He Yan hadn’t expected the person who came would be Xiao Jue.

She had thought that Yan He and the others might discover her absence much later and come looking for her, though the possibility was extremely slim. But she truly hadn’t anticipated Xiao Jue’s arrival.

Wasn’t he supposed to be at the Provincial Governor’s mansion with another person looking for the slave contract?

When the leader saw Xiao Jue’s approach, he was also shocked. Unlike the masked youth from before, this young man’s appearance and attire indicated he wasn’t from an ordinary family. After some hesitation, thinking of Tong Qiushi, he disregarded everything else and shouted, “This boy’s accomplice is here, grab him!”

He Yan was startled and instinctively blurted out, “Brother Huaijin, there are too many of them, run quickly!”

Although Xiao Jue’s martial skills were excellent, there were too many people there. How could he handle them alone? It seemed Yan He and the others hadn’t come with him—this didn’t look good.

In her anxiety, she had forgotten her original intention. If Xiao Jue fled now, what would become of her?

Xiao Jue’s gaze swept over her, his lips curving slightly. Before He Yan could understand the meaning behind his smile, she heard the sound of approaching hoofbeats, particularly clear in the night.

Had Yan He and the others arrived?

This time, He Yan had guessed wrong. The arrivals weren’t Yan He but rather more than ten guards. Before their journey to Jinling, their families had worried about potential mishaps during the long journey and had assigned skilled guards from their households for protection. Although these young nobles hadn’t hidden their visit to the brothel from the guards, they ultimately didn’t dare reveal their rescue mission. After all, it was too dangerous—if they told the guards, they would almost certainly be stopped.

However… at this moment, the guards’ appearance was quite fortuitous.

Xiao Jue didn’t even bother to draw his sword. The guards behind him had already sprung into action without waiting for his command. The estate’s men were merely Tong Qiushi’s thugs and henchmen—how could they compare to the carefully selected personal guards from the northern capital? In an instant, the air was filled with howls and screams, the scene descending into chaos.

No one was paying attention to He Yan, who was still pressed against the ground.

He Yan was using her hands to push herself up when she saw a pair of boots stop in front of her. She looked up to see the young man watching her, extending his hand.

That hand was long, white, and clean with distinct knuckles, reminiscent of fine jade carving. Her own hands were covered in mud from the fight. He Yan hesitated to take his hand.

The young man seemed to grow impatient. A moment later, he grabbed her elbow and pulled her up from the ground.

“…Thank you,” she said softly.

Xiao Jue’s gaze fell on the whip marks on her back, but he remained silent. In just moments, the guards had subdued everyone, binding them like trussed pigs scattered across the ground.

“Who whipped you just now?” he asked.

He Yan turned to look at him.

Before she could speak, the leader called out, “Young Master, spare me! Young Master, spare me! This lowly one didn’t mean to!”

“So it was you.” Xiao Jue spoke indifferently.

He unhurriedly bent down and picked up the whip from the mud—the same whip that had struck He Yan’s back earlier.

He handed the whip to He Yan: “Go ahead, hit him.”

“…What?” He Yan didn’t understand.

“Whatever he did to you, you do to him.” Xiao Jue lifted the hem of his robe and sat down lazily in a chair facing the group, gesturing to He Yan as if watching a show. “Please.”

He Yan stared at the whip in deep thought, not moving for a long time.

The leader began wailing and blubbering again, begging for mercy.

“What’s wrong?” the young man watched her with amusement, raising an eyebrow. “Don’t dare?”

The leader’s heart leaped with joy, thinking this masked youth looked weak and young, perhaps soft-hearted, and continued his desperate pleas.

“No,” He Yan heard her voice, small but firm, “Can I hit him more times?”

The leader froze.

Xiao Jue was also stunned, but after a moment, he spoke with interest, “As you wish.”

He Yan raised the whip.

