"Sleep, sleep, sleep, if you sleep any longer, I'll stuff your nostrils, hmph..."
The resentful voice grew louder, startling Xiao Xi Tian awake.
She opened her big eyes and saw the stinky boy holding a book, glaring at her with a puffed-up face.
"Huh? Stinky boy, why is your face so red?" Xiao Xi Tian stretched and got up, "Are you sick?"
Xiao Jin Heng: "..."
How dare you ask? You've been sleeping and sleep-talking all the way. Have you ever considered my feelings as the Crown Prince?
He was so bored he was going to die.
Xiao Jin Heng pretended to put down the book in his hand and coughed lightly, "I'm fine. Commander Kong just said there's a post station ahead. We'll stop to rest our feet in a bit..."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Xi Tian looked at Xiao Jin Heng with suspicion and suddenly laughed, "Stinky boy, aren't you just lonely and cold?"
Oh my, the dignified Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace is afraid of sitting in a carriage alone.
If you're bored, you can walk down...
Xiao Jin Heng's handsome face turned red, and he quickly turned his head away, "Don't talk nonsense!~"
Although he was stubborn, he secretly longed for the little girl to talk to him...
Xiao Xi Tian lifted the carriage curtain and took a breath of fresh air, "Stinky boy, when we get back to the capital, are you planning to move into the palace?"
After all, he had been separated from the Emperor and Empress for so long. They should at least have a reunion...
Unexpectedly, Xiao Jin Heng said calmly, "No, returning to the palace would be too ostentatious. I want to investigate the Jiangnan漕运 (grain transport) matters in secret!~"
The fewer people who knew about this matter, the better. It couldn't be investigated openly.
Xiao Xi Tian said "Oh" and rolled her big eyes, "Then where do you want to live?"
"Can I live at your place?" Xiao Jin Heng countered with a smile.
The Yun Mansion in the capital had a large enough residence for him to sleep, rest, and work.
Xiao Xi Tian: "..."
Stinky boy, you really treat our home like an inn.
Forget it, forget it. If he could find out the truth sooner, Xiao Xi Tian could go home and reunite with her parents sooner...
Just then, a group of men on horseback suddenly galloped from the front of the official road.
The rumbling sound was like muffled thunder, startling the small animals on both sides of the road to flee in all directions...
Kong Xing Zhu narrowed his eyes at the sight, his hand involuntarily reaching for his sword, "Strange, these people's attire and appearance don't look like imperial soldiers!~"
Could they be bandits and robbers from the mountains?
Kong Xing Zhu was alarmed and suppressed his panic.
Even if he were hacked to death, he had to protect the safety of the Crown Prince and the little county princess...
"Commander Kong, what's going on outside?" Xiao Jin Heng asked in a low voice upon hearing the commotion.
Kong Xing Zhu looked ahead, "Your... Your Highness, a large group of people of unknown origin are approaching. Please sit tight, Your Highness and the County Princess. With me here, these people wouldn't dare to harm you..."
"People of unknown origin?" Xiao Jin Heng frowned, poked his head out the window, and observed for a moment, "They're not from the Central Plains!~"
Xiao Xi Tian heard this and also leaned out the carriage window to look, "Could they be barbarians from the grasslands?"
Since Khan Han Che Er had agreed to withdraw his troops and reached a peace agreement with the stinky boy, they wouldn't send troops to invade the Central Plains again...
The approaching cavalry numbered fifty to sixty men. They were all burly and fierce-looking, and they quickly surrounded the carriages.
Xiao Jie Kong, who was lying sprawled in the second carriage, heard the sound of hooves and scrambled to his feet, "What's happening, what's happening?"
If anyone dared to bully Xi Tian sister, he would fight them to the death...
Guan Zhong Bo rolled his eyes at him and pointed outside, "Look, we're surrounded. Little monk, aren't you invincible and the best in the world? Hurry up and go out and take them down!~"
Xiao Jie Kong: "..."
You old rascal, can't you speak without being sarcastic?
Even if this monk is invincible, two fists are no match for four hands. If I get beaten black and blue, Xi Tian sister will laugh at me...
"Who are they? Why are they surrounding us?" Xiao Jie Kong asked curiously.
"Tsk, don't talk, don't talk!" Guan Zhong Bo covered Jie Kong's mouth, and his eyes suddenly flashed as he discovered a blind spot, "These soldiers are not barbarians, they... they are the elite troops under Prince Ha Lin!~"
Xiao Jie Kong: "???"
Ha Lin what?
Why was he getting more and more confused?
"Hey, old Guan, how do you know they're Ha Lin's subordinates?" the little monk asked.
Guan Zhong Bo looked helpless, "Look for yourself. The leader has a token hanging from his waist with the character 'Sui' engraved on it. If you still can't figure this out, then this old man has been wandering around for nothing..."
Guan Zhong Bo had traveled extensively in his youth and had been to many places.
Therefore, whether it was the northern frontier or the south, his understanding of local customs and legends was more than what was recorded in books.
"Something wrong?" Kong Xing Zhu tightened his sword hilt and jumped down from the carriage.
The leader of the men dismounted, pulled out a portrait from his sleeve, unrolled it, and handed it to Kong Xing Zhu, "Have you seen this girl?"
The sloppiness of the portrait, the blurriness of the face, and the bizarre features made Kong Xing Zhu break out in a cold sweat...
Who on earth drew this portrait?
Xiao Xi Tian also leaned out the carriage window and glanced at the portrait, "Hmm? What is this drawing? Is it Peppa Pig?"
What girl in the world would look like this...
"Haven't seen her!~" Kong Xing Zhu twitched his mouth and shook his head frantically.
There probably wasn't a woman in this world who looked so 'fresh and refined'...
The leader heard this and shook the portrait again, "Take a closer look, have you really not seen her?"
According to the scouts, the person in the portrait had indeed gone to the area of Heyang County. The nearby villagers must have seen her...
Kong Xing Zhu was extremely helpless and shrugged, "I really haven't seen her. Go ask someone else!~"
Good heavens, can't you be more serious when you draw, even if you have to spend a little more money...
The man listened, looking somewhat disappointed. After putting away the portrait, he signaled his subordinates to continue on their way.
Just as he was about to remount his horse, Xiao Jin Heng suddenly jumped off the carriage and asked, "Are you from the grasslands?"
"Yes!" the leader replied.
"Were you sent by Khan Han Che Er?"
"Han Che Er? Heh heh..." The man sneered disdainfully, "Does a mere tribal leader like him have the right to command us?"
Xiao Jin Heng was somewhat astonished, "Since you're not barbarians, then you are Sui Zhi people, right?"
The Sui Zhi people coming to the Central Plains was not a good sign.
"No comment!" The man's eyes were cold. He flicked his whip and led everyone away.
Xiao Jin Heng: "..."