Jiang Cong?
Lin Yanxi was greatly surprised. Why did everything seem to be related to the Jiang clan, yet the Jiang clan was like a tangled mess, impossible to sort out.
At the same time, she noticed that the sounds of music and laughter outside had completely vanished. In the silence, there was the "tap, tap" sound of men's heavy boots on the floor. Even though they were trying to tread lightly, it was still clearly audible.
Her small face became solemn as she looked at Shen Muzhou.
His face remained impassive, as if he hadn't heard the chaotic sounds outside. He calmly asked, "Then what do you want us to do for you?"
Meng'er's eyes dimmed, filled with an inexpressible sorrow. "Once one enters Zhihai Tower, one can only serve Zhihai Tower for a lifetime. There will be no freedom to redeem oneself, nor can one fall in love with anyone. If violated, the楼主 will show no mercy."
"Everyone here is cold and lifeless, just living to survive. But there is one person who is different. His name is Gu Qing, a qin player who came to Ghost City the year before last. He is handsome, talented, taught me to play the qin, and painted for me. All the men in the world desire my beauty, but only he truly likes me."
"He is gentle and considerate, thinking of me in everything. When I am injured or reprimanded, only he stays with me. There will never be another man in the world who treats me this way."
As she spoke of how only that man truly liked her, Lin Yanxi's eyes dimmed. She secretly glanced at Shen Muzhou's expression. His face was as stern as ever, and a murderous aura flickered in his gaze as he looked at Meng'er.
He was analyzing how much of her words were believable and what her ultimate goal was in going to such lengths.
Those people outside were coming for him; that much was certain.
"But his mother is ill at home and needs a certain medicine. I revealed the楼主's requested item to him, successfully helping him obtain the precious medicine. At the same time, the楼主 discovered our unusual relationship."
"In a moment of desperation, he had no choice but to flee Zhihai Tower with the medicine. Before escaping, he promised that if he survived, he would find a way to buy my freedom and take me away from Ghost City. I gave him all the savings I had accumulated over the years, hoping to help him."
"The only silver hairpin left was a token of our love he gave me."
As Meng'er spoke, she reached up to her hair. A simply made silver hairpin was dryly pinned to her bun, utterly incongruous with her Western region attire. Yet, she curved her lips, revealing a sweet smile.
In her eyes, that silver hairpin was the most precious treasure in the world.
Lin Yanxi asked with confusion, "Then did he come back?"
Meng'er's lips tightened, and mist slowly welled up in the corners of her eyes. "He left and never returned. Many people say he betrayed me, but I know he wouldn't lie to me. If he hasn't returned, he must have encountered danger."
Shen Muzhou glanced at the silver hairpin in her hair and asked, "How are you sure he encountered danger?"
After he asked this, Meng'er fell silent for a long while. "At first, I thought he had betrayed me, and I was dejected day after day. Until accidentally, in the楼主's darkroom, I found his qin and... a severed right hand."
Her face grew paler, her rosy lips trembled unnaturally, and finally, she couldn't hold back, covering her face with a silk handkerchief, stifling her sobs into whimpers.
"That right hand... his tiger's mouth had a red mole. He always said that even if we couldn't be together in this life, in the next life, with that red mole on his hand, I would recognize him and be with him for eternity."
"Later, I inquired everywhere but found no news. I suspect that after the楼主 cut off his right hand, he imprisoned him in the pit prison of Ghost City. Once in the pit prison, one would be a slave for generations. Moreover, I asked the楼主, and he admitted to imprisoning Gu Qing in the pit prison, telling me to give up on that thought."
As she spoke, the sounds of deerskin boots from upstairs became more chaotic. Lin Yanxi said in a low voice, "Let's find a way to leave here first."
Meng'er looked at them, tears welling up in her eyes. "Please help me find my Xiao Lang. He is a qin player and lost his right hand. In the pit prison, he must be suffering more than death."
Shen Muzhou said, "You drugged us and then helped others try to kill us. Do you think I would still help you?"
"I truly have no other choice. No one can defy the楼主's orders. The people downstairs have likely surrounded Zhihai Tower, but you can leave through the side door. People are guarding there too, but I will release a colorless and odorless aphrodisiac to help you. You have already taken the antidote, so you won't be poisoned again in a short time."
Shen Muzhou did not believe her words. His gaze fell coldly on her face, trying to see what harmful intentions were hidden beneath that charming and beautiful exterior.
Meng'er was afraid they would refuse to help, so she quickly added, "Your antidote just now was only half. While it dispelled the hallucinatory effect, once you are moved or fall in love, you will feel unbearable heart pain. As long as you help me find Brother Gu, I will help you obtain the complete antidote."
Shen Muzhou hated being threatened the most. His long sword had already been drawn, but Lin Yanxi suddenly stopped him.
She helped the kneeling Meng'er up and said, "Alright, it's a deal. But you must first help us escape, and then we will help you find Gu Qing. But you still have to answer us one more thing: what is the楼主's gift this year?"
Hearing that someone was willing to help her, Meng'er happily dabbed away the tears in her eyes with her handkerchief. "Once you help me find Brother Gu, I will definitely tell you the truth."
Shen Muzhou and Lin Yanxi said no more. They opened the door of the private room and saw that Zhihai Tower, which had been bustling with singing and dancing, was now empty. It seemed that those who wanted their lives would not storm Zhihai Tower, but were waiting for them outside.
