"This King is indeed an idiot, otherwise how could he possibly like a heartless woman like you!"
Prince Qin was furious. He wanted to discipline Xiao Man, but he couldn't bring himself to hit her. If he scolded her, she was asleep and it would be useless. He couldn't help but push her, "Move over a bit."
Xiao Man obediently shifted inward. Seeing this, Nan Gongyu's anger subsided. He got into bed, lay down, and looked at Xiao Man's familiar sleeping face from the side, a smile curling on his lips.
"Your drinking etiquette is truly awful. From now on, you absolutely cannot claim to be able to hold your liquor."
Xiao Man seemed to hear him and grumbled in dissatisfaction, taking another sip. Nan Gongyu chuckled and flicked her nose, causing Xiao Man to frown deeply and burrow directly into Nan Gongyu's embrace.
Nan Gongyu gasped, realizing he was only torturing himself. After a long while, he pried Xiao Man off, resignedly grabbed a quilt, and went to sleep on the floor. Sleeping in the same bed as Xiao Man at this moment was simply too agonizing!
When she woke up, Nan Gongyu was no longer in the room. Xiao Man sat up, recalling the events of the previous night, but couldn't remember anything. She immediately got out of bed, put on her shoes, and was about to go downstairs when she saw Nan Gongyu entering with food.
"You're awake. There's hot water in the basin. Go wash your face, rinse your mouth, and then come over to eat breakfast. We need to set off early after eating."
Xiao Man washed her face and rinsed her mouth, then sat down at the table. She cautiously glanced at Nan Gongyu. Seeing that his face was uninjured, she breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, she hadn't gotten drunk and acted crazy, attacking His Highness, Prince Qin.
"You were drunk last night. Did you know that?" Nan Gongyu said softly.
Xiao Man's body stiffened. "I... didn't do anything I shouldn't have, did I?"
"You beat up those two burly men and rescued that young lady. Now that young lady is lingering outside our door, wanting to come home with you."
Xiao Man heard this. A young lady? What young lady? She had no recollection.
But it was fine if she had hit someone else. As long as she hadn't hit His Highness, Prince Qin, everything else was negotiable.
"Also, you flirted with this King."
Xiao Man nearly spat out her porridge. She had flirted with Prince Qin!
"I... couldn't have, could I?"
"You even insisted on pulling this King into bed, refusing to let go, and wanting to sleep with this King."
Xiao Man wished she could bury her face in her porridge bowl. Drinking was such a disaster. She had thought the wine wasn't strong, but she never expected the after-effects to be so potent. Half a pot had completely knocked her out!
"Your Highness, please forgive me. I was drunk and did not intend to offend Your Highness."
Nan Gongyu glanced at Xiao Man. "You also called this King a brat, said you'd beat me so badly my mother wouldn't recognize me, and claimed I cried so ugly in a pile of dead bodies."
Xiao Man felt a chill run down her spine. She swallowed in embarrassment, realizing she was utterly finished. To think she had revealed such a thing! The incident of Nan Gongyu hiding in a pile of dead bodies and crying was such a humiliating memory. How could she have blurted it out? Would Nan Gongyu suspect her?
"I deserve to die. I was talking nonsense. I will never drink excessively again!"
Nan Gongyu ate his porridge as he said, "I know you have a connection with Yunqi's Dugu Man. If you don't want to talk about it, I won't press you."
"I and she..."
"Besides this King, only Dugu Man knows about me hiding in a pile of dead bodies and crying. She was the one who pulled me out of that pile of corpses back then."
Xiao Man fell silent. Letting Nan Gongyu misunderstand that she had a connection with Dugu Man was better than letting him suspect she was Dugu Man. Besides, Nan Gongyu had said he wouldn't inquire further. She would deny it to her death; no one could force her!
"Eat quickly so we can set off. My father is probably waiting in Cangzhou to deal with me."
