Far from being comforted, Shangguan Wan only wept more pitifully…
Low sneers and scoffs rippled through the crowd, mocking her for being so utterly delusional.
Wasn’t Liu Lanting a complete and utter weakling?
If she really had any real skill, how could she have been scared into a feverish delirium by some mere bandits?
Jiang Pengji scanned the room, mentally translating the noble ladies’ inner thoughts.
She couldn’t even argue.
After all, the original owner of this body was a complete weakling.
A weakling, with no rights.
Calculating the time…
she figured the bandits should be mostly dealt with by now.
Jiang Pengji closed her eyes slightly, pondering her next move.
See?
This is the inconvenience of lacking combat power.
If she were her old self, why would she even need to think?
She would have kicked the door of this dingy room wide open and torn apart every bandit she encountered with her bare hands.
Her martial arts were never meant for reasoning with people.
The cramped, dim room was thick with a suffocating tension.
No one dared to speak.
The most bewildered person, however, was likely that viewer.
After a moment, Jiang Pengji saw the viewer send a third bullet-chat message.
This time, it wasn’t just a string of question marks.
Unlucky Stoaway: Uh…
could I ask…
what exactly is the streamer broadcasting?
He stared at the screen, utterly bewildered.
After a long while, he’d gained nothing from the stream except the sight of a group of people in ancient costumes exchanging a few words.
Still, this room full of little girls is a gold standard for beauty, he thought.
When they grow up, they’ll definitely drive people wild with desire.
Jiang Pengji lowered her eyes, seemingly lost in thought.
Seeing this, the System immediately offered a considerate reminder: You don’t have to speak directly.
You can transmit your thoughts using your mind.
Streamer V: The main quest is to livestream how to become the Empress.
The current side quest is to save this room full of little girls…
If the stream fails, you might get to see a real-time broadcast of all the girls—including me—being gang-raped by the bandits outside.
System: “…”
What kind of streamer is this reckless and terrifying?!
The viewer sent another string of white ellipses.
It was obvious he had been thoroughly spooked by Jiang Pengji’s savage and violent words.
Unlucky Stoaway: I hope the streamer can complete the side quest.
Besides, we’re in a period of censorship now, so footage of a failed side quest can’t be broadcast.
This viewer was also incredibly awkward—or rather, he hadn’t taken Jiang Pengji’s words seriously at all.
Jiang Pengji raised an eyebrow and secretly poked the System.
“If the stream content is too NSFW, will it get banned?”
The System replied arrogantly, “This is a live stream transmitted directly through the Plane Channel.
Their methods cannot ban the Host’s streaming channel.”
After all, it was labeled the Palace Intrigue Live Streaming System.
How could it possibly lack the dark, NSFW content typical of such a setting?
Think about the women in the inner palace fighting to climb the ranks.
Which one of them didn’t use every trick in the book?
Which one didn’t exhaust every ounce of their wit?
Which one didn’t resort to every possible means?
Which one wasn’t ruthless and vicious?
The System’s mind was filled with schemes of inner-court and palace intrigue, but Jiang Pengji was imagining a completely different kind of scene.
As someone accustomed to bloodshed, her tolerance for it was very high.
What she considered an ordinary scene might make the viewers on the other side of the stream cry in terror—or even leave them with psychological trauma.
As for the “inner-court and palace intrigue” the System expected—from concubines to the Empress…
Heh, when did I ever agree to that?
She had only agreed to let the System start the livestream; there had been no detailed stipulations regarding the content.
It was true that Jiang Pengji championed brute force, but she was no mere muscle-bound fool as others presumed.
Only those who had served in the Seventh Legion and experienced Jiang Pengji’s methods firsthand knew the truth—when she turned ruthless, she would screw over even herself!
As she was deep in thought, Jiang Pengji heard the thunderous approach of many footsteps from a distance.
She silently counted the number of people.
Tsk, more than half the bandits in the stronghold have shown up.
The rest were either on guard duty or, more likely, waiting—waiting for the others to finish their feast before it was their turn to enjoy.
The bandit who kicked open the door was, naturally, the Great Leader of the stronghold, the same man who had led the raid.
“Hahaha…
Everyone, play to your hearts’ content today!
These are the most precious beauties in all of Hejian.
Normally, even a beggar would be driven away just for glancing at them!” The burly, bearded man roared with laughter, casually grabbing a noblewoman by the hair and yanking her into his arms.
The noblewoman’s shoulders hunched, her body shaking like a sieve.
Her scalp stung where her hair bun had been yanked, but she dared not cry out, lest she suffer even greater humiliation.
She could only bite her lip and endure, her face a mask of terror and shame.
The bandit chief, lost in his own pleasure, paid no mind to the subtle shift in the noblewoman’s gaze.
Jiang Pengji took it all in.
Her eyes swept the room, seeing the bandit’s second and third-in-command also preparing to seize beauties for themselves.
If she didn’t act now, the scene would turn into something decidedly not suitable for young audiences in a matter of minutes.
Raising an eyebrow, Jiang Pengji shot to her feet.
Her handsome, spirited face wore a look of amusement as she called out, “Wait a minute!”
Her voice wasn’t loud, but amidst the coarse roars of the men, her clear, spirited tone cut through the air with striking clarity.
“What?” The bandit chief’s outstretched hand paused.
He followed the sound and saw Jiang Pengji standing, her clothes still disheveled.
A contemptuous smirk twisted his lips as he taunted her, “What’s this?
You want to take her place and play with me?”
At this moment, the young woman being held hostage and forced by the bandit leader’s grip had already turned pale, her eyes flickering with a mixture of pain and astonishment.
Jiang Pengji sized the leader up from head to toe, then suddenly dropped a bombshell: “Substitute?
You’re talking out of your ass!
As for the one you’re holding—dare you lay another finger on her, and you’ll never find out which little bastard played with and killed your sweetheart in this lifetime!”
The words fell, and everyone was stunned.
Some were bandits who had no idea what was going on.
Others were noblewomen who had been secretly resolving to kill themselves rather than live on in disgrace.
For these noblewomen, family interests and their own reputations were paramount, even surpassing their own lives.
If these bandits succeeded, not only would they lose their purity and be forced to submit to so many men, but their families would also be disgraced.
They could even guess that if this scandal spread, the unmarried daughters in their clans would also be looked down upon because of it.
Only by summoning the courage to commit suicide and preserve their purity and reputation could they perhaps salvage something.
But Jiang Pengji’s actions had drawn their attention, and they had all forgotten about their plans to die.
“What’s this?” Several noblewomen looked at each other, none of them knowing what Jiang Pengji was up to.
“Heh heh, you stinking woman, what kind of bullshit are you spouting?
Our Great Leader is wise and powerful; who dares touch his woman?”
A small bandit, who didn’t quite understand but felt it must be impressive, chimed in, insulting Jiang Pengji while simultaneously flattering the bandit leader.
However, they never expected that the usually steady Great Leader would now explode as if he had swallowed gunpowder!