Truthfully, although she had been beaten, she had only taken one lash. Saying she wanted to hit him more times was just to vent her frustration. This trip to Jinling wasn’t what she had wanted in the first place; she had been dragged along by Lin Shuanghe and the others. And now that she was here, she had suffered this undeserved misfortune, feeling truly wronged. Since a target for her anger had presented itself, it would be a waste not to take advantage. Besides, this wasn’t a good person anyway—a bully hiding behind authority. She could hit him a few more times, considering it revenge for Young Master Wang and Hua Youxian.

“Crack—”

The crisp sound of the whip echoed in the empty night. The thugs who had been crying and making noise moments ago suddenly didn’t dare speak, with only the leader’s screams responding and reverberating.

He Yan was quite measured in her strikes, not damaging his bones. Though painful, they were all surface wounds.

She struck a total of ten times.

After ten lashes, the man who had been so arrogant earlier was now covered in tears, barely breathing, too weak even to scream. Yet this masked youth gently placed the whip in front of him and even said softly, “Excuse me.”

This directly caused the leader to faint from anger.

He Yan walked to Xiao Jue’s side, and Xiao Jue glanced at her: “Done?”

“Done.”

He nodded, stood up, and turned to leave: “If you’re done, let’s go.”

After the leader had been beaten unconscious, someone in the crowd summoned the courage to shout, “Who are you, people? How dare you be so arrogant! Aren’t you afraid the Provincial Governor will come after you? The Governor won’t let you get away with this!”

The young man in white robes turned back, his robe’s silver python pattern beautiful yet sinister. His eyes were cold as he laughed mockingly: “I’m counting on him coming.”

“Remember to find me at Ruruyun Lou. I’ll be waiting anytime.”

After saying this, he ignored the others and walked away, following the guards to where they had come from. He Yan stayed by his side, and when they reached the horses, Xiao Jue asked her, “Can you mount?”

He Yan nodded and climbed up with effort. Just as she settled, she felt someone behind her. She was startled, not expecting Xiao Jue to share the same horse with her, and her emotions became difficult to control.

First, Xiao Jue usually loved the cleanliness, and she was now covered in mud, dirty and disheveled, yet surprisingly he showed no disgust. Second, due to her identity, He Yan hadn’t experienced such intimate contact with anyone for a long time.

The guards all rode their horses out of the estate together, but Xiao Jue’s horse moved slowly, likely considering her injuries, as too much jolting would inevitably cause unbearable pain. He Yan felt warmth in her heart. The guards didn’t wait for them, and before they knew it, only the two of them were left riding behind.

Seeing that no one else was around, He Yan asked quietly, “Brother Huaijin, why did you come?”

“I was passing by.”

Passing by? This wasn’t even in the same direction—what kind of passing by was that? Just as she was about to speak, she heard Xiao Jue ask, “If I hadn’t shown up, what would you have done?”

“…Then I would have revealed your identities,” He Yan said without blinking. “Your father is the Martial General, Tong Qiushi wouldn’t dare act recklessly.”

Xiao Jue laughed at her words, amused and annoyed: “You’ve calculated well.”

“We’re all in the same boat,” He Yan said with a straight face.

Xiao Jue snorted but didn’t continue the conversation.

He Yan pressed her lips together, thinking that if Xiao Jue hadn’t come, she probably wouldn’t have revealed their identities after all, and would have held out as long as she could. But if she said that, wouldn’t it make her seem too easy to bully? If Yan He and the others found out, she wanted them to know she was fierce and very angry and condemning of such abandonment of friends.

After some time, the path before them was no longer wilderness but became bustling and lively. They had entered the city, and those guards, presumably having received instructions from Xiao Jue, had already departed on their own. Xiao Jue found an inn, dismounted with He Yan, and walked inside.

“Wait,” He Yan grabbed his sleeve, “Brother Huaijin, aren’t we going to meet up with Brother Nanguang and the others? What are we doing? Staying at an inn?”

Xiao Jue looked her over, “Are you sure you want to meet Yan Nanguang and the others in this state?”

He Yan was stunned, only then remembering how she had been beaten at the estate. Not to mention her injuries, her clothes were filthy and in complete disarray. She stammered, “Oh, I see. Thank you, Brother Huaijin.”

