Chapter 217 Kidnapping
For several days in a row, Lu Yuan secretly interrogated the two Northern Di people in a dark room in his residence during the day, while also recuperating from his injuries.
That night, he secretly sneaked into the Feng residence, held Jiang Zhi in his arms as they slept, and then left without anyone noticing before dawn.
Jiang Zhi went from initially resisting to getting used to it, and later, as long as he didn't do anything excessive, she let him do as he pleased.
"I'm going back to the capital tomorrow." Lu Yuan hugged Jiang Zhi from behind, his warm breath brushing against the back of her neck.
Jiang Zhi was tightly bound by his limbs, with no room to move at all.
He simply snorted, "Then I wish Lord Lu a safe journey."
Lu Yuan's calloused hands landed on her waist through her nightgown, kneading it with an ambiguous meaning.
Jiang Zhi tried to pry his hand away, but he grabbed it instead, forcefully intertwining their fingers.
With his other hand, he turned her face and placed delicate kisses on her lips.
Jiang Zhi has been feeling unwell these past few days because of him.
Lu Yuan is a man of his word; if he says he won't do something, he really won't.
But when he held her from behind to sleep, that place was full of energy, proudly asserting its presence, making it impossible for her to ignore it.
Including now.
But before that, he didn't make any unnecessary movements. He was even more restrained and ascetic than the monks who had left home at Puzhao Temple, as if he had been split into two people.
Today I finally couldn't hold back anymore.
But apart from kissing her until her face was wet, Lu Yuan didn't do anything else.
After kissing her, he wrapped her whole body in the blankets, curled her up like a cocoon, and then bit her nose lightly with hatred.
Jiang Zhi felt both pain and itchiness, but her hands were trapped under the blanket, so she could only nuzzle her head against his chest to relieve the itch on the tip of her nose.
Lu Yuan gasped, gritting his teeth, "One day, you will torture me to death."
Jiang Zhi glared at him angrily.
Who's torturing whom now?
When Jiang Zhi got up the next day, Lu Yuan had already left.
A note from him was left on my pillow.
"Go back to the capital. Don't worry about me. Wait for me to return to Xuzhou."
His writing style is vigorous and powerful, and his few words reflect his character and conduct.
On the Bian River, Lu Yuan stood at the bow of the boat, watching the dock gradually recede into the distance, letting the cold wind blow into his chest, chilling him to the bone.
Now that we have two Northern Di prisoners with us, it's not feasible to travel by land again.
Now that she was leaving, she naturally wouldn't let Shen Ci'an stay in Xuzhou any longer, otherwise it was very likely that Jiang Zhi's identity would be exposed, which would be detrimental to her.
It's time to find him something to do.
So, just two days later, Shen Ci'an came to Jiang Zhi to say goodbye, saying that the Emperor had urgently summoned him back to the capital to investigate the Hang Shuyu case together with Lu Yuan.
Shen Ci'an naturally knew that Lu Yuan was behind this.
However, he had indeed handled the case, and he couldn't shirk responsibility in the slightest, so he had no choice but to return to the capital.
Before leaving, Shen Ci'an handed a small box to Jiang Zhi.
"These are the silver notes you brought to the Shen family when we got married. I added some more to them, along with some of your everyday trinkets."
"There are many antique treasures in the mansion that are too conspicuous. If you were to sell them, it would easily expose your identity. Therefore, I can only leave these to the young lady."
His face was full of apology.
Jiang Zhi hugged the box he handed her, beaming with joy. "Thank you so much, Master!"
This is a godsend.
She had long planned to leave Xuzhou, and with these silver notes, she could go wherever she wanted.
“But there is one thing I hope Miss will agree to,” Shen Ci’an said solemnly, looking at her. “If you find a place to stay, please send a message to the Shen residence to let me know that you are safe and sound.”
Jiang Zhi was startled.
Shen Ci'an actually knew she was leaving too?
