The first man in black and the second man in black, startled by the sound of Mu Anxiao placing her cup down with a clang, exchanged a look before quickly dropping their playful expressions. They picked up their whips and placed them on the table.
In the next second, Mu Anxiao glanced at each of the two whips. "Good whips," she said, "but unfortunately," she leaned forward, scrutinizing the whips, and clicked her tongue, "they're too old. Look, they're almost broken." She pointed at the whips.
At the same time, the woman cautiously glanced at the whip in front of the second man in black, and then her entire body began to tremble uncontrollably.
"..." Mu Anxiao deliberately cast a sidelong glance at the woman and put on a stern face.
Noticing Mu Anxiao's expression, the second man in black quickly reached for a whip and began to explain, "These whips... have been with us for many years. We don't practice martial arts, so we just use them to tie things. Other than that..."
"Tie things," Mu Anxiao deliberately interrupted, propping her chin on her hand. "I thought you just wielded them quite skillfully."
"I..."
"Wait," Mu Anxiao raised a hand, then looked at both whips again. "This whip of yours is clearly older than his."
"I use it more often," the second man in black said with a grin.
Mu Anxiao nodded and immediately turned her gaze to the woman who was still trembling beside them. "Speaking of which, she's your person. Why aren't you looking at her?" she said, turning back to the second man in black.
Feng Qishi, not wanting Mu Anxiao to get involved, deliberately nudged her arm.
Conversely, Mu Anxiao completely ignored Feng Qishi and continued to stare at the second man in black.
The second man in black dodged her gaze and gave a dry laugh. "..."
"It seems you don't want to say. In that case," Mu Anxiao smiled slightly, "then she's yours, right?" she pointed at the woman.
The woman was stunned. Clasping her trembling hands, she turned to look at Mu Anxiao.
The second man in black's eyes widened. "No," he said.
"No?" Mu Anxiao said, standing up. "Tell me the truth. Are your whips specifically for hitting her, or is she still useful to you, which is why you don't want to give her to me?" she pointed at the woman.
Hearing this, Feng Qishi stood up along with Mu Anxiao and said in a low voice, "It's best if you don't meddle."
"Don't mind me," Mu Anxiao said, glancing at Feng Qishi, and then fixing her gaze intently on the second man in black's face.
The second man in black was speechless.
Mu Anxiao: "I won't ask much. Just tell me, is she your wife?"
"No."
"No?" Mu Anxiao blinked, and turned to look at the woman.
The woman's eyes darkened. "I belong to him, but we are not married. Miss, please stop talking," she said, lowering her head.
Hearing this, Mu Anxiao was confused. However, she simply couldn't stand the second man in black's behavior of whipping the woman. So, she said, "Fine, let's not talk about anything else. It's wrong for you to hit women."
"I..."
"Give me the whip," Mu Anxiao interrupted, extending her hand.
The second man in black was startled. He looked up at Mu Anxiao, and before he could speak, the first man in black proactively picked up the second man's whip and said, "Here you go." Then, he tossed the whip to Mu Anxiao.
Mu Anxiao blinked, then looked up at the first man in black who was cooperating perfectly with her. "Have you ever hit a woman?"
"No, but I've scared them," the first man in black said, drawing on his experience. He knew... he couldn't disobey Mu Anxiao, because he understood that Mu Anxiao could change her mind in an instant. If they didn't cooperate, their fate would be dire.
Moreover, they were human traffickers. If they cooperated now, perhaps Mu Anxiao would even plead for them.
In short, he dared not offend Mu Anxiao.
Mu Anxiao looked at the first man in black's obedient expression, then glanced down at the whip, which was practically trash to her. "You, come here," she said, turning to the woman.
The woman was startled. "What do you want to do?"
"Does he often beat you?" Mu Anxiao said calmly.
The woman nodded slightly.
"Very well, use this whip to hit him. After you're done," Mu Anxiao shifted her gaze to Feng Qishi, "you'll arrest them."
"What do you mean?" Feng Qishi couldn't understand Mu Anxiao.
Since Mu Anxiao had frightened them last time, she had already given them one chance to reform.
However, they had gone and done this again. Not only that, but the person they had captured was actually You Xian, whom she knew.
And before this, Mu Anxiao had already decided not to interact with anyone from her past until she had turned her life around. Now, because of them, she had met You Xian again.
And because of them, she had another important responsibility: to protect You Xian.
Thinking about it, if they hadn't done this, she wouldn't have to be so exhausted.
Of course, she had also given them a chance earlier, but after communicating with them, she realized... these two guys, while outwardly cooperative, had already meticulously planned everything in their minds.
Therefore, arresting them was unavoidable.
Next, she decided to personally escort You Xian to the palace gate, then observe the person who would receive You Xian, and while on the way, assign You Xian some tasks.
In this way, she would have an informant in the palace.
Seeing that Mu Anxiao remained silent, Feng Qishi asked again, "What are you doing?"
Hearing this, Mu Anxiao came back to her senses and said, "Nothing much, I'll be escorting her shortly." After speaking, she turned to look at You Xian, who was lying on the bed.
You Xian rolled over.
At the same time, the woman trembling, picked up the whip. "Back then, you redeemed me from there. After coming out, you kept asking me for money, constantly disdaining me, hitting and scolding me. Now," she said, holding the whip and walking to the second man in black's side, "I can finally get revenge." With that, emboldened by Mu Anxiao, she raised the whip and struck the second man in black.
The second man in black was stunned. He raised his hand, grabbed the whip, stood up, revealed his true nature, and began to fight with the woman.
Seeing this, the first man in black quickly stood up, stepped back a few paces, and looked at Mu Anxiao. "You lied to us."
Mu Anxiao temporarily ignored the brawling pair and looked at the first man in black. "How did I lie to you?"
"That voice told us to go, and you calculated..."
"A carriage, new clothes," Mu Anxiao said, surveying the first man in black from head to toe, "and packed a bag. You even asked me if she would kill you. Humph, what a performance of self-inflicted injury."