Chapter 534: Arresting the Fugitive

Niu Youdao did not emerge for a long time.

Guan Fangyi and Uncle Chen, waiting outside the palace, were beginning to worry. They had no idea whether something might have happened to him.

But this was the imperial palace of Qi.

There was no possibility of the two forcing their way inside, and cultivators on the palace gate tower were already watching them from the shadows.

Movement sounded from behind the palace gate.

A narrow opening appeared, and several ordinary-looking carriages came out.

One carriage stopped beside the two as it passed.

The corner of the window curtain lifted, revealing Niu Youdao’s face.

He called from inside, “Get in!”

The two immediately climbed aboard.

Only then did they discover a burly eunuch already seated inside.

The moment Guan Fangyi saw him, her expression grew noticeably more cautious.

She had never dealt with the man personally, but she knew who he was.

Most people no longer knew his original name.

They only knew that he was a disciple of Bu Xun, Chief Steward of the Inner Palace of Qi.

He was called Bu Fang and was one of Bu Xun’s trusted confidants.

When this man appeared, he generally represented Bu Xun himself.

Guan Fangyi could not help stealing several glances at Niu Youdao.

She had never understood what sort of relationship existed between him and Bu Xun.

Back then, she herself had only submitted to Niu Youdao because she was under pressure from Bu Xun.

No one spoke inside the carriage.

Only the sounds of rolling wheels and horses’ hooves accompanied them through the streets.

Along the way, after another carriage passed their small convoy in the opposite direction, it changed course and headed toward a secluded area.

Inside that carriage sat two cultivators and two men dressed like servants.

Those two servants were Shao Pingbo and Shao Sansheng.

Their skin had been tightened, their eyebrows reshaped, their complexions altered. Both had been thoroughly disguised.

Anyone who did not know them extremely well would no longer recognize them.

On a quiet and secluded street, several children were playing around a heap of fire by the roadside, hopping and jumping around the flames.

The carriage passed through the drifting smoke and continued onward.

The smell of something scorched inevitably wafted through the air.

Not far afterward, the coachman suddenly began swaying.

As he pulled on the reins, his body went limp and collapsed onto the carriage shaft.

Inside, the two cultivators likewise slumped against the carriage walls, breathing heavily.

Shao Pingbo, still seated upright, lifted his chin slightly.

Shao Sansheng immediately rose, stepped out of the carriage, looked around, then lifted the curtain in invitation.

Shao Pingbo stood and came out.

One of the cultivators collapsed against the carriage wall struggled to raise a hand and pointed at him.

“You... you...”

Shao Pingbo gave him an indifferent sidelong glance.

“Many thanks to both of you for seeing me this far.”

Master and servant descended one after another.

Under the moonlight, Shao Pingbo walked along the street at an unhurried pace.

His head was high, his chest straight, his bearing calm and composed.

Nothing about him resembled a servant.

Even now, he had not lost the bearing of Beizhou’s Eldest Young Master.

They had not gone far when a black-clad man emerged from an alley and made a gesture inviting them inside.

The two followed him into the alley and disappeared into the darkness.

...

The convoy passed unhindered into the State Guest Residence and stopped in a secluded area inside.

Niu Youdao and the others did not disembark.

Someone else went to investigate the situation.

The scout soon returned, lifted one corner of the carriage curtain, and reported to Bu Fang, who sat upright inside.

“Master Fang, the target is not in the residence.”

“According to two disciples from the three sects who stayed behind, before nightfall the Wei Embassy sent a carriage to invite the target over for a banquet.”

“Disciples from the three sects went along to protect him.”

The first part had already startled Niu Youdao.

Hearing the rest, he relaxed slightly and turned to look at Bu Fang.

Bu Fang said in a deep voice, “Go there immediately and investigate. Find out when the banquet will end and keep the target under watch.”

“Yes!”

The voice outside acknowledged him, and the curtain dropped.

The convoy turned around and left the State Guest Residence, heading for the Wei Embassy.

Along the way, Bu Fang suddenly said blandly, “After the target leaves the Wei Embassy, I will have the disciples of the three sects loosen their protection.”

Niu Youdao nodded slightly.

He understood.

