In an instant, fragments in her mind overlapped and surged, piecing together a daring idea.
The man in the water pavilion that night… could it be him!
The moment the thought arose, Feng Yinwan herself was somewhat startled, yet his thin lips, still burning hot, continued to ravish hers.
Feng Yinwan's eyes darkened. The fingers holding the silver needle moved behind him and then, without hesitation, struck.
The instant the silver needle pierced flesh, the surging energy within Ye Tinglan's body forced some of it out, and he let out a muffled groan before losing consciousness.
Feng Yinwan touched her lips, which were stinging from being bitten. Seeing him about to fall on her again, she slapped him across the face. Ye Tinglan crashed to the ground with a thud.
Her lips were swollen and red, to the point where even a gentle touch sent jolts of pain.
Feng Yinwan, as if venting her anger, kicked him twice more. She pulled out a jar of ointment from her embrace and applied it to herself.
She knew this bastard was like a dog, always biting!
After carefully applying the medicine, she looked down and discovered a large portion of her collar had been torn open. Her outer robe was beyond saving, and even her undergarment had not been spared.
The faint red finger marks still lingered on her fair, slender neck. Feng Yinwan gritted her teeth and cursed him again.
As she cursed, she noticed something was amiss.
She had always disguised herself as a man. The last time in Jiangzhou, this person had confirmed her male identity. How could he have… just now…
Her pretty face twitched fiercely, and Feng Yinwan's back molars clenched even tighter.
Damn it, this insane prince was truly a pervert!
Those two Xuanyi men were skilled. She had taken advantage of their drugged state to gain the upper hand. Unsure if they would return for revenge after their antidote wore off, and unwilling to delay, Feng Yinwan tidied her clothes and stood up.
As she left, she glanced at Ye Tinglan, who was still lying on the ground. She rolled her eyes dismissively, patted her backside, and walked away.
Surrounding her was an endless expanse of wilderness. Based on her observations from the journey, Feng Yinwan could vaguely infer a general direction.
She was currently in the southwest of Yunzhou, close to the border of Yuzhou.
The border of Yuzhou was the closest to Yue Kingdom. Combined with the conversation of the two Xuanyi men, it meant… they intended to take her to Yue Kingdom?
It seemed she indeed had to make a trip to this neighboring country.
Without any Qinggong, she could only proceed on foot. After hearing the howls of wolves for the umpteenth time, Feng Yinwan had to change her strategy and go back to cling to the prince's leg.
Wolves generally appeared in packs, and it was difficult to escape once encountered. Even with her plentiful supply of poisons, she didn't dare risk her life lightly, so it was safer to return for now.
After all, the scoundrel was highly skilled in martial arts. Once his poison was neutralized, he could still be of some use.
When she returned, Ye Tinglan was still lying motionless where she had left him. Feng Yinwan glanced at him, then reluctantly approached.
"Wangchen Wuhuan" must have been a potent aphrodisiac. After taking it, it caused the body's blood and qi to surge, and the more one stimulated their internal energy, the stronger and more uncontrollable the effects became.
Ye Tinglan, unaware of this, had exchanged a palm strike with the Xuanyi men after being drugged, which explained why it had taken effect so quickly.
The needle she had inserted at that moment was at a crucial acupoint. Although Ye Tinglan had fainted, a significant portion of the turbid energy within his body had been expelled.
This was why he was still lying there peacefully and had not instantly perished.
As she leaned over, a strong scent of blood reached her. Feng Yinwan frowned, only then noticing a large patch of dark crimson seeping through his brocade robe.
The location was precisely his abdomen, where she had struck him with her elbow earlier.
He had… old wounds on him?
Ye Tinglan had far more than just one old wound.
Beneath the fine robes, delicate wounds had healed and then reopened, leaving him a bloody mess with no untouched areas.
Feng Yinwan, accustomed to all sorts of injuries, still found the sight disturbing.
His wounds…
Never mind, what did it have to do with her!
The medicinal knowledge of the Xuanmen sect was not covered in the old man's teachings. Feng Yinwan tearfully emptied her pouch of antidotes, combined them with a few more needle pricks, and finally managed to neutralize the drug in him.
But that was all she did. She did not touch his other wounds.
The consequence of this was that Ye Tinglan's wounds became inflamed, and in the middle of the night, he developed a high fever in his delirium.
"Cold…"
In the wilderness, Feng Yinwan dared not let down her guard. She had intended to get a little sleep and leave with him once he woke up, but unexpectedly, this whole situation arose.
She felt like cursing.
"Ye Tinglan?"
She reached out and patted his face. His thin lips were tightly pressed together, his body trembling, but the heat on his forehead was scorching.
Feng Yinwan's head began to ache.
Fine, she wasn't clinging to a powerful figure; she was serving him like a grandchild!
After a moment of gritted teeth, she resigned herself to tending to his wounds.
The weather had already turned cool after the autumn equinox, and now in the wilderness, with a slight breeze, there was indeed a hint of desolate chill.
Thinking she would have to spend the night here, Feng Yinwan shivered and pulled her outer robe tighter. She glanced at the patient beside her, then turned her head away, resolutely pretending not to see him.
She chose a spot behind a rock face, sheltered from the wind. Powder had been sprinkled around the perimeter to ward off any sudden beastly approaches.
Having done all this, Feng Yinwan finally slept with a sense of peace.
The mountain wind howled unceasingly, swirling around her ears all night. Feng Yinwan was utterly exhausted. Just as she closed her eyes, she felt Ye Tinglan lean towards her, his body ice-cold, instinctively seeking warmth.
Feng Yinwan cursed him in her mind, "You're dead," not knowing if he heard her. Her body, pushed away, leaned back towards her.
In the end, Feng Yinwan was too sleepy to continue the struggle. Covering her masked face with one hand, she placed the other on Ye Tinglan's forehead. In a daze, she drifted off to sleep.
The next morning, Feng Yinwan woke up almost frozen.
Not from the wind, but from the cold gaze fixed upon her.
Seeing her awaken, Ye Tinglan straightened his clothes, his dignified demeanor undiminished. The next moment, his well-defined hands pressed gently against her forehead, and Feng Yinwan was instantly pushed away.
She instinctively touched her face and breathed a sigh of relief.
Thank goodness, her mask was still on.
"You saved this prince last night?"
His voice, when he spoke, was cold and guarded, completely different from the one who had insisted on snuggling for warmth last night.
Feng Yinwan organized her still-hazy thoughts and asked,
"Does His Highness not remember what happened last night?"
This attitude of forgetting everything once the need was past was identical to that time at the water pavilion.
Ye Tinglan's brow furrowed sharply at her words. After a moment, he said,
"Last night, I encountered you and the Xuanyi men here. While fighting them, I was accidentally drugged. It seems that drug was neutralized by you."
Not only that, but his injuries must have also been treated by this Jiang Wan.
If he hadn't realized this, he would have struck her away the moment he awoke and found her pressing her forehead against him with such force.
His high fever had not yet subsided, leaving his handsome face still pale, but he spoke without any pretense.
Feng Yinwan frowned. "Does Your Highness truly not remember anything after taking the drug?"