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Kapitel 11

Well, now it's the kidnappers' turn to comfort her, the one who was held hostage. The woman took out a handkerchief and gently wiped away her tears: "Don't cry, you're a victim too. It's all Prince Xin's fault for being so ruthless. We underestimated him too much. Don't cry, we'll take you back right away!"

Li Yuxuan blushed at her gentle words, feeling that while he could fool that big, simple-minded guy, he felt a pang of guilt for trying to deceive such a kind-hearted woman.

She pushed her handkerchief away: "You can't send me back!" Of course she couldn't be sent back like this; wouldn't that expose everything? "If you send me back like this, they'll definitely suspect I'm plotting something with you, and they'll never let me go!"

After saying that, she burst into tears again, sobbing, "What should I do?"

Yes, how can she return unharmed while also ensuring the prince doesn't suspect anything?

Unexpected complications

A middle-aged man who had been silent beside the woman looked at Li Yuxuan and suddenly said, "Young Master, we cannot send her back." His voice was not loud, but it had an inherent authority that made people dare not refute him.

Li Yuxuan was startled. His first thought was that this man was going to kill him to silence him. Since he had arrested the wrong person, he should just kill him. That was the logic of a robber!

Otherwise, what did this man discover? Surely he wouldn't suspect she was actually a woman? Impossible. He wouldn't have such a vivid imagination, nor such high intelligence. Who would have thought that Li Yuxuan risked her life to disguise herself as a man just to pay homage to a celebrity of this era? Of course, there was only one specific person, but that person could only remain a secret, never spoken aloud.

The woman clearly respected the man, and upon hearing him speak, she immediately turned to look at him: "So, what does Uncle Yang mean?"

The man glanced at the people around him: "As far as I know, Prince Xin is not one to kill innocent people indiscriminately. Since he found this girl to impersonate Li Yuxuan, he certainly wouldn't disregard her life or death. Besides, he might not have informed the emperor beforehand. Perhaps he acted on his own initiative to protect Li Yuxuan..." He paused, then continued, "Didn't the messenger say that Li Yuxuan and Prince Xin have an ambiguous relationship? Or perhaps he's even more reluctant to let others know the truth than we are?"

"So what do you mean?"

"Pretend you know nothing, and still use her to exchange for someone else," the man said decisively.

A string of soap bubbles suddenly appeared in front of Li Yuxuan's eyes... If he had known this would happen, why did he do it just now—how embarrassing!

Looking at Li Yuxuan's sorrowful expression, the woman hesitated for a moment, but then nodded: "I will follow Uncle Yang's arrangements."

Immediately, a young man grabbed Li Yuxuan's arm and the group headed towards the hilltop ahead. Li Yuxuan's arm ached from the twist, and with a bellyful of pent-up frustration, she turned back and yelled, "Let go of me! I'll walk myself!"

"You!" Just as a huge slap was about to land on Li Yuxuan's face, the woman accompanying him whispered, "Xiao Lin, let her walk by herself!"

The young man angrily changed his slap to a fist, but after hearing the woman's words, he still didn't dare to hit Li Yuxuan's face.

Li Yuxuan realized this woman was the leader of the group; the female boss of a bandit's den was indeed no legend. He couldn't help but feel more respect for her. He just couldn't understand how such a kind-hearted woman became the leader of a mountain stronghold.

She quickened her pace and walked to the woman's side: "Boss!"

"Huh?" The woman looked at her and smiled, "I'm not the boss."

She didn't care whether she was really the boss or not; she just wanted to know where they came from. "Sisters, where are you taking me?"

You'll see when you get there.

"Then will you kill me?"

"Won't!"

She breathed a sigh of relief: "Will Prince Xin kill me?"

The man named Da Gang, who was walking beside the woman, sneered upon hearing this: "That's your business. Don't try to take advantage of my Xiao Rou's sympathy. There's no room for discussion on this."

