Ying Wutu was so anxious that he wanted to jump off the bed and kneel before her to beg, but he was restrained by the chains.
“Please… please don’t… I was disobedient, you should punish me, right? Please don’t harm unrelated people…”
When Ying Wutu was saved by her after attempting suicide on the battlefield, he knew she wouldn’t let him die easily. When his identity was exposed during the examination, he knew he would be humiliated by her. When he was caught after escaping, he knew he was doomed to a fate worse than death.
But he never imagined that her punishment wouldn’t be to torture him, but to kill unrelated people.
And she chose someone who had recently taken an arrow for him, saving his life!
Ying Wutu felt immense guilt.
But there was no time for self-reproach. The urgent matter was how to beg this wicked woman to spare Lieutenant Yao!
“Crying so miserably?” Jiang Shouzhu leaned back, relaxed, contrasting with the tearful Ying Wutu before her. “Alright… I might consider giving you another chance. First, stop crying. Your eyes are very beautiful and captivating. If they get swollen from crying, I’ll be angry.”
“Mm-hmm.” Ying Wutu nodded vigorously, holding back his tears instantly. As long as he didn’t implicate the innocent, he wouldn’t resist even if she forced herself on him tonight.
“Quite obedient.” Jiang Shouzhu noticed his sudden compliance but still thought the little rabbit looked cuter when he was defiant. She got up, took the burning candlestick from the table, and walked step by step towards the bed.
Ying Wutu’s gaze was fixed on her at first, but as she approached, his eyes shifted to the flickering flame.
“Guess what I’m going to do?” Jiang Shouzhu sat down on a dry spot.
This little rabbit cried so much that the bed was soaked with tears. Could anyone sleep on this bed?
Ying Wutu nervously swallowed. He had spent four years in the military camp, surrounded by women. Occasionally, he overheard them talking about their husbands or the courtesans on Flower Street, so he guessed what this woman intended to do.
“I won’t resist, just keep your word.” With that, Ying Wutu resolutely closed his eyes and lay down.
He thought he could endure it… maybe?
He had never tried.
The red candle in Jiang Shouzhu’s hand was still burning brightly. She chuckled but did nothing.
Ying Wutu’s heart was pounding, but he felt nothing. He cautiously opened one eye and saw… the woman staring at him, smiling.
Her smile was eerie!
“You… you…”
“What about me?” Jiang Shouzhu interrupted, smiling as she continued, “I asked you to guess. What did you guess?”
“Aren’t you going to…” Ying Wutu stopped mid-sentence. Had he guessed wrong?
But she even drugged the pear. How could she be decent?
If she didn’t have such thoughts, why did she examine him in such a teasing manner?
“It was… my dirty mind.” Ying Wutu realized she was toying with him again. It didn’t matter, as long as she kept her promise to spare Deputy Yao. He admitted, “It was my mistake, my foolishness. So, what do you want me to do?”
Jiang Shouzhu saw the blush on his face gradually fade. She regretted that the moment was too brief, but it didn’t matter; there was plenty of time.
The brass candlestick stood on his chest, and the residual heat made him hiss.
“Alright!” Ying Wutu didn’t understand her peculiar interest in biting candles, but as long as he could save Lieutenant Yao, he was willing to do anything.
Ying Wutu quickly got up from the bed. When he picked up the candlestick, he noticed the circular base had left a red mark on his chest. He gritted his teeth, thinking she was truly wicked, deliberately burning him. But he didn’t dare say anything. Even if it was worse, he wouldn’t dare resist.
He couldn’t resist anyway.
With a crisp “crack,” the sound was clear.
Jiang Shouzhu watched him with interest.
Seeing him holding the candlestick and biting the candle piece by piece, he really looked like a little rabbit gnawing on a carrot.
While biting the candle, Ying Wutu carefully observed her expression. She seemed to be in a good mood.
This woman had a strange personality. What was so interesting about biting candles?
He had good teeth and quickly bit through the candle, revealing the sharp wick inside.
The bitten candle pieces were piled into a small heap, but at that moment, Ying Wutu suddenly froze.
He didn’t even blink.
Now, holding the sharp candlestick, with the woman sitting so close, he had regained some strength. The chains’ range was enough to extend his arm towards her.
So… if he attacked now, could he pierce her neck with the candlestick?
Though his previous punch had failed to catch her off guard, her strength was immense, and her reactions quick. Could he really defeat her?
She looked unguarded, her eyes filled with amusement…
Ying Wutu was torn inside. He hated her intensely, constantly, and if he could kill her…
But she had just given him another chance. She wasn’t completely evil.
Besides, using the candlestick to attack wasn’t the best opportunity; he was injured and still very weak…
While Ying Wutu hesitated, Jiang Shouzhu clapped her hands and sighed, “You really are a little rabbit, coming up with such ideas. Hand it over.”
