The guards at the city gate, though most harbored resentment towards the royal family from the Prince of Dai’s mansion and were glad to see them in distress, did not trouble them. They were quickly allowed to exit the city.
Immediately upon leaving the city, they saw the main road, lined with houses and shops on both sides.
Because many people passed by the city gates daily, presenting a great business opportunity, some had set up shops and stalls outside the gates to conduct business.
As it was still early, most of the shops lining the main road remained closed, with only a few open.
Those who had opened their shops saw Huangfu Yue and her entourage and were quite curious. They all came out to watch, but there were few people, and they merely stared at Huangfu Yue and her group without speaking.
The shops along the main road were not particularly numerous; they were only present for about three hundred meters after exiting the city gate. Beyond that, there were no more shops or people.
Walking on the empty, shop-less, and people-less road, most of the Prince of Dai’s mansion’s people displayed a slightly more relieved expression, especially Consort Dowager Zheng.
Her greatest fear was being seen by passersby, being gawked at, pointed at, and ridiculed.
"Mother, I can't walk anymore. My legs are so sore and painful... My hands are also hurting more and more. I want to sit down and rest for a while," a pitiable whimper sounded from ahead.
Huangfu Yue looked forward and saw Huangfu Ling, the little girl about to cry again, her eyes full of tears.
"Ying'er too!" Huangfu Ying also cried pitifully.
"Me too!" Huangfu Jing, seeing her two cousins cry out, also bravely cried out.
"I'll speak to the escort officers and ask them to let us rest," Huangfu Yue said.
They were out of the city now, and no one was around. It was time to act.
"These escorts are so fierce; they probably won't agree," Zhong Liangshu said, a worried expression on her face.
"I will make them agree," Huangfu Yue smiled, looking confident and prepared.
"Officers, we wish to rest," Huangfu Yue stopped and called out loudly.
"Rest what? How long have you been walking? Truly pampered... Don't you forget your current identities? You are now prisoners, criminals, not the exalted and noble royals you once were. You can no longer rest whenever you please... If you don't want to be whipped, walk faster!"
The escort officers all showed displeased expressions. Lu Danian, looking impatient, shouted loudly and waved the whip in his hand.
Huangfu Yue looked at the whip in Lu Danian's hand, a cold smile flashing in her eyes. She flicked her toe towards a small stone in front of her, and the next moment, the stone flew towards Lu Danian's hand holding the whip…
"Ah…" Lu Danian cried out in pain and let go of the whip. The whip flew out and quickly landed in Huangfu Yue's hand.
Everyone was stunned. Lu Danian, after his shock, became enraged and pointed at Huangfu Yue, cursing, "You wench, how dare you…"
A "bang" sound interrupted Lu Danian, startling him into silence.
Huangfu Yue, with a slight exertion of force, broke the heavy shackles on her hands. Then, she raised her right hand holding the whip and swung it. The whip flew towards a large rock by the roadside, bigger than an ordinary table. The next instant, the rock let out a deafening sound and instantly shattered into pieces.
Huangfu Yue curled her lips and swung the whip again. This time, it flew towards a large tree by the roadside. The tree was thick, but Huangfu Yue quickly wrapped the whip around its trunk and pulled with all her might, uprooting the thick, tall tree that was over four meters high.
Everyone was dumbfounded and completely terrified.
Huangfu Yue saw that the escort officers were all frozen like statues, and the curve of her lips deepened slightly. She retracted the whip and, with a leisurely stride, walked towards the carriage at the rear of the procession.
The two men in the carriage looked at Huangfu Yue as she approached them step by step, her lips curled in a smile. Her smile was beautiful but sent shivers down their spines, making them feel as if they were looking at the King of Hell smiling at them. They trembled in fear.
The young man driving the carriage trembled so violently that he fell off the carriage.
