Chapter 091
Chapter 91: Done by That Shameless Yun Brat
“Don’t be reckless,” Yun Zhan whispered in a low voice.
If things were really as big brother had warned—if killing her brought about something even more terrifying—then the consequences would be far too grave.
At least for now, this system was still something Little Fourth could contend with. And under her watchful gaze, they were not entirely powerless. But if they attracted something even Little Fourth couldn’t detect, they would truly be left defenseless.
“Don’t worry, Seventh Uncle, I won’t kill her,” Yun Wan Ye replied calmly.
But letting her off easy? That was absolutely out of the question.
With narrowed eyes, Yun Wan Ye stepped forward, brushing aside Yun Zhan’s hand. His stride was firm as he approached the woman sprawled across the ground. His soft sword flicked outward, humming with a crisp metallic resonance. In the dim light, his eyes were cold and unflinching as he slashed straight toward her face.
He sneered, thinking, [You dared provoke that old bastard Su Jian into hurting Zhao Zhao—then you deserve to suffer the same disfigurement.]
[Alert! Alert! Host in danger. Activating automatic defense function.]
[Defense function activated.]
An urgent, piercing alarm rang through Su Qian Xue’s mind as her system detected the threat.
Clang!
The sword was stopped by an invisible force, its blade ringing out sharply. Yun Wan Ye was thrown back several steps by the overwhelming rebound. His chest churned with chaotic qi and blood, and his arms and hands went numb from the shock.
Yet the woman on the ground remained completely unharmed.
The three of them exchanged glances, their eyes flashing with a brief flicker of astonishment. So the system wasn’t just capable of reversing time—it could also shield her with a flawless defense. This thing was more twisted than they’d thought.
Suddenly, the clamor of approaching footsteps echoed from afar.
Yun Zhan’s ears twitched. “The guards are coming. We need to go.”
With that, he bent down and picked up the unconscious Mo Yuan Hao, leaping over the wall.
“Let’s go,” Yun Wan Chen said as he grabbed Yun Wan Ye’s arm, ready to pull him away. But Yun Wan Ye wasn’t willing to give up yet.
“You go first.”
Shaking off Yun Wan Chen’s grip, Yun Wan Ye slashed once more toward Su Qian Xue’s body.
Swish, swish, swish!
In a few strokes, her thin brocade gown was shredded into countless fluttering scraps. Beneath the faint glow of the lantern, her pale jade-like body was laid bare.
Yun Wan Chen’s brows knit together. He turned away immediately and leapt over the wall.
“Hurry,” Yun Wan Ye called out.
“Coming,” Yun Wan Ye finally smiled in satisfaction, sheathing his sword and running after Yun Wan Chen with a burst of inner power.
They had barely disappeared when over a dozen guards carrying torches burst into the courtyard.
Inside Su Qian Xue’s mind, the system was screaming in panic.
[Ahhh! Host, host, wake up, wake up! You’ve been exposed!]
[That shameless Yun brat tore your clothes off! The defense system only protects your body from harm, it doesn’t protect your clothing, ahhhhhh…]
[The guards are here! Host, please, wake up!]
Meanwhile, at Duke Ning’s manor.
Yun Wan Ning’s eyes widened in utter disbelief.
[What did that damn system just say?]
[Seventh Uncle? Big brother? Second brother?]
[Why would all three of them show up at the female lead’s courtyard at a time like this?]
[Was it a coincidence? Or were they sent to assist the male lead?]
[No, wait. His Majesty sent the male lead to investigate Su Jian in secret. He has plenty of capable subordinates. It’s unlikely he would turn to Seventh Uncle or my brothers for help. So how did those three know about it?]
[And now Su Qian Xue’s clothes were torn off?]
[That shameless Yun brat did it???]
[No need to guess—if anyone was capable of such a thing, it could only be second brother.]
[Tch. Second brother really went that far? He actually shredded Su Qian Xue’s clothes. According to that system, the guards are about to arrive and catch her in full view. I wonder what kind of dramatic scene the Su family will stir up over this.]
Madam Yun: “…”
…
The night was cold, the wind biting.
The three members of the Yun family silently snuck back into Prince Qi’s residence, placing the unconscious Mo Yuan Hao into a secluded side room.
Without alerting anyone, they left as quietly as they had come.
Soon after, they returned to their own manor and gathered in a hidden attic room.
“Seventh Uncle, is Prince Qi alright?” Yun Wan Chen asked in a low voice.
“He’s fine. Just a minor injury on his arm. The arrow had a numbing agent. His body went limp and he fainted after falling from the wall during the retreat.”
Yun Wan Chen fell silent.
