Chapter 6 Chapter 6 Humiliation.

Jiaofangsi, a side room.

The weather has been getting hotter in recent days, and it's cloudy today, as if it's going to rain, making it particularly hot and humid.

In the evening, Lin Zhen returned to the Jiaofangsi and asked Hongye to fetch some water.

There was no special cleansing room in the simple house. The wooden barrel for cleansing was placed behind a thin coarse cloth curtain, through which the woman's black hair and fair skin could be vaguely seen.

Lin Zhen closed his eyes and leaned against the edge of the wooden barrel, his hand hanging over the side of the barrel, holding Lin Yue's coral earrings.

The door creaked open. Lin Zhen didn't open his eyes, but said calmly, "No need to add water. I'll be up in a moment."

The footsteps behind me were getting closer, but they were not familiar sounds, but rather strong and resolute steps.

Lin Zhen subconsciously clenched the coral earrings in her hand and moved them towards the side of the wooden barrel.

The footsteps paused, as if they walked a few steps away, and then turned back in a moment.

When Lin Zhen was about to look back, a piece of coarse cloth wrapped around her wet hair from behind, tightening her scalp. After the rustling sound of the cloth rubbing against her, a handkerchief was thrown over Lin Zhen into the wooden barrel, splashing water everywhere.

"Can I get up now?"

Lin Zhen's eyes fell on the handkerchief. Before she could come to her senses, her chin was lifted by the man's rough hand, forcing her to look up and meet his gaze.

Ji Bai held the edge of the wooden barrel with one hand and lifted Lin Zhen's chin with the other hand. He raised his peach blossom eyes slightly and looked at her with a smile.

At this moment, Lin Zhen's entire body was immersed in the water, naked.

The only bean lamp in the house made the water surface shimmer slightly. Given their situation in the Jiaofangsi, it was already a good thing that they could get clean water. Therefore, there was not a single petal to cover the water surface, and it was crystal clear and visible at a glance.

The white and slender legs were tightly closed under the water. Lin Zhen was naturally ashamed and angry at such a scene. His ears were burning red and his fingertips were deeply embedded in his palms.

"Get out." A cold word came out from the red lips covered with mist. Lin Zhen frowned, withdrew his gaze, and broke free from his restraint.

Ji Rui looked at his empty fingertips, snorted and laughed, then raised his eyes to look at Lin Zhen's cold profile, "Are you asking this general to get out? What? Do you still think you are the eldest daughter of the Lin family?"

As if afraid that Lin Zhen couldn't hear clearly, he leaned over the edge of the wooden barrel and continued, "Lin Zhen, the Lin family has been defeated, and Lin Yunfeng is dead."

Ji Wei paused for a moment, his eyebrows slightly raised, and said something even more cruel: "It's a pity that he died too easily."

Lin Zhen suddenly turned her eyes to look at Ji Wei, her chest heaving. Without hesitation, she raised her hand and swung it towards the man who was so close to her.

"Come again?!"

Last time, he was slapped by Lin Zhen because he was distracted. This time, Ji Bai firmly grabbed Lin Zhen's wrist, pulled her out of the water, and held her horizontally in his arms, ignoring the water droplets flowing on her body.

Ji Sui strode towards the couch, but did not leave Lin Zhen on the couch. Instead, he placed her on the incense table by the window next to the couch.

The window was not completely closed, leaving a tiny gap. If you look from the outside, you can just catch a glimpse of snow inside the house.

The wind blew in from the gap, brushing against Lin Zhen's wet body. She trembled uncontrollably for a moment, her eyes wide open. She glared at Ji Sui who was blocking her way and shouted angrily, "What are you doing? Let me go!"

"What? I'm just trying to finish what I left last time."

Ji Sui placed his hands on the edge of the incense table, hugged Lin Zhen, leaned over slightly, and put his thin lips close to her.

Ji Sui's impeccably dressed black suit formed a stark contrast to Lin Zhen. His words brought Lin Zhen back to the embarrassing memories of yesterday. She was already filled with shame and anger, and now she knew that he was still going to...

How could Lin Zhen agree?

She tried her best to push the man away, "Ji Sui, I am not your plaything, how can you bully me like this!"

He looked at the undisguised disgust and resistance in Lin Zhen's eyes, and couldn't help but think of her smile in the restaurant today, the smile she had given to other men. A wave of heat suddenly rose in his heart, turning into a sharp blade and stabbing at her: "Who do you think you are in front of me?"

Lin Zhen didn't say anything else. The room was silent. Ji Ruifu stepped forward and put his big hands on her cold back. When he lowered his head and was about to kiss her lips, the candlelight flickered beside him. He seemed to see a crystal light in the corner of Lin Zhen's eyes.

