Chapter 378 - 233: We’ll Definitely Be Safe Here
After a moment, seeing that Fang Yue and the other man weren’t taking the hint, the prison guard grew bored.
He muttered a few curses and left.
Fang Yue watched the Prison Guard leave with a smug look, sneering inwardly.
’These prison guards think they hold the power of life and death, but they don’t realize they’re just small fries. They aren’t even pawns in this game.’
He turned to look at Zhao Qian, whose face had turned livid. He was clearly seething with rage.
He knew Zhao was a man of spirit and couldn’t stand such humiliation, so he patted him gently on the shoulder, signaling for him to be patient.
"Zhao, there’s no need to lower yourself to his level."
Fang Yue said calmly, "They’re smug now only because we’ve temporarily fallen into their hands. It won’t be too late to settle the score with them once we’re out of here."
Zhao Qian’s anger subsided slightly after hearing Fang Yue’s words.
He nodded, showing he understood.
The two of them sat back down in the corner of the cell, waiting in silence.
Several more hours passed quickly.
Fang Yue, who was resting with his eyes closed, suddenly opened them and stood up. "Zhao, come with me."
As his voice fell, Zhao Qian also came to his senses, but his face was full of confusion. "Fang, what are you talking about? Where are we going?"
Fang Yue didn’t answer and walked directly to the cell door, giving a light wave of his hand.
"Fang, you can’t open it..."
Zhao Qian had intended to warn Fang Yue. ’The cell was solid; you couldn’t open it without sufficient power. Worse, making a commotion would just attract the guards, and a brutal beating was sure to follow.’
But his words caught in his throat before he could finish.
Because he had witnessed an incredible sight.
He saw Fang Yue reach out and give the lock on the cell door a gentle twist.
With a soft CLICK, the sturdy iron lock, as if made of paper, was easily twisted apart by Fang Yue.
Zhao Qian’s eyes widened, his face a mask of disbelief.
He had thought this prison was impenetrable and impossible to escape. But now, it seemed that before Fang Yue, the prison was as fragile as paper, unable to withstand a single blow.
"Fang... Fang, what was that...?"
Zhao Qian swallowed hard and asked with difficulty.
"Let’s go, Zhao."
Fang Yue didn’t explain much, simply stating this calmly before leading the way out of the cell.
Seeing this, Zhao Qian quickly followed.
The two of them proceeded unimpeded and soon reached the main gate of the prison.
At that moment, two guards were on duty at the main gate.
When they saw Fang Yue and Zhao Qian approaching, they were stunned for a moment before quickly drawing their weapons.
"Halt! Who are you? How did you get out of your cells?"
one of the guards shouted.
Fang Yue didn’t answer, instead just waving his hand.
A wave of invisible Powerful Qi shot out instantly, striking both of the guards in the chest.
The two guards felt a sharp pain in their chests, then they were sent flying, landing heavily on the ground and falling unconscious.
「A moment later, in a courtyard near the east gate.」
"Stay here tonight. The people from the Government Office will never think to look for you here," Fang Yue said to Zhao Qian and the others.
Upon escaping, he had naturally rescued all the members of the caravan who had been imprisoned.
"Fang, words can’t express my gratitude! If you ever need anything from me, Zhao Qian, just say the word."
Zhao Qian looked at Fang Yue with gratitude, knowing they had only escaped with their lives tonight entirely because of his abilities.
Fang Yue waved his hand, indicating it was nothing.
He had stepped in to help partly because Zhao Qian and his men had indeed looked out for him, and partly because he couldn’t stand the actions of those corrupt officials.
"Zhao, what are your plans now?" Fang Yue asked.
Zhao Qian mulled it over for a moment before replying, "Our original plan was to sell our goods here and then purchase some local specialties from Yuanzhou Prefecture. But after what’s happened, we have no choice but to leave this place quickly and lie low for a while."
Fang Yue nodded in agreement with Zhao Qian’s idea.
"In that case, wait until dawn to leave. It should be safe by then. I won’t see you off," Fang Yue said.
He had no intention of traveling with Zhao Qian and the others, as he had his own business to attend to.
Zhao Qian also knew there was more to Fang Yue than met the eye, so he naturally didn’t dare to insist.
