Peach Blossoms in Chang'an

Chapter 220: Outsmarting Eunuch Li

Wu Tao's heart was beating fast. The appearance of Eunuch Li completely shattered her last hope. Are they really going to die here? She subconsciously clenched Hu Bugui's hand, feeling the warmth of his palm, trying to draw a little strength from him.

Hu Bugui held Wu Tao's hand with his backhand and gave her a soothing look. He looked calm on the surface, but in fact he was thinking about countermeasures quickly. He knew that now was not the time to confront Eunuch Li, and he had to calm down and look for a chance to escape.

"Eunuch Li, what do you mean by this?" Hu Bugui asked in a deep voice, with a hint of questioning in his tone, "I am the prince of the current dynasty, how dare you do this to me?"

Eunuch Li said with a fake smile: "Please forgive me, Your Majesty. I am just following your orders. Someone, please bring Your Majesty and the Princess back to the palace and entertain them well."

He deliberately emphasized the words "please" and "entertain", and the threat in his words was self-evident. Several imperial guards stepped forward and were about to take down Hu Bugui, Wu Tao and others.

"Wait!" Lin Yu suddenly said. He walked to Eunuch Li and whispered a few words.

After hearing this, Eunuch Li showed a suspicious look on his face, "Are you sure?"

Lin Yu nodded confidently, "I'll do it, don't worry."

Eunuch Li pondered for a moment, and finally nodded, "Okay, as you say. Let's go!" After that, he took most of the imperial guards out of the room.

Only Lin Yu and several men in black were left in the room, as well as Hu Bugui and Wu Tao who were under control. Wu Tao was puzzled and didn't understand what Lin Yu was up to.

Lin Yu walked up to Wu Tao with a playful smile on his face, "Why, Princess, don't you recognize me?"

Wu Tao looked at him coldly without saying anything.

"It seems that Princess is a forgetful person." Lin Yu was not annoyed and said to himself, "Well, I will remind Princess. Do you still remember who saved you in the woods outside the city that day?"

Wu Tao was shocked when he heard this, and a vague figure appeared in his mind. Could it be... him?

Wu Tao's memory was suddenly torn apart, and the scene of the forest outside the city that day appeared clearly in front of her again: the man in black, the flashing of swords, and the figure who appeared like a ghost and saved her from danger. Although she only saw the side face, she was almost certain that the person in front of her was her lifesaver that day.

"It's you?" Wu Tao's voice was filled with disbelief. "Who are you? Why are you helping us?"

Lin Yu raised a playful smile at the corner of his mouth, "Don't be nervous, Princess. The prince and I are old acquaintances. Today's incident is just to repay him a favor." As he said, he untied the rope tied to Hu Bugui, and signaled his men to release the others.

"Your Highness, Princess, I have something else to do, so I'll take my leave now." Lin Yu bowed, turned around and left the room with his men.

Wu Tao and Hu Bugui were unable to react to the sudden change. They escaped from the control of Eunuch Li, but fell into another unknown situation.

"Your Highness, what should we do now?" Wu Tao looked at Hu Bugui, his eyes full of worry.

Hu Bugui pondered for a moment and said, "Eunuch Li is full of tricks. We should not return to the palace for the time being. Let's find a place to hide and wait and see what happens."

They left the inn, blended into the bustling crowd, and headed towards the west of the city. The west of the city was the poorest and most chaotic area in Chang'an, with all kinds of people, making it a good place to hide.

At this time, the eunuch Li, who had been fooled around, finally reacted. He smashed the teacup in his hand to pieces in frustration and roared, "Lin Yu! How dare you tease me! Come on! Search the whole city for Hu Bugui and Wu Tao, and make sure they are brought to justice!"

There was a sudden panic in Chang'an City. Eunuch Li's men searched everywhere for the whereabouts of Wu Tao and others. For a time, the whole Chang'an City was shrouded in a tense atmosphere.

Wu Tao and Hu Bugui sat down in a shabby teahouse, listening to the discussions of the people around them. They knew in their hearts that a bigger storm was coming towards them.

"It seems that we have been involved in a bigger conspiracy." Hu Bugui said in a low voice, with a sharp light flashing in his eyes.

"What should we do?" Wu Tao held Hu Bugui's hand tightly, feeling the strength and warmth coming from his palm.

Hu Bugui looked at Wu Tao with determination in his eyes, "Don't be afraid, I will protect you."

They looked at each other and saw determination and trust in each other's eyes. They knew that no matter how many storms there were ahead, they would face them together. And this battle with Eunuch Li had just begun.

 Outsmarting Eunuch Li

Although Chang'an City is large, it is full of Eunuch Li's spies. Wu Tao and Hu Bugui were like frightened birds, carefully avoiding pursuit. Fortunately, Wu Tao was very familiar with Chang'an City, and took Hu Bugui to shuttle through those remote alleys. Eunuch Li's men could not do anything to them for a while.

