Lu Wanning deliberately feigned exhaustion. In fact, she had already regained consciousness. Squinting her eyes, she sized up the situation. In the pitch - black carriage, she and Zhen Yan were not tied up but simply tossed together. Probably, the men thought they were just weak women and there was no need to be too strict with them.
After getting used to the darkness for a while, she could see a bit by the light filtering through the curtains. There were two men, both quite thin. One seemed tall and the other short.
Their faces were not clear.
The tall one gave a lecherous smile. "These two young ladies today are both quite good - looking. One of them is even from the capital."
The short one quickly said, "Don't act recklessly. The higher - ups said that this batch of women should be virgins. They've only been targeting young girls. It's not easy to find these two good ones. If you ruin them, do you still want your life?"
The tall one sneered. "I'm just talking tough. I'm not really going to do anything to them. Besides, our heads are already on the line for this business. When has the higher - up ever cared about our lives?"
The short one pushed him. "Don't talk nonsense. Be careful of being overheard."
The tall one didn't care at all. "These two? They were drugged. They won't wake up. Don't worry."
The short one sighed and said, "We lost one yesterday and two today. The guards here will be strengthened tomorrow. It'll be even more difficult then."
They didn't know that Lu Wanning and Zhen Yan had taken the Refreshing Pills early on, so most of the drugs were useless to them. Since the men didn't take any action, Lu Wanning and Zhen Yan also held back.
Lu Wanning was calculating in her mind. There were two men in the carriage and at least one coachman outside. Moreover, they had been traveling for half an hour and still hadn't reached their destination, which meant the distance was quite far.
After traveling for two and a half hours, the carriage slowed down. It felt like they were going up a mountain. Soon, the carriage stopped.
The men inside and outside the carriage got off. They looked around and then escorted Lu Wanning and Zhen Yan out.
The tall one took the opportunity to touch Lu Wanning's face.
Lu Wanning glared at him angrily.
The tall one laughed loudly. "Look, this young lady has a fiery temper. It must be really interesting to play with someone like her."
The short one pushed him again. "I told you not to have wild thoughts. The masters are inside. Are you tired of living?"
The coachman came over with a rope, intending to tie up Lu Wanning and Zhen Yan.
Just then, a firework exploded in the sky. Lu Wanning and Zhen Yan glanced at each other and attacked simultaneously. The coachman fell to the ground immediately. The two men beside him didn't even have time to scream before the secret guards nearby slit their throats.
At the sight of the blood, Lu Wanning felt nauseous and ran aside to vomit.
She hadn't rested well last night. The carriage ride had made her dizzy. She hadn't eaten in the morning and had eaten very little yesterday because the food didn't suit her taste. Now her stomach was empty, and all she could vomit was a little water.
Zhen Yan patted her on the back. "Are you okay?"
Lu Wanning shook her head. "So this is what beheading looks like. It's so scary."
Compared with Lu Wanning, Zhen Yan was more experienced and not afraid. She just helped Lu Wanning into the carriage and sit properly. She originally wanted to find a piece of clothing for Lu Wanning to put on, but seeing that the people here were all dirty, she couldn't bring herself to do it, so she gave up.
Then they heard the sound of horseshoes nearby. Seeing Lu Wanning's pale face, Zhen Yan got up and leaned out to look. It was Prince Yu leading his guards.
Zhen Yan felt relieved. She quickly got out of the carriage and trotted forward, waving. "Your Highness, Your Highness."
Sheng Jinyu dismounted with a tense face and asked, "Where's Lu Wanning?"
Zhen Yan pointed at the carriage. "She's not feeling well. Your Highness, could you lend me your cloak? I'll put it on her."
Sheng Jinyu's face turned pale instantly. What did "not feeling well" mean? Had something happened in the carriage? But Zhen Yan seemed fine and didn't look like she had been violated. Had something only happened to Lu Wanning? Was she too stupid to resist? Even if she couldn't resist, she only needed to shout, and the secret guards would have saved her.
Was it because Lord Fang didn't explain clearly, or was this woman acting on her own initiative, eager to make contributions?
Although Sheng Jinyu was having wild thoughts, his hands didn't stop. He stuffed the whip into Zhen Yan's hand, took off his cloak, and stepped forward to lift the curtain of the carriage.
He saw Lu Wanning looking weak, leaning against the carriage wall with a frown. Her face was an unnatural pale color, as if she was extremely uncomfortable.
Sheng Jinyu's heart sank. It was all his fault. Although the Refreshing Pill could neutralize most drugs, it wasn't absolute. Maybe Lu Wanning had been drugged with something else. She was so weak. How could she resist the actions of several strong men?
Why had he come up with such a stupid idea yesterday?
Well, it was his fault. Anyway, he would marry her and treat her well.
Sheng Jinyu's hands trembled involuntarily. He wished he could slap himself hard.
Lu Wanning slowly woke up. Seeing Sheng Jinyu in front of her, she was just about to speak when she felt nauseous again. She got up and pushed Sheng Jinyu away, then vomited out of the carriage.
She vomited so violently that it was all the water in her stomach. The vomiting made her forehead throb.
Sheng Jinyu wasn't steady enough after being pushed hard by her and rolled to the ground. He got up immediately in a mess and looked at her blankly. "What... What's going on?"
Zhen Yan ran over to pat Lu Wanning's back and explained, "Maybe she can't stand the sight of blood... No, that's not right. She's seen blood before. It's just that your secret guards killed the men right in front of us just now. Look, the headless one over there had his head chopped off by your secret guard in one blow. The blood spurted so high. Ning'er was stimulated and then..."
Lu Wanning was feeling a bit better, but after hearing Zhen Yan's vivid description, she couldn't hold it back again and vomited as if she wanted to empty her whole stomach.
Sheng Jinyu's face improved a lot. He asked repeatedly, "So, you're okay? She's okay too?"
Zhen Yan gave him a strange look. "What could happen to us? With so many people around, how could something happen to us? Your Highness, I'm very good at kung fu. Ning'er, are you okay?"
Sheng Jinyu couldn't help but laugh, which stunned the guards beside him. They had only seen the prince sneer when he was angry and fake - smile in front of the Empress Dowager and the Emperor, but they had never seen the prince smile so contentedly like this.
After vomiting enough, Lu Wanning took out a handkerchief to wipe her mouth. Looking up, she saw Sheng Jinyu's annoying smile. She was really angry. "Your Highness, Prince Yu, who am I working so hard for? You don't show any understanding at all. Instead, you're making fun of me?"