“Tch. That Prince Qi is useless,” Yun Wan Ye scoffed, looking disgusted. “If we hadn’t intercepted the message ahead of time, he probably would’ve been captured by the Su clan tonight.”
“Prince Qi’s martial arts aren’t weak,” Yun Zhan said, glancing at him. “If you hadn’t trained in the Free and Easy Nine Channels, you might not even win against him. As for what happened tonight—I suspect it was that system’s doing.”
“Didn’t Little Fourth say the female lead lured him in with the help of the system?”
At the mention of the system, the three of them fell into a heavy silence.
That thing really was sinister—it could block anyone from harming Su Qian Xue. Even if she couldn’t reset the plot anymore, just that invincible defense was enough to make her untouchable.
Even though they didn’t accomplish their goal tonight, the outcome wasn’t entirely bad. Just imagining the noble daughter of the Grand Commandant’s manor lying stark naked before a swarm of guards gave Yun Wan Ye no small amount of joy.
Yun Wan Chen clearly imagined the same scene. His expression darkened slightly as he frowned.
“Ye’er, I didn’t say it earlier because I was worried we’d be discovered, but now I will,” he said seriously. “How could you stoop to such disgraceful tactics against a woman?”
Yun Wan Ye’s face soured at once.
“Disgraceful? I don’t like what you’re implying, big brother.”
“I’m not a gentleman. I don’t aim to act with honor. When facing an enemy, I do whatever it takes. That’s always been my principle.”
“You call it shameless—but were those men in the original plot acting honorably when they sold Yun Wan Yao to some remote mountain valley, where she was tortured to death by a group of men?”
“Compared to them, I’m merciful.”
Of course, that last line was a lie.
He hadn’t stopped because of mercy. He simply couldn’t do worse—yet. The Grand Commandant’s manor and that damn system were shielding her.
But if he ever got the chance, he wouldn’t hesitate.
“…”
Yun Wan Chen said nothing more. Though he didn’t agree, he couldn’t refute it either. All he could do was sigh and fall silent.
Maybe Ye’er was right.
Maybe he was the one who was wrong.
“What did Ye’er do?” Yun Zhan asked curiously, listening to their exchange.
Yun Wan Ye raised a brow and smirked. “I shredded Su Qian Xue’s clothes.”
“Pretty sure by now, most of the Grand Commandant’s guards have had the honor of witnessing their young miss’s pristine body. I gave Su Jian a whole lineup of potential sons-in-law tonight—who knows, that old bastard might be overjoyed.”
Yun Zhan: “…”
Hard to comment on that one.
“You said you couldn’t even touch Su Qian Xue?”
He distinctly remembered that Ye’er’s sword had been blocked by some strange and mysterious force.
Yun Wan Ye pressed a hand to his forehead, his voice thoughtful: “Who knows?”
“I couldn’t touch her face, so I thought I’d try her clothes instead. Who would’ve guessed—it worked. Maybe the protection doesn’t extend to her clothing. As long as she isn’t harmed, the force doesn’t activate.”
“Maybe,” came the quiet reply.
…
Grand Commandant Manor.
Black-clad assassins had broken in during the night, and the guards were scattered across the grounds, still searching for any who might have slipped through the net. No one expected to find a naked young woman in the eldest young miss’s courtyard.
“C-Captain, i-it’s… it’s the eldest young miss…”
Two guards stepped forward with torches, and as the flickering flames illuminated the familiar, beautiful face, they fell to the ground in shock, scrambling back with trembling limbs. Their words tangled in their throats.
The prestigious Grand Commandant Manor, already shamed by an intruder in the night, now faced a deeper humiliation. For their eldest young miss to be defiled in such a way—this was a stain upon their master’s honor that no amount of explanation could cleanse. They, the so-called protectors of the house, might as well be dead men walking.
Upon hearing that the woman was indeed their eldest young miss, the captain’s face turned a ghostly white. But then his eyes flickered with sudden clarity, and a plan took root.
“If this matter is reported, none of us will survive. But I have a way. If you all want to live, are you willing to cooperate?”
Faced with the choice between death and survival, what man wouldn’t choose life?
At his words, the guards dropped to their knees in unison.
“We’ll follow the captain’s orders.”
“Good. Here’s what we’ll do…”
Not long after, the squad from Chang’an moved swiftly, carrying the unconscious Su Qian Xue back to her room and tucking her neatly beneath the blankets. The door was closed, every scrap of broken cloth in the courtyard meticulously cleared away. Everything was made to look as if nothing had happened.
“For the sake of our heads, this matter must be kept utterly silent. No one is to speak of this again. Understood?”
