Because Mei Yanran's group was so close to the other characters, it wasn't convenient for her to talk. She could only send helpless looks to Xiao Xue and Chen Xiao, both of whom echoed her sentiments with a mixture of bewilderment and resignation. These were original NPCs that she'd customized from the Goddess of Fates for this world. Though they didn't hold the knowledge of the plot or its main characters like their mistress, Mei Yanran had caught them up on pieces here and there, which was why they hadn't expected the scene to play out so unexpectedly, either. 

Mei Yanran narrowed her eyes as the beggar boy left, leaving the group of three main characters, one cannon fodder, and two servant girls to dawdle on the streets. They made a perfect love line, with Chu Yeguang staring at Li Siyan staring at Chu Yexuan staring at Wei Wanru, who was quietly checking her basket.

If I recall, the crown prince was interested in Li Siyan once. They almost formed an alliance against the male and female lead.

Fortunately, fate had intervened and eliminated the crown prince before that could happen. Or rather---his future wife, the princess of the western kingdom, had killed him in a fit of jealous rage, then went after each and every one of his supposed lovers. Li Siyan had narrowly escaped death herself by framing the female lead to take the blame in her place. Meanwhile, the death caused political unrest in the country and its bordering nations before devolving into all-out war, forcing the male and female lead to flee for their lives. Countless lives had been lost simply because of Chu Yeguang's philandering ways. Mei Yanran looked at the distracted expression of the crown prince and gave a mental snort.

Never accept overtures from a playboy. You'll only end up hurting yourself!

Meanwhile, Chu Yeguang was staring gloomily at Li Siyan's chest. After the girl had gotten up, she'd wrapped her dark purple cloak around herself, complete with hood. The only visible part of her clothing inside was the pale yellow fabric peeking out from her chest and neck. Though the design and cut were different, it made him instantly recall Mei Yanran's dance dress at the Snow Festival. He hadn't thought much of such bland hues before, but now they seemed warm and soft. Naturally, thoughts of Mei Yanran soon made him remember how he'd lost sight of her after the brothel window, and his face fell again. 

Am I raising rice buckets for guards? They can't even track down a single girl and her maidservant, so worthless!

At this moment, the three guards in question landed in front of the trio with a respectful bow. Their leader cast a cursory glance at Wei Wanru and Li Siyan before proceeding to make a report.

"Your Highness, we were unable to locate the targets."

Wei Wanru's eyes flickered with curiosity, but she remained silent. Li Siyan had stayed in the palace for awhile, so she was more bold in the presence of the princes. Out loud she asked, "Your Highness was looking for someone?"

Irritation flashed in Chu Yeguang's eyes as he swept an eye over his guards. "It's nothing important." Immediately after that, he paused in thought, then added, "I left an item behind with a certain person and was trying to track that person down."

Both Mei Yanran and her servants tensed, the former because Xiao Xue was tugging on her sleeve, the latter because they recognized the qi signatures from those guards. It was the crown prince who'd sent men to tail them! Mei Yanran took a little longer to connect the dots, but as Xiao Xue's meaningful eyes darted between her and Chu Yeguang, she finally figured things out. She flushed immediately at the implications. First sending his guards after her, then asking her for his token back when she was going to return it discreetly?

Don't drag me into this, Chu Yeguang. The last thing I want is to get involved with you.

In her agitation, she shifted backwards and bumped against a pile of empty baskets, causing the whole stack to sway slightly and scatter dust on their heads. That would've been fine, but the next thing Mei Yanran knew, she sneezed!

The short, sharp noise instantly caught the attention of the imperial guards, who turned as one to look their way. Before, Chen Xiao had used the shadow arts to completely suppress their presences, but something so obvious was impossible to ignore. He and Xiao Xue exchanged glances in a fraction of a second before coming to the same decision. And then---they bolted!

One of the guards was moving to investigate the abandoned stall by the road when a sharp gust of wind buffeted past his face. He instinctively blinked before dashing forward to inspect the stall. But aside from a few old baskets and abandoned boxes, there was nothing. Even the traces of dirt and snow on the ground looked undisturbed. Meanwhile, the other two guards and Chu Yexuan had all taken up defensive positions around the crown prince.

"What is it, what's the matter?" Chu Yeguang asked, somewhat impatient.

Chu Yexuan frowned as he narrowed his eyes. "It's possible we were being watched."

"What?!" Chu Yeguang's pupils widened. "Did you sense something?" He knew that his brother's martial arts skills were exceptional.

"I'm not sure," Chu Yexuan furrowed his brows, before whipping his head to the left. "But judging from the wind, the should've gone that way." 

In Chu Yeguang's mind, 'should've' for Shuyang was as good as 'definitely.' He glanced at the two guards flanking him, and they immediately gave chase.

