Lin Liushui, naturally, did not have an answer for him. "But if we were to travel with him ... Won"t that put you at risk? Wouldn"t that put all of us at risk?"He glanced sideways at the Second Ducal Prince as he said that, which made it rather clear who he was really concerned about. Which showed that what he had really meant was "put you at risk"! Not that Li Changhai missed that.
"So? Do you believe that we would all be safer, if we do not travel by his side?" the Ducal Prince demanded, squinting at Lin Liushui as he did so, "Since you believe that this is a plot, have you not considered that it is meant to separate us? So that they can pick us off on their own? Especially since their first attempt did not suffice?
"Think about how much weaker my faction - if I had one! More importantly, can I afford to lose Du Yan? Can I afford to lose any of you? So it makes better sense if we stick together. It would be harder to try to break all of us in a bundle, rather than working on each branch."
He was pushing his luck and he knew it. But Li Changhai wasn"t above using a little subterfuge when the occasion called for it. So far, everyone believed that Fatty Zhou had been after him, so why should he not make use of that a.s.sumption?
Well, it certainly did the trick against Lin Liushui, who simply shut up after that. And Qin Feng did not seem opposed to his joining the group either. In fact, the youngest of the lot seemed to be the first to agree that the four of them should all stick together. Perhaps because he would have been in greater danger, if it had not been for the aid of Lin Liushui and Du Yan.
But convincing Du Yan was likely to be more difficult than what he had experienced thus far, Li Changhai thought.
Something that Lin Liushui was also quick to point out. Albeit a little dejectedly. "Brother Yan isn"t going to like this, you know. He was expecting to leave alone, and has already gone back to pack. We had better stop him if we wish to accompany him to the Capital City."
Which was what the trio did immediately. The Second Ducal Prince was the one who led the way, half-running along the corridors that led through the section set aside for long term guests towards the place where Du Yan was residing. He was going so fast that Qin Feng was panting a little, as he tried to keep up.
The youngest of the group was supposed to be recovering from his injuries still, after all.
But they made good time, and soon stepped into the guest courtyard that Du Yan had been staying in. And found that he was still in the midst of packing!
Apparently, he had brought along, or had purchased, a great many things when he came to the Ducal Palace. Especially herbs and medicinal minerals, which piled up almost as high as his waist, out in front of his premises. And that did not include his clothes and other accessories.
But he was not too surprised to see the three of them. Although it seemed rather clear that he was simply expecting them to come to bid him farewell, before he left on his journey.
He also looked a little embarra.s.sed, since they had caught him unprepared, with all of his little knick-knacks stacked up high in front of him. It was rather obvious that he would not be able to carry all that off, if he was sticking to his original plan.
However, the revelation that they were going to head to the Capital with him came as something of a shock to the burly fellow.
And Du Yan, naturally, disagreed when they told him about the change in plan.
"This is my personal business, my brothers, and nothing to do with you. You three should not get yourselves involved. It will definitely be messy if you do. And you have other matters to be concerned about, at the moment."
His eyes were fixed on Li Changhai as he finished his last sentence. Which gave them no excuse whatsoever, to pretend that he was not directing his words to the Second Ducal Prince. And reminding him of the recent attempts on his life. Including the one that he had witnessed himself.
The Second Ducal Prince, of course, seemed more than just a little upset with Du Yan, as soon as he heard them.
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"Do you think I would be afraid of a bit of mess? The reason why I am going with you is because I have a gut feeling that this is something that came about because of your a.s.sociation with me, rather than those strange jianghu rules that you two have always been talking about. Besides, you"ll need an escort and my people are the best suited."
Li Changhai nodded at Qin Feng then, and dragged him into the muddy waters. "Besides, you are treating Qin Feng, aren"t you? Surely a physician cannot simply abandon his patient like this, and rush off. We are bringing him along so that you can monitor his condition!"
The pair who had heard exactly what the old physician had to say about Du Yan"s interference earlier simply raised their eyebrows at him at that. Which prompted the Ducal Prince to wince, as an expression of apology. But he did not stop pressing Du Yan, who was already looking a little uneasy about the whole thing.
Then all at once, the tall, muscular block of a man threw his hands up into the air, as though he was giving up the fight. "Alright, alright! I will bring you lot along with me. But only because I know that I can"t fit all of this upon my horse! If you are going, you"ll get a wagon at least. So I should have some more s.p.a.ce for my belongings," Du Yan grunted as Li Changhai beamed his pearly white teeth at him.
"Now go away so that I can pack all of this away properly!"
The Prince and Lin Liushui made their way out of the courtyard then, leaving Qin Feng behind to tell Du Yan more about what the physician had said earlier, about the sedative in his medicine. Then the gorgeous scholar sighed as soon as they were a short distance away from the courtyard. And Du Yan"s ears.
"Well, that went a little easier than I had expected. You should warn your guards to keep an eye on him though. In case he tries to sneak out of the Palace on his own. Brother Yan doesn"t usually do things like that, but it would be safer to keep an eye on him until all of us are ready to go."
Li Changhai had to agree that it was a good precaution. But Lin Liushui wasn"t quite done yet. Although his next bit of advice had to do with the Second Ducal Prince himself:
"And do not forget: there are still two more people that you"ll need to see, and to convince, before you can leave the Duchy:
"Or are you forgetting your father and your mother? I doubt that the Duke will kick up much of a fuss since he had been expecting you to head out for that treasure hunt of ours in the first place. But your mother?" Lin Liushui declared with a slow shake of his head.
"I think your mother will definitely have something to say, when she learns that you"ve decided to head out towards the Shu Kingdom Capital, at a time like this!"
* * *