Poisoning
After reading the letter sent by Liu Zhiming, Zhao Youyi's expression was inscrutable. "It seems I have no choice but to return to the border region."
Xiao Qing hesitated for a moment and said, "But the conflict between you and your son-in-law hasn't been resolved yet..."
Zhao Youyi waved his hand and rubbed his temples with his fingers. "Romantic feelings are a small matter. I need to find out why this princess came to the Women's Army."
“The border region is dangerous, so you should stay here and take care of the young lady,” Zhao Youyi said to Xiao Qing.
Xiao Qing hesitated upon hearing this, then said, "But you also need my care, young lady."
Zhao Youyi couldn't help but chuckle: "I'm an adult, I can take care of myself. Lele is still young, she needs you. Besides, she's unfamiliar with Virginia, and if you're not by her side, she'll definitely be more panicked."
Since she had said so, Xiao Qing had no choice but to agree.
Xiao Qing bowed to her and withdrew.
Zhao Youyi opened the makeup box and looked at the exquisite hairpin. The petals of the forget-me-not shone brightly in the sunlight streaming through the window, and the pearl was even more lustrous and dazzling.
Zhao Youyi reached out and gently stroked the hairpin, then couldn't help but sigh, "Chu Huai Cong, you're really difficult to deal with."
With things already come to this, she had no time to think too much. That afternoon, she sent a message to Chu Chanyin and then mounted her horse and headed straight for the border region.
The two places were not far apart, and Zhao Youyi arrived at the Zhao family army's encampment that very night.
Upon seeing Zhao Youyi, Liu Zhiming and Zhou Yaqing immediately stepped forward and bowed, saying, "My lord!"
Zhao Youyi dismounted, took off his cloak, and tossed it to a soldier behind him: "No need for formalities, where is Princess Fu'an?"
Liu Zhiming straightened up and said, "This subordinate has locked the princess in his own tent."
Zhao Youyi, without changing his expression, said, "Did she come alone?"
Zhou Yaqing nodded, and the three of them headed straight for Liu Zhiming's tent.
Princess Fu'an was just a girl in her teens and not very strong. Liu Zhiming later replaced the rope binding her with strips of cloth. When he saw Princess Fu'an looking at him with such a pitiful expression, Liu Zhiming found it really strange.
"Princess Fu'an, what brings you here?" Zhao Youyi sat in the main seat, observing the noble princess with great interest by the candlelight.
Princess Fu'an was quite surprised to see Zhao Youyi looking so different than usual. She had seen Zhao Youyi before in the capital, where she was a delicate and pitiful young girl who was hard to believe she came from a military family. Many people in the capital were saying that Zhao Youyi had disgraced the family. However, after not seeing her for several months, her eyes were sharp and her expression was cold, as if she were looking at a dead person.
They have the same appearance, but their temperaments are completely different.
Zhao Youyi picked up a military book, rolled it up, and then lifted her chin. "Your Highness, you really shouldn't have come to the borderlands. Do you know that the Chu royal family and my Zhao family have a blood feud? My mother died at the hands of your good mother, and my elder brother died at the hands of your good elder brother. Princess, you came here alone. Are you here to die?"
Princess Fu'an trembled at the undisguised murderous intent in his tone, staring in terror at the girl before her. She was undeniably beautiful, with skin as smooth as ice and snow, and eyes as deep as the starry sea. A small mole on the side of her nose made her appear even more aloof when she wasn't smiling, like a fierce white wolf poised to strike, ready to bite off its prey's neck with a single bite.
Princess Fu'an instinctively turned to Liu Zhiming for help, "Sister, I came to find you!"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Youyi raised an eyebrow, her gaze sweeping over the two of them. "Zhimo, it seems that Her Highness the Princess has quite deep feelings for you."
Liu Zhiming immediately knelt down and begged for forgiveness: "My lord, I have no relation to the Chu royal family. Please investigate!"
"If you doubt someone, don't use them; if you use someone, don't doubt them." Zhao Youyi naturally wouldn't casually doubt the strategist he had carefully selected. Zhao Youyi reached out and grabbed her arm, pulling her up with a swift motion.
“I don’t mean to doubt you, but I’m afraid Princess Fu’an came all the way with you,” Zhao Youyi waved his hand indifferently. “Since she came to find you, then you can do whatever you want with her.”
Zhao Youyi led Zhou Yaqing out of Liu Zhiming's tent. Liu Zhiming looked at Princess Fu'an coldly and asked, "What exactly do you want to do?"
Princess Fu'an trembled with fear from Zhao Youyi's gaze just now, and only came back to her senses when she heard her question: "Sister, I just want to follow you. Erlang doesn't like me, and I'm not happy in Lingnan."
“Your Highness, it was you who insisted on marrying my brother.” Liu Zhimo said to her indifferently and without changing his expression, “Since it was your own choice, you must pay the price for it. If the princess wants to divorce my brother and return to the capital, I can send a team of men to escort you back.”
Princess Fu'an quickly shook her head: "I won't go back. I already know that the capital is now under my brother's rule. He only cares about me as his sister. If he knew that I had divorced Erlang, he would definitely marry me off to another country."
"Your Highness, what does this have to do with me?" Liu Zhimo's expression remained indifferent as she looked at the pampered little princess. "Your Highness, please don't forget that I almost had to marry into the Southern Barbarians in your place."