She extended her hand towards him, asking for the candlestick.
Ying Wutu stared at her outstretched hand.
Should he give her the candlestick?
It wasn’t just a candlestick; it was a weapon, an opportunity to fight back.
Should he give up this chance to take the initiative?
Ying Wutu had to decide quickly. He couldn’t be indecisive like a small man. This might not be the best opportunity, but how long he would live was uncertain. Would he have another chance?
He didn’t want to die; he wanted to live.
While Ying Wutu hesitated, his hand was suddenly empty, his heart sinking.
Jiang Shouzhu had swiftly snatched the candlestick.
The weighty brass candlestick, with its sharp wick, sliced through the tense atmosphere.
Ying Wutu had lost this chance.
Accepting the situation, he hid his disappointment and looked at her with pleading eyes, his tone humble, “Now that I’ve finished, can you let Lieutenant Yao go?”
His tone was cautious, and his expression was careful.
Jiang Shouzhu stood up, weighing the candlestick in her hand. Instead of answering, she asked, “What were you thinking just now?”
“I… I wanted to finish biting the candle quickly to save her.” Ying Wutu only told half the truth. In reality, he had thought about killing her the moment he took the first bite.
“You didn’t tell the truth. I’ll give you another chance.” Jiang Shouzhu sat back down, now very close to Lieutenant Yao on the ground.
Not only was she close, but so was the raised wick in her hand.
The sharp tip of the wick was aimed at Deputy Yao’s head, with only an inch of air and a tablecloth between them.
“No, no! You promised me! I told the truth, I wasn’t thinking about anything else!” Ying Wutu felt guilty. He hadn’t shown anything, so how did she see through him?
“This candlestick is seven inches long, with a very sharp tip. It can pierce a chest, a neck, or a head. So, didn’t you want to kill me just now? I was so close to you.” Jiang Shouzhu’s words were enticing, her tone lower, her gaze intense. “Don’t you hate me?”
“No, no… I don’t dare resist you. I won’t disobey again. You can’t go back on your word! You promised me that if I finished the candle, you’d let her go!” Ying Wutu said, but how could he not want to kill her?
He wanted to kill her a thousand times over!
He hesitated for a moment and lost the chance.
“Oh…” Jiang Shouzhu’s tone elongated. She smiled, “So I misunderstood you? It was my mistake?”
“It’s all my fault!” Ying Wutu was desperate. If not for the chains, he would have jumped up and down. “It was my fault for trying to escape. You can stab me with the candlestick as many times as you want. You promised… Ah! No!”
The sharp wick pierced through the tablecloth, and Lieutenant Yao died instantly.
Ying Wutu let out a heart-wrenching scream.
He was stunned. He hadn’t even finished pleading, and she had already acted.
“Guards.”
Jiang Shouzhu saw someone enter and waved her hand, and the woman was taken away for burial.
The tent fell silent. Ying Wutu remained in the same position, as if all his strength had been drained.
“Scared? Little man, you’re indeed timid. There wasn’t even any blood. I’m always swift and clean.” Jiang Shouzhu dragged the chair closer to the bed, but this time, she kept a bit more distance.
Ying Wutu suddenly shivered, as if his senses had returned. He bared his teeth and claws, trying to lunge at her, screaming, “I will kill you! I will kill you!”
His voice was sharper than the tip of the candlestick, and his overwhelming hatred was even sharper.
“That’s more like it, Ying Wutu. This is the real you. Pretending to be submissive didn’t suit you. Do you know that when your eyes are filled with hatred, you look particularly cute? I’ve seen many obedient little men, but you’re more interesting.”
Jiang Shouzhu wouldn’t admit it, but when she saw Ying Wutu’s submissive demeanor, she did feel a twinge of pity. When she saw him holding the candlestick, she sensed his murderous intent, but in his hesitation, she thought he was indeed a little man.
Unfortunately, kindness doesn’t command soldiers, and righteousness doesn’t manage wealth. Lieutenant Yao was an escaping prisoner and deserved to die. Before killing her, Jiang Shouzhu just wanted to toy with the little rabbit.
Sure enough, she made the little rabbit bare its teeth and claws.
“Jiang Shouzhu! I will kill you with my own hands!”
Jiang Shouzhu glanced at the half-circle bite mark on the back of her right hand, then at the furious, red-faced Ying Wutu, and smiled, “Alright.”
The chains rattled as Ying Wutu struggled desperately. His hatred was immense, and he hated himself even more for being unable to defeat her, for being useless! He had caused the innocent Lieutenant Yao’s death!
Suddenly, there was a loud crash as the bed collapsed.
Ying Wutu’s struggle had been so intense.
He fell to the ground, the bed’s railing falling with him. Realizing the opportunity, he dragged the chains and the broken railing towards her…
He had only one thought: kill her!
