Chapter 52

Chapter 52: Do You Still Want to Live?

Sheng Zhi Wan spoke no more. She stepped outside, where the mountain stronghold was now plunged into chaos.

Aside from An Zhi and Ting Lan, those bandits who had been sent to ambush Zhang Da’s group had already been silently replaced and had infiltrated the stronghold.

Three young women alone certainly weren’t enough to face two hundred bandits.

But what if those two hundred bandits had been drugged?

Perhaps because they had captured rich prey today, the bandits were busy indulging in drink and revelry, their drunken eyes half-closed in pleasure. Now, ironically, they looked like the sheep roasting upon the spits, stripped of wool and ready to be cooked.

Sheng Zhi Wan cast a distant glance, thinking to herself that the spoiled noble youths should be capable enough to handle these bandits. Besides, Shang Hang Yu was among them.

Reassured, she turned her attention back to Zhang Da Hu and asked softly, “The mother and child you captured yesterday, where are they?”

Zhang Da Hu’s eyes flickered suspiciously. “Wh-what?”

The words had barely left his lips when a sharp pain pierced his neck.

Then Zhang Da Hu experienced agony worse than losing an arm; his muscles seized uncontrollably, his eyes bulging out, nearly escaping from their sockets.

It wasn’t until a slender hand delicately removed the silver needles from his neck that he gasped and slumped forward, panting desperately as if revived from death itself.

His quivering muscles were a stark reminder of the torment he had just endured.

Nearby, An Zhi and Ting Lan watched Sheng Zhi Wan closely. An Zhi parted her lips slightly, eyes wide with shock and disbelief. She wanted to say something but held back, choosing silence instead.

Seemingly oblivious, Sheng Zhi Wan again gently asked Zhang Da Hu, “The mother and child captured yesterday—where are they?”

“I…I don’t—” Zhang Da Hu began, but seeing Sheng Zhi Wan smiling faintly as she twirled the silver needles, he quickly trembled and pointed toward a direction, stammering, “There…over there!”

Following his directions, Sheng Zhi Wan soon discovered a concealed underground cellar.

The moment the cellar was opened, a foul, pungent odor rushed out.

Inside the pitch-black cellar, nothing was visible at first. Sheng Zhi Wan had An Zhi light a torch and lead the way down. Once her eyes adjusted, she halted abruptly.

Huddled within the damp, shadowy cellar lay more than twenty gaunt, skeletal-looking young women.

The oldest appeared barely twenty, and the youngest was probably not even ten. Among those pale, emaciated figures, Sheng Zhi Wan immediately recognized two familiar faces.

A woman was holding a small child tightly, her hair disheveled, clothes torn to shreds. Her once elegant, clean robes now barely covered her body.

The woman stared blankly at the floor, her hollow eyes making it impossible to discern whether she was still alive or already dead.

Sheng Zhi Wan pressed her lips together briefly and instructed An Zhi to take the others outside. Soon, only Sheng Zhi Wan and the mother and child remained inside the cellar.

“Lady Han,” Sheng Zhi Wan gently approached.

Hearing the name “Lady Han,” the woman stirred slightly, but she immediately lowered her head further, refusing to meet Sheng Zhi Wan’s gaze.

Sheng Zhi Wan reached out toward the child in her arms.

At that instant, the woman lunged suddenly toward the cellar wall, attempting to end her life. Fortunately, Ting Lan reacted swiftly and grabbed hold of her.

But even restrained, the woman frantically smashed her head repeatedly against the ground.

Sheng Zhi Wan remained silent a moment before coldly removing the burning-hot child from the woman’s arms and setting him down on the filthy floor.

“He has a high fever,” she said coldly. “If you wish to die, then take him with you. He’s the sole grandson of the Grand General Who Pacifies the Nation, the only living blood of General Han. If you refuse to endure, what purpose does his life hold? Perhaps it would be better if your whole family reunited beneath the earth.”

Without waiting for a response, Sheng Zhi Wan turned and ascended the stone stairs.

However, just as she was leaving, the woman who had previously sought death suddenly rushed forward, blocking Sheng Zhi Wan’s path. She said nothing, only stared at her desperately with lifeless eyes.

Sheng Zhi Wan remained unmoved. “If you die, he dies. If you live, he lives. Do you still want to live?”

The woman’s lips trembled. She did not want to live!

The nightmare from the night before had stripped her of everything she held dear, and all she wished now was death.

“I understand. Go ahead and die, then,” Sheng Zhi Wan said emotionlessly. “Your son can stay here, serving as your final comfort.”

She brushed the woman’s hands away and climbed up one step, two steps, three steps…

As she was about to leave the cellar entirely, a hoarse voice broke through from behind her, trembling yet determined: “I…I will live! Please…save him…”

Sheng Zhi Wan paused.

Meanwhile, in the dense darkness of the forest, several shadowy figures were secretly observing.

“Do we…really have to do this?” Zhou Yu Zheng clutched his reins, trembling with fear.

He hadn’t imagined things would turn out like this.

Initially, it had only been a foolish game played by a group of idle nobles, and running into Princess Ning had been surprising enough—but encountering actual bandits was entirely unforeseen.

Even more absurdly, after being released by the terrifying bandits, they had sneaked behind to their hideout.

And now they were observing bandits who were drunkenly celebrating their loot!

Under normal circumstances, at this moment Zhou Yu Zheng would have been comfortably lounging on his soft bed, perhaps soaking in a scented bath, enjoying the tender attentions of Wood-Fragrance Elder Sister…

How on earth had he ended up here?

“Perhaps…we should retreat first, notify Father and the others…”