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

After the day after tomorrow, we can go and do some simple shopping. At that time, we will have that excuse to properly arrange our three meals a day.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Gu Nanzhi's life was going perfectly according to plan, but things were clearly not going to be peaceful in the palace where she had taken things.

The previous theft case had been investigated for two days with no leads whatsoever, and yet, under these circumstances, the thief committed another crime.

This time it was the Imperial Hospital, the Empress's Kunning Palace. The same methods were used, and everything disappeared overnight, leaving no trace.

Because of the theft, palace security had been strengthened in the past two days. However, even with such tight security, the same theft occurred again within just two days.

The emperor was once again enraged. Faced with the wrath of the Son of Heaven, the ones who suffered the most were Commander Wang and Minister Zheng of the Court of Judicial Review. Not only did they suffer, but they were also completely innocent victims.

They have really done their best these past two days, working tirelessly to solve the theft case, but the result is still no result.

Regardless of the methods they employed to track people or the whereabouts of stolen goods, they failed to obtain any leads in just two days.

The Dali Temple had encountered all sorts of bizarre and difficult cases before, but none had ever been as clueless as this one. They had used every investigative method they could think of, while also having to withstand pressure from the Emperor.

Whenever they were summoned by the emperor to inquire about the progress of the case, they felt as if their heads could fall at any moment.

"Your Majesty, I have already led a search. The modus operandi is the same as in the treasury case; both left no trace and made no noise, taking everything away silently."

"Your Majesty, we have questioned the guards from last night, but they have not obtained any clues. As before, no thieves have been found to have broken in."

"Useless, useless! What are you all good for? The national treasury was robbed and the investigation is still inconclusive. In just two days, the thieves have succeeded again. Are you waiting for the thieves to empty the entire palace?"

The emperor, who was the Son of Heaven of the Nation, had lost his composure and had become increasingly irritable in the past two days. The theft of the entire national treasury was enough to give him a headache.

Faced with the Emperor's wrath, both the Minister of Justice and Commander Wang were worried about their own heads while simultaneously trying to quell the Emperor's anger.

The two consecutive days of major thefts not only caused headaches for the emperor, the victims, and the ministers investigating the cases, but also put everyone in the other palaces of the imperial palace on edge.

After all, the thieves were able to move freely within such a heavily guarded palace and empty the entire palace and treasury, and they even committed the theft in two separate incidents.

There was a sense of wanton theft, as if they were afraid it would be their turn next.

The concubines all quietly hid their valuables, but judging from the two thefts, it seemed that hiding them wouldn't help much, but it was still some consolation.

Not only within the palace, but also in the homes of some ministers outside the palace, a sense of insecurity prevailed. They were doing their utmost to hide valuables, the deeper the better.

Besides the palace, the Prime Minister's residence and the Minister's residence were also robbed. The thieves didn't seem to care about any grudges; they acted as if it were nothing, and were incredibly skilled, appearing and disappearing without a trace.

They were especially reminded not to target their own family, and to be extra careful and discreet whenever they went out or did anything else, and not to be ostentatious.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Gu Nanzhi had no interest in thinking about the commotion within the capital city. At this moment, she was secretly pleased, thinking that her opportunity had arrived.

It turned out that it was lunchtime, and they had only stopped to rest for a few minutes when the guards distributed food. They had just received their food and were beginning to eat when…

Suddenly, one of the escorts frantically carried the other on his back as they ran out of the bushes, calling out for their boss.

"Boss, boss!"

Chen Qiang was sitting and resting peacefully when he suddenly heard this anxious voice, and he had no choice but to look up in the direction from which the sound came.

The result was quite surprising; the person on the man's back was none other than his younger brother, Chen Gang.

what happened?

Without a second thought, Chen Qiang got up and ran forward, asking in a deep voice, "What happened? Gangzi, Gangzi?"

This was the first time he had taken his younger brother on a delivery mission. He couldn't let anything happen to his brother. How did he end up being carried back after just going to the bathroom?

"Boss, Chen Gang got bitten by a snake, and it's poisonous."

With someone helping him from behind, the man carrying Chen Gang put Chen Gang down from his back and also informed him of the situation.

By this time, the other escorts had also gathered around. The escort mission was a long journey, and since they were all brothers, they couldn't bear to see another person get into trouble.

Poisonous snake?

Upon hearing the man's words, everyone's face stiffened. Being bitten by a venomous snake was no small matter; without timely antidote, it could be fatal. The important thing was that none of the dozen or so people present understood pharmacology.

"Chen Gang, Chen Gang"

"Boss, what do we do? None of us know anything about pharmacology, and there's no doctor anywhere in the world."

Chen Qiang's face was filled with worry as he looked at the two blackened teeth marks a few inches above his younger brother's right ankle. Although he didn't understand pharmacology, he knew from the blackened appearance around the teeth marks that the toxicity was quite high.

Looking at Chen Gang again, his face had turned somewhat pale, and he seemed to be having some difficulty breathing.

"elder brother"

"Gangzi, I'm here. I'll take you to a doctor. Don't be afraid."

As expected of the eldest brother, Chen Qiang quickly calmed down in the face of the situation. He comforted his younger brother while giving instructions to the others.

"Old Cao, go ask among the prisoners if they know anything about pharmacology, quick!"

"Yes"

The person whose name was called immediately went to question the prisoner, and it was at this moment that Qian Laosi also realized what was happening. Thinking of his own situation, he offered some words of guidance with a hint of uncertainty.

"Boss, Princess Yan... perhaps she understands pharmacology."

That woman was able to give him such a potent poison; he figured she must know pharmacology. Qian Laosi was trying to avoid Gu Nanzhi as much as possible, but seeing Chen Gang poisoned by snake venom, he couldn't just stand by and do nothing.

The escorts were positioned not far from where Gu Nanzhi and her group were, and they had already seen everything that was happening on their side. Watching all this, Gu Nanzhi thought to herself that this opportunity had come without any effort at all.

For many exiles, the misfortune of the escorts was more of a source of schadenfreude than anything else. These escorts, who had swaggered along the way, not only gave them black-faced flatbread but also frequently threatened and beat them with whips, subjecting them to endless suffering and humiliation.

Now that he's been bitten by a venomous snake, he deserves to die.

While they gloat over others' misfortunes, they are even more fearful of themselves. In the wild, they must be careful to avoid being harmed by poisonous snakes, insects, or other pests.