Chapter 928 - 930: Denunciation Edict and Tax Reduction Policy_1
Jianqi’s face wasn’t so tense anymore, and he nodded at Bai Ruozhu, saying, "Just wait a bit longer until the City Gate opens to leave, but it might not be easy to get out of the city."
The three of them changed their expressions. Did Jianqi mean that the power had already been seized before dawn on Duanwu Festival?
Bai Ruozhu thought about it and concluded that Meng Liangshen’s reinforcements had not appeared and might really have been captured by Duanwu.
With this thought, everyone’s expressions darkened again, and even that ray of sunshine seemed somewhat gloomy.
But no matter what, they had to leave the city. Even if the guards changed, they must break through!
Bai Ruozhu took out some Drug Powder and handed it to the three of them, "If we have to force our way out later and there are many people, use this. I’ve already given you the Antidote, so you won’t be affected by the powder."
Tu Ying took the Drug Powder and said, "Ruozhu, don’t come with us later. It’s too dangerous. He wants to capture us, not you. We can’t drag you into this."
Bai Ruozhu patted her shoulder, "What time is it to still talk about ’us’ and ’you’? Can I still go back now? With the Prince gaining control over Beiyu, he must be capturing people. I’ve seriously offended him before, so we must go to the Northwest Main Camp for reinforcements together."
"Master needn’t worry. Once we go outside, I will send a covert signal, and the dark guards will assemble here," Jianqi said.
Bai Ruozhu nodded, "Tell them to prioritize their own lives. Don’t force anything. I don’t want to see anyone lose their life."
Jianqi glanced at her, a special emotion flickering through his eyes. It was normal for dark guards to sacrifice their lives for their master, even considered their honor, and no one had told them to put their lives first before.
Seeing that the time was about right, Jianqi manipulated a mechanism, and the door opened to reveal a run-down old Cellar. The three of them carefully followed Jianqi out of the Cellar and into the small house above.
Jianqi found some clothes and dusted them off, saying, "Change into these clothes so you won’t be easily recognized by the other side."
Bai Ruozhu now couldn’t take things out of the Space, so she had no choice but to put on some coarse cloth women’s clothes and wrap a coarse cloth headscarf over her head.
Tu Ying dressed in men’s clothes, disguising herself as a common young man, and Tu Bai also changed into men’s clothes. Bai Ruozhu found some ash and had them smear some on their faces to darken them.
Jianqi also dressed in a Farmer’s clothes. His original demeanor was too cold, not at all resembling a farmer. Fortunately, he had used his Bone Shrinking Skill to make himself much thinner, and it wasn’t too noticeable unless looked at closely.
Bai Ruozhu glanced at Jianqi and couldn’t help saying, "Don’t use the Bone Shrinking Skill once we’re out, and use it less in the future too. I heard from Achun that it’s bad for your health."
Jianqi was stunned for a moment and then hung his head, saying, "Yes."
After the four of them were disguised, they realized that the small house was quite close to the City West Gate. It seemed they could escape from the city now.
Jianqi quietly sent a covert signal, and soon shadows gathered in the small courtyard. One of them came forward and said in a low voice, "Master, the City Lord’s Residence is surrounded, and no one can enter or exit. The City Gates are also closed—no one is allowed in or out, and the guards at the gates are all the Prince’s men, especially the guards at the West Gate leading to the Northwest Main Camp are the most numerous."
Tu Ying and Tu Bai’s faces turned pale, and Bai Ruozhu furrowed her brows and asked, "Is Beiyu City now under the Prince’s control? Has he already raised the banner of rebellion?"
"The Prince is using the pretext of leading troops in rebellion to protect the Imperial family’s lineage, claiming that Danliang Country must not be usurped by someone with his surname," the dark guard replied.
Bai Ruozhu was taken aback, "Does he mean that the current Emperor is not of the royal bloodline? Or is he saying the former Emperor wasn’t?"
"It refers to the current Emperor. An edict was even issued to denounce the Empress Dowager, revealing that before she married the former Emperor, she had a relationship with Yao, the ’Unrivaled Healer of the World’." The dark guard spoke cautiously as he observed Bai Ruozhu’s expression. He knew his master had good relations with the Empress Dowager and feared that his words might anger her.
Bai Ruozhu snorted, "When one wishes to condemn someone, any excuse will do. Not to mention whether the matter is true, even if it were, who says having had a relationship necessarily has anything to do with the Emperor’s lineage? The former Emperor was a sovereign of the highest order; was he a fool then?"
She spoke bluntly because she was extremely infuriated by Crown Prince Duan’s actions. It was clearly a power struggle between men, yet they turned their weapons against a weak woman, who also happened to be a widow. Bullying her because her husband had died and she lacked support, did she deserve to be slandered by them?
If Crown Prince Duan’s slogan had been that the current Emperor was not a wise ruler and that he wanted to rectify the chaos, then so be it. But to go so far as to challenge the royal bloodline and issue an edict to ridicule the Empress Dowager across the entire world was truly despicable.
"Ruozhu, don’t be angry. Sooner or later, Crown Prince Duan will receive his comeuppance," Tu Ying whispered in consolation.
Bai Ruozhu took a few deep breaths to calm herself down.
"Although the West Gate is the closest to the northwest main camp, it may be ambushed by more experts waiting for us. To storm through is too dangerous, but staying hidden in Beiyu City is probably too risky. So we will take the South Gate!"
"Won’t that require us to take a much longer route? Wouldn’t it be better to take the North Gate?" Tu Bai asked worriedly.
"Taking a detour is better than being caught. The North Gate is the second closest, and with Crown Prince Duan’s cunning, it’s impossible that he hasn’t made any preparations," Bai Ruozhu asserted.
No one else spoke, but after pondering over it carefully, they all agreed that Bai Ruozhu’s idea made sense. Thus, they made preparations to lurk near the South Gate and planned their breakout.
The dark guards dispersed, with only Jianqi accompanying Bai Ruozhu. To avoid drawing attention, she walked with Tu Ying, while Tu Bai and Jianqi paired up. The four of them maintained a moderate distance, pretending not to know each other as they headed southward.
The streets were not as crowded as usual, probably because the common people were wary of the unrest in the city and dared not loiter outside. However, as they passed the market, they saw many people crowding around to look at something. Bai Ruozhu listened and learned that they were watching Crown Prince Duan’s pronouncement of the edict.
In fact, most of the commoners treated it as a royal scandal, and many felt that it didn’t matter who was Emperor as long as taxes weren’t increased.
Suddenly, a pair of government soldiers appeared, and Bai Ruozhu and her companions’ hearts jumped. They all hung their heads low, not daring to let the soldiers see their faces.
Fortunately, the soldiers did not approach them but instead went to where the edict was posted and put up another notice. Suddenly, the onlookers stirred up a commotion, with someone shouting, "Crown Prince Duan says that from now on, he will govern Beiyu City and reduce taxes by twenty percent!"
Many people cheered loudly. While a twenty percent tax reduction wasn’t much, most common people didn’t do the math. They simply felt that paying less than before was good news.
Of course, there were those who thought it was no big deal and still felt that under the stewardship of City Lord Meng, Beiyu City was a more suitable place to live and work in peace.
Bai Ruozhu made eye contact with her companions, and the four hurriedly left the area, quickly arriving near the South Gate.
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Today is the Ghost Festival; everyone, try not to go out tonight and go to sleep early~