Exile at the start? The princess is no ordinary woman.

By the light of the fire in the corridor, they could see six jailers walking in three orderly rows toward their cell. Behind the two jailers in front were two people struggling to move forward.

A man was carrying another man, who appeared to be unconscious, struggling to walk. Even in the orange firelight, the man carrying the other could be seen to have a deathly pale face. Gu Nanzhi couldn't see the person on his back, because the other man's head was drooping to the side and obscured by the head of the man carrying the other.

So which of these two is the Prince Yan? Oh! Butler Li said the Prince Yan is lame, so it must be the one on his back. Oh dear! Could he be dead?!

Probably not. If the person was dead, how could they carry the injured person back on their back?

Tsk tsk tsk... The emperor is ruthless! This man was his half-brother, and a cripple at that. Yet he had his home ransacked and was tortured. Truly, the saying "the most ruthless family is the imperial family" is true!

The sound of chains opening came through the clanking noise.

"Prince"

"Prince"

"Your Highness, Lord Cangling"

As the cell door opened, Cang Ling, who had already reached her limit of endurance, was gently shoved from behind by a jailer, tumbling into the cell along with the prince on her back.

Fortunately, Steward Li and several servants from the Prince's mansion caught them, preventing them from falling directly to the ground.

"Your Highness, Your Highness!"

"Your Highness, how could you be so badly injured?"

This contact also revealed the injuries on the two men's bodies; there wasn't a single unbroken patch on their backs. How many strokes of the cane and how severely they must have been beaten!

His lord was already in poor health; how could he possibly survive such a severe injury without immediate treatment? Furthermore, Lord Cangling's back injury was equally serious, yet he insisted on carrying the lord back, which only exacerbated his condition, making it even more shocking.

Gu Nanzhi had been observing the situation from a distance. Although her view was obstructed, she could not see the two people's condition, but based on the few steps she had just seen them take, they were only seriously injured.

Unable to see the two men, she glanced elsewhere, her gaze sweeping over the inmates in the next cell. While they weren't as agitated as Steward Li and his group upon seeing the two injured men, they didn't seem calm either.

Although Steward Li said that Prince Yan and the people of the Marquis's mansion did not interact or have close relationships, Prince Yan was still their nephew, so it was normal and understandable.

Gu Nanzhi's main mindset at this moment was to watch the show, but her interest in the show was dampened by the people who subsequently appeared outside the cell.

How did this scumbag father end up in jail? He really can't stay still, can he? In two hours, I'll be making a pilgrimage to your mansion...

No sooner had Gu Nanzhi begun to consider this than Gu Honglang put on a show of power.

"The imperial edict has arrived. Prince Yan and Marquis Zhongyong, receive the edict."

Gu Nanzhi's inner monologue: Good heavens, this imperial edict is coming right after me, it can't be anything good. Is she going to be beheaded? Is she going to use Flash to escape?

Upon hearing the words "imperial edict," the prisoners on both sides, even those already arrested and imprisoned by their emperor's order, knelt down in fear, shouting "Long live the emperor! Long live the emperor!" and awaiting the edict.

This was the imperial power of ancient times, but Gu Nanzhi was an exception. She refused to kneel and remained motionless, still sitting against the wall.

With an air of smug arrogance, Gu Honglang walked to the newly opened prison cell door, respectfully took an imperial edict from the eunuch following behind him, and unfolded it.

His eyes swept disdainfully over the kneeling crowd in the cell, especially the prince who had just been brought back, and of course, Gu Nanzhi in the very back corner.

His gaze then fell upon the imperial edict.

"By the mandate of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: I, with the virtue of Heaven, govern the people, inheriting the foundation laid by the late Emperor, and establishing order throughout the land. Since being granted this title, Prince Jun Yanchen should faithfully uphold the duties of a vassal, assisting the Imperial Family and working together to bring peace to the realm..."

To Gu Nanzhi, everything before that was just nonsense—the emperor's self-praise and the conviction of Prince Yan for treason. Only the last sentence was the key point.

"...To safeguard the court and ensure the peace of the nation, I have no choice but to strip Jun Yanchen of his noble title, demote him to commoner status, and exile Jun Lan, who is not permitted to return to the capital without being summoned..."

All that buildup was for this one crucial sentence: exile. What a fine place that is! What could be a good place for someone in exile? And Junlan? What good is a nice-sounding name?

Gu Nanzhi's inner monologue: You scumbag father! I knew you'd come running here all of a sudden for no good reason. And now look what's happened—he's exiled her! You lackey of the emperor, just you wait. When you go back to report to the emperor, I'll be emptying your mansion in the next second!

And that emperor, in such a hurry, issuing an edict of exile without even waiting overnight—this talk of treason is definitely suspicious.

Should we be wary of the King of Yan?

Before anyone could react, Gu Honglang went to the door of the adjacent cell and read out the second imperial edict. However, aside from the different recipients, the two edicts were almost identical, both focusing on the same point: the charge of colluding with rebels and treason.

The title of Marquis of Loyalty and Valor was revoked, all his family property and fertile land were confiscated, and he was similarly exiled to Junlan. His descendants for three generations were barred from holding official positions, and so on.

To live a life of loyalty and bravery only to meet such an end must be an overwhelming tragedy.

As soon as the imperial edict was issued, the Qi family was once again filled with weeping. This was exile! Wouldn't that mean the end of their lives?

Seeing this, Gu Nanzhi could clearly see the scheming and ruthless look in Gu Honglang's eyes, even from a distance.

"Guards, take these servants from the Prince's mansion... no, take them out and lock them in other cells so they can be sold off tomorrow."

The servants of the Prince's mansion were initially relieved to hear they would be resold. Since they were already slaves, being sold was better than being exiled. Leaving aside the desolation of exile, the journey itself was fraught with difficulty, even just reaching their destination alive.

The name Junlan is a lie, a beautiful lie. Reality has nothing to do with this name, otherwise why would it be used in a place of exile?

Of course, there are also those who are brave and loyal, such as Xia He, and there is also one on Steward Li's side.

"No, Miss, I don't want to be sold off! I want to stay with you, Miss! I want to go into exile with you!"

"I am also willing to follow Your Highness into exile; please grant my request, sir."

The emperor still granted Gu Honglang the authority to deal with these two servants. Seeing that the two were willing to go and die, Gu Honglang naturally granted their wish; it was just two worthless lives.

"Since you two are so loyal, then I will grant your request. Take everyone else with you."

Xia He was happy to be allowed to stay by the young lady's side.

Gu Nanzhi was now in a dilemma. How had she ended up in exile? Her name had been specifically mentioned and was now among those being exiled.

This is really frustrating. You could either just kill her and then she could teleport away with Xia He to live a carefree life in the capital, or that would be great.

But this situation is neither good nor bad. Should she be exiled directly, or should she escape halfway through the journey?

Before Gu Nanzhi could even come up with an answer, facing the uncertainty of their future, their cell had already emptied. The spacious cell now housed six people, including the two women.