Ongoing Translation
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ITVCFITB CHAPTER 108
Chapter 108 – Slipped Away
The system’s tool was already stretched to its absolute limit: hiding several thousand men for three days, erasing tracks automatically so not even Great Xia’s scouts could follow.
The function was so powerful Shen Mingyun briefly fantasized about keeping it for himself. But the system had him on a leash, if he ever tried, it would clamp down. He’d never been punished yet, and he had no desire to start. Too humiliating.
Three days passed in a blink.
During those days, his rapport with Prince Two eased slightly. Beauty softens anger: confronted with that face, Shen found it harder to stay furious. He even thought: If I were the Fourth Prince, facing this man every day… I’d be tempted too.
Tempted or not, the system’s mission hovered like a sword overhead. The task wouldn’t end until the Fourth ascended the throne. If he failed, Shen Mingyun would vanish from this world. No time for romantic detours.
When the tool’s countdown ticked near zero, Shen dragged Prince Two over maps to pick a new hiding place. Just as they marked it…
A trusted aide burst in, pale. “Not good! We’re surrounded!”
“What?” Shen blurted.
Prince Two’s blood drained. “How many?”
“Everywhere, My Lord. The mountains are full of men. More than us.”
They staggered out.
And there it was: ridges bristling with archers, like sudden blossoms of yellow wildflowers across the hillsides. A net of trained soldiers, not bandits.
High above, Chen Rong stood calm, watching. He’d let the prey gather and now gave the order: “Loose!”
Arrows screamed down.
Prince Two’s guards threw themselves in front. Shen, who had only ever seen battles on TV, froze useless. His legs wobbled.
Prince Two yanked him behind a rock. “Think! We’re trapped! Without a breakout, we die here!”
Shen’s mind blanked.
Prince Two roared: “Shen Mingyun!”
The shout jolted him back. Hands shaking, he fished out a system item: an invisibility cloak. Enough for two. Not the troops.
“It can only cover us,” he whispered.
Prince Two didn’t hesitate. “Good. Cover me.” The soldiers could buy them the time.
When the volleys lulled, Shen wrapped the cloaks around them both. For one hour, they were untouchable. They slipped from the chaos, dragging three horses.
Behind them, the camp collapsed. With no commander and no hope, Prince Two’s elites flailed like headless flies. By dusk, most were dead, scattered, or captured, thousands swallowed whole.
The “general” was gone.
Chen Rong surveyed the field. “Did you catch their leader?”
“No, sir. The Prince of Zhou escaped.”
“Of course.” His eyes narrowed. That strange consort again.
Pursue? Pointless. If an army couldn’t net them, lone riders wouldn’t. Better to send word to Li Mingjin, warn him that if Shen Mingyun returned, Zhou’s Second Prince would be right beside him. Once inside the capital, the net would close.
Still, the harvest was rich. Zhou’s elite force: wiped out.
That afternoon, Mingjin and Luo Shuyu got Chen Rong’s message.
With the baby napping, Mingjin had tugged Shuyu into the study for some long-missed intimacy. Between kisses and kneading his waist, Mingjin read the report aloud: “Prince Two and Shen Mingyun slipped through.”
“Run, but they can’t hide forever,” Shuyu said. “Shen will crawl back to the capital. Zhou’s foreign support is gone. That makes our next steps far easier.”
“Still, caution. My brother’s methods are crooked; he may aim for you and the child. I’ll double our guards.”
“I’ll stay home as much as I can. But Shen Mingyun… he’s hard to predict.”
Mingjin frowned. “How they survived that encirclement, what trick did they use?”
Luo’s gaze sharpened. “The system.”
Mingjin shook his head. “Even if suspicions rise, they’ll blame Father’s garrison, not me.”
“A pity we didn’t catch Shen Mingyun,” Shuyu murmured. The sly one isn’t him, it’s the thing in his head.
For now, step by step.
Meanwhile, fleeing west instead of north, Prince Two and Shen Mingyun lost the road to the capital entirely. By nightfall they huddled in a leaking temple as torrential rain hammered the roof.
When it rains, it pours.
Shen Mingyun raised his middle finger to the sky and swore. “F***, f***, f***, f***!”
Prince Two: “…”
Author’s Note
A bit stuck today so this update’s shorter.
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