"County Princess, please don't kill me. I have an eighty-year-old mother and a three-year-old son. I beg you to have mercy and spare my life. I beg you…"
The young man climbed up from the ground and, instead of standing, quickly knelt down, begging Huangfu Yue with a pitiable expression.
Seeing this, Feng Maoyuan, who was still sitting in the carriage but trembling with fear, also hurriedly got out of the carriage and knelt down before Huangfu Yue, begging for his life.
"County Princess, I also have aged parents and a wife and children. My child was just born, and my wife is disabled. If I die, she won't be able to support my mother and child. They will all starve to death… You have a benevolent heart. Please spare my life and don't kill me…"
He never expected to one day bow and beg a young girl for mercy. It was truly pathetic and embarrassing, but seeing her shatter a large rock with a single whip strike and uproot such a thick, tall tree, she was simply a monster.
Her martial arts skills could no longer be described as merely high, but as miraculous. That's how she could shatter a rock with one whip and uproot such a thick, tall tree.
He and his subordinates, although they all practiced martial arts and their skills were passable, were no match for her even combined. If she wanted to take their lives, it would likely only take the blink of an eye.
To survive, they could only beg for mercy!
Seeing that Feng Maoyuan had knelt and begged for mercy, the other escorts, including Lu Danian, also quickly knelt and begged for mercy.
Huangfu Yue's brow furrowed slightly. Why did they all think she wanted to kill them? She only wanted to scare them.
However, she wanted them to be afraid, and the more afraid, the better. That's why she had demonstrated her combat prowess.
When she had kicked away the captain of the guards who had pushed her grandmother, she realized that not only had her spatial artifact traveled with her, but her formidable martial arts had also accompanied her. She could still wreak havoc!
"Master Feng, you misunderstand. I only wanted to ask you to let us rest," Huangfu Yue said, letting out a light laugh. Her voice was as melodious as tinkling silver bells.
Hearing Huangfu Yue's words, Feng Maoyuan and his subordinates all looked astonished, staring at her blankly, their eyes filled with confusion.
With such powerful and heaven-defying martial arts, killing them and escaping with the Prince of Dai’s mansion’s people would be as easy as pie, yet she only wanted them to let them rest? What was she thinking?
Huangfu Yue saw their expressions and the look in their eyes and knew what they were thinking. A glint of amusement flashed in her eyes.
As they thought, killing them and escaping with the Prince of Dai’s mansion’s people would indeed be easy. However, if she did that, the Emperor would surely be furious and issue a nationwide warrant for their arrest.
At that time, they would live like rats in a sewer, constantly hiding and on edge, never having a peaceful day. It would be better to obediently be exiled to Lingping and live there peacefully.
She was confident that with the items in her spatial artifact and her martial prowess, even if Lingping was a living hell, she could lead the Prince of Dai’s mansion’s people to live well there.
"Alright, I will have my subordinates remove the shackles from your family members so they can rest properly… In fact, I wanted to do this earlier."
Although Feng Maoyuan couldn't understand it, he was overjoyed that Huangfu Yue wasn't going to kill them but merely wanted them to rest. He quickly stood up and plastered on a fawning smile, then gave his subordinates a meaningful look, feeling fortunate that he hadn't spoken too hastily earlier and said that Huangfu Yue and her group could only rest at lunchtime.
Lu Danian and the others hastily stood up. The group quickly took out keys and went to unlock the shackles on the Prince of Dai’s mansion’s people. The members of the Prince of Dai’s mansion, who had been in a state of extreme shock and were completely stunned, finally came to their senses and stared at Huangfu Yue with a mixture of surprise and confusion.
They were surprised that Huangfu Yue possessed such heaven-defying martial arts, so formidable she was like a monster, causing Feng Maoyuan and his men to tremble and beg for mercy. In the future, Feng Maoyuan and his men would surely not dare to trouble or bully them anymore. They were confused as to how a young girl like Huangfu Yue could be so powerful.
They didn't realize that even more surprising and confusing things were yet to come…