The urgent letter arrived in Yangcheng three days later.
At dawn, the streets suddenly erupted in commotion, drawing countless gazes toward the source of the noise.
"What's going on?"
"What happened?"
The crowd asked one another, then heard the shouts amidst the commotion.
"Young Master!"
"Young Master!"
Young Master?
De Sheng Chang's Young Master? Wasn't it said a few days ago that he drank himself nearly to death? How could he be out again? The crowd surged toward the commotion.
Sure enough, they saw a young man galloping by on horseback. He was adorned in resplendent clothes, shimmering with jewels, looking spirited and energetic. The horse was racing fast; he showed no signs of someone nearing death.
The women watching were both thrilled and moved, with quite a few shedding tears.
"It's so good to see the Young Master safe."
"I knew fortune would smile upon him."
"The Young Master would never succumb to harm."
Fang Chengyu did not wave or joke with the people on the roadside as he typically would. His demeanor was somewhat rushed as he sped by.
"Something must have happened, right?" the people on the street speculated.
"Word is, it wasn't from drinking too much—it was from poisoning," someone whispered.
The rumor spread quickly, sparking waves of bewildered inquiries.
Two men squeezed out from within the crowd, staring at the distant figure of Fang Chengyu surrounded by guards. Their expressions were grim and uncertain. They exchanged glances and turned into an alley, disappearing from sight.
Fang Chengyu had already entered a residence, protected by his escort.
Inside the room, a young woman was tied to a wooden frame, her head drooping as if she were unconscious.
Fang Chengyu stopped and stood in front of her, raising his chin slightly.
Immediately, guards stepped forward, splashing a bucket of water onto her. The woman twitched violently, lifting her head as wet hair hung on both sides, revealing her face. It was the servant who had poured water for Fang Chengyu at the inn a few days ago.
Though her face and body bore no visible injuries, her jaw hung slack—clearly dislocated.
When she saw Fang Chengyu, she struggled helplessly, her eyes filled with desperate pleading and fear.
"You must be wondering how I managed to see through you," Fang Chengyu said to her.
In front of this young woman, he exhibited none of his usual playful smile. His eyes gleamed—not with childlike innocence but with a strange, unsettling intensity that sent chills down the spine.
If Old Lady Fang were present, she would recognize that this gleam in his eye was the same as the look he had when he swiftly and decisively killed County Magistrate Li back in the dungeon.
The young woman stared at him, shaking her head and pleading with her eyes to assert her innocence.
"First of all, you're different from the women of Yangcheng," Fang Chengyu said with a smile. "When you saw me, you didn't seem excited in the slightest. Isn't that peculiar?"
What's peculiar about that? Why should Yangcheng's women all be excited to see him? The young woman's expression turned bewildered.
"Because I'm good-looking," Fang Chengyu gave her a smile.
The young woman's expression grew increasingly chaotic.
This boy must be insane, right? She desperately shook her head once more, her plea for innocence evident.
"Of course, the most crucial reason—" Fang Chengyu continued, smiling, "—is that Nine-Ling told me not to eat anything outside, saying that outsiders are all bad people."
As he spoke, he pointed his finger at her.
"So, as soon as you appeared, I pegged you as a bad person."
What kind of logic is this? The young woman stared at him, dumbfounded.
Fang Chengyu grinned at her.
"But don't worry; I won't hurt you," he said brightly.
The boy's handsome appearance coupled with his seemingly sincere demeanor and courteous tone made him all the more unsettling. His presence provoked unease and a tingling scalp.
The young woman opened her mouth to beg once more with muffled cries, but Fang Chengyu had already turned his back.
"Let her go," he said, waving his hand.
Let her go? Released?
After three days of captivity, with no beatings or scoldings, she was just going to be set free? What was the meaning of this?
"Even if I ask you, you won't speak," Fang Chengyu shrugged. "Torturing people through beatings and scoldings is far too barbaric—it's something I despise. Anyway, I already know someone tried to harm me. I don't care who it is. Nine-Ling always says outsiders are all bad people, so it's no big deal."
What kind of nonsensical reasoning is this? The young woman was even more baffled. This Young Master of Fang Family really seemed as if he'd been raised to uselessness after years of confinement—so childish in his thinking.
Before she could make another plea, she was already untied, helped out of the frame, and placed into a carriage.
The carriage took a winding route, and just as the young woman began suspecting she'd actually be silenced permanently, she was unceremoniously pushed out of the coach, her jaw conveniently restored as well.
She fell to the ground, feeling dazed. Looking up, she realized the carriage had vanished—and to her surprise, she wasn't left stranded in some desolate mountain area but was still within Yangcheng.
