Chapter 44: Purging the House

The burly man paused, looking at the little lassie who possessed quite a fiery temper.

The wind outside the dilapidated temple suddenly died down.

The old grandmother returned at that moment, picking up her walking stick and striking the man over the head.

"Ouch! You old hag, why are you hitting people?!"

"You scoundrel! In the middle of the night, taking advantage of my absence to bully my granddaughter—I'll beat you to death!" As she spoke, she swung the stick and rained blows down upon him.

Several people nearby were awakened by the commotion and looked over.

The man glared at the grandmother, muttered curses under his breath, and was forced to leave.

***

Tongzhou, the Prefect's Yamen.

Inside the gloomy interrogation hall, the oppressive atmosphere made it difficult to breathe.

The iron chains of the interrogation hall emitted a harsh, grating sound.

Zhao Zhifu was bound to the torture rack.

The jade bracelet on her wrist struck the refined steel shackles, chipping off a few flecks of dim green light.

The crane insignia on Lu Huaijin's python robe was stained with blood, and the gold threads gleamed with a chilling brilliance under the candlelight, making him look exceptionally ferocious.

"I'll ask this one last time."

His fingertips rubbed against the dried blood crusts on the torture rack. "Where have you hidden Su Yao?"

"My Lord, no matter how many times you ask, my answer remains the same: I do not know. I did not hide her."

"Unrepentant."

Lu Huaijin parted his thin lips and coldly commanded, "Guards, resume the torture."

The instruments of torture descended ruthlessly upon Zhao Zhifu once more.

"Ah—!"

A series of piercing screams instantly echoed throughout the dungeon.

Enduring the excruciating pain, beads of sweat the size of peas rolling down her forehead, Zhao Zhifu screamed hoarsely at Lu Huaijin, "My father's men have already arrived! What right do you have to prevent me from returning to the capital? Do you know who ordered me to come here this time? It is the Dowager Empress! How can you treat me like this?!"

Lu Huaijin acted as though he heard nothing. He simply raised his hand slowly and stroked the exquisite sachet hanging at his waist.

"Your father? The Dowager Empress? Heh! If I were to demand a person from your father, what would he do? Would he act for the sake of his own daughter, or would he weigh the pros and cons for the sake of power in the imperial court?"

Zhao Zhifu saw the sachet that she had sewn with her own hands.

Her blood-stained temples brushed against the iron bars studded with reverse barbs, yet she suddenly burst out laughing.

"What are you laughing at?"

"Isn't the Chief Councilor most skilled at unravelling the human heart? How is it that he cannot even discern the mind of the one who shares his pillow?"

She suddenly tore open her collar, revealing the hideous burn scar over her heart. "Take a sniff, My Lord—does this charred scent not bear a striking resemblance to the pear blossom scent inside the sachet at your waist?"

The iron tongs in Lu Huaijin's grip suddenly plunged into the charcoal brazier, and the sputtering sparks landed on Zhao Zhifu's gold-embroidered skirt, instantly burning several small holes.

"Do you think that by mimicking her choice of perfume, it would make me look upon you with higher regard?"

"Mimic her perfume?"

Hearing this as if it were the most absurd joke in the world, Zhao Zhifu threw her head back and laughed crazily, the chains on her wrists clanking with a harrowing sound.

"Crack!"

A dark iron whip tore through the air, cutting short her unfinished words, and the left side of Zhao Zhifu's face was instantly split open.

Lu Huaijin strode forward, reached out, grabbed Zhao Zhifu by the throat, and lifted her entire body into the air.

His official boots crushed the jade beads scattered across the floor.

"It seems General Zhao has failed to instruct his daughter properly; I should clean house for him."

"Clean house?"

Zhao Zhifu spat out a mouthful of blood with great effort, her broken teeth grinding together, and she said with all the strength she had left, "You might as well clean house... in your own Chief Councilor's... Chief Councilor's estate first. Back then... back then... it was Su Yao who made a deal with me, asking me to help her leave..."

Lu Huaijin's pupils constricted violently, and his hand unconsciously loosened its grip, causing Zhao Zhifu to fall heavily to the floor, coughing violently.

"Impossible!"

Zhao Zhifu squeezed a broken laugh from her throat. "The sachet at Your Lordship's waist was embroidered by me stitch by stitch. Did Su Yao ever give Your Lordship her embroidered magpies treading on plum branches? There is no place for you in her heart at all."

Hearing the three words "magpies treading on plum branches," Lu Huaijin froze completely.

His thoughts instantly drifted back to many years ago, vividly recalling the scene where young Lu Chuyao's painting of magpies treading on plum branches was praised by the late Emperor.

