Chapter 110

Xiao Qidi suddenly fell silent, a hint of unspeakable pain appearing in the depths of his eyes.

This expression was fleeting, yet Ning Jinli keenly noticed it.

She loosened her grip and lightly touched Xiao Qidi's ear, "Did I hurt you?"

"It doesn't hurt," Xiao Qidi said softly, "The reason I understand is because when I was young, my mother often brought various men home; our lodging was very shabby, only one room, so..."

Upon saying this, Xiao Qidi's lips trembled and he clenched his teeth.

Those memories are too painful to recall; he simply couldn't go on.

Ning Jinli's heart clenched, "I understand what's going on now... Sorry, I made you suffer."

"Little Ning? Can you still hear me speaking?" Zheng Lao's voice came through the phone.

Ning Jinli uncovered the mouthpiece she had been covering, "Yes, Grandfather Zheng, please continue."

At this moment, Xiao Qidi spoke up, "May I ask you a question?"

"Sure, sure, go ahead," Zheng Lao readily agreed.

Xiao Qidi asked, "Why does the Prime Minister keep the true son of Xiao Qidi alive, and why... not just kill him? Isn't he afraid of leaving a future threat?"

"It's a long story, listen carefully," Zheng Lao analyzed, "According to our research, Si Tu Wei himself harbors no ambition for the throne, or even if he does, he dare not bear the name of usurper."

"His whole life has been about controlling the monarch to achieve ultimate power, from initially helping Xiao Qidi's father flee back to Daxuan to assist in succession, to after his death, immediately doing everything possible to bring Xiao Qidi back to Xuan Guo to inherit the throne and continue to assist him—all these actions can be verified."

"Thus, under this premise, what he has always needed is a monarch he can control."

"Later, during the process of cultivating Xiao Qidi, he should have sensed that Xiao Qidi would gradually escape his control."

"So he early on found a person whose appearance and build were almost identical to Xiao Qidi's, to use as a precaution."

"Or perhaps he happened to obtain such a person, thereby giving rise to the idea of a precaution."

"Later, after Xiao Qidi was defeated and captured, the enemy troops abused him and reduced him to a Human Stick, which conveniently gave Si Tu Wei an excellent opportunity to replace him with a puppet."

"Perhaps he thought, a puppet is ultimately a puppet, lacking ability; what comes from a rat is still a rat, impossible to produce a dragon."

"By retaining Xiao Qidi's biological son, he could obtain an heir who inherits the orthodox bloodline and excellent genes, and from birth can be educated by him to become a next-generation monarch fully under his control—this is far more useful than a puppet."

"Besides, perhaps he also harbors some affection for Xiao Qidi and cannot bear to see his line die out..."

"Taking all factors into account, Si Tu Wei ultimately chose to keep that child of Xiao Qidi."

"Of course, what Si Tu Wei's true thoughts actually are, only he himself knows."

After hearing Professor Zheng Lao's detailed, well-reasoned explanation, Xiao Qidi fell into silence.

Ning Jinli clearly understood that, no matter what, Xiao Qidi would have to deal with Si Tu Wei next.

After a brief thought, he spoke, "Thank you, Grandfather Zheng, for the explanation. I have another question: in the new materials you discovered, is there more information about that puppet?"

"Yes," Zheng Lao replied, "Although there is no record of that puppet's origin, the materials mention that before he officially replaced Xiao Qidi, Si Tu Wei secretly arranged for him to reside somewhere; I have already sent people to locate the ruins for excavation, and the unearthed artifacts can correspond."

Subsequently, Ning Jinli also obtained from Zheng Lao the specific address of the puppet's dwelling from over two thousand years ago.

Xiao Qidi indicated that he knows that place.

That place is not far from the Royal City of Xuan Guo.

This phone call brought the two of them extremely important information.

There's no time to lose; they set aside their outing and immediately began to ponder how to deal with Si Tu Wei next.

Si Tu Wei, after all, is the Prime Minister, who once held power single-handedly; even though part of his authority was once divided by the Empress Dowager and the Marquis of Le'an, and now has shifted into Xiao Qidi's hands, he still cannot be underestimated.

Most importantly, we must seize back the great power that Si Tu Wei controls.

Ning Jinli's eyes lit up as she said, "I have an idea."

Xiao Qidi said, "I also have an idea."

"Don't speak first," Ning Jinli said, picking up her phone to type, "You also type it out on your phone, and we'll look together."

"Okay."

The two of them each typed on their own phones.

Then they simultaneously revealed them.

Both phone screens displayed the same four words—"turn their scheme against them."

