latelenovela Chapter 382 Did the person just vanish into thin air?
Chapter 382 Did the person just vanish into thin air?
Late at night, the inn was unusually quiet.
The lights were off in Yun Shang's room, but he didn't rest in bed; instead, he stood by the window.
He gently pushed open the window and, by the moonlight, surveyed the surroundings of the post station.
In the courtyard, the patrolling guards were the innkeepers.
These people's steps seemed casual, but they subtly revealed a pattern. Every step seemed to be on a predetermined route, and the key positions were all within their line of sight.
Yun Shang frowned slightly.
This patrol layout was cleverly designed to monitor the entire post station and not miss any suspicious activity.
Ordinary post station guards don't have this ability; it seems these people have been replaced.
Yun Shang's gaze continued to wander through the post station.
His gaze lingered in the direction of the stables.
There was a servant who appeared to be tidying up hay, but his movements were very stiff. He would look up from time to time, and his eyes did not have the simplicity of an ordinary servant. Instead, they were full of vigilance.
A cold glint appeared in Yun Shang's eyes.
It seems that the entire post station, from top to bottom, has been infiltrated by Prince Yong's men.
Just then, a very faint sound of footsteps came from outside the door.
Yun Shang remained calm as he watched a knife being inserted through the crack in the door. He calmly and expressionlessly climbed out of the window, closed it, and quickly disappeared from the window.
With a "click," the door lock was gently opened.
Several dark figures flashed in like ghosts.
Without the slightest hesitation, they swung their swords straight at the raised blankets on the bed.
The smiles on their faces hadn't even formed before they froze.
"no one!"
"What about people?"
"He was prepared!"
The shadowy figures inside the room reacted quickly, gripping their longswords tightly and scanning their surroundings warily.
The leader of the men in black shouted, "Search! Find him even if you have to dig three feet into the ground!"
The group quickly dispersed and began searching the house, knocking over tables and chairs with a dull thud.
The shadowy figure outside the post station also sensed something was wrong and began searching around.
The men in black inside the house ransacked Yun Shang's room, but they couldn't find even a scrap of clothing.
Outside, several men in black searched every corner of the courtyard, stable, and woodshed under the moonlight, but they could not find Yun Shang.
In a room on the second floor, Prince Yong was sitting in a grand chair, his brows furrowed and his face terribly gloomy.
Inside a room on the second floor, Prince Yong's face was terribly gloomy as he remained silent for a long time.
His original plan was to have his men impersonate bandits, so that they wouldn't have to deliberately conceal their movements. The goal was to create chaos and eliminate Yun Shang without anyone noticing.
But at this moment, all was quiet outside. There were no sounds of fighting or shouting as expected, which meant that things had clearly slipped out of his control.
Just then, a panicked scream suddenly rang out from inside the post station.
"what--"
Upon hearing this, Prince Yong's expression changed drastically. He abruptly stood up from his chair and hurriedly opened the door.
At the doorway of the opposite room, Li Hai, wearing an outer robe, looked terrified as he bumped into two men in black. Both were startled.
Prince Yong's face darkened abruptly, and he cursed inwardly.
What a coincidence that Li Hai, who was getting up in the middle of the night, bumped into me!
This person has secretly pledged allegiance to Third Brother, and he cannot kill Li Hai unless absolutely necessary.
In his terror, Li Hai's feet seemed to be nailed to the spot, and he couldn't move at all.
His gaze darted back and forth between Prince Yong and the two men in black, his lips trembling. After a long while, he seemed to finally react and exclaimed, "Your Highness, be careful! There are assassins!"
These people only received orders to kill Yun Shang, so they did not take action immediately upon discovering Li Hai.
Upon seeing Prince Yong, he was stunned for a moment, unsure of what to do.
The leader of the men in black quickly looked at Prince Yong, awaiting instructions.
The Prince of Yong was secretly annoyed, but his face showed anger: "I have always heard that bandits are rampant in Lingzhou, but I did not expect you to be so bold as to rob an official post station!"
Seeing the Prince of Yong's reaction, the man in black instantly understood.
One of the men in black, with a fierce expression, shouted at the top of his lungs, "Enough with the nonsense! Hand over all your valuables, or don't blame us for being impolite!"
The longsword in his hand gleamed with a chilling light in the dim light.
Prince Yong's face was cold and stern. "You're impolite? I'd like to see how you're impolite!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he shouted, and the guards who had been resting in the backyard rushed over as if they had just heard the commotion.
The men in black at the post station noticed the guards' movements, exchanged a glance, and realized that Prince Yong was ordering them to retreat immediately.
Li Hai watched the men in black shout and retreat, his face still filled with lingering fear.
The guard captain accompanying the disaster relief team was named Xia Mu.
As he stepped forward to apologize, Li Hai suddenly turned around, his eyes blazing with anger, and kicked Xia Mu, roaring, "Useless trash! How did you manage to let these few thieves in with so many of you?!"
Xia Mu staggered after being kicked by Li Hai, a flash of annoyance in his eyes.
But he didn't show it on his face. He glanced at Prince Yong without leaving a trace, then knelt down with a "thump" and lowered his head. "Lord Li, please forgive me. It was my dereliction of duty that prevented me from detecting the thieves' whereabouts in advance, which allowed them to sneak into the post station and disturb you and the prince. I am willing to accept the punishment."
Prince Yong looked at Xia Mu kneeling on the ground, a dark glint flashing in his eyes.
He said, "Xia Mu, as the captain of the guards for this mission, you have been so negligent. If these thieves had injured me or any other officials today, you would have been more than capable of paying for it with ten lives!"
Xia Mu repeatedly apologized, "Your Highness, please calm down. I will certainly redeem myself by finding out the origins and purpose of these thieves as soon as possible, and give Your Highness and all the officials an explanation."
Li Hai, panting heavily, was still seething with anger. He glared at Xia Mu and said, "A bunch of trash!"
He glanced around, then, as if remembering something, suddenly exclaimed in alarm, "Where is Lord Yun? Where is Lord Yun?!"
It seemed that only then did Prince Yong realize what was happening.
His gaze swept around, his face grim.
He also wanted to know where Yun Shang had hidden!
The inn was so surrounded by his men that not even a mosquito could fly out. How did Yun Shang disappear so silently?!
Li Hai strode directly toward the house where Yun Shang lived, his steps hurried and flustered.
As soon as he pushed open the door, his expression changed drastically.
There were no candles lit inside, but the light from the outside lamps shone through, allowing Li Hai to see the scene inside clearly.
The room was a mess, with tables and chairs overturned haphazardly, some even broken into pieces. Bedding was torn and disheveled, and clothes were scattered all over the floor, as if someone had frantically searched the place.
Li Hai turned around in fright, his voice trembling as he said, "This...this...Your Highness, Lord Yun, what is this...?"
Could they have been kidnapped by bandits?!
Prince Yong looked at the messy room, his face so gloomy it could drip water.
It seems that Yun Shang had anticipated his move and had been on guard against him all along!
"Send men to search immediately. We must find them alive or dead!"
Suppressing his anger, Prince Yong looked at Xia Mu with concern.
Xia Mu accepted the order and quickly led his guards away in different directions.
In an instant, the entire post station was brightly lit, and the sounds of footsteps and shouts mingled together.
Li Hai finally came to his senses. "Your Highness, has Lord Yun been in trouble?"
Yun Shang is the official in charge of this disaster relief effort. If something happens to him, won't this arduous task fall entirely on his shoulders?!