With the Empress's birthday approaching, and the palace recently adopting a frugal lifestyle, Su Yingxue was racking her brains to find a suitable gift.

Later, upon hearing that the Empress had a fondness for sweet fruits, he thought of finding someone to help him find a suitable ornamental fruit tree.

A few days ago, the middleman sent word that he had found someone who met her requirements.

Just as Su Yingxue was about to take Wang Xiuxiu out to see, she was blocked in her mansion by Manager Lü from Songshu Street.

Seeing that she couldn't leave the house for a while, Wang Xiuxiu suggested that she go and take a look first.

"Alright, you can go take a look first. If it's good, then decide on it. If you haven't found anything good yet, then ask him to help you look again."

"Okay, I understand."

Wang Xiuxiu took a carriage out of the city and headed towards the outside of the city.

Lifting a corner of the carriage curtain, one sees distant green mountains like dark eyebrows, and nearby, crisscrossing paths, with farmers bending over to work in the fields.

On her first visit to the outskirts of Beijing, Wang Xiuxiu felt overwhelmed by the sheer number of sights she could see.

"Your Highness, the Zhang family's orchard is just ahead," the accompanying nanny reminded her.

Wang Xiuxiu lowered the curtain and straightened her sleeves.

Today she wore a light blue ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) with a moon-white jacket over it, and only a white jade hairpin in her hair, making her look exceptionally low-key and simple.

This was something the Princess Consort had specifically instructed me to do; this trip out of the palace was to find a birthday gift for the Empress, and it shouldn't be too ostentatious.

The carriage stopped in front of an orchard.

Wang Xiuxiu got out of the carriage with the help of her nanny, and what came into view was the lush orchard.

A spring breeze carries the fragrance of fruit.

"This is Zhang Dashan, the fruit farmer." The middleman led over a burly man.

The man had dark skin and his hands were covered in mud. He wanted to kneel down when he saw Wang Xiuxiu.

"No need for such formalities," Wang Xiuxiu quickly stopped her. "I've heard you have a rare fruit tree here?"

"Yes, yes." Zhang Dashan rubbed his hands together, somewhat flustered. "I'll take the esteemed guest to see him right away."

Wang Xiuxiu followed Zhang Dashan deeper into the orchard, and along the way she saw several farm women bending over to weed.

They wore coarse cloth headscarves, and their sleeves were rolled up high, revealing their sun-darkened wrists.

Upon seeing Wang Xiuxiu and her group, they stood up awkwardly, wiping their rough hands repeatedly on their aprons.

"Greetings to the distinguished guest." The peasant women bowed awkwardly, their voices filled with trepidation.

Wang Xiuxiu quickly waved her hand: "No need for formalities, you all go about your business."

The youngest peasant woman secretly glanced at Wang Xiuxiu. Seeing that she was dressed elegantly but had a gentle demeanor, she couldn't help but smile kindly: "Are you here to see the fruit trees, sir? Our fruit is so sweet, all thanks to Uncle Zhang's careful tending!"

“Yes,” another farmer woman chimed in, “Uncle Zhang gets up before dawn to water and fertilize the fruit trees, and at night he guards the fruit trees to prevent insects. Last year when there was a locust plague, he stayed in the orchard for three days and three nights to save the fruit trees.”

Hearing these praises, Zhang Dashan rubbed his hands together shyly: "It's all what we should do. Fruit trees are our lifeline."

After passing through several more rows of fruit trees, Wang Xiuxiu's eyes lit up.

There stood a fruit tree, about the height of a person, with lush foliage and branches laden with glistening, translucent fruits.

The fruit is shaped like a pearl, shimmering faintly in the sunlight and emitting a sweet fragrance.

"What's the name of this fruit?" Wang Xiuxiu reached out and gently touched one of the fruits.

"Replying to your question, this is the 'Jade Pearl Fruit,' a variety that my ancestors brought back from the south," Zhang Dashan said with a simple smile. "This fruit is not only beautiful, but also tastes excellent; it's just that it's produced in very small quantities."

Wang Xiuxiu liked it more and more as she looked at it. Just as she was about to speak, she suddenly noticed a few similar fruit trees not far away, but their branches and leaves were a little sparse.

"Are those plants also jade bead fruit trees?"

"Yes, but its quality isn't as good as that one." Zhang Dashan scratched his head.

Wang Xiuxiu's heart skipped a beat, "Are you selling these too?"

