Chapter 383 - Smart Like Lili
Sheng Li woke in the late afternoon. Three days' journey tired his body. He was glad that he did not bring Ying Lili to this journey else she might have fallen sick. Drinking the water, he went to the restroom to freshen himself. After an hour, he came out of the washroom, wearing a silk bathrobe.
He saw the clean clothes on the bed and changed into them. He kept his disguise since he did not want to know many people about him. Wang Hao came there and bowed.
"Did his highness have a good sleep?" Behind him, two maidservants came with trays in their hands.
"Hmm... What about you?" Sheng Li questioned him.
"The tiredness has gone after a good sleep," replied Wang Hao. Hu Jingguo also came there and quickly sat around the table.
"Let's eat. I am starving." He pulled out a chair and sat on it. Sheng Li and Wang Hao also took their respective seats. Hu Jingguo thanked the maidservants for the food, who tasted it first before telling them to continue. Hu Jingguo started to eat while Sheng Li and Wang Hao amusingly peered at him.
Sheng Li chuckled seeing the way Hu Jingguo ate. He recalled even Ying Lili sometimes ate that way- when she would be starving. Sheng Li picked the tofu from a plate using the chopstick and put it on the plate in front of Hu Jingguo. Hu Jingguo and Wang Hao astonishingly peered at Sheng Li.
"You are hungry so…" Sheng Li pulled his hand back and started eating from his own plate.
A broad grin appeared on Hu Jingguo's face. "You acted like a big brother who cares for this younger one," Hu Jingguo stated. Sheng Li choked the food and started coughing. Wang Hao quickly handed the glass of water to him, who drank it and was relieved.
"It was only a compliment. I did not know you would choke," Hu Jingguo muttered and continued to eat.
"Who cares for you? Lili will be angry if I do not keep her friend healthy," Sheng Li picked the tofu and ate it. Hu Jingguo laughed wryly.
"Why do you lie so much?" Sheng Li skeptically looked at him while Wang Hao enjoyed watching them.
"I said the truth," Sheng Li defended himself.
"It seemed otherwise to me," Hu Jingguo stated. Sheng Li scowled at him for a few seconds but did not give any response. Instead, he focused on his meals. Once they finished their lunch, they thought of making a plan.
Wang Hao put a paper on the table. He dipped the brush in the ink which Hu Jingguo had prepared. Wang Hao first made the map on paper. Hu Jingguo was impressed to see the drawing of Wang Hao. "General Wang should have taught Hushu about the art," Hu Jingguo remarked.
Wang Hao laughed and then suppressed it, thinking the Crown Prince would feel bad. "Lili is teaching me. I would love to learn from her rather than any other person," Sheng Li affirmed and smiled. Hu Jingguo hit Sheng Li's arm with his. "You are blushing, Hushu. Do you really learn from her or just stare at her? Be truthful," Hu Jingguo sternly stated.
Wang Hao smiled the way Hu Jingguo was asking questions about the Crown Prince's personal life.
"Yes," Sheng Li replied. "What can I do? Wang Hao knows," Sheng Li glanced at him, who stopped drawing.
"What do I know, your highness?" Wang Hao muttered.
"I do not like to draw. I am not patient enough to draw. I, most of the time skipped those classes. When Lili teaches me, I end up staring at her," Sheng Li affirmed and smiled.
"You love her that's why. When Lili taught me in the initial years, she used to scold me a lot for not being able to draw well. Haha, come to think of it in the future, your kids are going to be smart like Lili," Hu Jingguo stated. "If you want, I can teach your kids about medicine," Hu Jingguo offered Sheng Li.
"But do not scold my kids," Sheng Li asserted.
"I do not dare to," Hu Jingguo replied.
"You can if they will be interested," Sheng Li permitted him. "Ahh, we should focus here. This is the priority," Sheng Li immediately looked at the half-completed map. Wang Hao resumed the work and in thirty minutes, the map was ready.
"It looks real. The spy only narrated you and you drew an exact copy," Sheng Li delightedly said and praised Wang Hao.
"The base camp is underground, not letting people know about it. Your highness, there are only two routes for the exit, and for entry, there is only one route. This one" Wang Hao pointed at the huge cave which was the entry point. "Another exit point lies at the end of this underground base camp, which is used by Tan Gengxin and is also a short route for the province's southern border from where one can reach in a day in Luoyang," Wang Hao explained to Sheng Li.
"Hmm. He has devised everything carefully. The day Weng Wei's true face was known to the world, Tan Gengxin fled away," Sheng Li pronounced.
"Hushu, don't you think it might be a trap?" Hu Jingguo intervened.
Sheng Li and Wang Hao gazed at him when he continued, "Weng Wei never wanted your good. What if she wanted you to throw yourself in a lion's den and it all was a part of the plan? See, she did all this for her son. We can say it was for her own greed but above her greed, she wanted to see her son on the throne. It can be risky."
"I know. I thought that way also. I threatened Weng Wei that I would ask for the banishment of Brother Jian from our father. Even she knew that I would do that if he would not tell me. She did not tell me about Gengxin until her end approached. And, she asked me something in return before telling me about Tan Gengxin," Sheng Li asserted.
"What did she tell you, your highness?"
"The safety of Brother Jian. Since Brother Jian betrayed his own mother, she was terrified that he would get killed anytime. So, I promised her son's safety and she knew that I would never get back from my words," Sheng Li replied.
"I will go there as a commoner," Hu Jingguo affirmed.
"No. You will not! Tan Gengxin was the one who abducted you the other day. He knows about you," Sheng Li revealed a shocking truth to him.
"Pardon me?" "He knows me?" Hu Jingguo could not believe what he had just heard.
"Brother Jian pressured his mother that day to know about your location. That's when Tan Gengxin's trust broke on her and he decided to play this way," Sheng Li affirmed.
Shivers ran down Hu Jingguo's spine as he recalled that day. It was a traumatic experience for him," stated Hu Jingguo, and placed his hand on his chest.
"Wang Hao, let's go there tonight. We need to observe what is going on in their base camp. The rest of the planning will be done after that," Sheng Li proclaimed. Wang Hao agreed with him and looked at the map again.
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