Liang Wan followed his gaze. Not far away, flames lit up the sky, illuminating almost the entire street. A group of people was walking toward them.
It was the men from the Ministry of Justice!
Zhang Shu was a fourth-rank official. His mysterious murder would certainly lead to an investigation of everyone nearby. She wouldn't be able to escape.
Liang Wan's face turned pale.
Lu Xiu scoffed, wiped the blood from his fingertips, and straightened up. He took a step back, but as he went to lift his foot again, the hem of his robe felt as if it were weighted down, causing him to pause.
Looking down, he saw Liang Wan clutching the corner of his robe, refusing to let go. On her smoke-and-fire-ravaged face, the corners of her eyes were red. She was clearly a flower too delicate to be broken, yet she possessed a surprising toughness and ruthlessness.
Lu Xiu raised an eyebrow. "And what might be the meaning of this, little lady?"
The women in Tongle Hall were either singing girls or dancing girls. Lu Xiu's suspicion of her was not without reason.
'If they question me, how can I explain how I got from the Liang Mansion to Tongle Hall? More importantly, my clothes are a mess and I have blood on me?'
'But Lu Xiu is different. No one would dare question him!'
Liang Wan took a deep breath. "I killed the man. I set the fire."
"Oh—"
Although he had already guessed as much, the ruthless glint in her eyes still made him narrow his own. He couldn't help but wonder, 'Is she really so delicate?'
His gaze dropped again, sweeping over her slender, pale neck. Beneath her outer robe, hints of skin and crimson were visible; her inner tunic had clearly been burned away.
Liang Wan tightened her grip on the corner of his robe. 'No, this isn't just a piece of clothing; it's my lifeline.' "In the future, I am willing to serve you, my lord. I only ask for your protection!"
'In this world, if a woman's beauty is not matched by power, her life isn't just tragic—it's a complete catastrophe!'
'This... this might be an opportunity.'
'Since I'm destined to be a tool anyway, why not choose my master for myself?'
'Besides, Lu Xiu is a man who can blot out the sky with a single hand.'
Lu Xiu looked down at her. "Protection? Your Liang Mansion, and that Wang Su—couldn't either of them protect you? Yet you ignore what's near to seek what's far, and beg me?"
At a banquet long ago, her uncle had ordered her to imitate Zhao Feiyan and perform a "Palm Dance" for the guests. Unexpectedly, her dance stunned the audience. It not only made her famous for her beauty but also earned her effusive public praise from Wang Sikong.
The tacit understanding had been set that day.
Thinking of the past, Liang Wan gritted her teeth. "I would rather die than be used by them."
She held her pointed chin high, her reddened eyes shimmering with unshed tears. Though she was begging, to him, she looked like she was being petulant.
But he truly had no interest in saving people.
"What does this have to do with me?"
With that, he shook his head and began to pull his robe free.
Liang Wan yanked it back fiercely. "My lord, I'm not afraid of dying. I'm just afraid of dying before my enemies! If you save me today, my lord, I swear I will repay this life to you once I've killed my foes! Until my vengeance is complete, you will be my master!"
Liang Wan's eyes stung. 'She had finally been reborn, only to be captured like this before she could even get her revenge. She couldn't accept it.'
Lu Xiu glanced at her. "Are you truly willing to do anything for revenge?"
'To the Liang Mansion, I was a disobedient, discarded pawn. To Cui Hao, I was a stepping stone. And to those men, I was a plaything for them to defile as they pleased.'
'Looking back at my past life, I had nothing but a body passed from man to man and a heart riddled with a thousand wounds.'
'Now, this life is all I have left.'
"I am willing to do anything!"
'What kind of blood feud could such a delicate lady from a scholarly family possibly have?'
Glancing at the approaching group, Lu Xiu bent down and pried her fingers open, one by one.
As the corner of his robe slipped away, Liang Wan lowered her head and let out a laugh.
'If she had met anyone else today, there might have been a glimmer of hope. But it just had to be Lu Xiu!'
'Lu Xiu was one of the few men at court who had never touched her, but he wouldn't save her either.'
'That day, she had been summoned to the palace. When she came out, men sent by Wang Su had covered her mouth and dragged her to a secluded place.'
'Her struggles were useless. By chance, Lu Xiu passed by with his men. She had whimpered, reaching out a hand for help, but he had only glanced her way, given a chilling smile, and walked on…'
'That one smile had extinguished the last remaining shred of hope she had for this world.'
Liang Wan was utterly hopeless. 'Why does it always have to be him?'
She was too weak to get up. They had already seen her. Questioning was inevitable; there was no escaping it.
"Who are you?" someone shouted before they even got close.
Liang Wan performed a curtsy. "Of the Liang Family from the west of the city."
Someone looked her up and down, then said hesitantly, "She looks like the young lady from Vice Minister Liang's mansion."
The leader didn't even deign to look at her properly. "At this hour, what young lady from an official's family would be alone on the streets? And look at her—she's clearly just escaped from that fire!"
It was just as she'd expected. Not only was she alone, but in her current state, it was indeed hard not to arouse suspicion.
"I—"
"Who said she was alone?"
She had barely opened her mouth when someone cut in, their voice like the striking of jade, piercing the heart in the heavy night.
Seeing who it was, the leader's previous arrogance vanished. He hurriedly bowed. "Greetings, Grand Commandant."
Liang Wan stood frozen, not daring to look at him, utterly disbelieving. 'He… he actually came back?'
Lu Xiu grunted in acknowledgement.
His inscrutable expression made the men slightly uneasy, and they exchanged glances.
Lu Xiu shot her a sideways glance. "If there's nothing else, we'll be heading back."
As he spoke, a large cloak was thrown over her head. Liang Wan's vision went black, and before she could react, he was already hustling her away.
After taking a single step, he added, "If anything comes up, you know where the Master's Mansion is, don't you?"
Without waiting for a reply, Lu Xiu hauled her along and strode off.
Beneath the cloak, Liang Wan stumbled as he pulled her along. She only dared to carefully tug on a corner, trying to pull it down just enough to see…
By the Si River, Lu Xiu grabbed her by the back of her collar and unceremoniously threw her from the long-eaved carriage.
Liang Wan landed hard on the green flagstones. The pain made her gasp, and her palms stung, surely scraped raw.
'He just saved me. Never mind being thrown on the ground; even if he threw me into the Si River, I would still have to thank him.'
'Besides, he was Lu Xiu. It wouldn't even be surprising if he turned around and killed me on the spot.'
Liang Wan pushed herself up through the pain, but she didn't stand. Instead, she prostrated herself on the ground.
"Thank you for saving my life, my lord. I—"
"Save? Do I look like someone who saves people?"
Liang Wan looked up. He stood over her, his porcelain-white face bearing a pair of curved, fox-like eyes. He seemed to be smiling, but that smile was more chilling than the Si River on a winter's night.
'It was true. In her past life, when the tyrant was drunk, he enjoyed killing for sport. Lu Xiu would have long saws, large cauldrons, and files brought forth for him to choose from. When there weren't enough people to kill, he suggested using death row inmates. When even the inmates ran out, he proposed creating "imperial-use prisoners"…'
'Him? It was a blessing if he didn't help with the killing. Since when would he ever save someone?'
'No matter how bloody or cruel the scene, he could sit to the side, watching dispassionately as if nothing were happening.'
Lu Xiu tucked his hands into his sleeves, his gaze drifting toward the rushing Si River, lost in thought.
"In this world, killing someone is just too easy—so easy it's become boring. You see, when one has too many dull days, one starts wanting to see something… different!"