The wind was quite strong today. The leaves in the forest rustled as if whispering under its force. The golden sunlight filtered through the gaps in the leaves and scattered on the ground, resembling the sparse and lingering snowflakes in winter.
Feng Wan stood under a tree, her gaze fixed intently on Kong Jiao lying on the ground.
"Miss..."
The maid attending her was filled with dread at the sight of her almost obsessive state. "Third Miss, are you really going to..."
"Shut up!" Feng Wan snapped without even turning her head.
Then, a dagger slipped from her sleeve into her hand. She gently drew it out of its sheath, and the exposed silver blade glinted with a cold light.
Seeing this, the maid grew even more terrified, her legs trembling uncontrollably.
Another gust of wind blew through, making the already dim forest even colder and more desolate.
The maid was so frightened that she collapsed to the ground, but Feng Wan didn't spare her a single glance, for Kong Jiao had woken up.
His drooping eyelashes fluttered slightly. After a moment, he slowly opened his eyes, his expression dazed from just waking up.
However, when he saw the person in front of him clearly, the daze in his eyes was quickly replaced by a childlike delight.
"Beauty! Beauty!" Kong Jiao instinctively tried to get up and move closer, but only to find that he was tied up tightly and thrown on the ground. Immediately, he began to struggle.
But he didn't know what method the masked person had used before. The more he struggled, the tighter the ropes seemed to bind him.
His eyes quickly filled with mist. Completely at a loss, the youngest son of the Kong family could only pout and whine to Feng Wan pitifully, "It hurts, beauty. It hurts."
Just five steps away, the dagger was fully unsheathed. All she had to do was plunge it into his body, and she could avenge her elder sister.
At this moment, Feng Wan's determination to kill Kong Jiao was unshakable.
Seeing that the beauty didn't move, Kong Jiao thought she hadn't heard him, so he repeated, "Jiao'er hurts! Beauty, Jiao'er hurts!"
This time, Feng Wan finally made a move.
She raised her hands high, and the cold light of the dagger formed a silver thread that pierced into his body without any resistance. A gush of bright red blood spurted out instantly, splashing all over her face.
The forest was deathly silent. The young maid had fainted from the shock of what she had just witnessed.
As for Kong Jiao, the protagonist of this incident, his pupils were dilated and he was completely stunned. Almost all his senses seemed to have stopped functioning.
A few breaths later, his senses returned, and a shrill scream sent the birds flying in all directions.
Lu Yinxi suddenly stopped in her tracks and turned back, her gaze fixed on a certain point in the void.
"What's wrong?"
The man also stopped and followed her line of sight. All he could see was the lush greenery and the fluttering birds.
"Did you hear any strange noises?"
"Noises?"
The man held his breath and closed his eyes to listen intently, but all he could hear was the wind and the distant voices of people.
"I didn't hear anything."
Was it just her imagination?
Lu Yinxi looked in the direction where Feng Wan had left. The uneasiness in her heart grew stronger. After a moment of hesitation, she said, "My lord, I want to go find Miss Feng."
The white silk skirt fluttered in the wind, and the splatters of blood made Lord Kong feel dizzy. But when he saw his youngest son being held hostage by the assailant, he had to pull himself together.
"Miss, please, please spare my son. I'll do anything you ask if you let him go!"
Tears welled up in his eyes again. In all these years, Kong Ren rarely found himself in such a sorry state. But for Jiao'er, as long as his son was alive, none of this mattered.
"Do anything? What if I want him dead?!"
The shiny blade inched closer to Kong Jiao's throat. With just one swipe from Feng Wan, this man would bleed to death on the spot.
"No, stop! Don't..."
As Feng Wan made her move, Kong Ren's heart skipped a beat. "Miss, please, let's talk this over. Don't do anything rash. Don't hurt Jiao'er!"
"Don't hurt him? How can I avenge my sister if I don't hurt him?"
The delicate skin came into contact with the sharp blade, leaving a thin red line instantly. Kong Jiao, who had quieted down due to blood loss, started to cry again, looking extremely pitiful.
"It hurts, Daddy. The beauty hurts me."
Seeing his son pleading for help, Kong Ren's heart ached with paternal love, but he was utterly helpless.
At this moment, Feng Wan only felt a sense of great relief. She remembered clearly how the Kong family had responded when her elder sister's reputation was tarnished by Kong Jiao.
"Lady Mei, if your daughter hadn't walked on the street, how could our Jiao'er have hugged her?"
"Everyone knows that our Jiao'er is different from others. Why did your eldest daughter get so close to him?"
"You say our Jiao'er has sullied your daughter's reputation. I'd say it's your eldest daughter who is shameless and deliberately trying to seduce our Jiao'er!"
The past events were still vivid in her mind. Back then, Lady Mei had gone to the Kong family to seek justice for her daughter, only to be humiliated even more. When she returned home, her eldest daughter had already committed suicide.
Suppressing the sadness in her heart, Feng Wan no longer wanted to play nice with Kong Ren. She was determined to kill him with her own hands today.
She tightened her grip on the dagger, making up her mind.
Suddenly, something flew towards her. It cut through the resistance of the air and the falling leaves, and finally hit her wrist hard.
Feng Wan felt a numbness in her hand, and all the strength in her grip was gone. She couldn't even hold the dagger, let alone threaten the man in front of her.
In the blink of an eye, everything Feng Wan had to threaten Kong Ren with was out of her hands.
Lord Wang wasn't surprised at all. He simply said coldly, "Take action!"
Swords were unsheathed. They were only dealing with a defenseless young lady from a noble family, accompanied by the hateful voice of Minister Kong.
"Kill her! Kill her for me! How dare she hurt my Jiao'er? I'll make you pay with your life!"
Hearing this, Lord Wang just glanced at him out of the corner of his eye and said, "Take her back and hand her over to the Supreme Court for trial."
Kong Ren's expression froze. He thought he was hallucinating. How could this woman who had hurt Jiao'er get off so easily?
With a "shing" sound, the long sword was unsheathed. A look of surprise flashed across Lord Wang's eyes. He had been caught off guard, and Kong Ren had snatched his sword.
"You scoundrel, take your life!"
"Stop him!"
When Lu Yinxi and Shang Luoshu arrived, this was the scene they saw.
Feng Wan was in danger!
Without hesitation, the words engraved in her bones blurted out instinctively, "Stop right now!"
The familiar pain came crashing down on her again. The next moment, she fell into a familiar embrace, accompanied by his exclamation.
Holding the trembling Lu Yinxi, Shang Luoshu hardly dared to use any force, for fear of making her, who was already in pain, suffer even more.
Steadying his emotions, the man said in a subdued and restrained voice, "Kong Ren, the Minister of Rites, is suspected of intentionally killing the third miss of the General of the Agile Cavalry's residence, which violates the laws of our dynasty. Chen Guang, take everyone to the Supreme Court for trial!
"Those who resist will be executed on the spot!"