Chapter 361 Lie Down

A Si struck with considerable force, but without employing internal energy. Although Gao Yujuan took a hard blow, it was merely superficial, causing no internal damage.

Li Man'er secretly praised A Si’s perception and restraint.

"What kind of decent person are you?" Gao Yujuan seemed to have adopted a 'what's the worst that can happen' attitude. "You're framing me. I won't admit to something I didn't do."

Li Man'er glanced at Wu Ying.

Wu Ying quickly responded, "General, it was a case of caught red-handed. We apprehended her in the act." She seemed to recall something else and added, "There were also witnesses. She had no choice but to confess."

"I won't confess, not even if you beat me to death," Gao Yujuan knew that admitting it meant death. If she could grit her teeth and die, it wouldn't matter, as long as her two children weren't implicated.

Unfortunately, her plan was doomed from the start. Li Man'er saw through her thoughts at a glance and sneered, "Do you think by not confessing, you can save your wretched life? Do I need evidence to kill you, or to kill your entire family?"

Li Man'er's dark eyes held no warmth; they were bottomless, as if hiding a man-eating beast.

"No, you can't," Gao Yujuan lunged at Li Man'er like a madwoman. However, her hands and feet were bound, and after a few wriggles on the ground, she couldn't even touch Li Man'er's clothes. Instead, Wu Ying grabbed her hair and pulled her aside.

"Tell me, who gave you the veratrum? And who told you to put poison in the dumpling filling?"

Gao Yujuan closed her eyes, preparing to bite off her tongue. Fortunately, Wu Ying had anticipated this and dislocated her jaw.

A flicker of admiration crossed Li Man'er's eyes; she hadn't expected this skill.

"Keep an eye on her. Don't let her die," Li Man'er instructed. "When I return today, I'll deal with her then."

Wu Ying immediately replied, "Rest assured, General. She will be kept safe and sound for your return." With that, she nimbly placed the large basket back over Gao Yujuan's head.

Li Man'er nodded with satisfaction. "A Si, let's go!" As she spoke, she took something from her怀 and placed it directly into Wu Ying's hands. "This is for you. The weather is getting cold; have something to warm yourself up."

Wu Ying looked down and gasped at the large gold ingot.

Li Man'er didn't rush back. Instead, she asked A Si to return first, while she herself intended to visit the small courtyard to see Qing Yan.

A Si, without suspicion, left first.

Under the cover of night, Li Man'er found a secluded spot and entered her space. Upon emerging, she had transformed into the guise of an ordinary attendant and made her way towards the prefect's mansion.

Having stayed there for a few days, Li Man'er was well aware of the security situation. She easily evaded the patrol teams and smoothly made her way to Feng Wuyun's courtyard.

Feng Wuyun was currently claiming to be ill and had not appeared in public for some time. But everyone knew the truth: he was simply too ashamed to show his face, acting like a coward.

A scoundrel like Feng Wuyun would not easily let Li Man'er off the hook. After several failed attempts to ambush her, his methods had become increasingly despicable.

In the old city, many people wished to see Li Man'er in trouble, but only a few yearned for her death. Apart from Lu Fang, there was Feng Wuyun.

What was Gao Yujuan? A low-class woman willing to sell anything to survive. If she dared to do such a thing, someone must have been backing her.

Lu Fang was one possibility, but was he the one truly in charge?

If Feng Wuyun learned that Gao Yujuan had been captured, he would surely send someone to silence her. Rather than hiding Gao, it was better to capture Feng Wuyun.

The strategy was to capture the king first.

Li Man'er sneaked to Feng Wuyun's door. She hid in her space first to listen to the sounds inside the room. Confirming there was nothing unusual, she quietly exited her space when the area was clear and pushed open the door.

Inside, Feng Wuyun was drinking alone.

This man, the more critical the situation, the calmer he became. He also preferred to be alone, believing that certain thoughts became especially pleasant when one was by themselves.

Perhaps due to the wine, Feng Wuyun didn't hear the door being gently pushed open. He was calculating the time, thinking that in another hour or two, there would be commotion outside, and the feeling of triumph would intensify.

In a daze, he thought something had darted past him at extreme speed.

Feng Wuyun, having been a military officer, possessed the vigilance of a warrior. Furthermore, he wasn't truly drunk. He immediately stood up and even drew the dagger hidden in his boot.

But the room was silent, with no one in sight.

Feng Wuyun cautiously scanned the surroundings, finding no trace of any anomaly.

Had he been too cautious?

Just then, a strong gust of wind struck from behind him. Feng Wuyun cried out in alarm. Before he could shout, he felt a sharp pain in his neck, his vision darkened, and he knew no more.

Li Man'er put him into a sack and threw him into her space, then began searching Feng Wuyun's room.

She was skilled at finding things. Hidden compartments and secret mechanisms were no challenge for her. Soon, Li Man'er discovered something unusual beneath Feng Wuyun's desk. Two floor tiles were slightly smudged with dirt, not as if they were uncleaned, but as if it had been inadvertently tracked. She knelt and tapped them, indeed finding the two tiles slightly loose.

Li Man'er took a dagger, pried open the floor tiles, and discovered a wooden box hidden beneath the dirt. She brushed the dirt off the box, put it into her space, and then replaced the floor tiles.

Ancient times were truly convenient. Without fingerprinting or DNA technology, it saved her a lot of trouble during her actions.

In ancient times, it was incredibly simple to erase someone's traces.

Li Man'er quietly exited the room, returned to her space to change back into her own clothes, and indeed went to see Li Qingyan. However, he had retired early and she hadn't seen him in person.

But Old Sun and Liu Ya were awake. Out of an abundance of caution, they always took turns resting.

Li Man'er made her presence known to them, spoke a few words, and then returned, at peace.

Along the way, she hummed a tune. Her off-key melody drew many glances, but Li Man'er didn't mind. She even boldly greeted those who looked at her, ensuring everyone knew she had come to see Li Qingyan and then returned alone.

By the time Li Man'er returned to the battlements, the night was already very deep.

The cold wind wailed, mirroring the desolation in Li Man'er's heart.

After midnight, Li Man'er led over forty people down from the battlements. The city gate was quietly opened, and the group filed out, heading into the distance.

The dense night concealed their movements. After traveling about three to four li, Li Man'er suddenly called for them to stop.

"Everyone, get down."

The group didn't quite understand, but they obeyed and all lay flat on the ground.