Li Jiancheng smiled slightly and said to Yunyi, “Thank you, Your Majesty, for trusting me. Until we meet again… no, it should be that we’ll never meet again.”

After saying this, he pulled the reins and rode away. Watching the figure grow more distant with the sound of hoofbeats, Du Ruhui said in a deep voice, “I hope he doesn’t betray Your Majesty’s trust.”

“He definitely won’t!” Faced with Yunyi’s response, Du Ruhui shook his head silently, unable to understand where Yunyi’s confidence came from. In this matter, Yunyi had completely lost her usual wisdom, simply allowing Li Jiancheng to deceive her. Indeed, concern leads to confusion—how true that was.

“This subject will immediately rush back to Dongde Hall.” Regardless, Li Jiancheng had already left, and the Dongde Hall he had mentioned was their only clue at the moment. Even if there was little hope, they had to go and see.

“There’s no need to go.” Yunyi’s words greatly surprised Du Ruhui. “Why?”

Only after the figure on horseback completely disappeared from view did Yunyi say, “Li Jiancheng harbors deep hatred for His Majesty—how could he truly hand over the antidote?”

Now Du Ruhui was truly bewildered and asked in confusion, “But Your Majesty clearly…”

Yunyi smiled, “If I hadn’t done so, how would he lead us to the place where the real antidote is hidden?”

Hearing this, Du Ruhui finally understood, “Your Majesty knew all along that Li Jiancheng was deceiving us, so you pretended to trust him?”

“Exactly. This palace understands Jirong’s nature—there’s an eighty to ninety percent chance an antidote exists, but Li Jiancheng would absolutely never hand it over. So from the moment he agreed to this trade, this palace knew it was fake—merely playing along with his scheme. When leaving the prison, this palace had already sent someone to notify General Zhangsun to ambush outside the city first. By now, he should have caught up with Li Jiancheng.”

The nearby jailer confirmed Yunyi’s words: “Your Majesty immediately arranged for this humble servant to notify General Zhangsun the moment you left the prison, then quietly returned. Li Jiancheng noticed nothing unusual.”

Du Ruhui said admiringly, “Your Majesty’s considerations are thorough—this subject is ashamed of his inferiority. But… how can Your Majesty be certain that Li Jiancheng, once free, would definitely go to the place where the antidote is hidden?”

Yunyi sighed softly, looking in the direction Li Jiancheng had departed, and said worriedly, “This palace cannot be certain. I hope this time… this palace hasn’t gambled wrong!”

Speaking of Li Jiancheng, he galloped all the way until he had raced several hundred li in one breath before slowing down. After ensuring no one had followed, he breathed a long sigh of relief.

He released one hand from the reins and undid the topmost button of his clothing, retrieving a peace pendant from within. This was something Li Yuan had given him many years ago—all the brothers, including Xiuning and some of the girls, had them. They had been blessed by high monks, and Li Jiancheng had worn it by his side for many years. However, looking at it now, his seemed somewhat different from the others.

The peace pendant was round on the outside with an empty center, but Li Jiancheng’s was solid, with a pearl the size of a little finger embedded inside. Li Jiancheng removed the peace pendant and took out the pearl from within. With a slight application of force from his fingers, there was a “crack” sound, and the pearl actually shattered on command. A black object rolled out from inside, and as soon as it appeared, it emitted the unique scent of medicinal herbs.

“Want the antidote? Hmph!” With these words, Li Jiancheng casually threw the pill into the grass. This was the only medicine Jirong had left him that could cure the epidemic poison.

From the beginning, he had never intended to save Li Shimin, not to mention that Yunyi had killed Li Yuanji, his only beloved brother.

But likewise, he didn’t want to die at Yunyi’s hands, so after some rapid deliberation, he decided to agree to Yunyi’s trade. Of course, there was no antidote at Dongde Hall—they would only return empty-handed.

This round trip would give him enough time to escape far from Luoyang City. But… strangely, that Yang Yunyi was not easy to deceive—why had she trusted him so completely this time?

Had she truly lost her composure, or did she have another purpose?

Li Jiancheng’s thoughts spun like a wheel, but he could never guess Yunyi’s intentions. However, regardless, the most important thing was that he had left Luoyang City alive. As long as he hid carefully, even if the Tang army later sent people to pursue him, they would never find him.

“Li Shimin, I believe we’ll never have the chance to meet again!” Muttering this to himself, Li Jiancheng looked back at Luoyang City, which was no longer visible, and secretly swore that he would return, reclaim Luoyang, attack Chang’an, and avenge today’s humiliation!

Just as Li Jiancheng was about to spur his horse and leave, a figure suddenly swept past him, and immediately the pill he had thrown into the grass was in the other person’s hand.

This all happened so quickly that by the time Li Jiancheng reacted, the pill had already fallen into the other person’s hands. However, he also saw the other person’s appearance. “It’s you?”

The newcomer was none other than Zhangsun Wuji. After carefully placing the pill in his hand into a brocade box he carried, he raised his hand and said, “Thank you for the pill!” Then he called to his trusted aide, “Immediately take this medicine to Luoyang City and deliver it to Noble Consort!”

Seeing this scene, Li Jiancheng finally realized he had fallen into Yunyi’s trap. He had always thought he was playing Yunyi for a fool, never expecting the result to be exactly the opposite. For a moment, he was greatly annoyed but helpless—the most urgent matter now was to leave this place.

While thinking this, Li Jiancheng secretly observed his surroundings. Besides Zhangsun Wuji, there were about seven or eight soldiers, all on horseback. His swift horse was far superior to these ordinary mounts. As long as he could break through the encirclement, he could shake them off. The key was that they had no bows and arrows, which meant they couldn’t attack from a distance.

Thinking of this, Li Jiancheng forcefully spurred his horse’s flanks and charged toward the soldiers. To his surprise, these soldiers not only didn’t block him but actively made way, allowing him to pass through without obstruction.

Something was wrong—this was wrong, too abnormal. There must be a problem ahead!

This thought had just appeared in his mind when his swift horse suddenly neighed in alarm and pitched forward, throwing him violently to the ground. Before Li Jiancheng could get up, the soldiers swarmed over him, pinning him down so he couldn’t move.

Only then did Li Jiancheng finally understand why the horse had fallen for no reason. Where they had passed, a thin rope had been tied between the trees on both sides—the horse had been tripped by the rope.

Zhangsun Wuji walked up to Li Jiancheng, who was once again tightly bound, and sneered, “Very well, come with me to see Noble Consort.”

Less than an hour after leaving, Li Jiancheng was once again back in Luoyang City. This time, he wasn’t taken back to the prison but brought all the way to Ziwei Palace.

Yunyi looked at the escorted Li Jiancheng and smiled calmly, “We meet again.”

“You’re ruthless enough!” Li Jiancheng squeezed out these three words through gritted teeth. If looks could kill, Yunyi would have died countless times by now.

Yunyi didn’t take his hatred to heart and continued to smile calmly. Yes, Li Jiancheng had become a prisoner, and even his last trump card was gone—what was there for her to care about?

Zhangsun Wuji asked anxiously, “Your Majesty, how is His Majesty?”