Zhao Ying'e glared at Song Yaozhu. Although she was a concubine in name, she was a prince's concubine! Song Yaozhu was just the wife of a lazy prince. If she had any sense, she wouldn't have gone against her!
"I wonder what the carefree princess is doing here so late at night?" Zhao Ying'e saw that she was standing in front of her unharmed and guessed that what she had done had been exposed.
She acted on a whim, so naturally she hadn't made thorough preparations. But how did she find out about her so quickly?
Song Yaozhu ignored her words and walked straight up to her, her eyes fixed on her like a cheetah locking onto its target, as she slowly approached.
Every step she took touched Zhao Ying'e's heartstrings, making her breath heavy.
"Your Highness, you must know how outrageous your behavior was today!"
Before she could finish speaking, Song Yaozhu overturned the table in front of her. She screamed and tried to back away, but was still covered in the leftover food.
The food tastes delicious on the plate, fragrant and mouthwatering. But when it touches a person, the smell is amplified tenfold, causing stomach acid to rise and making them feel nauseous.
"I'm too lazy to talk to you. Where did your men send the kidnapped girl?"
Zhao Ying'e was initially taken aback, but quickly realized that her subordinates had made a foolish mistake and kidnapped the wrong person. She quickly regained her composure; if she wasn't afraid of kidnapping Song Yaozhu, she certainly wasn't afraid of anyone else. Blame it on that woman's bad luck that she knew Song Yaozhu!
"Ha! Your Highness, let's not even talk about how I don't understand what you're talking about. Even if I was the one who kidnapped him, so what? You're begging me now, begging me to tell you where that scapegoat is! Is this how you beg for someone's attention?!"
Song Yaozhu was impatient to see her baring her teeth and brandishing her claws in front of her. Who did she think she was?
She stepped over the mess on the ground and grabbed Zhao Ying'e by the neck. At first, Zhao Ying'e thought she was just bluffing, after all, the well-bred ladies she knew were all weak and frail. But as she could breathe less and less, she began to struggle desperately, but due to lack of oxygen, her arms were limp and she couldn't push Song Yaozhu away at all.
"Song Yaozhu! Do you dare to kill me?!" Her eyes were wide open, with most of the whites showing. Gone was her previous elegance and grace; she looked like a ferocious madwoman.
Song Yaozhu did not answer her; instead, she tightened her grip on her neck.
At that moment, she finally realized that Song Yaozhu really dared to kill her! She really dared!
This woman appeared as indifferent as a still lake, so calm it couldn't ripple, making her rather dull. Yet, gazing at her for too long could stir an urge to leap into the water and be swallowed by its icy depths!
"I...I'll talk!"
Having lived in the household for many years, Zhao Ying'e was used to the intrigues of the inner quarters, but this was the first time she had encountered someone so head-on. She admitted that her methods were crude, yet they were the most effective way to deal with her enemy.
So what if she did a rough job? She's a concubine in the Yong Prince's mansion. If the news of her killing Song Yaozhu gets out, it will only embarrass the Yong Prince. Therefore, the Yong Prince and his wife will clean up her mess, just like her parents did!
But she never expected that Princess Yong would let Song Yaozhu in so easily!
"Speak!" Song Yaozhu's voice was cold, as decisive and swift as a sharp blade cutting through flowing water, leaving no room for argument.
She released her grip, and Zhao Ying'e collapsed to the ground, her palm pressed against the broken porcelain, blood quickly staining her clothes. Her face was covered in physiological tears, and she coughed desperately.
"I...I sold her to the brothel!" After saying that, she looked up at Song Yaozhu and laughed maniacally, "Hahaha! Do you know what kind of place that is! Once you go in, you can forget about being innocent! I specifically instructed people to have her serve customers as soon as she went in. Right now, she should be enjoying herself! Hahaha!"
She became increasingly agitated as she spoke, her expression becoming frantic as if she had lost her mind.
"Is she your friend? Then remember how you feel right now. It's all because of you that she lost her innocence! She's become your scapegoat!"
Once Song Yaozhu got the location, she immediately sent Caijin to notify the people guarding outside the Prince's Mansion to go find the person.
After Caijin left, the nanny who served Princess Yong entered. Seeing the mess in the room and the disheveled Zhao Ying'e, she didn't feign surprise. Instead, she calmly asked, "Your Highness, have your clothes been found?"
"Not yet, please wait a moment, Granny."
Song Yaozhu sat down on the chaise lounge, her beautiful eyes fixed on the door, as if waiting for someone to come in.
The old woman bowed slightly, "This old servant will go and give a message to the Princess."
"Thank you for your trouble, Your Highness."
The old woman went out the door and spat.
"Old woman, serves her right! The wicked should be tormented by the wicked!"
"Don't be angry. I'm fine now, but I owe someone money and I need to find a way to repay the favor." Shen Qingyu wrapped her robe tighter around herself and smiled at Cao Zhi.
Cao Zhi sighed, suppressing the urge to report it to the authorities.
Today, he and Xie Liwei went back to the Prince of Xiaoyao's mansion to retrieve the rare book, and that's when he heard the news of Shen Qingyu's disappearance. Xie Liwei sent people to several city gates to inquire about the situation, and also sent people to search around several brothels. Those areas were a melting pot of people, a gathering place for the buying and selling of people.
Soon, Xie Liwei received news that a man named Wu Ke had excitedly packed his things and left the capital that day, saying he was going out to make a fortune. When he returned, he was wearing an expensive fox fur coat.
Xie Liwei immediately sent people to chase after Wu Ke and also asked him the name of the brothel he frequented. Cao Zhi couldn't wait a moment longer and went to find him.
Fortunately, just as he reached the entrance of the alley, he saw a woman whose back view resembled Shen Qingyu. Upon closer inspection, it was indeed her!
Cao Zhi breathed a sigh of relief, comforted her, and listened to her recount her ordeal at the brothel. He was furious; how could someone abduct a woman in broad daylight!
And judging from what that mother said, there were other women in this building who had been forcibly sold in!
"How can we, as scholars, stand idly by and watch this happen?" Cao Zhi was both angry and helpless. If they hadn't known, that would have been one thing, but now that they knew, how could they allow such filth to continue to be tolerated in the capital!
“Some things can only be dealt with gradually.” Shen Qingyu looked at him with clear eyes, and the determination in them made Cao Zhi instantly deflate.
He also knew that for the Wan Hua Lou to be so arrogant, it must have a powerful backer. And he certainly couldn't afford to offend that powerful person.
"After all that running around, are you hungry? Shall I take you to get something to eat?"
Shen Qingyu shook her head and said, "Now that the Princess Consort knows, I must hurry back to let her know I'm safe and sound, so they won't worry."
Cao Zhi nodded and then asked, "Can you ride a horse? If you can, I'll lend you my horse; it'll be faster that way."
Shen Qingyu looked at him and shook her head.
Cao Zhi scratched his head, wanting to ask us how it was to ride together, but he couldn't bring himself to ask, after all, Shen Qingyu was a young lady.
Just as he was hesitating, he heard Shen Qingyu ask, "In urgent situations, one must act expediently. I wonder if Young Master Cao could give me a ride?"
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