"These are for sale. If you like them, I'll sell them to you at a discount."

This person is quite honest.

"Then I'll take them both."

Wang Xiuxiu was unsure of the market price of the fruit trees, so she simply handed over the task of negotiating the price to the steward accompanying her. "You negotiate the price with Zhang the fruit farmer and give him a fair price."

After agreeing on the price, Zhang Dashan led several fruit farmers to dig up the trees.

After watching for a while, Wang Xiuxiu found it uninteresting and took a short walk around the orchard.

As I walked along a field ridge, I saw an old farmer bending over and planting rice seedlings.

His back was already hunched, but his movements were still nimble.

The muddy water reached above his calves, but he was oblivious, focusing only on planting each seedling into the mud.

"Old man, why are you only planting rice now?" Wang Xiuxiu asked.

The old farmer raised his head, revealing a face covered in wrinkles.

He squinted at Wang Xiuxiu, grinned, and said, "You may not know this, but this is late-season rice. It's the perfect time to plant it."

Wang Xiuxiu nodded as if she understood, her gaze falling on the old farmer's hands, which were as rough as tree bark, with thick knuckles and dirt under his fingernails.

These hands must have toiled on this land for countless years.

"How many people are in your family, sir?" Wang Xiuxiu asked.

"It's just me, my wife, and my grandson," the old farmer said while planting rice seedlings. "My son went to work in the city this year and hasn't come back for several months. I heard he's working for some wealthy family, but I haven't heard a word from him."

Wang Xiuxiu's mind raced as she recalled the elegantly dressed young men she had seen on the street that day, riding tall horses and swaggering through the city, followed by throngs of servants.

Could the old farmer's son be among those servants?

"Don't listen to your uncle's nonsense, sir." Zhang Dashan finished tidying up the tree and came to call Wang Xiuxiu. Hearing this, he quickly smoothed things over, "There are many opportunities in the city. Maybe he's made it big and doesn't have time to come back."

Wang Xiuxiu did not speak.

Looking at the rows of furrows beneath her feet, she suddenly felt that the rural scenery on the outskirts of Beijing was more reassuring than the ornate buildings in the city.

These people toil in the fields, yet they find joy and contentment in their work; they are truly at peace with themselves.

In contrast, the wealthy young men in the capital, dressed in fine clothes and eating meat, indulged in pleasure all day long, yet they knew nothing of the hardships of ordinary people.

Just then, the carriage suddenly stopped, and Wang Xiuxiu almost hit the carriage wall.

A commotion arose outside. Lifting the carriage curtain, they saw a woman lying in front of the carriage.

She struggled to get up, but fell to the ground again due to her severe injuries.

"Help...help me..." the woman struggled to reach out her hand.

The woman raised her head, revealing a face as pale as paper.

Her hair was disheveled, with a few strands of black hair sticking to her sweaty forehead.

Wang Xiuxiu noticed that there were several fresh whip marks on the woman's neck, and the blood had already congealed.

Her clothes were torn, revealing bruises and marks on her collarbone.

Even more horrifying was the tattered silk ribbon wrapped around her wrist, through which one could vaguely glimpse the gruesome wounds beneath.

Wang Xiuxiu's heart tightened, and she was about to get out of the carriage when she was stopped by the nanny: "Your Highness, you mustn't!"

Just then, a group of burly men caught up with them.

The leader grabbed the woman's hair and said viciously, "You bitch, you dare to run away!"

"Stop!" Unable to get out, Wang Xiuxiu could only call out to stop them through the carriage curtain.

"My esteemed lady, this lowly maid is a runaway slave from our Golden Pavilion. She has disturbed you, please forgive her." The burly man bowed towards Wang Xiuxiu's carriage, his tone respectful, but his grip remained firm.

Wang Xiuxiu frowned.

Although the woman was dressed in rags, the fabric was of the finest silk, indicating she was no ordinary maid.

Moreover, her bare arms were covered with hideous scars, some new and some old, which was truly shocking.

"I...I won't..." the woman struggled to speak, but a man covered her mouth.

"Please forgive me, Your Excellency. This lowly maid is acting erratically. We will take her back now and not disturb you any further."

"Wait!" Wang Xiuxiu called out to stop them.

Before she could finish speaking, the head guard interrupted her in a low voice: "Your Highness, you mustn't."

Wang Xiuxiu turned her head and saw that the head guard looked solemn.

