There is a happy inn in the capital.

Chapter 442 Find the Spy

Umur understood, immediately stepped forward, grabbed the crooked-mouthed man's wrist, and forcefully rolled up his sleeve.

Although the exposed arms were dirty, they didn't show any signs of hard work, and even looked a bit puffy.

"He really was a spy!"

"You want to harm the princess! You're cutting off our chance to survive!"

"kill him!"

The poor people's emotions were instantly ignited, and they angrily surrounded the area.

They may have questioned the amount of porridge, but they hated even more the people who cut off their livelihood.

The man with the crooked mouth was terrified and struggled desperately: "Let me go! I didn't... I just... Ah!"

Someone threw a clod of dirt at him, and it hit him right on the forehead.

Seeing that the time was almost right, Li Shuchen shouted loudly.

"Friends! Quiet! It's not worth getting your hands dirty for such a despicable person! Brother Umur, tie him up and send him to where he belongs! Don't delay everyone from getting their porridge! Her Highness is kind; we can't let her down!"

Umur swiftly tied up the screaming, crooked-mouthed man tightly and dragged him aside.

As the crowd gradually calmed down, their gazes towards Zoya held a mixture of guilt and genuine gratitude.

Zoya took a deep breath, cast a grateful glance at Li Shuchen, picked up the porridge spoon again, her voice trembling slightly but firm.

"Everyone, please continue. There's still porridge; everyone gets some."

What was supposed to be a crisis, Li Shuchen skillfully defused and countered, turning it into an opportunity to unite people's hearts.

But Li Shuchen knew in his heart that the daytime farce was just a test; the real danger was likely to come at night.

On a dark and windy night

Zoya did not return to the palace, but instead stayed in a relatively secluded abandoned earthen fort near Tear Valley, arranged by Umur.

Li Shuchen, posing as a village girl's companion, stayed by her side closely outside the simple mud house where she rested, clutching the tourmaline whip in his arms, feigning sleep.

Umur patrolled the perimeter with two soldiers. All was silent except for the mournful sound of the wind.

Around midnight, the wind carried a few unusual rustling sounds.

Li Shuchen's ears twitched slightly, and he quietly got up and pressed himself close to the crack in the earthen wall.

The sound wasn't from animals, but from human footsteps—at least five or six people approaching the earthen fort from different directions. They were deliberately moving quietly, but their movements weren't very professional.

She gently shook Zoya awake, who was lying fully clothed in the inner room, and whispered...

"A guest has arrived, please remain silent."

Zoya instantly snapped awake, her blue eyes widening in the darkness, and reached for the short blade under her pillow.

A short, muffled groan came from the outer perimeter of the earthen fortress; it was Umur and his men!

Then came the sound of weapons clashing, but it was quickly suppressed. The newcomer was skilled and prepared, having successfully launched a sneak attack.

The footsteps quickly approached the earthen house.

Li Shuchen gestured for Zuoya to hide in the innermost corner of the earthen bed and cover herself with a tattered felt blanket.

He then slipped behind the door and hid in the shadows, holding his breath.

"Eh-"

The dilapidated wooden door was gently pushed open a crack, and a dark figure cautiously peeked in, holding a dagger in a reverse grip.

He first looked at the empty earthen bed, seemed to be stunned for a moment, and then...

"Snapped!"

A whip flashed like a venomous snake emerging from its hole, precisely wrapping around his wrist that was holding the knife, and yanked it sharply!

The shadowy figure cried out in surprise, pulled forward by the immense force, and Li Shuchen kicked him in the chest, sending him crashing into another shadowy figure that had followed in. The two tumbled into a heap.

"There's an ambush!"

The man behind him growled, and instantly, four or five dark figures surged into the cramped earthen house, their blades flashing, heading straight for Li Shuchen and the earthen bed.

Li Shuchen's whip moved like a swimming dragon, maneuvering left and right in the narrow space, trying to block the blades attacking him while protecting the earthen bed behind him.

