Lin Xizhi was still ill, and the sea was rough. The ship pitched and rolled violently as she gritted her teeth and staggered all the way to the cargo hold.
However, she was stopped by the thugs guarding the entrance.
Summoning all her strength, Lin Xizhi said, “Please, brothers, let me take something from inside.”
The thugs sized her up. Seeing that her face was pale and sickly, so weak she could barely stand, they did not drive her away by force.
Instead, one of them said awkwardly, “Miss, please don’t make things difficult for us. We’re only following the master’s orders.”
Lin Xizhi neither became discouraged nor angry.
Nor did she try to force her way in.
Instead, she pointed to a small, low window beside the cargo hold and asked, “Then let me look through that window first. Once I find my own trunk, I’ll go speak to Uncle Pei.”
Seeing that she looked ready to collapse at any moment, the guards finally relented.
The moment Lin Xizhi reached the window, however, the look in her eyes changed.
Take it all!
She was going to empty the entire cargo hold leave nothing behind!
Half of what the Pei family had painstakingly packed to transport to Hong Kong City had been looted from the old Lin family residence.
There were four genuine leather sofa sets with rosewood frames.
Six two-meter-long beds.
Matching dining tables, tea tables, wardrobes, bedside cabinets, dressing tables…
Three imported gramophones with large horn speakers.
Table lamps, wall lamps even the chandeliers wouldn’t be spared.
There were also intricately carved wooden decorations, antique porcelain tea sets, and stained-glass panels bearing inscriptions from prominent social figures.
She really didn’t know whether to call the Pei family frugal or simply petty.
Still, everything in the Lin household had once been the finest in Pearl City.
Either her father had imported them directly through foreign trade associations, or her grandmother had personally designed them while her grandfather commissioned master craftsmen to create them.
Each piece was one of a kind.
Absolutely irreplaceable.
Lin Xizhi had no interest in the furniture itself.
What she wanted to know was how much of the gold, silver, and valuables her father had entrusted to Pei Zhikuan still remained.
She quickly took inventory in her mind.
Among the thirteen large golden nanmu wood chests, she found only:
Two chests of fine silk brocade.
Three chests of jade ornaments.
Five chests filled with gleaming little gold bars.
And three chests containing scattered silver ingots.
Her heart turned cold.
Her father had left behind so many treasures, along with her mother’s lavish dowry…
Had the Pei family squandered almost everything, leaving only this much?
Lin Xizhi’s eyes instantly reddened with pain.
But there was no time for grief.
Because after emptying the cargo hold into her storage space, she had exhausted the last bit of strength left in her sick body.
Her entire body went limp.
She couldn’t even stand anymore.
Most importantly, that old fox Pei Zhikuan was striding straight toward her.
Pei Zhikuan looked at Lin Xizhi’s flushed face and thought to himself:
The drug has taken effect.
Yet he still pretended to be concerned and called out loudly,
“Xizhi! Why aren’t you resting in your cabin? What are you doing here?”
Then he ordered the two thugs,
“Hurry up! Carry her onto the pirates’ boat! The pirates have taken a fancy to my daughter they’re taking her away to enjoy a good life!”
Lin Xizhi’s heart sank.
Pei Zhikuan isn’t even pretending anymore!
Filled with hatred and unwillingness, her gaze fixed on the warm white jade pendant hanging from his chest.
It had once been her father’s favorite hand-held jade piece.
Now this old bastard had shamelessly claimed it as his own.
Do you deserve it?
In the blink of an eye, the white jade pendant disappeared into her storage space as well.
Unfortunately, her body was now so limp she was like a puddle of mud.
She couldn’t muster any strength.
She didn’t even have enough energy left to curse at them.
All she could do was watch helplessly as they threw her onto a filthy little wooden fishing boat.
Lying atop fish-scale-covered nets, Lin Xizhi dug her fingernails deep into her palms until blood trickled through her fingers.
Years of practicing medicine in her previous life made her immediately realize
She had been drugged.
Back then, she had always believed the pirates had used some despicable trick.
But now she was certain.
The Pei family had drugged her long before that.
They truly intended to destroy her.
Grinding her teeth, Lin Xizhi pulled a gleaming fruit knife from her storage space and lightly sliced the tips of three fingers.
Blood welled up.
The sharp pain shooting through her fingertips temporarily awakened her numb body, keeping her from passing out.
Just then, someone at the bow suddenly shouted,
“This is bad! Run! The Sea Guard is here!”
The pirates scattered like frightened birds, diving into the sea one after another.
Joy surged through Lin Xizhi.
The rescue has arrived!
She hadn’t expected the Sea Guard to come so quickly.