Shao Pingbo was, after all, Princess Consort Ying’s elder brother.

Qi could not kill him for no reason.

The only acceptable outcome was for Shao Pingbo to suffer some sort of accident.

What they did not know was that the accident had already occurred inside the Wei Embassy.

Beautiful women sang and danced in the banquet hall.

The guests raised cups to one another and exchanged toasts without end.

Yet one seat was empty.

One guest was missing.

That guest was Shao Pingbo.

The disciples of the three sects waiting outside kept glancing inward.

Shao Pingbo had excused himself during the banquet to relieve himself.

He had gone farther inside to the latrine, but after a long time he still had not reappeared.

As more time passed, the disciples began to realize something was wrong.

The disciple leading them immediately took two men inside.

They followed the edge of the banquet area toward the rear.

At an inner doorway, however, a cultivator blocked them.

One side wanted to enter.

The other refused to let them through.

The commotion soon alerted Kang He, Wei’s envoy.

“They have responsibilities of their own and are only trying to ensure Young Master Shao’s safety.”

Kang He waved a hand and ordered his own people to let them pass.

The three disciples hurried inside.

They found the place for relieving oneself.

It was empty.

There was no trace of Shao Pingbo anywhere.

...

The convoy had not yet reached the Wei Embassy when someone came racing over and stopped the carriage.

He lifted the window curtain and reported.

“Master Fang, the target is missing. The Wei Embassy refuses to allow a search...”

The man quickly explained the situation.

Niu Youdao’s heart sank.

There was no point continuing to sit inside carriages and maintain appearances.

The people within immediately shot out.

They flew over rooftops through the city, rushing straight toward the Wei Embassy.

As they arrived and forced their way in, they had not even reached the banquet pavilion before hearing Kang He roar.

“This is the embassy of the State of Wei! Let me see who dares behave presumptuously here!”

He turned.

Seeing Bu Fang and the others arrive, Kang He immediately pointed at him.

“Eunuch Bu, what does the State of Qi think it is doing?”

“Arresting a fugitive!” Niu Youdao spoke first, not even waiting for Bu Fang to answer.

He knew perfectly well that the Wei Embassy represented the State of Wei.

Without a legitimate reason, it was not a place anyone could search at will.

Kang He said angrily, “What fugitive could possibly be here?”

“Shao Pingbo stole money from guests at the State Guest Residence and has fled in fear of punishment.”

Niu Youdao spoke without hesitation.

“I ask the Wei envoy not to harbor a criminal.”

Kang He looked as though he had just heard the greatest joke beneath Heaven.

“The dignified Eldest Young Master of Beizhou would steal someone’s money?”

“What kind of joke is that?”

A cultivator beside Kang He leaned closer and whispered in his ear.

“This man is Niu Youdao...”

The cultivator had seen Niu Youdao before at Heavenly Mirror Lake, when Niu Youdao fought Kunlin Shu.

Kang He’s gaze immediately flickered as he examined Niu Youdao.

Niu Youdao gave Bu Fang a look.

They could not afford to let anyone drag this out.

“Search!” Bu Fang ordered decisively now that they had an excuse.

The group behind him immediately scattered to search the embassy.

“Good! Very good!”

Kang He roared in fury.

“You dare run wild inside the embassy of Wei. Tomorrow I will personally demand an explanation from the Emperor of Qi!”

There was never going to be much chance of finding anything.

Halfway through the search, Niu Youdao had already stopped expecting a result.

The embassy search continued, but Niu Youdao, Bu Fang, and the others hurried back toward the State Guest Residence.

Perhaps Shao Pingbo had returned there after all.

“A whole group of you were watching him, and not one of you even knows how he left?”

Bu Fang was furious.

As they exited the banquet area, he could not help scolding the disciples of Qi’s three great sects.

At the same time, he issued another order.

“Pass the command throughout the entire city. No one is to leave!”

Once outside the Wei Embassy, the group flew away over the rooftops.

People moving through the Qi capital like this in the middle of the night naturally alarmed the cultivators responsible for guarding the city.

But with Bu Fang present, no one obstructed them.

The route remained completely open.

When they reached the State Guest Residence, they learned Shao Pingbo had not returned.