Liu Zhiming reached out and lifted her chin. Princess Fu'an had been pampered since childhood, and her skin was fair and tender. A pinch left a red mark, which looked particularly dazzling.
"In that case, you can stay here." Liu Zhiming looked at her and suddenly changed his mind, as if he had thought of something.
Princess Fu'an looked at her in disbelief: "You...you agreed to let me stay?"
Liu Zhiming smiled and said, "Yes, I agree."
"My lord, what if General Liu wants to keep Princess Fu'an here?" Zhou Yaqing followed Zhao Youyi back to the main tent. Zhao Youyi pondered for a moment upon hearing this, "She's just a teenage girl. There's nothing I can do about her."
“My lord is kind-hearted, but Princess Fu’an is ultimately of the Chu royal family bloodline, and cannot be kept alive.” Zhou Yaqing’s gaze turned cold, and a murderous intent appeared in his eyes.
"No!" Liu Zhiming stepped into the tent, clearly understanding the meaning behind Zhou Yaqing's words.
"My lord, I have an idea, but I don't know if I should say it," Liu Zhimo said.
"What nonsense are you spouting!" Zhou Yaqing said anxiously from the side.
Zhao Youyi waved her hand, signaling her to speak.
“After you achieve great things, my lord will inevitably need to stabilize the former officials of the previous dynasty. Why not leave Princess Fu’an behind? That way, we can put on a show and avoid a lot of disputes.” After saying this, Liu Zhimo looked up to observe Zhao Youyi’s expression.
Upon hearing this, Zhao Youyi glanced at her without changing her expression, "Zhimo, you've softened your heart towards her."
Having his thoughts exposed, Liu Zhiming couldn't help but avoid her gaze.
Zhou Yaqing belatedly realized the meaning behind Liu Zhiming's words.
"Strategist! You are truly exceptionally clever." Zhou Yaqing said sarcastically, "It's clearly your own selfish desire, yet you say it's good to become the lord."
Zhao Youyi reached out to stop the two from arguing. "Yaqing, Zhimo is right. Although she has some selfish motives, it's not necessarily a bad thing."
Since Zhao Youyi had already said that, Zhou Yaqing couldn't say anything more.
Zhou Yaqing glared fiercely at Liu Zhiming. She disliked everyone around the dog emperor who murdered General Zhao. Unexpectedly, Liu Zhiming, the strategist of the Women's Army, showed compassion for the Duke of Fu'an.
Liu Zhiming ignored Zhou Yaqing's gaze, and Zhou Yaqing, seeing her reaction, angrily turned and left.
Liu Zhiming bowed to Zhao Youyi, and just as he was about to step out of the tent, he heard a cough.
Liu Zhiming subconsciously turned around and saw that their women's army's usually wise and powerful leader was pale, with bloodstains on his lips, and could only stand by holding onto the table.
"My lord!" Liu Zhiming rushed forward to support her. Zhou Yaqing, who was not far away, also noticed something was wrong with the voice and ran back to the tent. When she saw this scene, her eyes widened in horror. She grabbed a soldier and told him to go and call the army doctor.
Liu Zhiming helped Zhao Youyi sit down, and seeing her face gradually turn pale, he became increasingly panicked. "My lord, what's wrong with you? How could this happen so suddenly?"
Zhao Youyi said with a heavy heart, "Send someone to Fuzhou at full speed to inform the King of Chu that I have been poisoned."
Since his maternal grandmother passed away, the only person in the world who could suppress the Heart-Suppressing Poison was Chu Chanyin.
In the past few years, she was able to stabilize her condition with the medicine prepared by her maternal grandmother. Now, her frequent use of force and internal energy has undoubtedly triggered the onset of the Cunxin Poison.
Liu Zhiming never expected to hear the name of the King of Chu from her at this moment, and he immediately ordered his men to hurry to Fuzhou.
Zhao Youyi gripped Liu Zhiming's hand tightly, staring intently at her: "The news of my poisoning must not be spread, otherwise the army's morale will collapse. Quickly summon Zhou Huaiyuan and the others; I have something to tell you."
She said the last sentence to Zhou Yaqing. Upon hearing this, Zhou Yaqing bit her lip, trying to remain calm. She only came to her senses when she tasted blood. She then walked out of the tent, pretending to be calm.
Upon receiving the news, Zhou Huaiyuan arrived with his trusted confidants. The group knelt on the ground, listening to Zhao Youyi's instructions and plans.
"If the King of Chu comes, you must not stop him. Before I wake up, follow the arrangements of General Zhou Huaiyuan, General Zhou Yaqing, and Military Advisor Liu," Zhao Youyi said, clinging to his last shred of strength.
Everyone readily agreed.
Zhao Youyi felt dizzy, her heart was in excruciating pain, and her limbs began to feel numb. Before long, her consciousness began to fade, and she eventually fell into a dream.
When the military doctor arrived, Zhao Youyi had already fainted. "This... my lord's pulse is weak, I'm afraid he's been poisoned!"
Liu Zhiming stared at the military doctor and asked, "Since it's poisoning, is there a way to detoxify?"
The military doctor shook his head in a panic: "With my medical skills, I can't tell what kind of poison my lord has been poisoned by, so naturally I can't cure it. I can only use ginseng slices to temporarily keep my lord's spirits up to prolong the time. His Highness Prince Chu is a disciple of the Medicine King of Divine Medicine Valley, so I'm afraid only he can give it a try."
Liu Zhiming frowned more and more as he looked at Zhao Youyi's pale face.
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