After the snow, the sky cleared—blue and cloudless. The dry, cold wind blew, making distant wine banners flutter and snap.

Xiao Li half-crouched down, his elbow resting quite casually on his knee. The leather wrist guard tied at his sleeve was worn half-old. He spat out the stick he’d been holding in his mouth and asked in an easy-to-negotiate tone, “Chen Ya owes the gambling house forty taels of silver and has dragged it out for half a year. When does he plan to repay?”

Cold sweat dripped from Ren Yazi’s forehead. He forced out a comical smile uglier than crying. “Xiao Er’ge, you… you shouldn’t tease this lowly one. How would this lowly one dare call himself ‘Ya’ in front of you? You’re the master here! That silver owed to the gambling house will definitely be repaid. Even if you lent me the courage of heaven itself, I wouldn’t dare default on Boss Han’s account here in Yong City!”

Xiao Li gave a shallow scoff. He picked up the whip Ren Yazi had dropped on the ground, curved the whip body, and patted it against that sharp-mouthed, monkey-cheeked face. “Wouldn’t dare? If you wouldn’t dare, why have you been hiding from the brothers for the better part of this month?”

A man at the side spoke up. “Second Brother, this bastard is slippery. First break one of his legs so he knows what’s what!”

Ren Yazi was so frightened he repeatedly begged for mercy. “Don’t, don’t! Brother Xiao, Master Xiao! I’ll repay the money! During this half month away from Yong City, wasn’t I out looking for business? I finally managed to get a few girls. I thought that after selling them for a good price, I’d have money to repay the gambling house’s debt! Who could have anticipated that bitch would play tricks, using wind rashes to pretend it was epidemic disease? She scared the madam at the Drunken Red Tower so badly she didn’t dare buy this batch of girls from me anymore. I was also fooled by that bitch, afraid the girls had caught the disease and would be stuck on my hands, so I just sold them all off at a discount. I didn’t even recoup my capital!”

He pointed at Wen Yu, weeping bitterly and attributing all the fault to her.

Wen Yu had just recovered from that heart-piercing pain in her back. Fearing she’d become collateral damage from these debt collectors, she crawled up and shrank back into a corner. When Ren Yazi suddenly pointed at her like that, her heart tightened.

Worried that these men would learn she hadn’t contracted epidemic disease and, unable to recover the money from Ren Yazi, would develop evil intentions toward her, she pretended to tremble in fear. She timidly cast a glance in that direction, which just happened to reveal half a face covered in red rashes.

This action indeed frightened one of the debt-collecting men into hissing, “That face looks like a hornet’s nest! One look at it and I’d vomit up last night’s dinner!”

Who would have thought that the young man interrogating Ren Yazi would also cast a glance this way upon hearing this? Meeting those thick black, highly aggressive eyes again, Wen Yu’s heart jumped without reason. She pretended to be alarmed and lowered her head, hugging her knees as she shrank into the corner, just trembling continuously.

The cold wind rose again. The hemp garment on her body was thin, outlining her fragile spine. The whip marks between were striking—utterly pitiful.

Xiao Li’s gaze paused for two breaths on the woman’s whip-marked spine. After withdrawing his gaze, he pressed the whip against Ren Yazi’s jaw, somewhat playfully saying, “What, whether your business makes a profit or loss, I’m supposed to cover your bottom line?”

Ren Yazi was so frightened he hurriedly denied it. “I wouldn’t dare, I wouldn’t dare…”

Though Xiao Li was still smiling, those pitch-black eyes clearly had no patience left. The whip in his hand pressed forward another fraction, directly poking the flesh under Ren Yazi’s jaw slightly inward. He said lazily, “No money to repay the debt? Fine. Using one of your hands or feet as collateral also works.”

Ren Yazi nearly wet his pants. He pulled out the money pouch from his chest, crying with snot and tears flowing. “Don’t! Don’t! Xiao Er’ge, Master Xiao! This is really all I have. Please be flexible and give me a few more days. I have elderly parents above and young children below!”

Xiao Li weighed the money pouch in his hand and tossed it to his companion behind him. Looking at Ren Yazi’s tears and snot flowing everywhere, he said, “Fine. I’ll give you two days. If I still don’t see the silver after two days—”

He casually flicked the whip in his hand. Ren Yazi screamed. A bloody mark immediately appeared on his face.

Xiao Li threw down the whip and stood up, saying, “My rules—you know them.”

Ren Yazi covered his bleeding nose and mouth, the pain making him arch his back. He answered in a trembling voice, “I know, I know. I’ll definitely repay the money in two days…”

Wen Yu had been shrinking in the corner all along, trying hard to reduce her presence. At this moment, seeing the man stand up and walk this way, she hurriedly tried to move aside as much as possible. However, her hand, frozen stiff and painful, kept pressing on the half brick behind her.

That hand was trembling slightly—from cold, and also from weakness after barely holding on until now.

The man seemed not to notice her small movements. When he passed by her with his two companions, the hem of his robe, lifted by the cold wind, lightly brushed past her skirt.