The group immediately forced its way into the courtyard where he had been staying.

Lamps were lit in every direction.

Moon Butterflies danced through the air.

As Niu Youdao and the others entered the main hall, their attention fell on the table.

A box sat on top.

A letter had been placed upon it.

Bu Fang picked up the envelope and removed the letter inside.

Only a few words were written there:

“I am unworthy to accept this. Respectfully return it to Prince Ying. Treat my younger sister well!”

Niu Youdao’s cheeks tightened as he read it.

The moment he saw those words, how could he not understand?

Shao Pingbo had never gone to the Wei Embassy simply to attend a banquet.

He had plainly made preparations before leaving this place and had never intended to return.

There was little chance the search at the Wei Embassy would uncover anything useful.

Bu Fang remained expressionless.

He folded the letter away.

He would have to take it back and report the matter.

Then he opened the box, flipped through the gold and silver notes inside, and closed it again.

That too would have to be taken back.

Just then, someone hurried in from outside to report.

“Master Fang, two flying mounts were spotted in the southern part of the city carrying several people out of the capital.”

Bu Fang said heavily, “Issue pursuit orders immediately.”

“At the same time, send word to our people along the routes toward Wei. Have them establish checkpoints. Any flying mounts traveling in that direction are to be intercepted and searched at once.”

The banquet at the Wei Embassy had clearly been part of the operation.

It had plainly been used to help Shao Pingbo escape.

Without support from people with considerable power, ordinary cultivators would find it difficult to move freely through a sealed capital at night.

Cultivators guarded the city walls.

Those two flying mounts had therefore most likely been arranged by Wei.

Flying mounts were not something just anyone could call upon whenever they pleased.

The suspicion around the Wei Embassy grew stronger still.

Niu Youdao stood there with a dark face.

He no longer held much hope.

If flying mounts had already been used for the escape, once they were beyond the capital, who knew what direction they might take?

Trying to find them again would be like searching for a needle in the sea.

Regret gnawed at him.

He had arrived one step too late.

But there had been no choice.

He had his own concerns.

He could not simply charge into Qi’s State Guest Residence and kill someone.

The consequences were not something he could bear.

Inside, he understood the truth.

In the end, Shao Pingbo had still outmaneuvered him once.

Niu Youdao had never expected a man fleeing for his life to run toward the most obvious possible place—his own younger sister.

Shao Pingbo had looked as though he were fleeing in panic.

In reality, there had been no panic at all.

He had remained calm and unhurried throughout.

Niu Youdao turned and walked out of the hall with Guan Fangyi.

Once they were off to one side, he said quietly, “Contact Xuan Wei immediately. Ask her what exactly she thinks she is doing.”

The facts were already obvious.

Without authorization from Wei, how could Wei’s envoy dare do something like this on his own?

...

At the Wei Embassy, the search parties had finally withdrawn without finding the fugitive they sought.

Kang He stood beneath the eaves and cursed the departing men at length.

Only after the last of them had gone did his performance end.

He raised his head toward the moon and chuckled.

Then he clasped both hands behind his back, looking thoroughly pleased with himself.

But his satisfaction did not last long.

Someone came hurrying in from outside.

“My lord, something has gone wrong.”

Two men were being supported behind him.

They were the two cultivators who had escorted Shao Pingbo away.

Under Bu Fang’s orders, the entire city had already begun searching.

Meanwhile, the people assigned to receive Shao Pingbo outside the city waited and waited, but the target never appeared.

When they saw the surrounding situation growing tense, they naturally became suspicious and went back along the route to investigate.

That was when they found their own people incapacitated.

Kang He’s expression changed.

He hurried down the steps and stopped before the two limp cultivators being held upright.

“What happened?” he demanded.

“We don’t know either...” one man answered weakly.

“That Young Master Shao seems not to have wanted to leave with us...”

He explained the entire sequence of events in a feeble voice.

Kang He stood frozen for a long moment.

Then he ground out through clenched teeth, “Shao Pingbo... what exactly are you playing at?”

Just moments earlier, Kang He had been delighted, believing he had finally completed the Chancellor’s important assignment.

Who could have imagined matters would suddenly turn this strange?

[End of Chapter 534]