The knife traced a cool line across her face. With every slight movement, Madam Zhou felt as if a snake was slithering on her skin, about to open its gaping maw and swallow her whole. Her fear grew with each passing moment.
Wu Caiwei found the woman surprisingly resilient. Since she wasn't innocent anyway, she directly took her knife and made a real cut on her face.
When the sting of pain registered, Madam Zhou froze for a moment. She hadn't expected Wu Caiwei to be so audacious. Upon realizing what had happened, she cried out in terror, "Are you insane? Do you know who my father is? If you dare treat me like this, my father will never let you go."
Wu Caiwei was unfazed. "Whether your father lets me go or not, I don't know. All I know is, if you don't tell me where my daughter is, I will disfigure this beautiful face of yours and then send you to the afterlife. I'll escape over the wall, and the yamen officials probably won't even know how you died. No one would suspect me, after all, I'm a divine doctor in the eyes of outsiders. How could a weak woman like me sneak into the Zhou manor?"
Madam Zhou's heart skipped a beat upon hearing this. She realized the situation was indeed as described. Perhaps her husband would even celebrate with a drink if she died, and no one would mourn her.
"But I really don't know where she is. You've come to the wrong person." Madam Zhou's eyes held a mixture of helplessness and grievance.
Had she truly come to the wrong person? Wu Caiwei couldn't help but ask herself. If her guess was correct, the original owner of this body had died at this woman's hands. Since she had already thoroughly offended her, she didn't mind adding to it. With that thought, she turned the knife and made another cut on her face.
"This is your last chance. If you don't speak, the next cut won't be on your face, but on your neck." Wu Caiwei stared at her menacingly, deciding to probe one last time.
Madam Zhou felt this woman was truly mad. No matter what she said, Wu Caiwei insisted she was responsible. She dared not gamble further, fearing Wu Caiwei would actually kill her.
Closing her eyes, she spoke, "She's being held at the estate at the foot of South Mountain. Aside from being confined, she's otherwise fine."
"It would have been better if you had admitted it earlier. I hope what you're saying is true. If anything happens to my daughter, I will never forgive you."
After a while, feeling no more pain and hearing no more voices, Madam Zhou felt bewildered. She couldn't help but open her eyes. The room was empty; she was alone.
If not for the lingering pain on her face, she would have thought it was all a dream. Thinking of the wounds on her face, she quickly sat up, lit the oil lamp, and slowly hobbled to the bronze mirror. Gathering her courage, she looked at her reflection.
The moment she saw her face, she shrieked. In her agitation, she knocked over the oil lamp, and the flame caught the curtains. Madam Zhou, with trembling hands, touched her blood-soaked face. Unbeknownst to her, the fire was spreading rapidly.
Choked by the thick smoke, she finally realized what was happening. She turned her head and saw that the fire was already beyond control.
She screamed and ran out of the room, shouting as she fled, "Fire! Fire! Someone help put out the fire!"
The people in the courtyard were immediately awakened. They rushed to grab basins and buckets, fetching water to extinguish the flames.
Everyone had noticed Madam's unusual behavior. Remembering her cruel nature, they quickly concealed their surprise. The sight of Madam now was truly terrifying.
Soon, Master Zhou also arrived. Although he didn't care much for his wife's well-being, he had to put on a show of concern.
As soon as he entered the courtyard, he frowned involuntarily. He wondered what his wife had been doing inside to cause such a large fire in the room. Despite the servants' frantic efforts to put it out, the blaze was already uncontrollable. He decisively ordered the servants to pack and move the valuables from the adjacent rooms.
Before long, the entire courtyard was engulfed in flames. Fortunately, this courtyard was an isolated structure, otherwise, the losses would have been immeasurable.
It was only then that he had the heart to care about his wife. Seeing her dusty, disheveled, and utterly distraught sitting on the ground, he asked with some confusion, "How did you get yourself into this state? This is not like you."
Upon hearing this, Madam Zhou suddenly burst into tears. She couldn't comprehend how she had ended up this way. She felt an immense well of grievances with nowhere to vent them.
Master Zhou sighed. Although he detested her deeply, having taken money to solve a problem, he had to understand the circumstances of her mishap within the Zhou manor. He stepped forward to comfort her, "Stop crying, and tell me quickly what happened."
At that moment, Madam Zhou suddenly regretted her naiveté in her youth. If she hadn't gotten involved in those affairs, she believed she and her husband could have stayed together, as he was a decent man.
But these were mere fantasies. Composing herself, she choked out, "It was that woman, Leng Shui Xiang. I sent people to kidnap her daughter. To force me to reveal her daughter's whereabouts, she slashed my face. How can I ever show my face in public again?"
Master Zhou was momentarily speechless. To be fair, what she had done was indeed underhanded. Not only had she snatched someone's husband, but she had also constantly targeted her. In the end, she was outmatched, and then she kidnapped the woman's daughter. Anyone would have reached their breaking point.
Seeing that he wasn't on her side, Madam Zhou suppressed the flicker of emotion she felt. She knew this man couldn't be relied upon in critical moments.
Meanwhile, Wu Caiwei scaled the city wall under the cover of night. After traveling a considerable distance, she finally reached the estate Madam Zhou had mentioned. In a woodshed, she finally found the small figure of her daughter.
This was the first time Xu Shuqin had encountered such a situation in her young life. Although she knew her mother would come to rescue her, being locked up here made her unable to suppress her fear. Fortunately, a few young maids were with her. They hugged each other, and as they cried, they eventually fell asleep.
She was woken up by a gentle shake in a daze. The moment she opened her eyes, she saw her mother's face. Thinking she was dreaming, she couldn't help but grin and say, "This is the first time I've dreamed of you, Mother. Mother, please come and save me; I've been locked up."
Wu Caiwei's heart melted. This child actually thought she was dreaming! She slipped into the servants' quarters, found a few quilts, and tidied up the woodshed, managing to set up a makeshift bed. She let the children sleep there.
It wasn't that she didn't want to take the children away, but it was deep in the night, and the place was far from the city. The children couldn't walk fast or far. It was better to rest here for the night. Tomorrow, she would find a carriage, and soon she would be able to take the children home.
The reason she rushed here overnight was her worry for them. Now, seeing them sleeping beside her and ensuring their safety, she had no further concerns.
As dawn broke, Madam Zhou quickly wrote a letter and sent it via express courier to the capital. At the same time, Wu Caiwei, with the children, left through the back gate and walked to a nearby village. She paid someone with silver to take them away. Although the scene appeared peaceful, there was an undercurrent of impending storm.