Liang Wan followed his gaze. Not far away, flames blazed against the sky, illuminating almost the entire street as a squad of men marched toward them.
It was the Ministry of Justice!
Zhang Shi was a fourth-rank official; his unexplained murder meant they would inevitably interrogate everyone in the vicinity. She wouldn't be able to escape.
Liang Wan's face paled.
Lu Xiu gave a soft scoff and wiped the blood off his fingertips. He straightened his back and took a step backward. Just as he was about to walk away, his hem felt weighed down, forcing him to pause.
Looking down, he saw Liang Wan gripping the corner of his robe tightly, refusing to let go. Her face was smudged with soot and smoke, the corners of her eyes rimmed with red. Though she looked as fragile as a delicate flower that couldn't withstand a single snap, she exuded a stubborn tenacity and ruthlessness.
Lu Xiu raised an eyebrow. "What is the meaning of this?"
The women in Tongle Hall were either singing girls or dancing girls, so it wasn't unreasonable for Lu Xiu to suspect her. If interrogated, how would she explain getting from the Liang Mansion to Tongle Hall? More importantly, how could she explain being disheveled and covered in blood?
But Lu Xiu was different. No one would dare question him!
Liang Wan took a deep breath. "I killed the man, and I started the fire!"
"Oh?"
Although he had already guessed as much, the fleeting ruthlessness in her eyes made him narrow his own. He couldn't help but wonder if she was truly as fragile as she seemed.
He lowered his gaze to sweep over her slender, white neck. Beneath her outer robe, patches of exposed skin and crimson stains were visible; it was obvious that even her inner garments had been burned away.
Liang Wan tightened her grip on the corner of his robe. No, it wasn't just a piece of fabric; it was her lifeline. "From this day forward, I am willing to be at your disposal, Sir. I only ask for your protection!"
In this day and age, if a woman's power didn't match her beauty, her life wouldn't just be miserable—it would be an utter catastrophe! This, perhaps, was an opportunity. Since she was destined to be reduced to a tool anyway, why not choose her own master? Besides, Lu Xiu was a man of absolute power.
Lu Xiu looked down at her. "Protection? The Liang Mansion, or that Wang Su—couldn't either of them offer you protection? Yet you bypass the obvious choices right in front of you and beg me?"
At a past banquet, her uncle had ordered her to imitate Zhao Feiyan and perform a Palm Dance for the guests. Unexpectedly, her performance astonished everyone present. Not only did it earn her a stellar reputation, but it also prompted Wang Sikong to praise her profusely in public. The unspoken arrangement had been set in stone from that very day.
Thinking of the past, Liang Wan gritted her teeth. "I would rather die than be used by them."
She tilted her pointed chin up, her reddened eyes shimmering with unshed tears. It was clearly a plea, yet to him, she looked like she was throwing a petulant tantrum.
However, he truly had no interest in saving anyone.
"What does that have to do with me?" he said, shaking his head and pulling his robe free.
Liang Wan yanked it back desperately. "Sir, it's not that I'm afraid of dying; I'm just afraid of dying before my enemies! If you save me just this once today, Sir, I will repay you with my life after I kill them! Until my vengeance is fulfilled, you are my master!"
Liang Wan's eyes stung. Having finally managed to be reborn, she absolutely refused to be captured before exacting her revenge. She couldn't accept such an end.
Lu Xiu merely shot her a glance. "Are you truly willing to do anything for revenge?"
To the Liang Mansion, she was a disobedient, abandoned pawn; to Cui Hao, she was merely a stepping stone; and to those other men, she was nothing more than a plaything to be violated at will. Looking back on her previous life, she had possessed nothing but a battered heart and a body treated as public property.
Now, all she had left was this single life.
"I am willing to do anything!"
What kind of deep-seated blood feud could a delicate young lady from a scholarly family possibly have?
Glancing at the approaching group of men, Lu Xiu bent down and pried her fingers open, one by one. As the fabric slipped from her grasp, Liang Wan lowered her head and let out a laugh.