"Mm." Nan Gongyu looked at the feigning composure Xiao Man, a smile in his eyes, but also a hint of worry.
Dugu Man was already dead. What was Xiao Man's relationship with Dugu Man? Was Xiao Man's insistence on destroying Yunqi a form of revenge for Dugu Man?
But Dugu Man was from Yunqi's noble Dugu family, while Xiao Man was from the Yusheng General's manor. One was the renowned Empress Dowager of Yunqi, and the other was a young lady hidden in the boudoir of a general's manor. These two, separated by more than ten years, how did they become involved? Sud an Novel Network.
Dugu Mingyu, Dugu Luo, unknown forces lurking in the shadows, and the Crimson Feather Iron Cavalry—all these things suggested that Xiao Man and Dugu Man had a deep connection. If, one day, Xiao Man were to stand on the opposite side of Yusheng... No, Xiao Man would not become his enemy!
On the road, Xiao Man couldn't help but glance back, her gaze fixed on Prince Qin. "Why is this person still following us?"
Nan Gongyu's expression was indifferent. "You caused the trouble, you deal with it yourself."
"I've already compensated her with money. Why is she still following us?" Xiao Man looked utterly dejected. She was probably the unluckiest person to have ever attempted a heroic rescue. Not only did she save someone, but she also had to pay them, and on top of that, the person wanted to latch onto her. This was clearly a case of deliberate entanglement!
Xiao Man secretly vowed to never drink again and to turn a blind eye to injustice on the road!
Nan Gongyu heard her. "She wants to repay you."
"I'm afraid the person she wants to repay isn't me," Xiao Man scoffed. She spurred her horse, galloping away. Nan Gongyu immediately chased after her, leaving the trailing woman far behind.
After Xiao Man entered Cangzhou, she parted ways with Nan Gongyu. Nan Gongyu received news from the capital and needed to return immediately. Xiao Man, meanwhile, quietly scaled the wall into her old home in Cangzhou. Finding no abnormalities in her courtyard, she breathed a sigh of relief and pushed open the window to climb inside.
"Miss!"
Xiao Man leaped into the room. "It's good that everything is fine. I thought my father had come to Cangzhou."
Qiu Tong hesitated, wanting to tell Xiao Man that the General had not only come to Cangzhou but had also seen through their scheme and returned to the capital in a fit of rage.
"Was your journey to the Western Regions smooth?" Ying Xue tugged at Qiu Tong's sleeve, signaling her not to tell Xiao Man and to let Xiao Man be happy for a while.
"It was alright. Although I haven't found an effective antidote, there's a glimmer of hope." Xiao Man said as she changed her clothes. "In a couple of days, we'll return to the capital."
"That might not be possible."
"Why?" Xiao Man asked gently.
"The General said that as soon as you returned, you were to depart for the capital immediately, without any delay."
Xiao Man's expression turned uglier than a cry. "My father has been here?"
"He has. On your birthday, the General specifically came from the capital to spend it with you. As soon as he entered, he saw through our deception and questioned your whereabouts..." Qiu Tong cautiously looked at Xiao Man. "We told the General that you left as soon as you exited the capital and went west. We don't know what you were doing."
"Never mind. On the way back, I guessed that Father would definitely come to Cangzhou to see me. It was expected."
"Then why didn't you rush back earlier!"
"That would have required me to be able to rush back!" Xiao Man said with a headache. "It was only after His Highness, Prince Qin, reminded me that I remembered Father always spends my birthday with me."
"The General brought you a gift," Qiu Tong immediately went to get the birthday present Xiao Zhen had prepared for Xiao Man. It was a box full of military strategy books. Xiao Man glanced at it; it was as expected. Every year, he gave her books, and her study was already overflowing.
"Prepare yourself. We'll return to the capital tomorrow. I need to think of a way to appease Father," Xiao Man fretted. She had been hoping that perhaps her father was too busy this year and would forget her birthday, but she had thought too much!