"Your Xiaorou? This lady's name is Xiaorou? How could she be yours? She's so pretty—" Is Xiaorou very compassionate? That's easy. She might not be good at blowing up a bunch of fortresses, but she's certainly capable of blowing up one. No wonder people say kindness is taken advantage of; there's nothing she can do—survival is a necessity.

"What nonsense are you spouting, you wild girl?" Da Gang roared angrily. "Xiao Rou is beautiful, why can't she be mine!"

"Alright, Xiaorou is yours, I won't fight you for her, what's the rush?" It seems that Brother Dagang is not only skilled in martial arts, but also incredibly adept at getting jealous. Li Yuxuan deliberately spoke softly, but it made everyone around him burst into laughter.

Even Uncle Yang turned around and glanced at her, his eyes filled with doubt.

Seeing Da Gang so angry at Li Yuxuan's words that he was puffing out his beard and glaring, Xiao Rou took his hand and said, "Brother Da Gang, the little girl doesn't know our relationship. Don't take it to heart. The important thing is to take care of things."

Da Gang nodded, his anger instantly transforming into tenderness in his eyes. This made Li Yuxuan involuntarily think of a saying: a sheep in wolf's clothing.

The seven continued walking forward, rounded a bend in the mountain, and stopped under an inconspicuous large tree. Two of them stepped forward and separated the vines that were wrapped around the tree. A crack appeared in the rock next to the tree. It was called a crack because it was just big enough for a person to squeeze through sideways.

Li Yuxuan was forced to squeeze in sideways, passing through the crack. The space inside became slightly more spacious, enough for a person to turn around. Some of the people who came in had lit torches. The space widened as they went in, and soon a huge underground cave appeared in front of Li Yuxuan.

The cave had clearly been carefully prepared and polished. The stalactites and rocks inside had been carved into stone tables, chairs, and beds according to their shapes. In addition to the firelight, natural light also shone in from the other side.

Do all robbers live in caves? Or do robbers really all live in caves?

Besides the seven of them, there were a few other people sitting on stone chairs chatting in the cave. When they saw them come in, they all stood up and said, "Young Master, Brother Yang, you're back?"

The two men lit all the oil lamps on the wall, making the room very bright. Li Yuxuan could tell there were four people inside, all middle-aged or elderly men.

The four old men also noticed Li Yuxuan, and one of them asked in surprise, "Young Master, who is this?"

Knowing he was in deep trouble and had no way to avoid it, Li Yuxuan simply said, "I am a hostage."

All four eyes turned to Xiaorou, whose face darkened as she nodded. "Our plan failed. Father is being hunted by Zhan Zhao and Prince Xin. She..." Pointing to Li Yuxuan, she continued, "It's a long story." She then turned to a young man and said, "Go immediately and send a message to Prince Xin and Zhan Zhao. Tell them we've captured Li Yuxuan. Exchange her for our eighteen captured brothers. If they refuse, they can only wait to collect their corpses!"

The young man agreed and turned to walk out.

One for eighteen? Goodness, would Brother Zhan even give her that kind of face? Probably not. They've been planning and scheming for so long, and she's ruined it all. Even if she wanted to, she'd think it wasn't worth it.

Self-reliance and self-sufficiency are key; it's better to find a way to save ourselves. Becoming a corpse isn't fun. After all, she had evolved a thousand years more than them. Putting aside other aspects, she should at least have a few more brain cells. Otherwise, wouldn't we all still be cavemen crawling around in caves?

It would be a lie to say she wasn't afraid. After hearing Xiaorou's words, she almost collapsed to the ground. But thinking about it this way, her confidence returned a little. Even though Xiaorou spoke so definitively, would she really do it? It was hard to say. If she couldn't get those eighteen people in return, she would be crushed to death by them anyway, let alone be executed by slow slicing.

She stood there, her mind racing, but the sweat on her forehead and her pale face told others: I was really scared.

However, her composure was enough to draw attention to her from the people in the cave, especially those who knew she was a woman. The contrast between her calm demeanor and her earlier demeanor was striking. Da Gang looked at her and sneered, "So, you're not begging for mercy now?"

