"Sir!" Guard Xue knelt down until his body touched the ground. The man who had just arrived stopped his horse in front of the guard and dismounted. The man was very tall and bulky, his body covered in dark armor. From his posture and stern face, Lian Hua could tell that the man was not from Yishu.
The tall man glanced at Guard Xue, then ignored the guard who was still kneeling in front of him before turning to Lian Hua who was trembling because a sword had almost cut her neck and her stomach was feeling nauseous again.
"Is that woman Lian Hua from the capital of Yishu?" He asked without taking his eyes off Lian Hua. Lian Hua, who was stared at like that, vomited again.
"Yes, sir. This woman is Lian Hua."
"That Princess Lian Hua?" He asked again, without taking his eyes off Lian Hua who was still vomiting the contents of her stomach.
"Yes, that's right! She's Princess Lian Hua! Oh no, she's not a real princess! She's just a slave who claims to be one!" Lian Hua clenched her fists, furious. Since when did she claim to be a princess? She really was living as one, and all this madness wasn't her doing either!
"Hmmm, I'll take her." The man suddenly approached Lian Hua, who widened her eyes and tried to escape from the man's reach, but what could she do, she would never have been able to escape from the start, the man swiftly lifted her body easily. Lian Hua struggled from the man's grip.
"Let go of me! Let go of me! What do you want from me?! Hey you useless guard! Are you going to let him take me just like that?!" All her efforts yielded nothing but drained energy.
"Sir, are you going to take her to Master Fu Fan?" Asked Guard Xue who raised his head without straightening his body from his original position.
"Yes, I'll take this woman to the border for Lord Fu Fan." In an instant, Lian Hua was already on the horse. Her head was dizzy, and this man was doing something to her. The only sound she heard was Shen Yandao's shouts before her consciousness completely faded.
....
Her entire body ached, and her head was no less sore. Her long eyelashes trembled, accompanied by a heartbreaking groan. Her eyelids opened, revealing a pair of wide, bright brown eyes. Lian Hua, who had just regained consciousness, felt an intense nausea, and she vomited out all the contents of her stomach, leaving only a clear liquid, as her stomach was already fed up with the bland porridge she had been eating for the past month.
A few moments later, Lian Hua raised her head, took a deep breath as she calmed herself down, the pain in her head increased and her vision was blurry until she didn't realize that someone had walked over.
"Eat." The deep, terrifying voice startled Lian Hua, who immediately backed away until her body touched the cold wall behind. The woman screamed, but her voice was choked.
"Who are you?! What do you want from me?!" She picked up a nearby piece of wood and pointed the tip at a tall, intimidating man. The man's face felt like it was burning, burning the skin around her eyes, further increasing Lian Hua's fear.
"Eat, you've been unconscious for a few days." The man handed her some food. The food he served looked much better than that tasteless porridge. Lian Hua swallowed her saliva. It had been a long time since she had eaten a proper meal, and she felt a strong urge to take it.
But before she could take the food, she needed to know who this man was. Not just anyone could just take her away like that. "Answer my question, who are you?!"
The man's sharp gaze seemed like it could split Lian Hua in two, while holding back her fear, she tried to be brave.
"In two days you will meet Lord Fu Fan. You must stay alive until that day comes." Just like that, the terrifying man left Lian Hua, who was still raising her wooden stick towards the empty air.
Fu Fan? Fu Fan? The name sounded familiar. She put it aside for the moment to take the food prepared for her. Lian Hua ate it with gusto. Her feelings immediately turned happy, and her mood instantly improved. That was before she realized that now wasn't the time to be happy. At least if she wanted to survive, she had to make sure her stomach was full.
After finishing the meal, she looked around. She was currently in an old, neglected building. Many of the items were damaged, dust settled on the surrounding furniture, and there were many stones and pieces of wood scattered about. She guessed that whoever the terrifying man had been tasked with kidnapping her before meeting Fu Fan was currently resting.
Fu Fan.
She repeated the name over and over again because the name was really familiar.
She searched her mind again, recalling the names of the nobles and court officials one by one. It seemed Fu Fan wasn't one of them. What was certain was that his memory of this man wasn't a good one.
The scary man said that in two days they would meet Fu Fan, which meant they were heading to the Borders, she was the one who was just kidnapped and the guard who allowed the stranger to take her.
Fu Fan.
"Ah Fu Fan!" She shouted into the empty room. Now she remembered where she had heard that name.
In recent years, she had overheard a conversation between the Third and Second Princes about how terrifying the Borders were, especially for the Yishu people. They lacked a strong military and could only rely on the Zhanshi Kingdom. The Borders was a neutral and free zone, allowing anyone to do whatever they pleased as long as they didn't intrude on each other's territory.
"I heard that someone from Xuanzhe collected many young and beautiful women for himself, he used the girls like objects, many also died because of his violence." That was the content of the conversation between the second and third princes that afternoon. Unbeknownst to the two, Lian Hua, who was playing her Qin in the background, overheard the entire conversation.
"Yes, the Borders is a neutral and free area, if someone has been exiled there, it means that whatever happens to them is no longer the kingdom's business. Anyone can do anything even if they are people from other kingdoms, because basically, the Borders people are no longer under the protection of the kingdom."
"They call the Borders the 'fourth kingdom, the exiled kingdom because its people are exiles." The third prince responded with a laugh.
"Hmm, the problem now is that this person has dared to enter the territory of another kingdom, he is causing a commotion everywhere, the few guards who escorted the prisoners to the Borders also can't do anything. Compared to Zhanshi, he looks down on our kingdom."
"Damn Xuanshe people, I don't even like it when we have to rely on Zhanshi, now Xuanshe is also looking down on our kingdom. Just watch, I will prove that we can be far more powerful than all of them!" The third prince spoke passionately, his fists tightly clenched and pointing towards empty air.
"Hmm, what can you do? I heard that Fu Fan is a truly influential person in Xuanshe, even the king himself is in awe of him. I can only pity those who have to be exiled to the Borders."
"Brother, why do you feel sorry? Them being there already proves that they are not good people! Besides, not many Yunshi people were sentenced to exile to the Borders, the furthest they could go was only to the furthest village from the capital. If someone really had to be exiled to the Borders, I would not sympathize with them!"
Lian Hua, who was plucking the strings of her Qin, thought for a moment. Hadn't she met Fu Fan a few months ago in Xuanshe?
The memories flowed through her head in perfect unison. Panic gripped Lian Hua, who immediately stood up and ran out of the old building. She had to get out of there; she wouldn't see Fu Fan or go to the Borders!
Unfortunately, luck was still not on her side because when she managed to get out of the building, Fu Fan was already there.