Seeing his unsightly complexion, the young girl knew he must be angry. She felt helpless.
"It's okay. It'll get better in a few days. It just looks a bit scary."
The man punched the window beside him. If he hadn't been afraid of attracting others' attention and had restrained himself a bit, he might have already gone to the side courtyard to settle accounts with that person.
However, he wouldn't let this matter go so easily.
"Coincidentally, I have some ointment here. Your Majesty the Queen Mother can use it first."
The young girl wasn't polite and accepted it. Although she didn't plan to use it recently, there would always be a time when it would come in handy.
Getting back to the point, she said, "You must have found out some news, right?"
"I'm afraid I'll have to trouble Your Majesty the Queen Mother to come with me in person. There really is someone you might be very interested in."
Shi Muyuan was taken aback and looked a bit surprised.
"Could there really be someone in Yijin City who knows her? Didn't they just arrive here a few days ago? If there really is someone related to the He family here, then the He family's influence can be considered terrifying."
Fortunately, the man's answer relieved her.
"The Emperor found this person in the palace. He used to be a spy beside He Hui. Because He Hui fled a few days ago, the spy was deliberately left in the palace to distract us."
So that's how it was. If this person was really a spy, he must know a lot of things beside He Hui.
But she looked outside with a hint of worry.
The man understood what was on her mind at a glance and comforted her, saying, "There are few people in this world who can match my lightness kung fu. I also noticed when I came just now that there are no shadow guards in this courtyard. Your Majesty the Queen Mother can rest assured. Even if you go out secretly with me, no one will notice."
The man's words were like a reassuring pill, calming the young girl's heart.
"In that case, I'll have to trouble the National Teacher."
Since Shi Muyuan didn't know lightness kung fu, if she wanted to go out, she could only be carried by him. And the so - called way of carrying was nothing but being held in his arms.
It was the first time the two were so close, and both of them blushed deeply.
What surprised Shi Muyuan even more was that she felt the man's gentlemanly hands. He was really so meticulous.
Since it would take a while to reach the detention place, she took the opportunity to quietly observe the man's expression.
In fact, the man in front of her would be a good destination. Everything about him was excellent, and his values were also very correct. If she were an ordinary woman, she might even consider being with him.
She was startled by her own bold thought. Shi Muyuan widened her eyes. If it weren't for the cover of the night, she would have been extremely embarrassed at this moment.
Bah, bah, bah. What are you thinking, Shi Muyuan? Even if it weren't in this era, but in modern times, such a thought would easily be criticized by many people.
While she was daydreaming, they arrived at their destination.
She had just gotten used to being carried for a while, and suddenly standing on the ground, she felt a bit disappointed.
This emotion only lasted for a moment. She looked at the abandoned courtyard seriously, unable to believe it.
"Surely the National Teacher isn't going to tell me that this is the place where you're temporarily staying?"
It wasn't that she was being picky. The courtyard was extremely dilapidated, with weeds growing everywhere. From time to time, snakes and insects crawled by. If it weren't for the man's non - committal look, she would really have thought she had gone to the wrong place.
"Your Majesty the Queen Mother, don't just look at the surface. There's a whole lot more inside. Let's go in first. I'll explain as we go."
Helplessly, under the man's guidance, she followed him in. After passing through a secret passage in the study and reaching the underground, after several turns, the view gradually became broader.
The man was right. She was a bit surprised. The wisdom of the ancients was truly unfathomable.
"In just a few days, the National Teacher has managed to get so many people to settle here. I'm really impressed."
"Your Majesty the Queen Mother is overpraising me. It's all out of necessity. Otherwise, we can't always rely on others."
That made sense.
After passing through several rooms, they finally stopped in front of a door. Before they even entered, the air was filled with the smell of blood.
She couldn't help but frown and it took her a great deal of effort to suppress the nausea.
"Is the person inside?"
"Yes."
The two pushed the door open. What greeted their eyes was a woman covered in wounds lying on the ground. If it weren't for the movement of the iron chain on her foot, the young girl would have thought she was dead.
Shi Muyuan couldn't bear to look and turned her head to the side.
"Why is she in such a state?"
"There's no other way. After all, she was someone else's lackey before. She definitely wouldn't listen to us so easily, so we had to use some other means. If Your Majesty the Queen Mother can't stand it, I'll have someone move her to another place."
Hearing this, the woman on the ground showed a look of struggle and endurance in her eyes.
Shi Muyuan took a deep breath and waved her hand. "We don't have much time. Let's just stay here. Do you have any way to make her talk?"
The man gave a look to the shadow guard beside him. The shadow guard picked up the whip beside him and was about to step forward.
The blood on the whip hadn't dried yet. Presumably, the woman had been tortured before they came.
Looking at the barbs swaying with the whip, Shi Muyuan's gaze fell on the man.
The man looked innocent. "The only methods I have are these bloody ones."
Well, she had placed too much hope in him.
It seemed that she had to do it herself.
The young girl first stopped the shadow guard. "If you keep beating her, she'll die. I'll try to have a good talk with her."
The shadow guard didn't say much and stepped back.
The young girl slowly approached and helped the woman on the ground up. The woman originally wanted to struggle, but because of her wounds, she had no strength.
After sitting on the chair, she finally found the opportunity to speak.
"If you have the guts, just kill me. These minor injuries are nothing. Don't think I don't know your tricks. Even if I tell you everything, after you've used me, you'll still kill me. Hmph, a lowly life is not worth anything in people's eyes."
The desolation in her words made people can't help but feel a bit sympathetic.
The young girl felt helpless and took off her outer robe and covered it on the woman.
The man didn't quite approve of this.
"Your Majesty the Queen Mother's action will easily dirty your own clothes. Moreover, a lowly thing isn't worthy of you doing this."
Shi Muyuan rolled her eyes. This straight - laced man.
"In this place where men are superior to women, a woman's last bit of dignity is sometimes hard to obtain. Since we're both women, I don't need to kill her just because I can't get what I want."
"If Your Majesty the Queen Mother can't bear to do it, I can do it myself."
As the man spoke, the woman clenched her fists. Blood dripped down and formed little plum - blossom - like puddles on the ground.
"Don't pretend to be kind. Just kill me and give me a quick death."
Saying that, she was about to tear off the outer robe on her body. At the same time, a warm hand covered hers, making her freeze.
"Your clothes are too thin. Put it on. Since we're all human beings, we should be equal."