Ziling had no intention of dwelling on Gong Mohan’s unusual mood. The day had been utterly exhausting, and all she wanted was to wait until everyone fell asleep so she could enter her space and enjoy a proper bath.
While Ziling cleaned Gong Mohan’s wounds, her mother-in-law and Gong Hao gathered some weeds and spread them over the uneven ground. It didn’t help much, but at least it was better than lying directly on the dirt.
Ziling lay down on the outermost side. She had just closed her eyes to rest when she heard Gong Mohan say to Gong Hao:
“Help me move to the outside. The two of us will take turns keeping watch tonight. Let Mother and the others sleep inside.”
Ziling immediately said, “You’re injured. You need proper rest so you can recover faster. Gong Hao and I can take turns instead.”
“No. The two of us will stay outside,” Gong Mohan replied coldly.
Too tired to argue further, Ziling simply gave up. Right now, she only wanted to find an opportunity to enter her space as soon as possible.
She closed her eyes and waited quietly for a while. Once she heard everyone’s breathing gradually steady into sleep, she carefully opened her eyes, got up silently, and walked behind a wall some distance away. After making sure no one was nearby, she flashed into her space.
The first thing she did was drink several mouthfuls of spirit spring water to recover her strength. Then she took a bath.
After walking the entire day, blisters had formed on her feet, hurting so badly that she bared her teeth in pain. She treated them herself, applied some ointment, and added two extra insoles into her shoes.
While sighing about how wonderful it was to have this space, she suddenly noticed something strange through the window. Behind the house seemed to be a misty forest shrouded in fog.
It definitely hadn’t been there the first time she entered.
Curious, Ziling walked outside, trying to circle behind the house to investigate the foggy area. Yet it felt as though some invisible barrier blocked her path, preventing her from getting any closer.
She didn’t dare remain inside too long, so she could only postpone exploring it until another time.
Before leaving, she thought of little Ying’er and her mother-in-law. After walking all day, their feet had surely blistered as well. She decided to take several extra insoles for everyone to use.
She also grabbed some food. There was so much stored inside the space that she needed to slowly find ways to bring it out. After all, she had no desire to keep eating those hard black-flour buns.
On impulse, she even took a few lollipops to give adorable little Ying’er the next day.
After leaving the space, Ziling carefully crept back to her sleeping spot and soon drifted into sleep.
What Ziling didn’t notice was that the moment she closed her eyes, Gong Mohan—lying on the outer side—opened his eyes and quietly looked toward the direction she had returned from before glancing at her again.
Gong Mohan raised his fingers and made a strange gesture into the air.
A black-clothed figure instantly appeared.
Lowering his voice respectfully, the man said, “Master, how are your injuries? Our physician is already on the way.”
“You don’t need to concern yourself with my injuries,” Gong Mohan replied quietly. “Tell Yan Er and Yan San to investigate someone for me.”
He glanced toward Ziling’s sleeping figure before continuing:
“The young lady of the Marquis Manor—my wife. Investigate whom she’s associated with these past few years and what she usually does.”
The black-clothed man hesitated before asking, “Do you suspect she was sent by that person?”
“At the moment, probably not,” Gong Mohan answered. “But I still can’t be certain. She’s completely different from the person I previously learned about. I heard she was unloved in her household and timid by nature. But after interacting with her now, I’ve found her decisive and organized. It’s difficult not to become suspicious.”
After speaking, Gong Mohan made another hand gesture.
The black-clothed man vanished instantly, as though he had never appeared at all.
Gong Mohan turned his head once more toward Ziling, who was sleeping soundly with her back facing him.
I hope you won’t disappoint me. Otherwise… I won’t let you go.
Soon afterward, even Gong Mohan drifted into a hazy sleep.
“Get up! Everyone get up and prepare to move! Anyone dawdling will get the whip!”
The prisoners were still half asleep. Though they had merely slept on the ground, none of these exiled nobles had ever suffered such hardship before. After walking an entire day yesterday, many of them now didn’t even want to move.
The guards immediately raised their whips and began lashing out. The prisoners scattered in panic.
This morning, the guards didn’t even distribute the usual black-flour buns.
Head guard Zhang Meng shouted loudly:
“Hurry up and get moving! There won’t be another village within the next ten li. We’ll rest only after reaching the next town!”
Ziling and her mother-in-law hurriedly packed up. Just as they were about to help Gong Mohan onto the guards’ cart, one guard sneered coldly:
“No riding the cart today. If everyone did that, wouldn’t every prisoner want a turn? Prisoners are prisoners. Let him walk himself.”
Ziling cursed inwardly.
The things she’d given them earlier were worth quite a bit of silver, yet they’d only allowed him half a day on the cart. It seemed she would have to think of another solution herself—perhaps a cart or even a hand-pulled board. But even for that, the guards’ permission would still be needed, so she couldn’t afford to ruin relations with them.
Just as Gong Hao prepared to carry his elder brother on his back, Ziling stopped him.
She rummaged through her bundle and handed him a pair of insoles.
“Put these in your shoes. It’ll feel better. I’ll think of another solution.”
Gong Hao had never seen anything like them before. Following her instructions, he placed them inside his shoes and took a few steps.
His eyes widened.
It truly felt far more comfortable.
Ziling then handed a pair each to her mother-in-law and Ying’er.
Ying’er was especially delighted. Yesterday, she had nearly been unable to continue walking because her feet hurt so badly. Now, with the insoles her sister-in-law gave her, she immediately felt much better.
“Sister-in-law, what are these? I’ve never seen them before!”
Her mother-in-law also looked curiously at Ziling.
“These are something I experimented with sewing back at home,” Ziling explained casually. “I thought they might be useful someday, so I made extra pairs.”
Afraid they might ask more questions, she quickly urged the family to catch up with the exile convoy.
Not long after they resumed walking, Ziling noticed Ying’er gradually falling behind from exhaustion.
Quietly, she reached into her bundle, pulled something out, and stuffed it into Ying’er’s mouth.
Ying’er’s eyes instantly lit up. She blinked at her sister-in-law in surprise.
Ziling quickly pressed a finger to her lips.
“Shh… don’t let anyone see.”