The night passed quickly.
The next day, as dawn was just breaking, the army was ready to depart.
Yulin in November had completely entered the depths of winter, and the biting wind felt like a knife cut against the skin.
Only half an hour passed, then an hour...
The army stood in the camp, enduring the cold wind, waiting and waiting for the order to march.
After an unknown amount of time, Han Jingyu emerged from the Second Prince's tent.
Soon, the entire army received the news: the Second Prince had suddenly fallen ill.
Upon hearing the news, the Seventh Prince and the Tenth Prince rushed to the Second Prince's tent.
After all, they were siblings; how could they truly stand by and do nothing?
Ji Zizhao also entered the tent with a delayed reaction.
The moment she lifted the curtain, she heard the Second Prince's pained sobs from within.
Ji Zizhao stepped inside and saw that the accompanying imperial physician was examining the Second Prince.
The Second Prince lay on the wooden bed, his body taut, gasping for breath in large gulps at one moment, and then resuming his pained sobbing at the next.
Ji Zizhao stood still, frowning slightly.
Not long after, the imperial physician rose and bowed to the Seventh and Tenth Princes, "Reporting to Your Highness the Seventh and Tenth Princes, His Highness the Second Prince is likely suffering from the strain of travel."
What else could the Seventh and Tenth Princes do upon hearing this?
They could only have the imperial physician prescribe medicine and then have someone carefully help the Second Prince onto the carriage.
However, due to the Second Prince's inability to endure the jolting of travel, everyone had to slow their pace.
The weather was already extremely cold; if they traveled faster, the soldiers' ability to resist the cold might have been better.
But now, to accommodate the Second Prince's condition, the soldiers were forced to advance slowly in the biting wind.
Qing Zhu, watching from the carriage at the Second Young Lady shivering in the cold wind, felt a pang of sympathy. "His Highness the Second Prince's illness has certainly come at a most opportune time."
Ji Zizhao replied, "It's *too* opportune."
Lian Ju and Qing Zhu were both taken aback by her words.
"Miss means... could it be..."
Ji Zizhao merely gave a cold smile.
Exhaustion was defined as a continuous accumulation of fatigue, leading to a series of functional disorders or pathological conditions.
It typically manifested as fatigue, weakness, lethargy, and lack of spirit.
The Second Prince's appearance, as if possessed by a ghost, was clearly nothing but feigned illness.
Qing Zhu couldn't understand, "If that's the case, why would the imperial physician help conceal it?"
Ji Zizhao retorted, "What benefit would revealing it bring him?"
The Second Prince, even in exile, was still a prince, the Emperor's son.
A mere imperial physician, even if he knew the truth, would not dare to expose him.
Lian Ju frowned, "If the Second Prince truly intended this, he should have done so yesterday. What benefit is there for him to feign illness now to delay the march?"
Lian Ju's words struck Ji Zizhao like a warning bell.
Thinking back to her conversation with Lian Ju and Qing Zhu yesterday, and then considering the Second Prince's behavior today...
"I fear the Second Prince has also discovered that our Second Sister is among the army."
Qing Zhu and Lian Ju suddenly understood.
If the Second Prince had truly discovered that the Second Young Lady was in the army, then everything made sense.
The Second Prince was deliberately feigning illness to delay the army's progress, intending to torment the Second Young Lady.
Lian Ju and Qing Zhu, having served as soldiers, were accustomed to bloodshed and combat.
In their eyes, a man's cruelty could be the clash of real swords on the battlefield, not this twisted venting of rage upon an innocent woman.
They had to admit, this Second Prince truly disgusted them.
The north wind howled, and the overcast sky showed signs of an imminent heavy snowfall.
Lian Ju and Qing Zhu, through the carriage window, vaguely saw the Second Young Lady walking amongst the other soldiers, each step a struggle.
The fierce wind tossed her hair, and the breath she exhaled condensed into tiny ice shards at the corners of her lips.
Yet, despite this, she continued to walk forward with steady steps.
Ji Zizhao, also gazing at her Second Sister's retreating figure, slowly narrowed her eyes.
Since the Second Prince did not wish for a peaceful arrival in Luoyi, then let it become lively.
She only hoped he had the capacity to cause trouble, and also the capacity to withstand her retaliation.
With a plan forming in her mind, Ji Zizhao found a sense of calm.
The soldiers marching through the wind and snow found the cold unbearable.
However, whenever the army attempted to pick up speed, the Second Prince would let out pained cries.
Han Jingyu, helpless, had no choice but to repeatedly order the soldiers to slow down.
Under such slow progress, the army, which should have reached its resting place by noon, was delayed by a full two and a half hours before they could finally stop for a brief rest.
The wind and snow grew stronger, and the falling snow like goose feathers blurred everyone's vision.
To ward off the cold, the soldiers could only huddle together for warmth.
However, as Ji Zixiu was the only woman in the army, no soldier willingly approached her.
The Second Prince, Xie Jingxi, on the carriage, leaned against the brazier and looked through the window at the isolated Ji Zixiu, a smug curve forming on his lips.
The young eunuch attending him looked distressed, "Your Highness, I fear the snow will soon worsen, and the weather will become even colder."
Xie Jingxi impatiently glanced at the eunuch, "What is that expression? Those outside are merely a pack of dogs raised by my Xie family. They deserve to suffer a little, so they will be more capable of serving my Xie family in the future."
The eunuch prostrated himself on the ground, trembling, "Your... Your servant merely fears that people will freeze to death."
Xie Jingxi scoffed dismissively, "If they freeze to death, it's because they are too weak. They deserve it. If indeed someone freezes to death, they should thank this Prince. Such weak and useless trash should reincarnate as soon as possible."
The eunuch knelt on the ground, daring not to speak further.
Suddenly, there was a knock on the carriage door.
The eunuch looked at the Second Prince. Seeing that the Second Prince did not object, he quickly rose and opened the door.
A gust of cold wind swept into the carriage, chilling everyone to the bone.
Amidst the swirling snow, a slender figure stood with neither humility nor arrogance.
The eunuch was stunned, "Princess Ronghe?"
Seeing the visitor outside, it wasn't just the eunuch who was surprised; even the Second Prince, Xie Jingxi, couldn't react immediately.
"This subject has heard that Your Highness the Second Prince is unwell. Conveniently, this subject has medicine that can alleviate exhaustion and has brought it to offer Your Highness relief from your suffering."
Would Ji Zizhao be so kind?
Xie Jingxi naturally did not believe it. "Princess Ronghe would be so benevolent?"
Ji Zizhao, however, stood her ground, showing no intention of leaving. "Your Highness the Second Prince holds a noble status. Should anything befall you during the journey, everyone present bears an inescapable responsibility. This subject is, naturally, equally fearful."
Xie Jingxi: "..."
He strongly suspected he was being mocked, but he had no proof.