After the men walked away, the heart Wen Yu had been holding finally relaxed somewhat.

Over there, Ren Yazi also groaned as he climbed up from the ground. His fur coat had long been rubbed into an unrecognizable state in the muddy water on the ground. His felt hat had also fallen off, revealing a bare, scabby head. When blown by the cold wind, he grimaced from the cold.

The hand Wen Yu pressed on the half brick tightened slightly. Beneath her disheveled hair, a pair of pitch-black eyes watched Ren Yazi silently with the calm of a desperate last stand.

—She only had one chance to strike.

Ren Yazi’s face was currently swollen like a pig’s head as he worked hard to stop his nosebleed. Xiao Li’s whip had struck diagonally, nearly breaking his entire nose bridge.

He tore off strips of cloth trying to stuff them into his nostrils, but the moment he touched his nose wing, he gasped sharply from pain.

After finally getting the cloth strips stuffed in, when Ren Yazi spat viciously in the direction Xiao Li and his men had departed, it pulled at his facial muscles and hurt so much he grimaced, tears welling up in his eyes.

He cursed under his breath, “Son of a prostitute, bastard mongrel…”

Turning to see Wen Yu, because the pain was severe, he had no mind to make more difficulties. He only spoke coarsely and viciously, “Still not getting back on the cart!”

Knowing that the epidemic disease on Wen Yu’s body was fake, he naturally couldn’t possibly let Wen Yu leave again.

Wen Yu leaned against the wall base without moving. She silently watched Ren Yazi. After briefly weighing the odds of success if she attacked, she finally released the half brick pressed in her palm. Supporting herself against the wall base, she struggled to stand and walked toward the ox cart.

—With her current physical condition, fighting desperately with Ren Yazi would undoubtedly be like throwing an egg against a rock—just inviting another vicious beating.

The ox cart jolted. The cold wind cut to the bone. Wen Yu tried her best to pull together the thin garment on her body against the cold but still trembled with chattering teeth. The whip marks on her back also burned painfully, making her vision repeatedly go black. Only by forcibly maintaining that thread of consciousness in her mind did she avoid fainting.

Ren Yazi didn’t know where he was taking her. The ox cart turned left and right through low民 alleys, finally stopping in front of a民 residence.

Wen Yu weakly leaned against the ox cart’s wooden cage, watching Ren Yazi go forward to knock on the door.

Before long, a thin, dry man came out. “Yo, Chen Laizi, what happened to your face?”

Chen Laizi said dejectedly, “Don’t mention it, old brother. You’ve got to help me this time…”

He quickly explained the whole story in a few sentences, pointing at Wen Yu in the ox cart. “This girl is truly a top-notch beauty. Old brother, if you buy her, when you sell her to Flower Street later, you’ll definitely make a stable profit!”

Wen Yu realized that Ren Yazi wanted to resell her to a colleague. When that thin, dry man looked over, she used the same trick again, revealing that face covered in rashes—a ghastly sight.

The man immediately showed hesitation on his face. He didn’t dare take out money to buy Wen Yu based solely on Chen Laizi’s words, but he also didn’t want to refuse too obviously and ruin their relationship. He said, “You’re confused! Even if you heal this girl’s face and sell her to the Drunken Red Tower, at most you could sell her for ten taels. How would that be enough to repay your gambling debt? Why don’t you do a favor and give this girl to that Xiao fellow? Ask him to extend the deadline a few more days so you can go find business and gather silver.”

Chen Laizi’s face showed dismay. “You’ve also seen her current appearance. She probably won’t recover in a short time. How would I dare send her before that Xiao fellow?”

But the thin, dry man said, “Just two days ago, Xiao Li came to the broker’s office wanting to buy a maid for his old mother, but he didn’t pick one he liked. Just say you’re sending her to serve his mother—wouldn’t that work? Even if that Xiao Li doesn’t forgive you at first, just hide for a while. After he sees this beautiful delicate lady’s appearance later, how would he still be angry?”

After being enlightened this way, Chen Laizi’s face immediately showed a smile. “Old brother, your brain is still sharp. Little brother thanks you.”

Wen Yu heard the two men’s scheme, and her heart turned cold.

She recalled those languid yet wild black eyes of the debt-collecting ruffian. The hands hanging in front of her unconsciously tightened. Ren Yazi’s place was a dragon’s pool, but wasn’t that ruffian’s home also a tiger’s den?

If Ren Yazi sent her there and then hid, when that ruffian couldn’t collect the debt, what if he vented his anger by beating her viciously?

But worries were worries. Currently at others’ mercy, Wen Yu had no other options.

That afternoon, after Chen Laizi confirmed that Xiao Li wasn’t home, he brought Wen Yu to the door.

The person who opened the door was a woman with silver threads at her temples. She wore an old jacket washed until faded. Even though fine lines adorned the corners of her eyes, one could still see that she had been a beauty when young. But she seemed to be in very poor health. Supporting herself against the door frame, she coughed and asked, “Who are you looking for?”

