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Kuranami Miyako shook her head, pleading, "Zhao Prince, please! Our entire clan needs her. As long as she lifts the curse, we will all be grateful to her! We will give her everything she desires—and we will certainly assist you in achieving your grand ambitions—"
Nangong Nuo's index finger, resting on the table, twitched slightly. A barely perceptible glint of malice flickered in his eyes as his voice turned cold and hard as iron. "You? Do you think you are worthy? What if I say no?"
Kuranami Miyako tightened her lips, no longer insisting. Suddenly, she resigned herself to fate and said, "Fine, since I cannot force this, we will find another way! Zhao Prince, let each person bear their own consequences. I offer my life in exchange for the release of the other sisters in our clan!"
Then she turned her gaze to the silent Mei Shuang. "Miss Mei Shuang, could you please bring me another cup of tea? I don’t want to die of thirst on the Underworld Road..."
Mei Shuang looked up, feeling it was abrupt, but Kuranami Miyako's words softened her heart. Coupled with her sympathy for this family, she poured a cup of tea and stood up to bring it over.
Kuranami Miyako felt a surge of joy inside but maintained a calm exterior. She gazed at Mei Shuang and softly said, "Thank you."
Afterward, she bit down on the teacup and tilted her head back to drink it all in one go. Suddenly, she loosened her grip, and the teacup nearly fell.
Mei Shuang was startled and quickly bent down to catch it, inadvertently blocking Nangong Nuo's line of sight.
"Wait!"
Nangong Nuo had sensed something was amiss and cursed inwardly. As he stood up abruptly, he did not expect that Kuranami Miyako had already made her move. In a flash, she broke free from the ropes binding her and struck Mei Shuang's acupoint.
Unprepared, Mei Shuang collapsed softly, and Kuranami Miyako caught the teacup from her hand. With a gentle squeeze, she transformed it into a sharp shard of porcelain pressed against Mei Shuang's neck.
The entire process took only seconds; even Nangong Nuo was caught off guard by such agility.
As he stared at the unconscious Mei Shuang in shock, he could only lament inwardly about his carelessness!
"Please sit still, Zhao Prince; otherwise, if I tighten my grip even slightly, the consequences may be unpredictable." Looking at Nangong Nuo's grim expression, Kuranami Miyako curled her lips into a mocking smile and sneered, "Hmph! A mere binding technique cannot hold me back! Since tonight is destined for calamity, I will take this woman along as a sacrifice!"
"If you dare lay a finger on her, I will ensure that your entire clan meets a terrible end!" Nangong Nuo said coldly, his hands clenched tightly behind his back until his knuckles turned white.
Kuranami Miyako fixed her gaze on Nangong Nuo for a moment before suddenly laughing. "No wonder they say Zhao Prince is heartless; it turns out your heart is entirely with this woman. I truly do not understand—after all this time as fleeting lovers, can’t that move you at all?"
Nangong Nuo's expression grew even darker.
Clearly, tonight was a miscalculation at the hands of this woman, and he was unwilling to accept it.
Kuranami Miyako glanced at Mei Shuang, who lay softly in her arms, and scoffed, "I wondered why Zhao Prince favored me. It turns out there is a resemblance between me and this woman!"
Her expression then turned ferocious. "This woman must either die tonight or accompany me to the Eastern Kingdom! If the curse is lifted, I will return her intact!"
"Do you think she is an object? Besides, how can a mere woman from the inner chamber help you?" Nangong Nuo exclaimed in anger.
"Heh, has Zhao Prince suddenly developed a fondness for delicate beauty? Just think, compared to your grand ambitions, what is this woman worth? Zhao Prince, the Emperor of the Great Qin Empire has sent you to guard the eastern border; isn’t that indirectly paving the way for you? If we assist you from the east, Zhao Prince, what do you have to worry about for your grand plans? Moreover, under my intoxicating fragrance, do you think she can remain conscious?"
Nangong Nuo's gaze darkened as he stared deeply at Kuranami Miyako for a long moment before coldly asking, "Who exactly are you?!"
Hitting the nail on the head with his question, Kuranami Miyako smiled slyly, her face barely concealing her triumph as she looked at Mei Shuang. She chuckled lightly, "Zhao Prince will know in due time... As long as you let me take this woman tonight, we will only be friends in the future!"
As she spoke, she warily glanced towards the window behind Nangong Nuo. "Who?"
Taking advantage of Nangong Nuo's momentary distraction, she raised her hand and waved it. A cloud of white smoke billowed from her sleeve like a smoke bomb, quickly filling the room and obscuring Nangong Nuo's line of sight.
In the blink of an eye, both Kuranami Miyako and Mei Shuang had vanished without a trace.
This was truly like having spent a lifetime chasing after wild geese only to have them peck out one's eyes!
In frustration, Nangong Nuo slammed his palm down on the table...
---
The night was dark, with only the faint light of stars twinkling in the sky.
A carriage sped along an ancient road in the wilderness.
At the urging of those inside, the driver cracked his whip over the already exhausted horses. Listening to the rushing wind by his ears, he felt some resentment; even at this speed, it still wasn't fast enough. If it weren't for the promise of twenty taels of silver—ten already given as a deposit—who would want to run this errand in the dead of night? Moreover, it was no short journey; they needed to reach the riverbank before dawn.
