Ye鸾 stepped out of the palace, leaning against a large tree and narrowing her eyes.
Now, with no hidden guards and no Xiao Chi Zhan, should she take this opportunity to leave?
But—
The Bai family!
If she left, what would happen to the Bai family?
Without adequate preparation, would she be stopped at Youzhou City? If she were caught then, would he kill her in a fit of rage?!
As she thought, scenes of past humiliation flashed through her mind.
"Just a plaything for sleeping, hand her over when you're tired of her."
"Don't forget, you are merely this prince's slave."
"I don't think killing you is enough to vent my anger. Perhaps torturing you while you're alive is better than letting you live a fate worse than death."
"No woman this prince has touched would dare to be wanted in the capital. If you have the backbone to leave the prince's manor today, I will make your life a living hell."
Being whipped, stabbed, forced, losing her chastity and nearly her life, his humiliation, sarcasm, and threats all churned in her mind like colossal waves.
The last memory that flashed back was the scene of her being coerced in the dark room.
The hatred deeply hidden in her heart surged, and she pressed a hand to her chest, bowing her head and taking a deep breath.
The humiliation she had suffered back then was etched into her very bones, a bloodthirsty pain.
He was like a demon, using Fu Dai and the Bai family to imprison her freedom, keeping her imprisoned like an animal.
Hah.
To want to imprison her forever, he was dreaming!
She raised her eyes, looking at the blue sky and white clouds, concealing the turbulent emotions in her eyes. One day, she would leave this cage.
To live for herself!
"A-Luan—"
"Ye鸾—"
Two female voices echoed around.
Ye鸾 snapped back to attention, exhaled, and walked out quickly.
"Mu Rou, Qing Ge, I'm here."
Hearing the voices, the two ran over with their horses, their faces anxious.
"Are you alright? Where's the horse?"
She smiled and shook her head, "I'm fine. The horse got spooked and ran off. I jumped off."
"Were you injured?"
"No."
Wei Qing Ge breathed a sigh of relief and grinned broadly, "That's good. We heard something happened up ahead, let's go watch the excitement."
On the street outside the beast-taming arena, people knelt in rows.
The once boisterous and decadent underground city fell into a sudden silence.
Xiao Chi Zhan, dressed in a snow-white robe, stood tall and elegant, cloaked in white fox fur, seated atop a steed. Behind him stood heavily armored soldiers.
The atmosphere was chilling and stern, with glinting blades.
He held a long sword, coldly lifting the chin of the owner of this underground city.
The air around them was colder than the frigid weather, more terrifying than the bloody beast-taming arena.
"I'll ask again, where is the person?"
The owner trembled uncontrollably. He truly didn't know what had happened in the arena, nor where the person had gone.
"Your Highness, this humble subject is already searching. I will definitely find the person."
The sword in Xiao Chi Zhan's hand began to slide down from the owner's skull, mercilessly piercing the flesh, and blood trickled down his cheek.
Screams of agony mixed with blood rolling down, terrifying everyone. They prostrated themselves on the ground, not daring to move.
The man on the horse was cold and indifferent, his thin lips pressed into a straight line. He dropped the sword and said indifferently, "If anything happens to her, I will wash this underground purgatory with blood."
"Search."
With a command, countless soldiers poured into the wide-open city gates, swords drawn, killing indiscriminately.
When Ye鸾 and the others arrived from behind the arena, they were startled by the soldiers searching everywhere.
Wei Qing Ge exclaimed, "Wh-what happened? What's going on?"
"There are so many people kneeling on the street ahead."
The group quietly skirted around.
Ye鸾 immediately spotted the man with white hair and red eyes. Her heart lurched. Why was he here?
Several figures suddenly burst onto the street and were quickly discovered by the soldiers.
Long San rushed over directly, exclaiming in surprise, "Miss Ye."
As soon as the signal for the death of the hidden guards was sent, he knew something had happened and rushed to inform the prince. He thought Miss Ye had met with misfortune, but she was standing there perfectly fine.
How could the hidden guard by her side be dead?
Hearing the commotion, Xiao Chi Zhan's gaze immediately shifted over. The moment their eyes met across the distance, his deep red pupils were terrifyingly profound.
Ye鸾 immediately realized that the hidden guards by her side were dead, and he had come to find her.
She couldn't help but grumble inwardly, this was too much of a show.
"Come here."
His gaze fixed intently on her skirt hem, deep and cold.
She looked down and saw a large patch of dark red bloodstains on her crimson skirt.
"Oh no," she hadn't even noticed.
Would he think she was trying to escape and had killed the hidden guards?
She quickly trotted over, her companions slowly following.
"Where did you go?"
Hearing his question, Ye鸾 directly sold out Xie Bei Han.
"I was riding a horse in the arena and accidentally trespassed into a palace. I saw a man wearing a fox mask, and the hidden guards' bodies were there."
Upon hearing this, Tan Tai Ye, who had been lazily seated behind, immediately perked up and frowned, "Xie Bei Han?!"
"That bastard, he's quite bold."
Xiao Chi Zhan remained silent, his gaze sweeping coldly over the bloodstains on her skirt, the storm brewing in his eyes seemingly capable of destroying heaven and earth, an unsettling intensity. Ye鸾 swallowed and raised her eyes, adding,
"He should have run by now, and you won't be able to catch him, but he definitely hasn't left Youzhou City. If Your Highness wants to pursue him, ordering the city gates to be sealed is the best course of action."
It was best to let them fight each other to a mutual destruction.
"You're quite good at giving advice."
His voice was tinged with amusement, yet filled with danger. Ye鸾 wisely kept silent.
His clean, long hands suddenly reached out to her.
She was startled and immediately extended her hand, allowing him to pull her onto the horse.
Enveloped in his embrace, surrounded by a familiar aura, Ye鸾 felt fortunate that her desire for freedom hadn't clouded her judgment moments ago.
In such a tightly guarded Youzhou City, without adequate preparation, she would absolutely not be able to escape.
And if she were captured again, the consequences would be unimaginable.
The army withdrew from the dirty and bustling underground city.
Not far away, Su Li, who was kneeling on the ground, watched the two ride away, her eyes filled with hatred, causing her entire body to tremble.
"Sister Su, let's hurry and find a doctor. Your injuries can't be delayed any longer."
At this moment, another female voice spoke with a mocking tone.
"I didn't expect the Prince didn't treat that woman as a slave after all. What we saw is worlds apart from what Miss Su said."
With sarcastic, mocking gazes, the words fell upon her inch by inch. Su Li coldly stood up and turned to leave.
"Hmph, acting all high and mighty."
As they exited, Xiao Chi Zhan glanced back at the carved relief of the building's entrance, his crimson eyes colder than the water in the moat.
"This filthy place should have been destroyed long ago."
Stepping into this place again, the memories of the past instantly surfaced, and his expression was terrifyingly fearful.
Tan Tai Ye smirked, "Killing so many people back then wasn't enough to appease your anger?"
Xiao Chi Zhan remained silent, looking down at the woman in his arms.
She, must not come to such a sordid and foul place again!
It would dirty her eyes.
"Long San, burn it."
Long San was startled and immediately bowed his head, "Yes."