Though misfortune had befallen them, they were lucky—there were no outsiders present, only themselves. As long as they kept their mouths shut, then neither the Grand Commandant nor Madam, both deep in their dreams, would ever know what occurred.
And as for the eldest young miss herself—she was unconscious, unaware that her exposed body had been seen by so many. Even if she were to find out, for the sake of her reputation, she would never speak of it.
So long as none of them talked, the matter would be buried forever.
The group left quickly and silently.
…
The Next Morning.
Su Jian erupted in fury within the manor—not over Su Qian Xue, but because someone had trespassed into his study.
“Useless! All of you! Someone broke into my study and you only just realized it? What were you doing all night? So many of you, and not a single one could stop the intruder—what good are you?!”
“And why are you only reporting this now?”
The guards, thoroughly chastised, dared not speak a word in their own defense.
It hadn’t been a single intruder last night. There had been a group.
And as for the delay in reporting… was it not the lord himself who ordered that no one disturb his rest because of his poor sleep?
Yet because they had failed to stop the break-in, and even worse, because of what had happened to Su Qian Xue afterward, none of the guards dared utter a word in protest. They simply endured the verbal onslaught.
Only when Su Jian grew hoarse from shouting did he finally kick and shove them out of his sight.
Afterward, he went to the study.
He carefully inspected every corner and, finding nothing out of place aside from a triggered mechanism and a broken rooftop, finally allowed his tightly wound nerves to ease.
But then, another frown creased his brow.
Who were those people who dared to break into his home?
He had only just been framed by that wretch Yun Zheng, dragged into a scandal involving the attempted assassination of a colleague. And now this? Who had he provoked this time?
Su Jian let out a long sigh, worry etching deeper into his heart.
He still didn’t know what the intruders were after.
But if this incident could be manipulated just right… perhaps it could be turned to his advantage.
His eyes sharpened with calculation.
He ordered the steward to repair the roof and instructed the guards to increase security across the estate. Even the internal mechanisms were reinforced.
Once all these arrangements were made, he began laying the groundwork for a new scheme.
…
Late Morning.
A sharp scream rang out from a lavish inner chamber.
“Someone! Call the doctor! Hurry!”
The household erupted into chaos.
Inside the room, Madam Su sat at the bedside, weeping into her handkerchief as she stared at the unconscious girl before her. Su Qian Xue’s lips were tinged with dried blood.
Beneath the soft blanket, her body was bare. A dark bruise marred the skin of her chest.
Whoever had done such an inhuman thing to her daughter—she swore, once she found out, she would see that man torn to pieces.
She had the maids dress Su Qian Xue quickly.
Soon, the doctor arrived and knelt to examine the girl’s pulse with great care.
“Doctor, how is my daughter?”
Madam Su asked, eyes red with worry.
Su Qian Xue was not gravely harmed. She had suffered a strong blow, enough to knock her unconscious due to pain, but her injuries were not serious. By afternoon, she would wake. A few doses of medicine over the next several days, and she would recover fully.
Relieved, Madam Su finally let go of her dread. Once the doctor was dismissed, she returned to the bedside and remained there, waiting.
…
Afternoon.
As Su Qian Xue slowly regained consciousness, sharp pain flared in her chest. She gasped through clenched teeth.
The system’s voice echoed in her mind.
[Host, you’re finally awake.]
Her chest ached too much to respond.
“Xue’er, you’re awake. Thank the heavens you’re awake.” Madam Su immediately leaned forward, gripping her daughter’s hand with gentle urgency. “Tell me, what happened last night?”
The guards of this household were useless. None of them even realized anything had happened to her daughter. If she hadn’t gone to call for her personally this morning, they’d still be blissfully unaware.
Su Qian Xue gasped again, blinking weakly at Madam Su.
“Mother…”
Bits and pieces of the previous night began to return.
She remembered: after the male lead had fallen into her courtyard, she had moved forward to touch him, intending to complete her task as the system urged her.
But she had been kicked away—viciously. The system had been saying something to her then, but in the fog of pain, she hadn’t caught a word.
[System, what happened last night? Who attacked me?]
[Host, the ones who attacked you were your admirer Yun Wan Ye, your former fiancé Yun Wan Chen, and this world’s number one villain—Yun Zhan.]
[After knocking you out, they took the male lead with them.]
…
Duke Ning Manor.
Yun Wan Ning had just finished nursing and perked up at the sudden mental chatter between the system and Su Qian Xue.
[Oh? Su Qian Xue is awake.]
[That wretched system… it just ratted out Seventh Uncle, Big Brother, and Second Brother. Now that Su Qian Xue knows the Yun family sabotaged her again, she’s going to hate us even more.]