Chen Laizi’s face piled up with smiles. “Madam, this is Xiao Li—Xiao Er’ge’s home, right?”

Xiao Huiniang looked over Chen Laizi and behind him at Wen Yu, whose hands were bound, whose face covered in red rashes was frozen blue. She spoke with some hesitation, “Yes… but my son isn’t home right now. If you’re looking for him, come back later.”

Chen Laizi hurriedly said, “No need, no need. As long as this is Xiao Er’ge’s home, that’s fine. I’m here to send you a maid.”

As he spoke, he pushed Wen Yu forward, saying, “Still not greeting the old madam!”

Wen Yu was pushed into a stumble. Her disheveled hair swung open, revealing a pair of eyes reddened by the cold wind.

She had originally worried that being sent here was entering another tiger’s den, but seeing this woman’s kind face—not fierce and malicious like her son—she suddenly felt that staying by this woman’s side might offer a thread of hope for survival. It was better than being resold by Ren Yazi to a place of prostitution. So she followed Ren Yazi’s words and said, “Greetings to the old madam.”

The whip marks seeping blood on her back were striking. Her hands and face were frozen to a bruised purple. Her eyes were also completely red. All at once, it tugged at the softest inch of one’s heart.

Her voice was even more severely hoarse, making one’s heart ache with pity.

The woman looked at her. Though not understanding the full situation, she also knew this matter was probably not simple. She looked at Chen Laizi. “Who are you? Why would you send me a maid?”

Chen Laizi hurriedly said, “This youngster is Chen Liu. I make a living at the broker’s office. Today I received Xiao Er’ge’s kindness and didn’t have a hand or foot broken. My heart is endlessly grateful. I also heard that Xiao Er’ge went to pick a maid for you some days ago but didn’t see one he liked. It just so happens I have this girl on hand, so I brought her to you.”

When Xiao Huiniang heard he was a human trafficker, her expression immediately turned cold. “This old woman can still take care of herself. I don’t need anyone to serve me. Take the person back.”

As soon as she finished speaking, she was about to close the door. Chen Laizi quickly propped the door open. “Madam, Madam, I’m just grateful to Xiao Er’ge and want to show filial respect to you. Don’t be scared by the red rashes on this girl’s face. She just has wind rashes—they’ll be fine in a few days! Originally she was beautiful as flowers and jade. To avoid being sold to Flower Street, she made her own face like this…”

Upon hearing these words, Xiao Huiniang’s force in closing the door lessened by several degrees. She looked at Wen Yu again.

At this moment, Wen Yu’s lips had turned white. She had been barely holding on until now. Her whole person was already swaying precariously. She couldn’t even quite hear what Chen Laizi and the woman before her eyes were saying. Her vision also showed double images.

She knew she couldn’t faint at this moment. Her palms were nearly pinched through before she could barely maintain this thread of clarity.

Sensing that the woman was looking at her, she raised her eyes. In that pair of eyes like the clear moon, too much exhaustion had accumulated, revealing some numbness. Yet deep in those eyes, another kind of flame burned fiercely. It was also that flame that supported her in standing here with her spine straight. It also burned her eye sockets hot, overflowing with a plea for life.

Xiao Huiniang had seen countless people in most of her life, but had never seen such eyes.

It wasn’t begging, yet looking at it made one’s heart clench into a ball, inexplicably wanting to shed tears.

She had already been moved to compassion, but looking at that human trafficker’s sharp mouth and monkey cheeks—not seeming like a good person—she feared that rashly accepting his favor would bring trouble to her son. She still declined, saying, “Your gift is too valuable. I can’t make this decision. Go find my son and discuss this matter with him.”

Chen Laizi hurriedly put on a difficult appearance. “Aiya, Madam, I’m setting out for Pu County today to do business. The brothers traveling with me are still waiting for me at the city gate. Xiao Er’ge also doesn’t know when he’ll return. My time is tight. If you won’t take this girl, I can only sell her at a discount to Flower Street.”

After hearing this, Xiao Huiniang couldn’t help but feel hesitant. If she didn’t accept this girl, wouldn’t it be the same as personally sending her into a brothel? After several moments of hesitation, she finally relented. “Since that’s the case, leave the person.”

Chen Laizi was immediately wildly overjoyed. He pulled an envelope from his chest and handed it to Xiao Huiniang, saying, “Inside is this girl’s indenture contract. Please pass it to Xiao Er’ge.”

Xiao Huiniang accepted it with agreement, then stepped aside to make way for half the path. Coughing, she said, “The cold is severe. Come in and drink a cup of hot tea.”

Chen Laizi was eager to flee and didn’t dare stay here longer. He hurriedly said, “Thank you, Madam. I won’t drink the tea. Next time I’ll come visit Xiao Er’ge and you again!”

With these words, he jogged out of the alley.

Xiao Huiniang watched him go into the distance, then turned to look at Wen Yu. She softened her expression and said, “Good child, don’t be afraid. From now on, this is your home. Come inside with me.”

She raised her hand to take Wen Yu’s hand, but Wen Yu’s whole person collapsed and fell.