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This girl was not the type of woman whose stunning beauty would immediately captivate anyone at first glance. However, her features were exceptionally harmonious.
Because of the shock and fear she had experienced, her skin had taken on a faintly translucent quality. Instead of making her appear unhealthy, it gave her a delicate and fragile kind of beauty.
Especially her eyes, they were clear to an almost excessive degree. There was no trace of vulgar charm or cunning hidden within them. Reflected in her pupils was Shen Yu’s stern, chiseled face, sharp and cold like a blade.
It was obvious that she was terrified. Her eyelashes trembled violently, making her appear even more obedient and pitifully adorable.
She looked like a little rabbit that had just been weaned. Although she trembled in fear, she still tried her best to raise her ears and listen for every movement around her.
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"Have you studied it?"
Studied?
Studied how to polish shoes?
Her technique was actually quite professional.
Shen Yu’s deep voice, carrying a faint magnetic quality, cut through the quiet room.
Xia Zhiyao froze for a moment. Her mind went blank briefly before she realized what he was asking.
"Studied… I studied a little," she answered instinctively, her voice trembling slightly.
"Art restoration… It was an elective course."
Art restoration.
Using techniques from art restoration to polish shoes.
The corner of Shen Yu’s lips lifted slightly.
What a talent.
"The last time on the balcony…"
Shen Yu continued speaking. His toe remained pressed against her chin, unmoving. He even increased the pressure slightly.
The feeling of having control over another person’s life and death seemed to amuse him.
"What did you see when you looked at that map?"
Master Ba, who was standing nearby, was completely confused.
A map?
That broken old map had been hanging there for years. Wasn’t it just a useless piece of paper?
Xia Zhiyao was forced to tilt her head upward. Her neck ached from the position, but she did not dare move.
Was this another test?
If she couldn’t answer, would she die?
Her desire to survive pushed her mind into overdrive as she desperately searched for an answer.
"That is… the 1786 map of Bengal and its surrounding regions, drawn by James Rennell, a surveyor for the British East India Company."
Xia Zhiyao stammered at first, but the words came out quickly, almost as if she was reciting information she had memorized.
"He used iron gall ink, and the paper was parchment. At that time… at that time, Britain was expanding its opium trade routes into Southeast Asia. The red dotted lines marked on the map… those were… those were the opium transportation routes."
She finished speaking in one breath.
Xia Zhiyao’s face turned red from holding her breath for too long. She looked at Shen Yu with fear in her eyes.
Even in a situation like this, when she talked about her area of expertise, a faint light still appeared in her eyes.
It was a pure admiration for knowledge.
Even while trapped in hell, even while standing before a demon.
Shen Yu stared at her for two seconds.
At that moment, the atmosphere in the room seemed to freeze.
Master Ba did not even dare to breathe. His palms were covered in cold sweat.
What nonsense was this girl saying? What opium? What Rennell?
If she angered Mr. Shen, everyone here would be doomed.
Shen Yu slowly withdrew his foot.
The suffocating pressure disappeared instantly.
Xia Zhiyao felt as if all the strength was drained from her body. She collapsed weakly, supporting herself with both hands against the floor as she desperately suppressed her voice and gasped for breath.
Shen Yu did not say whether her answer was correct or not.
With no emotion visible on his face, he turned his head and looked at Master Ba, who was trembling nervously nearby.
His tone immediately returned to the cold, businesslike manner he used when discussing official matters.
"I want thirty percent of this batch of gemstone transportation."
The sudden change in topic was so abrupt that Master Ba froze for a moment before finally reacting.
His expression immediately turned bitter.
"Mr. Shen, thirty percent? The profit from these gemstones was only that much. If you take thirty percent, there would be nothing left for us! You know I was under a lot of pressure as well. Could you perhaps consider our years of cooperation and let us continue at the original price?"
"No."
Shen Yu raised his hand, and his assistant, A-Ken, immediately handed him a new cigar.
Master Ba nearly coughed up blood. He wanted to slap himself twice.
Trying to negotiate with this man was no different from seeking death.
"The original price is the price given to the dead."
Shen Yu calmly cut open the cigar cap.
"Those little tricks you’ve been pulling in the north recently, do you really think I don’t know about them? You wanted to use my name to pressure those merchants in Shan State. I haven’t even settled that account with you yet."
