Chapter 439: Need a Long-Term Plan
When the Orphanage initially purchased land, they chose cheap mountainous terrain.
This area had hills and a lake, offering relatively open views. Behind stood a mountain covered with trees.
At the foot of the mountain, several children stood gathered.
"Lin Dongdong, your cousin the Regent is too ruthless!" Chen San couldn't help exclaiming. "How could your father still serve someone like him?"
"No, my father doesn't," Lin Dongdong defended. "Didn't you see my father by the Empress Dowager's side? He's already pledged allegiance to her. If my father were still loyal to the Regent, the Emperor would never have allowed me to become First Attendant."
"Chen San, regardless of who Lin Dongdong's father serves, it has nothing to do with Lin Dongdong himself. Stop targeting him," Chu Hongyu said calmly. "Let's not discuss this further. Instead, focus on how we can infiltrate the Orphanage."
The children's attention immediately shifted to the task.
The Orphanage was surrounded on all sides—the outermost layer by Imperial Guards, and the inner layer by Chu Rui's men.
Only the mountain-facing side remained unguarded, making it their sole possible entry point.
But it was already dusk. Once night fell, various wild beasts would roam the mountain, posing significant danger.
Chen San suggested, "Let's have some Imperial Guards scout the path for us."
Chu Hongyu shook his head. "If the Imperial Guards discover us, my mother will find out and surely send us back to the palace."
"Then we have no choice but to climb the mountain," Lin Dongdong said, looking up. "Back in my village, I often went up the mountains at dusk. There's a type of herb that, when applied to the skin, keeps wild animals away. Let me search first to see if it grows here."
The children searched together and quickly found the herb. They chewed it and smeared the paste on their exposed skin.
"I'll lead the way," Lin Dongdong volunteered. "All of you, follow me."
Thus, the nine children ascended the back mountain. They had to climb up and then descend to reach the Orphanage's rear wall. The straight-line distance wasn't far, but the mountain was densely wooded with complex routes. It took them nearly an hour to finally arrive at the back wall. Fortunately, they encountered no wild beasts, and the children considered themselves extremely lucky.
"This wall is so high," one child remarked, gazing up at the tall enclosure. "How do we get in?"
Lin Dongdong rolled up his sleeves. "I know how to climb walls. Let me go up first and take a look."
He scaled the wall like a monkey, so swiftly the others barely saw how he did it.
"So many guards are stationed at the doorways..." Lin Dongdong whispered. "One, two, three, four... twenty-four!"
He jumped down lightly from the wall. "Just from what I saw, there are twenty-four guards posted at several doorways. The people from the Orphanage must be locked inside those rooms."
Chu Hongyu bit his lip. "With just the nine of us, we're no match for those guards."
He paced anxiously on the spot.
If they didn't rescue the Orphanage's people, his mother would remain under Chu Rui's control. Chu Rui might even survive to continue plaguing the Great Jin Dynasty.
What to do, what to do...
"I think I hear something..." Chen San said warily. "Do you hear that?"
Lin Dongdong pricked up his ears. "It's coming from the woods. Someone's following the path we just took. Are they friend or foe?"
"Whoever they are, let's hide first."
The nine children hurriedly concealed themselves in the underbrush.Soon, a group of figures appeared where they had just been standing.
Chu Hongyu ran out from the bushes with an incredulous expression: "Brother Shen, Brother Jiang, why are you here?"
The newcomers were indeed Meng Shen and Yun Zhenjiang, accompanied by about fifty to sixty guards.
Meng Shen explained: "I went to the Imperial Study to find His Majesty earlier but couldn't locate him. I guessed he must have slipped out of the palace to help the Empress Dowager, so I went to Zhenjiang for manpower and we came together."
Yun Zhenjiang frowned: "Your Majesty, you should discuss such matters with me first in the future. If anything were to happen, what would the Empress Dowager do?"
Chu Hongyu stuck out his tongue playfully: "I'm the Son of Heaven, protected by divine providence. Nothing will happen to me. As long as you don't tell my mother, she won't find out."
"You..." Yun Zhenjiang was at a loss for words, though now wasn't the time for this discussion.
He waved his hand, and the guards behind him immediately brought out several ladders, placing them against the wall.
He climbed up first to assess the situation, then reported: "Thirty-two people at the Orphanage entrance, twenty-four guarding the hostages, and about thirty more scattered around the Orphanage perimeter. So this is all the manpower Chu Rui has - no wonder he needed to capture so many innocent children as shields."
Chu Hongyu said coldly: "The shadow guards you brought, Brother Jiang, are more than enough to deal with these people inside."
"We need to plan carefully," Meng Shen frowned. "Once they become aware of our presence, they'll certainly kill the innocent children as a warning. Climbing over the wall here is too obvious..."
"I have an idea!" Chu Hongyu's eyes lit up. "My mother brought me to the Orphanage several times before, so I'm quite familiar with the surroundings. Do you see the lake in front of that row of houses?"
Chen San nodded: "We noticed it earlier."
"Under that lake, there's a hidden channel. When I was playing in the water with some older children that day, they took me through it, and we emerged from a mountain pond." Chu Hongyu looked up toward the mountains. "Yes, it's right around here. Come, I'll take you there."
Being naturally playful and free from pressure when he was still the heir to Prince Pingxi, he had wandered around wildly whenever Yun Chu went out to manage shops and manors. Indeed familiar with the area, he quickly led everyone to a small pond.
Night had fallen deeply, and the pond appeared pitch black, its bottom invisible, evoking an inexplicable sense of fear.
Yun Zhenjiang declared: "Some of you, escort His Majesty and the study companions back to the palace. Leave this place to me."
"No way," Chu Hongyu immediately objected. "I know this area best, so I must lead the way. What if you end up swimming to the wrong place?"
"I'm particularly good at swimming," Lin Dongdong raised his hand. "I'll protect His Majesty and go together."
The other study companions regretted immensely not having learned swimming properly before. Now they were going to be left behind, though they too wanted to achieve great merits alongside the Emperor.
Meng Shen rubbed his temples: "The night wind is strong. If you catch a chill after emerging from the lake, you'll surely fall ill. Don't suffer needlessly. Be good and return."
"I am the Emperor, and you all must obey my commands," Chu Hongyu straightened his back, standing with hands clasped behind him, exuding the authority of a ruler. "Now, those who can swim stand on the right side, those who cannot, on the left."Yun Zhenjiang had brought along the Yun family's direct-line shadow guards, all of whom were skilled in every form of martial arts and naturally knew how to swim.
"Excellent," Chu Hongyu nodded. "Two-thirds of you will follow me into the water. The remaining third will take positions at the rear wall to observe the situation. Be prepared to provide support at any moment if I am in danger."
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