Perhaps more than just Song Shilan is a traitor.

Song Shiwei naturally understood this logic, but once Song Shilan was dealt with—whether it was Princess Anning, the Qin family, the Cui family, or anyone else—they would find every possible way to buy off members of her family.

It was even possible that someone in her family had already been bought off.

Considering all aspects, keeping Song Shilan as an obvious pawn worked more to their advantage.

"Eldest brother, let's discuss this matter later."

She looked up at the sky and said calmly, "Today, we will rest here first. We'll talk once you are feeling better."

"Captain Zhang, is that alright?" she asked Zhang Huai.

Zhang Huai not only assured her it was fine, but also arranged for the bailiffs to attend to the Song family.

Old San Wang rolled his eyes.

"Old San Wang, the cure for our poison depends entirely on the eldest Miss Song," Zhang Huai said pointedly.

Old San Wang bent slightly, flashing a flattering smile. "What is the captain saying? I am a man who cherishes his life dearly."

Unable to miss the ulterior motives behind his smile, Zhang Huai scoffed, "Once you're dead, you won't have to fear death anymore."

With that, he turned to tend to the Song family.

Old San Wang stood where he was, watching the Song family. Despite such a golden opportunity, he dared not make a single move.

Until the poison in his body was neutralized, he could not afford to act against the Song family.

He did not want to die.

Meanwhile, Song Shiwei had no energy to spare for the thoughts of Old San Wang and the others; she was consumed by deep self-reproach and regret.

She had known someone was plotting against her family, yet she had still been so careless with their medicine.

"Eldest sister, don't blame yourself," Song Mingyu patted her shoulder, forcing a smile. "This isn't your fault."

"Even without this incident, those people would have eventually found an opportunity to poison us."

Song Shiwei's eyes turned red. "Third brother..."

Supported by the hand of a bailiff, Song Mingyu managed to sit up and stroked Song Shiwei's head. "You mustn't carry the burden of the entire family on your own shoulders."

"Though the three of us brothers aren't of much use, we can at least help you bear some of it."

Lying nearby, Song Xinyue said uncomfortably, "Eldest sister, third brother is right. This isn't your fault."

She glared fiercely at Song Shilan. "It's her fault!"

Song Shilan trembled instinctively, putting on a bold front as she stammered, "Y-You... what do you want?"

"I'm warning you, without my antidote, you'll all die."

Resisting her discomfort, Song Xinyue sneered, "Song Shilan, you expect us to believe you have an antidote?"

"Tricks like that wouldn't even fool a one-year-old child."

In truth, Song Shilan had no antidote; she only had poison, as the Qin family had not provided her with any cure. Yet, she could not admit to it.

"Song Xinyue, you'd better know what's good for you..."

Before she could finish her sentence, she heard Song Shiwei's words, causing her eyes to widen in sudden terror.

"Captain Zhang, you've all had a hard journey. We'll gift Song Shilan to you men to amuse yourselves."

Trembling, Song Shilan shrieked, "Song Shiwei, you can't do this! You can't treat me this way!"

Song Shiwei's expression was as cold as the perpetual ice atop the winter mountains, but her tone remained airy. "Why can't I do this?"

"You intended to use the exact same method to harm me, and even poisoned my family. Doing this to you is simply returning the favor in kind."

Realizing that Song Shiwei meant business, Song Shilan scrambled away with all her might, desperately trying to escape the spot.

She was destined to become an empress; she could never lose her purity here.

"Captain Zhang, accidents are bound to happen on the road of exile," Song Shiwei said, casting a glance at Zhang Huai that lacked any warmth.

While Zhang Huai would not have initiated such an act himself, that did not mean he would stop his subordinates. "Go on and have your fun, just make sure you don't kill her."

Several bailiffs exchanged knowing glances, then grinning broadly, dragged Song Shilan off to a somewhat secluded spot.

Even Old San Wang followed along.

"Eldest sister, we must get rid of Song Shilan," Song Mingyu said, his gaze laced with ruthlessness. "Keeping her around poses too great a hazard."

Having calmed down by now, Song Shiwei replied, "Has third brother considered that even if we lose one Song Shilan, a second one will simply take her place?"

"For all we know, a second Song Shilan might already be among us."

"I've been wondering—did Song Shilan really administer this poison? Would she choose a slow-acting poison that takes days to show effect?"

"Someone like Song Shilan would want our entire family to suffer and perish as quickly as possible."

Upon reflection, Song Mingyu realized it indeed seemed true; whenever Song Shilan committed evil deeds, she always sought to achieve her ends immediately.

"In that case, has someone else among us been bought off?"

He swept his gaze across the family members, his expression turning grim. "Who could it be? And how did the adversary manage to buy off one of our own?"

Song Shiwei could not figure it out for the moment. "Third brother, there is no rush for this matter. Right now, your health is what matters most."

"You have been poisoned, so you must properly detoxify and recover your strength."

"Yet, since we are undergoing exile, I fear you won't be able to rest properly."

"It's no matter," Song Mingyu said. "We can recover as we walk. Being a bit tired and enduring some hardship is still far better than losing our lives."

Song Shiwei looked at him in mild surprise. As the youngest of the three brothers, third brother had always possessed a somewhat childish temperament.

She had not expected him to utter such mature words now.

"Then we shall resume our journey tomorrow."

She helped Song Mingyu lie back down on the ground, softening her tone. "Third brother, rest for now. We can discuss everything else later."

Unable to hold on any longer, Song Mingyu stopped talking and closed his eyes to rest.

Perhaps due to the poison, lying on the scorching ground actually felt surprisingly comfortable to him.

Song Shiwei gave each member of the family some water, then asked Zhang Huai for assistance in setting up a simple shed to block out the blazing sun.

No sooner had she finished than she heard the sound of approaching hooves drawing near.

Turning her head, she was quite surprised to see Baili Bohan leading a group of men toward them.

"The Prince of Ding?!"

What was he doing all the way out here?

From the imperial capital to this place was a journey of several days, even when riding at breakneck speed.

Before his horse had even come to a complete halt, Baili Bohan leaped down from the saddle and strode directly up to Song Shiwei.

"I heard your household was attacked by assassins. Are you unharmed?" He looked her up and down, showing no disgust whatsoever at her travel-stained and dusty appearance.

Song Shiwei curtsied first before replying, "Thank you for your concern, Prince of Ding. Under the protection of Lingze and the others, my family is completely unharmed."

"Your Highness didn't need to travel such a great distance just to check on us."

She found it increasingly difficult to fathom the Prince of Ding's intentions. Was he really willing to travel this far merely to see how her family fared?

Only upon confirming that she was truly unhurt did Baili Bohan feel the heavy stone lift from his chest. "Consider it an outing to clear my mind; the capital has been rather chaotic lately."

"What has happened to Magistrate Song and the others? Do you require any assistance? I brought physicians with me."

The reason he had brought physicians along was out of fear that Song Shiwei and her family might have been injured.