She tried to lift her foot, but her leg went weak and she almost fell. She had no choice but to stand still. Seeing that Da Gang was still teasing her, she decided to go all out: "Will you let me go if I beg for mercy? If you will, I'll call you grandpa a thousand times."

A Twist of Fate

There's a saying, isn't there? "It's easier to change mountains and rivers than to change one's nature." This "nature" is probably what we call habit. In her excitement, Li Yuxuan immediately forgot she was a real woman. Although her words lacked conviction, her voice was noticeably lower than when she was pretending to be a woman. Good heavens, was she pretending to be a woman or a man? Okay, she admitted it; she had basically forgotten she was a woman.

But she also knew she wasn't a man.

Fortunately, everyone inside was preoccupied with their own thoughts and didn't pay attention to the change in her voice. Da Gang snorted and walked over to Xiao Rou, who was sitting at the table discussing something with everyone. They kept their voices very low, probably afraid that Li Yuxuan would hear them.

Li Yuxuan had no time to study their strategic plans; her only thought was how to survive and get out. She hadn't even had a proper chance to enjoy life in the Northern Song Dynasty yet, and now that she had finally achieved fame and success, and could fulfill her thousand-year-old dream of commanding the nation and writing inspiring words, how could she just become a hero on an epitaph?

Even if it means being a cowardly bear in life, she would rather be a hero in death. This has never changed her life goal, whether in her past or present life.

Besides, if she were to die like this, it would be a huge disservice to the heavens for sending her to the Northern Song Dynasty. Traveling through time and space to another dimension is such a coincidence that it's even harder than winning the lottery in her previous life.

She never won the first prize in her past life—she was so unlucky in her past life, so in this life she must turn her life around and live a life where her heart beats with joy and all her wishes come true.

May all your wishes come true—the most urgent thing is to save your life.

As long as the green hills remain, there will always be firewood to burn.

Fortunately, those words reminded her of someone she should have remembered much earlier, but the shock made her forget about that person.

This person is Haitang.

Are these people the gang that Haitang belongs to? Is Da Gang, dressed in military uniform and mixed in with the soldiers, the brother that Haitang wanted to place by her side?

Very likely.

Should we gamble or not?

...Let's not gamble. Given Haitang's connections in the capital, she must know there's no such thing as a fake Li Yuxuan. She is the real Li Yuxuan. If she knew Li Yuxuan was a woman, she'd be dead anyway.

She took out the handkerchief Su Shi had embezzled from her sleeve, and smelled its fragrance. Now, upon closer inspection, the fragrance was exactly the same as the one in Haitang's room.

I must investigate this Haitang thoroughly when I get back. Yes, I must ask Young Master Su about Haitang's background.

She mimicked Xiaorou's tone: "Brother Dagang, come here, I have something to ask you."

Everyone knew she was an ordinary woman, so they didn't make things difficult for her. They just let Xiao Lin stand aside and watch her, letting her stand there lost in her own thoughts. When they saw that she called out "Da Gang," they all turned their attention to her.

Da Gang glared at her and replied irritably, "What are you calling me? You think you can call me Brother Da Gang? Shut your mouth and stop causing trouble."

She immediately shut her mouth obediently, but opened it again after a moment: "I just wanted to know who killed me before I died, otherwise, when I got to the King of Hell's palace, he asked me: 'Who killed you?' I answered: 'I don't know.' He then asked me, 'Why did they kill you?' I answered: 'I'm innocent, I was a scapegoat.' The King of Hell was furious: 'You fool, you're sentenced to eternal damnation.' What should I do? I answered: 'It's not that I'm foolish, it's that I died foolishly. Those who captured me were afraid you would cause them trouble, so they wouldn't tell me—'"

Everyone in the room burst into laughter at her words, and the previously heavy and cold atmosphere warmed up a bit. Li Yuxuan pretended not to notice; this was exactly the effect she wanted. Once they relaxed, she could take advantage of the situation… She continued pitifully, “I was inexplicably kidnapped and used as a substitute in life, so even as a ghost, I’ll be a wronged and innocent person. Tell me, why am I so unlucky?”

