Ch. 821..825: The Princess of Northern Land Chapter 821-825

Chapter 821: Chapter 821: Escape (6)

The weather on the second morning was poor, the sky had begun to flurry with snowflakes before dawn had even broken.

"Miss, please put on some more clothes," Tana suggested, taking out the fiery red fox cloak once again.

"Not this one," Lin Ziyin frowned in refusal.

Tana and Yi Lian exchanged a glance upon seeing her unhappy face and immediately conceded.

"How about this one then?" Tana picked out another robe and cloak with brighter patterns.

"I would prefer something more subdued," Lin Ziyin replied discontentedly.

Not wanting to upset her further, Tana had no choice but to find an appropriate cotton garment and cloak from the closet. The robe and cloak were both white, with white fox fur trimming the collar and cuffs.

As ethereal as a floating immortal, pure as ice and jade! When Alhatu turned around and saw her come out, he was immediately transfixed. At this moment, the gentleness of a Daqin woman was fully evident in Lin Ziyin, and it vastly differed from the boldness of the North Country women.

Lin Ziyin walked past Prince Conger without a sideward glance, then climbed into the carriage.

Although the beauty was cold to him, Alhatu’s heart was still more joyful. He mounted his horse with a smiling face and rode abreast of the carriage.

"Sneaky."

"Despicable." By the time Brukan and his group arrived at the Alhatu Residence as usual, Alhatu had already taken Lin Ziyin to the Hot Springs Villa.

Knowing the truth afterward, each of Brukan’s group was seething with anger.

The Hot Springs Villa was heavily guarded, and even as princes, they couldn’t come and go as they pleased because the place had been granted to Alhatu as a birthday present by the previous emperor when he was ten years old.

As private property and further involving a gift from the former emperor, Brukan and others dared not and could not be reckless there.

Therefore, after Lin Ziyin arrived at the Hot Springs Villa, she enjoyed a rare day of tranquility.

She soaked in the hot springs to her heart’s content, then spent the time reading books in her room, appearing especially leisurely.

Seeing the smile finally on her face, Alhatu’s heart settled a lot.

The fifth day finally arrived; it was the day secretly planned for a meeting with Lin Ziyin.

As dawn began to break, Lin Ziyin rose early.

"Miss, it’s snowing outside; it’s too cold," Tana said with a smile, poking the fire in the brazier to make it burn brighter.

"No matter, the snowy landscape is beautiful. I want to eat breakfast and then go up to the mountaintop to see the rime ice view. Later, you can accompany me for a walk," Lin Ziyin said with a light smile, her mood seeming to improve amidst the swirling snowflakes.

"It’s snowing heavily outside," Yi Lian said, looking worriedly at the falling snowflakes.

"Isn’t choosing a snowy day the point of coming to the Hot Springs Villa to take in the scenery?" Lin Ziyin asked lightly with a smile. "With the hot springs and some extra clothes, it won’t be too cold. I’m just going for a walk. If it gets cold, we’ll come back."

"What if..." Yi Lian was hesitant to decide on her own.

Lin Ziyin’s face immediately darkened, "Forget it, then. We won’t go."

This was said in a huff! Both Yi Lian and Tana could hear it.

Having upset the miss again, the maids in the room were so nervous they all dared not even breathe too heavily.

After leaving Lin Ziyin’s room, Yi Lian hurried to find Alhatu for instructions.

"She wants to go out for a walk?" Alhatu asked in surprise.

"The miss is feeling cooped up in the residence and wants to go out to see the snowy Hot Springs Villa. The maid had previously mentioned the villa’s rime ice, and the miss was already intrigued," Yi Lian reported respectfully. "The maid is worried she will catch a chill; the miss is really unhappy now and doesn’t want to go out anymore."

"I will go see her," Alhatu said immediately upon hearing that Lin Ziyin was displeased, unable to sit still any longer.

Chapter 822: Chapter 822: Escape (7)

"What are you doing here?" Lin Ziyin sneered at him, "Hot Springs Villa is surrounded by cliffs on three sides, and the only exit is guarded by heavy troops. Isn’t the Second Prince being overly cautious?"

A look of embarrassment flashed across Alhatu’s face; Lin Ziyin had a point. Hot Springs Villa was bordered by mountains on three sides, and the only exit was guarded by his men. If Lin Ziyin wanted to escape, she’d need to grow wings.

"Guards, escort the lady out for a walk," Alhatu ordered coldly.

Lin Ziyin’s expression was unreadable, as if she completely ignored his favor.

"It’s because you are susceptible to the cold, so I fear you might freeze," Alhatu explained awkwardly, "I will accompany you..."

"No need." As soon as she heard he wanted to follow, Lin Ziyin’s face stiffened, "I just want to walk by myself. Having Tana and Bayan with me is enough."

