The capital!

Wei Yi was brought all the way into the capital and delivered directly to Prince Yi’s manor. Fortunately, he wasn’t injured, only bearing marks of being bound on his wrists.

Traces of purple-red marks.

Several rough men simply threw him onto the ground.

They barked, “Stay put!”

Wei Yi’s hands were bound behind his back, his mouth stuffed with a wad of cloth, and his eyes covered with a piece of fabric.

He couldn’t speak or see!

He could only rely on his ears and nose to discern where he was.

The floor beneath his bottom was hard but also smooth. The surroundings also emitted a faint sandalwood fragrance, so he wasn’t in a prison.

There were also faint sounds of people and footsteps around, so he probably wasn’t in a remote room either.

Based on the echo of that person’s voice just now, he thought he must be in a great hall or main hall. The length of the echo’s back-and-forth reflection showed this hall or main hall was very spacious, not an ordinary household’s place.

The possibilities he could think of were very few. Who would kidnap him? And bring him all this way without harming him?

When he wanted food, they gave him food.

When he wanted water, they gave him water.

When he needed to sleep or relieve himself, these people served him well.

How could he know that these people had to serve him well? After all, he was a chess piece in Jing Yi’s hands. Who knows, he might have great use in the future. If something happened to him, Jing Yi would have those people’s heads.

He had been blindfolded and gagged when they were about to enter the capital.

He sat motionless on the ground. Those people quickly left, leaving only him alone.

Suddenly—

Footsteps approached.

Jing Yi entered with Dou Quan, glanced at the bound person on the ground, and sat down with a cold laugh.

“Your Highness, how should we deal with this fool?” Dou Quan asked.

Jing Yi revealed his sinister eyes and said, “We can’t deal with him yet. As long as he’s in this prince’s hands, even if Jingrong truly can return to the capital, by then, to save this fool, he’ll have no choice but to listen to this prince.”

“But what if Prince Rong and the others come to rescue him?”

“Rescue? Rescue him from where? As long as this prince hides him well, how can they rescue him?”

Hehe!

“Where does Your Highness plan to hide him?”

Jing Yi said with a smile, “The most dangerous place is also the safest place. If we hide him within the capital, Jingrong will definitely find him. But if… we send him into the imperial palace, even if Jingrong is clever, he would never imagine that this person would actually be in the palace.”

After speaking, he curved his thin, cold lips, his eyes holding certain victory.

Dou Quan acknowledged the order. “Yes, this subordinate knows what to do.”

Jing Yi nodded his chin and instructed, “Remove the cloth covering his eyes.”

“Yes.”

Dou Quan yanked off the cloth covering Wei Yi’s eyes.

Wei Yi couldn’t react immediately. His eyes couldn’t open under the stimulation of the strong light. After a while, he gradually adjusted.

When he opened his eyes, he discovered he was in the great hall of Prince Yi’s manor.

Before him sat Jing Yi with a cunning expression on his face.

He knew this person and had heard Ji Yunshu mention him before.

Sinister and vicious!

Unscrupulous!

Yet these words weren’t enough to describe him—he could simply be called worse than a beast.

Jing Yi looked at him with surprise. “I really didn’t expect that the arrow I shot last time didn’t kill you. You fool sure have a big life.”

“It was you?” Wei Yi looked at him in shock, his eyes no longer dull and wooden but rather bright and sharp.

“What? Are you surprised it was this prince?”

Wei Yi secretly clenched his fists.

Jing Yi said, “This prince spent quite a bit of effort to capture you, this fool, from Jinjiang and bring you to the capital.”

“What do you want to do?”

“Do what? What could this prince want to do with a fool like you?” Jing Yi mocked without concealment. “This prince wants to see just how important you, this fool, are in Jingrong’s and that Master Ji’s hearts.”

Hmm?

Wei Yi slightly frowned, his eyes darkening. His gaze lowered as he said, “So Shu’er will be coming to the capital soon?”

“Shu’er?” Jing Yi stood up and walked before him. “This prince has heard that you and that Master Ji… no, should be called Miss Ji, you two have a marriage engagement?”

He didn’t speak.

“No wonder she protects you so much. But from this prince’s perspective, the one she likes seems to be Jingrong. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have left you alone in Jinjiang while going to Yu Prefecture paired up with Jingrong.”

Clearly trying to sow discord.

Wei Yi raised his head and glared fiercely at him. “Shu’er left me at home for my own good.”

“If it was for your good, she should have brought you. She dislikes having you, this fool, getting in the way and causing trouble.” Jing Yi said harshly. “You took an arrow for her, but she doesn’t appreciate it at all. She abandoned you in Jinjiang. Now this prince has brought you to the capital—where is she?”

“She’ll come.”

“Come? You’re thinking too much. Who knows, maybe before she even enters the capital gates, she’ll be… dead.”

Ugh!

Wei Yi’s pupils dilated as he looked at him in terror.

“Little fool, you should pray they can’t return to the capital. That way, you can safely return to your Jinjiang. But if they do return to the capital, this prince can’t guarantee your life.”

Hehe.

Jing Yi’s ambition had grown more and more inflated.

This time, he was determined to bring down Jingrong in one fell swoop.

To ensure he would never again have the chance to become an obstacle on his path to the throne.

If they still returned in the end, then Wei Yi would be a chess piece in his hand, used for coercion.

If the coercion succeeded—live!

If the coercion failed—die!

Thinking of that day approaching, he became very excited.

Then Jing Yi ordered Dou Quan, “Secretly bring this fool into the palace.”

“Yes.” Dou Quan responded.

That very night, Wei Yi was packaged and sent into Consort Xiao’s Zhangzhi Palace.

Consort Xiao cleared out a room and kept him inside, even ordering people to serve him with good food and drink.

Thus, two or three days passed.

He was confined in the room, with only one lamp lit. He sat on the ground, his back against a large pillar, his arms hugging his knees, his head buried deeply.

At this moment, the door opened. A young palace maid bringing food entered carrying dishes.

That young palace maid was the girl whose face Consort Xiao had previously injured with scissors. Her name was Sui’er.

These past few days, she had been the one “serving” Wei Yi.

Sui’er set down the food and looked at the person on the ground. “The food is here. Eat it yourself. I’ll come back later to collect the dishes.”

Just as she was about to leave, Wei Yi, crouching on the ground, raised his head and asked her, “What’s your name?”

His voice was gentle and fine, carrying magnetism. Sui’er turned to look at him, a trace of shyness bursting forth in her small eyes.

She answered, “My name is Sui’er.”

“What happened to your face?”

Sui’er instinctively covered her face wrapped in gauze, lowered her head, and said, “I got a little injured.”

“Who injured you?”

“I… I injured myself.” Her voice was very soft.

“Oh.” Wei Yi didn’t ask further.

But this piqued Sui’er’s curiosity. She glanced toward the courtyard and, seeing no one around, walked up to Wei Yi and asked him, “Did the princess bring you to the imperial palace before?”

“Yes.”

“They all say you’re a fool, but I think… you don’t seem foolish at all!”