The abstinent and powerful minister is cold and aloof during the day, but he adores her in his dream

Chapter 304 Zhiwan's Counterattack
"Yes." Tong Da said, opening his palm. "These are Miss Biao's earrings. That man said he would see the Prince at Chenshi (7-9 AM) tomorrow morning, otherwise it would be bad for Miss Biao."

"Then you should report to the Crown Prince as soon as possible. I will continue to lead men to guard this place," Chen Jiu said.

"Ah."

Not long after Tong Daqian left, the guards sent by Lu Zhan found Chen Jiu and informed him of the news that Lu Zhan had obtained.

Although Chen Jiu was puzzled as to how the young master knew the whereabouts of his cousin, he knew that the young master would never speak without reason, so the news must be true. Therefore, he dared not delay and immediately led his men to Santian Town.

There were only inns in the town, and he and his men found one very easily.

However, when he found the room where Zhiwan was, it was already empty, with only broken porcelain and food scattered all over the floor.

His expression changed, thinking that Zhiye already knew they were coming to rescue Miss Biao and had moved her away in advance.

"Boss, the lock on this door is broken, as if someone chopped it off with something." At this moment, a guard noticed the abnormality and immediately reported it.

Upon hearing this, Chen Jiu went over to take a look and indeed found that the lock was open, rather than being opened with a key.

Zhiye had the key. If he had moved the person away, why would he have gone to so much trouble to break open the door? He could have just used the key.
Thinking of this, his expression changed, realizing that besides Zhiye, there should be another group of people.

He quickly crouched down, looking for clues.

On the floor where soup had been spilled, there were obvious drag marks.

"Boss, there's blood here."

At that moment, another subordinate discovered a clue in the corridor outside the door and immediately came in to report.

Chen Jiu was startled and quickly went out to check.

Sure enough, there was blood on the ground.

Although there aren't many, you can still see them if you look closely.

Chen Jiu led his men along the trail of blood until they found the back door.

"The person was probably taken away through the back door," Chen Jiu said with certainty.

Once outside the back door, the drag marks on the ground were indeed more obvious.

"Chase!" Chen Jiu ordered.

The group followed the drag marks.

……

Zhiwan was dragged for a long time, and her back felt a burning pain.

The man who had been dragging her was too tired to continue and sat down to rest under a tree.

While she wasn't looking, Zhiwan used a piece of broken porcelain to rub the rope.

"Zhiwan, have you ever thought that this day would come?" The man felt a sense of satisfaction seeing Zhiwan sprawled on the ground, covered in dirt and looking utterly disheveled, and even kicked her.

Zhiwan said calmly, "I never thought about it. After all, I have people who pamper me, love me, and protect me. My only regret is that I shouldn't have felt pity for you that day in the small town."

The man seemed to have been hit where it hurt, and suddenly stood up, kicking and stomping on Zhiwan like a madman.

“I was born into a wealthy family and was pampered by my parents, but one day, you caused my family to be destroyed and I became homeless. Now even my mother is dead, and I am left all alone. I can only live by begging. You have harmed me so much, so why can you still live so well?”

Especially you, Zhiwan, do you know that when I see your face, I want to slash it to pieces?

Isn't it all thanks to your face that you seduce others and get them to love and protect you?

However, I've changed my mind. You have another use for this face. I'm going to make you experience the most miserable things in the world.

A thousand men ride on it, ten thousand men use it as a pillow—what do you think?
If Lu Zhan finds out, do you think he'll look down on you? Will he leave you?

As he continued, the man laughed maniacally, as if he could already foresee Zhiwan's tragic end.

Zhiwan's heart sank. She quickened her cutting and grinding motions with her hands bound behind her back, even as the broken porcelain cut her hands bloody and mangled, she dared not stop.

They're trying to sell her into a brothel.

She forced herself to calm down and stared at the other person, asking, "Are you Zeng Jiayi?"

The man paused, then murmured, "It's been so long since anyone called my name..."

Upon hearing this, Zhiwan immediately understood. This person was Zeng Jiayi, the former Vice Prefect of Yangzhou and daughter of Zeng Gong.