She didn’t leave any room for Alhatu’s face-saving. But this was just like her character, Alhatu didn’t want to continue to displease her, and didn’t insist on following. However, he did arrange for a few more people to follow her.

The snow outside seemed to have lessened. Lin Ziyin left the courtyard and truly began to stroll around casually. Bayan and the others were on high alert, vigilantly following behind her.

"If only the hillside facing the sun were filled with plum blossoms, how beautiful it would be," Lin Ziyin remarked enthusiastically as she walked, as though she had forgotten all the frustrations of the past few days.

"The maid will surely relay the lady’s words to the Second Prince," Yi Lian said with a smile.

"Let’s go, to the top of the mountain," Lin Ziyin grew excited, and due to her actual movements, her forehead even began to show a slight sweat.

Such a high peak? Tana, Bayan, and the others all looked at the distance with concern.

But Lin Ziyin did not care about them and had already taken the lead, stepping forward.

At that moment, seeing her flushed smiling face, no one wanted to dampen her spirits. Moreover, when they came out, Alhatu had instructed everyone to listen to Lin Ziyin’s wishes.

So all the guards and maids followed her and began to climb up.

Despite Lin Ziyin’s frail appearance, her climbing pace was quite fast. Everyone had thought she would just walk a bit and then be willing to come down the mountain when she got tired. But, to their surprise, she continued climbing non-stop, and it was about the time a stick of incense would burn that they estimated they could reach the mountain top.

"Lady, have some snacks," Tana said, carrying a food box and seeing her sweating profusely, her heart softened, and she quickly handed over the snacks.

The snacks in the snowy weather weren’t that tasty; frankly, they were just some sun-dried milk tofu.

Lin Ziyin didn’t refuse; she walked and ate along, and even invited everyone to eat together.

Seeing her energized, everyone also perked up and continued forward.

Climbing the snowy mountain was very easy to slip, and Bayan and the others, being trained in martial arts, didn’t mind the rough patches. But Lin Ziyin was just a weak woman, her persistence until now was admirable.

Bayan and the others saw what resilience looked like in her.

When they were still a small distance from the peak, all of a sudden, the wind and clouds changed, and from the thick white snow, more than ten people sprang out. They all wore white clothes, and their cloaks were white as well, blending into the vast sea of snow almost merging with nature itself.

"Assassins," Bayan was the first to react. He quickly stepped forward and protected Lin Ziyin by standing in front of her.

At the same time, Tana, Yi Lian, and others also drew their swords from their waists, forming a protective circle around Lin Ziyin.

Although the attackers were few, they were very formidable. In a very short time, the guards beside Bayan all fell.

"Hurry and take the lady away," Bayan shouted urgently. He still wasn’t clear about the identity of the attackers and didn’t dare to take them lightly.

"We can’t get away," a young man sneered as he came closer; his hand moved quickly with his blade, and several guards and maids surrounding Lin Ziyin fell.

Tana and Yi Lian were shocked and quickly reached out to lead Lin Ziyin away from the mountain.

"Who goes there?" At the critical moment, Princess Alhatu along with a group of guards unexpectedly rushed over.

"Just in time." The young assassin was much faster than Tana. Before Tana and Yi Lian could grasp Lin Ziyin, the assassin had already swept her up in his arms and leaped away.

"Lady," Yi Lian cried out in shock.

Another assassin, in perfect sync with the young one, saw his accomplice succeed and immediately went to cover his position.

Tana and Yi Lian were simultaneously blocked by him.

"Quickly go up and stop them," Princess Alhatu said anxiously, "By all means, don’t let them take the person away."

The guards and Bayan, seeing the path down the mountain was blocked, breathed a sigh of relief. There was no escape for the assassins.

The assassins, however, ran up the mountain with Lin Ziyin like fools.

They won’t get away! Bayan and Princess Alhatu were sure that the assailants would soon be captured without resistance.

People by Princess Alhatu’s side had already sent out signals, and in a little while, Alhatu himself would arrive with reinforcements.

Alhatu, in the villa upon seeing the signal, indeed frantic, immediately led a large group of guards and hastened up the mountain at the fastest speed.

Chapter 823: Chapter 823 An Unexpected Way (1)

Lin Ziyin was quickly brought to the highest point of the mountain by the young man. There, a few people in white clothes were still standing. Their appearance was quite peculiar at the moment, for they had large wings attached to both sides, each of them looking around anxiously.

The arrival of Lin Ziyin immediately invigorated them.

"Quick, change into this," commanded the captain of the guards, pointing to the prepared items for Lin Ziyin.

These items were familiar to Lin Ziyin. They were the gliders she had designed, very perfect gliders.

The north wind was blowing hard. Lin Ziyin stood at the top of the mountain to assess the wind direction, then she smiled, walked over calmly, and approached a glider to fasten her safety belt. She had quite a bit of confidence in the things she had designed.

