Yan Qingqing was bewildered. She hadn’t even complained to the Prince yet, so how had he spoken up on his own, demanding Shen Wan apologize to her?
Could it be that the Prince had feelings for her and was deliberately protecting her?
At this thought, Yan Qingqing’s face bloomed into a smile, and she looked at Pei Changli, shyly lowering her head.
“There’s no need for any elaborate apology. A magnanimous person doesn’t hold grudges against the petty—simply kneel and kowtow, that will do.” Yan Qingqing cast a contemptuous glance at Shen Wan.
Before coming to the manor, she had asked around and heard that the Prince had been favoring this Shen Wan far too much lately.
Today, she intended to crush Shen Wan’s arrogance and make her understand exactly what her place was!
“As you say, then. Kneel.” Pei Changli looked at Yan Qingqing.
Yan Qingqing was triumphant and turned to order Shen Wan, “The Prince has spoken. Why are you still standing there, you servant? Kneel!”
“I was talking about you,” Pei Changli said in a low voice, his gaze dark and menacing.
“Miss Yan, you have offended someone of mine. Shouldn’t you be the one apologizing?”
Pei Changli’s expression was calm, but the calmer he appeared on the surface, the more it felt as though a storm was raging beneath.
Yan Qingqing was utterly dumbfounded. “Your… Your Highness, she’s the one at fault!”
Shen Wan was also scared out of her wits.
“No… no need… I don’t mind…” Shen Wan snapped back to her senses, waving her hands repeatedly in refusal.
Yan Qingqing was a difficult person to deal with, and she had no desire to get entangled with such a troublemaker.
Pei Changli’s cold gaze slowly shifted to Shen Wan. “You really don’t mind?”
“Really!” Shen Wan raised her hand as if taking an oath.
Seeing her resolute attitude, Pei Changli could only let the matter go.
Yan Qingqing watched coldly from the sidelines, secretly grinding her teeth.
This servant was clearly trying to appear magnanimous and forgiving in front of the Prince to seduce him.
Little vixen, just you wait. I’ll settle this score slowly!
Yan Qingqing shot Shen Wan a venomous glare and stormed off.
Shen Wan silently groaned inwardly—she was afraid her feud with Yan Qingqing was now set in stone.
With all this weighing on her mind, she lost any interest in amusement and slunk back to her room, sitting at the table in a daze.
She didn’t even notice when Pei Changli had followed her in. It wasn’t until he sat down across from her that she jolted awake, hastily standing up and scratching her head awkwardly.
“Your… Your Highness…”
Shen Wan poured him a cup of tea and placed it by his hand.
Pei Changli took it and took a sip.
“Prepare yourself. Tonight, you will serve me in bed.”
His voice was calm, without a ripple of emotion.
But to Shen Wan, it was like a bolt from the blue.
“Serve you in bed?!”
Pei Changli glanced at her. “What, unwilling?”
Shen Wan looked Pei Changli up and down carefully. He was handsome, with a good figure—truly a man of striking, godlike appearance.
But serving in bed… still couldn’t compare to the importance of her life. She didn’t want to get too entangled with Pei Changli. She wanted to escape this place as soon as possible—survival came first.
“It’s not that… it’s just…” Shen Wan’s eyes darted around rapidly. “It’s just…”
Got it!
A flash of inspiration struck, and she blurted out, “I’m… indisposed these days!”
Bang!
Pei Changli slammed the table and rose to his feet, deliberately berating her, “I bestow my favor upon you, yet you deliberately make excuses. Do you not know how to appreciate what you’re given!”
“Or perhaps… you’ve been staying by my side with some ulterior motive?” Pei Changli’s gaze was dark and piercing, as if he could see right through her with a single look.
Shen Wan felt guilty and quickly lowered her head, forcing out an explanation, “No, it’s just that I was afraid that, being in my condition, I wouldn’t be able to serve the Prince properly… Nanny Wang asked me to come see her about something—I’ll go now!”
With that, Shen Wan bolted out of the room.
Pei Changli was a man whose word was absolute. If she stayed any longer, she’d surely suffer for it!
A gust of wind passed, and only Pei Changli remained in the room.
“Yefeng.”
A dark shadow flickered, and Yefeng bowed with cupped hands, kneeling before Pei Changli.
“Follow her.” Pei Changli lifted a finger.
“As you command.” Yefeng turned and left.
Shen Wan walked out of the residence’s main gate, feeling relieved. Thankfully, she had struck a bargain with Pei Changli earlier, earning herself the freedom to come and go from the residence.
“Where should I go?” she murmured to herself.
In a daze, she caught sight of a mysterious figure out of the corner of her eye—the figure seemed to be following her!
Ill intentions, no doubt.
But it was broad daylight. She wanted to see just what this person was planning!
Shen Wan’s shrewd eyes glinted, and she headed toward the crowded areas.
But before she could feel smug for long, someone suddenly covered her mouth from behind. A strange scent flooded her nostrils, and then she lost consciousness…
Shen Wan didn’t know how long she had been out. When she came to, a thick, cloying fragrance stung her nose.
“Let go…” she mumbled, thinking someone was still covering her mouth and nose.
But when she opened her eyes, she found everything around her utterly unfamiliar.
Inside the room hung warm red silk curtains, while outside, the sounds of men and women flirting and laughing drifted in from time to time.
This… couldn’t be…
“You’re awake!” A heavily made-up woman pushed open the door and gave Shen Wan a casual once-over. “From now on, you’ll call me Mama Li. Now that you’re here at my Yihong House, you’d better learn to behave!”
Yihong House—a brothel!
Just as she had suspected!
Shen Wan was full of confusion. How could she have been walking down the street one moment and brought here the next?
It was that person who had been following her!
But why?
Who had she offended, to be treated like this?
“No! I refuse to behave!” Shen Wan was bewildered, but she had no time to think it through. She flatly refused Mama Li.
At her words, Mama Li’s brows shot up in fury, and she snapped, “On my turf, there’s no such word as ‘no’!”
Shen Wan vowed to resist to the end. Clutching her clothes tightly around herself, she declared firmly, “I belong to the Prince’s residence. If you dare harm me, the Prince will never forgive you!”
Mama Li’s expression faltered for a moment, but then she thought—how could someone from the Prince’s residence be wandering the streets alone without attendants?
Besides, the person backing her was no small power either.
“You think you can scare me?” Mama Li fumed, glaring viciously at Shen Wan, narrowing her eyes in threat. “Behave yourself and serve the men here, and I might even reward you with a full meal. Otherwise… I’ll have you beaten to death and dumped in a mass grave outside the city!”
“Someone! Bring me the branding iron!” Mama Li commanded.
One of her underlings pushed open the door and handed her a small, red-hot branding iron.
Looking closely, there seemed to be a character carved into it.
“‘Pros…titute’…” Shen Wan strained to make it out.
Mama Li sneered. “That’s right. Once this brand is seared onto your face, no decent family will ever want you again. Even if you escape, the world out there will have no place for you!”
“You’ll do it whether you like it or not!”
Damn it!
This was nothing short of forcing an honest woman into prostitution!
As Mama Li advanced with the branding iron, Shen Wan instinctively shut her eyes.
But she certainly wasn’t going to surrender without a fight!
Load the save, load it now!
If not now, when?
Shen Wan was once again walking on the road not far from the prince’s residence, a dark figure closing in behind her. Her heart pounded in her throat, and she quickened her pace considerably.
As she fled, she kept watching the person behind her.
That person was like a stubborn plaster that simply couldn’t be shaken off!
It seemed that even after loading the save again, she couldn’t escape the fate of being caught!
In that case…