About a quarter of an hour later, Mei Yan approached from outside the forest.
Su Yunmo raised an eyebrow, "Princess, oh no… I should call you Consort Lian now. It’s truly been a long time."
Mei Yan stood about two meters away, her face a dark and unpleasant shade, no longer displaying her previous delicate demeanor. "Miss Su is joking. We only met yesterday."
"Oh my, I’d forgotten if you hadn’t mentioned it," Su Yunmo tilted her head, her eyebrows raised.
"Consort's appearance is a bit different today, making me think I haven't seen you in ages."
Mei Yan faltered.
She knitted her brows, her gaze沉沉, "Miss Su, please state your business quickly."
"What? You don't know why I asked you to come here?" Su Yunmo's tone suddenly sharpened, carrying a hint of menace.
Mei Yan was startled by her gaze, took a deep breath, and clenched her fists.
Lin Lang appeared beside them, carrying Zi Yuan, who was still unconscious.
The moment Mei Yan saw Zi Yuan, she understood everything.
Although she had guessed that Su Yunmo, given her personality, wouldn't stand idly by after learning Zi Yuan was cursed, she hadn't expected her to play this card.
"Since it's a transaction, Miss Su, you must also show me the person who wrote the letter to me?"
Su Yunmo turned and condensed power in her hand, smashing it towards the door of the room.
The dilapidated wooden door suddenly exploded, revealing Leng Lingyun, who was tied up inside.
Above Leng Lingyun's head, an iron pillar was suspended. If it fell, it would pierce Leng Lingyun's head.
Leng Lingyun was doomed!
"You only have a quarter of an hour, so you'd best hurry," the little dumpling's voice was an undeniable command.
Mei Yan frowned hatefully, instinctively glancing at Leng Lingyun. After receiving her look, she then looked up at Su Yunmo, "Alright, I agree."
"But you must also promise me that after the curse is broken, you will release her. I believe Miss Su is not someone who breaks her word."
"Of course," Su Yunmo raised her eyebrows and gave Lin Lang a look.
Lin Lang pushed the wheelchair carrying Zi Yuan towards Mei Yan.
Mei Yan cut her finger, letting blood drip onto Zi Yuan, and simultaneously chanted a spell in a low voice.
The drop of blood, following Zi Yuan's pores, entered her body.
The curse was taking effect.
A figure flashed in the darkness.
At this moment, everyone's attention was on Zi Yuan, and no one noticed someone entering the thatched hut.
'Bang!'
Suddenly, a strange noise echoed.
Su Yunmo instinctively turned her head.
A figure in black now stood in the thatched hut, untying the ropes on Leng Lingyun's wrists.
Su Yunmo's eyes darkened, and she quickly waved her hand downwards.
The iron rod then lunged towards Leng Lingyun.
But the figure in black was faster. Before the iron rod could fall, he rescued Leng Lingyun and leaped out through the window.
"Young Mistress!" Lin Lang cried out in alarm.
Su Yunmo's heart sank. When she looked back, Mei Yan had already paused the curse and turned to flee.
"I'll go after her immediately!" Lin Lang moved to give chase.
"Wait, let's check on Zi Yuan first," Su Yunmo called her back and quickly went to Zi Yuan's side. She reached out and placed her hand on Zi Yuan's wrist. After taking her pulse, she slammed her fist onto her own leg, cursing under her breath.
Lin Lang also became anxious, "The curse isn't broken yet? What should we do now?"
If it failed once, it would be much harder to lure the person out next time.
A sharp glint flashed in Su Yunmo's eyes, "That depends on who breaks the curse for Zi Yuan next time! You stay here and guard Zi Yuan, I'll be right back."
With that, Su Yunmo turned and left.
Meanwhile, Leng Lingyun was rescued by the figure in black and landed outside the forest.
The moment Leng Lingyun touched the ground, she quickly retreated a step, drew a soft sword from her waist, and stared intently at the figure in black, "Who are you?"
A clear, teasing voice sounded from behind her, "He saved your life, after all. Betraying your benefactor doesn't seem like the style of the King of Southern Xinjiang."
Leng Lingyun's body stiffened abruptly. Shocked, she couldn't believe that someone here could see through her identity.
She turned sharply and saw a child around ten years old emerge from behind a tree.
"Ye Ningyuan?" Leng Lingyun frowned, identifying the name after careful scrutiny.
Ye Ningyuan clicked her tongue, raised her eyebrows, and curved her lips, "The King of Southern Xinjiang really didn't waste the past half month in the capital. You know quite a few people. I should consider myself fortunate to have you call out my name so clearly."
Similarly, she had long wanted to meet this person.
Leng Lingyun narrowed her eyes dangerously, a look of vigilance in them, "Why did you save me?"
"No reason, perhaps it was for fun," Ye Ningyuan replied with a smile, crossing her arms and resting her chin on her left hand.
Leng Lingyun's gaze darkened.
She didn't believe this explanation, but since the person knew her identity, they should also know her temperament.
She would never feel indebted to this person for saving her this once and helping them in the future.
Thus, it seemed this person might have saved her for some more direct reason.
Leng Lingyun looked closely at Ye Ningyuan, suddenly finding the girl's appearance somewhat familiar, "Are you perhaps..."
"Someone!" Wu Ze suddenly exclaimed, quickly moving to Ye Ningyuan's side and scooping her up.
The sound of hurried footsteps could be heard from the surroundings, and there were quite a few of them.
Ye Ningyuan's heart skipped a beat, "Damn it, Wu Ze, take her away first, quickly!"
Mo Mo truly lived up to her name. She had already laid an ambush.
This wasn't just about breaking the curse for Zi Yuan; it was also about luring herself out. It was killing two birds with one stone!
Wu Ze didn't move, looking at her with concern.
Seeing that they were about to be surrounded, Ye Ningyuan couldn't afford to worry about anything else and said sternly, "Go quickly!"
In any case, the King of Southern Xinjiang had to escape first. She was, after all, a princess, and Mo Mo couldn't do anything to her for now; her life was not in danger.
Wu Ze paused for a moment, and though worried, he obeyed his master's command and fled with Leng Lingyun.
However, before they could completely escape, Su Siqi surged forward with his group, trapping the three of them.
Leng Lingyun, with her abilities and Wu Ze's assistance, narrowly managed to tear open a gap and fled towards the outskirts.
Su Siqi shouted, "Chase!"
The others followed him in pursuit of Leng Lingyun.
Meanwhile, Ye Ningyuan was trapped by a group of martial artists and couldn't break free.
She rubbed her temples with a headache and called out in a loud voice in one direction, "Mo Mo, children who are too smart are not cute."
"The same words go to you. Being too cunning is also not cute," Su Yunmo walked out from behind the crowd.
Her gaze towards Ye Ningyuan held a hint of menace, "This time, with both witnesses and evidence gathered, let's hear what other excuses you have."
Ye Ningyuan raised her hands in a gesture of surrender, "Let me clarify first, I haven't betrayed you. I had a reason for saving that woman."
"You can't kill her or capture her yet. Her activity in the capital is best for us; we will need her later."
Perhaps Su Yunmo would find this strange, but it was the truth.
"Oh?" Su Yunmo sneered, "So, you also had a reason for burning down the Feng family's old mansion and protecting Lin Ze Qu?"