Coincidentally, Ning Jinli had opened a Spacetime Portal in the middle of Shuncheng, and Shuncheng is not far from the puppet's hiding place—one can get there by horseback in a day.

Thus Xiao Qidi returned to Shuncheng, taking Li Yao and setting off immediately.

The two rode hard and reached their destination by evening.

In this ordinary small town stood a residence whose exterior was unremarkable but whose interior was luxurious enough to rival a palace.

As night fell, the mansion's rooms were brightly lit.

In the gold-and-splendid hall, a man who resembled Xiao Qidi from head to toe almost exactly was half-reclining on a golden-silk bed, embracing left and right, enjoying the performance of singing courtesans and dancing girls.

Before the bed stood a long table laden with mountain delicacies, seafood, fine wines, and choice dishes.

"Well done! Great dance!" the man clapped and laughed loudly, "Just take off those clothes that are in the way!"

The dozen or so dancing girls, already wearing only sheer gauze, would have nothing left if they took it off.

Yet they dared not disobey; to the accompaniment of string music and the courtesan's humming, they successively shed their gauze skirts while dancing.

The man grew ever more excited, seizing a few wanton women on the bed and indulging in pleasure right there.

As the fun heightened, he noticed beside him a maid and Xiaosi, their faces flushed red with embarrassment, unwilling to look.

"You two, newcomers?" the man asked while thrusting his hips.

The maid and Xiaosi hurriedly knelt, "Reporting to master, we... only arrived yesterday."

"Raise your heads," the man ordered.

The two, barely suppressing their shame, slowly lifted their heads.

"You two are skin and bone, yet you both have delicate features and look quite alike—are you from the same family?" the man said, showing interest.

Xiaosi replied, "Master, she is my biological sister; my family is too poor... a few days ago my parents died and we had no money for burial, so... we answered the recruitment to come here, signed a servitude contract, to serve you..."

"How old are you two?"

"To the master, I'm thirteen, and my sister is twelve."

The man squinted his eyes, a wicked grin curling at his mouth, paused his revelry with the woman beside him, then casually picked up a sizzling roasted piglet from the table. "Want to eat?"

The brother and sister couldn't help but swallow, their eyes full of anticipation, and they timidly nodded.

The man first took a big bite of the roasted piglet himself, his mouth dripping with oil, then tossed the piglet onto the floor.

Xiaosi immediately scrambled over with hands and feet, "Thank you, master, for the gift!"

Saying that, he lifted the roasted piglet, turned and handed it to the sister, "Here, eat it, quickly thank the master!"

The maid hurriedly bowed her head in thanks, then eagerly took the roasted piglet.

The siblings, from childhood until now, were eating meat for the first time; they were so happy tears welled up.

Just as they were about to share it, the man suddenly pulled a scowl and scolded, "You worthless scum! Did I say I'd give you a reward?"

The maid was instantly frightened into a stunned silence, holding the roasted piglet cluelessly.

Xiaosi recovered first, trembling as he kowtowed, "Master, spare me… I was wrong… If the master wishes to punish, punish me…"

"Hahaha! Fun, interesting!" the man suddenly clapped his hands and laughed loudly.

Xiaosi and the maid, the siblings, dared not even breathe.

Before arriving, they had heard that the master of this manor was hard to serve.

He often executed or tortured servants to death, so every few days he would buy new servants.

However, he was quite generous with the money.

The siblings together signed a servitude contract; the silver they received was enough to buy good coffins for both their parents and also purchase decent land for proper burial.

Otherwise, they wouldn't have risked selling themselves into slavery here.

They originally thought that as long as they acted carefully, they shouldn't upset the master.

But they didn't expect the master's temperament to be utterly unpredictable.

"Tell me, do you two actually want to eat?" the man asked with a smiling squint, "Don't be afraid, answer me honestly."

"I… want to eat…" the maid whispered, breathless.

Xiaosi also dared not lie, also answered that he wanted to eat.

"Very obedient, good." The man showed appreciation, nodding.

Before the siblings could breathe a sigh of relief, the man sneered, "But my thing isn't something you can just eat casually; you two take off your clothes and give me a performance first."

"Perform… performance?" Xiaosi asked anxiously, "Master, my sister and I come from poor families, we don't even recognize characters… we can't sing or dance."

The man grinned, "Who told you two to sing and dance? I want you to do it for me!"

"Do… what?" Xiaosi still didn't understand.

The man dragged the seductive woman beside him; she cooperatively spread her legs, biting her lip to endure pain, allowing him to ravage her.

