"What is there for me to be afraid of?"
Rong Zhi said, "You're afraid that Xiao Yao will discover my existence and report back to Xing Jiahui, causing you trouble."
Although the Prime Minister's mansion and the General's mansion were joined by an imperial decree, if Xing Jie were to know that Xia Yunting was addressing other girls as husband and wife outside, wouldn't he seize this opportunity to make a fuss and set a trap for Xia Yunting?
Xia Yunting said calmly, "So what if she finds out? At worst, I'll admit it."
"Admit what?"
"That I was injured and stranded here, rescued by you, and that we are in love."
"In love?" Rong Zhi smiled. "When was I ever in love with you?"
Xia Yunting said nothing, only gazing intently at Rong Zhi with a smile on his face.
Rong Zhi's face grew warm under his gaze. She avoided his eyes and changed the subject. "To avoid trouble, you should return to the imperial city as soon as possible. I'm tired and want to sleep."
She yawned and rolled to the far side of the bed, turning over and tucking herself into the covers. She closed her eyes, forcing herself not to think too much.
How annoying. After living for so many years, she could still blush from a man's gaze. She was so pathetic!
Before falling asleep, Rong Zhi could still feel his scorching gaze on her. Then, her side sank, and the temperature beside her rose.
Fortunately, Xia Yunting just lay down and didn't do anything else.
Deep into the night, Rong Zhi, who had already fallen asleep, suddenly opened her eyes. She twitched her ears, vaguely hearing the sound of footsteps approaching in the distance. Although they were deliberately light, she still recognized them.
She turned over and saw Xia Yunting's dark eyes, a look of vigilance in them.
"You heard it too?"
Rong Zhi whispered.
Xia Yunting nodded slightly. "It's a woman."
Rong Zhi said, "Her martial arts are average."
Xia Yunting said, "She's heading this way."
Rong Zhi reached out and felt around the bedside. After she fell asleep, her portable silver needles and medicinal pills were placed within easy reach. She fumbled in her purse and took out two pills. She swallowed one and put the other into Xia Yunting's mouth.
"An antidote for sleeping pills, just in case."
Xia Yunting swallowed the pill and chuckled. "Without this, that person would still be no match for me."
"Don't speak. She's here."
Rong Zhi and Xia Yunting closed their eyes simultaneously.
The night wind blew, only the rustling of the window paper accompanying the breathing sounds of the two on the bed. Even with careful listening, nothing unusual could be detected from outside.
However, amidst this perfectly normal atmosphere, a figure in black quietly landed outside the window.
The person in black hunched over and peered inside, concealing their figure in the darkness. Hearing the steady breathing from within, they took a pipe from their waist, poked a hole in the window paper, and blew some sleeping powder inside.
As the sleeping powder slowly dispersed throughout the room, the breathing sounds within also quieted down.
A smile flickered in the exposed eyes of the person in black. They put away the pipe, deliberately tapped on the window to create a sound. When there was no reaction from inside, they straightened up and swaggered into the room through the door.
On the table in the center of the room was a candle holder. The person in black lit a candle and walked towards the bed by its light, seeing a man and a woman embracing on the bed.
The person in black hesitated, then reached out and flipped the man over onto his back, holding his shoulders.
The moment they saw his face, the person in black couldn't help but exclaim.
Their bodies were so similar, yet their faces were completely different. Could it be that she had guessed wrong again?
The person in black removed their mask, revealing an heroic face. Xiao Yao's face showed disappointment. She glanced at the man on the bed again. Although his face was different, there was some resemblance.
Could it be…
A guess formed in her mind, and she reached out to touch Xia Yunting's face. Just as she was about to touch him, her hand froze. She felt a sharp pain below her ribs, which then spread throughout her body, like countless small insects crawling.
Xiao Yao's face instantly turned pale. She touched the source of the pain, and the sensation intensified. It felt as if her entire body was being cut by knives with every slight movement.
"What's going on? Did I eat something bad tonight?" she wondered, then immediately dismissed the thought.
If it were something she ate, it would be stomach cramps. This was clearly bone and muscle pain, unless someone had acupunctured her.
She looked vigilant, but also worried that the drug might wear off and the people on the bed would wake up. She should leave quickly.
So, enduring the pain, she turned towards the door. Before she could take two steps, she suddenly noticed another shadow appearing next to her own shadow on the ground, and a cool touch on her neck.
"Don't move."
A cold voice sounded from behind her.
Xiao Yao's lips twitched. She lowered her head and saw the tip of a silver dagger.
She had been tricked! The people on the bed were not asleep at all. Xiao Yao's face was filled with annoyance.
She had no choice but to comply, standing still like a quail.
The candlestick in her hand was taken away, and Rong Zhi asked, "Who are you? What are you doing in our home?"
Xiao Yao heard that it was a woman's voice. Judging by the source of the voice and the direction of the shadow, the other party was probably half a head shorter than her. In terms of build, she had the advantage, but the other party had ambushed her so stealthily and she hadn't been prepared at all. This showed that although the other party looked frail, her strength was not to be underestimated.
She was wary, and with a hint of feigned weakness, she pleaded, "I'm looking for someone. My husband ran off with someone else."
"Husband?" Rong Zhi continued to question. "What does your husband look like? What's his name? Has he lived here before? Where are you from, and how long have you been looking for him?"