On the roofs to the left, Chen Xiao carried Mei Yanran in his arms as he ran while Xiao Chen followed with her hand on the hem of his robes.

"Head Guard Chen, we should split up," Xiao Xue said quietly. "I'll lead those two away."

"Good idea," Chen Xiao replied. The shadow arts made him faster, but it still took effort to transfer the effects between two people while carrying a third at the same time.

"Be careful!" Mei Yanran warned. She didn't try to dissuade her maid because she had confidence in Xiao Xue's skills. Xiao Xue merely nodded before releasing Chen Xiao's robes and darting to the side. Immediately, the speed of the leftover duo increased, and Mei Yanran clung to Chen Xiao's shirt for dear life as they sped through the medical district.

The two imperial guards chasing after the mysterious 'wind' suddenly felt a small qi signature pulse into existence at the front and right of them and instantly zeroed in on the target. Xiao Xue didn't hesitate to lead them straight into the medical district's most bustling, busiest streets. Now was the time right after lunch when the sun was warmest, so there was a sizable crowd. She landed unobtrusively in an alley before successfully slipping into the throng.

Meanwhile, Chu Yeguang and Mei Yanran were heading north to put distance between them and the district. 

"Young miss, shall we go back to the estate now?" Chen Xiao's voice was calm despite the fact that they were travelling at ridiculous speeds.

Mei Yanran was a bit disappointed that she'd missed the finale to the Wei-Li faceoff. It felt like the female lead and her rival had drawn a tie instead of besting each other soundly. She now shook her head and said, "No, not yet. As long as we've lost their tail, I'd like to take an extra stroll." Even though she loved dancing, confining herself to her studio for days on end could drive her mad!

Chen Xiao didn't reply, just nodded before finding an obscure alleyway to set themselves down. Mei Yanran took some time to get her bearings before expelling a long breath. What bad luck, being spotted and chased twice by the crown prince's men! When had she caught his interest? She mentally calculated and realized that his princess consort to be wouldn't be due to come for another two months. If only time could pass faster!

Chen Xiao waited for Mei Yanran to catch her breath before following her out of the alley. They were now completely out of the medical district and closer to the center of the city and its main market streets. In order to avoid attention, Chen Xiao had chosen to land near the residential districts, which meant that they had a little walk to go before reaching the markets. 

However, neither of them expected a carriage to come racing down the road as soon as Mei Yanran stepped out of the alley! Chen Xiao quickly grabbed his master and pulled her backwards at the same time the carriage pulled to a stop. It was an understated, but luxurious ride, drawn by two horses and a young, alert-looking driver. He swept his gaze over Mei Yanran and Chen Xiao, neither haughty nor humble as he inclined his head with a brief apology.

"Who's there?" a man's voice sounded from inside.

"It's a young lady and her guard, master," the driver said simply, before adding. "They're unhurt."

"Carry on," the voice replied, completely uninterested. Both Mei Yanran and Chen Xiao thought that was the end of that, but as the driver raised his whip, a flying dagger came suddenly hurtling at them from within the carriage!

Chen Xiao reacted fast, drawing his sword to deflect the weapon before pulling Mei Yanran protectively behind him.

Before the man inside the carriage could speak, an eerie laugh filled the air. The next thing they knew, a figure dressed in dark robes burst out of the carriage doors with a slew of flying daggers aimed straight at Chen Xiao! Both mistress and servant were greatly alarmed, and the latter knocked away the projectiles before bringing them into the open. While that made them more exposed, it was better than trying to deflect all the weapons in the space of a narrow alley.

"Who are you and what do you want?!" Chen Xiao demanded. 

The figure before them now had backflipped to stand on the roof of the carriage, his features obscured by a large hood. Despite this, his guttural laugh and wrinkled hands hinted him to be a very old man. Mei Yanran narrowed her eyes at the sight, finding him somewhat familiar, when---

"Your Excellency, this is still the capital city." 

The voice from the carriage spoke up again, earning a snort from the hooded man. It was the third time Mei Yanran had heard him today, and she found the tone cold, but unmistakably smooth. There was a sharp undercurrent of impatience in the syllables that slightly marred the beauty of its pitch, but she could tell the speaker was a refined and self-possessed man. 

She'd also heard him before, if only briefly, at the Snow Festival banquet.

"....Lord Ling?"

There was a palpable silence in the air. The next minute, a hand lifted the window curtains as a pair of sharp eyes peered out at the streets. The rest of Ling Fengxiao's expression was completely flat.

"Mei Yanran, what are you doing here?"

-ooo-

This is the end of the currently published chapters on Wattpad. This story is currently on HIATUS while the author figures out how to write a convincing court intrigue plot!