Taking her into his tent, he incurred the wrath of a powerful and mad minister, from which he could

"The Xie family head saved your life. If it weren't for this favor, you wouldn't have taken the Xie family in when they were in trouble, and you wouldn't have secretly used your connections to take care of them in every way."

"He is the only son of the Xie family. If you kill him, you will be branded as ungrateful and be pointed at by the world for the rest of your life."

Fan Siyuan guessed one thing correctly: Zong Xian's decision not to kill Xie Huaiyu was indeed due to the Xie family head's reasons.

However, he was not afraid of being criticized by the world and dared not kill Xie Huaiyu. After all, with his power, it would be too easy for him to make someone die quietly.

He did have murderous intent that day, but the thought that if Xie Huaiyu died, that young woman would remember him for the rest of her life was enough to make him realize his mistake.

The thought made him uneasy, which is why he spared Xie Huaiyu's life.

There was no need to explain these thoughts to Fan Siyuan.

...

The journey from Qingzhou to the capital is about 300 li (approximately 150 kilometers), and even traveling on the official road would take three days and two nights.

However, the journey was destined to be fraught with unrest. On the very first day, they encountered several assassination attempts, both large and small, but these were quickly dealt with by their well-trained guards.

After the incident, Zong Xian arranged for Ji Mingyi to travel with him in his own car.

"You'll be safer with me," Zong Xian said.

Ji Mingyi obediently sat down next to him, but inwardly he thought that the person next to him was clearly the most dangerous, and that the assassins were all after him.

Zong Xian, unaware of her thoughts, fixed his gaze on her face and asked, "Are you scared?"

What's the use of being afraid?

Before she could respond, Zong Xian had already reached out and grasped her slender hand, gently placing it on his knee. His tone was gentle: "With you by my side, there will be more and more similar dangers in the future. You'll get used to it eventually. However, I will definitely not let those bastards touch a single hair on Jiao Jiao's head."

Mingyi cursed inwardly, but her face remained expressionless. She lowered her eyes and said, "Thank you, sir. I hope you will protect my brother and maid."

Yuegui and Ji Mingzhe were still in another carriage.

Zong Xian raised an eyebrow: "Of course."

As evening approached, they came to an official post station. Zong Xian ordered the caravan to stop and then personally took Ji Mingyi's hand to help her out of the car.

Mingyi thought the group would rest here tonight, but Zongxian did not lead her into the post station. Instead, he led her onto an inconspicuous blue cloth carriage and then ordered them to continue on their way.

She then realized that Zong Xian, that old fox, was trying to confuse the enemy.

It's clear that they've encountered many assassination attempts and gained experience.

The journey was bumpy, and before we knew it, we had traveled dozens of miles.

The next day, after traveling for an unknown amount of time, a guard's respectful voice came from outside the gate, "Sir, there is an official post station ahead. Shall we stop and rest for a while?"

Zong Xian knew that delay could lead to complications, and that the sooner he arrived in Kyoto, the safer he would be. He was about to say that he didn't need to.

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of the pale face of the woman beside him.

Her body, already weakened from her time in prison, was further damaged by the arduous journey through the night and the three assassination attempts during the day. Living in constant fear, she must have been feeling extremely unwell.

Zong Xian then changed his mind and ordered that they rest for the night at the official post station and set off again in the early morning.

Before Mingyi could even catch her breath, she was assigned to share a room with Zongxian.

She looked at her brother and knew he understood everything.

How could a smart and perceptive child like Mingzhe not understand her current relationship with Zongxian?

Mingzhe didn't say anything and quietly went into another room.

...

At night, Mingyi lay in bed with the man.

She was exhausted and fell asleep as soon as her head hit the bed, but she was woken up in the middle of the night by the commotion.

In the darkness, she opened her eyes and looked at the man who was ravaging her body. His blurry outline filled her with utter disgust.

She felt clearly once again that she was just a tool for this man's lust, and she felt disgusted with herself.

Mingyi's face showed undisguised disgust, but fortunately, the man couldn't see it.