Although her martial arts skills were superior to those of the assassins, they outnumbered her and their attacks were ruthless; they were clearly there to silence her.

Even more critically, she recognized that one of the fighters' fighting styles clearly bore traces of the Purple Star Army.

Although they try to hide it, some habits are hard to break.

"As expected, it was collusion between insiders and outsiders!"

Li Shuchen's heart tightened, and his attacks became even more ruthless. The tip of his whip swept across a man's face, spraying blood, and he parried a knife aimed at the earthen bed, the impact numbing the man's arm.

In the midst of the fierce battle, a taller assassin, eager to claim credit, charged forward, brandishing his knife and muttering curses under his breath.

"Kill her! Double the bounty!"

Li Shuchen dodged to the side, the whip curling back to wrap around his ankle.

The assassin jumped up in a panic to dodge, but his movement was so sudden that the black veil covering his face was caught on a protruding object at the corner of the wall, causing most of it to slip off.

Although the room was dimly lit, with the faint light filtering in from the window, Li Shuchen could clearly see the face at a glance.

With a square face, thick eyebrows, and a black mole at the corner of his mouth, he was none other than Zhen Congming, the commander of the Imperial Guards in the delegation.

When Zhen Congming realized his face mask had come off, he was terrified. Without thinking, he let out a scream, abandoned his companion, and ran away.

This immediately threw the assassins into disarray.

Li Shuchen would not let him off the hook; his whip followed him relentlessly.

It wrapped around one of his legs with a "whoosh" and pulled hard!

Zhen Congming fell flat on his face, and Li Shuchen rushed forward, stomping on his back and striking him hard on the back of the neck with the handle of his whip, knocking him unconscious.

Seeing the situation was turning against them, the remaining assassins, led by their leader, whistled briefly. They feinted an attack, then, disregarding their companions, swiftly retreated into the darkness and vanished.

Li Shuchen didn't pursue them. He quickly checked the other two assassins who had been knocked unconscious on the ground and confirmed that they were both unfamiliar Boyu people.

She helped the still-shaken Zoya to her feet, and even had the nerve to joke around.

"First time experiencing an assassination attempt, huh? This is nothing special. I could handle ten or eight more of them. I'm the spearhead of the Purple Star Mission; even dogs would run away from me."

After Li Shuchen finished speaking, he put away the whip.

"The whip you gave me is quite handy, thank you, Princess Zoya."

"No...no need to thank me, I'm so grateful you saved me just now," Princess Zoya took a deep breath and calmed herself down.

Li Shuchen waved his hand, "We need to leave here immediately, something might have happened to Umur and the others."

As soon as they rushed out of the mud house, they saw Umur, clutching his bleeding arm, staggering towards them with a similarly wounded soldier. The other soldier had already been killed.

"Princess! There's an ambush! The enemy knows our layout! And...it seems like some of Zi Xing's people are among them!" Umur exclaimed, both shocked and furious.

"Got it, let's get out of here!"

Li Shuchen, holding Zoya's hand, and led by Umur, quickly disappeared into the deeper darkness of Tear Valley.

Behind them, the abandoned earthen fortress stood silent in the night, as if the life-or-death struggle that had just taken place was merely an illusion.

As soon as it was light, Li Shuchen quickly returned to the inn and urgently summoned everyone.

Under the renewed cover of the shielding sphere, the atmosphere in the inn's room was so heavy it seemed to drip water.

Li Shuchen recounted the terrifying events of the previous night in detail, with particular emphasis on the moment when Zhen Congming's face mask fell off.

“I saw it clearly, it was Zhen Congming! No mistake! I'd recognize his stupid face even if he were ashes! And the way he attacked showed he had the skills of the Purple Star Army, even though he deliberately made it look messy.”

Liang Yuying's face was ashen, and her fists clenched so tightly they cracked.

"Zhen Congming... no wonder his origins are unclear; I never expected him to be a traitor who colludes with the enemy."