Zhou Mingyi, wearing a veiled hat, delivered her embroidery to the embroidery shop and received two hundred and eighteen taels of silver.
After leaving the shop, she turned into an alley. The alley was not long, so Emperor Qianwu’s Imperial Shadow Guard waited at its entrance.
But after a quarter of an hour, she still hadn’t emerged. The guard broke into a cold sweat, terrified…
If something happened to the stunningly beautiful Zhou Jieyu under his watch, even ten lives wouldn’t be enough to atone for it!
The guard quickly contacted his companions through a special method.
…
Mingyi was drugged with a sedative and immediately bundled into a sack.
Carried over someone’s shoulder, she continued communicating with the System.
“Host, tomorrow Emperor Qianwu’s people will come to escort you into the palace. If you don’t want to be abducted by Princess Chaoyang’s men, this System can make an exception and help you once.”
Mingyi curled her lips and refused outright.
“No need. Proceed according to the original plan.”
Who would cherish something gained so easily?
Princess Chaoyang had jumped so readily into the script Mingyi had prepared for her in advance—she certainly had good judgment.
It wasn’t in vain that Mingyi had specifically requested three days from Emperor Qianwu.
These three days were ostensibly for bidding farewell to her elder brother.
But really, how much time does it take to say goodbye to one person?
No matter how deep their bond, since they would ultimately part, three days or half a day made little difference.
And her deliberate visit to the Cen residence to break off the engagement—once she entered the palace and was enfeoffed as Jieyu, would the Cen family dare to compete with Emperor Qianwu for her?
Apart from grudgingly accepting it, the Cen family had no other choice.
Yet she deliberately chose this time to break off the engagement with the Cen family, ensuring Cen Shaoyuan saw her face and became infatuated with her, just as he had in her previous life.
All of this had been calculated long in advance.
In her previous life, she had been the fish that willingly offered itself.
Though delicious, besides being “consumed” herself, she had greater “uses.”
The Cen family used her to advance their prospects.
In this life, she was the “bait” that willingly offered itself.
She would become Cen Shaoyuan’s unattainable white moonlight, the bright red cinnabar mark on his heart that slipped through his fingers.
When Cen Shaoyuan learned that she had broken off their engagement and instead became Emperor Qianwu’s woman…
When Madam Cen realized she had become someone they dared not offend—how amusing would that be?
These three days were not only reserved for bidding farewell to her brother and breaking off the engagement with the Cen family.
They were also left for Princess Chaoyang and Consort Chen.
She wanted Princess Chaoyang to become the obstacle to her entry into the palace.
On one side, a stunningly beautiful woman within easy reach; on the other, a willful, malicious, and domineering biological daughter.
How would Emperor Qianwu choose?
What could be more regrettable than something easily within grasp, only to be suddenly lost?
Especially when she was merely a delicate, beautiful, and innocent woman.
…
The person carrying Mingyi walked with steady strides, and Mingyi hardly felt any jostling—clearly, this was someone with exceptional martial skills.
Mingyi even suspected that this person might also be one of Emperor Qianwu’s Imperial Shadow Guards.
Princess Chaoyang was Emperor Qianwu’s only child, so it was understandable that she had Imperial Shadow Guards at her disposal.
That made it even more amusing.
Emperor Qianwu’s people would discover she was missing, only to find it was the work of the Imperial Shadow Guard he himself had assigned to Princess Chaoyang.
Mingyi nearly laughed aloud.
Still, she wondered where that malicious little princess planned to take her…
After an unknown length of time, the person suddenly stopped. Mingyi felt herself being placed into a carriage.
And she faintly heard the words “Qingzhou direction.”
Qingzhou lies north of the capital, a remote and barren region near the frontier, with a bitterly cold climate.
Frequent raids and plundering by nomadic herders have made life unbearable for the common people.
This little princess was even more vicious than she had imagined.
To send a delicate beauty like her toward Qingzhou—it was nothing short of a death sentence.
Yet, this aligned perfectly with her initial assumptions.
