Xue Xingyue feigned unconsciousness, and soon someone carried her away, from a dark place to a dim one.
They set her down. She narrowed her eyes and saw many women there.
A man swept something across her nose. She continued to feign unconsciousness.
"When does the young master want people? We have enough this time."
"No rush, we await the young master's command."
"Just keep an eye on these people and don't let anyone discover this place."
"Rest assured, they have all inhaled the sleeping incense and won't wake up for at least three to five days."
The man nodded and said, "Don't let them starve either. Give them some water and dry rations."
"Leave it to me!"
The man left.
Another man picked out a girl and carried her out.
Xue Xingyue opened her eyes. Feng Wu beside her also opened her eyes and whispered, "Your Highness, Madam Ningguo Gong and Miss Jiang are not here."
Xue Xingyue nodded and said, "Let's go out."
Feng Wu nodded, untied the ropes binding them, and the two headed towards the cave entrance.
Suddenly, a strange sound seemed to come from nearby. Xue Xingyue and Feng Wu exchanged glances and moved further inside. They saw that the man who had just picked out a girl was doing something dirty to her, making satisfied sounds. Xue Xingyue's gaze turned cold, and a dagger slipped from her hand. Suddenly, Feng Wu pulled her aside, and she saw that there were not only men inside, but others as well.
"Your Highness, this is not the time to make a move," Feng Wu whispered. Although she also wanted to kill the man, she knew her duty was to protect Princess Xingyue, and she was powerless to help anyone else.
"But…"
"Your Highness." Feng Wu urged.
The man let out one last pleasurable sound and said to the person beside him, "Send her back."
"Brother Li, if the young master finds out about this, he'll be angry."
The one called Brother Li said, "The young master is impotent, so what need does he have for these beautiful girls? It's a waste of good material. I've solved it for him."
Xue Xingyue clenched her fists upon hearing this. The young master who couldn't be a man, in this person's mouth, must be Jiang Xifeng.
It would be a disservice to you if Jiang Xifeng didn't kill you.
"Your Highness, let's get out first," Feng Wu said.
Xue Xingyue nodded, and the two left the place. Outside, they were not far from the inn.
"Your Highness, what do we do next?" Feng Wu asked.
Xue Xingyue said, "Let's return to the inn first. Jin Xuan and Jin Qing are still at the inn."
Feng Wu nodded, and they returned to their room. Jin Xuan and Jin Qing had not yet woken up.
Xue Xingyue had Feng Wu carry Jin Qing and Jin Xuan to the carriage.
Then, she pretended to knock on Madam Jiang and Jiang Xiuyi's room. Seeing no one, she cried out in feigned alarm.
Soon, the waiter rushed over. "What is it, honored guest?"
"Madam and Xiuyi are gone. Did you see where they went?" Xue Xingyue asked.
The waiter shook his head. "This junior doesn't know. Perhaps they left ahead of you?"
Xue Xingyue shook her head. "Impossible. Summon your shopkeeper. My madam and maidservant Xiuyi are gone. Where did they go?"
The shopkeeper said, somewhat helplessly, "My dear girl, if the people are gone, I wouldn't know. Perhaps they left earlier?"
Xue Xingyue stepped forward and grabbed the shopkeeper's collar. "The people were staying at your inn, and now they are gone. If I don't ask you, who else can I ask? Where did Madam and the maidservant go?"
Xue Xingyue's gaze was as cold as frost. The shopkeeper quickly said, "My dear girl, this junior truly doesn't know."
"You don't know? Alright, then you stay here. I'll let you go when you know. Feng Wu, go report this to the authorities." Xue Xingyue said.
Feng Wu nodded and left.
The shopkeeper looked at Xue Xingyue and said, "My dear girl, even if you kill me, I still wouldn't know."
"Is that so? Since you don't know? Fine…" Xue Xingyue walked out the door. The shopkeeper was somewhat at a loss. She was so aggressive just now, but now she's giving up?
Xue Xingyue shouted at the top of her lungs, "This is a black inn, specializing in detaining women. Passersby, please be aware and do not stay here."
"Miss, Miss, please don't shout like this, or how will my inn stay in business?" the shopkeeper said anxiously, hurrying over.
Xue Xingyue said, "My madam and maidservant disappeared from your inn. If you don't take care of it, I'll make sure this black inn can't stay in business either."
"Miss, how about this, I'll take you to see the owner," the shopkeeper suggested.
"Aren't you the shopkeeper? What? Are you trying to deny it?" Xue Xingyue said angrily, looking at the shopkeeper.
The shopkeeper shook his head. "I am not the shopkeeper."
"I don't care if you are the shopkeeper or not. Hand over Madam and the maidservant, or there's nothing more to discuss." With that, Xue Xingyue continued shouting.
The shopkeeper, sweating profusely, seized an opportunity when Xue Xingyue wasn't paying attention and signaled to the waiter.
The waiter, seeing this, was about to slip away. However, before he could even take a step, a dagger was plunged directly into his toes, right at the tip of his shoe.
The waiter was so startled that he almost collapsed.
Xue Xingyue looked at the shopkeeper and said coldly, "Trying to send a message?"
The shopkeeper gave an embarrassed smile. "My dear girl, how would I dare? I just thought you might be thirsty, so I asked the waiter to bring you some tea."
"I'm not thirsty," Xue Xingyue said coldly.
At this moment, drinking the tea here would be foolish.
Seeing that Xue Xingyue wasn't falling for his tricks, the shopkeeper said, "Miss, if you truly want to know the whereabouts of Madam and the maidservant, please come inside."
Xue Xingyue nodded. "Alright."
Entering the room, the shopkeeper pointed to the bed and said, "If you just sit here for a moment, you'll be able to see Madam."
Xue Xingyue stepped forward. "Really?"
The shopkeeper nodded.
Xue Xingyue reached out to touch the bed, but suddenly the shopkeeper behind her reached out to push her. However, the shopkeeper was mistaken. If it had been before, she would have fallen for it, but she had fallen once, so how could she fall again?
She dodged and struck the shopkeeper with a palm. The shopkeeper, caught off guard by the blow, sat on the bed. With a thud, the bed frame flipped over, and the shopkeeper fell through. The bed returned to its original position.
Xue Xingyue called the waiter over and asked, "Do you know where my madam went?"
The waiter had watched firsthand as the shopkeeper was consumed by that man-eating bed.
He quickly shook his head. "This junior truly doesn't know. I only know that the shopkeeper seemed to be conspiring with others on something, but this junior doesn't know what. However, the shopkeeper would select certain people to stay in this room."
"Why Madam?" Xue Xingyue asked.
The waiter glanced at Xue Xingyue and said, "Miss, you seem to have some skill. They don't need people like you over there. They only need people who are defenseless."