However, Xu Xing dismissed this unrealistic idea before he could even finish the thought.
He had not been intimate with Zhao Yunniang for long.
Even if she were pregnant, she would only have been pregnant for half a month at most.
A single dose of an abortifacient could terminate an undeveloped fetus.
A child and an unborn fetus were two different things.
If he didn't oppose Han Sui, Han Sui wouldn't mind playing the benevolent one to the end, allowing Zhao Yunniang to bear his offspring and continue his lineage.
But if he intended to turn Zhao Yunniang against Han Sui…
An unborn fetus alone isn't worth Zhao Yunniang betraying Han Sui.
It was not uncommon for women in brothels to take abortifacients.
Although Zhao Yunniang was a chaste courtesan, having been immersed in the environment of a brothel, she would likely find it difficult to develop any deep feelings for an unborn child.
"What price or conditions should I offer?"
"To make Zhao Yunniang side with me?"
Xu Xing pondered deeply.
「On the other side.」
Zhao Yunniang made her way to the prison cells carrying a Lacquered Wooden Food Box.
A red curtain was drawn, and the two sat facing each other once more.
"Husband," Zhao Yunniang began, a touch of sadness on her face, "once you take this final dose of Musk Dragon Powder, you will pass away."
After speaking, she took out her jewelry box. Facing a handheld bronze mirror, she began to apply makeup and adorn her hair, just as she had on their wedding day when Xu Xing first saw her.
Musk Dragon Powder, known as an aphrodisiac, was in reality a potent toxin.
Every medicine carries some poison, especially a "great tonic" like this.
It was exceedingly rare for an ordinary person to survive five doses.
"In the two years since I came to the Capital," Xu Xing began to ramble while eating and drinking, "I've been swamped with official duties. Father wrote several times, urging me to marry soon. He had selected several fiancées for me, all young ladies from prominent families awaiting marriage. There was my cousin Lin Wan, and also a young lady from the Zheng family of my hometown. The patriarch of the Zheng family… he was once an Imperial Censor in the Inspectorate."
"You should know of them."
"Marrying into the Zheng family wouldn't be considered marrying above my station."
"After all, the Zheng family was only marrying off a daughter born of a concubine…"
It seemed… only now, at the brink of farewell, did he truly open his heart to this Zhangtairen, Zhao Yunniang, beginning to see her as his true wife.
As the saying goes: if she is naive, show her the splendors of the world. If she has experienced hardship, take her to ride a merry-go-round.
A chaste courtesan did not receive clients, but in a sordid place like a brothel, she must have long grown accustomed to the world's fickle nature.
It would not be an easy task to move Zhao Yunniang with ordinary words.
However… Xu Xing had no intention of trying to sway Zhao Yunniang in such a short time.
Placing his hopes on the unknown was too foolish; he wouldn't gamble his life away so lightly.
"I never thought…" Suddenly, Xu Xing changed the subject, his intentions becoming clear, "that after I was thrown into prison, the only one to accompany me to my death would be you."
His gaze was intense as he stared at Zhao Yunniang, who was dressed in her finest attire, her face made up with a rosy blush.
"What?" Zhao Yunniang's beautiful face paled in terror. "Husband? I… I certainly didn't plan to follow you to the Yellow Spring and become a pair of ill-fated lovebirds."
She instinctively took a few steps back. Only when she saw that Xu Xing had no intention of physically attacking her did she pat her chest and manage to compose herself.
"Husband, after you are gone… I will raise our son," she said. "I'll teach him to study hard."
"I've saved some dowry over the years, and with your one hundred taels, Zhang'er will grow up well. Please forgive my presumption, Husband, but I took the liberty of naming our unborn child Zhang'er…"
Zhao Yunniang sat back down and softly tried to coax Xu Xing into accepting his impending death peacefully.
She understood Xu Xing's "ravings" at this moment.
Indeed, the prospect of death was terrifying. Xu Xing had been in the Sky Prison for nearly a month, constantly facing the threat of the cruel Flaying Grass torture… It was understandable that his mental state wasn't normal.
"Sleep now," Xu Xing said, offering no further explanation.
The red candle within the curtained space was blown out by them.
...
「After the spring night had passed.」
Xu Xing circulated his Stony Heart Method, once again expelling the Musk Dragon Powder's poison from his body.
When Zhao Yunniang noticed him, her face filled with terror, he was calm and composed, nodding as he said, "Exactly, Yunniang. As you've seen… I can expel the Musk Dragon Powder's poison using my Martial Dao cultivation method."
"That's why I said the only one to die with me would be you." He repeated what he had said earlier.
"This…" Zhao Yunniang's teeth chattered, and for a long moment, she couldn't utter a word.
No wonder Xu Xing was so different tonight compared to previous nights, not just in his words but also in his actions. As his bedfellow, she hadn't initially noticed anything amiss.
Now, upon careful reflection, she realized his body was indeed much stronger than before.
"No wonder… no wonder you said such things, Husband."
After a long pause, Zhao Yunniang wiped her tears with a handkerchief, looking as if she were about to break down. "Yunniang doesn't blame you, Husband. Your cultivation of the Martial Dao is for survival. I only hope that after you are released from prison, for the sake of the love we shared, you will burn some spirit money for Yunniang at my grave…"
If Xu Xing didn't die, her mission would be a failure. What power did she, a mere woman, have to oppose Han Sui? Even if she survived, her fate wouldn't be much better.
Of course, she wasn't ready to resign herself to her fate.
Though her words now seemed to convey resignation, every sentence was laden with calculation. These words, too, had been carefully considered before she spoke them.
First, it was to overtly display weakness to Xu Xing, hoping to evoke his pity. Second, it was to imply to him that if he had no means of escaping prison, merely prolonging his life was futile; it would be better to let her complete her mission so he could have a son to carry on his lineage. Third, it was to probe for his trump cards…
"Yunniang, you don't need to probe me," Xu Xing said, a gleam flashing in his eyes; he understood the implication of her words. "I naturally have a way to survive. However, I can't tell you about it."
When it came to ruthlessness, Zhao Yunniang's methods were a far cry from those of an official.
"Out of consideration for our marital affection, I am unwilling to condemn you to death," he sneered and said slowly. "I need only say that you and I developed marital affection, that you developed romantic feelings for me, and therefore… you didn't give me the Musk Dragon Powder the last few times. Tell me… would Lord Han believe it or not?"
If he couldn't move Zhao Yunniang emotionally, then he had to make her understand the stakes.
"Lord Han… might believe my words," Zhao Yunniang admitted, seeing that Xu Xing wasn't easily fooled, she could only give a bitter smile. "But publicly, he would undoubtedly take action against me. The Taipu Temple corruption case doesn't just involve Lord Han; it concerns many officials in the Imperial Court. Lord Han would definitely use me as a scapegoat…"
Her position and Han Sui's were not equal.
When two equals meet, Public Law is power. When two unequals meet, power is Public Law.
Han Sui wouldn't listen to her explanations. Compared to her life, he cared more about reassuring his confederates. And killing her would be easier for him than crushing a grasshopper.
She… dared not take that gamble!