Help! The cunning and treacherous minister and I were reborn together!

On the second day of the Lunar New Year, BMWs were everywhere, carriages filled the streets, the Kowloon-style canopy shone like rosy clouds, and long banners fluttered in the wind.

The procession for the Fengshan ceremony stretched from the gates of Shengjing City all the way to Juyang Gate. As far as the eye could see, the crowds were bustling, their robes and silks gleaming, a scene of vibrant beauty and splendor.

Xiao Zong, mounted on his horse, turned back to look for Yuan Zhi. He had just seen her get off the carriage, but he wondered where she had gone. He hoped she hadn't gotten into any trouble.

Unfortunately, there were too many people, and after searching around, he couldn't find anyone, so he could only send Dou Zhao over to check.

Yuan Zhi knew what she was doing, but her legs were still swollen, and she was afraid that sitting in the carriage for a long time would worsen the condition, so she got off and walked around while the procession was moving slowly.

The people from Liangyun Bureau were not far from her carriage. When they saw her get off, they waved to her.

Yuan Zhi chatted with the supervisor for a few minutes, then Dou Zhao rode over and urged her to get into the carriage quickly. Yuan Zhi seemed not to hear him, mingling in the crowd for a while before returning when she got tired.

Once outside the city, the group quickened its pace and arrived at the imperial palace before nightfall, having traveled a full forty li (approximately 20 kilometers).

After arranging the guards, Xiao Zong returned to the room and saw Yuan Zhi dressed in thin clothes, sitting on the bed massaging her legs.

Those who practice martial arts are physically strong, and long journeys have no effect on them. Women in the inner quarters, like Yuan Zhi, who have never traveled far, are all delicate flowers and cannot withstand the bumpy ride.

He sat down opposite her, making a move to grab her leg. Yuan Zhi withdrew her porcelain-white feet and looked at him warily.

"what are you doing?"

"If you keep pounding like that, your leg won't get better even by tomorrow morning. I'm better at treating this than you are. Extend your leg!"

Yuan Zhi bit her cherry lips and put her feet on his legs.

Xiao Zong rolled up her trouser leg and pressed his fingertip against her smooth calf. "If you stay in one position for too long, your legs will become congested with blood. Tomorrow, move around in the carriage and don't sit for too long."

Yuan Zhi hummed in response, her entire body's senses focused on the palm of his hand. With the slightest movement from him, her fingers immediately curled reflexively.

"Bear with it."

His large hands enveloped her calves, pushing, pulling, and kneading them forcefully.

"Well……"

Yuan Zhi groaned in pain, her fingers gripping the mattress, the tips of her nails turning slightly white.

Hearing her cry of pain, Xiao Zong didn't lessen his strength. After an incense stick's time, Yuan Zhi was in so much pain that she almost lost consciousness and stopped his hand.

"I'm ready!"

"It's done in such a short time?"

"That's great! You won't believe me, just look!"

Yuan Zhi pulled her legs back, slipped on her shoes, got out of bed, and took a few steps. She had originally intended to escape torture, but to her surprise, after walking, she found that her legs really didn't hurt anymore and felt quite light.

Xiao Zong believed him for the time being, "If it doesn't hurt anymore, come up and sleep. We still have to travel tomorrow."

"it is good."

The two lay side by side, and Yuan Zhi looked at the canopy above her head, suddenly feeling a little reluctant to leave.

Her trip to Daishan was both a farewell to him and an opportunity for her to break free from the past and be reborn.

Putting aside the relationship between Xiao Zong and Consort Zheng, as a husband, he was indeed a considerate, decisive, and reasonable man.

He defied his own mother for her; she didn't want to get pregnant, so he took contraceptives; he gave her gold and silver treasures, prepared New Year's money for her, and rescued her from danger time and time again. Looking at all the men in Shengjing, how many could do that?

If it weren't for the entanglements of their past lives, she might have stayed by his side. Unfortunately, there are no "what ifs" in this world.

Once he finds out that she has also been reborn and lied to him, he'll probably imprison her and torture her to death!

Therefore, extricating herself as soon as possible is her only way to survive.

Yuan Zhi closed her eyes, concealing the tears within, turned her back, and fell into a deep sleep.