"It's… doing… this kind of… pleasurable thing," the man panted, his face twisted in a wicked grin.

Xiaosi's face turned deathly pale in an instant, and the Xiaoshi Nu beside him stiffened completely.

"Master!" Xiaosi begged on his knees, "She and I are blood siblings… please have mercy, master!"

"Do it right now!" the man snarled, baring his teeth.

But this kind of act, which goes against humanity and is utterly depraved, Xiaosi…

…no matter what, refused to comply, kneeling on the ground, continuously kowtowing and pleading for mercy.

The man said ominously, "You really won't do it?!"

Xiaosi cried, shaking his head, "Master… you can take my life if you must, please, spare my sister!"

"Now that's boring! Truly a killjoy!" the man roared in fury, "Guards!"

The man pointed at the brother and sister who had been frightened limp, "Drag these two clueless things out, give the little girl to you to play with, play with her in front of her brother, after playing her to death, then slaughter this Xiaosi, finally, chop them both up and feed them to the dogs."

The man pointed at the siblings, already terrified into a limp, and said, "Drag these clueless ones out. The little girl is a reward for you to play with; play in front of her brother, kill her, then slaughter this Xiaosi, and finally chop both of them up to feed the dogs."

Without waiting for Xiaosi and Xiaoshi Nu to beg for mercy, the hulking men dragged the two out the door.

Inside the hall, lights shone brightly, songs and dances rose peacefully, while outside in the courtyard was a dim, ominous gloom.

The courtyard's bluestone slabs were tinged with a blood hue from years of staining, and the air was thick with a lingering metallic scent of blood.

Even these guard hulks didn't know how many servants had already died here.

"Brothers… spare my sister, just kill me! I… I will kowtow to you!" Xiaosi, his face already bloodied from kowtowing, bowed again toward the hulks.

Xiaoshi Nu was terrified to the bone, yet she threw herself in front of Xiaosi with all her might, kowtowing fiercely, "Please, brothers, spare my brother… I, a humble girl… I am willing to accept any punishment…"

The siblings were each willing to die themselves, each hoping the other could survive.

Such a scene, however, did not stir the slightest pity in those hulks.

"Stop screaming!" the leading hulker kicked Xiaosi over, "Once you're in here, life and death aren't decided by heaven, but by our master! Whatever the master does to you, you must endure! In the past, there were far more servants here who suffered worse than you two!"

After kicking Xiaosi, he skillfully tore the Xiaoshi Nu's clothing off.

The other hulks gathered around, rubbing their fists, eager to try.

Xiaosi's eyes turned blood‑red, he scrambled up, trying to fight them with his life.

But with no strength to bind a chicken, a single slap from a hulker…

Xiaosi let out a desperate, angry roar.

Xiaoshi Nu let out a mournful, harrowing scream.

The hulks laughed, each louder than the last.

Just as the leading hulker was about to commit a bestial act,

Whoosh!

A faint whooshing sound suddenly rang out.

【121】 The hulks trembled all over, frozen in place.

"Boss, what's wrong?"

The others nearby laughed and teased.

"Could it be that this time you want the little brothers to go first?"

"Boss, you're being too polite, hahaha!"

The leading strong man's eyes widened as he strained to lift his hand to the back of his head.

However, halfway through raising his hand, he collapsed face-first to the ground.

The others stared for a moment, then moved closer and saw a short arrow embedded in the back of his head—a type none of them had ever seen.

The arrowhead had sunk completely into his skull.

Watching him twitch a few times on the ground, he then stopped breathing entirely.

The remaining strong men were shocked and hurriedly looked around.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Then came several more light sounds.

Three strong men, still unable to see what was happening, likewise took arrows to the head and fell into the blood pool.

"An assassin?!"

"Someone, seize the assassin!"

The two remaining strong men shouted as they ran.

But after just shouting once, they saw a towering figure, three heads taller than them, leap out of the darkness and instantly block their path.

The two froze in place, hurriedly shut their mouths, and rubbed their eyes hard.

Although the lantern light in the courtyard was dim, one could tell at a glance that the newcomer's build and stature were unlike anyone else's.

Even without seeing his face clearly, one could tell without thinking that, aside from that master, no one here was that tall.

"Mas... master?"

"How did you come out from over the wall?"

The two, faces filled with awe, cautiously asked in a low voice, then puzzledly turned their heads to look at the distant hall doors.

At that moment, a pair of powerful large hands each seized their throats.

"Mas... master!"

"Master, what are you doing..."

The two turned their heads in terror.

But before they could finish speaking, their neck bones were instantly snapped……