What a small world! She ran into her in the town.

To distract Zeng Jiayi, she feigned curiosity and asked, "How did you find me?"

Even Tong Da had been dumped, but Zeng Jiayi was able to find her precisely, which greatly surprised her.

Speaking of this, Zeng Jiayi was somewhat proud.

"When I met you in the town that day, I wanted nothing more than to kill you. So I waited outside the inn, looking for an opportunity. Last night, I saw someone carrying you and jumping out of the window. I knew then that my chance had come."

But the man was cunning; carrying you, he escaped into the dense forest.

However, during this time, I begged in several surrounding towns and had already become familiar with the terrain.

I knew that passing through that dense forest would lead to Santian Town, so I went directly to Santian Town to wait.

Sure enough, you saw that person bring you to Santian Town and check you into the inn.

"I kept an eye on the inn. Once that person left, I sneaked in and dragged you out." At this point, Zeng Jiayi squatted down, looking at Zhiwan with disdain, and said, "It seems quite a few people hate you; everyone wants to deal with you."

Zhiwan ignored her and asked directly, "Where do you want to sell me?"

"The neighboring town of Sifang is a necessary stop on the way to the capital. The town is bustling and lively, and there is a very famous brothel called Xiaohunlou. The girls there are not only beautiful but also very talented. Many people from other places come here hoping to have a night with the girls there."

"You're so beautiful, if I sell you there, won't it attract men who'll drool over you and vie to spend lavishly on you? I've already spoken to the people at the brothel, and I'm waiting for them here. They should be here soon." Zeng Jiayi became more and more excited as she spoke.

But she could only laugh twice before she couldn't laugh anymore.

The person who had been lying on the ground just moments before was now sitting up, holding a sharp shard of porcelain in his blood-soaked hand, which he pressed tightly against her neck.

The other party spared no effort, pressing the broken porcelain tightly against her skin, and instantly bright red blood flowed down her neck.

Zeng Jiayi's expression changed, and she glared at her intently, "Zhiwan, I really underestimated you."

Zhiwan ignored her, picked up a stone from the ground with her other hand, and smashed it hard on her head without hesitation.

With a "thud," Zeng Jiayi collapsed softly to the ground.

Before she lost consciousness, regret flashed in her eyes, but unfortunately, it was all too late.

At this time, dawn was breaking and the first light of day was already appearing.

Remembering what Zeng Jiayi had said, Zhiwan immediately stripped Zeng Jiayi of her clothes, then took off her own and put them on Zeng Jiayi.

Then, Zhiwan put on Zeng Jiayi's tattered clothes, grabbed some mud, and smeared it on her face.

After doing all this, she quickly tied the rope that was originally binding her body to Zeng Jiayi.

Seeing a ditch nearby, they dragged Zeng Jiayi over and gave her a thorough cleaning.

Seeing Zeng Jiayi's beautiful face after washing away the dirt, Zhiwan was very satisfied.

When Zeng Jiayi talked about that brothel so familiarly, it was clear that this wasn't the first time she had done something like this.

She seemed to be deep in thought, then dragged Zeng Jiayi back to the tree, wrote a few words on the ground with a stick, and then quickly hid.

Sure enough, footsteps echoed through the woods shortly afterward.

Two men then appeared.

When they saw Zeng Jiayi leaning against the tree, their eyes lit up immediately. At the same time, they also noticed the words written on the ground.

"Ah Yi said he had something to do and left first, telling us to take the person away ourselves, but not a penny less," one of them said.

“Well, we’re all pretty familiar with each other now, and he always manages to get us good stuff. Mom is very happy with him. With his help, it saves us a lot of trouble,” another person said.

"Yes, the goods this time look even better than last time, Mom will definitely be happy."

"I didn't expect that Ah Yi would be so capable; the goods he gets are getting better and better each time."

After they finished speaking, the two dropped a money bag, picked up Zeng Jiayi, and left.

Once she was sure the person had gone far away, Zhiwan emerged from her hiding place.

She picked up the money bag from the ground, weighed it in her hand, and then wiped away the words on the ground with her foot.