Fan Zehao was busy looking for people, while A'le Wang was busy planning. They were each occupied with their own tasks.
At this moment, Zhao Jiaqi, who was confined and bound, was desperately trying to figure out a way to escape.
She struggled to get up from the disheveled bed and jumped down. Reaching the wooden pillar, she stood with her back to it and began to rub her bound hands against the wood, attempting to saw through the ropes. After a long time of scraping, she was unsuccessful.
However, the ropes did loosen a little, which made Zhao Jiaqi feel much happier. She redoubled her efforts, moving her hands up and down. With persistence, she finally managed to loosen the ropes.
She bent down and quickly untied the ropes on her feet. This entire process took more than half an hour.
The sky gradually darkened. A strong aroma of meat wafted from the yurt, and soon, shouting could be heard from outside. Though she couldn't make out the words clearly, she guessed they were calling everyone for dinner.
As she was thinking this, the guards outside walked away. Listening to their footsteps fade into the distance, she peeked through a small gap. Indeed, the group was gathered around a pot, eating in small clusters.
If not now, when?
She couldn't remember the way back, but she knew the general direction. This was the vast grassland, with no landmarks to guide her.
She looked up at the sky as the moon rose and sighed softly.
Where should she run? What if she got lost and was eaten by wolves? That would be an even more ignominious death.
Never mind. The most dangerous place is often the safest. She decided to find a place to hide.
Soon, Kageel learned that someone had escaped, and his face changed drastically. He organized his men and went out with torches to search. As the lights receded into the distance, Zhao Jiaqi finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Before she could fully relax, the search party seemed to be returning. She was so frightened that her heart leaped into her throat. Peeking out from the sheep pen, she saw the simple-minded fellow leading the men in a thorough search, and tears welled up in her eyes.
She stood up, conspicuous among the sheep, and waved her arms at the approaching figures, shouting, "Husband, I am here."
"Here."
Her cry startled the sheep, and their bleating joined in, causing a commotion. The crowd surged forward. Ignoring the danger, she only felt that seeing her husband, her anxiously held breath could finally settle, and she could feel safe.
Fan Zehao followed the sound and, upon seeing his wife, sprinted over. He embraced her as she emerged from the sheep pen, examining her anxiously and asking, "Are you hurt? Where are you injured?"
"I'm fine. This place is not safe; we need to leave quickly."
Zhao Jiaqi didn't elaborate, uttering only a few words before pulling her husband to leave. Just then, Kageel returned with his men, blocking their path.
From atop his horse, he saw Fan Zehao and let out a loud laugh, "You've walked right into a trap."
As if mocking wasn't enough, he continued triumphantly, "I remember a saying from your Yun country: 'Though you tread through a thousand shoes, you can't find what you're looking for, and then it appears effortlessly.' "
He then burst into laughter, "Princess Consort, you are truly cooperative. If I hadn't intentionally given you the chance to escape, how could the Regent have smoothly entered my territory? What you are now is like catching a turtle in a jar, isn't it?"
Fan Zehao, with his arm around his wife, finally understood, no matter how foolish he might have been, that this man was the one who had captured his wife.
He glanced sideways at A'le, who was sketching, and said, "King A'le, is this how you treat your guests?"
A'le, now directly addressed, saw that things had come to this point and stopped hiding in the background. He waved his hand, and his men surrounded Fan Zehao and his companions, no longer appearing submissive.
He met Fan Zehao's angry gaze with cold eyes and said ruthlessly, "Originally, I did not intend to deal with you so soon. But you insisted on trespassing onto my territory, and I had no choice but to act."
Hearing his words, Zhao Jiaqi wasn't particularly shocked, but Fan Zehao was greatly surprised. His own vision was truly flawed; he hadn't realized that the person who had always supported him harbored such sinister intentions.
"You've hidden yourself quite deeply," Fan Zehao replied, pausing slightly. "What happens between us men has nothing to do with women. Release my wife and let her return safely to Yun Country. I will stay and let you deal with me."
"Husband..."
Zhao Jiaqi choked back a sob and clutched the sleeve of the man beside her. She understood that if he stayed, it would be a dead end, with no chance of survival.
Feeling the tremor of the woman beside him, he lowered his head and smiled, reassuring her, "I told you, as long as I am here, you will not be harmed."
As he caressed her hand, he subtly applied pressure. Zhao Jiaqi's mind buzzed as if exploding, going completely blank for a moment. It wasn't until she heard A'le speak that she regained her senses.
"None of your people will escape today," A'le said, his face grim. He continued, "Out of consideration for the Princess Consort's past kindness to me, I can allow you to die together and be buried together. This is the greatest favor I can bestow upon you."
"Favor?" Fan Zehao scoffed, sneering, "It's more like biting the hand that feeds you."
He didn't want to waste any more words. He asked, "Killing me will do you no good. How about we negotiate terms? It's better than this stalemate."
This proposal suited A'le's intentions. He nodded to Fan Zehao, "Then, I shall trouble the Regent and the Princess Consort."
As soon as he finished speaking, the couple was immediately bound. This time, the binding was different, much tighter than when she was tied earlier.
The people who had come with them were also tied up like rice dumplings, without exception.
The royal palace was brightly lit.
In the opulent hall, only the couple, A'le, and Kageel were present, seated around a table. Excellent tea was steaming before them.
A'le raised his rugged eyebrows and said, "This is the tea you once gifted me. But alas, I prefer milk tea here, the salty kind."
Fan Zehao didn't care whether the milk tea was sweet or salty. What he was thinking about now was how to ensure his wife's safe return to Yun Country.
"Tell me, what will it take to let my wife go? Name your price."
A'le looked at Zhao Jiaqi, then at Fan Zehao. His thin, cold lips parted, "You truly dote on your wife. Even now, you are still trying to secure a chance for her to live."
"She is the mother of my child. The child has already lost his father; he cannot lose his mother as well," Fan Zehao replied simply.
A'le thought of their three children, all around twelve or thirteen years old. It was plausible for parents to sacrifice their own lives for the sake of their children.
He pondered for a long time, considering that letting Zhao Jiaqi go might be like releasing a tiger back into the wild.
Seemingly sensing his hesitation to let his wife go, Fan Zehao frowned slightly and spoke again.
"Are you afraid of my wife? Is that why you dare not let her leave?"
A'le frowned, not wanting to say more. Kageel, on the other hand, sneered, "A woman like her who can't even ride a horse—how could we be afraid of her? It's laughable."