Jin Dou nodded, and openly cupped his fists toward Qin Yao and said, "My escort has arrived, there’s no need to trouble Miss Qin and Mr. Liu any further."

"However, since Miss Qin doesn’t have to escort me to Kaiyang County’s government office, I will reduce the hiring fee by half, and pay you one hundred taels."

Upon hearing this, Qin Yao didn’t show much reaction, but Liu Ji was already furious.

Yet before he could explode, Qin Yao waved her hand to suppress his anger.

She glanced at Song Zhang, whose expression was slightly surprised; obviously, he didn’t expect to encounter her here.

Nodding slightly at him, Qin Yao turned her gaze back to Jin Dou, who had taken two silver notes out from the inner layer of his shoe.

One note was for one hundred taels, the other was for fifty taels, totaling one hundred and fifty taels.

A hundred taels for escort fee, thirty taels for burial fee; the extra twenty taels were for gratitude for their considerate care over the past three days.

Jin Dou placed the silver notes in the carriage and immediately jumped off the horse carriage, mounting a short horse brought by Song Zhang and the others.

"The road through the martial world is long, and our paths may never cross again!" He cupped his fists towards the carriage and spurred the horse to flee.

Song Zhang glanced at Qin Yao and her husband; Qin Yao’s lack of greeting indicated she did not wish to inquire further. Naturally, he would not approach with unnecessary words to avoid creating trouble for both sides.

Immediately, he spurred the horse, leading the plainclothes officials brought from the government office to follow the Imperial Censor sent by the court. The group soon disappeared into the woods, leaving only the sound of galloping hooves.

At this point, Liu Ji could no longer hold back. Standing on the shaft of the carriage, he angrily shouted, "Jin Dou, you shameless scoundrel!"

When it comes to human nature, Liu Ji sometimes sees through it exceptionally well.

It’s certainly no coincidence; Jin Dou must have secretly sent a message to Song Zhang’s side just to reduce the escort fee.

Losing eighty taels of silver, although the silver might not necessarily have ended up in his hands, the more Liu Ji thought about it, the angrier he became, feeling heartache at the loss.

Right now, he didn’t care whether it was the Imperial Censor or not; he urged Song Yu to drive the carriage to catch up, intending to curse that despicable old thief thoroughly.

Sitting inside the carriage with the silver note, Qin Yao did not stop Liu Ji from chasing and cursing, showing her attitude clearly.

However, the speed of the carriage was indeed much slower; as they cursed, the group ahead had already left them far behind.

Even their curses couldn’t be heard by the other side anymore, and only then did Liu Ji reluctantly stop.

Qin Yao handed Liu Ji a water bottle, sternly reminding him without expression: "A loss is a lesson learned; next time when drafting the contract, remember to add a clause: If the commissioning party unilaterally ends the cooperation for any reason, they must pay the full amount to the commissioned party!"

Liu Ji drank half a bottle of water in big gulps and wiped the spilt water from the corner of his mouth, nodding heavily, indicating that he would never forget this lesson!

Meanwhile, on Song Zhang’s side, listening to the increasingly faint curses behind, he felt a great sense of relief.

He lifted his gaze to the Imperial Censor, riding and sweating profusely ahead, helplessly sighed: "My lord, why did you choose to provoke this couple..."

The Imperial Censor dared not speak, too busy escaping.

As for Liu Ji’s continual cursing, he could only say that this outcome was beyond anyone’s imagination!

Song Zhang noticed the person ahead wasn’t reacting, sensing something amiss.

The Imperial Censor, having acquired experts like Qin Yao as guards, still sent a secret message for Song Zhang to accompany this short journey?

What could he say? It seemed like an unnecessary action.

But was it truly unnecessary?

Song Zhang furrowed his brow and, seeing the Imperial Censor’s horse speeding away, suddenly felt a concern.

He instinctively glanced back at the road behind, the small forest left far behind. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Logically, even moving slowly, the carriage should have exited the small forest by now.

Yet there was no sign of it emerging as expected.

Not knowing what thoughts ran through his mind, Song Zhang felt a sudden tension, and spurred his horse to speed up, aligning with the fast-moving Imperial Censor, cautiously asked:

"My lord, isn’t this approach somewhat risky? If... I mean, if the enemy goes all out, those three might face certain death."

Stepping back, even if those three survive, this Imperial Censor may have to face the wild revenge of the Evil Ghost Lady from Kaiyang County, a fate worse than death!

Without decreasing his pace or turning back, Jin Dou replied coldly, "The target is me; knowing I am no longer on the carriage, they will disperse without taking their lives."

Song Zhang suspiciously questioned, "Are you so certain, my lord?"

Rather than answering directly, Jin Dou asked in return, "Do you intend to head back to warn them now?"

"The court’s matters are more crucial than three civilians; surely, Mr. Song is well aware!"

Song Zhang tightened his grip on the reins, gave a sharp "Hyah!" and urged his subordinates to speed up.

If, as the Imperial Censor stated, the enemy cannot find their target, they’ll definitely pursue with full force.

Regarding Qin Yao, Song Zhang’s intuition told him casual assassins could not possibly claim her life.

Song Zhang thought optimistically.

At this moment, having been wronged by their employer, Qin Yao surveyed the neatly aligned masked assassins before her, regretting why she hadn’t removed Jin Dou’s head earlier to present to his foes for a substantial bounty!

Standing next to the carriage shaft, Song Yu and Liu Ji scanned the assassins, who surrounded them completely, swallowing hard.

What is meant by information gap?

This is the epitome.

Jin Dou was no longer on their carriage, yet his enemies were unaware.

Thus they logically stopped the carriage.

Moreover, they took the news deliberately leaked by Qin Yao seriously; knowing she was formidable in Kaiyang County, they dispatched all their forces, leaving no survivors.

"Miss, do we still have a chance to survive?" Liu Ji trembled as he asked softly.

Song Yu could no longer speak, reflecting on his past, never imagining he might die being hacked to pieces.

At this moment, as his life flashed before his eyes, he resolved to sacrifice himself protecting the only person with possible survival — his lady.

If the lady lived, his wife and children could live.

Given his understanding of the lady, if he died, she would surely take good care of his family left behind.

As for the master... let’s leave it to fate.

As an ordinary subordinate, in such a critical life-and-death moment, Song Yu could only think of how to maximize the benefits of sacrificing his life.

Thus, he lowered his head, speaking sincerely to Qin Yao, "My lady, I am willing to die protecting you as you escape. Please seize any opportunity without considering me and delay the chance."

Time is pressing; Song Yu’s speech was rapid, yet Qin Yao could hear every word clearly.

She fully understood his choice; however, she would never let her subordinates face such an end!