Dream of the Red Chamber: I can see the hidden labels of the beauties.

Seeing that Jia Zhen was still threatening and intimidating him, Jia Can sneered inwardly, but feigned fear on his face:

"Of course it's true, how could I dare to lie to you, Brother Zhen? If you don't believe me, come to my room later and see for yourself."

Jia Zhen originally wanted Jia Can to bring the antiques to him immediately so he could see these so-called rare treasures as soon as possible, but when Jia Can invited him to his room later, a strange smile appeared on his lips, and excitement flashed in his eyes:

"Okay! I'll go to your room after the old lady and the others go back. If you dare to lie to me, you know what will happen."

In the end, Jia Zhen made no attempt to conceal his desires.

Staring intently at Jia Can's handsome face, his eyes filled with lewdness, he sized up his prey, scrutinizing him from head to toe. It was obvious what he wanted to do to Jia Can.

Jia Can noticed his gaze and felt a wave of nausea, but she suppressed the discomfort, kept her expression unchanged, and calmly responded:

"Don't worry, Brother Zhen. Now that I've said this, I will never lie to you."

"However, Brother Zhen still needs to return the antique that Banmei gave you yesterday. I'm sure Brother Zhen wouldn't be interested in that thing."

Jia Zhen was completely agitated by Jia Can's words, his mind filled with the sordid events of the night, and he couldn't think about anything else.

For the time being, they forgot why Jia Can had suddenly become so calm and composed, and only hoped that it would get dark soon.

Upon hearing Jia Can mention returning the antiques, Jia Zhen slightly raised his head, his face showing disdain:

"You mean that broken box? It's really worthless. Banmei tried to fool me with this thing, so I ordered my men to beat her up."

"I never expected that she would refuse to admit anything until her death. She brought this upon herself, so she can't blame me, sir."

Jia Can's eyes flashed. Yu Hui had said that this thing was related to him, but in Jia Zhen's eyes it was just a broken box. Was it a treasure or just an ordinary box with sentimental value?

He feigned a look of shock and stammered as he replied:

"Yes... this is it. Please return it to me, Brother Zhen, and I will offer you even better treasures."

Jia Zhen saw his reaction and assumed he was afraid. He felt even more smug, a slight smirk playing on his lips as he gave a sinister warning:

"Okay, I'll give it to you, but you mustn't disappoint me. In that case, I'm afraid I'll have to send Banmei to keep you company."

Anyone else would have been terrified upon hearing this, but Jia Can remained unconcerned. Instead, a cold glint flashed in his eyes as he sneered inwardly:

"The person Banmei is accompanying isn't me, but you, you beast, worse than a pig or a dog!"

Although he thought this in his heart, he still kept his head down on the surface, appearing trembling with fear.

"Understood, Brother Zhen, don't worry, I will definitely not let you down..."

"In addition, those three people you sent to serve me last night not only had bad tempers, but when I asked them to do something, they made excuses and even mocked me in a sarcastic way. Brother Zhen, you might as well punish them."

Knowing that Cuilu and the other two were spies specially arranged by Jia Zhen to monitor his every move, he only allowed Jia Zhen to punish them, but never mentioned replacing them.

He seemed to respect Jia Zhen's arrangements, but felt that the three men were not doing their job well enough, rather than wanting to get rid of the surveillance.

Sure enough, Jia Zhen felt quite relieved upon hearing this, thinking that Jia Can was indeed sensible and did not have the idea of ​​replacing him at the drop of a hat.

Thinking that she was about to succeed tonight, and not wanting to disappoint Jia Can and cause him further resentment, she replied:

"These three lowly maids dare to treat you so disrespectfully. Don't worry, I'll have someone bring them here right away and have them flogged."

As he spoke, Jia Zhen gave the following instructions to those outside:

"Guards, go and fetch those three lowly maids who serve Second Master Can!"

The servant outside responded and hurried away.

Before long, Cui Lü and the other two were called outside the door.

They were originally waiting in the courtyard to see Jia Can make a fool of himself, wondering how Jia Zhen would scold this arrogant second son born out of wedlock.

Unexpectedly, Jia Can didn't get to see his good show; instead, they were summoned by Jia Zhen and questioned.

The three people knelt outside the door, their faces pale, unaware of what had happened.

Jia Zhen was too lazy to ask any more questions, and even less inclined to listen to their explanations. He simply waved his hand and instructed the servants:

"Strike! Twenty strokes of the cane each, right here."

Upon hearing this, the three women, including Cui Lü, were terrified and cried out for mercy, claiming they were innocent.

"Master, please spare us! We don't know what we've done wrong, please enlighten us..."

The old woman was so frightened that she trembled all over and kowtowed repeatedly.

But Jia Zhen wouldn't listen; he was only thinking about tonight's events and waved his hand impatiently.

Several servants then stepped forward, pinned the three men to the ground, and began to beat them with boards.

When the paddle struck them, the three screams of agony soared into the sky and echoed throughout the courtyard, sending chills down one's spine.

Upon hearing this, Jia Can raised an eyebrow slightly, showing no sympathy whatsoever. He turned to Jia Zhen and flattered him, saying:

"Brother Zhen is wise. If there is nothing else, I will take my leave and await Brother Zhen's arrival tonight."

These words sounded quite ambiguous, and Jia Zhen, filled with filthy thoughts, assumed that Jia Can intended to completely submit to him. Overjoyed, he smiled with satisfaction and waved his hand dismissively.

"Okay, you can leave now. I'll definitely come tonight."

When he said "I'll definitely come," he emphasized the words, his eyes gleaming with lust, and the smile on his lips becoming increasingly sinister.

Jia Can bowed slightly, turned slowly, and calmly left the side room.

Upon exiting, they saw three people, Cui Lü and another, being pinned to the ground and beaten with boards. Bloodstains were visible on their backs, their clothes and hair were disheveled, and they looked wretched and miserable.

Jia Can walked past them without looking to the side, as if he hadn't seen them at all.

When Cui Lü and the other two saw him, they all guessed that Jia Can must have said something to Jia Zhen, and they all begged him for forgiveness:

"Second Master Can, we know we were wrong... We'll never dare to do it again. Please forgive us this time..."

"Second Master, please have mercy and say a good word for us..."

"Second Master, I was blind to your greatness and will never dare to slight you again. Please, have mercy on me..."

They thought Jia Zhen was going to beat them to death, and they were so frightened that they lost all their previous arrogance.

The arrogance they displayed when they blocked Jia Can's way at the courtyard gate and questioned him had vanished without a trace. They only hoped that Jia Can would put in a good word for them and save their lives.

But Jia Can walked away without looking back, as if he hadn't heard anything. His figure gradually disappeared into the distance, beyond the courtyard gate.

At this moment, Cuilu and the other two truly realized that Jia Can, the second master, was no longer the despicable illegitimate son who could be bullied and ignored by anyone.

Jia Can had become someone they couldn't understand and couldn't afford to offend, and they were filled with regret. If they had known that Jia Can was so formidable, they would never have treated him lightly, much less dared to question or mock him to his face.

But by then, it seemed too late for them to realize this.

The three men thought they were doomed and were terrified. Before they had even finished the twenty strokes of the cane, they all fainted.

Upon seeing this, the servant in charge of administering the beating hurriedly went to inform Jia Zhen, but Jia Zhen simply waved his hand impatiently.

"Take them away, pour several buckets of cold water on them, and when they wake up, warn them to serve Master Can diligently. If they dare to neglect him again, they will be beaten to death!"