Chapter 17 — The God of Light's Swapped Bride

News of the slander plot's failure to make Y Nhi submit was quickly reported to Co Bat Uy's palace. He sat in the study room, listening to Ta Khac Dung narrate the entire development, his face darkened with anger.

"This girl is more stubborn than I thought," he said, his voice filled with bitterness. "I gave him enough opportunities to choose the easy path, but he still refused."

"Sir," Ta Khac Dung said, his voice cautious, "perhaps it's time for us to take a more decisive measure. The 'legal' path has not brought the desired results, and that musician is becoming more and more unpredictable. If he continues to delay, maybe he will find a way to protect Miss Lang more firmly."

Co Bat Uy pondered for a long time, his eyes flashing with cold determination. "Okay. If she refuses to come to me voluntarily, I will bring her in another way. Prepare people, I want to take action this week."

"What do you intend to do, sir?" Ta Khac Dung asked.

"Arrest it," Co Bat Uy replied, his voice cold and decisive. "Bring him back to my palace, and organize a wedding within three days. Once the wedding is complete, no matter what happens after that, the fate is fixed, no one can change it."

Ta Khac Dung slightly bowed his head, although in his heart he was a little apprehensive about the recklessness of this plan, but he knew that once Co Bat Uy made up his mind, nothing could change it. "I will arrange it immediately," he replied.

A few days later, one evening when Y Nhi brought a basket of embroidery to the night market - where merchants often gathered to do business later than usual to take advantage of the lantern light and bustling atmosphere of the streets at night - she was completely unaware that, hidden in that bustling crowd, people sent by Co Bat Uy had been silently following her every step all afternoon.

Da Vu, because he had to take on another performance at a tea shop farther away than usual to earn more income, could not go with her as usual. He warned her to be careful, promising to come pick her up as soon as the show ended, but he didn't expect that short amount of time would be enough for the enemy to take action.

While Y Nhi was engrossed in negotiating the price with a customer at her small stall, a closed carriage suddenly stopped right behind, several strong men quickly approached, and a towel soaked with anesthetic was placed on her face before she could react or make a sound. In a split second, she was dragged onto the carriage, the door slammed shut, and the carriage sped away through the bustling crowd, no one in the crowd had time to realize what had just happened.

When Da Vu finished the performance and rushed to the night market to pick up his wife as promised, he only saw her small stall left in the middle of the aisle, a few rolls of embroidery thread scattered on the ground, and her familiar bamboo basket lying on the side of the road.

"Y Nhi!" he called out, his voice filled with panic, but there was only the noise of the market street in response. He hurriedly asked the surrounding merchants, and an old woman selling fruit nearby, tremblingly recounted what she witnessed.

"I saw some strange men, very big, rushing towards her, then dragging her into a closed carriage," the old woman said, her voice still filled with shock. "I was too scared to speak up, I could only stand and watch. The car was heading towards the noble quarter in the east of the city."

Da Vu stood dumbfounded in the middle of the crowded market street, his heart felt like someone was strangling him. Fear, anger, and an extreme feeling of helplessness welled up inside him at the same time. He knew exactly who was behind this kidnapping, and he also knew that Co Bat Uy's purpose was no longer seductions or slanderous plots - he had decided to use the final, most brutal measure.

He ran like crazy in the direction the old woman pointed, asking anyone he could, trying to track down that hidden carriage. Finally, after asking a few porters who had seen the convoy pass by, he determined that the car was headed straight towards the magnificent mansion of Count Co Bat Uy in the eastern part of the city.

Standing in front of the soaring gate, strictly guarded by dozens of fully armed soldiers of the Co Bat Uy mansion, Da Vu felt more clearly than ever the helplessness of this mortal body. Even though inside he was boiling with an anger that could burn down the entire mansion, he knew that with the little strength he had left, rushing in recklessly at this time would only get him arrested or killed immediately, and would not help Y Nhi at all.

He was forced to retreat, hiding in a nearby dark alley, trying to calmly think about a wiser approach. While observing, he heard the conversation of two guards standing near the gate, discussing how the mansion was rushing to prepare for a big ceremony that would take place in the next three days.

"I heard the Count is getting married," a soldier said, his voice a bit humorous. "The bride is a young lady from a merchant family. I heard she was just arrested this afternoon."

"Marrying like this is really forced," the soldier replied, his voice lower and more reserved. "But that's it, it's about the superiors, that's all I know, don't get involved."

Hearing that, the anger in Da Vu's heart became even more boiling. Three days. Co Bat Uy only gave him three days to find a way to save Y Nhi before he forced her to complete a forced marriage, turning everything into a fait accompli that no one could change.

He left the alley and ran straight towards the outskirts, where the ancient temple ruins still retained some of the original aura he had found before. He knew that the small Light Stone he was carrying was not strong enough for him to face off against such a strictly protected mansion. He needed more than that, and he needed it fast, before those three short days were over.

Meanwhile, in a luxurious but locked room in Co Bat Uy's mansion, Y Nhi woke up in a daze from anesthesia, finding herself lying on a soft silk bed, surrounded by ornately decorated walls, completely unfamiliar with the simple small house she was familiar with.

She got up and ran to the window, but only saw iron bars cleverly disguised under brocade curtains, preventing her from having any chance of escaping. The door was locked from the outside, and when she knocked on the door and called out, only the guards' footsteps echoed, but no one answered.

Not long after, the door opened and Co Bat Uy walked in, followed by several maids carrying gorgeous clothes. "The lady is awake," he said, his voice still holding the familiar false politeness. "I'm sorry I had to resort to this, but you left me no other choice."

"You have no right to keep me here!" Y Nhi shouted, her voice full of anger, even though fear was rising in her heart. "Let me go now!"

"I'm afraid it's impossible," Co Bat Uy replied, the smile on his lips was chillingly cold. "In three days, you will become my wife, whether you like it or not. I advise you to accept this fate gracefully, it will be better for both of us."

Y Nhi glared at him, an iron determination rising in her heart. "I would rather die than accept becoming the wife of a coward who uses kidnapping tricks to coerce others like you!" she shouted, not showing the slightest sign of submission.

Co Bat Uy frowned slightly at that fierce resistance, but he still maintained his composure. "Ma'am, just keep that aura for three more days," he said, his voice cold. "Then you will understand, there is no use in resisting in the face of true strength."

He turned and left the room, leaving Y Nhi alone in the luxurious but stuffy room like a disguised prison. She sat down on the floor, but did not cry, just clasped her hands tightly, a strong will burning in her heart: no matter what she faced in the next three days, she would never give in easily, and she was confident that Da Vu would come to save her, just like he had always done all this time.

That night, lying alone on an unfamiliar silk bed, Y Nhi looked up at the elaborately carved ceiling, her heart constantly thinking about the simple days with Da Vu in the small house in the Ben Muon area. She missed the smell of kitchen smoke every morning, missed the gentle sound of the lute every night, missed the warmth of his hand every time the two of them sat together watching the sunset on the Lam Giang River. Those simple memories have now become the greatest source of strength to help her maintain her spirit in this luxurious but cold prison of human love.

She closed her eyes and whispered a promise to herself: no matter what tricks Co Bat Uy used, she would find every way to delay, to resist, to wait for the moment Da Vu appeared, because she absolutely believed that he would never abandon her in the midst of this danger.