The next seven days were like a living hell for Song Jin, every moment felt like being cut by knives and burned by fire, causing her unbearable pain.
On the morning of the first day, when the first bowl of steaming hot minced meat porridge was served to Song Jin by the jailer, its enticing aroma clashed sharply with the surrounding chill.
Song Jin stared in terror at the bowl of fragrant minced meat porridge. The rumbling of her hungry stomach mingled with the pounding of her heart, a sound born of fear.
Sure enough, the cat inside his trouser leg smelled the aroma of minced meat in the air and let out a series of rapid and sharp meows, followed by even more frantic struggles and kicks.
Song Jin gritted his teeth, enduring the pain and shame, and took the bowl with trembling hands. Before long, his legs were covered in blood, and drops of blood dripped from his ankles onto the ground.
As night fell, Song Jin curled up on the wooden frame. The cat inside his trouser leg seemed to quiet down due to exhaustion, but the unease and fear lingered, preventing him from falling asleep.
His heart was filled with regret and despair. He cursed his own greed and stupidity countless times, but he also knew that everything was beyond redemption.
The situation took a sharp turn for the worse the next day.
The cat seemed no longer satisfied with being confined to its small space; hunger and anxiety drove it to search for a way out.
Song Jin's pants became its only point of attack; its sharp claws pierced through the fabric, and its torment caused Song Jin immense pain.
The pain nearly made Song Jin faint, but he didn't even have the strength to scream, and could only silently endure this inhuman torment.
On the third day, when Song Jin was awakened by the urge to urinate again, he knew he was on the verge of collapse.
He tried to control himself, but his body trembled uncontrollably. Warm liquid flowed down his trouser leg, mixing with the previous stains and emitting an unpleasant odor. The cat inside his trouser leg seemed to have caught a whiff of something, suddenly becoming unusually excited and biting down on Song Jin's most vulnerable spot.
At that moment, Song Jin let out a heart-wrenching scream, his desperate cries echoing throughout the entire cell.
In the following days, Song Jin's world was plunged into complete darkness.
The daily minced meat porridge became his only solace, but also a signal for the cat's revelry.
The cat roamed freely inside his trouser leg, and every struggle caused him excruciating pain.
He could only helplessly endure all of this, his mind and body suffering unprecedented torment.
Meanwhile, Qin Wen was temporarily detained in another cell.
Although she was not directly tortured, the torment in her heart was no less.
Qin Wen's heart was gripped tightly by Song Jin's piercing cries that pierced the night day after day, each cry cutting through her peace like a sharp blade.
She huddled in the dark corner, her arms tightly wrapped around herself, as if this could shield her from all the unease and fear outside. The surrounding silence was made even more oppressive by Song Jin's cries, every breath of air heavy and suffocating.
Occasionally, a frantic mouse would dart past her feet, the slightest movement enough to instantly tighten Qin Wen's already taut nerves to their limit. Her heart would pound like a drum, her pupils would shrink, and she would even pause for a moment, as if her breath had stopped.
In this endless darkness, she could only rely on her own faint body heat to find a sliver of comfort, while Song Jin's cries became an inescapable nightmare, haunting her every night and reminding her that this place was an abyss of loneliness and despair.
Qin Wen stayed in this dark, damp, and sunless place, praying every day that her father would send someone to rescue her.
But as time went by, the hope that grew day by day eventually turned into accumulated disappointment.
In the blink of an eye, the seventh day finally arrived. When the jailer opened the cell door again, Song Jin was already on the verge of death.
His eyes were empty and lifeless, his face was as pale as paper, and the cat in his trousers seemed to have lost its former vitality, quietly curled up between his legs.
Zhao Yuan walked into the interrogation room and looked at the scene, but his heart remained unmoved.
He even thought that such punishment was far too lenient compared to the heinous crimes Song Jin had committed.
He slowly sat down in the chair and sneered, "Imperial Physician Song, you slept with another man's woman and still coveted his position. Do you think this punishment is too harsh?"
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