The next day, the advance team reported that the original route had been disrupted by a landslide, and they had to detour through Tongzhou.

While the others were unaware of the reason, Yuan Zhi knew perfectly well that the King of Wu had made his move!

Li Kai reviewed the new route and ordered them to travel day and night, reaching Daishan before the Lantern Festival. His men dared not complain, and even with their feet blistered, they had to continue their journey.

Before the New Year, Li Min presented the Southern Xinjiang physician to His Majesty, which moved Li Kai, who then lifted the ban on the Imperial Palace. The Southern Xinjiang physician was also among the group from Daishan.

Yuan Zhi bought some ointment from him and gave it to the injured palace maid and eunuch.

The doctor said sarcastically, "I didn't realize that Madam Xiao was such a kind-hearted person!"

Yuan Zhi smiled and said, "The doctor's willingness to donate medicine truly shows his benevolence and skill, making him a great philanthropist who helps the poor and weak!"

The man withdrew his silver needles. "You've been traveling for days, so please take care of yourself, Madam. If you fall ill from exhaustion, the second time I administer the acupuncture will be much more painful than the first time!"

Yuan Zhi's eyes were cold. "Doctor, rest assured, I am in perfect health. If you wish to perform your medical skills, you should find someone else!"

"Pity."

The man sighed, fiddled with the long needle, and turned to leave.

Dou Zhao walked over and asked, "What did that kid from the Southern Frontier say to you?"

"Just a casual chat, nothing important."

Yuan Zhi rubbed his arms. That man was doing the work of healing the sick and saving lives, so why did he look so sinister, like a dead person?

That evening, Yuan Zhi suddenly developed a high fever, his whole body burning hot like a furnace.

Xiao Zong tried various methods to reduce her fever, but to no avail. Risking alarming His Majesty, he sent Dou Zhao to fetch the imperial physician.

Yuan Zhi's consciousness was blurred by the fire. She grabbed his hand and said intermittently, "It must be... Pu Hong who put a curse on me. Go find him, don't go to call the imperial physician!"

Dou Zhao said, "That's it! Master, Pu Hong spoke with the young mistress today, and neither of them seemed very happy. Could it be because of that time..."

"Go and bring Pu Hong here!" Xiao Zong said sternly.

Dou Zhao received the order, strode out, rushed into Pu Hong's tent, bound the man, and brought him over.

Xiao Zong drew his knife and held it to Pu Hong's neck. "Where's the antidote?"

"The commander's words are puzzling. What antidote?" Pu Hong asked with a mocking smile.

Xiao Zong didn't waste any words with him. He reversed the blade and slashed down at his shoulder with enough force to shatter his shoulder blade.

Pu Hong coughed up a mouthful of blood, hunched over and lying on the ground, panting heavily. After catching his breath, he spat out the blood and foam from his mouth, his expression helpless.

"I hate dealing with you brutes; you never reason with each other!"

Xiao Zong tapped his other shoulder, the warning clearly in his voice.

"This is the way of a warrior! I'll ask you one more time, where is the antidote?"

Pu Hong said lazily, "It's in the porcelain bottle in my arms. Do you dare to take it? I'm covered in poison. If you touch it..."

Before he could finish speaking, Xiao Zong walked over, squatted down, and groped around in his arms.

"Hey, aren't you afraid of dying?"

Xiao Zong ignored him, found the antidote, and quickly gave it to Yuan Zhi. A quarter of an hour later, Yuan Zhi's fever subsided, and he weakly opened his eyes.

She leaned against Xiao Zong's chest, drank a few sips of warm water from his hand, her eyes filled with murderous intent as she glared at the man sitting on the ground.

"Who ordered you?"

"Couldn't it be me who's going to kill you?"

Yuan Zhi coughed. "If you wanted to kill me, you wouldn't have saved me in the first place."

Pu Hongdao said, "You wanted to save them then, but now you want to kill them? Is that not allowed?"

"Fine! If you're not lying, then your reminder to me today and your attack on me are acts of eccentricity and arrogance! I hate people like that the most in my life, and we can't coexist."

Yuan Zhi's eyes were murderous: "Dou Zhao, kill him!"