Farm Girl's Manor
Chapter 104 - Audacious to the Extreme (1)_1

Chapter 104: Chapter 104 - Audacious to the Extreme (1)_1

Xiao Ruiyuan had arranged the matters regarding Qu Shui and hurried back to the Bureau of Military Horses. Aside from leaving eight hundred men to guard the Bureau in case of any unexpected events, he dispatched the remaining seventeen hundred men in two groups—one to search for suspicious individuals at all major city gates and roads, and the other to directly leave the city and pursue in all directions.

Such a massive mobilization could easily draw the attention of various forces. Moreover, since Xiao Ruiyuan was a trusted confidant of Crown Prince Chu Heng, those restless princes had long sought to remove Xiao Ruiyuan, the Commander of the Five-City Bureau of Military Horses, and replace him with their own people. If they knew that so many were dispatched just to catch traffickers, Xiao Ruiyuan would definitely face impeachment by the Imperial Censors at tomorrow’s morning court session.

Therefore, Xiao Ruiyuan pinned the reason for the operation on Yan Junyu, claiming that Young Master Yan had been attacked by an assassin and they needed to capture the assassin to deter all desperate criminals.

Yan Junyu was a well-known rake in Jing City, but who would dare to criticize him, the nephew-grandson of the Empress Dowager, beloved by her and extremely favoured by his cousin—Emperor Huian. Even the princes had to politely address him as "cousin" upon seeing him. With his status, no one could say "no" to the Five-City Bureau of Military Horses mobilizing to catch an assassin after he had been "attacked."

However, the preparations took considerable time, and they were one step behind; the suspicious individuals were not intercepted at the major roads.

At that moment, on a side road at the corner of South City Gate Avenue, four or five simple horse carriages were parked.

"Fat Brother, what do we do if there’s a check at the city gate?"

On the driver’s seat of the foremost carriage sat a fat and a skinny middle-aged man, who looked rather honest. Shouzi, feeling uneasy, asked Fat Brother as he saw the line of people waiting to be inspected.

"You have so little courage? I have an official Pass Token in my hand. We have nothing to fear!" Fat Brother, the one referred to as Fat Brother, waved his meaty hand dismissively and raised his horsewhip, ready to move forward.

"Fat Brother, let’s still be careful. Why don’t you try using the token first?" Shouzi, not reassured, reminded Fat Brother that they had pulled off a big job this time. If they capsized in a ditch, it wouldn’t be just a few years of jail time.

Fat Brother looked at the four carriages following behind, thought for a moment, and then passed the whip to Shouzi: "All right, I’ll go ahead and scout."

Shouzi took the whip and instructed him quietly, "But be careful not to give anything away."

"All right, all right, I know. Just wait here," said Fat Brother, waving his hand impatiently and walking toward the city gate.

Shouzi got off the carriage, greeted the companions in the carriages behind him, and urged them to stay sharp before getting back on his carriage.

The city gate was brightly lit by torches. Shouzi saw Fat Brother talking to one of the guards, but after a long conversation, Fat Brother did not turn back, which made Shouzi glance at the sky and grow anxious, realizing there was less than a quarter-hour left before the city gates would close.

At this time, Fat Brother walked back at an unhurried pace. As he got closer, Shouzi asked in a low voice, "How did it go? Can we pass?"

"That son of a bitch, the inspection’s very strict this time. They’re thoroughly searching all carriages. We can’t get out," cursed Fat Brother as he slammed his palm against the cart, cursing loudly.

"What? Why is that? What do we do now?" exclaimed Shouzi, alarmed. A thought flashed through his mind, leading to a sudden change in his expression, "Fat Brother, could it be that we grabbed the wrong human trafficking victims?"

On hearing this, Fat Brother slapped the back of his head, "The victims were all selected in advance, how could we have grabbed the wrong ones? If that had happened, wouldn’t the city gates have been closed long ago, preventing anyone from leaving?"

Shouzi felt relieved to hear this reasonable explanation and immediately relaxed: "So, what are we going to do now?"

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