humiliation

Xie Qi must have known about his father's affair, and taking advantage of the Jiang family's misfortune, he forced her to agree to become his concubine.

But since the Jiang family is no longer of any use to him, why does he still want her? Is it to deal with the Fourth Prince?

Li Wan shook her head. The most urgent thing was to save her father and younger brother. If Xie Qi wanted to coerce her into becoming a concubine, she would agree.

"Mother, please wait for news at the manor. I will go to the Ningyuan Marquis's residence now."

After saying this, Li Wan put on her veil and led Xiuhe out of the mansion.

Upon arriving at the imposing vermilion gate of the Ningyuan Marquis's residence, they were informed by the gatekeeper that Young Master Xie had gone out on business and had not yet returned.

Just as Li Wan was about to ask Xie Qi when he would return, the gates of the Ningyuan Marquis's residence opened, and a man dressed in a silver robe with dark patterns walked out.

He was of medium height, with a half-smile on his face and an air of untamed freedom.

As he passed Li Wan, he paused, gave her a thorough once-over, and asked, "Who are you?"

Seeing that he could freely enter and leave the Ningyuan Marquis's residence, Li Wan knew he must be a member of the Marquis's household, so he curtsied and bowed.

"I am Jiang Feiwan from the Ministry of Revenue. I have important business to discuss with Lord Xie."

The man's eyes suddenly lit up, and his voice rose, "You're Jiang Feiwan, the one who had an affair with my brother?"

Was there an affair?

Li Wan felt a lump in her throat, unable to find the words to refute it.

She then seized on the key point in the man's words: "my brother."

She had inquired and found that Xie Qi did indeed have a younger brother, born to the same father and mother, who was the second legitimate son of the Xie family.

This must be the person standing before me.

“I know where my brother went. Do you want me to take you to find him?” Xie Ye continued.

Li Wan swallowed her anger and nodded, "Then I'll have to trouble you, Second Young Master Xie."

Xie Ye laughed freely, mounted his horse, and gestured for Li Wan's carriage to follow him.

The group walked through Dongchang Street and stopped in front of a small building called Qingzhuju.

From the outside, the small building is made of blue bricks and light wood, understated and elegant, and should be a teahouse for literati to enjoy tea and calligraphy.

Li Wan lowered her guard slightly.

Unexpectedly, when the wooden door was opened, a strong aroma of wine and perfume wafted out.

The sounds of men and women making merry could be heard coming from inside the building.

The servants in the small building stopped Xiuhe. Xiuhe secretly tugged at Liwan's sleeve, and Liwan patted her hand to indicate that everything was alright.

Xie Ye walked into the small building with ease, and Li Wan followed behind him.

Upon reaching the second floor, the smell of alcohol and powder intensified, and the thick, long red candles illuminated the poorly ventilated room as bright as day, casting a radiant glow throughout.

On either side of the main hall, there were several peony-patterned couches, where several disheveled officials were embracing beautiful women and making merry.

Through the thin veil of her hat, Li Wan immediately saw Xie Qi sitting in the center seat, his slender fingers toying with a wine glass.

The moment Li Wan looked over, she also turned her gaze towards her.

Her long, narrow, and beautiful phoenix eyes showed no surprise whatsoever; instead, they revealed a hint of amusement.

"Young Master Xie has brought another beauty. Quickly take off your hat and let me see if she is prettier than the one beside me."

An official pointed at Li Wan and said in a vulgar tone.

As he spoke, the other officials, their spirits lifted by the alcohol, also cast their sticky gazes toward him.

Li Wan clenched her fingers and, suppressing her discomfort, took a few steps toward Xie Qi.

Xie Ye smiled at the officials and said, "Keep your eyes closed, this is my brother's woman."

As soon as he finished speaking, the hall fell silent. The official who had spoken so arrogantly glanced cautiously at Xie Qi. Seeing that Xie Qi did not deny it, his face turned deathly pale.

The others quickly looked away, not daring to look at Li Wan again.

"come over."

Xie Qi casually bent his index and middle fingers, lazily hooking them down at dawn and dusk.

"Shameless!" Li Wan cursed inwardly, but had no choice but to walk to his side and slightly curtsy, "Thank you, sir."

Xie Qi brought the wine glass to his lips, took a sip, swallowed slowly with his Adam's apple bobbing, but his gaze remained fixed on Li Wan.

The woman before me was wearing a light-colored embroidered long dress with intertwined branches. Her slender waist was visible beneath the thick, moon-white cloak, and above, her bright black eyes were hazy beneath the white gauze.

Xie Qi smiled, thinking that she should have been scolded for bringing him to a place like this.

"What business do you have with me, young lady?" Xie Qi asked, feigning ignorance.

Li Wan bit her lip. These were all officials appointed by the imperial court. How could she openly ask about her father's affairs?

"Lord Xie, may I speak with you in private?"

Xie Qi raised an eyebrow, neither agreeing nor disagreeing, but instead pointed to the person beside him, "Since you're here, why don't you have a drink with the Third Prince?"

The Third Prince?

Li Wan looked up and realized that the person sitting next to Xie Qi in the main seat was the Third Prince, whom she had met briefly at the Yongyi Marquis's residence that day.

She was so nervous when she came in that she didn't recognize him.

At that moment, the third prince happened to be looking at her as well.

Li Wan had no interest in drinking with the prince at this moment, so she replied perfunctorily, "Greetings, Your Highness. Please forgive me, but I am not a good drinker. Besides, I am here today to see Lord Xie about something."

Xiao Xian looked at her for a long time before saying calmly, "It's alright."

