Duke Jing's younger sister

Yue Yang looked solemn, as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.

He really couldn't answer that.

The soldiers of the patrol camp found Ziyuan in Wanhualou, the most famous brothel in Jiangdu City.

When she was found, she had been tortured by a dozen male guests to the point of being unconscious and foaming at the mouth.

Just like an animal to be slaughtered, he was naked, with almost no good skin left on his body, and was thrown casually in the backyard of Wanhua Tower, covered in blood.

Even though Yue Yang had been to the battlefield with Shen Beiqi and had seen too many bloody and cruel scenes, he was still shocked by the scene at that time.

The soldiers in the patrol camp looked at each other in bewilderment, and those who had sisters at home were even more furious.

She's just a weak woman. What deep hatred could there be that warrants humiliating her in such an inhumane way?

They found an excuse to temporarily close the Wanhua Tower. One of the soldiers found some bedding, rolled up the unconscious Ziyuan, and brought her back to the patrol camp.

In front of the Third Lady, Yue Yang had no way of reporting the whole truth, so he could only reply briefly, "Zi Yuan was found in Wan Hua Tower!"

Shen Li's face suddenly turned pale, and she felt dizzy and unsteady. The young man standing beside her stretched out his arm at the right time and supported her from behind.

"Wanhua Tower?"

There was a slight tremor in her voice. Wanhua Tower was so famous that even Shen Li, a girl from the boudoir, had heard of it.

Falling into that kind of situation, and Yue Yang keeping silent about the details, it was not difficult for Shen Li to guess that Zi Yuan must have suffered some unimaginable pain.

"She just disappeared not long ago, how did she end up in Wanhua Tower?" Shen Li asked.

From the time they entered the Yale Pavilion to listen to the opera to the end of the show, it took less than three hours.

In the meantime, she also saw Ziyuan from afar at the corner of the stairs, moving with difficulty in the crowded crowd and walking downstairs.

If she was taken away as soon as she went down to the first floor, it would have taken at most an hour.

Even if she was kidnapped and sold to Wanhua Tower by someone with ulterior motives, it is impossible for her to be...

It's impossible to get there quickly. There's not even enough time to save her!

In fact, Yue Yang also found it very strange. Even in a brothel, there was no example of taking a girl in and immediately receiving customers without training her.

What's more, Ziyuan had whip marks on her body, as if she had been severely tortured.

He also asked the old madam, and the old woman replied that she had never seen the woman in the backyard and had no idea who she was.

Shen Li grabbed Yue Yang's sleeves and said anxiously, "Where is she? Take me to see her."

In the side hall of the patrol camp, all the soldiers retreated.

Some of them were from aristocratic families, but most of them were from poor families. They couldn't bear to see Zi Yuan, a slave, being bullied into such a miserable state.

It was also because I wanted to leave her some dignity. When she woke up, she wouldn't see so many men around, and maybe she would feel better.

When Shen Li arrived, Zi Yuan had already woken up.

She was wrapped in a loose dark gray men's robe, and she didn't know who was so kind as to find it for her.

She sat on a wooden chair in the hall like a dazed woman, her eyes dull and lifeless, as heavy as a pool of stagnant water. She was completely devoid of energy, like a dying bird, having completely lost her life force.

Shen Beiqi stopped outside the door, and Shen Li went in alone.

"Brother Shen!"

Zhang Yao approached him, clasped his fists slightly, and asked, "Your family lost a maid, and you bothered to come and pick her up in person?"

This man is the deputy commander of the patrol battalion, named Zhang Yao, and the nephew of the palace commander Zhang Qian. This time, Shen Beiqi asked him to help search for Zi Yuan's whereabouts.

Zhang Yaosheng is 50% similar to his uncle, both are tall and strong, with thick eyebrows and big eyes.

The only difference is that Zhang Yao does not have a beard like his uncle.

Zhang Yao and Shen Beiqi were of similar age and both were military commanders. They had been friends for a long time, and when he heard from his subordinates that he was coming to patrol the camp in person, he naturally came over to say hello.

Shen Beiqi glanced at the side hall separated by a bamboo curtain and slowly said, "She is..."

He originally wanted to say, "She is my sister's personal maid," but when the words came to his lips, he didn't want to say it that way, so he changed the subject.

"Did you find what I asked you to find?"

"I found it. I rode my horse from the north and returned to the city yesterday. Do you want to give the flower to my uncle?"

Zhang Yaowu is a straightforward person, so he didn't find it strange that the topic suddenly took a turn.

Shen Beiqi lowered his eyes, thought for a moment and said, "Send it to my house tomorrow."

"Okay!" Zhang Yao responded readily.

Ever since the last night banquet in the palace, he became suspicious when he heard Shen Li talk about the fragrance on her body.

He intended to send someone to the North to ask local hunters if there was a kind of flower whose fragrance could attract obsidian snakes.

However, the prince has been keeping a close eye on him in recent days, and this matter is not something he should be involved in. If he rashly intervenes, he is afraid of alerting the enemy.

After much thought, he finally found Zhang Yao, the nephew of General Zhang.

This case had originally been assigned by His Majesty to Commander Zhang. It was reasonable and logical for his nephew to help his uncle.

The shadows of the trees in the courtyard are swaying, and the mottled shadows are reflected on the lattice windows.

In the room, Shen Li slowly sat down beside Zi Yuan, and in the dim yellow candlelight, carefully examined the injuries on her face.

Half of her face was swollen and there was a trace of blood at the corner of her mouth. Shen Li reached out to touch her, but before his fingertips touched her, she shrank back like a frightened bird.

"Don't be afraid Ziyuan, look at me...I am Shen Li!"

Zi Yuan's scattered eyes seemed to gradually focus. She slowly looked at the familiar face in front of her, and tears finally rolled down uncontrollably.

"Girl, save me...save me..."

Before she finished speaking, she knelt on the ground, covered her cheeks with her hands and burst into tears. The sleeves of the men's clothes on her body were loose and slipped down to her elbows, revealing the dense and shocking bloodstains on her slender arms.

Zi Yuan's miserable and frightened cries echoed in the room.

The sound was like a sharp blade, piercing directly into Shen Li's heart, causing her to feel severe pain.

Shen Li understood that the pain inflicted on Zi Yuan was secondary. The most important thing was the wound in her heart, which might never heal in this lifetime.

She wanted to persuade her, but she felt that at this moment, any words of comfort would be too pale for Zi Yuan and would not be able to reduce her pain in the slightest.

Shen Li squatted down and took Zi Yuan into his arms, allowing her to vent all the grief and pain in her heart without any scruples.

The miserable cries pierced the night sky.

The soldiers in the courtyard looked towards the hall door, feeling resentful.

In this cannibalistic world, they have seen too many injustices. All they can do is to sympathize with the weak. There is no other way.

Shen Beiqi looked up at the night sky, and a wave of sadness suddenly rose in his heart.