Deuced if Huangfu Xu didn't fall for the trick. Instead of falling for it, his elder brother praised his sister-in-law again. Huangfu Xu had to swallow another mouthful of free dog food.
He shrugged and looked at the people kneeling on the ground. "Get in the carriage. If anything happens, do not get out!"
The two women, hearing this, couldn't bother to wipe their tear-streaked eyes. They scrambled into the carriage with their hands and feet.
Fan Zehao squinted at Huangfu Xu and warned him, "If you startle my wife, I'll skin you alive!"
"I wouldn't dare let my two little beauties get frightened. You don't need to tell me!" He was still grinning and playing the fool, it was impossible to tell if he was telling the truth or not.
As his words fell, the five men also caught up, directly blocking their path.
The angry men rode their horses to the front of their group unfriendlily, their faces contorted, and angrily pointed at Huangfu Xu. "We chased for more than ten li in that direction, and if we go further, it's all forest. Not even a pheasant can be found, let alone a person!"
"Boss, why waste words with them? This brat must know the whereabouts of Miss Zhao. He must have taken a liking to those two women, otherwise, why would he deliberately deceive us? Let's just capture them and interrogate them. If he doesn't taste our methods, this dead thing won't believe we aren't made of mud!"
Fan Zehao rubbed his nose, his thin lips curling up. A dignified Prince of Leisure being called a "brat" and a "dead thing" was truly amusing!
"Brat, dead thing, you keep calling me names, but you never call yourself a person. Old brother, how come you haven't even managed to become a person? Tsk, tsk, tsk!" After saying this, he looked at Huangfu Xu with a look of disdain, shaking his head repeatedly as if expressing his disappointment in him!
Huangfu Xu couldn't stand him fanning the flames. He had originally intended to teach these men a small lesson, but for his own pride, and for the sake of the two little beauties in the carriage, he couldn't let himself appear weak!
Before he could even speak, Fan Zehao said cheekily again, "Can you handle it? If not, I'll do it. My wife is getting impatient!"
Huangfu Xu glared at him, gritting his teeth and saying, "I can!"
Fan Zehao's smiling face disappeared, and he turned to Shi He, who was driving the carriage. "Go!"
The five men were stunned by their conversation. Before they could react, Shi He's carriage slowly started to move, and it looked like it was going to hit them!
This enraged the five men. They threw their horsewhips, aiming at Shi He. As the whip neared Shi He, he caught it and, using the momentum, yanked the man on the horse off!
"Those who block the carriage die! If you're not afraid of death, come at me!" Shi He said coldly, looking down at the four stunned people on horseback in front of him!
Huangfu Xu's mouth twitched uncontrollably. As expected of his elder brother's subordinate. Those who are capable don't need to talk. With one move, he had subdued those men. Where was his chance to show off his skills?
Huangfu Xu: "Leave these little bastards to me. You guys hurry and go!"
Shi He rolled his eyes at him. "You've been dawdling for so long, and you haven't even made a move. Now these four are right here, let's see you make a move!"
Did he think he didn't want to leave?
The carriage was blocking the way. If they didn't deal with them, how could they leave? Did they expect to fly over?
Being looked down upon by his elder brother was one thing, but now being looked down upon by his subordinate was truly unbearable.
He took a deep breath, flew out, and unleashed a fierce, sweeping attack on those men. The four men felt something fly at them from the sky. Before they could even see his moves clearly, they had already fallen to the ground, unable to get up!
Shi He looked down at the men on the ground and sneered contemptuously. "I thought you were some high-class goods, but it turns out you're just base rabble, unworthy of being on stage. If I were your master, I'd be so ashamed I'd want to dig a hole and bury myself to end it all!"
Inside the carriage, Zhao Jiaqi was astonished for a long time. Shi He was usually silent, but when he spoke, he could enrage people to death. His words were truly earth-shattering!
However, what he said was truly satisfying, and it also threw some shade on Huangfu Xu, completely making enemies of Huangfu Xu and these men!
One had to admit, Shi He, this bodyguard, was truly cunning and manipulative!
After the men were subdued, there were no more obstacles in front of the carriage. Shi He slowly drove the carriage through, and the group continued on their way, passing right under the noses of those men!
Huangfu Xu, leading his personal guards, stayed behind. He was not lenient with these men. First, he beat them soundly, and finally, he forced them to kneel before their prince and beg for forgiveness!
Huangfu Xu raised his hand slightly, waving his flamboyant red fan, and refused. "If an apology could restore my dignity, then so be it. But they're already gone. Who am I apologizing to?"
His subordinates were even more confused. The guard asked, "Then Master, what should we do with these people?"
Huangfu Xu glanced at them. With such dull-witted guards, it was hard for him not to feel intelligent. He shook his head. "What good end awaits those who offend my people?"
"Take one item from each of them, so they don't bite people randomly next time they come out. Also, tell them that if they want revenge, they can come to the Bin Yue Inn."
With that, he mounted his horse and galloped to catch up with the main group. There were still little beauties waiting for him!
After he left, the guards obediently dismembered the left and right legs and arms of these men. As for the one who had insulted the Prince of Leisure, his mouth was slit from ear to ear. It would be difficult for him to even speak now, let alone curse!
Before leaving, the guards repeated the Prince's words to them verbatim. "If your master wants revenge, then go to the Bin Yue Inn in Hedong Prefecture!"
They glanced disdainfully at the men with broken limbs and then rode their horses to chase after their master. They knew very well that with their master's cruel hand and his pronouncement, Hedong Prefecture was likely to fall into unrest again!
In the afternoon, as the sky darkened, they arrived at the Bin Yue Inn in Hedong Prefecture and settled down!
Su Ya went to open the rooms and directly produced the token that Ying Xiong had given to his master. The innkeeper saw the owner's item and immediately knew who these guests were!
The innkeeper greeted them with a smile. "I am the innkeeper here, my surname is Wang. You can call me Innkeeper Wang. Seeing as there are quite a few guests, why don't we stay in the backyard? The backyard is quiet, and the rooms are all ready. They just need a little tidying up. While they're being cleaned, you can have your meal first. What do you think, honored guests?"
Zhao Jiaqi found the steward's arrangements to be very thoughtful and agreed. "We'll follow the steward's arrangements!"
The group directly stayed in the backyard. The front yard was occupied by some servants and cooks. The front and back yards were separated by a gate, so staying in the backyard was quiet and more convenient for activities!
They ate dinner in the front hall, where Innkeeper Wang had arranged for local specialty dishes!
When the dishes were served, they were shocked to see a plate of fried locusts.
"I can't believe we're eating locusts at this time and in this place! When did locusts become a local specialty?" Zhao Jiaqi asked curiously!
Fan Zehao also found it unusual. However, he recalled that a few years ago, when the entire Yun Kingdom was fighting locusts, the inner city was fried and eaten. It was not surprising that this practice had spread.
"It's a good thing that this item is recognized by the people here. In the future, if there are locusts in the fields again, do you think they'll be able to survive the winter?"