[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-my-life-as-a-rising-force-in-the-red-chamber":3,"chapter-my-life-as-a-rising-force-in-the-red-chamber-my-life-as-a-rising-force-in-the-red-chamber-chapter-36":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","My Life as a Rising Force in the Red Chamber",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2310834,4515,"Chapter 36: What a Ruthless Woman","my-life-as-a-rising-force-in-the-red-chamber-chapter-36",36,"\u003Cp>West of the Divine Capital, fifty li from Shuyun Villa, lies a desolate mountain rarely trodden by humans.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yesterday, Jia Cong’s carriage was ambushed; the thief scared off Guo Zhi and the others chasing him, dragging the carriage straight toward remote, uninhabited mountains and cliffs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Reaching a stream, the thief abandoned the carriage, wetted the wheel tracks with stream water, then dragged Jia Cong into the woods.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not long after, they heard chaotic hoofbeats and disorderly shouts behind them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The thief shoved Jia Cong down behind a boulder and peered out toward the distance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jia Cong saw riders circling the forest’s edge and others searching within the trees—likely officers from the Investigative Court and Zhen’an Prefecture had caught up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But those men were some distance away; Jia Cong guessed he might be heard if he shouted loudly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet he dared not make a sound, for a gleaming curved blade lay across his throat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The thief untied his sash and bound Jia Cong’s hands behind his back, stuffed a rag into his mouth, and shoved him deeper into the woods.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Soon night fell, and Jia Cong no longer heard the neighing or shouts near the forest’s edge—those men must have found no trace and retreated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the cave’s mouth, one could see the entire forest below, and beside the cave ran a barely noticeable goat path leading straight down the mountain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The world seemed reduced to just two figures stumbling through the woods, their weary, monotonous breathing, and a few hunters they encountered along the way.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The voice was crystal-clear and melodious—a woman’s—but icy, sending chills down the spine.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Had his hands not been bound, and seeing the thief’s injuries, Jia Cong might have dared to escape.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Jia Cong entered the cave, he feigned hesitation, pretending to catch his breath, and studied his surroundings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The thief kept her distance; night deepened, yet a full moon illuminated the woods with eerie shadows.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t even think of running. Though wounded, my sleeve darts can kill at twenty paces. If you doubt it, try.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She tossed him like a rice dumpling into the cave and left alone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The thief began leading him up a slope, aiming for the mountain’s midsection; Jia Cong, with hands bound, struggled painfully through the terrain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Such a place couldn’t be found by chance—it must have been scouted long ago by this female thief.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The thief tore a strip from her robe and bound Jia Cong’s feet as well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jia Cong trembled inside, thinking: Surely this woman wouldn’t dare be so reckless—I’m still a child.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They staggered up halfway up the mountain and hid in a secluded cave.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jia Cong’s heart turned cold—this desolate, ghostly place; if she slit his throat, no one would ever find his corpse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fortunately, his diet had improved recently, and he’d never stopped physical training, so his strength barely held out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Suddenly, a kick landed on his back—the thief seemed to know his thoughts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Inside the cave, the female thief kicked Jia Cong to the ground, pounced on him, and pinned him down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he’d gotten out of the carriage, Jia Cong had seen a red patch on her back—a knife wound, bandaged but likely bleeding heavily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet the thief breathed harder than he did, her voice sounding weak.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a long while, Jia Cong saw shadows moving at the cave mouth; the female thief returned carrying an armful of firewood, her shoulders and back soaked—she must have washed her wound outside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jia Cong lay bound on the ground, nearly frozen; when the fire ignited, heat rose in the cave, and his body slowly warmed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the firelight, the female thief wore a face veil tightly wrapped, revealing only a pair of eyes shimmering like clear streams, holding a porcelain bottle, hesitating.