"Miss, how is your sister's condition?"
The coachman asked the passenger inside the carriage while driving the horses.
He had just returned home when someone knocked on the door, requesting a carriage, saying that her sister was gravely ill and needed to take a boat to the neighboring city for treatment.
Kuranami Miyako coldly replied, "Just drive the carriage and don't waste your breath."
The coachman immediately shrank back and fell silent.
At this moment, Kuranami Miyako sat in the carriage, gazing at the woman who had fallen into her hands due to a moment of kindness, illuminated by the sparse starlight outside. A wave of inexplicable emotions surged within her.
Undoubtedly, the woman was beautiful, with skin as white as snow and an oval face adorned with delicate features and naturally rosy lips.
Such a visage would be irresistible to any man; no wonder even Zhao Prince, who had long been surrounded by flowers, could not forget her.
Suddenly, a surge of unexplainable jealousy welled up in Kuranami Miyako's heart but was quickly suppressed. Compared to the heavy responsibilities of her family, what did such a fickle man matter?
Amidst the rapid hoofbeats and violent jolting, Mei Shuang opened her eyes.
"You're awake?"
Hearing that familiar yet slightly stiff Chinese accent made Mei Shuang sigh inwardly; she had fallen into someone's trap and ended up in their hands.
It seemed this woman was not only skilled but also possessed considerable cunning.
She shifted her nearly broken body and struggled to sit up.
Once her eyes adjusted to the surrounding darkness, she asked, "Where are we going?"
Kuranami Miyako did not answer her question but instead asked in return, "Miss Mei Shuang, aren't you afraid?"
Mei Shuang was too lazy to answer such a question—did she fear that doing so would set her free?
Seeing Mei Shuang silent, Kuranami Miyako smiled quietly. "I'm really curious, Miss Mei Shuang, how did you know how to counter my poison?"
"Uh?" Mei Shuang forced a smile. "How would I know how to counter your poison? I was just dizzy and thirsty, all I wanted was some water..."
In truth, ever since she was young, she had been fascinated by the strange tales of every place she visited. Ancient literature and history were her strong suits; there was a time when, as an outstanding foreign language student, she had even taken a keen interest in archaeology. She often praised herself as an adventurer rather than just a simple traveler or backpacker... Although coming here might have been fate's arrangement, claiming she came to save a country would be an exaggeration.
Lost in distant memories, Mei Shuang gazed blankly at the pitch-black night sky outside.
Kuranami Miyako was skeptical of Mei Shuang's words. After all, the potency of such poisons was significant; just inhaling it could render five people unconscious. However, the poison had its own fatal weakness: it was extremely sensitive to water. If one inhaled it and quickly swallowed a large mouthful of water while gargling vigorously, the effect would be halved. This poison had remained effective because no one knew how to neutralize it, and even if they did, they wouldn't have time to drink water.
Now, this young lady confined within the carriage had accidentally figured it out?
The carriage sped along, the two sat across from each other in the dark cramped space, each lost in their own thoughts.
After an unknown amount of time, just as Mei Shuang felt like she might vomit from the bumps, Kuranami Miyako pulled out a pill from her pocket and handed it to Mei Shuang. "We took a shortcut that's harder to navigate. Take this; it will make you feel better."
Looking at the white pill about the size of a fingernail, Mei Shuang shook her head.
"Don't worry; it's not poison." Kuranami Miyako insisted as she placed the pill into Mei Shuang's hand.
For some reason, Kuranami Miyako's tone and demeanor suddenly reminded Mei Shuang of Mei Ru, the younger sister of the Empress who had once given her poison and nearly taken her life with a knife.
She tucked the pill away into her pocket. "Thank you; I'll take it when I can't hold on anymore..."
Kuranami Miyako no longer pressed her.
After bumping along for quite some time longer, just when Mei Shuang felt like her insides were about to spill out, the carriage finally came to a stop.
Dizzy and disoriented, the first thing Mei Shuang did upon stumbling out of the carriage was to throw up uncontrollably.
She finally felt a bit more comfortable and realized that, at some point, the sky had turned a pale white.
Weakly supporting herself against the carriage, she heard the Coachman bargaining with Kuranami Miyako. "Miss, just ahead is the riverbank. I can only take you this far; you’ll have to manage the rest... Look at this silver..."
Kuranami Miyako glanced into the distance and nodded in satisfaction. "I'll give you an extra thirty taels."
The coachman was taken aback, overjoyed, and quickly said, "Then I'll take you there..."
"No need," Kuranami Miyako replied, flicking her sleeve.
The coachman thought she was about to pay him and stepped forward to receive it, but suddenly a glint caught his eye. Looking down, he found a small folding knife pressed against his abdomen.
The coachman was instantly terrified, his face turning pale. "M-Miss, what do you mean by this?"
Kuranami Miyako said calmly, "Before coming here, I already left fifty taels of silver at your doorstep. That should be enough for your whole family to live on..."
Without saying another word, she raised her hand and swiftly cut across the coachman's neck. Mei Shuang barely had time to see what happened before the coachman collapsed. Moments later, a thin stream of blood gushed from the fine cut on his neck.
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