Three days later, when their tasks were completed, dealing with Yù Róng would not be too late.
"We'll do as you say."
Lán Cuì readily agreed and took the medicine from Zhēn Zhū, putting it into Yù Róng's mouth.
To be safe, the two women tied Yù Róng up thoroughly before leaving.
"I'll go inform the sisters first. The rest will be up to you."
"Alright, be careful. Madam Sun has eyes everywhere. You must be cautious in everything you do."
She knew Madam Sun too well; her caution was absolute. Even Yù Róng had been completely subdued by Madam Sun and was willing to risk her life for her. She had to be extra vigilant.
After briefing Lán Cuì, Zhēn Zhū secretly met with Fèng Jǐn and reported everything to her.
"Madam, I have controlled Yù Róng and given her medicine to make her fall unconscious for a few days. It won't affect our plan."
"Why didn't you kill her directly?"
"I... I..."
Zhēn Zhū stammered. After all, she had spent years with Yù Róng. She couldn't bring herself to do it. Moreover, Yù Róng was one of Madam Sun's people. Killing her rashly would undoubtedly arouse Madam Sun's suspicion, which would not be beneficial to their actions.
Now that Yù Róng was drugged and unconscious, she posed no threat to their next steps.
"You still couldn't bear to. Fine. After all, we've been sisters for many years. Sometimes, being too ruthless isn't good. If Yù Róng can see the error of her ways after this is over, I won't kill her."
"Thank you, Madam."
Fèng Jǐn also didn't want to be too ruthless. As long as it didn't threaten her interests, she wouldn't resort to bloodshed. The reason she chose this method was to minimize killing.
"You can go back now. Your part is done. I'll handle the rest."
"Yes, Madam. I take my leave."
Zhēn Zhū didn't ask further. She was a smart person and knew that knowing too much could sometimes be detrimental.
All she needed was to survive. Everything else was no longer important.
Soon, all of this would be over, and she would be reunited with her sister.
After Zhēn Zhū left, Líng Mò Hán, who had been hiding behind the screen, stepped forward.
"Are you sure she's trustworthy? If this fails, we'll both be in a difficult situation and find it hard to extricate ourselves. Have you really thought this through?"
Initially, he didn't want to go through so much trouble. After all, the human heart is unpredictable, and this matter wasn't easy to execute. Any slight carelessness or oversight could land them in trouble.
He regretted his momentary softness in agreeing to Fèng Jǐn. He should have listened to him and dealt with the person directly, which would have been simpler and avoided all this trouble.
"I'm sure. She's willing to do this because there are benefits for her. We're just taking what we need. By dealing with the spies from Xī Liáng without bloodshed, they can preserve their lives. It's a win-win situation for us."
"It would have been simpler to just kill them and eliminate future trouble."
Líng Mò Hán still felt that Fèng Jǐn's dawdling was a waste of time. It would have been much simpler to just kill them all, as he had suggested.
"If we follow your plan and there are corpses everywhere, and Xī Liáng investigates, we won't be able to explain ourselves. But if they run away on their own, it's a different story."
"Aren't you afraid His Majesty will accuse me of negligent supervision?"
Líng Mò Hán asked helplessly. He didn't know if Fèng Jǐn had considered this. She had thought about everything else quite thoroughly.
"I've naturally considered it. Once we reach the capital and hand over the people, I'll let them make their move. You can rest assured, it won't implicate you."
She would have to be out of her mind to implicate Líng Mò Hán. If something happened to him, she would also be unable to escape responsibility. They were like grasshoppers tied to the same rope, prospering and perishing together.
Long before she arranged these matters, she had foreseen all possibilities and eliminated anything that could harm their interests.
"You are quite thoughtful."
Since Fèng Jǐn had already made all the arrangements, there was no point in him saying anything else.
"Nonsense. I wouldn't do anything I'm not sure of."
Did he think she was so careless in her actions? That would be underestimating her.
"Take good care of the two children. I have to go out again."
Yù Róng was still unconscious, and they had to travel tomorrow. She had to deal with this big trouble first.
After Fèng Jǐn returned to her room to disguise herself, she set out.
Following the prearranged signal, Fèng Jǐn knocked on Zhēn Zhū's door.
Zhēn Zhū was startled when she saw the disguised Fèng Jǐn and couldn't recognize her at first. "Who are you..."
"It's me."
Fèng Jǐn only said two words, and Zhēn Zhū immediately realized, "Madam, why is it you? With this appearance, I didn't recognize you at first."
"It's nothing. Take me to see Yù Róng first."
"Madam, follow me."
Zhēn Zhū glanced outside to make sure no one was following, then led Fèng Jǐn forward.
Yù Róng was being watched by Lán Cuì. She was still unconscious. After knocking a few times at the door, the person inside opened it.
"Madam, please come in."
"Who is this?" Lán Cuì looked at the disguised Fèng Jǐn and asked Zhēn Zhū.
"Lán Cuì, this is the Madam I mentioned to you before. Madam, this is Lán Cuì."
"Greetings, Madam."
Lán Cuì, still surprised, quickly knelt and paid her respects.
"Get up. I'm disguised today, so it's normal that you didn't recognize me."
With her current appearance, even Líng Mò Hán wouldn't recognize her if he walked past her.
Lán Cuì's gaze kept shifting to Fèng Jǐn's face, unable to reconcile it with the Fèng Jǐn she had seen before. She could only marvel at the skill of the disguise.
"Madam, Yù Róng is here. I gave her a soporific, and she's still unconscious."
Fèng Jǐn walked past Zhēn Zhū and sat by the window. She took a piece of fragrant material from her sleeve and waved it near Yù Róng's nose. In a moment, Yù Róng woke up.
Seeing the unfamiliar Fèng Jǐn before her, she immediately became vigilant. Her gaze fell upon Zhēn Zhū and Lán Cuì, and her eyes were filled with hostility.
"Traitor, I'll kill you!"
Mustering all her strength, Yù Róng pounced on Zhēn Zhū like a madwoman, her hands clutching Zhēn Zhū's neck with all her might.
However, it was in vain. Zhēn Zhū easily pushed Yù Róng to the ground without any effort.
Lán Cuì watched this all with a cold gaze. As Yù Róng tried to get up, she restrained her from behind and pinned her to the ground.
"You... you... you've colluded together, are you trying to betray the country!"