Xie Qi's gaze swept between the two of them, and he suddenly smiled, "Are you sure you only want me, young lady?"

Li Wan didn't detect the flippancy in his tone and nodded, "Yes."

"OK."

Xie Qi casually tossed his wine glass onto the table, stood up to face her, and his tall figure completely blocked the petite woman from view.

Xiao Cheng couldn't even see a glimpse of the hem of her clothes.

"Since you find this place inconvenient, then I will take you to a place where it's just the two of us, shall we?"

Although Li Wan vaguely sensed something was off about his words, she didn't have time to think about it and simply said, "Okay."

Xie Qi chuckled, reached out and grasped her wrist, pulling her towards the outside.

"Have a good time, everyone. I won't keep you company any longer."

He talked as he walked, taking very large strides. Li Wan was being pulled along by him and could only stagger along, holding onto her veil.

"Please do as you please, Your Excellency," the officials said politely as they rose.

Only Xiao Xian, sitting in the main seat, did not get up. He looked at the woman's disheveled back, his five fingers clenched, and a crack suddenly appeared in the white porcelain wine cup.

"Slow down, sir."

Li Wan was pulled up the steps by Xie Qi. It turned out that there was an elegant attic on the second floor.

His palm was hot and strong, and Li Wan couldn't break free at all, almost falling on the steps.

Xie Qi exerted a little force with his arm to support her steadily, and leaned slightly closer: "What, Miss Jiang, don't you want to beg me to save your father quickly?"

He knew it after all.

Li Wan's heart sank; it seemed he was determined to use her father's matter to threaten her.

She secretly scorned him. If he wanted her to be a concubine, he could have just said so. Why take advantage of her vulnerability and deliberately embarrass her?

Xie Qi pushed open the carved door of the attic, pulled her into the room, walked around the Shu embroidery landscape screen in front of the door, and with a flick of his wrist, threw her onto the daybed by the window.

"hiss."

Li Wan's calf bumped into the foot of the daybed, causing her to cry out softly in pain.

"Why must you be like this, Lord Xie?" Li Wan angrily removed her veil, her small face already flushed red with suppressed rage.

When she discovered that Xie Qi was still looking at her with a half-smile, her anger flared up.

"Since Lord Xie knew I would come looking for you, why did you have your brother bring me here? What, do you want me to see how extravagant and dissolute your life is, and how pitiful our Jiang family is in its current predicament?"

"Very well, I have seen it. You are indeed of noble status and have boundless power. Now, I beg you to tell me the inside story of my father's case."

Xie Qi scoffed, "Jiang Feiwan, you..."

"You don't need to say anything."

Li Wan stood up to interrupt him, walked up to him, and looked up at him calmly.

"You just want to take advantage of the Jiang family's misfortune to get me to agree to be your concubine so that you can marry a woman you truly love or who is of higher status as your principal wife later."

Not to be outdone, Li Wan laughed and said, "Fine, I'm willing to be your concubine."

Xie Qi's expression darkened further upon hearing this, and he lowered his eyes to stare at her.

"The eldest daughter of the Minister of Revenue is willing to become a concubine? Is it solely for your father's sake, or for...someone else?"

"Of course it's not just for Jiangnan Yue, but also to get closer to you!" Li Wan thought to herself, but she couldn't say it aloud, so she just waved her hand.

"Lord Xie, you don't need to know why I'm doing this. Anyway, I'll become your concubine and help you deal with the Fourth Prince. After my father is cleared of his name, you'll also get a father-in-law who is the Minister of Revenue. No matter how you look at it, you won't lose out."

Xie Qi laughed in anger, "So, if I don't take you as my concubine, then I'd be the one who doesn't know what's good for me."

Li Wan nodded solemnly, "Yes."

Xie Qi's eyes darkened, and he took a step forward, stopping in front of Li Wan, his strong, powerful legs almost touching her body.

Startled by the burning sensation on his leg, Li Wan instinctively tried to back away.

The next moment, he was pushed down onto the couch by a strong force, and then a hard body pressed down on him.

"Xie Qi?"

The crisp, masculine scent made her feel the other person's immense power, and even his voice trembled.

"Since you've agreed to be my concubine, there's one thing I need to clarify." The man's tone was extremely cold. He grabbed her chin, forcing her to look him in the eye.

Li Wan froze, and subconsciously asked, "What is it?"

Xie Qi did not answer, but released his hand from her chin, and his long, calloused fingers slowly moved down her slender neck.

Li Wan tried to push him away, but he held her down with his other hand, pressing her head down.

His voice was seductive and threatening, "Since she's going to come into my household, I need to find out if she's been with any other men."

The hem of the light-colored long dress flared out.

Realizing what he wanted to do, Li Wan went from shock to fear, and her body began to struggle violently.

"Xie Qi, you bastard, you shameless... let me go."

However, the two were far too weak, and the man easily pinned her down and casually tore off her belt, gagging her mouth.

"Behave yourself, or you'll hurt yourself, and don't blame me." He said flippantly.

Seeing that Li Wan was so scared that she burst into tears, he comforted her again, "Don't worry, no matter if you are innocent or not, I will let you enter the Ningyuan Marquis's mansion. It's just a matter of whether your life is good or bad."

He kept talking, but his hands didn't stop moving.

"Tear—" The sound of fabric being torn.

As her delicate skin touched the chill of the room, Li Wan trembled and turned pale.

A few breaths later, a scorching palm covered it, domineering and unrestrained.

"Hmm!"

With a sob, the long fingers entered the warm alley.