"Thank you all for your hard work." Everything was ready, just waiting to take off.

"Let’s go now," urged Si Jinhan, looking around vigilantly, "no dawdling."

"What about them?" Lin Ziyin was worried about the companions who might try to hinder them.

"Forget about them," answered Luo Yan seriously.

Lin Ziyin turned to look not far away where only five or six of her remaining companions were valiantly fighting the enemy.

"Don’t go." Just then, Bayan somehow broke through the defenses and appeared at the top of the mountain.

Si Jinhan’s face turned cold, and his eyes immediately filled with murderous intent.

"No need to keep any alive," he ordered his companions coldly.

The companions who had caught up with them immediately showed their ferocity.

"Bayan, go back," Lin Ziyin said calmly to Bayan, "I don’t want to kill you. Don’t forget, you and Tana owe me a life. I hope you’ll let my companions go, after all, they came to rescue me. And don’t forget what would happen if I remained in the North Country, you know what the outcome would be."

"That won’t happen, the Second Prince will protect you," Bayan replied anxiously.

"Deluding yourself," Lin Ziyin answered with a sneer, "I’m not staying."

"Let’s move, now," urged Si Jinhan.

"Don’t kill him," Lin Ziyin said coolly with a reminder.

Then she hesitated no more, took a running start, and with the help of the wind, she "flew" up.

The moment she broke free, Luo Yan, Si Jinhan, and the others immediately took off after her without any hesitation.

"They... they flew?" The princess’s maid stammered in shock at the scene before her.

"Nonsense," retorted the princess, brandishing a curved sword and continuously battling the people in white. At her maid’s exclamation, she instinctively looked up.

Sure enough, there was something bird-like flying overhead.

She was dumbfounded for a moment, the scene before her completely beyond her understanding.

Alhatu quickly arrived at the hillside with his men.

"Your Highness, they—" A guard was the first to realize something was wrong and, pointing upward, was too astonished to finish his sentence.

Alhatu looked up and saw the "big bird" as well.

What is this? He was also dumbstruck.

However, it took only a moment for the princess on the mountain top to come to her senses. Lin Ziyin had escaped, truly escaped from this seemingly hopeless place. Nobody had expected that Lin Ziyin would choose such a place to make her escape.

She wanted to shoot down the "big bird" in the sky, but the guards she had brought with her were only responsible for her safety and were not a regular army, so they didn’t have the necessary bows and arrows.

She had no way to deal with Lin Ziyin, but the few people in front of her had to be captured.

Fuming with rage, she gave a ruthless order, "Keep one alive, kill all the rest."

Chapter 824: Chapter 824 An Unexpected Way (2)

Tana foolishly gazed at the distant shadows, indeed not fellow travelers, impossible to detain no matter the effort.

With a melancholic heart, she almost mechanically advanced to fight.

"Hehe, if it weren’t for the Princess forbidding us from killing you, none of you would have been left," a cold laugh from an assassin.

"Enough talk, hurry and catch up with the Third Young Master," another assassin flung his hand, dispersing a powder pouch immediately. A fragrant scent filled the air, then all the people from North Country felt numbness and weakness in their limbs; their weapons fell to the ground, and they too sat down in the snow.

"Despicable, using poison!" the Sixth Princess’s face flushed with anger.

"Hehe, you’re far inferior compared to us," an assassin gave her a kick.

Then, under the watchful eyes of all, they immediately reached the mountain peak, each found a "giant bird," and then took off with the wind.

"Hmph." The Sixth Princess pounded the snow, extremely annoyed in her heart.

"Fire arrows." The guards on the mountainside, after a moment of chaos, immediately calmed down.

"Stop." Alhatu regained consciousness and immediately halted his subordinates’ actions. Although Lin Ziyin’s heart was not with him, he still did not want Lin Ziyin to suffer any harm. Such a smart woman could not be retained by anyone unless she was willing.

Leaving, perhaps, was for the best.

The people at Hot Springs Villa, including the merchants who came to deliver vegetables that day, also witnessed the aerial marvel, everyone so astonished that they forgot the tasks at hand.

In fact, it was not comfortable for Lin Ziyin and the others in the air; firstly, the wind was too strong, sweeping them swiftly. Secondly, with snowflakes drifting, it was hard to control their gliders.

In the air, Luo Yan and Si Jinhan, fearing losing her, promptly threw out the tencel from their bodies, binding Lin Ziyin and themselves from afar.

This way, none of them were dispersed by the wind in the air.

Lin Ziyin’s bizarre departure from the Northern Land spread quickly across North Country.

Alhatu and the Sixth Princess did not dare to conceal anything from the Monarch, and they went to the Imperial Palace to confess their fault at the earliest opportunity.

