FBC – Chapter 97 Escape

When Gu Hua was shoved out by Gu Wanru, she was in a panic. Right before she lost consciousness from the blow to her head, she heard someone say to kill the remaining people. Now, she had no idea whether Gu Wanru had been killed or not.

Regardless, they must have had a reason for taking Gu Wanru.

From the way that man looked at her, there didn’t seem to be any intent to kill in his eyes.

Perhaps Gu Wanru had some use to them. At the very least, they wouldn’t kill her for now.

As long as she stayed alive, there would always be a chance to escape.

Gu Hua quickly made up her mind and decided to go along with the misunderstanding. She nodded firmly.

Imitating Gu Wanru’s arrogant and domineering tone, she opened her mouth and shouted angrily, “You vile criminals, don’t you dare get cocky! I am none other than the legitimate young madam of the Duke Yong Estate—Gu Wanru! If you dare lay a finger on me, none of you will come to a good end!”

Lu Laosan widened his eyes. “Girl, think carefully. Are you really Gu Wanru or Gu Hua?”

Gu Hua was startled inside—they even knew her personal name?

If she backtracked now, it would only arouse their suspicion. “I am the real Gu Wanru—accept no substitutes!”

Lu Laosan turned and walked out, only to see a pair of eyes as cold as frost under a silver half-face mask, and lips sharp as a blade.

“Gu Wanru, huh…”

Those thin lips slowly curved into a chilling sneer. “Let the brothers have their fill. Keep her alive, and tomorrow morning, when the streets are crowded, strip her bare and toss her in the busiest part of town.”

Lu Laosan froze. “Young Master…”

Before he could finish, the white robe fluttered away—the man had already gone downstairs.

Lu Laosan scratched his head in confusion.

Though their young master was ruthless toward traitors and enemies, he had always been gentle and respectful toward women and children. He had never once allowed his men to abuse them.

Why would he harbor such hatred toward Gu Wanru today?

But then again, it made sense. Gu Wanru might look like a noble lady on the outside, always acting warm and graceful, but she had treated her half-sister with extreme cruelty.

The young master had every reason to hate her.

What’s more, Mu Junyan was their sworn enemy—he had killed so many of their Southern brothers. To disgrace his daughter-in-law would be the ultimate slap in his face.

Gu Hua, who was eavesdropping behind the door, was so terrified her soul nearly fled her body.

This so-called “young master” was absolutely vicious!

Completely inhumane!

Huang Laosan came over excitedly. “The young master’s giving her to us? Damn! I’ve never seen such a stunning beauty in my life. I’m gonna enjoy myself tonight—for the sake of my fallen brothers.”

He waved his arm at the other men. “Brothers, the young master said we can feast tonight. Let me have the first round, alright?”

The group of thugs had all seen the fairy-like beauty of the young woman in the crate and were fired up with excitement.

“Second Brother can go first. We’ll wait our turn.”

“Second Brother, if you don’t last a whole hour, you’re a wimp.”

A string of lewd jokes erupted from the group. Huang Lao’er gleefully started undoing his belt, laughing crudely, “I’m no joke, brothers—once I’m at it, you’ll hear her sweet little cries echoing like sirens.”

Inside the room, Gu Hua felt as if she had plunged into an icy abyss as she heard the vulgar laughter outside.

She had completely misjudged the situation, but reason wouldn’t work with men like these.

She rushed to the window at the back of the room and shoved it with all her strength.

Luckily, it wasn’t locked. Outside, it was pitch black—nothing could be seen.

She realized she was on an upper floor, but with the darkness, it was impossible to tell how high up.

The thugs were just about to force open the door. Without another thought, she climbed onto the windowsill and jumped.

Even if she died, she would never let herself be humiliated.

As Gu Hua leapt, the wind howled in her ears.

It was very high.

Before she could process anything, thud—

She landed straight into water.

Ice-cold water surged in from all directions. Shocked out of her wits, Gu Hua gulped several mouthfuls of it. The fear of death from her past life came flooding back—her whole body went numb, her limbs froze, and she began to sink.

She didn’t know how deep the water was.

All she felt was utter despair.

“This is the third floor! That bitch dared to jump—she must have a death wish! You, go downstairs right now, block the water outlet, guard every exit. Don’t let her escape!”

A vague voice echoed from above, followed by a loud splash—someone had jumped down.

Gu Hua snapped awake.

She couldn’t die!

There was still a deep grudge left to avenge. Her mother still didn’t know she existed.