He observed their surroundings. They were on the third floor, an underground environment with no doors or windows. To leave here, they had to go upstairs, and all exits were blocked.
The two turned and found two private rooms. They finally found Xiao Liu and Shen Yu in a slightly smaller room. They had also been drugged. Xiao Liu only had a fever and had fallen asleep.
Shen Yu's situation was more serious. He had loosened his clothes, unbuckled his belt, and pouted, saying, "Jing Xin, hehe, let me kiss you, you're so beautiful."
Lin Yanxi's first reaction was to look at Shen Muzhou's expression. He remained cold, but she guessed that the calmer he was at such a moment, the more turbulent his inner emotions were.
Who could stand another man lusting after their beloved in their dreams?
She made a "tsk tsk" sound, shaking her head, and looked at Shen Muzhou with a bit of pity.
"Turn around."
After a moment of reaction, she realized he wanted to beat Shen Yu up and not let her see?
"You, you calm down, he's just under the influence of the aphrodisiac."
Shen Muzhou directly got up, turned her shoulders, and turned her body around.
"Hiss—" Lin Yanxi winced and gasped.
Shen Muzhou looked at her nervously, his brow furrowed even deeper. "How did you get this?"
She extended a small section of her arm. It was as fair and delicate as white jade carving. A bloodstain lay upon it, the extremely white and faintly pink skin making the blood appear exceptionally conspicuous.
"I cut it with my hairpin just now when I was under the aphrodisiac."
Shen Muzhou's eyes dimmed. Thinking of her abnormal behavior just now, he asked, "So all your discomfort just now was faked?"
Lin Yanxi then put on an overbearing expression, proudly saying, "Of course. If I hadn't done that, how could I have moved Meng'er? Do you think killing her would have actually worked? Perhaps we could have found the antidote on her, but at the same time, we would have lost her willing help. With just the four of us, it would be very difficult to fight our way out."
"And we wouldn't have gotten so much information from Zhihai Tower. I deliberately said I believed her just now. How was my acting?"
He stared at her smug little face, but his eyes gradually became dark and menacing.
Meng'er had said earlier that this aphrodisiac only worked on someone one was fond of. Therefore, he would have developed different feelings and urges towards Lin Yanxi. He thought Lin Yanxi was the same, but he didn't expect she was faking it.
If Shen Muzhou had always maintained a cold expression, then now his face was terrifyingly grim. He said not a word, turned, and tore a large strip of cloth from Shen Yu's clothes to bandage her wound.
As he tied the knot at the end, he deliberately increased the force with his hands.
"Ah. Are you doing this on purpose!" Lin Yanxi's small face contorted in pain as she looked at him.
Really, what did Shen Yu dream about with Luo Jingxin that he had to take it out on her?
She quickly thought of other problems and asked again, "Do you think Meng'er's story is true? She said Gu Qing truly loved her. Then what is true love? And how can one be sure that the other person truly loves you?"
His eyes were deep, and his expression was unclear as he said, "As long as she's not foolish, she can sense the other person's feelings."
Lin Yanxi frowned. Why did his words sound sarcastic and incomprehensible?
Shen Muzhou said nothing further. He took out the nasal inhaler from his waist and waved it under Shen Yu and Xiao Liu's noses. A moment later, Xiao Liu gradually regained consciousness.
Xiao Liu said, "Your Highness, we saw you and Miss Lin disappear on the street and searched everywhere for you. Following the secret signal, we found Zhihai Tower. The Fifth Prince became interested and insisted on having a few drinks to get information, and then we were drugged."
Shen Muzhou explained the situation upstairs to Xiao Liu.
As they were talking, Shen Yu dazedly woke up. He looked at everyone with confusion, realizing that what he had done with Luo Jingxin just now was only a dream.
He said angrily, "Ah! Little Nine, couldn't you have given me the antidote later? I finally dreamed of it once!"
As Shen Yu spoke, he tidied his clothes. "No, who tore my clothes?"
After barely tying up his torn clothes, Shen Yu understood the current situation. He was loyal and picked up the sword by his side, ready to rush out.
Shen Muzhou instructed Lin Yanxi, "You wait inside the tower."
Lin Yanxi followed a couple of steps, but she had no martial arts, and her talisman skills were extremely unstable. Following them would only be a hindrance.
"Be careful."
Shen Muzhou's gaze fell on her, unusually gentle. He nodded, curved his lips into a faint smile, and reassured her.
As the few of them charged into the crowd, they were immediately surrounded by dense figures in black.
Shen Muzhou drew his long sword and swept it out horizontally. The few black-clothed figures at the front had no time to dodge and were killed with a single stroke, falling to the ground.
Lin Yanxi hid at the entrance of Zhihai Tower, picking up a broad saber amidst the chaos and holding it tightly.
Shen Muzhou stood tall and agile, his swordsmanship extremely fast. Every strike was fatal, and as his sword swung, layers of sword waves formed around him. His eyes were fierce, and a few drops of crimson blood splashed on his face.
Within half an hour, bodies lay piled upon each other on the ground, while Shen Yu and Xiao Liu began to tire. However, there were still unyielding black-clothed figures wielding long sabers rushing forward.
Meng'er's aphrodisiac was long overdue. Without it, the sheer number of enemies would be enough to kill them here.