Noticing that she was awake, Zong Xian didn't stop what he was doing. He bent down and quickly finished.

It wasn't like last night, when they tormented her.

Finally, he pulled her into his arms, gently kissed her cheek, and coaxed, "Sleep now, we'll be on our way tomorrow."

Mingyi really wanted to bite him to death.

But she was so tired that she fell into a deep sleep in the man's arms.

When Mingyi woke up the next day, the seat next to her was empty.

Granny Feng came in to serve, still shaken, and said, "Something happened outside this morning. That disgraced official is dead. We don't know who killed him. The master is dealing with this matter, and it seems we'll be delayed for a while. Miss, please have something to eat first."

Is Li Dan dead?

Mingyi paused for a moment. With Zongxian's defenses so tight, who could have killed Li Dan?

She always felt something was amiss.

So when Zong Xian came over, she casually mentioned, "I heard Li Dan is dead?"

After dismissing his attendants, Zong Xian said, "I killed the man."

Mingyi was startled. "Why?"

Zong Xian lifted his eyes to look at her, a half-smile on his face: "You really want to know?"

Mingyi looked away: "Never mind, sir, you'd better not tell me."

Zong Xian didn't mind telling her that he had orchestrated the whole thing, from Li Dan's downfall to the blood transfusion in Qingzhou City.

The reason he ruthlessly killed Li Dan was because the latter had realized that he was the mastermind behind it all.

Therefore, in order to prevent Li Dan from reporting him in the capital, he had no choice but to strike first and send him to meet the King of Hell ahead of time.

"Although it would be a bit troublesome if he died on the road, it doesn't matter. I deliberately left the assassin I captured alive, so I can pin the whole assassination on Wei Zhao."

After Zong Xian finished speaking casually, he looked at her and asked, "Jiaojiao, do you think I'm being too cruel?"

Mingyi did not answer directly, but said only: "Li Dan was never an honest and upright official. Even if you planned the whole thing step by step, he himself was corrupt and extorted money from the people. If he were a good official, he would never have fallen into your trap."

"Now it's just a case of evil being punished and the guilty getting what they deserve. Besides, it's human nature to seek advantage and avoid harm. He knew the details of the lord's affairs, and the lord killed him to silence him. If it were anyone else, they would probably do the same."

Upon hearing this, Zong Xian burst into laughter, clearly satisfied with her answer.

The next moment, he raised his hand and patted the door twice.

Several guards responded and carried four heavy wooden boxes into the house, the boxes bearing official seals.

Mingyi couldn't understand what he was trying to do.

Zong Xian drew his short sword from his waist and deftly pried open all the sealed box lids, revealing a dazzling array of rare and precious treasures inside.

He took Ji Mingyi's wrist, walked to the box, leaned down slightly and whispered in her ear, "This is all the confiscated property of the Li family. Take whatever treasures you fancy."

In any case, once these treasures enter the palace, they will be "divided up" anyway.

Knowing she had no choice, she randomly picked a warm-colored coral bracelet from the box full of treasures.

Zong Xian frowned slightly when he saw that she had only taken such an inconspicuous little item, clearly not satisfied.

He personally bent down and rummaged through the items, selecting a set of high-quality pearl jewelry.

The beads are round and lustrous, with red gold trim, shimmering and exquisite, both delicate and luxurious.

Ordinary women from noble families were not entitled to wear such elaborate jewelry; usually only imperial concubines in the palace were entitled to it.

He was telling her in this way that he was ruthless and calculating, and could not be considered an upright and virtuous official.

But as long as she stays by his side, he will offer her endless riches and honors.

Zong Xian pressed her down to sit in front of the bronze mirror, then picked up the set of pearl jewelry and carefully put it on her.

Then he placed his hands on her shoulders, leaned down to gaze at her reflection in the mirror, and smiled. "How is it? Do you like it?"

"I like it, thank you for the gift, sir."

Zong Xian's cool fingers gently brushed across her beautiful face as he slowly said, "Xie Huaiyu can't possibly offer you such a luxurious and beautiful headdress."

Mingyi: "..."