The carriage was just about to move when Ji Wanxin rushed over.

Whether she was frightened or worried that Jingrong was injured, her eyes were red-rimmed.

Muruo was applying medicine to Jingrong when she asked from the side, “What can I do?”

“Sit properly.”

“…”

She could only cry softly, wiping her tears, silently sitting to the side…

The carriage quickly left the forest and headed toward Shanhuai County.

…

At Gaoshan Stronghold on the mountaintop!

Ji Yunshu was awakened by pain. She raised her hand to press her temple, slightly opening her eyes. Her vision gradually changed from blurry to clear.

It turned out to be a woodshed!

But even though it was a woodshed, all the firewood inside was wet, and the uneven ground was also covered in water!

Only then did she discover that the clothes on her body were all wet, and the surroundings emitted a rotten smell.

She wrinkled her nose and stood up from the ground. After just two steps, the sound of iron chains rang out!

Looking down, she discovered that both her feet had been shackled with iron chains, making it difficult to walk more than a few steps.

“Where is this?”

Unclear.

She had just been in the carriage, and after smelling a scent, she had groggily fainted.

Who could it be?

Her mind spun quickly, and then it dawned on her.

“Gaoshan Stronghold!”

Just as she reached this conclusion, she heard a voice from outside the door: “How’s the person inside?”

“Don’t worry, I’m watching.”

“You were just dozing off. If the boss finds out, he’ll skin you alive. Also, if the person inside escapes, both you and I will die.”

“I know, I know. Three sides inside are walls, and I’m guarding the door. They can’t escape.”

“Better be!”

At the door, two men were conversing.

Seeing that someone was about to come in, Ji Yunshu sat back down on the ground. The icy feeling crept up from the soles of her feet, making her body shiver slightly from the cold.

At this moment, the door was also opened by someone.

A rough-looking man walked in. Seeing that Ji Yunshu was awake, he snorted.

“What tough stock, waking up so quickly.”

Ji Yunshu lifted her eyes coldly and discovered that this person was actually one of the two bandits who had escaped.

She asked, “How did you escape?”

Huh?

“You’re asking me?”

Ji Yunshu, neither hurried nor flustered, reached out to pick up a piece of straw beside her, twirled it in her hand a few times, then tapped it up and down on the soaked ground.

Seemingly casual, she said, “Since you had no knives on you, not even a decent piece of broken jade, moreover, if you really had some sharp weapon hidden on you, you wouldn’t have waited until you were at the inn to escape. The only explanation is that someone left a knife for you, right?”

Uh!

Da Chui swallowed. “That’s because I’m clever. Why are you saying all this?”

“That knife—was it given to you by a woman traveling with me?”

“Not given, she dropped it.”

“Is that so?”

Of course not!

Ji Wanxin had been afraid of sharp weapons since childhood. What she always carried was handkerchiefs, never a knife.

Moreover, to bring a knife to deliver steamed buns to bandits and happen to drop the knife—

How could there be so many coincidences in this world!

Da Chui suddenly realized he hadn’t come to chat nonsense with her. He immediately showed a fierce appearance, the scar on his forehead hideously revealed.

He kicked Ji Yunshu with his foot.

Saying, “I didn’t come to chat with you. I just came to look at you and confirm you’re not dead. If you were dead, the boss would kill me to accompany you and that fool in death.”

The fool?

Wei Yi?

Ji Yunshu urgently asked, “Where is he?”

“Only now you’re worried?”

“What have you done to him?”

As she spoke, Ji Yunshu rose from the ground. Her small, thin frame seemed to naturally carry an extraordinary imposing presence that made even Da Chui feel intimidated.

He stepped back and said, “That fool is much more comfortable than you. Right now, he’s living it up.”

Huh?

In the large hall of Gaoshan Stronghold, bursts of loud cheering and shouting rang out…

The entire hall was filled with bandits, all drinking wine. Some were drunk, some stood on tables shouting, some hugged wine jars and toasted everywhere—like a bathhouse.

And on a chair draped with tiger skin at the very front sat a man with a rough face and a fierce air. In modern times, he’d be a typical wrestling athlete.

He wore clothes also made of tiger skin, covering one arm and exposing the other. One foot was arrogantly propped on the chair. In his hand, he held a bowl of wine, which he poured into his mouth.

This person’s features were very similar to Zhao Qing’s. Presumably, he was Zhao Qing’s older brother Zhao Huai, the boss of Gaoshan Stronghold.

His gaze was fixed on Wei Yi, who was surrounded in the center by people!

Wei Yi’s eyes already looked somewhat unfocused, his body swaying unsteadily. His cheeks were flushed red, his body reeked of alcohol, and the front of his clothes had been soaked with wine.

“Drink, drink hard!”

“Keep drinking!”

“Drink!”

…

Those bandits kept forcing Wei Yi to drink. He had already gotten drunk then sober, sober then drunk, back and forth several times.

“I don’t want to drink anymore.”

Wei Yi waved his hand.

He tried to step back, but someone pushed him forward from behind. He stumbled unsteadily and crashed into the wooden table in front.

Bang—

“Fool, keep drinking!”

Someone pried open his mouth and poured wine in.

He refused to swallow, so the wine flowed out along both corners of his mouth.

So someone raised a hand and slapped him, knocking him heavily to the ground.

Accompanied by everyone’s raucous noise.

Wei Yi lay on the ground, covering his struck face. His eyes reddened, yet he bit his lip hard, refusing to let even a sound of crying escape.

Zhao Huai glanced over, then stood up from the tiger-skin chair. Taking a jar of wine from one of his underlings’ hands, he walked toward Wei Yi.

Those bandits consciously moved to both sides, making a wide path.

Zhao Huai walked to Wei Yi and looked down with a sinister gaze. Then he raised his foot and stepped on Wei Yi’s chest, as if stepping on an ant.

“Let me go, it hurts.”

Wei Yi said.

“Hurts?”

Zhao Huai laughed and turned the wine jar in his hand one hundred and eighty degrees downward. All the wine in the jar poured onto Wei Yi’s plain-colored brocade robe.

Wei Yi curled up his body, both hands resisting against Zhao Huai’s foot, trying to push it away but having no strength.

Thoroughly wretched!

Zhao Huai bent down and grabbed Wei Yi’s cheeks with one hand, wrenching them left and right.

Saying, “A fool is a fool, not even the ability to resist.”

“I’m not a fool!” Because his mouth was being pinched, his words came out muffled.

“Then what are you?”

“I… I’m not a fool.” His voice lacked confidence, growing softer and softer.

This statement drew undisguised mockery from those around.

“You are a fool.”

“Fool…”