As a woman herself, the little princess understood better than anyone the importance of a woman’s purity and reputation.
She was Emperor Qianwu’s only daughter; she could afford to disregard reputation and purity.
No one dared criticize her.
But others were different.
If she were “tainted,” even with her peerless beauty, Emperor Qianwu, as the ruler of the realm, would surely reject her.
It was a permanent solution.
Thus, Ming Yi had anticipated this from the start.
It would be Qingzhou, Yongzhou, Youzhou, Liangzhou, or some such place.
…
The carriage sped along for a day before gradually slowing down.
Ming Yi could even hear the drivers conversing.
“They say there’s a Meiren in the carriage, about to enter the palace, but somehow she offended a noble.”
“The noble wants her sent to the barren lands of Qingzhou.”
Another voice chimed in, “Rather than letting those soldiers in Qingzhou have their way with her, why don’t we brothers have some fun first?”
They were of one mind, their words growing increasingly brazen and lewd.
The carriage came to a halt.
A hand reached inside.
“Little lady, we still have some days to go. Why not come down and rest, have something to eat…”
“Yeah, little lady, aren’t you bored all alone in the carriage?”
“Want this big brother to keep you company?”
Ming Yi pretended not to hear.
One of the drivers said, “Could the drug still be working? Maybe she hasn’t woken up yet?”
“That’d be no fun.”
“Wake her up!”
Seizing the moment, Ming Yi stirred awake.
She opened her eyes, and the driver who met her gaze was stunned.
“Li Er, what’s taking so long? I told you to invite her down, why…”
The other driver lifted the carriage curtain and, upon seeing Ming Yi’s face, was equally dumbfounded.
“Good heavens! How could anyone bear to send such a celestial beauty to a place like Qingzhou?”
The two drivers exchanged glances, seeing a wild fervor in each other’s eyes.
Ming Yi trembled with fear, tears instantly welling in her eyes, but she forced herself to stay calm, clutching her clothes tightly. “Who… who are you?”
“Where… where am I?”
The drivers snapped out of their daze.
One said, “Beauty, you offended a noble in the palace. Someone gave you to us.”
The other added, “The palace noble ordered us to take you to Qingzhou and throw you into the military camp as a camp follower. But we brothers pity you.”
“How about this? If you’re willing to be our wives, we’ll treat you well!”
The driver called “Li Er” was taken aback.
Well, I’ll be! You can do that?
But who would send such a stunning beauty to be a camp follower?
Better to let them have her.
After all, she had offended a palace noble and could never return to the capital.
Even if she did, it would mean certain death.
He hastily agreed, “My brother is right.”
“Beauty, think carefully: become our wives or go to Qingzhou as a camp follower?”
Ming Yi looked shocked, as if unable to accept this reality.
Whether being forced into military prostitution or becoming the woman of these two crude coachmen before her, it was an insult to her.
“Audacious! I belong to His Majesty!”
“My elder brother is a Hanlinyuan Bianxiu, there must be some misunderstanding!”
Ming Yi’s voice was soft and delicate, her eyes slightly lowered, yet a trace of ruthlessness was hidden in their depths. She swiftly pulled a hairpin from her bun and concealed it in her sleeve.
Both men were taken aback for a moment, then burst into loud laughter.
“What misunderstanding? Once you’re on our carriage, even if you were the Emperor’s princess, you’d have to listen to us!”
“That’s right! Such a beauty—seeing how pretty you are, we brothers want to give you a home. Don’t be ungrateful!”
Ming Yi seemed utterly defeated, her entire demeanor suddenly wilting.
Just as Li Er seized the chance to reach out and grab her, she raised her hand and drove the hairpin down, plunging it directly into his throat.
A single strike, fatal and swift.
“Pfft”!
Ming Yi pulled the hairpin out. Li Er gasped in shock, instinctively covering his throat as he stumbled backward, tumbling off the carriage.
The other coachman hastily retreated in panic. Seizing the opportunity, Ming Yi leaped out through the carriage window.
At that very moment, the astonishing sound of galloping hooves erupted not far away.