At the same time, five thousand li away, in a cave outside Pisha City, their original destination, a ridiculous scene was unfolding.

  Deep in the cave, the light was dim. Only a trace of faint light came from the cave entrance, barely allowing people to see the scene inside. A young girl in gorgeous clothes was sweating profusely, her hair a little messy, but she showed no sign of panic. Instead, she looked like she was in command, busy instructing two masked men to make her bed.

  The two masked men, one tall and one thin, were leaning against the cold stone wall with their arms crossed, their faces full of helplessness and despair, not even a trace of the desire to resist. At this moment, they only had one thought in their minds: Professional things should really be left to professionals. The two of them, cultivators from the Northern Dynasty, were actually manipulated by a young girl from the Southern Dynasty. It would be a great shame to say it out loud.

  The tall masked man was Qiu Fuchun. He bent down to pick up a cloth bag at his feet, weighed it, and felt weak all over, almost falling to the ground. His tone was full of collapse: "I said, is this the tattered quilt we've been carrying all the way? I'm dizzy—does she plan to live in this cave permanently? If I had known it would be like this, I would have never taken this job! We might as well go to another city and find a easy-to-handle family to kidnap. We wouldn't have ended up in this situation!"

  The thin masked man was Han Jiuqiu. He glanced at the small suitcase at Qiu Fuchun's feet, and the corner of his mouth couldn't help twitching. His tone was full of helplessness: "Then what do you think is in your suitcase? I thought it was gold, silver and jewelry, but when I opened it, it was all rouge, powder and toiletries—even more useless than my burden!"

  "Oh no!" Qiu Fuchun wailed, grabbing his hair with both hands, looking completely collapsed, "She can't be thinking of letting us fetch water for her to take a bath, right? This is a barren mountain—where can we find hot water for her? If I had known kidnapping was so troublesome, I wouldn't have acted on impulse and agreed to it!"

  The two of them complained in low voices, their faces full of regret. They were originally cultivators from the Northern Dynasty, ordered by their master to come to the Southern Dynasty to find clues about the Fuhui Gold Mine. But they hit a wall everywhere along the way. By chance, they heard that the daughter of the lord of Pisha City was spoiled and deeply loved by the lord. If they kidnapped her, they would definitely be able to extort a large sum of ransom. At that time, they would have enough money to find clues about the gold mine.

  But they never expected that this seemingly spoiled lord's daughter would be so difficult to deal with. From the moment she was kidnapped, she showed no fear at all. Instead, she instructed them everywhere, treating them as her servants, turning the tables and manipulating the two of them, the kidnappers, completely.

  Just as they were complaining in low voices, the young lady in gorgeous clothes wiped the sweat from her face, raised her chin, and looked down at them, her tone full of threats: "You two, stop complaining secretly, and don't think about running away! These days, as long as you two have entered or exited Pisha City, there will be your information and portraits at the city gate! If you dare to run, I will die here. My father will definitely let the government search the whole world, and even dig three feet into the ground to find you. At that time, you will wait to have your heads cut off!"

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  "Aren't you putting the cart before the horse?" Han Jiuqiu couldn't help interrupting her coldly, his tone full of impatience, "We kidnapped you just for money and don't want to cause more trouble. You'd better be sensible and don't force us to be rude to you!"

  But the young lady in gorgeous clothes was not afraid at all. Instead, she showed a proud smile and confidently revealed her trump card. Qiu Fuchun looked at her confident appearance and couldn't help flying into a rage—he had lived so long, and he had never been threatened by a young girl like this! At this moment, he deeply realized that a woman's mind was more terrifying than a fierce tiger or beast. In the future, he must stay away from such scheming young girls!

  Han Jiuqiu was much calmer than Qiu Fuchun. He sneered, looking at the young lady in gorgeous clothes with cold eyes: "Miss, if you want to move us with sympathy, you may have a glimmer of hope. But threatening us like this—do you really think we kidnappers are soft persimmons that you can manipulate at will? We kidnapped you, so you are the hostage. You should act like a hostage and recognize your identity! City gate guards? There are so many people entering and exiting the city these days—are we the only two? There are also many people coming from Suqian every day. Do you think I will give you a chance to ruin our plan?"

  "Only the two of us in recent days? Do you take us for three-year-old children who are so easy to deceive?" Han Jiuqiu's words were reasonable and cold, making Qiu Fuchun couldn't help raising his head, looking full of agreement—he was so busy complaining just now that he forgot this point. Presumably, this young lady was just bluffing.

  "Hehe, you're right. Pisha City has four city gates, and thousands of people enter and exit each gate every day, adding up to tens of thousands. That's correct; but if you say that there are only two visitors from the Northern Dynasty—not to mention in recent days, but in recent years, it's only the two of you!" The young lady in gorgeous clothes smiled cunningly, her tone full of pride, "So stop pretending to be confused. I already know your details."

  Visitors from the Northern Dynasty? Only the two of them in recent years?

  The young lady's words were concise and clear, but with an undeniable confidence, making Qiu Fuchun and Han Jiuqiu stunned instantly, looking at each other like two monks who couldn't figure out what was going on.

  They had obviously been wearing masks all the time, and they deliberately lowered their voices when speaking, trying to imitate the accent of the Southern Dynasty. How could this young lady find out that they were from the Northern Dynasty?

  "Take off your masks—it's useless. Wearing them is tiring and inconvenient." The young lady in gorgeous clothes said slowly, her tone full of disdain, "What exposed your identity is your accent—both of you speak the official language of the Northern Dynasty. Even if you try to hide it, you can still hear the flaw."

  Qiu Fuchun and Han Jiuqiu suddenly realized, their faces full of embarrassment and regret—they had calculated everything, but they forgot the flaw of their accent! It seemed that professional things should really be left to professionals. The two of them, cultivators from the Northern Dynasty, were still too inexperienced in the territory of the Southern Dynasty.

  Since they had been discovered, there was no point in wearing masks anymore. The two looked at each other, helplessly took off their masks, revealing two handsome but sweaty faces. There was still a trace of regret on Qiu Fuchun's face, while Han Jiuqiu's face was still cold, but there was a faint trace of helplessness in his eyes.