Xiao Jue called for a room and asked the inn’s attendant to bring hot water. He Yan grew nervous again and said to him, “Brother Huaijin, I don’t like having others present when I bathe. Could you step out for a while?”

Xiao Jue looked at her with bewilderment: “Am I your servant?”

He Yan: “Ah?”

“You’re thinking too much,” he mocked. “You can bathe by yourself, but how will you apply medicine?”

“Those are just minor injuries, they’re nothing,” He Yan said.

“You’re very strange,” he stared into He Yan’s eyes, stepping forward. He Yan looked up, nervously meeting his gaze, only to hear Xiao Jue say thoughtfully, “Your guards are also unusually distant with you.”

During this trip to Jinling, all the young nobles had guards arranged by their households. These youths were of noble status and valued by their families, so the guards were naturally always concerned about them. But throughout the journey, only He Rufei’s guards seemed particularly distant—not exactly cold, but not very close either. For instance, tonight, if they had been Lin Shuanghe’s guards and learned that Lin Shuanghe was injured, they would have already been calling for doctors and personally applying medicine.

But He Rufei’s guards hadn’t even really inquired about the injuries.

If one were to say He Rufei was treated coldly in the He family, that wouldn’t make sense—He Rufei was He Yuansheng’s eldest legitimate son, it shouldn’t be like this.

He Yan’s heart rose to her throat. She hadn’t expected Xiao Jue to notice this detail. But how could she explain? The fact that she was a woman was known to very few people in the He family. Those guards had also received instructions from He Yuansheng not to get too close to her.

But this had become a fatal flaw.

He Yan tried her best to appear calm, “I have a cold personality and don’t like too much contact with others. I was the one who told them not to get close to me.”

This explanation wouldn’t even convince a child.

Xiao Jue looked down at her, and after a while, nodded: “Fine.”

He instructed the innkeeper to bring clean clothes and medicine, then left, leaving the room to He Yan. Only after Xiao Jue had gone did He Yan finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Dealing with Xiao Jue always made people particularly nervous. Perhaps it was because he was naturally perceptive, and his appearance was excessively handsome, just like the giant python with silver scales embroidered on his robe hem—beautiful yet dangerous, indifferent yet cruel.

As the hot water soaked her entire body, the warm sensation gradually soothed her previous anxious mood. Thinking about tonight’s events, she slowly began to taste a hint of secret excitement.

After all, she was just a child of ten or so years. No matter how well-behaved usually, the heart always yearned for one adventure. Although getting beaten was quite miserable, she thought that Yan He and the others must have successfully rescued Young Master Wang. Since Xiao Jue appeared here, it meant that the matter of the contract had also gone smoothly.

Lady Hua You’s request was nearly half accomplished.

Even after many years, when remembering this incident, it would still be enough to bring self-satisfied pleasure.

She cleaned herself and painstakingly sprinkled a layer of wound medicine on her back while looking in the mirror, then changed into the clothes sent by the innkeeper. Only then did she carefully remove her mask.

Earlier, when the estate’s men had tried to forcibly remove her mask, although they hadn’t succeeded, it had pressed deeper into her skin, leaving marks on her face, and there was even a slight bruise at the corner of her mouth.

He Yan sighed.

She wiped her face with a handkerchief when she heard someone knocking at the door. Startled, she hurriedly put on her mask, said “Coming,” and went to open the door.

The door opened, and Xiao Jue entered, glancing at her, “Done?”

He Yan nodded.

His gaze fell on He Yan, and suddenly he curved his lips: “There’s something I’m very curious about.”

He Yan instinctively replied, “What is it?”

“Are you wearing a mask because of an ugly appearance?” he asked languidly.

Under the bright lamplight, the young man’s features were beautiful, his eyes like autumn waters, captivating yet bearing a brightness that seemed to see through everything. He Yan almost cried out for a moment, but immediately, she protected her greatest secret.

“Of course,” she even mimicked Xiao Jue’s cold laugh, “Not everyone is born as elegant and handsome as Brother Huaijin.”