Had she run into anyone else today, she might have had a glimmer of hope. But of all people, it had to be Lu Xiu! Lu Xiu was one of the very few men in the imperial court who had never laid a hand on her, but he wouldn't save her, either.
That day, after answering a summons to the palace, she had been ambushed upon leaving. Men sent by Wang Su gagged her and dragged her to a secluded corner. Her struggles were futile. Coincidentally, Lu Xiu had walked past with his men. Whimpering, she reached out her hand to beg for help, but he merely cast a glance in her direction, offered a cold smile, and walked away.
It was that very smile that had extinguished the last spark of hope she held for this world.
Liang Wan was consumed by despair, wondering why it always had to be him. She weakly pushed herself up from the ground. The guards had already spotted her; interrogation was inevitable, and there was no place left to hide.
"Who are you?" someone shouted harshly before they even got close.
Liang Wan offered a polite curtsy. "I am from the Liang Family of the city's west side."
One of the men looked her up and down. "She looks like the young lady from Vice Minister Liang's residence," he said hesitantly.
The leader didn't even look her in the eye. "At this hour, what young lady from an official's family would be out on the streets alone? Besides, look at her! She obviously just escaped from the fire!"
Just as she had anticipated, her being alone, coupled with her disheveled appearance, made it impossible not to draw suspicion.
"I—"
"Who says she's alone?"
Before she could even explain, someone interrupted. The voice chimed like striking jade, piercing straight through her heart in the heavy stillness of the night.
Upon seeing the newcomer, the leader instantly dropped his arrogant demeanor and hurriedly bowed. "Greetings, Grand Commandant Lu."
Liang Wan stood frozen, not daring to look at him. She was simply in disbelief that he had actually come back.
Lu Xiu grunted in acknowledgment. His impenetrable expression left the guards slightly unnerved, and they exchanged uneasy glances.
Lu Xiu cast a sidelong glance at her. "If there's nothing else, we will be heading back."
As he spoke, a massive cloak was thrown over her head. Liang Wan's vision went black. Before she could react, he had wrapped his arm around her and was sweeping her away.
After taking just one step, he added, "If there is any issue, you know where the Master's Mansion is, right?"
Without waiting for a response, Lu Xiu practically carried her off. Beneath the heavy cloak, Liang Wan stumbled along beside him. She only dared to carefully pinch a corner of the fabric and tug it down gently, trying to expose her eyes...
By the Si River.
Lu Xiu grabbed the back of her collar and unceremoniously threw her out of the carriage.
Liang Wan slammed heavily onto the bluestone pavement. She gasped in pain. Her palms burned fiercely, definitely scraped raw from the fall.
He had just saved her life. Let alone throwing her to the ground, even if he had thrown her straight into the Si River, she still owed him her gratitude. Moreover, this was Lu Xiu. Even if he turned around and killed her right then and there, it wouldn't be surprising.
Enduring the pain, Liang Wan propped herself up but didn't rise to her feet. Instead, she bowed deeply against the ground.
"Thank you for saving my life, Sir. I—"
"Save? Do I look like someone who saves people?"
Liang Wan looked up. He stood there, towering over her. On his porcelain-white face, his fox-like eyes curved into what appeared to be a smile. Yet, that smile was more chilling than the Si River on a winter night.
It was true. In her previous life, when the tyrant was drunk and took pleasure in killing for sport, Lu Xiu had servants present long saws, massive boiling cauldrons, and iron files for the emperor to choose from. When there weren't enough people to kill, he suggested using death row inmates. And when the death row inmates ran out, he proposed using "imperial prisoners"...
It was a blessing if he didn't actively help murder people. Since when did he ever save anyone? No matter how bloody or brutal the scene, he could sit to the side like it was nothing, watching with mild indifference.
Lu Xiu tucked his hands into his sleeves and gazed thoughtfully at the Si River as its waters flowed with a loud WHOOSH.
"Killing a person in this day and age is truly too easy—so easy that it's become dreadfully dull. You must understand, when one lives through boring days for too long, one desires to see something a little different."