These were a series of aggressive questions. After asking them, Rong Zhi pressed the dagger down another half inch. Xiao Yao could already feel the cold blade scraping her skin.
She replied, "My husband is very handsome, nine feet tall, with a darker complexion, and he practices martial arts. His surname is Xia. He hasn't lived here before. I'm from a county town in the north. My family runs a鏢局 (biao ju - security escort agency). I heard that you only recently moved to Changping County, which coincides perfectly with the time my husband went missing. That's why I wanted to try my luck here. I didn't want to alert you, so I came up with this plan…"
Although her voice trembled slightly, her answer was given in one breath, making it difficult to believe she was truly afraid.
Rong Zhi retracted the dagger and asked, "Take a good look. Is he your missing husband?"
She then led Xiao Yao to the bedside and pointed to the person on the bed who was still "unconscious."
Xiao Yao had already taken a look earlier, but she suspected he might be disguised. Now that she had the chance to look openly, how could Xiao Yao let it pass?
She trembled, endured the pain in her body, rubbed her eyes, and looked carefully for a while. Then, she shook her head.
"No, but it's not impossible that he's disguised. Miss, may I touch him?"
She said this with a natural demeanor, as if she were touching someone's pet cat, not another person's husband.
Rong Zhi was slightly surprised. She looked at Xia Yunting, who was still pretending to sleep on the bed, wondering if he would jump up and hit someone later.
"...Alright." She nodded and took a step back, just in case Xia Yunting couldn't help but want to hit someone later and she got caught in the crossfire?
Xiao Yao's hands slowly landed on Xia Yunting's face. According to the sayings in the martial arts world, she felt along the supposed seams of the mask, trying to find any irregularities.
But after feeling for a long time, she still found no trace of disguise.
Finally, Xiao Yao reluctantly withdrew her hand.
"How is it, Miss? The one lying on the bed, is that not your missing husband?"
Xiao Yao nodded. "I was mistaken."
"In that case, give me money!"
Rong Zhi held out a hand.
"Give money for what?" Xiao Yao was very surprised.
"You broke into my home in the middle of the night, drugged my husband and me, and felt around my husband's face. My heart has been severely traumatized. Shouldn't you give me some compensation?"
Uh…
Xiao Yao was indeed a little in the wrong. First, she hadn't expected that this woman could still be so energetic after she had blown so much sleeping powder into the room. Second, she hadn't expected to be ambushed by the other party when she was completely unprepared.
"Then what kind of compensation... do you want?"
"It's very simple. Just give me money," Rong Zhi gave a blunt and direct answer.
Xiao Yao's expression was not good. "How much do you want?"
"As much as you have," Rong Zhi said, staring at a valuable jade pendant on Xiao Yao's waist. This person must be rich. As the saying goes, a thief doesn't leave empty-handed. Since this little thief had voluntarily entered her courtyard, she would give this little thief a chance to atone for her sins.
"If you don't want to give it, that's fine. Then I won't be able to help you remove the silver needles I inserted into your body when you weren't paying attention."
Rong Zhi spoke unhurriedly, with a hint of threat in her words.
Xiao Yao was shocked. No wonder she suddenly felt immobile and in pain all over. It turned out she had been pricked with silver needles by the other party. But when had she done it?
"I'll give it to you. I'll give you everything." Xiao Yao felt that her life was more important. Without further ado, she took off her accessories and silver from her waist and handed them to Rong Zhi.
Rong Zhi counted the amount and was a little surprised by the other party's wealth. She brought so many things out just to gather information? Clearly not a professional.
Having received her apology and the money, Rong Zhi placed her hand at the spot below Xiao Yao's ribs. With a flick of her wrist, she slapped Xiao Yao's abdomen. The object inside seemed to be summoned and shot out, landing directly in Rong Zhi's hand.
Seeing the skillful technique, Xiao Yao was somewhat impressed. No wonder she hadn't realized that the person inside was not asleep.
"I've given you the things. Can you let me go now?"
Rong Zhi nodded. "I wish you luck in finding your husband soon."
Xiao Yao gave an embarrassed smile and fled as if she had grown wings.
Almost the moment she ran off, the person on the bed who had been "unconscious" immediately sat up.
Rong Zhi said, "How was it? Did you see clearly? Is she that Princess Xiao Yao?"
Xia Yunting looked at the hole poked in the window paper by the pipe and nodded. "Indeed."
"This county princess is truly ostentatious, coming out at night to look for someone. Is she really that close to Xing Jiahui and eager to get revenge for her!"
"Not necessarily."
Xia Yunting said, "Because her father was also a general, her personality is more outgoing than that of ordinary noble ladies. She might be here to help Xing Jiahui find me, but it's also possible she just wants to sightsee here."
Rong Zhi nodded thoughtfully. She understood. From the sound of it, Xiao Yao was not like a sycophantic follower of Xing Jiahui. Furthermore, based on her answers earlier, she appeared weak and cowardly on the surface, and afraid of death, but in reality, she was very clever.
"If she is not that close to Xing Jiahui, then perhaps she can be used to pass on some messages."
Some... false messages.
Thinking of this, Rong Zhi couldn't help but reveal a sly smile, like that of a fox.
Xia Yunting's curiosity was piqued by her expression. "What have you thought of?"