AUBTN -Chapter 184 Finding the Exit

Once the gnawing hunger in their stomachs was satisfied, they had to face a stark reality.

“We’ve been trapped in this cliff for ten days now,” Lu Yan said, his gaze sweeping over the three by the fire. His voice was low, serious, and heavy.

“By all logic, the Jinyiwei and the Eastern Depot should have found this place long ago.”

The moment he spoke, the previously relaxed atmosphere froze.

Yu Qing’s smile stiffened. She looked at Lu Yan, then at Shen Jue. “Yeah… how is it possible? It’s been so long, and there’s no sign of them at all?”

The Jinyiwei and the Eastern Depot—what kind of forces were these?

They were the two most feared secret service agencies in the entire Wei dynasty, their spies spread throughout the realm.

Their commanders and overseers missing at the same time? That was earth-shattering news.

Even three days without finding them would have thrown the entire capital into chaos—ten days was unthinkable.

Shen Jue handed a roasted fish to Su Hewan while poking at the fire with a branch. The flickering flames reflected off his peach-blossom eyes, giving them a dark, unreadable look.

“There’s only one possibility,” he said slowly, his voice as cold as the bottom of a valley pond.

“Someone… has blocked all information and prevented our people from coming to search for us.”

The suggestion made both Yu Qing and Su Hewan draw a sharp breath.

“Who has the audacity and power to do that? To control both the Jinyiwei and the Eastern Depot at once?” Yu Qing voiced the question that everyone was thinking.

Lu Yan frowned.

He looked at Shen Jue, clearly pondering the same question.

“All of my men within the Jinyiwei are absolutely loyal. Without my personal order, even if someone tried to command them, they would only obey outwardly while secretly continuing the search,” Lu Yan analyzed in a low voice.

“The only thing that could make them completely inactive is one possibility—a decree from the throne.”

“The same goes for the Eastern Depot,” Shen Jue sneered.

“My men there only recognize our overseer. The only one in the entire empire who could make them hesitate like this… is the Nine-Five Supreme.”

The young emperor.

“How could it be…” Yu Qing murmured in disbelief.

“Why would the young emperor do this? One of you is his most trusted minister, the other his most relied-upon blade. Why would he harm you? Isn’t he on our side?”

Su Hewan, however, understood exactly why the young emperor was doing this.

It was nothing more than the classic fear of a subordinate growing too strong—“kill the rabbit after the dog has caught it.”

With the princess now fallen and the Empress Dowager about to lose power, it was the perfect moment for him to consolidate the throne and expand his authority.

Suppressing Lu Yan and Shen Jue just enough to teach them a lesson was entirely reasonable.

A mocking curve tugged at the corner of Shen Jue’s lips.

He looked at Yu Qing’s innocent expression and explained calmly, “Because we are powerful ministers.”

“Since ancient times, an emperor’s mind is all about balance of power. When the princess was still in charge, he needed us to counter her. Now that she’s gone, the two of us—these powerful ministers—have become his new threat.”

Indeed, they had all forgotten: Li Zhao was first and foremost an emperor, and only secondarily a boy.

Who could sleep peacefully at the bedside of a ruler?

With no external enemy, the strongest internal figures naturally become the new threat.

Lu Yan added, “Perhaps he doesn’t want our lives, but simply wants to use this opportunity to fully take control of the Jinyiwei and Eastern Depot. As long as we don’t return, he can rightfully place his own men there and consolidate absolute power.”

This reasoning made perfect sense, fitting entirely with the ways of an emperor.

“That ungrateful little brat!” Yu Qing ground her teeth in anger.

“If we had known he’d be like this, we shouldn’t have helped him in the first place!”

【How ungrateful! Lu Yan and Shen Jue did so much for him, and he just turns around and bites the hand that fed him!】

Listening to her outburst, Lu Yan’s gaze grew slightly complicated.

Shen Jue and Lu Yan exchanged a glance—everything was understood without a word.

The two of them had battled for half their lives, clearing countless obstacles for the young emperor, both openly and behind the scenes. Yet in the end, they might fall together at the hands of the very ruler they had helped elevate.

The irony was staggering.

Su Hewan’s heart sank further.

She thought even deeper.

“What if… it’s not the young emperor?” she whispered, putting forward an even more terrifying possibility.

“Have you considered… who else could forge an imperial edict, mobilize the city’s troops, and even temporarily suppress the resistance of the Jinyiwei and the Eastern Depot?”

Her question made both Lu Yan and Shen Jue’s pupils constrict at once.

Apart from the young emperor himself, there was indeed only one other person—or rather, one force—capable of such a feat.

The Empress Dowager.

With the fall of the Princess, the greatest beneficiary—after the young emperor—was none other than the Empress Dowager’s faction.

“If it really is the Empress Dowager…” Lu Yan’s voice grew extremely grave.

“Then her goal is likely far more than just controlling the Jinyiwei and the Eastern Depot. She intends to exploit the power vacuum in the capital, prop up a puppet, or even… replace him entirely!”

In an instant, the air in the valley turned icy.

Whatever the case, for the four of them—and for the entire Dajing realm—it meant that a massive, unstoppable wave was about to crash down.

“Whether it’s the young emperor or the Empress Dowager,” Shen Jue stood and brushed the dust from his clothes, his gaze sharp.

“We must get out of here as soon as possible. If we delay, the skies over the capital might change before our eyes.”

Lu Yan also rose. “Shen Jue is right. At first light tomorrow, we continue downstream. No matter what, we have to find an exit!”

Yu Qing lifted her head. “Yes! We’ll definitely get out!”

Su Hewan nodded in agreement.

“All right, everyone, rest early tonight,” Shen Jue said, letting go of his tension, his voice returning to its usual gentleness.

“Conserve your energy—we have a long way to go tomorrow.”

That night, each of the four carried their own worries, yet all shared the same belief.

The fire slowly dwindled, and the valley fell silent once more.

Travelling together proved far safer and more efficient than moving in pairs.

After a brief rest, the two strongest—Lu Yan and Shen Jue—took positions at the front and rear to lead the way and keep watch, while Su Hewan and Yu Qing walked in the middle. The four of them officially embarked on the journey to find an exit.

Their efficiency indeed increased greatly.

Three days passed. Following the stream, they unknowingly reached the deepest part of the valley.

The sight ahead made everyone stop in their tracks.

The stream that had guided them all along now poured into a deep pool, but at the end of the pool was not an open area—it was a massive, smooth stone wall.

The water seemed to vanish into a crack in the wall.

The only path was cut off.

“How can this be?” Yu Qing’s face was full of disappointment.

Lu Yan frowned, walked up to the stone wall, and tapped it. The dull sound confirmed that it was solid.

Shen Jue’s gaze, however, fell on the place where the water disappeared.

It was an opening at the base of the wall, hidden by water and vines.

“Water always flows downward. This can’t be the end,” he analyzed calmly.

“The water must have an exit, and this cave is very likely a secret passage leading out.”

His words reignited hope in everyone.