Unfortunately, the pain in her fingers could not overcome the powerful effects of the drug coursing through her body.
Her consciousness gradually faded…
Not long afterward, a towering, mountain-like figure suddenly swept aside the blue cloth curtain covering the cabin entrance and stepped inside against the light.
The moment he entered, Song Zhuowei smelled blood.
His brows furrowed as he quickly scanned the cabin before his eyes settled on a pile of worn fishing nets.
A young woman dressed in a white blouse and blue skirt lay there, her face deathly pale, looking as though she was on the verge of death.
Lin Xizhi was sprawled atop the mound of fishing nets, still clutching a bloodstained knife.
Had she tried to kill herself?
Song Zhuowei immediately rushed over to examine her carefully.
Fortunately…
She had only cut her fingers.
No vital areas were injured.
“Miss, wake up.”
Lin Xizhi felt as though her body weighed a thousand pounds.
She couldn’t open her eyes.
Yet she still exhausted every last bit of strength to curl herself tightly into a ball.
Alert.
Defensive.
“Go away…”
“Don’t touch me…”
Song Zhuowei instantly understood her fears and said in a firm, reassuring voice,
“Comrade, don’t be afraid! I’m Song Zhuowei, captain of the Sea Guard. The pirates who kidnapped you have already been captured. I’m taking you to the clinic now.”
Song Zhuowei?
The one who came to save her…
Was Song Zhuowei?
Lin Xizhi’s heart trembled.
She knew who he was.
In her previous life, he had become the youngest naval general of his era.
On the day of his funeral, the people of Lei City lined the streets for miles to see him off.
Their cries echoed endlessly.
Yet such a highly decorated military hero had remained single his entire life, leaving behind neither wife nor children.
He had rescued her in her previous life as well.
The two of them had even crossed paths briefly.
But back then, she still clung to her last shred of hope for Pei Yuncheng.
Besides, she had never liked rugged, rough men like Song Zhuowei, who spent every day at sea.
She had never once considered him.
But now that she had been given a second chance…
She wanted to live differently.
A refined scumbag like Pei Yuncheng…
Was nothing more than a good actor.
Unlike Song Zhuowei.
He was the kind of man who could build a solid, dependable life.
This time…
She would not miss him again.
“Save me…”
Lin Xizhi finally managed to force one eye open.
Her tear-filled gaze met Song Zhuowei’s deep, ocean-like eyes.
Like a sharp spear piercing straight into his heart.
Song Zhuowei’s heart shook.
Without another word, he lifted her into his arms.
Lin Xizhi leaned weakly against his chest.
The chill clinging to her body instantly melted away the moment it touched his solid, burning warmth.
A comforting heat flowed through her.
She unconsciously licked her lips.
Her cool little hand instinctively brushed lightly across his chest.
“Comrade, you…”
The waves rocked the little boat.
The boat swayed.
And so did Song Zhuowei’s heart.
He was no naïve young man.
When he had once accompanied an old commune leader to the city for training, he had attended a livestock breeding class. There, he learned that when cattle, sheep, or pigs reached breeding season but were unable to mate, drugs could be used to stimulate mating urges.
But such drugs should never be used on humans.
Otherwise…
A person would lose control of their desires.
Just like Lin Xizhi now.
Those pirates deserved to die!
They had actually used an animal breeding stimulant on such a frail young woman!
Song Zhuowei clenched his teeth, fury burning in his eyes.
Holding Lin Xizhi securely in his arms, he strode quickly out of the cabin.
“Captain, be careful! The boat hasn’t been sec “
Da Niu hadn’t even finished speaking when Song Zhuowei leaped off the deck, splashing through the shallow seawater and sprinting toward the shore.
“…the boat isn’t secured yet.”
The rest of Da Niu’s words were carried away by the salty sea breeze.
Watching Song Zhuowei disappear into the distance with someone in his arms, he couldn’t help asking his companion,
“Did you see that? I think our captain was carrying… a woman?”
His companion pursed his lips and nodded.
“Yeah. Looks like our captain that old iron tree is finally about to bloom.”
The “old iron tree” carried Lin Xizhi as if the wind itself propelled him, heading straight for the local clinic.
However…
The doctor on duty wasn’t there.
The clinic doors were tightly shut.
Meanwhile, the look in Lin Xizhi’s eyes grew increasingly unfocused, and her body temperature kept rising.
Even worse, the hand that had been hanging behind his back had somehow lifted again…
And slipped inside his shirt.
Her arm moved like a snake, lightly brushing against his taut skin with an indescribable allure that sent tingles through his entire body and made his breathing gradually become more rapid.