I couldn't imagine the consequences of being poisoned. Just then, I stepped into thin air and woke up with a start.

"Ying'er, we're out now. Don't be afraid." Xie Yuancheng's face appeared before me. I quickly looked around. We had already gone a little way, and the hole behind us was getting smaller and smaller.

I quickly shouted, "Stop! Let's turn around and go around the forest we saw yesterday!"

“Ying’er, that’s a snake forest. You were already scared, so we rested here for the night. Now that Lingwu is feeling better, we need to get going.”

“Listen to me, I dreamt that after walking for another hour and a half, we will encounter some strange people. They talk in a boring way, but they can cast spells. If we are infected with these spells, they cannot be cured by medicine.”

Xie Yuancheng and Ling Wu stopped their journey, and I repeatedly assured them that it was true.

"However, even if we go around the snake forest, there will be many poisonous insects and snakes inside. Getting bitten there is much more terrifying than being poisoned by a curse."

Is there any other way to get there?

I was nervous. When I saw those videos about witchcraft in 2020, my heart clenched. If we were forced to separate and there was nothing we could do, I would regret it to death.

Xie Yuancheng led me off my horse, and Lingwu followed. The three of us formed a small circle and brainstormed a solution together.

"This is the place of Daoist Baiyun. He does like to associate with sorcerers in the martial arts world, but this is the first time I've heard that he likes Gu magic. This is not a good thing."

Lingwu was complaining about Baiyun Daoren. Judging from his expression, he must have admired this person a lot in the past.

Xie Yuancheng broke off a thin twig from his hand: "We'll take a longer route, going through Tongjiabao. We'll arrive in Linyang five days later. Nothing should happen."

"What kind of place is Tongjiabao? Is it dangerous? Are there any young women there?" I'm particularly sensitive to young women now. I used to think they were all made of water and were especially cute and beautiful, but now I see them as annoying girls who will steal my man.

"Ying'er, you're dressed as a boy now, how dare you tease young ladies? Be careful, I won't let you off!"

"What nonsense are you talking about? I'm just worried that another cute girl like a young girl might come along, so I'm asking a few more questions to avoid misunderstandings again."

"Good girl, if we had been more aware of this before, our journey wouldn't have been so difficult."

"How would I know what you're thinking? You never tell me."

"Yes, senior brother, your wife kept talking about you the whole way. I think you're being too much."

"What?" Xie Yuancheng glared at Ling Wu, and she fell silent. I quickly tried to smooth things over.

"Alright, saving our lives is the priority now. Stop acting like children and hurry up and get going. My advice is to go somewhere safe and secure, where you're less likely to get into trouble."

“Ying’er, the person you dreamed about this time is very likely the Western Region prisoner who wanted to take revenge on us last time.”

Xie Yuancheng frowned, and I became nervous too: "But we didn't go that way, and we stayed on the mountain for so long, how did they know?"

"That's why I find it strange. They're setting a trap, waiting for us to fall into it, so they can capture us and take our unmarried girls."

"That's outrageous!" I yelled. "Are they unable to get married? Why do they have to add the two of us who are already married, plus Lingwu, who has a troubled relationship!"

"Sister-in-law, you can be angry, but don't say I'm having relationship problems. I think it's going very well."

"You keep saying everything goes smoothly, but don't forget what I told you!" Xie Yuancheng threatened again, and I quickly interrupted them.

"What time is it now? Stop arguing. Once we get to Linyang, you can argue all you want!"

“Ying’er, this is a matter of principle. Even if he is my junior brother, I cannot condone this.”

"Alright, let's get back to the question about the Western Region people. Why do they want us to marry wives? They have so many men; they can just settle them internally."

Xie Yuancheng glanced at Ling Wu before sighing, "The men are all sinners. The clan leader doesn't want to return to the Western Regions, fearing he'll be suppressed by the new Western Regions king, so he needs to form a marriage alliance with Da Zhao."

They wouldn't even look at ordinary people, after all, they were a fallen royal family, so they sought out nobles of the Great Zhao. The Emperor and the Second Prince really know how to avoid them; they actually managed to evade them.

I hugged the Phantom Sword tightly: "Then let's run quickly. If we talk on horseback, I feel they're coming. They're not far away. If we dawdle any longer, we'll be captured. I don't like girls."

“I wouldn’t have hesitated to say this before.” Xie Yuancheng shook his head, helped me onto the horse first, and then went to talk to Lingwu.

They were speaking softly, and I couldn't hear them clearly. I peeked over and saw Xie Yuancheng handing a bottle of medicine and a short knife to Ling Wu.

"What are you doing? You mustn't do anything rash."

Ling Wu smiled first: "Sister-in-law, this is something my senior brother gave me to protect myself from bad things."

I was relieved: "That's good. Please don't do anything bad. I already feel guilty, and you're whispering to each other."

Xie Yuancheng then mounted his horse, pinched my waist, spurred the horse's belly, and galloped forward: "Ying'er, I love how cautious you are right now."

"You forced me into this situation. I used to be so simple."

"Yes, they don't even know that the Crown Prince isn't the Empress's biological son, so of course it's simple."

The two of them have now united and started laughing at me. I turned to the other side and didn't bother arguing with them.

After running for a while, I felt something was wrong. This road was exactly the same as the one in my dream: "You guys stop first, we've gone the wrong way. This road is exactly the same as the one in my dream, and they are just ahead."

Xie Yuancheng pulled on the horse's reins, looked around with Lingwu, and then they parted ways.

"Yuancheng." I felt uneasy. Xie Yuancheng leaned close to my ear to reassure me, then quickly ran forward, wearing a red cloak.

I was worried that Lingwu wouldn't be able to handle it, and when I looked back, he was gone. Now the horses were moving very fast, and when we passed a pile of rocks, we saw some people wearing red clothes.

Although it was only for a fleeting moment, I still saw the girl who had greeted me earlier. She looked very disappointed, and then I saw the other person.

Xie Yuancheng took a detour, and two hours later he turned into a very narrow, winding path. I waited until the horse slowed down a bit before I spoke.

“Yuancheng, I’ve seen the clan chief’s daughter who greeted me.”

"Your eyesight is amazing! You even spotted the red cloak running so fast."

"I don't know if it was just a feeling, but I saw a look of disappointment on her face." I've seen that look so many times, from when she started dressing as a man until she settled down to live with Xie Yuancheng. I've seen that look in her eyes many times.

"She's got her eye on you, so she's here to arrest you."

"What?" I turned around quickly and saw that Xie Yuancheng had stopped smiling. I grabbed his hand and assured him, "I only like you, and I don't like any other random people."