“Go away, go away—” The two women frantically grabbed whatever was at hand and threw it at Qiao Zhao, retreating backward as they threw.

Hearing the commotion, Xie Shengxiao came in and stood protectively in front of Qiao Zhao: “Miss Li, let’s go out first. Their emotions are too unstable – they’ll hurt you.”

Qiao Zhao could also see that the two women were extremely emotionally unstable, so she had to retreat with Xie Shengxiao.

“Miss Li, let me treat your wound.”

“No need, I’ll have A’Zhu handle it when I return.”

Qiao Zhao returned to her room and instructed A’Zhu: “Go get some strong liquor and medicinal balm.”

“Miss, what happened to you?” Binglu asked nervously.

Qiao Zhao rolled up her sleeve, causing Binglu to gasp: “Such deep tooth marks, and it’s bleeding! Which bastard did this?”

“Don’t make such a fuss,” Qiao Zhao chided lightly.

Just then, a voice came from outside the door: “Zhaozhao, are you in your room?”

Before Qiao Zhao could answer, Binglu rushed to the door like a gust of wind, opened it, and tattled to Shao Mingyuan: “General, someone bit our miss’s arm until it bled – the tooth marks are so deep—”

“Binglu!” Qiao Zhao’s face darkened slightly.

This little maid’s mouth was too fast – why tell Shao Mingyuan about such a trivial matter?

Shao Mingyuan strode over quickly, and because he was walking too hastily while unable to see, he crashed hard into the corner of a table.

Qiao Zhao quickly got up to support him: “Don’t be so hasty when you can’t see.”

“Which arm was injured? How serious is it?” Shao Mingyuan gripped Qiao Zhao’s wrist and asked.

A’Zhu, who had returned with supplies, stood at the doorway, uncertain whether to enter or retreat.

“I was bitten once – how serious could it be?” Qiao Zhao comforted the nearly frantic man and called out, “A’Zhu, come in and apply medicine for me.”

“Yes.” Only then did A’Zhu step inside.

“Tingquan, why don’t you come back later?”

Shao Mingyuan stood motionless in place and said righteously, “I can’t see.”

Qiao Zhao’s mouth twitched.

When had blindness become a magic sword that cut through all objections?

A’Zhu quickly treated Qiao Zhao’s wound and tactfully withdrew.

“Has Grandfather Li examined your eyes? What did he say?”

Shao Mingyuan ignored Qiao Zhao’s question and asked: “Was it one of those two women brought back from Mingfeng Island who bit you?”

Qiao Zhao was startled: “You guessed?”

“It wasn’t hard to guess. Everyone on our side is fine, and those women from before had no problems either, so the only variable is the two women we just brought back.”

“It was one of them who bit me, but their emotions are very wrong right now. What they did in their irrational state isn’t worth dwelling on.”

Shao Mingyuan took Qiao Zhao’s hand and gently kissed it, sighing: “You don’t dwell on it, but my heart aches.”

Qiao Zhao blushed and tried to pull her hand back: “Let’s talk about serious matters.”

Perhaps because the cold poison was nearly completely expelled, this man’s lips were much more burning than before. When they touched her skin, it made her feel at a loss and flustered.

Shao Mingyuan held Qiao Zhao’s hand and wouldn’t let go: “The serious matter is that you need to reflect!”

“Reflect on what?” Qiao Zhao raised her eyebrows.

Shao Mingyuan sat on the fixed chair and with a slight force of his hand, wordlessly pulled Qiao Zhao over.

Qiao Zhao tumbled onto his lap. Feeling the intimate contact, she struggled frantically.

But Shao Mingyuan held her firmly in place and said with tightly pressed thin lips: “Zhaozhao, I’m a bit angry right now.”

Qiao Zhao stopped struggling. Sitting on the man’s tense, powerful, and slender thighs, she couldn’t help asking: “What are you angry about? I had reasons for doing that—”

Shao Mingyuan interrupted Qiao Zhao and used his fingertips to grab her hand and slap himself: “I’m angry at myself for always failing to protect you properly.”

While the young woman was stunned, the man pulled her into his embrace and said in a low voice: “Zhaozhao, I’d rather take a blade myself than see you get hurt. You’re a girl, different from us, rough, thick-skinned men. You should seriously reflect on why you so easily put yourself in danger!”

Hearing Shao Mingyuan’s words, Qiao Zhao felt warmth in her heart, but her face remained composed as she gently pushed the man holding her: “Those two young women suffered great trauma. I’ve seen such cases before. There was a boy who suffered severe shock from witnessing his birth father kill his mother. At first, he was just like them – avoiding people who approached or shouted. After some time passed, the boy became quiet but never spoke to anyone again…”

Qiao Zhao spoke in a gentle tone about something she had encountered long ago: “At that time, Grandfather Li told me that people who have suffered great trauma must have their emotions soothed as much as possible during the period when their emotional fluctuations can still respond to the outside world. Otherwise, if left unmanaged, that person might very well shut down their mind and never communicate with the outside world again.”

“Could it be like that?”

Qiao Zhao smiled: “You saved so many victimized young women in the Northern Territories – didn’t you see such examples?”

Shao Mingyuan shook his head: “We left after rescuing them. How would I know what happened to those women afterward?”

Qiao Zhao sighed softly: “These two young women are different from the women who suffered in the Northern Territories. They were captured and taken to Mingfeng Island, where they repeatedly endured inhuman humiliation and torture. The trauma in their hearts is beyond what ordinary people can imagine. I’m afraid they’ll become like that boy – it would be a great misfortune for them and a loss for us too.”

Seeing Shao Mingyuan remain silent, Qiao Zhao explained: “They stayed on Mingfeng Island for a long time – they might know some inside information we need. What do you think?”

“They’re not the only ones who know inside information. That’s still not worth you risking yourself.”

“Just consider that I pity them. I once had a brief encounter with the older girl.”

This was beyond Shao Mingyuan’s expectations.

“You’ve met?”

Qiao Zhao nodded: “If I remember correctly, her father should be a Supervisory Censor – one of my father’s subordinates. A few years ago, when he was traveling to take up his post, he passed through Jia Feng and came to visit my grandfather. I happened to be out at the time, and when I came back, I caught them leaving, so we met briefly. But at that time her appearance hadn’t fully developed, and now she’s suffered so much that she’s gaunt and haggard. I only recognized her after studying her for quite a while.”

“Her father is a Supervisory Censor, yet she fell into pirates’ hands—”

Qiao Zhao said seriously, “The inside story must be significant, so I can’t just watch them walk toward self-destruction. Mingyuan, don’t dwell on this. If there were a real great danger, I certainly wouldn’t act this way.”

The man’s handsome face was taut as he held the young woman tightly: “I won’t dwell on it this time, but if there’s a next time—”

“What then?” Qiao Zhao asked instinctively.

Shao Mingyuan curved his lips in a smile: “You’ll find out when the time comes.”

Though he clearly couldn’t see, when he smiled and said this, Qiao Zhao felt completely flustered. She hurriedly pushed him: “Shao Mingyuan, put me down. I still have something to say—”