“No matter what, I have shared a bed with Miss for many days,” Shen Ci’an said with a bitter smile, as if she knew what she was thinking. “I know you have been planning to leave this place for a long time.”
*
The small boat traveled on the Bian River for about ten days.
The two Di people tied up inside the cabin were no longer human.
He was covered in blood and riddled with wounds. Half of his eyeball had been gouged out, his fingernails had been pulled out, his hand bones were broken, and his legs hung limply like cotton wool.
Lu Yuan sat upright in front of the two men, slowly fiddling with the torture instruments in his hands.
After being tortured for so long, these two finally managed to utter a few truthful words.
It turns out they were just unlucky to have their goods hijacked.
Because they were ordered to stay in Xuzhou on business, they ran out of money and had no choice but to target the cargo ships.
They originally wanted to pick a fat sheep, but they didn't expect to kick a nut to crack like Lu Yuan.
But they refused to reveal any details about what they were doing in Xuzhou.
Lu Yuan's patience finally ran out.
“I don’t mind bringing two corpses back to the capital. Since they’re useless, let’s just kill them.”
He rubbed his aching temples and gestured for his men to take action.
At this moment, one of the Di people spoke up, "It's about time. It's alright to tell you Qi Dynasty people now."
"We are looking for a woman in Xuzhou and want to take her away."
"We discovered her trail that day, but we didn't have enough money. We must have succeeded by now. Judging by the time, she should already be on her way to the North."
Lu Yuan's heart skipped a beat, and a bad premonition rose within him.
Who are you trying to kidnap?
The Di man's words confirmed his suspicions: "His surname is Jiang, and his given name is Zhi. The chief said that this man is of great use to our war effort."
With a "crack", the long whip in Lu Yuan's hand fell to the ground.
When Jiang Zhi woke up from her coma, she felt a dull pain in the back of her head.
She looked around.
They found themselves in a horse-drawn carriage.
The car windows were nailed shut, so she couldn't see the outside scenery. Only the bumpy, swaying sensation told her that she was rushing on her way.
The sound of horses' hooves was constant nearby, indicating that quite a few people were following.
She was shaken so badly that her bones felt like they were about to fall apart.
What exactly happened?
She had packed her bags, bid farewell to the Feng family, and was waiting at the dock for the boat that Ye Liangze had prepared for her.
Unexpectedly, I felt a pain in the back of my neck, and then I knew nothing more.
Now all her money and belongings are gone, and even her jewelry is nowhere to be found. She is only wearing one piece of clothing.
Did we encounter robbers who plunder and steal?
Jiang Zhi tried hard to recall, but to no avail.
Just then, the carriage suddenly lurched, and a burly figure opened the door and entered, throwing a steamed bun in front of her.
"eat."
The man was tall and burly, wearing a black mask that revealed only his sinister eyes.
Jiang Zhi took it and tried to get information out of him, "Who are you people, and why did you kidnap me?"
The man just sneered, "You'll see when we get there. Just stay put, or you'll only suffer more."
After saying that, he didn't even glance at Jiang Zhi, closed the carriage door, and got off.
Although he covered his face, Jiang Zhi could still tell from his broken Mandarin that he was probably not from the Central Plains.
Jiang Zhi frowned deeply, stood up and started banging on the carriage, shouting, "Stop the car! Stop the car! Stop the car right now!"
At first, no one paid any attention to her; they just kept going.
Jiang Zhi kept shouting until her voice changed, then the person outside impatiently came up and yanked open the car door, saying, "What are you yelling about? If you keep shouting, I'll poison your voice."
Jiang Zhi bit her lip, feigning discomfort, "I... I have an upset stomach and need to relieve myself. If I don't go soon, I won't be able to hold it in."
"Troublesome." The man's eyes were hard to describe, but he couldn't really leave her in the carriage, so he pulled out a black cloth to blindfold her, told everyone to rest where they were, and then pointed to someone to accompany her to a tree not far away to take care of things.
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