"It seems we have to find a place to stay. Hiding like this is not a solution." Hu Bugui said with concern as he looked at Wu Tao's slightly tired expression.

"I know a place where I can hide temporarily." A place emerged in Wu Tao's mind. It was a secret place she discovered when she was playing as a child. It was difficult for ordinary people to find.

She led Hu Bugui through many twists and turns and finally arrived at a dilapidated courtyard. The courtyard walls were mottled and overgrown with weeds, and it looked like it had been abandoned for a long time. Wu Tao pushed open the rickety wooden door, and a rotten smell hit her face.

"Is it safe here?" Hu Bugui looked around and frowned slightly.

"Don't worry, this place is very hidden and no one will find us." Wu Tao said, and began to clean the yard, hoping to give Hu Bugui a slightly more comfortable resting environment.

At the same time, Lin Yu was also observing all this in secret. Although he let Wu Tao and Hu Bugui go, he did not completely relax his vigilance. He knew that Eunuch Li would never give up easily, so he secretly sent people to protect them.

After witnessing Wu Tao and Hu Bugui hiding, Lin Yu had a deeper understanding of Wu Tao's wit and courage. He originally just wanted to use them to contain Eunuch Li, but now, he has changed his mind.

"Someone, go check what Eunuch Li has done over the years. No matter how big or small, you must find out clearly." A gleam of light flashed in Lin Yu's eyes. He knew that if he wanted to completely bring down Eunuch Li, he must find his fatal weakness.

The men took the order and left. Lin Yu stood alone in front of the window, looking at the towering imperial palace in the distance, with a sneer on his face.

A few days later, Lin Yu's men brought shocking news.

"My Lord, we have found out that Eunuch Li has been secretly amassing wealth over the years. He has used his position to embezzle and accept bribes, and even privately sold military supplies to make huge profits!"

"Oh? There is such a thing?" Lin Yu's eyes flashed with a cold light, "Where did he hide these ill-gotten gains?"

"My Lord, we have found out that Eunuch Li has a secret estate outside the city, and all his ill-gotten gains are hidden there!"

"Okay, I understand." Lin Yu raised a playful smile at the corner of his mouth, "It seems that it's time to visit Eunuch Li."

A bigger storm is quietly brewing...

In the dilapidated courtyard, Wu Tao fiddled with the weak flames in the stove, and the flickering flames illuminated her thoughtful face. Although she had been hiding for the past few days and had temporarily escaped the pursuit of Eunuch Li, she also realized how passive her and Hu Bugui's situation was.

"What are you thinking about?" Hu Bugui's voice sounded behind him, with a hint of imperceptible worry. He walked to Wu Tao and put a thick cloak on her shoulders.

Wu Tao came back to his senses and looked up at Hu Bugui, his eyes full of determination: "I'm thinking, we can't keep being passive like this, we must take the initiative to completely get rid of Eunuch Li's control."

Hu Bugui held Wu Tao's hand, felt the coldness of her palm, and said distressedly: "I know you are worried. I have sent someone to contact Lin Yu. He will help us."

"Lin Yu?" Wu Tao frowned slightly. She was always wary of this sudden appearing time traveler, but she also knew that now they could only rely on Lin Yu's power.

At this moment, a man in black appeared silently in the courtyard and knelt on one knee in front of Hu Bugui: "Your Majesty, Master Lin wants to see you."

Hu Bugui and Wu Tao looked at each other and understood in their hearts that Lin Yu must have brought important news.

The three of them came to a secret room. Lin Yu spread a scroll on the table, pointed to the densely packed text on it and said, "This is the evidence I have collected about Eunuch Li's crimes these days, including evidence of his corruption and bribery, smuggling of military supplies, and the location of his secret manor where he hid his ill-gotten gains."

Wu Tao and Hu Bugui looked at the scroll on the table with a flash of shock in their eyes. They didn't expect that Lin Yu had found so much evidence in such a short time.

"With these evidences, we can expose Eunuch Li's crimes and prevent him from causing trouble again." Lin Yu's eyes flashed with a gleam, and there was a hint of excitement in his tone.

"But how can we make this evidence public?" Wu Tao asked.

"I have arranged it," Lin Yu smiled confidently, "Three days later, the emperor will hold a banquet in the palace, and I will find a way to present the evidence to the emperor."

After hearing Lin Yu's plan, Wu Tao and Hu Bugui felt a glimmer of hope in their hearts.

However, just as they were about to act according to the plan, they received news that Eunuch Li had disappeared...

"Missing?" Wu Tao stood up suddenly and asked in disbelief, "How could he be missing? Where did he go?"

Lin Yu also looked solemn: "I have sent people to look for him everywhere, but I can't find any trace of him. It's as if he has disappeared from the face of the earth."

A feeling of uneasiness spread in Wu Tao's heart. She always felt that the disappearance of Eunuch Li was not that simple. Perhaps, this was just the calm before the storm...