Chapter 257

Chapter 257: I’ve Waited for You a Long Time

Yu Zhi Yi asked in a quiet voice: “Do you know how the women here came to be here?”

Li Chang Huai found it strange. He wasn’t the pimp; how would he know? Still, he said with a frown: “There are only a few ways. Either their families sold them, or they sold themselves, or their families committed crimes and the Imperial Court sent them into a brothel as slaves.”

Yu Zhi Yi let out a small, cold laugh. Seeing that he truly didn’t know the truth and that he came here only for business, she didn’t vent her anger on him. She said calmly: “What you said is where the girls in outside brothels come from. But here…”

She looked around the room, pity flashing in her eyes, then said: “The women here were tricked or kidnapped, some even snatched by force. Most are daughters of decent families. Some are famous courtesans back home who only sold their art, not their bodies.”

Li Chang Huai stiffened and blurted: “What?”

He really hadn’t known. If someone else had said it, he might have doubted it. But coming from Yu Zhi Yi, he believed it.

Yu Zhi Yi met his eyes and said: “In your eyes these women might be dirty. In my eyes, they are victims hurt by wicked people.”

Her gaze was cool and steady. For no clear reason, Li Chang Huai felt embarrassed. He hated that feeling, so he snapped: “What does it have to do with me? I’m not the one who brought them here.”

Yu Zhi Yi gave a thin smile and said: “True, it wasn’t you, and it wasn’t any single guest. But did none of you ever wonder? Everyone who comes here has status. Some of the young ladies in the Immortal Estate are daughters from households with rank, and there are guests who recognize them.”

She went on in the same calm tone: “Yet none of those guests tries to save them. You could argue that the owner behind the Immortal Estate is untouchable, so most people don’t dare to fight them. Fine, let’s not talk about rescues. Back to the earlier point: when a guest sees a familiar young lady here, doesn’t he wonder why she appeared here?”

She tilted her head and asked: “Unless that young lady’s family suddenly fell into ruin overnight, any normal person can tell her being here isn’t normal, right? But guess what: after those guests recognize a familiar young lady, do they come here again later?”

Li Chang Huai fell silent. He wasn’t stupid; if she asked it like that, it meant those men did come back.

Yu Zhi Yi confirmed it in a flat voice: “Yes, they came back. And they asked for those familiar daughters on purpose.”

Li Chang Huai flinched, then rushed to explain: “That’s not what I meant. I was trying to help you!”

Yu Zhi Yi didn’t answer. She knew he wasn’t having dirty thoughts. If he were, he wouldn’t be standing upright now while she lectured him.

Li Chang Huai slapped his forehead and said: “No, you almost talked me in circles.” He scowled, then said: “Even if what you said is true, so what? You’re trapped in a wolf’s den. Your fortune telling won’t help. In a moment I’ll take you out by paying to redeem you, so don’t give us away.”

Yu Zhi Yi smiled a little and said: “It won’t work. They won’t let you.”

Li Chang Huai snorted and said: “Impossible.” He snapped open his folding fan, a light scent wafting out, and smiled with easy pride: “I’m the young manor lord of Tianyu Manor. People in the martial world give me face. Redeeming a woman is easy.”

Yu Zhi Yi looked at his blind confidence, thought for a moment, then nodded and said: “Fine, try.”

He called the pimp in and went straight to the point: “I want to redeem her.”

The pimp blinked, then smiled and said: “Young Lord Li, we have no such rule. Once a woman comes to the Immortal Estate, alive she is ours and dead she is our ghost. I’m very sorry.”

Li Chang Huai’s eyes froze. She had been right.

He refused to accept it and lowered his face as he barked: “Nonsense. Would I lack a bit of redemption money?”

The pimp kept his meek smile and said: “You misunderstand. Of course we know you aren’t short on money. But these are the rules.” His tone stayed humble, but his stance was firm as he added: “Young Lord Li, I am only a steward. Please don’t make it hard for me.”

Li Chang Huai’s gaze turned icy as he said: “What if I insist on taking her away?”

The pimp’s smile faded as he said: “If you insist on forcing it, then I must offend.”

As his words fell, dozens of guards dropped in from all sides and surrounded the two of them.

Li Chang Huai snapped his fan shut and asked coldly: “Do you really mean to make yourselves enemies of Tianyu Manor?”

The pimp kept his humble tone and said: “I don’t wish to. As long as Young Lord Li doesn’t make it hard for me, I won’t lay a hand on you.”

Li Chang Huai’s anger flared again as he said: “A little Immortal Estate dares to go against Tianyu Manor. Ridiculous.”

He took Yu Zhi Yi by the sleeve and stepped toward the door. The moment he moved, the Immortal Estate’s people moved too. Two experts attacked him front and back, and a third lunged for Yu Zhi Yi.

Li Chang Huai snorted. His folding fan slashed through the air like a storm; he knocked the two attackers back with ease, then spun and kicked the one reaching for Yu Zhi Yi, sending him flying.

He drove back the first wave and dragged Yu Zhi Yi onward, but the rest swarmed in.

Li Chang Huai guarded Yu Zhi Yi without a gap. If it had been only him, even dozens wouldn’t have scared him. But with someone to protect, it was hard to fight.

Soon, footprints and even sword marks covered his back, arms, and legs. The once clear and polished young manor lord of Tianyu Manor had turned ragged, his face a shade paler.

All at once, a figure dropped from above without a sound. The newcomer’s aura was vast, his eyes sharp as blades, yet he moved without leaking even a hint of presence.

Locked in battle, Li Chang Huai didn’t notice until his sixth sense screamed danger. He whipped around and saw a pair of unfathomable eyes.

The man moved like lightning. In a blink, a palm loaded with terrifying inner force was at Li Chang Huai’s chest.

Li Chang Huai’s pupils shrank. He knew that if the palm landed, he would die. Yet he couldn’t dodge. To be exact, he felt no will to dodge at all. [It’s over.]

He shut his eyes.

Then an airy female voice rang out: “I’ve waited for you a long time.”