Chapter 40: The Peculiar Prince Ding-Após o confisco dos bens e o exílio da minha família, construí um império usando meu espaço secreto.(Como num sonho)

"Only by getting rid of the captain can you do what you want to do."

Hearing this, Wang Laosan looked at Zhang Huai, who was talking with the Song family, and pondered Song Shilan's words. From the current situation, the biggest obstacle to completing the task assigned by Princess Anning was the captain. The captain protected the Song family, so he would certainly stop him from eliminating them.

"Besides, once you get rid of the captain, you will be the captain," Song Shilan said, sensing his hesitation and continuing to entice him. "First you become the captain, and then you can become a head constable... With Princess Anning's help, are you still afraid you won't be able to climb the ranks step by step?"

These words completely made up Wang Laosan’s mind. He looked at Zhang Huai with murderous intent; Song Shilan was right, the captaincy would be the starting point of his official career.

"Song Shilan, I need your help with this." He wanted to bind Song Shilan to his ship and use her for his own purposes.

A dark glint flashed in the depths of Song Shilan’s eyes, but her expression remained unchanged. "Don't worry, I will definitely help you. I am the one who wants Song Shiwei and the others dead the most." Her tone was tinged with resentment. "If it weren't for Song Shiwei and the others, why would I have ended up in this state?"

Wang Laosan was very satisfied with her words and promised, "As long as you complete the task Princess Anning gave you, your good days are yet to come."

Song Shilan felt nothing but contempt and disgust. If she didn't need to use this lowly creature, she would never have spoken a word to him. "Our good days are yet to come." She looked at Song Shiwei with a hint of hidden excitement; before long, this bitch would be dead.

...

In the evening. Anlan County.

Song Shiwei and her group finally arrived at the nearest town. This time, Song Shilan did not make a scene, because the injury on her foot had become so severe that she had no energy to cause trouble.

Song Shiwei's first thought upon entering the town was to purchase some supplies. She wanted to buy cotton-padded clothes and quilts, as well as slightly thicker garments, to prepare for the weather gradually turning cold. They did not know how many towns they might miss along the way, so to be safe, she had to buy something every time they arrived in a town.

"Captain, I'm taking Song Shilan to the medical clinic to check her foot," Wang Laosan said. Without waiting for Zhang Huai’s permission, he took the limping Song Shilan and left.

Song Shiwei glanced at Wang Laosan and Song Shilan coldly, a mocking smile appearing on her lips.

The group arrived at the post station.

The postmaster had already received the news and came to the gate to welcome them. "Everyone, please, come inside." He smiled and gestured for them to enter. "I have already prepared hot water and food. Would you like to wash up first, or eat first?"

"Thank you, Postmaster." Song Shiwei took out half a tael of silver and handed it to him. "We would like to wash up first before eating." Being at the post station, they could wash thoroughly without worrying about any mishaps.

The postmaster accepted the silver, his smile deepening. "Very well, the rooms are on the second floor." He suddenly added, "This post station rarely gets visitors, but for some reason, several groups have arrived in the past two days." He did not want to offend anyone; he just wanted to live a peaceful life.

Song Shiwei understood his meaning and exchanged a look with her father. Her smile remained unchanged as she said to the postmaster, "Perhaps it is because you are about to make a fortune." She then slipped him another tael of silver.

Afterward, the group returned to their respective rooms to wash up. As prisoners, it was impossible for the Song family to have one room per person. Just as before, the women were in one room, and the men in another.

Song Shiwei and the other women took turns washing. Some bathed, others washed their hair. Once clean, they sat together, using dry towels to wipe each other's hair.

"Come to think of it, I've almost gotten used to being filthy."

"There is no other way; we are in exile, it is impossible to wash whenever we want. Being able to wash occasionally is already quite good."

"None of that matters. As long as our family can safely reach the place of exile, I will be content."

Song Shiwei felt a pang of sorrow. Her family, who once lived in luxury, had grown accustomed to enduring everything on the road of exile.

"We will definitely reach the place of exile safely."

Lady Song sighed, "Let's not talk about this anymore. Let's get some rest after we eat; we have to continue our journey tomorrow."

Song Shiwei thought about going for a walk in town after dinner to buy some necessary items.

"Miss Song, are you there?" Ling Ze's voice came from outside.

After ensuring her appearance was proper, Song Shiwei went to the door. As soon as she looked up, she saw a man in a cloak standing behind Ling Ze. Her eyebrows arched—why was the Prince of Ding here?

"Shall we find a place to talk?" she asked Bai Bohan with a smile.

Bai Bohan nodded and followed her into an adjacent room. Ling Ze stood guard on the rafters.

Song Shiwei bowed slightly before asking politely, "I wonder, does the Prince of Ding have something urgent to discuss by coming to see me at this hour?"

Bai Bohan invited her to sit down before joking with a smile, "If there isn't anything urgent, can I not come to see Miss Song?"

Song Shiwei sat down accordingly. She looked at him with some surprise, quite puzzled. "Given the Prince of Ding's character, you would not come to see me without a reason."

Bai Bohan looked at her with deepening eyes. "Indeed, I would not come to see you without a reason. However, can you not joke with me for a moment?"

Hearing this, Song Shiwei felt that something was not quite right. She frowned and looked at Bai Bohan several times; why did these words sound so strange? At most, she and the Prince of Ding had a cooperative relationship; they had not reached the point where they could joke with each other. Why would he say such things?

"Prince of Ding, is our relationship close enough... to joke?" she asked tentatively.

Bai Bohan rested his head on one hand, smiling but not quite smiling. "Is our cooperative relationship not close enough?"

Song Shiwei felt increasingly uneasy, and the way she looked at Bai Bohan changed. "Prince of Ding, you wouldn't happen to have ulterior motives, would you?"

Bai Bohan tapped his fingers on the table a few times and said meaningfully, "In your opinion, what other motives could I have?"

He just couldn't understand why Yang Hu and the others insisted on playing matchmaker between him and Song Shiwei. They even claimed he had designs on her. What nonsense—didn't they see how guarded she was against him?

Song Shiwei’s body stiffened slightly, though she remained calm. "Whatever motives the Prince of Ding may have toward me, they are unimportant. I only hope the Prince of Ding understands one thing: we have a cooperative relationship, and it is not appropriate to have any other kind of relationship."

Bai Bohan: "...I never thought about having any other relationship with you." It was Yang Hu and the others who kept insisting that he and Song Shiwei had something going on, and they whispered behind his back that the Prince's mansion would soon have a mistress.

Song Shiwei clearly did not believe him, but she was not foolish enough to continue the topic. "Prince of Ding, can you tell me the purpose of your visit now?"