Saving System: Calm Down, My Fleeing Host!

Chapter 241: Happy Level-Up

After confirming there was no other anomaly, he exited the Empress’s sarcophagus, taking with him the pot lid Cheng Xiaoxiao had used to cover the sarcophagus’s broken edge.

Gu Ming looked at the pot lid in his hand repeatedly, puzzled. According to the Guard Captain, the tomb robber had kindly used the pot lid to block the hole, preventing any soil from scattering inside the sarcophagus.

The most astounding thing was that the Empress had been opened up, and the child inside was missing.

As Gu Ming pondered, his eyes grew brighter. Could it be that the child was still alive when the Empress was buried? Could the Little Crown Prince have been rescued? The more he thought about it, the more plausible it seemed.

He joyfully shared his conjecture with several colleagues, and they also believed this was highly likely.

Firstly, the tomb robber didn’t steal any burial items or disturb the corpse; they only took the child. Before leaving, they kindly covered the sarcophagus wall to prevent soil from seeping in, showing great respect for the deceased. The purpose seems singular: to take the child. Could there be another force aiding the Empress?

If the child was dead, there would be no need for a post-mortem delivery. The greatest possibility is that the child is still alive, though it sounds utterly absurd and bizarre.

Yet, all of them had this intuition: the Little Crown Prince must still be alive.

Instantly, they found a new goal to strive for. With the Little Crown Prince, there is endless hope and possibility. If they can find the Little Crown Prince, they can overthrow Prince Yong and support the Crown Prince’s ascension.

If Cheng Xiaoxiao were here, she would surely ridicule them: How do you know the baby is definitely the Crown Prince? What if it’s a Princess?

This 50% chance had been collectively dismissed by them. No one wanted to entertain that thought; they all believed it was the Little Crown Prince, not accepting any dissent.

As if this belief alone gave them the motivation and hope to fight.

With the spark of succession, their guilt and remorse for failing to save the Emperor and Empress would lessen.

At this moment, Gu Ming calmly analyzed, "To stealthily steal the child from the Imperial Mausoleum, the person’s skills must be extraordinary."

"Teacher, do you think there’s anyone else in the court, besides us, who would go all out to aid the Emperor?" Liu Yuanqing couldn’t fathom who had such great abilities to manage this deed.

They knew how much planning was required for them to access the Imperial Mausoleum and carry out their actions.

Zeng Quan, who hadn’t spoken yet, thoughtfully remarked, "Perhaps the person didn’t have great power, unable to save the Emperor and Empress, but the only thought was to preserve the Emperor’s only bloodline."

"That indeed is quite remarkable."

At the time, the sudden change happened too quickly, catching them off guard. With the backbone Gu Ming absent, by the time they found the opportunity to enter the palace, everything was already too late.

Thinking of this, Yang Zihuan could only grit his teeth angrily, unable to calm his mood for a long time.

Zeng Quan patted his friend’s shoulder, "It’s not solely your fault; we all share the responsibility."

Gu Ming also clenched his fist tightly. Now, their only atonement was to find the Little Crown Prince.

"We must find the Little Crown Prince, regardless of whether the other party is friend or foe."

Everyone nodded repeatedly; it was imperative.

Meanwhile, Cheng Xiaoxiao was enjoying the maternal-like rocking, feeling drowsy as she reached her destination, finding this time travel too easy.

Really wanted to mute the excitedly chattering system; what’s so exciting about leveling up five levels?

Why be so excited?

So what if acquiring objects can now extend to 20 meters, scanning range to 4000 meters?

What’s there to be proud of?

Oh! 77, still too young, can’t hold your excitement. Look how calm I am.

Glancing around, the location indeed was the hillside where she initiated the teleportation.

At this moment, the sky was already lightening; the morning dew in the woods exceptionally chilly.

She took out a modified down jacket and put it on, immediately feeling warmer; as expected, anything from the system was top-notch.

She wrapped the little one tightly and carried him on her back.

The system scanned, and her team was already out of scanning range. It seemed she had to catch up to the main group quickly.

Initially thought this mission would take several days to complete, unexpectedly, she returned the next day so rapidly.

Truly, plans can’t keep up with changes.

An hour later, she turned onto the main road as the little one moved slightly, seemingly waking up. She untied the belt, revealing a small person with eyes and nose, big round black eyes staring at her without blinking, adorably.

Seeing he wasn’t crying or fussing, Cheng Xiaoxiao carried her and walked on, humming nursery rhymes softly along the way.

At this time, the main road still had sparse crowds of refugees.

And the people now were worse off than yesterday, carrying fewer belongings, most with only a simple bundle, moving hurriedly, with some injuries on their bodies and faces.

Cheng Xiaoxiao was surprised. She had left for just one night; was there a new situation again?

She saw a familiar-looking woman, smiled, and approached to inquire, "Excuse me, Auntie, how is the situation in Dingzhou?"

The woman, seeing Cheng Xiaoxiao as a young girl holding a child, felt a bit surprised, thinking she might be unmarried and pregnant. But seeing Cheng Xiaoxiao’s young age, that couldn’t be...

Cheng Xiaoxiao noticed the woman’s changing expression and knew she misunderstood, so she explained, "This is my sister-in-law’s child. I got separated from my sister-in-law’s family."

Realizing this, the woman lowered her guard and kindly explained.

Cheng Xiaoxiao repeatedly thanked the woman for her elucidation.

Turns out, Dingzhou was indeed taken over by King Yu; Dingzhou’s Prefect, Ke Zhendong, had died in battle last night, and now the entire Dingzhou was controlled by King Yu. Those who hadn’t left suffered greatly.

All possessions looted, any resistance met with severe beatings, and girls were worse off, directly violated by those animals.

Upon hearing this, Cheng Xiaoxiao felt a wave of frustration; why were there always such beasts wherever she went?

Just wanted to ask more, but the man walking ahead scolded the woman, "Hurry up, why say so much to a stranger? Fleeing is the priority."

The woman agreed, apologetically smiled at Cheng Xiaoxiao, and hurried to catch up with the man.

Given the situation, Cheng Xiaoxiao could only quicken her pace, unsure whether King Yu would pursue the fleeing civilians; fleeing was paramount.

She walked from early dawn until noon; even with her enhanced physique, she was somewhat exhausted.

At this moment, the sky remained overcast; there was no sun today, and even at midday, the temperature was still low. The cold wind blew past, chilling her face; the biting cold came abruptly.

She took a side path, walked several hundred meters, reached a boulder, sat down, and laid down the little one who fell asleep again. She changed his diaper, mixed 30 milliliters of milk powder, and the little one, seemingly starving, smelled it and whimpered, starting to cry.

Clearly, he was hungry for milk.

"You little one, such a keen nose, knowing it’s your food just from the smell!"

Cheng Xiaoxiao gently teased the little one, placing the milk teat at the correct temperature into his mouth. The little one immediately started sucking happily.

Several sinister gazes continued following Cheng Xiaoxiao’s figure.