A ridiculous thought flashed through his mind, but it only lasted for a moment before he suppressed it.

He knew Lin Zhen very well. She was a cold and arrogant person. He had humiliated her even more cruelly in the past, and he had never seen her show any sign of weakness. How could she be willing to cry now because of a few humiliating words?

Ji Sui never thought that if Lin Zhen was really willing to show weakness and please him, would he let this woman go?

But obviously, he knew that Lin Zhen would never do that. She would not show kindness to such a despicable person like him.

Just like she would never smile at him...

Lin Zhen clenched his teeth, but Ji Sui refused to let him go and tried every means to conquer him. Suddenly, he felt a sweet taste between his lips and teeth.

He finally let go of Lin Zhen, his eyes full of anger. How could he give up?

The more ferocious Ji Bai's movements became, the stronger Lin Zhen's resistance became. During the struggle, the porcelain vase that was originally placed on the windowsill rolled to the ground and stopped at Ji Bai's feet.

That porcelain bottle contained the medicine that Du Sanniang had forced upon Lin Zhen a few days ago. She didn't want to use it, so she just threw it on the windowsill.

The medicine bottle caught Ji Sui's attention. He stopped and let go of Lin Zhen completely.

Taking advantage of this gap, Lin Zhen got down from the incense table, took a coat folded on the couch, and quickly wrapped it around himself.

"...That's my medicine, give it to me." When Lin Zhen bent down to pick up the porcelain bottle, it had already fallen into Ji Sui's hands.

The man's long eyelashes drooped, and his eyes fell on the porcelain bottle with a dark and unclear look. After a long time, his dark eyes looked at Lin Zhen and took two steps towards her: "Your medicine?"

Because Lin Zhen found it difficult to speak out about the purpose of the medicine, she rarely looked away when facing Ji Bai.

This subtle expression happened to fall into Ji Sui's eyes. He seemed to sense something. His eyes darkened and he continued to ask, "What medicine do you have?"

There were still drops of water on the ends of her hair. At that time, Ji Rui was very close to her, and his half-dry hair stuck to the side of her face. His red lips moved, but he never spoke.

She didn't want to, and wasn't willing to, talk about that in front of Ji Sui.

But this silent resistance meant something else in Ji Sui's eyes.

"Lin Zhen, I'll give you one last chance. What kind of medicine is this?" The man's deliberately lowered voice sounded like a dormant beast, forcibly suppressing the raging anger in his chest.

After a long silence, a loud bang broke the silence of the night, and the door of the side room became shaky after the fall.

Lin Zhen's tense nerves finally relaxed. She felt extremely tired, so she slowly sat down on the couch while holding onto the bedpost, and opened the coral earrings in the palm of her left hand.

*

When Ji Sui came out of the back door of the Jiaofangsi, it was already raining heavily. Shi Zhu saw his master coming out and hurriedly picked up the spare oil-paper umbrella in the carriage and went forward to greet him.

"General, someone just reported to the mansion that Lord Meng has sent another letter."

Ji Sui was silent for a long while. Suddenly, before getting on the carriage, he threw a porcelain bottle to Shi Zhu and said, "Go check what's in this."

Shizhu took the porcelain vase in his arms in bewilderment. Although he had some doubts in his heart, he did not dare to say anything. He only replied, "Yes, General."

The driver quickly drove the carriage. Shizhu sat in the front, looked back at the Jiaofangsi which was gradually moving away, then looked down at the porcelain bottle in his hand, and couldn't help but hold it tighter.

If that woman dares to harm the general, he will kill her with his own hands.

*

July, Shanglin Garden.

It was a hot summer day, and the entire capital seemed to be placed in a big steamer, sweltering with heat. Only in the lush gardens in the suburbs was there still a hint of coolness.

The third prince invited a group of noble sons from aristocratic families to hunt in Shanglin Garden on the pretext of cooling off and having fun, and Ji Sui was among them.

During the two years at the border, he had become accustomed to the brutality and slaughter on the battlefield. Ji Sui had no interest in the playful tricks played by the young masters, and just rode his horse lazily for a stroll in the woods.

"General, last time... I disturbed your pleasure. I should have come to your house to apologize. However, the general's residence is too high, so I dare not visit rashly. I hereby apologize to you."

Kong Jinghe was a junior official in the Dali Temple, a civilian with no experience in riding or shooting. At the time, he was following Ji Sui on horseback, led by his subordinates.

Ji Sui naturally knew that he was not afraid to visit because he was too polite. He was Meng Liangyu's man, but he was afraid that Meng Liangyu would suspect that he wanted to find a better job.

