After taking a few steps, Jin Heng turned back and said coldly, "Aren't you coming?"
The maidservant quickly lifted her skirt and followed.
There were patrol officers at the night market. Jin Heng found the official in charge, explained his purpose, and the official immediately assigned him men.
They sealed off the night market and led people to search shop by shop and stall by stall. However, because it was the Lantern Festival, there were many more people visiting the night market than usual. It was bustling with people, and finding one person among them was like looking for a needle in a haystack.
An hour passed, and Jin Heng's panic and frustration intensified.
He felt he shouldn't act impulsively, and even less should he deliberately ignore her in order to make her give up on him.
Perhaps he realized he was falling for her, but he couldn't quite put his finger on whether his restlessness at that moment was because of her or because of himself.
He just hadn't expected it to lead to the current consequences; otherwise, he would have made sure to get her safely back to the palace first.
Jin Heng rode his horse through the crowd, just to get a better view.
After asking around, he finally found a clue. A vendor selling candied hawthorns pointed him in the right direction and said, "I saw two people sneakily pulling a girl into that alley over there."
Jin Heng rushed over almost without stopping.
When he got there, he was filled with despair, because the alley the vendor pointed to was a dead end, with nothing but some baskets and miscellaneous items inside.
He knew that the longer this matter was delayed, the more disadvantageous it would be for Wei Yinqiu.
Just when he was extremely anxious, things suddenly took a turn for the better.
Next to the alleyway was a brothel, with women standing at the entrance greeting customers. He had only casually asked, holding up a portrait, "May I ask, have you ever seen the little girl in the painting?"
The woman glanced at the painting, then at his face, raised an eyebrow and smiled, saying, "Would you like to come in and sit for a while, young master?"
Jin Heng frowned and refused.
Just as he was about to leave, the woman's voice came from behind him again, "Young master, don't be in such a hurry. I have a beautiful guest in my room who might satisfy you."
His heart skipped a beat, and he turned around and went back.
The woman led him into the brothel. The madam, accompanied by a group of beautiful women, came forward to greet him. He took out a gold leaf, pointed to the girl beside him, and said, "Just her."
The madam couldn't take her eyes off Jin Yezi, and he was then warmly escorted upstairs.
Upon entering the private room, the woman brought tea, her smile alluring. "Young master, you are truly blessed with handsome features; even I am ashamed of my own appearance in comparison."
He grabbed the woman's wrist as she poured tea and said coldly, "Where is this pampered guest you spoke of?"
The woman accidentally spilled tea on the table because of his movements. She said helplessly, "Young master, don't be in such a hurry, have some tea first..."
Jin Heng flashed behind her, produced a dagger from who-knows-where, and held it to her neck. The blade was icy cold, and his voice was chillingly sharp: "I'll ask you one more time, where is she?"
The woman stretched her neck, but the teapot in her hand was still tilted, and the tea overflowed the rim of the cup, flowing down the table and onto her feet, scalding her and making her wince, but she dared not move.
She swallowed hard and said, "I'll take you there now, but you have to let me go first."
"Stop trying any tricks. My patience is limited. If I don't find her, you can forget about living."
The woman then realized that she had messed with a tough opponent.
She could only agree repeatedly.
She then led Jin Heng out of the room. The two walked hand in hand, and it looked as if Jin Heng had his arm around her waist, behaving intimately. But only she knew that the hand around her waist was holding a dagger against her body.
The woman led him to the far end of the room, opened the door and went inside. It was empty, but after going around a screen and opening another door, it was a completely different world.
This door leads directly to the back courtyard of the brothel. Unlike the bustling and noisy front, this place is as quiet as another world.
In the center of the courtyard stood a tall ginkgo tree, now only bare branches remained, covered with a thin layer of snow.
The woman led him through the long corridor to the door of a side room with a sign that read "Preface to the Orchid Pavilion." "She's inside," she said.
Jin Heng kicked the door open.
The image of Wei Yinqiu being bullied to the point of tears and covered in wounds that he had imagined did not appear. On the contrary, what he saw was a completely different scene—she was sitting at the table enjoying her meal. When he kicked open the door, she was so startled that she choked on a chicken leg.
Wei Yinqiu drank several mouthfuls of pigeon soup before finally managing to swallow the chicken leg meat stuck in her throat. Then she turned to look at him with surprise and delight: "Grand Tutor, you've finally come to save me!"
Jin Heng's expression did not improve. He threw the brothel woman outside the door, stepped inside, and slammed the door shut behind him with a loud "bang."
When their eyes met, Wei Yinqiu chickened out, "You...you're angry?"
Jin Heng's face was as cold as ice, his chilling aura emanating from him: "Do you know how much I searched for you outside for over an hour? How anxious I was, how guilty I felt, how regretful I was!"
"I, I, I just found out..." Wei Yinqiu threw down the chicken leg and casually wiped her hands with the tablecloth.
She walked up to him somewhat awkwardly, looking up at him with a pitiful expression. "Grand Tutor, I'm sorry. I won't run around like that anymore. Please don't be angry. I'm so scared to see you like this."
Jin Heng's expression softened slightly, but his tone remained icy. "Tell me, why are you here? Did you do this on purpose?"
"No, no, no, you've misunderstood. I really was kidnapped."
To prove she was telling the truth, she quickly ran to the side and pulled back the screen, revealing two drunk men lying behind it.
Jin Heng recognized one of them and frowned. "Huang Kun? How dare he do this?"
"Huang Kun? Who is he?"
"Minister Huang's son is a spoiled brat who acts recklessly because he has his father's backing." His tone was contemptuous, clearly showing his disdain for the man.
Princess Yongning usually resides in the palace, so it's quite normal that Huang Kun didn't recognize her. Tonight, after drinking some wine, he suddenly saw a beautiful woman on the street and harbored evil intentions, so he kidnapped her.
"They brought me here with the intention of doing something indecent. Fortunately, my brother, the Crown Prince, gave me a packet of sleeping pills before I left the palace to protect myself. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to take them down."
Jin Heng stared at her and nodded. "The sleeping potions from the Imperial Hospital are indeed incredibly effective."
He suddenly reached out and grabbed her wrist, pulling her close to his chest and holding her tightly. He said in a low voice, "Do you know how anxious I was during the hour or so you were missing? I wanted to kill everyone who failed to protect you, including myself."
Wei Yinqiu was stunned.
She lifted her eyes from his embrace, but could only see his beautifully sculpted jawline; she couldn't make out his expression.
She really wanted to know how he could say such extreme things with his ethereal appearance.
But ironically, the more it was like this, the more she liked it.
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