He cupped his fist and said, "Fang, take care!"
Fang Yue smiled slightly and turned to walk in another direction.
He knew that his fated connection with Zhao Qian and the others ended here.
Now, he had to go take care of his own business.
’I can’t just let myself be thrown in prison for nothing.’
’I have to find the County Magistrate here and settle this score.’
「Meanwhile...」
At that very moment, the prison staff discovered that Fang Yue and the others had escaped.
"Sir, this is bad! The prisoners have escaped!" a Prison Guard shouted, running frantically to the County Magistrate’s residence.
The County Magistrate was in his study sipping tea. When he heard the news, his expression changed drastically.
"What? Escaped? How is that possible!" He shot to his feet, his face a mask of disbelief.
"Yes, Sir. The locks on the cells were twisted apart, and all the prisoners have fled," the Prison Guard said in a trembling voice, not daring to lift his head.
Hearing this, the County Magistrate trembled with rage.
’He never would have imagined that these people would dare to escape. Don’t they know their place? Once caught, they should have obediently waited to be beheaded to become a mark on my record.’
’How could they just escape on their own!’
’This was a complete slap in the face! A sign of utter disrespect!’
’If word of this gets out tomorrow, what will become of my reputation!’
"Fools! A bunch of useless fools!" the County Magistrate roared furiously. "You can’t even watch a few prisoners! What good are you to me!"
The prison guards trembled in fear, not daring to make a sound.
’They knew this incident had blown up, and they would certainly be punished severely.’
"Sir, what do we do now?" one of the slightly bolder prison guards asked cautiously.
The County Magistrate took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.
’He knew that losing his temper wouldn’t solve anything now.’
’The most pressing matter was to capture those escapees as quickly as possible and save face.’
A vicious glint flashed in the County Magistrate’s eyes as he said coldly, "Immediately mobilize all constables and government constables for a city-wide manhunt!
You must bring all the escapees back before dawn! If anyone dares to resist or harbor them, kill them on sight!"
"Yes, Sir!" the Prison Guard acknowledged before quickly turning to relay the order.
The County Magistrate paced back and forth in his study, his expression grim.
’He had arrested this caravan to make an example of them—a warning to other disobedient caravans.’
’As the head of the county, he naturally knew how to squeeze the most profit out of these caravans.’
’If he botched this, and word got out, it would be much harder to do this again in the future.’
The night was as black as ink, but the streets of Yuanzhou City were brightly lit and bustling with noise.
Squads of constables and government constables, holding torches and weapons, patrolled the streets, searching for any trace of the escapees.
The citizens were awakened and hid in their homes, afraid to go out for fear of getting caught up in the chaos.
The entirety of Yuanzhou City was turned upside down, but there was still no sign of Fang Yue and the others.
The County Magistrate waited anxiously in his study for news. Every fifteen minutes felt like a year.
’If those people escaped, his reputation and authority would suffer a serious blow.’
’It would likely be much harder to extort profit from those caravans in the future.’
The night gradually receded, and the first light of dawn appeared on the horizon.
However, the result of the manhunt left the County Magistrate deeply disappointed.
An entire night of searching hadn’t turned up even a shadow of an escapee. It was as if they had vanished into thin air.
"How is that possible? How could they not be found?" the County Magistrate paced anxiously, his face a mixture of disbelief and fury.
’They escaped at night, and the city gates are closed, so they must still be in the city!’
’But a whole night of searching yielded no results.’
’He couldn’t accept this result. It was a complete slap in the face.’
"Sir, could the escapees be hiding back in their original courtyard?" a constable guessed cautiously.
Hearing this, the County Magistrate stopped abruptly and looked at the constable.
"Idiot! Who would be that stupid? Impossible! Do you take these crafty merchants for fools? They were arrested there, so how could they possibly hide there again!
Someone in the city must have helped them, otherwise how could we not find any trace of them!" the County Magistrate roared.
The constable flinched in fear and didn’t dare say another word.
’He also knew his idea was a bit far-fetched, but he truly couldn’t think of anywhere else the escapees could have gone.’
"Keep searching! Even if you have to tear the city apart, you will find those escapees for me!"