Seeing the murderous intent in Zheng Yu's eyes and then looking at the corpse on the ground, Sun Sanlang finally cowered and collapsed to the ground, defecating and urinating indiscriminately.

Sun Sanlang lay sprawled on the cold ground, the wet stains on his crotch emitting a strong, pungent odor that mingled with the surrounding musty and stench of corpses, making He Yi almost unable to open her eyes.

She instinctively stepped back a great distance.

Zheng Yu seemed to be holding his breath, completely oblivious to the complex stench, coldly looking down at him.

"Waaah, young master, please don't kill me, please don't hurt me, I beg you, I really beg you."

Zheng Yu frowned impatiently and urged, "Have you cried enough? If you have, then hurry up and say it. Stop pretending here."

Holy crap, the way Sun Sanlang is pissing and defecating is absolutely disgusting!

[The male lead exudes an aura of absolute power; if I were Sun Sanlang, I'd be terrified!]

Sun Sanlang was crying and wailing, his fingers trembling uncontrollably and his body shaking like a leaf. He pointed at the rotting corpse and cried out, "Young master, please listen to me! I'm just a small-time swindler! I really, really didn't kill him! Please, sir, see the truth!"

"Fine," Zheng Yu said, ignoring the corpse, and looked at him with a softer tone. "Tell me about your relationship with Aunt Lin?"

"I have known Madam Lin, Young Master, Eldest Young Master, and Aunt Lin for a long time, back before this gambling den was opened. At that time, she was not doing well in the mansion and often sent people to tell me to come out and see me..."

Sun Sanlang choked up, a hint of disdain flashing across his face.

He Yi looked at him angrily, "That's utter nonsense. When she was in the Minister's mansion, she got whatever she wanted. How could she suddenly be having a bad time? If she really wasn't doing well, how could she have all this gold and silver jewelry?"

Sun Sanlang dared not refute, and could only nod repeatedly, "Yes, yes, yes."

Zheng Yu said fiercely, "Continue."

Sun Sanlang was terrified. "Later, she became a concubine in the Minister's mansion. When I opened a gambling den, she would occasionally take out some things from the mansion and give them to me, saying that she would leave them with me first, and that after the master passed away, she would run away with me."

"Run away?" Zheng Yu sneered, squatted down, grabbed Sun Sanlang by the collar, and dragged him in front of him. "You think you're worthy? Don't you know what kind of person Lin is? Do you really think she'd run off with a gambling den owner like you?"

Sun Sanlang was breathless, but still managed to squeeze out a few words with a bitter expression: "I... I know of course she's lying to me!"

"I'll say it again: how could a concubine from the Minister's mansion possibly wander the world with me and live a miserable life? I just want her to give me as much as possible. Once she's no longer of any use to me, I'll naturally kick her to the curb!"

[It's definitely a case of mutual exploitation! The Lin family's calculations are shrewd!]

Sun Sanlang is no better; he's insatiably greedy!

He Yi stood to the side, listening to this disgusting affair, feeling her stomach churning; it was truly nauseating. She looked at Zheng Yu and noticed that the coldness in her brother's eyes was growing stronger.

Zheng Heyi couldn't help but say to her brother, "Brother, it's more important for us to get him to move his things out now. It will be even more inconvenient when it gets light and there are many people around."

Zheng Yu then released his grip and threw Sun Sanlang hard onto the ground. Sun Sanlang collapsed, panting heavily.

Zheng Yu stood up and kicked the mountain of gold and silver jewelry piled up beside him: "Did you hear me? Move everything listed in the book to my carriage, without missing a single item. If you dare to hide even a little bit," he warned again, pointing to the rotting corpse on the ground.

“The next one to lie here will be Sun Rangrang!” How could Sun Sanlang dare to disobey?

He was worried that he would really be killed by this young master, so he hurriedly scrambled to his feet. Fortunately, although there were many items, they were all utensils and the like.

He began to load the items onto the carriage with trepidation, while Zheng Yu stood by and coldly supervised. He Yi retreated to the cellar entrance for some fresh air. Watching the busy figures under the moonlight, Zheng He Yi felt that the scene was both absurd and ironic.

If my father, who is on his deathbed, knew that Lin had done such a heinous thing, I really don't know if he could bear such a painful blow.

Sun Sanlang's attempt to steal a chicken backfired; he ended up spitting everything out.

After all the items were loaded onto the cart, Zheng Yu walked up to Sun Sanlang and said, “Listen carefully and remember this well. If the Lin family sends you anything in the future, come to the Minister’s residence and tell me immediately. If I’m not here, go directly to the steward, Uncle Gong.”

“If I find out that you still dare to keep it to yourself, or dare to say a word about what happened today…” Zheng Yu paused, his gaze sweeping over Sun Sanlang’s leg, “I will personally break one of your legs and then throw you into a mass grave to feed the dogs.”

Seeing that Zheng Yu didn't seem like the type to joke around, Sun Sanlang was so frightened that he trembled all over, his voice shaking, and he kowtowed repeatedly.

"I understand! I understand! I will obey your orders! Thank you, Young Master Zheng, for sparing my life! Thank you, Young Master Zheng!"

Zheng Yu's tactic of using both kindness and severity is effective; he's not afraid Sun Sanlang won't obey.

Sun Sanlang will probably have to take a detour whenever he sees Zheng Yu from now on.

The carriage slowly drove away from the gambling den, the carriage filled with chests covered with cloth, these jeweled items emitting a faint musty smell in the wind.

Looking at Zheng Yu, who had a calm expression beside her, He Yi couldn't help but whisper, "Brother, thanks to you today, otherwise these things would have ended up somewhere else."

Zheng Yu turned her head, and in the dim light of the carriage, her eyes were exceptionally clear. They were eyes that He Yi had never seen before, eyes that held countless complex emotions.

That look in his eyes contained lingering fear and guilt, but even more so, an obvious tenderness.

“Heyi,” he said in a gentle, languid voice, “it was my fault for putting you in danger today. I shouldn’t have used you as a cover to lure that scheming Sun San, and I shouldn’t have let you come down to that filthy place with me.”

He Yi was slightly taken aback. Looking at the undisguised guilt in his eyes, her heart warmed suddenly: "What are you saying, brother? We are siblings, and we should stand together through thick and thin. Besides, if I hadn't been there, we might not have been able to get Sun Sanlang to confess so quickly."

Worried that Zheng Yu would feel guilty, He Yi winked playfully.

"I think that Sun Sanlang is quite afraid of you."

[That look in her eyes! Is that really a look of deep affection?]

[The male lead's guilt is so real; he's genuinely worried about the villainous female supporting character!]

[The seemingly villainous female supporting character is actually quite sensible; the brother and sister work together very well.]

Looking at her feigned ease, Zheng Yu felt even more guilty than before, yet she couldn't help but smile slightly at her amusing demeanor.