Kong Jinghe was still useful to Ji Rui. Ji Rui did not try to expose his words, but just smiled sideways: "My Lord, this is really serious."

Unlike those rough-hewn generals who fought on the battlefield, two years of fighting seemed to have left no trace on Ji Sui's face. Sunlight filtered through the intertwined branches and leaves, illuminating Ji Sui's face with a dappled, fair complexion.

Even in the eyes of Kong Jinghe, this man, Ji Bai's smile was beautiful. However, although it was beautiful, it always made him feel unfathomable and unfathomable.

The inner uneasiness made Kong Jinghe's responsive smile stiffen. He tightened the reins in his hands and stopped talking.

Suddenly, there was a sound of horse hooves behind them. A moment later, a man on a red horse pulled the reins and stopped beside them. He saluted Ji Sui from his horse and said, "General."

After Lin Yunfeng's death, the position of Dali Temple Minister was not taken by the former Dali Temple Shaoqing Kong Jinghe. Instead, the cabinet directly issued an edict to nominate the imperial concubine's nephew to succeed him, who was the man in front of him.

Ji Sui nodded slightly as a greeting, and then heard the man say with great interest, "I am honored to have the great general here today. My cousin said there are more surprises waiting for you. I hope you can enjoy yourself in Shanglin Garden today!"

After saying that, the man glanced at Kong Jinghe beside Ji Bai with contempt, waved his whip high and rode away.

Ji Sui raised the corners of his eyebrows slightly, glanced at Shi Zhu who had been following him, and continued to move forward.

They had hardly walked far when they heard men shouting not far away, with faint voices of women mixed in.

Shizhu subconsciously reached for the sword at his waist, holding his breath and looking forward.

In the distant jungle, dozens of men on horseback formed a large circle, surrounding two women and a sika fawn.

"Master Li, today... today I will serve you."

Regardless of the scorching sun, Du Sanniang, dressed in red, suddenly rushed to one of the big horses, grabbed the man's stirrup and called out.

The Master Li Li Yuanhui mentioned by Du Sanniang was a frequent visitor to the Music Bureau. He came from a wealthy family and was generous, but few people in the Music Bureau were willing to serve him because he enjoyed torturing women for fun in bed. Most of the women who entered his room were tortured beyond recognition.

Du Sanniang had once served him for money, so she knew Li Yuanhui's methods. For this reason, she wanted to stop him even more.

Li Yuanhui was stopped in public by a prostitute from the Jiaofangsi. Feeling humiliated, he kicked Du Sanniang away with a lewd smile on his face: "Brothers, this woman is a reward for you today!"

Hearing the sound, two or three men rode their horses forward, dragged Du Sanniang onto their horses, and drove deep into the woods.

After clearing the obstacles in front of him, Li Yuanhui turned his attention back to the woman in white in the center of the field. If it weren't for that reckless woman who had just stopped him, he would have already had the beauty in his arms.

Today, there is hunting in Shanglin Garden. In addition to the usual wild rabbits and birds, there is one more item of prey: women riding on deer. Whoever shoots a deer will own the woman sitting on the deer.

And the woman in front of me is even more special.

She was dressed in a white dress that trailed on the ground. She was tall and elegant, and silver chains, each finger thick, adorned her arms and legs, gleaming in the dazzling sunlight. Unlike the other women in the forest, she wasn't sitting on a deer. Instead, she was being towed by a silver chain behind a young sika deer. Her eyes were covered by a red silk ribbon that hung at her waist.

This person was Lin Zhen. Her eyes were blindfolded, and the silver chains on her wrists and ankles were burning hot under the scorching sun. Because she could not find the way, she was dragged by the fawn and stumbled all the way. Her white skirt was also cut into a mess by the passing branches, and red marks were all over her exposed fair skin.

But this undoubtedly increased the man's interest.

The running and the heat made Lin Zhen's mind unclear. It was not until Du Sanniang was dragged away that she vaguely heard her voice.

"...Sanniang?"

Lin Zhen dragged his heavy steps towards the direction where Du Sanniang's voice disappeared, but the fawn was frightened by being surrounded by people and refused to move even a step.

While Lin Zhen was struggling hard, the cold arrow had already been aimed at the fawn beside her.

Li Yuanhui drew his bow and arrow, his mind filled with the shattered beauty before him.

Ji Sui rode his horse forward a few steps and saw this scene.

Before becoming a general, Ji Rui was just a lowly servant in the Lin Mansion. No one knew what his preferences were. The only one who knew was his enemy - the Lin family.

Humiliating Lin Zhen became their means of currying favor with Ji Sui, and was also the "surprise" that the Dali Temple Minister had just mentioned.