After Ye Zhinan got on the boat, she wanted to sit at the bow. Just then, a yamen runner rushed over. "Miss, the waves are rough at the bow. It's better for you to sit inside."
"I get seasick. If I throw up, there won't be any place to sit inside."
To prove her point, Ye Zhinan deliberately retched twice. The yamen runner had no choice but to back away into the cabin, covering his nose.
Han Xiangmei, under the pretext of taking care of her daughter, sat with her at the bow. Ye Shenyan also wanted to follow them out but was forcibly stopped inside.
"What? Am I not even allowed to get some fresh air?" Ye Shenyan roared.
The yamen runner opened the window with a smiling face. "Sir, you can still get fresh air while sitting inside."
Seeing this, the mother - daughter pair outside wanted to go into the cabin to support Ye Shenyan. But Ye Shenyan secretly waved at them, so they stood still outside.
The boat sailed steadily forward. Ye Zhinan looked at the receding northern border, filled with emotions. Scenes from the past kept flashing through her mind.
A gust of wind blew, disheveling her sideburns. Ripples appeared on the calm water.
Ye Zhinan looked at the waves on the water. She felt something was amiss but couldn't tell what it was. Unconsciously, she leaned closer.
Suddenly, a male voice came from beside her ear. "Miss Ye, the wind and waves are strong outside. Do you want to go inside and rest?"
Ye Zhinan turned around and saw the man who had just spoken. He was standing in front of her with a smiling face.
Although the man looked kind, his smile made people feel uncomfortable.
"No, just bring me a cloak."
The man didn't say anything else. He turned around and went into the cabin. A moment later, he came out with two things in his hands.
One was a white cloak, and the other was a teapot.
"Madam, Miss, have some hot tea to warm yourselves up."
As he said this, he poured two cups of tea and served them. He didn't seem to be leaving and added, "The tea should be drunk while it's hot."
"Thank you!"
Ye Zhinan was annoyed inside but still polite on the surface. However, her eyes were as cold as ice. She picked up the teacup and took a small sip.
Han Xiangmei took a look and also took a small sip.
Seeing this, the man left with a smile.
"Mother, remember what I'm going to say later. Don't panic. Take this first. There's something wrong with the tea. Follow my lead later."
Ye Zhinan quickly took out a pill from her cuff. Han Xiangmei saw that there was no one around and put it in her mouth. Although she tried her best to stay calm, her hands couldn't help shaking. She leaned closer and whispered, "What about your father?"
"I have a plan for father."
After Ye Zhinan gave the instructions, she felt the boat suddenly slow down. The waves behind the boat disappeared.
A moment later, she heard a thud in the cabin. The yamen runner rushed out worriedly and shouted, "Minister Ye has fainted!"
Ye Zhinan immediately grabbed her mother's hand and ran towards the cabin. Just as she reached the cabin door, from a distance, she saw Ye Shenyan slumped beside the window. His eyes were tightly shut, and there was half a cup of tea beside him.
Before she could get closer, her whole body fell. Then she heard Han Xiangmei scream "Daughter" and fall too.
The show was about to start.
After Ye Zhinan fell, she still held Han Xiangmei tightly. She felt someone moving their bodies and trying to pry open her hand, but they couldn't, so they gave up. So she and her mother were laid side by side. There was another person beside them, presumably Ye Shenyan.
At this time, the voice of the yamen runner sounded again.
"Bind them all up and put them in sacks."
They were going to be thrown into the sea!
Ye Zhinan thought to herself. Then another deep male voice sounded.
"Wait. Kill them first and then throw them away!"
Damn it! They're not even human!
Ye Zhinan cursed in her heart. Then she felt her palm tighten.
Han Xiangmei couldn't hold it in anymore.
She quickly tightened her hand, trying to convey a message through their palms.
The next second, she heard the sound of a sword being drawn from above. Immediately afterwards, there was a muffled groan beside her, and something warm seemed to splash on her face.
"It's a pity for this girl. She's so pretty."
It was the deep male voice. The voice sounded familiar. Who was it?
As Ye Zhinan was thinking, she felt someone touch her face. She felt disgusted and wished she could chop off that person's hand and use it as fertilizer right away. But the current problem was that after a gust of sword wind, Han Xiangmei beside her trembled and let out a muffled groan. Then something warm splashed on her face again.
The deep male voice spoke again, this time a bit angry. "What's going on? Can't you be more careful? You've dirtied Miss Ye's face."
After the voice fell, those hands wiped Ye Zhinan's face twice.
It was her turn now.
Ye Zhinan held her breath, but the sword didn't fall for a long time.
What's going on?
Just as she was hesitating whether to open her eyes, a cold and sharp object stabbed into her chest.
Well, it's finally her turn.
With that thought, she let out a muffled groan and spat out blood.
Then she felt herself being tightly tied up, and something was tied to her feet.
It must be a stone!
After the commotion died down, she secretly opened her eyes. She saw it was pitch - black all around. Han Xiangmei's face was right beside her, with her big eyes wide open.
"What..."
"Shh!"
Ye Zhinan made a shushing sound to stop Han Xiangmei from speaking further. Just then, the footsteps of a group of people came. She felt her body being lifted up, and then there was a splash.
Water rushed into the sack.
She quickly broke free from the ropes binding her hands and then untied Han Xiangmei.
The two struggled to get out of the sack. Han Xiangmei wasn't a good swimmer and had already swallowed several mouthfuls of water. She was almost at her limit.
Ye Zhinan quickly dragged her out of the water. She held her mother with one hand and looked for her father with the other. But she couldn't find him anywhere. The boat had already sailed away, and there was no one around. So she took out a life - buoy from her space and put it on Han Xiangmei.
"Hold on. I'll go look for him again!"
Ye Zhinan looked at her mother, who was half - closing her eyes and whose face was turning pale. She gritted her teeth and dived into the water again.
But after searching for a long time, she still couldn't find Ye Shenyan. Before she ran out of strength, she had no choice but to surface. But the next second, she was so shocked that her heart almost stopped.
Han Xiangmei was gone, along with the life - buoy.
"Mother, Father!"
Ye Zhinan didn't care about hiding herself anymore and shouted. But there was only her voice echoing over the empty water.
"Mother... Ah!"
Suddenly, she felt a sinking sensation under her body. It seemed like something was wrapping around her foot.
Oh no! She couldn't get it off!
Ye Zhinan tried to take out her dagger to cut the thing on her foot, but the more she struggled, the tighter it got. A moment later, she ran out of strength, and her whole body began to sink.
She had calculated everything, but still missed this!
Ye Zhinan took a deep breath and sank underwater again. She used all her remaining strength to grab the thing that was wrapping around her. But in a daze, she seemed to see a familiar figure.
As the figure gradually approached her, she felt like she was saved. Just as she was about to wave, she felt a tightening sensation behind her neck and immediately lost consciousness.