Du Lengcang Empress, after hearing from a palace maid, immediately rushed to the grand hall; she feared that at such a time, the Monarch might erupt in great fury, potentially implicating Alhatu, and she also worried that the State Preceptor, Grand Consort, and Eldest Prince who always opposed Alhatu might exploit the situation.

In fact, upon hearing the news, the Grand Consort and Brukan truly set their supported ministers to advise the Emperor.

What displeased Brukan was that at such a crucial moment, the State Preceptor and Timur were nowhere to be found. Hence, the Timur family also maintained a rare silence.

The other princes, of course, wouldn’t miss such a good opportunity, and one after another, they sided with Brukan and the Grand Consort.

However, it was strangely enough, the Monarch, in the end, merely reprimanded Alhatu lightly and then let the matter drop.

"He favors him so unfairly," Brukan returned to his residence and furiously smashed all the decorations on the table.

"The Monarch’s heart has completely turned towards Alhatu and that despicable Du Lengcang; our mother-son status is worrisome," the Grand Consort’s expression was also displeased.

"What to do?" Brukan’s eyes shimmered with a bloodthirsty gleam.

"Get Bayal into the palace," the Grand Consort ordered grimly.

Lin Ziyin and her party finally landed in a flat and open area.

Like the Northern Land, North Country was vast and sparsely populated; after they landed, they started examining the map.

Chapter 825: Chapter 825 Unexpected Way (3)

"Moving forward, we must pass through many checkpoints, and there are pursuers behind us; the danger is too great," Luo Yan pointed at the map and said.

"Let’s go this way," Lin Ziyin pointed at a path and said.

"The mountain paths are difficult to traverse, and crossing this mountain range will take us into the territory of Changchun Country," Si Jinhan said sternly. "Those bastards from Changchun Country are up to no good."

"Who said anything about entering the territory of Changchun Country?" Lin Ziyin answered with a light smile. "We’ll take the water route. I wonder if we could get the contact person to bring ice skates and snowboards?"

"We can," Si Jinhan answered without hesitation.

"When we came, we had already considered the water route, so we brought everything needed. It’s just your health?" Luo Yan looked at her with concern.

"It’s fine, I can endure this bit of hardship," Lin Ziyin replied with a light smile.

"Horrible, hurry up and change out of these North Country clothes," Si Jinhan impatiently said while looking at her.

Lin Ziyin glared back at him, "In this icy, snowy landscape, where do you expect me to change? If you don’t like what you see, you don’t have to look."

"If you won’t change your clothes, can’t you at least get rid of the stuff on your head and body?" Si Jinhan persisted annoyingly.

"I can’t be bothered with you," Lin Ziyin replied, wanting to avoid further argument, and simply turned and walked away.

Seeing her furious demeanor, Si Jinhan muttered unhappily behind her, continuing to be difficult.

"You really have so much free time," Luo Yan gave him a cold look. Usually quite clever, he turned into a fool in front of the princess.

Lin Ziyin indeed was furious and strode ahead aggressively. The snow was heavy, rising above the knee. Without horses, walking through the snow proved extremely difficult.

Both Luo Yan and Si Jinhan watched her determined figure, their hearts tight with emotion.

If Lin Ziyin hadn’t been with them, these men, accustomed to hardships, would have had no problems crossing mountains and taking water routes.

But with her present, and her being of such special status, everyone felt nervous and apprehensive.

However, Lin Ziyin was right; if they continued straight on, the checkpoints in North Country would undoubtedly be heavily guarded. North Country’s aggressive reputation wasn’t for nothing after all.

In military matters, they indeed were exceptional.

Thus, taking the water route, though more arduous, was indeed the safest and most sensible route.

"If it really comes down to it, we’ll improvise. Find some branches to tie together, let her sit on them, and we’ll pull," Luo Yan said fiercely.

That was the only option left, Si Jinhan couldn’t think of a better one.

A few men whistled, and an eagle descended from the sky.

Luo Yan took a charcoal pencil from his bosom and wrote a few lines on a piece of paper, then released the eagle.

The eagle emitted a sharp cry and then soared into the sky.

Si Jinhan also called over an eagle, also sending it off with a piece of paper.

The group, dressed in white, began struggling to move forward in the icy, snowy landscape.

As the snow fell harder, breathing became difficult for everyone.

"We need to find a place to take shelter from the snow," Si Jinhan said grimly, looking at Lin Ziyin’s face, which had turned purple from the cold.

"This place is all wilderness; where do we find shelter from the snow?" Luo Yan looked at the sun in the sky and replied. The sun was already slanting west, and in a little over an hour, it would likely be dark.

They indeed needed to consider a place to rest for the night. With such a severe snowstorm, if they couldn’t find a suitable shelter, no one would be able to hold out.

And this was only the first day of their escape.

Although Lin Ziyin found walking difficult, she didn’t utter a single word of complaint.