The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 1062 - 141: Coming to Beijing

Chapter 1062: Chapter 141: Coming to Beijing

The carriage sped forward for a while, and Manbao lifted the carriage window, sticking half of her body out to call back, "I’m right here, come and chase me!"

Bai Shan squeezed his way next to her and, seeing that those people didn’t pay attention to her, he joined in and shouted, "We’re all here, come and get us—"

At last, someone turned to look at them, and as soon as they did, everyone immediately pointed at the carriage, which had covered quite a distance, exclaiming, "The young physician is over there..."

Everyone turned back and started chasing them at full speed.

Daji heard the commotion and, with a snap, whipped the horse’s rear, making the carriage dash off rapidly.

Manbao and Bai Shan saw a group of people hustling towards them and excitedly shouted, "Come on, come on—"

Bai Erlang also stuck his head out from the other window, waving excitedly. Perhaps feeling that wasn’t satisfying enough, he pulled out a handkerchief to wave in the air and yelled, "Come on, come and chase us—"

Daji was driving the carriage at the front, followed by a large, noisy group of people chasing behind them, waving their hands and calling for them to stop.

The constables, who had received reports and were rushing to maintain order at Jishi Hall, saw such a large crowd and had no choice but to divert their goal, following the group in pursuit, trying to get them to stop and disperse.

Thus, people standing in the restaurant saw a carriage passing beneath them, carrying three giggling youths, followed by a large group that was nearly breathless from running yet persistently chasing them, and behind them, a small group of constables.

Prince of Yizhou: ...

He turned and asked a person beside him, "What is happening?"

The person hurriedly instructed his subordinates to find out and soon returned with precise information, then bowed and reported, "Prince, those in the carriage include the young physician who saved the young master. The citizens of the capital heard about it and all wanted her to treat them, resulting in Jishi Hall being overcrowded. This young physician must have sneaked out and is now leading the crowd away."

Prince of Yizhou frowned, "What kind of decorum is this in the capital city? Have the Capital Prefecture handle this."

"Yes."

Meanwhile, in a nearby box, someone burst out with loud laughter, the sound directly reaching this room.

Prince of Yizhou paused for a moment, then the person standing by his side whispered, "It sounds like the voice of His Highness the Crown Prince."

The Crown Prince was in the box, clutching his stomach with laughter. After wiping the tears that had gathered at the corners of his eyes, he laughed and waved, "Reward!"

The servant who had just reported the affair immediately kneeled down joyfully, raising his voice, "Thank Your Highness for the reward."

The person sitting beside him asked curiously, "There have been chases for successors or poets in the capital before, Your Highness didn’t laugh then, what makes you so merry now?"

The Crown Prince asked with a smile, "Did cousin not also burst into laughter just now?"

Zhao Huan, remembering the three youths who had poked their heads out of the window to wave and laugh, couldn’t help but smile a little too, slightly shaking his head, "Indeed amusing. Your Highness, do you know those three?"

"Just now, the servant said, didn’t he, that one of them is the physician who saved Sanlang."

Zhao Huan was astonished, "Really a miracle doctor? But they all look so..."

"Young, right?" The Crown Prince waved his hand nonchalantly, "Ambition does not depend on age, and naturally, talent does not depend on youth either. Zheng Hong, that poor wretch, couldn’t save Sanlang and feared I would question his incompetence, so he hastily brought in a folk physician. Surprisingly, she does have some skill. It’s said that Ji Xiang’s young grandson also fell off a horse last year, nearly getting dragged to death, but she managed to stop the bleeding and saved his life."

Zhao Huan pondered thoughtfully, "So, it seems her background isn’t shallow at all."

The Crown Prince curled his lips and said, "It’s not shallow. Isn’t it strange? Her Junior Brother took twenty strings of cash to make her famous. Originally, he thought it would be quite an achievement to spread her fame in seven or eight days, but her name became known throughout the capital overnight."

Zhao Huan jumped in surprise, "It couldn’t be Your Highness..."

The Crown Prince said irritably, "What would I do that for? I have nothing else to do after having my fill? I simply happened to know about it and casually checked into it, but strangely, I couldn’t find out who gave them that push."

Zhao Huan furrowed his brow, "To be able to elude Your Highness’s notice in the capital—"

"There are plenty," said the Crown Prince nonchalantly, "In the entire capital, hiding from me is the easiest thing, what am I?"

Zhao Huan hung his head, holding a tea cup, silent, yet his mind began to race.

The Crown Prince had been established as the heir apparent since the Emperor’s enthronement, and he had only started to indulge in folly in recent years. Before this, although he wasn’t universally acclaimed in court, the civil and military officials were mostly satisfied with him—it was only because of his status as the heir apparent that they didn’t praise him openly.

Although the Third Prince had been favored these past few years, it was only seemingly so. In terms of real power, he was far behind the Crown Prince, who had been groomed as the heir apparent from a young age.

If it was a force that even the Crown Prince couldn’t detect, then there were only a few possibilities, and the most likely was someone from inside the palace.

But why?

Isn’t that just a doctor?

The Crown Prince also wondered in his heart; those three youths in the carriage, aren’t they just a doctor and students?

Who would go to such lengths to help them?

And to mobilize a force that even he couldn’t trace.

Daji led them through the main streets and, seeing that they were still followed, decided to run towards the outer city.

As they were about to leave the inner city, the three peeked back and saw only a scattered few trailing them; delighted, they burst into loud laughter, laughter that drifted down half the street, prompting people there to look their way.

A convoy just entering the inner city heard this familiar laughter. Whether people were on the carriages or walking beside them, all lifted their heads to locate the source of the sound.

Old Madam Liu lifted the carriage curtain to peep ahead, and at a glance, she saw two heads poking out of a nearby carriage window. Her gaze shifted and then caught another small head sticking out from another window.

Seeing their carefree laughing faces, Old Madam Liu couldn’t help but let a smile slip through her eyes, yet she felt somewhat helpless.

Ms. Zheng also looked dazed and asked, "Mother, I thought we were keeping a low profile?"

She observed, the three kids didn’t seem any different from how they were in the village.

Daji, ever aware of his surroundings, also noticed the incoming convoy and slowly brought the carriage to a stop. The three, who were still looking back and seeing the carriage slow down finally, then stopped altogether, turned their heads to look forward, having failed to notice the convoy, "Daji, why have we stopped? There are still people following us, we should hurry out of the inner city, and make them chase us around the outer city."

Daji bent forward toward the oncoming figures, calling out, "Old Madam, Madam!"

Bai Shan and Manbao then turned their heads to look, meeting Old Madam Liu’s gaze as she lifted the curtain to watch them.