He lowered his voice and said, "Your Majesty, although those people were dressed plainly, they walked steadily and carried weapons at their waists. We only brought six guards with us this time."

Wang Xiuxiu felt a chill run down her spine.

She carefully examined the burly men and found that although they were dressed as ordinary thugs, their every move exuded the aura of trained martial artists.

The leader, in particular, had slightly bulging temples, clearly indicating that he was a master of both internal and external cultivation.

"But..." Wang Xiuxiu felt her heart breaking as she looked at the woman's desperate eyes.

“Your Highness,” the head guard said firmly, “the Prince repeatedly instructed us before his departure to ensure your safety. If anything happens to you, we will be held accountable even if we die a thousand deaths.”

Wang Xiuxiu clenched the handkerchief in her hand.

She understood this principle perfectly well. It's just that woman…

"Be careful in the future! If you damage my carriage, you won't be able to pay for it even if you all sell yourselves!"

Upon hearing Wang Xiuxiu's words, the head guard loosened his grip on the knife, finally putting his mind at ease.

The burly man curled his lip, grabbed the woman, and dragged her up from the ground.

The woman let out a painful whimper, but dared not struggle.

"Let's go," the head guard urged in a low voice.

Wang Xiuxiu bit her lip and ultimately remained silent.

The carriage continued on its way, but Wang Xiuxiu remained restless for a long time.

What horrified her most was the look of despair in the woman's eyes as she was dragged away.

Like a knife, it pierced her heart.

That night, Wang Xiuxiu tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

In her dream, she saw the woman locked in a dark room, her body covered in wounds, her eyes filled with despair.

She wanted to save her, but she couldn't reach her no matter what she did.

When I woke up, I was covered in cold sweat.

Although Su Yingxue had promised to help her investigate the matter when she returned, Wang Xiuxiu was still worried.

"Someone come here," Wang Xiuxiu summoned her personal maid, Xiaoying. "Go and fetch the guards left behind by the Prince."

Before Lu Jingze left the capital, he left her with several bodyguards, saying it was in case of emergency.

She had always felt that these people were unnecessary, but now she had no choice but to use them.

The bodyguards quickly appeared.

Wang Xiuxiu recounted what she had seen during the day in detail, and concluded by saying, "Please help me investigate, and be sure to be careful."

"yes!"

Three days later, the secret guard brought back the news.

The woman was taken to a place called Jinlou, which appeared to be an ordinary brothel, but in reality, it harbored treacherous secrets...

“Your Majesty,” the guard knelt on one knee, his voice low, “that Golden Pavilion appears to be an ordinary brothel, but in reality, it has dozens of secret rooms inside, specifically for imprisoning kidnapped women from respectable families. It’s a private den for people to have fun.”

The guard paused, then continued, "They're locked in a dark room. If they resist, they'll be severely beaten, and even..."

Wang Xiuxiu's hands trembled slightly: "Even what?"

"Some women, unable to bear the humiliation, tried to commit suicide, but the people in the building chained them up or forced them to drink that drug that made them lose their minds, not even giving them a chance to bite their tongues and kill themselves." The guard's voice was filled with suppressed anger. "Inside the Golden Pavilion, there is a huge golden cage, specially selected for beautiful women, locked in a specially made cage. If someone takes a fancy to one, then..."

Wang Xiuxiu suddenly stood up, and the teacup fell to the ground, shattering into several pieces.

She recalled the woman's wounds from that day, and her desperate eyes, and felt a wave of dizziness wash over her.

"Go on," she said, suppressing her anger.

"I infiltrated and saw it with my own eyes..." At this point, the battle-hardened guard's voice trembled slightly, "There were women who were whipped until their bodies were covered in welts, others who were branded with hot irons, and still others... had their fingernails pulled out."

Wang Xiuxiu covered her mouth, trying to suppress the urge to vomit.

She couldn't imagine how those girls could survive in such a hellish place.

The guard took a deep breath. "The Golden Pavilion specifically selects guests with unusual fetishes. These guests... often find pleasure in torturing women."

"Enough!" Wang Xiuxiu interrupted sharply.

She held onto the table, feeling dizzy and disoriented.

Wang Xiuxiu closed her eyes, and after a long while, asked, "Is there anything else?"

The guard lowered his head: "I also found out that this Golden Pavilion is backed by powerful figures in the court, and its patrons are mostly aristocratic families."