Chapter 16
In the days that followed, Rong Rong refused to see Li Tianyi and stayed in her small room, refusing to come out.
Li Tianyi came to Rong Rong's door several times, but only stayed for a short while before turning around and leaving.
As time went on, Li Tianyi became increasingly anxious and irritable.
The fear of losing Rong Rong, Yang Yan's harassment, and Prince Yu's pursuit made him wish he could tear Yang Yan and Prince Yu to pieces.
The false sweetness of the past few days has finally vanished like smoke; happiness is indeed so fleeting.
No, he couldn't bear to lose Rong Rong! He wanted not only Rong Rong herself, but also her love!
Having finally made a decision, Li Tianyi's eyes were resolute, and his right hand unconsciously clenched into a fist.
The atmosphere inside was incredibly oppressive, and Nan Shi and Nan Qi stood by, not daring to even breathe loudly.
Although they didn't understand exactly what had happened, they hadn't seen their master so emotionally unstable in a long time.
It felt like only a moment had passed, yet also like centuries had gone by.
With a furrowed brow and dark eyes, Li Tianyi finally slowly got up and came to the table.
There, a delicate jade jar rested quietly on the table, the rustling sound still lingering.
Upon seeing his master's actions, Nan Shi's expression changed instantly. His lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but after several attempts, he finally remained silent.
Li Tianyi knows how to use Gu poison.
People from the southern border regions are skilled in using Gu poison, and Li Tianyi is one of the best among them.
This is also why he was confident enough to assassinate Prince Yu.
Li Tianyi has been raising a Gu King since he was a child. It has no fixed species, and he can use it to cast any kind of Gu he wants.
Its effects are a hundred times greater than those of ordinary Gu worms.
Originally, Li Tianyi intended to use it to kill Prince Yu, but now he plans to use it as a love potion to infect Rong Rong.
Call him despicable or selfish, but he desperately wanted Rong Rong's love; he was obsessed with it.
Especially after experiencing what it was like to have Rong Rong as his wife, he could no longer tolerate Rong Rong's coldness and aloofness towards him.
For the rest of the journey, Li Tianyi rarely went to Rong Rong's door. Rong Rong thought that Li Tianyi was busy dealing with Yang Yan, but in fact, Li Tianyi was busy preparing to use Gu poison.
He was cultivating a love worm. Once the worm matured, it would immediately spray saliva, and whoever the saliva landed on would become the worm's target.
Next, all that is needed is to introduce the Gu worm into Rong Rong's body, and Rong Rong will be influenced by the Gu worm and fall deeply in love with the Gu worm's target.
Transforming the Gu King into a Love Gu requires a process, and Li Tianyi worked tirelessly day and night until his eyes were bloodshot.
Finally, just as they were about to reach Yuanzhou City, the border city between Daqian and Southern Xinjiang, the Gu worms were about to mature.
There is one hour left.
In order not to miss the moment when the Gu worms matured, Li Tianyi ordered them to rest on the spot.
He booked the entire inn, arranged for Rong Rong to stay in the top-tier room, and moved to the room next to hers.
Rongrong was extremely anxious inside the house.
She didn't know about the love potion, but she knew that once she entered the Southern Frontier, she would have no chance of escape.
Perhaps today is her last chance.
"I want to go out and have a look." Rong Rong stepped out of the room, her usual coldness gone, and took the initiative to speak to Li Tianyi.
"Rongrong." Li Tianyi's face lit up with surprise, his rare gentle smile returning. "Okay! I'll go with you!"
Li Tianyi felt that at this moment, he could agree to any request Rong Rong made.
He was like a flower that had never seen the sun, finally welcoming the sunshine he had longed for just as he was about to wither.
"Young Master, you still have important matters to attend to," Nan Shi reminded him. He couldn't imagine how serious the consequences would be if his master missed the opportunity when the Gu worms matured.