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then her gaze turned to Jia Cong; suddenly, she untied his hands and feet. Jia Cong felt uneasy, wondering what trick she’d play next.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then the female thief turned her back—and began unlacing her outer robe. Jia Cong’s eyes widened, unsure what she intended.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My back wound—I can’t reach the ointment myself. Help me apply it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If you dare look where you shouldn’t or play any tricks, I won’t kill you—I’ll gouge out your eyes, chop off your limbs, and leave you to freeze alive in the snow.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jia Cong heard her cold, ruthless tone and felt his bones chill—if she did that to him, death would be kinder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet hours had passed since her injury; Jia Cong had seen no ointment applied. Delay further, and blood loss, infection, sepsis—each could kill her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The female thief had no choice: the wound lay directly on her back, impossible for her to reach. She felt feverish—early signs of post-injury fever.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If she didn’t treat the wound soon, her life might end. That’s why she’d stripped bare to let Jia Cong apply the ointment—he was still a child, no great matter; she’d kill him cleanly afterward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jia Cong saw her peel half her back bare, revealing skin like polished jade, white as snow; beneath the firelight, it held a breathtaking beauty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking upward along her spine, a small, petal-shaped crimson birthmark, the size of a fingertip, glowed like a red plum on snow—strikingly exquisite.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jia Cong’s heart stirred—he recalled the day he’d ridden with Xiao Jindong and encountered Zhou Jun; on that road, an old woman had been knocked down, and her neck bore this same peculiar birthmark.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No two birthmarks could be identical in shape and location—this woman was the old woman in disguise that day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her appearance on Zhou Jun’s Jincheng  route couldn’t be coincidence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The wound slanted down from her left shoulder blade; it had been cleaned, the muscle edges curled open, pale and gruesome, but not deep—no bone exposed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The female thief handed him a black, long-necked, round-bellied bottle, heavy in his hand, as if made of metal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Inside, the ointment was black and viscous, its fragrance piercing and sweet, with a faint spicy edge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Smooth the skin edges over the wound, then seal it thickly with the ointment.” Her voice remained icy as ever; after instructing him, she tossed him a water bag.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In later times, such a deep cut would require suturing; even if Jia Cong had curved needles, he lacked the skill.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he prepared to treat the wound, the female thief drew her curved blade, gripping it tightly in her right hand. Jia Cong understood: if he so much as twitched while applying ointment, the blade would strike without mercy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He took a deep breath—being held at knife-point was no comfort. He washed his hands with water from the bag, then dried them thoroughly over the fire—only way to disinfect.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fortunately, years of calligraphy practice had given him exceptional finger control; following her instructions, he carefully smoothed the curled skin edges—neatly, meticulously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His fingers touched her back skin—soft, supple, silken; his heart fluttered. The female thief’s body twitched slightly, her breath quickening.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jia Cong saw her grip tighten on the blade, her eyes narrow—he forced his mind to steady.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once the wound edges were smoothed, he smeared a thick layer of black, viscous ointment over it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the ointment touched the wound, the female thief jerked violently, then trembled faintly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A fine sheen of sweat glistened across her luminous white back—like morning light on dew-kissed jade—leaving Jia Cong stunned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Clearly, the ointment burned fiercely; by the time Jia Cong finished, the female thief was drenched in sweat, her clothes half-saturated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jia Cong watched her dress, then turn away without looking back; her right hand, gripping the curved blade, swung toward him. Jia Cong’s heart leapt—was she about to kill him?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A heavy blow struck his neck and shoulder—he lost consciousness. As he fainted, he cursed: What a ruthless woman—just helped you apply ointment, and now this!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1302,"2026-06-20T12:19:54.434Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","8e0addcd096c3a345366242f97a857914ec4da98daf05cf56e9a03a76918810e","my-life-as-a-rising-force-in-the-red-chamber-chapter-37","my-life-as-a-rising-force-in-the-red-chamber-chapter-35",920,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fmy-life-as-a-rising-force-in-the-red-chamber-cover.jpg"]