She absolutely could not die.

Survival instinct kicked in, and she struggled to swim toward a faint glimmer of light.

Just as she was about to break the surface, someone suddenly grabbed her by the legs.

She kicked and flailed, but the other person was stronger. In one swift motion, she was dragged underwater again.

Having already swallowed several mouthfuls of water earlier, she now ran out of breath. Her body went limp, and she was hauled out of the water.

Her chest was about to burst from the pressure. Her mind buzzed and her vision blurred.

She must not pass out.

She bit down hard on her lip—blood and pain filled her mouth, bringing a moment of clarity.

She was hanging upside down, the swinging motion making her dizzy, but she forced herself to calm down and observe the surroundings.

They were inside a wáshe—a tile-roofed theater. In the center stood a large stage.

There were many people around, but she couldn’t see their appearances clearly.

Earlier, she vaguely heard them mention “shizi” and “young master”…

The autumn night was cold.

Soaked to the bone, Gu Hua was trembling from hunger and chill. Fear caused her blood to run cold. She watched helplessly as she was carried back upstairs—if she got locked up again, she was finished.

“Filthy bitch, you got this master all wet. I’ll make sure you regret it later!”

Huang Laosan cursed all the way, then suddenly something tugged at him.

He turned his head—and a sharp, unbearable pain shot up between his legs. Screaming in agony, he flung the person off and fell to the ground clutching his groin, rolling around in pain.

Hearing the commotion, the others quickly gathered. Lu Laosan stuck his head out from upstairs, and someone approached with a torch.

“Oh my god, you…”

People stared at the girl holding a broken piece of wood—its end dripping with a bloody chunk of flesh.

Someone shrieked, “She castrated Second Boss!”

“She dared to hurt Second Brother! Kill her!”

Lu Laosan panicked. While shouting for them to stop, he leaped straight down from the upper floor.

“We can’t kill her! If she dies here, the Duke Yong will never let us go! None of you will make it home alive.”

That sobered everyone.

They hesitated for a moment.

“But she hurt Second Boss! We can’t just let her off!” a close brother of Huang Lao’er growled, furious.

Lu Laosan glanced at the shivering woman behind him and said coldly, “Do whatever you want, but leave her alive. At dawn tomorrow, dump her somewhere. We deliver her to the buyer, and we get our 500 gold.”

At that, the men howled in excitement.

In despair, Gu Hua slammed the wooden stick to the ground, breaking the bloody tip off. She flipped it to the clean end and pointed it at herself.

Screaming hoarsely, she shouted, “If you dare touch me, I’ll kill myself!”

Lu Laosan swung his arm, and the stick flew from her hands.

“You hurt my brother—want to die? Not that easy!”

Suddenly, someone burst in from the door.

“Bad news! The Inspectorate and the Black Armored Guards are just a street away. They’ll be here any moment!”

Panic erupted.

Lu Laosan’s face darkened. “Don’t panic. You two, take Second Boss out the back alley. The rest, act as usual. This is a theater—we’ve been inspected before, never found out. No need to be afraid.”

Hearing this, the others quickly calmed down and rushed to change into their acrobat and performer costumes.

Lu Laosan turned around—and the woman was gone.

Darkness surrounded them, with crates, platforms, and small pavilions everywhere. It wasn’t hard to hide—or to search.

But now, the city patrol and the Duke Yong’s Black Armored Guards were about to arrive!

Lu Laosan stomped his foot in anger. “Damn woman!”

He pulled two men aside. “Hurry, find her!”

They absolutely couldn’t let the guards find out they were the ones who abducted her.

Otherwise, this entire southern border spy hideout would be completely wiped out!

Riding his warhorse at top speed, Mu Junyan led the charge. The Black Armored Guards were highly trained—each rode a seasoned warhorse that had seen the battlefield.

Their group advanced swiftly and calmly.

The city patrol, usually only good for catching petty thieves and handling brawls, had never gone through proper military training. They struggled to keep pace, exhausting themselves to keep up with Mu Junyan’s elite force.

At the front, Mu Junyan wore his usual grim, imposing expression. His face betrayed no other emotion. His eyes, sharp like an eagle’s, scanned the surroundings relentlessly.

The Duke Yong’s daughter-in-law had been abducted. Within minutes, the entire city of Bianjing went into lockdown—all four gates sealed shut.

The patrol troops and the Black Armored Guards were now searching house by house.

Mu Junyan kept thinking—

Where could the criminals be hiding?