The usually quiet Young Master He suddenly bristling with such a retort left the Second Young Master Xiao momentarily speechless. Then, raising his eyebrows slightly, he replied carelessly, “Indeed.”

He Yan: “…”

He turned around and called to He Yan: “If you’re ready, let’s go.”

He Yan asked, “Where to?”

“Ruruyun Lou.”

…

In Ruruyun Lou, the lights were bright, and in the upper chamber, Hua Youxian was anxiously watching the door.

Several young men were sitting in the room, with a scholarly-looking young man lying on the couch. This young man appeared frail and delicate, had already changed clothes, but still bore marks of injury on his face, looking somewhat disheveled at first glance. At the moment, he was sleeping with his eyes tightly closed.

“I’ve roughly bandaged and applied medicine to his wounds,” Lin Shuanghe fanned himself, “They’re all surface injuries, but this Young Master Wang is too weak, which makes it look somewhat frightening. After some rest, he’ll be fine.” After speaking, he turned his head and muttered quietly, “I said I’d only treat women in the future, yet I’m breaking that rule before even completing my training, ah.”

Hua Youxian bowed to Lin Shuanghe, “Thank you, Young Master Lin.”

“It’s nothing, Miss Youxian, no need for such formality.” Lin Shuanghe smiled; he was always polite to young ladies.

Tong Qiushi only wanted to torment Wang Sheng, not kill him from the start. After all, he still wanted to use Wang Sheng to threaten Hua Youxian, which is why Wang Sheng was still alive.

The door opened, and everyone’s eyes lit up, but quickly dimmed again—it was Madam Ding who entered. Madam Ding was also somewhat flustered, wringing her handkerchief as she spoke softly, “Why don’t you, Youxian, take Wang Sheng and leave Jinling now before Young Master Tong discovers this?”

When this group brought the injured Wang Sheng to Ruruyun Lou, Madam Ding was also startled. But at this point, sending Wang Sheng away would certainly mean death, so she had to let them in. Madam Ding wasn’t clear about these young masters’ identities, thinking they were just wealthy young lords from Jinling City seeking the thrill of playing hero.

But while the adventure seemed exciting, the consequences would be endless. She absent-mindedly attended to customers downstairs but ultimately felt that this couldn’t be kept secret. This matter was no small affair, so she came upstairs to talk.

Hua Youxian shook her head, “We can hide for a while but not forever. Besides, if Youxian and Young Master Wang leave, what about you, Madam? Tong Qiushi certainly won’t spare Ruruyun Lou. If he dared to set fire to Ruruyun Lou once, he’d dare to do it a second time. Should we disregard the lives of other sisters for Youxian’s sake?”

“Then what do you plan to do?” Madam Ding became anxious.

“Tong Qiushi wants me,” Hua Youxian looked at Wang Sheng on the couch, her expression softening, “As long as I obey and beg him, Young Master Wang can be saved. At least if he can safely leave Yangzhou, that would be good.”

“Moreover…” Hua Youxian hesitated, “One young master hasn’t returned yet. If he’s fallen into those villains’ hands, if we just leave with Wang Sheng, they might take their anger out on that young master. If I stay here, perhaps Tong Qiushi will spare them for my sake.”

At these words, the young men in the room immediately changed color.

“That won’t be necessary.” A voice rang out, and then the door opened as two young men walked in. The one in front wore white robes and had a weary expression, “It hasn’t reached the point where your sacrifice is needed.”

“Huaijin!”

“Brother He!”

The room immediately erupted with various voices as the young men rushed forward in a group.

“I knew Brother Huaijin would rescue Brother He!”

“Brother He is blessed by heaven, how could he be so easily captured by others?”

“Brother He, are you alright? Are you injured?”

He Yan was stunned. This was her first time receiving such star treatment, her first time being cared for like this. She was so overwhelmed by the unexpected attention that she almost forgot about being abandoned.

Yan He shuffled forward, scratching his head, looking very uncomfortable. He walked up to He Yan and said, “I’m sorry.”

He Yan was startled.

