"There's no money left!" Zhang Youcai's wife cried out, terrified. Her words were met with a swift kick to her stomach from her husband. She cried out, crashing into a pillar before falling to the ground.
"You've spent it all!" she sobbed, not even having time to wipe the blood from her forehead.
"What else is there that's valuable?" Zhang Youcai, consumed by rage, ignored his wife's pain and continued demanding money. This sparked a rare moment of defiance in her. "Go on! Sell me if you dare!" she shouted.
Zhang Youcai was furious. He grabbed a bamboo stick and lashed out at her. She screamed in pain as the stick hit her back. Her eyes fell on Zhuang Hanyan, who was cowering in the corner. A cunning glint appeared in her eyes. She grabbed the girl. "Sell her! She's worth more!" she yelled, trying to tear off Zhuang Hanyan's clothes. "We've raised her for seventeen years for nothing! Sell her to a brothel, and you'll have money for wine!"
Zhuang Hanyan was stunned. The couple's fight had finally turned on her. It was clear that her adoptive mother wanted to use her to escape her husband's wrath. Worse, she was suggesting selling her to a brothel. Zhuang Hanyan looked at Zhang Youcai. A flash of lightning lit up his face, revealing a terrifying, lustful expression. She knew he had agreed with his wife.
Without a second thought, Zhuang Hanyan opened the door and fled into the pouring rain. "Hahaha!" Zhang Youcai, his lust now fully aroused, chased after her. "Don't run! Stop!"
Weak from years of malnutrition, Zhuang Hanyan stumbled and fell in the mud. Zhang Youcai pounced on her, trying to rip off her clothes. In his mind, he would sell her for money, but not before he had his fun.
"Let me go!" Zhuang Hanyan screamed, struggling with all her might, but her strength was no match for his. In the struggle, a wooden hairpin she had bought with saved money fell into the mud.
Unseen by them, another person was watching the scene unfold: Wei Tingyu, wearing his Jade Fox mask. He was perched in a tree outside the courtyard. He had come here as soon as he confirmed this was Zhuang Hanyan's village. He had arrived just in time. Whether she was his destined wife or a stranger, he would have intervened.
With a gentle flick of his finger, he used his internal energy to strike a pressure point on Zhang Youcai's back, paralyzing him. The man froze. Zhuang Hanyan seized the opportunity, grabbed the wooden hairpin, and without looking, plunged it into his neck. Zhang Youcai couldn't move or block the blow. He watched as the hairpin pierced his flesh. A moment of intense pain, and then he fell to the ground, eyes wide open.
"Husband!" Zhang Youcai's wife, who had been watching from inside, rushed out. In this era, a widow with no son would have a very difficult life. Seeing her husband's body and the blood gushing from his neck, she froze in horror. "You... you..." she stammered, pointing a trembling finger at Zhuang Hanyan, who was covered in blood.
But Zhuang Hanyan's fear vanished, replaced by a steely resolve. She knew she had killed a man—her adoptive father—a crime that would surely lead to a brutal death. She had acted in self-defense, but would the officials believe her? She knew they wouldn't. To save herself, she lunged at Zhang Youcai's wife, thrusting the hairpin into her neck as well.
This woman had tormented her for years, and now she was an accessory to the crime. Zhuang Hanyan's hand didn't falter. Killing a second time was easier. She knew the neck was a soft target. A quick stab was all it took.
Wei Tingyu watched from the shadows, not interfering. This was Zhuang Hanyan's destiny, a necessary step for her to become a strong woman. Zhang Youcai and his wife deserved their fate, and Wei Tingyu felt no pity for them. As the wife fell,庄寒雁's fear finally subsided, replaced by a chilling clarity. She stared at the two bodies and her blood-stained hands, the shock setting in. For a full fifteen minutes, she sat by the well, her eyes blank.
Suddenly, a beautiful woman in black appeared, holding a sword in her right hand and a paper umbrella in her left. She glanced at the two bodies and knelt before Zhuang Hanyan, her eyes filled with concern and affection.
It was Chai Jing, the skilled assassin and Zhuang Hanyan's future mentor and friend. Wei Tingyu was intrigued. Chai Jing was not only beautiful and brave but also an excellent fighter, nearly on par with Ren Ruyi. But what fascinated him most was the unique bond between her and Zhuang Hanyan. They were so close that many viewers had shipped them, and Wei Tingyu was now determined to make them his. He was confident he could straighten out their feelings for each other.
Zhuang Hanyan, sensing Chai Jing's presence, didn't need to look up to know who was holding the umbrella over her. "I killed them," she said, her voice filled with despair.
"Don't be afraid," Chai Jing said, not caring about the bodies. "Come with me." Wei Tingyu, watching from the shadows, saw the love in Chai Jing's eyes. This woman was indeed in love with his future wife.
"No," Zhuang Hanyan said, looking at the bodies. "I want to go to the capital." The words seemed to take all her strength.
"Why?" Chai Jing asked, her brow furrowed in surprise. "That's a dangerous place for a girl like you."
"It's my home," Zhuang Hanyan replied, slowly getting to her feet with Chai Jing's help. With newfound resolve, she threw the hairpin into the well.
Wei Tingyu rolled his eyes. "Seriously? You kill them and then throw the murder weapon into the well right here?" he thought. "They could easily find it." These characters were often clever, but they made such obvious mistakes.
"Wait! I'll cover our tracks," Chai Jing said, pulling a dagger from her waist. "You think of a story. We can't let them link you to this."
"I have a story," Zhuang Hanyan said, her eyes now firm. "I'll say bandits killed them."
Chai Jing nodded. She would add some stab wounds with her dagger to make the story more plausible. The rain would wash away any footprints. But as she finished, a thought occurred to her. "Did you really kill them both with a hairpin?" she asked, her eyes narrowing.
"Yes," Zhuang Hanyan replied, now a little confused by the look on Chai Jing's face. She realized it didn't make sense. A frail girl killing a strong man?
"How did you do it?" Chai Jing asked, grabbing her wrist and checking her pulse. It was weak. This made the story even less plausible.
"He was trying to tear my clothes," Zhuang Hanyan recalled. "I struggled, and then... he just froze."
"He froze for a few breaths?" Chai Jing's eyes darted around the courtyard.
"Was it destiny?" Zhuang Hanyan wondered.
"No," Chai Jing said. "Someone helped you."
"Someone helped me?" Zhuang Hanyan looked around, but the courtyard was silent except for the rain.
"My friend in the shadows, please show yourself!" Chai Jing called out.
Wei Tingyu, no longer needing to hide, leaped from the tree and landed gracefully in front of the two women. They were both startled. Zhuang Hanyan couldn't believe he was real and had witnessed everything.