Di Wu Ya’s words carried not just intimidation but a touch of roguish charm.

His breath was very hot; even through her dark hair, it still fell against her scalp.

“No, it’s not that!” Feng Jiu’er struggled a little, refusing to turn back.

“Ninth Imperial Uncle, I’m not unable to sleep — I’m very tired, I want to sleep.”

Feeling his overwhelming presence, Feng Jiu’er’s body stiffened.

This wouldn’t do! They still had a fierce battle ahead of them — how could she be thinking about anything else at a time like this?

As for sharing a bed so often — they weren’t exactly an old married couple. She simply had no choice but to yield to his wishes.

That she wasn’t nervous was impossible!

Before, they had only ever slept together for one or two hours at most, and always in fairly harsh conditions, and even then Ninth Imperial Uncle had seemed to want something.

Tonight, unless something unusual happened, it would likely be an entire night — wouldn’t it?

Feng Jiu’er felt a bit annoyed with herself — she really had been sleepy, so why hadn’t she just fallen asleep earlier?

As long as she fell asleep, surely Ninth Imperial Uncle would behave properly like before and not disturb her sleep, right?

That Ninth Imperial Uncle would behave properly was, in truth, just Feng Jiu’er’s way of comforting herself.

Clearly, many times when she woke, his hand had been rather unruly.

She herself had gradually gotten used to this odd state of affairs, hadn’t she? Otherwise, how could she still sleep so soundly?

Di Wu Ya looked at the small body in his arms, not daring to move, and the corner of his mouth curved up slightly.

“Seems like if we don’t do something tonight, you won’t be able to sleep at all.”

As he spoke, that hand — which Feng Jiu’er had cursed a thousand times over — made contact with her skin.

Feng Jiu’er instinctively grabbed the large hand, but it still ended up covering her body.

So hot! That was Feng Jiu’er’s first reaction.

This heat was almost enough to scald her skin — how terrifying!

“Ninth Imperial Uncle, don’t…” Feng Jiu’er gripped his arm with both hands, pushing outward with all her strength.

“I don’t want to, I’m not ready, it’s not the right time now — what if at night… Ninth Imperial Uncle, let go, please?”

“Let me go outside, alright?” No matter how hard Feng Jiu’er pushed, she couldn’t get free, and could only resign herself with a sigh.

“I knew I shouldn’t have come.”

Di Wu Ya released the waist in his grasp, his large hand moving upward instead, gently caressing Feng Jiu’er’s small face.

“Why aren’t you sleeping?”

Feng Jiu’er held onto his hand and pouted slightly.

“Of course it’s not what you’re thinking.”

“Ninth Imperial Uncle.” Feng Jiu’er didn’t want to hide her worry, and also felt that changing the subject now wouldn’t hurt.

“I’m a bit worried about the drug powder Yu Jingfeng mentioned.”

“What Yu Jingfeng said today reminded me of a certain powder. If it really is that thing, it would surely stir up a great deal of chaos.”

“This kind of powder affects the nerves, causes hallucinations — and not only that, it also erodes the body.”

“Most importantly.” Feng Jiu’er wanted to turn around, but on second thought decided not to.

She held onto Di Wu Ya’s long fingers and continued, “Just as Yu Jingfeng said, this powder creates dependency.”

“That’s what’s commonly called addiction — once addicted, one has to keep taking it, or the body suffers unbearably. That kind of suffering is unimaginable.”

“So, if Mao Linye wants to control people’s hearts, a single powder like this would be enough.”

Lei Shenbao had used poison; as it turned out, Mao Linye used poison too.

Seen this way, this Mao Linye might not necessarily be easier to deal with than Mao Zhongcai.

Once Feng Jiu’er finished speaking, the room fell quiet.

After a while, Di Wu Ya gently stroked her forehead and said in a low voice, “Sleep. Don’t think too much.”

“Mao Linye, we must bring him down. As for the powder you’re worried about, once the time comes, we’ll destroy it entirely.”

“Mm.” Feng Jiu’er nodded and hugged Di Wu Ya’s arm.

She pressed her face into his palm and closed her eyes.

“Ninth Imperial Uncle, once the water source problem is solved, I want to go in myself and take a look — having you and Third Brother there will be enough.”

“Don’t worry! I won’t act recklessly, I just want to understand this powder clearly, I…”

“We’ll discuss it tomorrow!” Di Wu Ya cut off Feng Jiu’er’s words.

“Close your eyes, rest!”

Di Wu Ya’s other large hand settled on Feng Jiu’er’s waist, holding her securely in his embrace.

That overpowering presence carried an unmistakable weight of authority.

“Mm.” Feng Jiu’er also held tightly onto that warm hand and closed her eyes.

Amid the sound of the man’s strong, steady breathing, she too soon drifted into sleep.

The next morning, after a hasty breakfast, Feng Jiu’er took a dozen or so people to search for a water source.

Going forward, even drinking and eating would be a problem, let alone washing.

More than a dozen of them sat on horseback, with Feng Jiu’er and Zhao Yusheng standing at the front.

“Ahead and to the right, within about three li, the brothers have all scouted it out.” Zhao Yusheng pointed toward the distance.

“Every small stream has been contaminated. It’s very likely the streams were deliberately dammed off so the poison wouldn’t spread too far.”

Xiao Yingtao looked at the two ahead and rode up to meet them.

“Jiu’er, how does it look? Which direction should we search for a water source?”

While Feng Jiu’er and Zhao Yusheng talked, they surveyed the surroundings for a while.

In the end, her gaze settled on the high mountains roughly five li behind them.

“Back the way we came.” She replied to Xiao Yingtao and turned her horse around.

The more than ten riders turned their horses together.

Everyone followed the direction of Feng Jiu’er’s gaze and saw the mountain as well.

Pingyuan City had fewer mountains than most other places — occasionally there’d be one or two, and mountain ranges were even rarer.

One rider came galloping quickly toward this open stretch of flat land.

“Jiu’er.” Gong Xinyue reined to a stop.

“I heard there’s no drinkable water source nearby — what do you all think?”

“Xinyue, what’s the situation on your end?” Qiao Mu asked.

Gong Xinyue turned to look at Qiao Mu and shook her head. “No orders have come down, so we haven’t taken any action.”

“But I think, if there really is no drinkable water, it might be worth checking the other side of the mountain.”

“On my way here, this was the only area with a small village — no sign of people there at all. Perhaps we could find drinkable water there.”

“That’s exactly what I had in mind.” Feng Jiu’er curved her lips slightly and turned to look at Xing Zizhou. “Where are the water buckets and carts positioned?”

“I know.” Gong Xinyue answered before Xing Zizhou could, replying to Feng Jiu’er. “It’s very close to our camp — you’ll see it on the way.”

“Then there’s no time to lose.” Feng Jiu’er pulled at the reins.

“Xing Zizhou, in a while, bring a team to follow along — if we really do find a water source, bring back as much as possible.”

“Understood.” Xing Zizhou nodded to accept the order.

The dozen or so of them set off right away, and along the way they picked up several more carts and a number of brothers.

By the time they neared the great mountain, their numbers had already grown to over a hundred.