Dongmei looked up at Bai Ke in disbelief, her eyes brimming with tears. This man she had adored for three years... She never thought...
Tears streamed down her cheeks and splashed onto the cold ground.
She took a deep breath, bent down, and picked up her sword.
Her eyes were full of pain, but her heart hurt even more. In the past, when she and her elder sister had disguised themselves as men and trained in the army, all of Bai Ke's care and favoritism had, at this moment, turned into sharp swords piercing her heart.
Dongxue got up from the ground and shook Bai Ke's arm, pleading, "Captain Bai, please! She's my only younger sister. Give her another chance."
Bai Ke sneered, withdrew his arm, and took a step back.
"Dongmei has offended the Lady many times. She should have been punished long ago."
Dongmei tugged at Dongxue and wiped away her tears. "Sister, don't beg him! At worst, I'll just die! I'll be a good person again in eighteen years!"
She slowly raised her hand and placed the sword against her neck.
Dongxue's tears fell like broken beads. She reached out to stop her, but Dongmei took a step back and leaned against the prison door.
"Don't come any closer! Bai Ke, I misjudged you and loved you in vain. I only have one last request for you now. Please take my sister away."
Hearing her words, Bai Ke frowned and looked at her. He never knew that Dongmei had feelings for him.
However, he was always a soft - hearted person. Since Dongmei had made a request, he would do his best to fulfill it.
So, before Dongxue could react, he struck her with a chop to the neck, knocking her unconscious. Then he held the unconscious Dongxue in his arms.
"I'm taking her away. You can do as you please."
He carried Dongxue out. Dongmei took one last deep look at him, closed her eyes, gritted her teeth, and was about to act.
Suddenly, Mo Qinghuan appeared at the door. She raised her arm and triggered a mechanism on her ring. A hidden weapon shot out, grazing Bai Ke's hair and flying towards Dongmei.
The silver needle hit the hilt of the sword. The sword let out a humming sound, numbing her hand. She dropped the sword immediately.
She stared at Mo Qinghuan in surprise. "Do you think I'll be grateful to you for saving me?"
Mo Qinghuan sneered and walked out of the dungeon without answering.
Bai Ke turned back angrily. "Dongmei! You're being so ungrateful."
Then he followed Mo Qinghuan out of the dungeon.
Mo Qinghuan returned to the Sunlit Palace. She stepped into the room with her head down, in a bad mood.
Mu Yanming saw her like this and got up to help her sit down at the table.
He asked with concern, "What's wrong? You look so dejected. Who made you angry?"
Bai Ke happened to arrive at the door. Hearing Mu Yanming's question, his heart skipped a beat.
He knew that if the Lady told the Lord what had happened today, Dongmei's fate would be far worse than just self - harm.
He subconsciously coughed lightly. Mo Qinghuan turned to look at Bai Ke, snorted, and walked into the inner room.
Seeing this, Mu Yanming thought that Bai Ke had offended Mo Qinghuan.
So he looked at Bai Ke with a gloomy face and said, "Tell me, what happened?"
Bai Ke didn't dare to hide anything. Just as he was about to speak...
He heard Mo Qinghuan's voice. "My Lord, this Bai Ke is really too much! He dared to disobey my orders!"
She was sitting behind the screen, so her voice was a bit louder, but it sounded more like a coquettish complaint.
Bai Ke secretly let out a sigh of relief. He knew that his Lady was a kind - hearted person. As long as the other person didn't commit unforgivable sins, she wouldn't kill them.
"Why did you disobey her?" Mu Yanming returned to the table and sat down, sipping his tea leisurely.
Bai Ke stepped in, bowed his head, and admitted his mistake. "Yes, My Lord. I deserve to die for disobeying the Lady's orders. I'll go and receive my punishment later."
Another snort came from the room. Mu Yanming slightly curved his lips and looked up at Bai Ke.
Bai Ke kept his head down and didn't even dare to breathe loudly.
After a long silence, Mo Qinghuan walked out from behind the screen, sat in front of Mu Yanming, grabbed his hand, and shook it coquettishly. "My Lord, is it really that simple to just let him go and receive his punishment?"
Mu Yanming reached out and gently tapped the tip of her nose, smiling tenderly and indulgently.
"Then tell me, how do you want to punish him?"
Mo Qinghuan turned to look at Bai Ke. A thought suddenly flashed through her mind. A person like Bai Ke rarely made mistakes. Even if he did, having served Mu Yanming for so many years, she guessed that Mu Yanming wouldn't punish him severely.
She gave a mischievous smile and whispered in Mu Yanming's ear, "My Lord, how about punishing him to run around the mansion ten times?"
Mu Yanming flicked her forehead with his finger. "Little rascal."
Seeing the two of them smiling so happily, Bai Ke felt a chill run down his spine. "My Lord, please just give me a quick end!"
Mu Yanming raised his eyebrows and smiled. "The Lady has said that you'll be punished to run around the mansion ten times. As for the matter of your disobedience, it'll be over."
Bai Ke thought he had misheard and subconsciously asked, "Run around the mansion ten times?"
Mo Qinghuan lifted her head proudly. "What? Now you not only disobey my orders but also don't understand what I'm saying?"
Bai Ke smiled and stepped back. "Thank you, Lady, for your mercy. I'll go right away."
As he reached the threshold, he almost stumbled. Mo Qinghuan pursed her lips and snickered.
After Bai Ke left, Mu Yanming turned to look at Mo Qinghuan and asked seemingly casually, "You still haven't told me what order you gave Bai Ke that he disobeyed?"
Mo Qinghuan lowered her head and rolled her eyes. She knew that the more she tried to hide it, the more curious Mu Yanming would be. If he investigated on his own in the end, that girl Dongmei would surely be in big trouble. Although Dongmei had offended her a few times, she didn't deserve to die.
She poured a cup of tea and handed it to Mu Yanming. Then she held his hand. "Actually, it's nothing. The swing in the yard was loose, so I asked him to fix it. But he told me it was just as well that it was broken, because it's not safe for me to sit on it now that I'm pregnant. He even said he deliberately didn't fix it. Humph, I'm so angry."
Mu Yanming put down the teacup and held her small hand in his. "Now even I won't side with you. Bai Ke is right. You're pregnant now and must be careful about everything. Since the swing is loose, I'll send someone to take it down."
She deliberately showed a nervous expression about the swing, snorted, and turned her head to the side.
"You're bullying me too. Humph, I'm ignoring you."
She got up and was about to go into the inner room. Mu Yanming quickly followed and grabbed her hand.
"Alright, alright. I promise you that after you give birth, I'll definitely install two new swings in the yard for you."