An elderly man looked at her and suddenly exclaimed, "Huh?" He walked over to her and examined her carefully for a while before walking up to Uncle Yang and saying, "Old Yang, don't you think this young lady looks like someone I know?"

Uncle Yang nodded dejectedly.

His reaction did not escape Li Yuxuan's notice, but she was 100% certain that she had never seen them before. So, it was the little girl from her previous life who knew them? That was even more impossible. How could a fourteen or fifteen-year-old daughter of an official family know a notorious bandit?

And judging from the expressions of this person and Uncle Yang, that person is definitely not their enemy. She is a woman, so that person is also a woman, a woman, an old acquaintance of theirs... Woman and man, hmm, could it be that the woman and this Uncle Yang have some kind of impure affair? Otherwise, why would she specifically ask Uncle Yang?

That would be wonderful. Ideally, this woman would be his ex-lover—no, she has to be his first love. Only a first love is unrequited, causing him to suffer from lovesickness, and only then would he extend his affection to her. But along the way, he hasn't really extended his affection to her; it was his idea to capture her.

She then took a closer look at Uncle Yang. Although he had a full beard and was over forty, his eyebrows, lips, and upright posture still revealed the charm and extraordinary handsomeness he possessed in his youth. Such a man certainly had the looks to charm young girls in his youth.

She pretended to be very curious and asked the elderly man, it would be a lie to say she wasn't curious: "Uncle, who do you think I look like? I've heard several people say that I look like someone, but when I ask them, they don't say."

The elderly man looked at her for a while, then asked, "Young lady, what is your mother's surname?"

My mother? Li Yuxuan's mouth dropped open. She did indeed look very much like her mother, something Yinzi had repeatedly confirmed. But, could the person they were talking about be her mother? It couldn't be such a coincidence, could it? "My mother's surname is Xiao!"

This time she spoke the truth. Gossip is human nature, and she was curious too. "Prefect Li, don't blame me for betraying you, but even if you really were cuckolded, I'll find the person for you so you can get revenge."

Upon hearing this, Uncle Yang was so shocked that he practically flew from his stool to her side, his eyes almost swallowing her whole: "What did you say your surname was?"

Li Yuxuan was startled by his actions and took two steps back with a thud. Thank goodness, her guess was right. This man really did have a connection with a woman surnamed Xiao who looked very much like her. "My mother's surname is Xiao."

Seeing Uncle Yang suddenly become unusually agitated, Xiao Rou quickly came over and grabbed his hand: "Uncle Yang, you're overthinking it. It's impossible. She's from Bianliang. Besides, it all ended five years ago, didn't it?"

Five years ago?

The massacre at the Li family mansion five years ago? Her expression froze, and she looked at Xiao Rou. Seeing that Xiao Rou was also looking at her, she lowered her head, afraid that Xiao Rou would see through her thoughts.

Could the clues to the bloody case she's looking for be right here with them?

Is it really true that you search high and low only to find it unexpectedly without any effort?

Could they be... the murderers? A jolt went through her, and she looked up at Uncle Yang again. Uncle Yang, helped back into his chair by Xiao Rou, still asked Li Yuxuan, "How old are you this year?"

Li Yuxuan subconsciously touched his nose, then decided to tell the truth: "Twenty years old."

Uncle Yang looked at her, and Li Yuxuan saw his eyes become unfocused for a moment, and heard him murmur, "The same age—".

Li Yuxuan was also stunned by this sudden turn of events. This was definitely not a coincidence. It was absolutely divine intervention.

In her panic, she looked at Uncle Yang, who seemed vaguely familiar. Seeing his pained and bewildered expression, her heart ached as if it had been stabbed.

She knew the answer: the person in front of her was either an enemy or a relative.

For some reason, she suddenly felt like crying. She, who always hid her vulnerability with a smile, suddenly wanted to burst into tears, she really wanted to…