His fingers tightened involuntarily, his knuckles turning white.

The executioners resumed their work, and the iron brush soaked in brine scraped mercilessly across Zhao Zhifu's flesh, the stench of blood instantly filling the entire interrogation hall.

Blood-red as a beast's, Lu Huaijin's eyes burned. "Do you think I will believe these ghost stories just because you fabricated them?"

"Believe it or not..." Curled up in a ball from the agony, Zhao Zhifu still stubbornly raised her head. "My Lord might as well inspect the inner layer of the sachet..."

Her blood-stained finger suddenly pointed toward his waist. "The eyes of that pair of mandarin ducks... were embroidered by me using double-stranded gold thread..."

Lu Huaijin violently ripped the sachet apart, the blue brocade shattering in his palm.

When he clearly saw the characters "Zhifu" inscribed on the inner layer, his eyes turned bloodshot.

Abruptly, he hurled the sachet into the charcoal fire.

"Zhao Zhifu, you had better pray she comes to no harm. Otherwise, I shall invite you to the basin of venomous snakes and treat you with the utmost care."

"Lord Lu!"

Zhao Zhifu suddenly struggled and lunged toward the iron bars. "Even if you hack me to pieces and feed me to the dogs, it cannot change the fact that Su Yao would rather die than stay with you!"

Her blood-stained socks suddenly kicked over the lamp oil, and amidst the surging flames, she let out a sharp, shrill laugh. "Guess what she said to me at the very end? She said—"

A thunderclap drowned out the tail end of her words.

The crane on Lu Huaijin's official robe seemed poised to soar away amidst the firelight. He abruptly crushed the jade paperweight on his desk, the shards cutting into his palm and blood flowing in a steady stream, yet he remained entirely oblivious.

"What did she say?"

"She said—"

Zhao Zhifu let the tongues of fire lick against the hem of her garment, her smile as dazzling as a vengeful ghost. "The embrace of the Chief Councilor is far more nauseating than a pit of ten thousand venomous snakes."

Rain poured in torrents.

After a long silence, he slowly spoke, his voice ice-cold: "Pass down the order: lock the city gates tightly. Not even a single fly is to escape out of Tongzhou City."

***

The next day, the refugees prepared to continue their journey south.

Su Yao supported the elderly grandmother, placing herself amidst the surging crowd.

Looking at the dense sea of heads ahead, a trace of unease welled up in her heart, and she softly asked, "Grandmother, why are there so many people?"

Grandmother squinted, trying hard to peer ahead.

Someone turned back to say, "It seems they're hunting down some major bandit chiefs up ahead. They say everyone has to be searched one by one before they'll let us out through the city gates."

Hearing this, Su Yao's previously tensed shoulders relaxed slightly, and she felt a secret sense of relief.

She had thought Lu Huaijin had sent people after her, and the heart that had been hanging in suspense finally settled somewhat.

The guards at the city gates wore solemn expressions and carried out inspections with extreme strictness.

Every refugee passing by had to undergo meticulous scrutiny under their piercing gazes; their belongings were searched one by one, and everyone's patience was gradually worn thin by this prolonged wait.

Standing in the queue, Su Yao's heartbeat accelerated involuntarily, and she instinctively clenched her fists, her fingernails nearly digging into her palms.

A sickening voice suddenly came from behind her.

"Little lady, we meet again." The sour, alcoholic breath expelled from between yellowed teeth washed over her, nearly making Su Yao retch.

She looked back and saw that it was none other than the burly man who had pestered her earlier in the dilapidated temple.

His sudden outburst startled Su Yao so much that her whole body trembled, and the sachet she had been tightly clutching dropped instantly.

Flustered, Su Yao squatted down, intending to pick up the sachet, but before she could touch it, the burly man reached out a thick hand and grabbed her wrist.

He ruthlessly rubbed his rough thumb against Su Yao's delicate skin, muttering, "This little lady's hands... so soft and tender, nothing like what a farm girl should have."

Overwhelmed by disgust, Su Yao struggled with all her might to break free from his grip and said urgently, "Let go of me!"

"Where on earth are you from?" Not only did the man refuse to let go, but he gripped her even tighter.

Filled with panic and alarm, Su Yao hastily pulled out a hairpin in her confusion and plunged it with all her strength into the back of the man's hand.

"Ah!" The man let out a miserable scream and released his hold.

The stench of blood instantly filled the air, exceptionally pungent amidst the noisy crowd.

With a face full of furious rage, the man roared viciously, "You're courting death!"

He raised his palm high, and with a howling gust of wind, brought it down fiercely toward Su Yao's face.