Just then, Pei Nian'an suddenly tugged at her sleeve and whispered, "Auntie... I have... the whistle Daddy gave me in my pocket..."

Shen Qingtang was taken aback, but immediately realized what was happening.

Her eyes lit up, and she quickly pulled out her whistle and blew it loudly. The sharp whistle pierced through the chaotic sounds of fighting and echoed through the woods.

Upon hearing the whistle, Lu Jiaojiao's expression instantly changed: "What are you whistling for?! Are you trying to call for help?!"

Shen Qingtang ignored her and just stared intently into the depths of the forest.

As soon as the sharp whistle fell, the sound of orderly footsteps suddenly came from the forest. Pei Wuwang's guards had finally arrived, all dressed in black and holding sharp blades, and quickly surrounded the Northern Desert people.

Pei's father, who was in charge, saw his son lying on the ground at a glance. He was both angry and anxious. While directing the guards to fight back, he cursed in a low voice in Pei Wuwang's direction: "You beast! You have so many men under your command, but you don't know how to use them. You insisted on taking the brunt of the attack yourself! If it weren't for Nian'an's whistle, you would have died here today!"

Pei Nian'an lay down behind Shen Qingtang.

Hearing this, he glared at Pei's father. This nominal grandfather usually ignored his father and him, but now he was putting on an act.

He pursed his lips, clenched his small hands even tighter, and felt a growing sense of alienation from the Pei family.

With the support of the secret guards, the situation was reversed instantly, but the number of Northern Desert soldiers was too large, and the secret guards could not completely suppress them for a while.

Shen Qingtang's eyes sharpened. She took out a porcelain bottle from her bosom, uncorked it, and sprinkled the white powder inside towards the densely populated area of ​​the Northern Desert people. This was a specially made sleeping potion that would dissipate upon contact with the wind and was extremely potent.

The powder filled the air, and the soldiers of the Northern Desert soon felt dizzy and disoriented.

One by one they swayed and fell to the ground, unconscious.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Shen Qingtang lay down on the ground and crawled closer to the Northern Desert leader who was being controlled by the guards.

The long sword in his hand was pressed against his throat: "Speak! How many spies does the Northern Desert still have in the Great Jin?"

The leader tried to struggle, but was held down firmly by the guards. He could only glare fiercely at Shen Qingtang, refusing to speak.

Seeing this, Lu Jiaojiao screamed in panic, "Leader! Don't believe her! Kill them!"

She never expected that Shen Qingtang would have backup, and even a sleeping potion.

Seeing that his backer was about to collapse, he completely panicked.

Mother Lu chimed in, crying out to the guards, "Don't listen to her! Shen Qingtang is the bad guy! She's vicious and even harmed her own daughter!"

Lu Jin sighed hypocritically and said to the guards, "Heroes, it's not that we want to help the Northern Desert people, it's that Shen Qingtang was ruthless first. She first caused us to be kidnapped, and then tried to kill us to silence us... We were forced into this situation!"

He tried to pin all the blame on Shen Qingtang in order to save his own life.

"Forced into it?"

Shen Qingtang turned to look at him, her eyes as cold as knives. "Back then, you were the ones who wanted to follow Lu Jiaojiao. You were the ones who willingly sold out our positions. Now you want to turn around and blame us?"

She waved her hand at the guards, "Tie them all up! We'll settle this score properly after we've dealt with things in the Northern Desert!"

The guards immediately stepped forward and tied up Lu Jiaojiao, Lu Jin, Chen Yulan, and the others one by one.

Lu Jiaojiao struggled desperately, cursing at Shen Qingtang: "Shen Qingtang! You'll die a horrible death! I'll haunt you even as a ghost!"

Shen Qingtang was too lazy to argue with her anymore, and turned to continue questioning the leader of the Northern Desert.

Pei Wuwang, who was lying on the ground, sensed the movement around him.

Lu Jin was still there, hypocritically trying to defend himself and absolve himself of all responsibility.

Lu Jiaojiao, however, had already impatiently moved closer to the leader of the Northern Desert, her voice trembling with flattery: "Leader, if you kill Shen Qingtang and the others, will you not kill us? We can even do things for you!"

The leader of the Northern Desert still smiled cunningly.

His gaze swept over the Su family members behind Lu Jiaojiao, and he slowly said, "Kill them, and I'll spare your lives. However, it depends on whether you're 'useful' enough."

Upon hearing this, the Su family panicked instantly, and Su Lingyu grasped at it like a lifeline.

He grabbed Su Lingwei, who was standing next to him.

Pushing himself in front of the leader, he shamelessly shouted, "Leader! My sister Su Lingwei is prettier than me, and she's still a virgin! She's more useful than me! Let her come with you and be your woman! I've already been with men, I'm not good enough for you, but keeping me around can help you find your way!"

Su Lingwei stumbled as she was pushed, her face pale as she looked at her sister.

Her eyes were filled with disbelief that Su Lingyu would sell herself so readily in order to save her life!

Old Master Su, standing to the side, immediately adopted a "benevolent" demeanor, stroking his beard while his eyes concealed malice. He said to Su Lingwei in a deep voice, "Lingwei, you are a daughter of the Su family, and it is your duty to serve the family. It is your blessing to be able to follow the heroes of the Northern Desert. Don't be ungrateful and jeopardize the survival of the entire clan!"

He talked about "dedication," but in his heart, he only cared about his own life and how to save the rest of the Su family.

Sacrificing Su Lingwei meant nothing to him.

Su Lingwei was so angry that she trembled all over, tears welling up in her eyes, but she stubbornly refused to let them fall.

She looked at Old Master Su's hypocritical face and then at Su Lingyu's indifferent eyes.

Her voice choked with sobs: "I am a daughter of the Su family, but I am not your sacrifice! You would sell even your own family to save your own lives, what right do you have to call yourselves 'family'?"

"You brat! How dare you talk back!" Old Master Su was so angry that he was about to step forward and hit her, but Qin Xian stopped him.

"Old man Su, do you have any shame?" Qin Xian stared at him coldly. "To save your own life, you forced your granddaughter to suffer humiliation. You are more vicious than the people of the Northern Desert!"

Shen Qingtang coldly watched this scene and ordered the guards, "Tie up these people from the Su family tighter! If they want to sell themselves to others to survive, then let them taste what it's like to be 'abandoned' first."

The guards immediately stepped forward and tied up Su Lingyu, Old Master Su, and the others.

Su Lingyu tried to struggle, screaming, "Why are you tying me up! I'm speaking up for you! My sister is willing to go!"

"I refuse!" Su Lingwei finally mustered her courage and shouted at Su Lingyu, "Even if I die, I will not go with the Northern Desert people! I will never acknowledge you as my sister!"

The leader of the Northern Desert laughed even harder as he watched the farce unfold before him: "What a bunch of useless trash, fighting amongst yourselves before even making a move. But this girl does have some backbone. It's a pity none of you will survive today."

As he spoke, he suddenly struggled violently, trying to break free from Shen Qingtang's control.