
"I was worried about you. You suddenly left by yourself … Sister Ting, you're injured!" Zhao Shuyue suddenly saw that her clothes were tattered and stained with blood.
"It's fine." Gu Yan shook his head.
"How is it fine! You're injured. Come back with me quickly. I'll bandage your wounds. "As she spoke, she tried to drag Gu Yan away.
Gu Yan hurriedly said, "Xiao Yue, listen to me."
Zhao Shuyue stopped and turned around to look at him.
Gu Yan thought for a moment and said, "Someone is trying to kill me. If I go back with you, I'll harm everyone. Do you understand?"
Zhao Shuyue was stunned for a moment and nodded. "Chase … Trying to kill you. I … I understand."
"So, hurry back and leave with Brother Wang safely. Don't worry about me."
"I won't!" Zhao Shuyue shook her head firmly. "I want to be with you. I want to be with you."
Gu Yan helplessly persuaded her. "Xiao Yue, things aren't as simple as you think. You'll lose your life if you follow me."
"I'm not afraid!"
"It has nothing to do with whether you're scared or not. Go back now!" Gu Yan frowned and his tone became stern.
Zhao Shuyue stared at her blankly, and her eyes gradually became moist. "Sister, do you know why I'm going to Bai Zhou? It's because my parents died a long time ago, and I grew up with my grandmother. Last month, my grandmother also died. I have no way to make a living, so I want to go to Bai Zhou to find a way to make a living. At best, I can become a servant of a rich family, but at worst, I can be sold to …"
She choked and said, "The first time I saw you, I knew that you were not an ordinary person. I want to follow you and serve you. Sister, don't chase me away, okay?"
Gu Yan sighed. He knew that he couldn't delay any longer, so he said, "Okay, then you follow me. This journey is full of dangers, so you have to be prepared."
Zhao Shuyue quickly nodded. "Sister, don't worry. I'm not afraid. I'll accompany you."
— — —
The emperor was still in Bai Zhou, so Bai Zhou was heavily guarded. The pursuit a few days ago made Gu Yan think that Princess An Le might have been found. At this moment, she had become the main target of the search, so she decided not to take the official road. Instead, she planned to go around Bai Zhou City.
Zhao Shuyue was indeed a smart child. Although she was puzzled as to why they didn't go through the city, she didn't ask. She just silently followed Gu Yan without a single complaint.
Gu Yan asked her, "We won't enter Bai Zhou. Instead, we'll go around it and go north."
Zhao Shuyue nodded and said, "Okay, Xiao Yue is not afraid, but sister needs to be prepared. From here, we can only go to Yuyao. Yuyao is a few hundred li away, and there's also Man He Mountain. The journey will be very difficult."
Gu Yan was stunned. She didn't expect that there would be so many paths if they didn't go through Bai Zhou. After thinking about it, she asked, "Is there no shorter path?"
Zhao Shuyue shook her head, "Bai Zhou is the pass to the north. Unless we go over Man He Mountain, there's no other path."
This trip would take more than a month. The longer they were delayed on the road, the more tense the situation in the capital would be. She didn't have that much time to delay.
"Then we'll enter the city tonight!"
Bai Zhou City was heavily guarded. The patrolling soldiers walked back and forth on top of the city walls.
Gu Yan and Zhao Shuyue lined up to enter the city. The patrolling soldiers looked them up and down before waving their hands to let them pass.
After entering the city, Zhao Shuyue couldn't help but secretly say to Gu Yan, "Sister, look, we're in. You don't need to worry."
Gu Yan's brows were tightly knit. She felt that something was wrong with entering Bai Zhou City so easily.
There was a circle of people around the notice board inside the city. Zhao Shuyue nervously stood in front of Gu Yan and whispered, "Sister, we should leave this place quickly."
Gu Yan understood what she meant. She wrapped the cloth around her head tighter and squeezed into the crowd in front of the notice board.
The person who offered a reward to find was Princess An Le. She had an oval face, curved eyebrows like the moon, and a light smile.
Gu Yan's heart shook. More and more doubts appeared in her heart.
Since An Le hadn't been found, who was the person who came to kill her?
Did something happen to A Nuo?
One question after another flooded her mind. Gu Yan withdrew from the crowd in front of the notice board and walked into the city with Zhao Shuyue.
"Jiabao Pawn Shop. Sister, is that it?" Zhao Shuyue pointed at a signboard not far away and asked Gu Yan.
Gu Yan looked up and carefully looked. After confirming that this was the shop they were looking for, she nodded, "It should be."
When the two arrived at the pawn shop, it was noon. There was no business in the pawn shop. There was only a shop assistant leaning on the table behind the counter, his body slanted and sleepy.
Gu Yan went forward and knocked on the table. The shop assistant opened his eyes in a daze. He rubbed his eyes and looked at them from the corner of his eyes. Seeing that the two were dressed in dirty clothes and looked miserable, he asked in a bad mood, "Are you here to pawn things?"
Gu Yan nodded. She took out a jade pendant from her chest and pushed it in front of the shop assistant, "See how much this is worth."
This jade pendant was given to Gu Yan by Princess An Le before she left. Princess An Le told her to use it to find a shop called Jiabao Pawn Shop to temporarily stay in Bai Zhou.
The shop assistant clearly blamed Gu Yan for disturbing his sleep. He snorted twice before lowering his head to look at the jade pendant. When he saw what was on the table, his expression froze. He quickly nodded and said, "Miss, please wait a moment. I'll call the shopkeeper." He turned around and went inside.
Not long after, an old man came out. He was dressed in a long gown and had a beard like a halberd. When he saw Gu Yan, he respectfully bowed and said, "Madame Chang Le."
"No need to be so polite. There is no madame here," Gu Yan said.
"This old servant has been waiting for a long time. Madame can call me Old Li." As he spoke, he had the shop assistant close the door and then invited Gu Yan in.
The room in the back courtyard had already been prepared. Old Li had someone prepare a meal for Gu Yan. He then said, "Madame, please rest first. This old servant will have someone prepare the meal."
Gu Yan did not decline. She only nodded and said, "Thank you for your trouble. I have a few things to ask you."
Zhao Shuyue had originally been following Gu Yan. When she saw the people here politely call Gu Yan madame, she was not surprised. She quietly followed behind Gu Yan. When she heard that Gu Yan wanted to ask something, she consciously said, "Sister, I'm going to wash up. I'll come back later."
Gu Yan originally did not plan on hiding it from her, but seeing her so quick-witted, she couldn't help but feel happy. She nodded and let her leave before asking, "Has Princess An Le been found?"
Old Li shook his head and said, "The princess is still on the run. We haven't found her yet."
"Is there any news about me in the capital?"
Old Li still shook his head, "We haven't heard."
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