Cold sweat instantly broke out on Master Ba’s forehead, sliding down from his temples.
"Mr. Shen, you misunderstand. I was… I was forced into that situation!"
"And what do you say about that?"
The cigar was lit. Shen Yu slowly took a puff before exhaling a ring of smoke. He had no interest in listening to any more excuses.
"Thirty percent! Just thirty percent! Everything will be done according to Mr. Shen’s wishes!"
Master Ba hurriedly agreed, afraid that if he hesitated for even a second longer, the demand would increase to fifty percent.
Xia Zhiyao was still kneeling beside Shen Yu’s feet.
No one paid any attention to her.
Shen Yu and Master Ba continued discussing details regarding ports, commissions, and transportation arrangements.
Those words entered Xia Zhiyao’s ears before drifting away again. She could not understand a single sentence clearly.
Her only thought was that her legs had already gone numb.
She did not know how much time had passed before Shen Yu finally stood up.
His tall figure cast a shadow over her, completely covering Xia Zhiyao, who remained kneeling on the floor.
Xia Zhiyao held her breath and lowered her head deeply, wishing she could shrink herself into a crack in the ground.
He was leaving.
As long as he walked out of this door, would today’s nightmare finally be temporarily over?
A pair of military boots passed through her field of vision.
There was no hesitation.
Shen Yu walked out in large strides. Several black-clothed bodyguards immediately followed him. A large group of people moved together, their overwhelming presence intimidating everyone around them.
Master Ba nodded and bowed as he followed, personally escorting them all the way to the entrance of the compound.
Only after the sound of footsteps disappeared down the staircase did Xia Zhiyao finally dare to raise her head.
He was gone.
He was really gone.
Xia Zhiyao collapsed onto the floor, the rag slipping from her hand and falling beside her.
She thought she had survived a disaster.
About ten minutes later, Master Ba returned with a gloomy expression.
"Useless!"
Master Ba kicked over the chair beside him and glared viciously at Xia Zhiyao, who was lying on the floor.
"You can’t even polish a pair of shoes properly! Damn it! All that effort was wasted!"
Master Ba was so furious that he was breathing heavily.
He had originally thought that this girl could win Shen Yu’s favor. In the end, Shen Yu had only asked her two questions before leaving, without even sparing her another glance.
What did that mean?
It meant he was not interested in her!
All of Master Ba’s arrangements had been for nothing. More importantly, he had even lost thirty percent of the profits!
"Since Mr. Shen doesn’t want her, there’s no need to waste food."
A cruel expression appeared in Master Ba’s eyes.
"Someone!"
Two guards immediately rushed inside.
"Drag her away! Send her to the back courtyard and follow the procedure!" Master Ba ordered with a sinister smile.
"Since Mr. Shen doesn’t want her, let the brothers have some fun! There’s no need to follow the usual order anymore. This girl is so delicate and tender—whoever wants a taste can all take turns!"
Xia Zhiyao’s blood instantly ran cold.
Wasn’t it said… that as long as she obeyed, she could live?
Why?
"No… no!"
The two guards roughly grabbed her arms and dragged her outside.
"Please… please, Master Ba… I obeyed… I really obeyed…"
Xia Zhiyao cried out desperately, her feet kicking wildly against the ground.
Despair, like a black tide, completely engulfed her, crashing over her from every direction.
Was she still going to die?
Was she still going to suffer that inhuman torture?
She had already been dragged to the doorway.
"Hurry up and take her away! She’s annoying as hell!"
Master Ba shouted impatiently.
Just as Xia Zhiyao thought she was about to fall into the abyss—
A man in a gray suit suddenly appeared at the staircase, blocking the guards’ path.
It was A-Ken, the assistant who had followed Shen Yu the entire time.
He expressionlessly glanced at Xia Zhiyao, who was disheveled and covered in tear stains, then looked toward Master Ba standing near the doorway.
"Master Ba, wait."
Master Ba froze.
The vicious expression on his face had not completely disappeared, but he quickly replaced it with a flattering smile. The sudden change made his expression look somewhat ridiculous.
"Mr. Ken? What happened? Does Mr. Shen have another order?"
A-Ken pointed at Xia Zhiyao, who had collapsed on the ground, and spoke calmly.
"Mr. Shen said… he wants this girl."