It was in the back alley of that very inn.
The young woman touched her face, her expression shifting uncertainly.
Inside her mouth was a poison pouch she carried for emergencies—prepared for suicide in case of capture—but she hadn't had the chance to use it after her jaw was dislocated so abruptly.
Now that she had been released and spared from interrogation, what should she do—take her own life or cling to survival?
Perhaps the Fang Family intended to use her as bait to lure out the mastermind. If the conspirators didn't come after her, and she didn't seek them out either, wouldn't she be safe?
Her hand caressed her smooth face. At twenty years old, her youth and beauty were at their peak—her skin supple and soft as jade.
Living… it was such a wonderful thing.
She stood up and began walking slowly out of the alley.
The bustling street was vibrant and busy, no one paying her any mind. Cautiously, she navigated through the crowd when, suddenly, a passing carriage halted before her. Before she could react, she was yanked inside.
Once again overcome by dizziness, she hadn't time to scream before hearing a low voice.
"It's me."
A familiar voice—her ally's. The young woman exhaled in relief, feeling slightly elated.
"Mr. Yang..." she said.
Inside the carriage sat two men with somber expressions.
"What happened?" one of them asked.
"He saw through me; he wasn't poisoned," the young woman quickly answered. "I was immediately captured at the time."
The two men exchanged glances.
"You actually survived?" one of them asked. "What did you tell him?"
The young woman hurriedly shook her head.
"Nothing, nothing—I didn't say anything," she said anxiously. Then she hesitated, realizing her answer sounded unconvincing. "No, they didn't question me at all."
She recounted Fang Chengyu's words to them.
The two men exchanged glances once again.
"Oh," they said, "so that's how it is."
The young woman nodded emphatically.
"Yes…" she said, just as one of the men reached out and dislocated her jaw with a quick snap while the other grabbed her arms, twisting them in two rapid movements until they hung limp.
The sudden assault left her in excruciating pain—her face contorted as she crumpled onto the floor of the carriage like a broken doll.
"Did you think we're children, buying into your nonsensical story?"
Men's curses rang in her ears, accompanied by hands reaching into her mouth to extract the poison pouch.
"Let's see what Master Sun gets out of you. Then maybe we'll believe your words."
At the mention of Master Sun, the young woman's face twisted further, her eyes filled with utter terror.
The horrifying torture Master Sun was known for—no one could withstand it. Worse yet, she had nothing meaningful to reveal; she'd truly experienced nothing during her captivity—just three days of confinement without even a chance to speak.
Even if she were skinned alive or her tendons severed, she wouldn't be able to divulge anything.
At this point, taking the poison earlier might have been the easier way out.
As the woman thought of what awaited her, her eyes rolled back, fainting from sheer terror.
.......
......
"I dislike beating or killing people—it's too dull and dirty," Fang Chengyu said, wiping his hands with a brocade handkerchief, sounding faintly irritated.
"Rather, I enjoy letting others handle such things for me."
Manager Gao responded affirmatively, his expression a mix of amusement and unease.
"That woman will certainly come to miss the kindness of the Young Master," he said.
Fang Chengyu handed over the brocade handkerchief, just as someone walked in from outside.
"Young Master, a letter from Miss Jun," the person reported.
Fang Chengyu's face lit up with an exuberant smile as he reached for the letter.
"Has Nine-Ling already learned of this incident?" he asked.
"We haven't sent word to the capital yet," Manager Gao admitted with surprise.
Without Fang Chengyu's permission, not even correspondence from Old Lady Fang or Lady Fang would be delivered to Miss Jun.
Fang Chengyu let out an "oh," already lowering his head to skim through the letter quickly.
Something happened in the capital? Manager Gao speculated as he observed him.
Fang Chengyu's smile didn't waver, and after scanning it once, he carefully reread the letter word by word before whistling lightly.
"So that person has indeed appeared. What's coming next will bring even bigger and messier trouble for the Fang Family," he remarked joyfully.
This was something worth celebrating? Manager Gao failed to comprehend, puzzled.
"Of course," Fang Chengyu explained, "for years, the Fang Family has been nothing but prey—secretly mocked and slaughtered. Now, we finally get to face them head-on."
He folded the letter and tucked it away, patting his chest with exaggerated flair.
"How terrifying! I've just narrowly survived attempted murder; I must write to Nine-Ling and tell her I'm scared to death!"
Watching the young man's exuberant demeanor, Manager Gao stroked his beard. These youngsters—truly beyond his understanding.
.........
...........
(A tale too complex for last night's horrors; thank heavens above.)