“At that time… I was too panicked,” speaking of this, Yan He showed a look of remorse, “I was only focused on getting Young Master Wang away. I thought you would follow. I didn’t expect…”

He couldn’t even justify it to himself.

He Rufei was truly insignificant at Xianchang Academy. For someone of his status, a heaven’s chosen one like himself, He Rufei wasn’t even worth noticing. During this trip to Jinling, He Rufei hadn’t participated much in the young men’s excitement. Sometimes, if he didn’t speak up himself, everyone would almost forget that there was a He Rufei among them.

Therefore, when the estate’s men attacked, none of them remembered there was still someone keeping watch.

It wasn’t until they met up with the other team that Xiao Jue looked at their group, frowned, and asked, “Where’s He Rufei?”

At this point, Yan He and the others finally remembered that they seemed to have forgotten He Rufei.

Yan He was about to go look for him when Xiao Jue stopped him, giving him a light glance, saying, “I’ll go.”

That glance made him feel utterly ashamed.

How could he abandon his classmate? Was this how a gentleman should behave? Moreover, He Rufei was terrible at martial arts and as timid as a mouse—falling into those people’s hands would surely not end well. The more he thought about it, the more frightened he became. He was about to mount his horse when Xiao Jue pulled him down.

“I’ll go,” Yan He said, “You can’t go alone, there are too many of them!”

“I’ll take the guards,” Xiao Jue said indifferently, “You take the others to Ruruyun Lou.”

Yan He watched blankly as Xiao Jue rode off and disappeared at the end of the street, feeling unbearably awful. After arriving at Ruruyun Lou, he couldn’t focus on anything else, thinking about He Rufei, worried that Xiao Jue might arrive too late to save him, or might not be able to rescue him at all.

Until now.

Seeing He Rufei appear safe and sound, Yan He finally felt relieved, followed immediately by endless guilt and self-disgust.

“Hit me,” the young man lifted his head, his ponytail bouncing high, clearly apologizing yet still maintaining an air of superiority, “I’m sorry!”

He Yan looked at him in amazement, somewhat wanting to laugh. She held back her laughter and said, “It’s fine, Brother Huaijin came to rescue me. They didn’t have time to beat me, and I didn’t suffer any losses.”

Xiao Jue’s eyes flickered slightly as he laughed once, not exposing her lie.

Yan He, however, was greatly relieved by He Yan’s words, feeling somewhat better.

One young man asked, “Brother Huaijin, now that everyone’s here, we have the contract, and Young Master Wang has been rescued, what’s the next step?”

Madam Ding became anxious: “Since everyone’s here, quickly get Young Master Wang out of Jinling!”

She also knew Hua Youxian was right—Hua Youxian was the most important one. If Hua Youxian left with them, the entire Ruruyun Lou would suffer. At least getting Wang Sheng out would mean the rescue wasn’t in vain.

Hua Youxian nodded, walked to Wang Sheng’s side, and looked at her lover’s face, her gaze lingering and reluctant, tears in her eyes.

This parting would be final—they would never meet again in this life.

Just as she was about to help Wang Sheng up, suddenly, a sword appeared before her. Hua Youxian looked up to see the most striking young man in white robes sitting in a chair, not looking at her, with his sword tip pointing at her and the handle blocking her way.

“No need.”

“Young Master…” Hua Youxian didn’t understand.

The young man gave her a light glance, and curved his lips upward, “Why run? They’re about to arrive.”

“What?” Madam Ding was greatly alarmed upon hearing this, trembling as she spoke, “Who is ‘they’?”

As if to confirm his words, the next moment, urgent knocking sounded at the door. The door was pushed open, and the girl called Cailian, whom they had met earlier, rushed in, frantically saying, “Madam, Youxian, it’s terrible! Young Master Tong has brought officials from the Provincial Governor’s mansion and surrounded our Ruruyun Lou. They say Ruruyun Lou is harboring criminals and aiding villains, and they’re demanding we hand over the people immediately! What should we do?”

Madam Ding turned to look at them, also frightened: “What should we do?”

[The mission must proceed, this mission is very important ╭(╯^╰)╮]