"It's alright." Li Tianyi waved his hand. Even if there were some risks, Rong Rong rarely paid attention to him, so he naturally couldn't let her down.
"You stay and keep watch," Li Tianyi instructed Nan Shi, then left the inn with Rong Rong.
As for the Gu worms...
Li Tianyi decided to take Rongrong out to the street first and then come back earlier.
The border region is different from Tongcheng; it is filled with sandstorms.
In addition, the city was in a state of war between the two countries, which made it much more desolate.
It was rare to see a single person on the street, and only a very few shops, big and small, were still open.
Rong Rong walked along dejectedly, feeling utterly bored and extremely disappointed, because in such an empty place, it seemed she had even less chance to escape.
On the contrary, Li Tianyi always wore a smile. Even when looking at the bleak street scene, as long as Rong Rong was by his side, he felt his heart was full.
The gloom and depression of the past few days have been swept away.
Finally, Rongrong spotted a teahouse not far away. Though simple, it offered some shelter from the wind.
Let's have a drink of water and rest. We've been walking for so long, we're tired and thirsty.
Rong Rong led Li Tianyi into the teahouse, where they found two tables of customers sitting inside.
One table looked like it belonged to soldiers, and the other table looked like it belonged to suicide squads.
As soon as Rong Rong and her group stepped through the door, the people at both tables turned their gazes toward them.
Li Tianyi tightened his grip on Rong Rong's hand, then continued walking nonchalantly towards the empty table at the very back.
Even through the veil, Rong Rong could feel the sharp gazes of the two groups.
But she wasn't afraid at all; she thought, the opportunity she had been waiting for had finally arrived.
Li Tianyi followed Rong Rong warily, then gestured to Nan Qi with his hand behind his back. Nan Qi immediately turned and left.
"Waiter, a pot of tea and a plate of snacks!" Li Tianyi shouted.
In the blink of an eye, the waiter had served the food to the table.
Rong Rong drank her tea through her veil. By now, the two groups had withdrawn their gazes, but Rong Rong had a premonition that if she and Li Tianyi made any move, their eyes would be drawn back to them.
"Doesn't anyone tell stories in your teahouse?" Rong Rong asked with a smile.
A delicate, ethereal voice echoed in the quiet teahouse, adding a vibrant touch to the otherwise dark space.
Whether it was my imagination or not, it seemed like everyone in the room was breathing more easily.
The waiter looked completely blank, as if he had lost his soul.
"Waiter?" Rong Rong asked, puzzled.
The waiter was still dazed when a fierce-looking man at the soldier's table suddenly threw down his chopsticks, which grazed the waiter's forehead and embedded themselves in the wall behind him.
With a thud, the waiter instantly fell to the ground.
"Is there a storyteller?" the man asked rudely.
The waiter scrambled to his feet in a panic, "Yes, yes, yes! I'll go get someone right away!"
Rong Rong looked at the soldier and suddenly their eyes met. The rough man who had just looked like he was about to eat people immediately blushed.
Rong Rong's eyes suddenly lit up. She realized that this person looked like the person who was with Yang Yan at the Tongcheng market!
Rong Rong was in a great mood, and Li Tianyi secretly tightened his grip on the teacup.
He hadn't expected Yang Yan's men to arrive so quickly, nor the group of men in black at the other table...
Li Tianyi's intuition told him that he was not simple.
Soon a middle-aged man was dragged over by the waiter, his face full of impatience and reluctance, and he hadn't even put his hat on properly.
After seeing who was in the store, the middle-aged man immediately changed his expression, straightened his hat, ran to the counter, picked up a ruler, and slapped the person with it.
He had spent half his life telling stories in this remote town, and this was the first time he had ever seen so many impressive people.
"It is said that Prince Yu harmed loyal officials and pursued General Yang because of a woman, which drew the scorn of the entire court!"
"Who is this woman? And how did she become acquainted with these two?"
"That all started with the marriage agreement between the Du and Rong families of Qinghe..."
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