"Dutchess Zhong, you don't need to pretend anymore. We recognized you long ago."
Leng Ruoli cut to the chase, revealing Dutchess Zhong's identity.
"Hmph! Since you recognize me, there's no need to pretend. Speak, what do you want in our stone cave?"
Dutchess Zhong questioned the King and his consort with a displeased expression.
Meanwhile, she thought to herself: The King and his consort are indeed difficult to deal with. They weren't knocked out by the sleeping drug I administered. It seems they were prepared for me.
"Dutchess Zhong, we also want to know why you've captured so many children and are holding them in this stone cave. And what are these bottles, jars, knives, and needles on the stone table for?" Leng Ruoli asked Dutchess Zhong pointedly.
"These matters have nothing to do with you. You two shouldn't meddle," Dutchess Zhong said fearlessly.
"Heh, this is the royal manor under the King's dominion, and more importantly, it's the territory of the Tianwu Kingdom. You're committing wicked deeds and harming the citizens of Tianwu Kingdom right under the Emperor's nose, doing such heinous things, and you say it has nothing to do with us?"
Leng Ruoli pointed at the long needle in Dutchess Zhong's hand and rebuked her.
"So what if it is? I only captured three children. Do you have to shout and threaten me like this? Besides, among royalty like yourselves, whose hands aren't stained with the blood of others? Dare you say your own hands are clean?" Dutchess Zhong argued.
"We have indeed killed people, but those were people who deserved to die. You, however, are brutally drawing blood from these innocent children to cultivate your Gu. You're twisting the facts."
Leng Ruoli immediately exposed Dutchess Zhong's purpose for capturing the young boys.
Dutchess Zhong felt a sense of disbelief. She hadn't expected the King's consort to be so intelligent, to actually know her motive for capturing these children.
Then, Dutchess Zhong's eyes flickered, and an idea to escape this stone cave flashed through her mind.
Although her Qinggong was formidable, her martial arts skills were not high. She would absolutely not be able to defeat the King and his consort on her own today. She could only escape by using some despicable means to threaten them.
In any case, she absolutely could not let the King and his consort ruin her plan to cultivate the Beauty Gu. If she failed to cultivate the Beauty Gu, Prince Ning would torment her good-for-nothing son to death.
She could not stand by and watch her son die before her eyes, so no matter what, she had to cultivate the Beauty Gu that Prince Ning desired and rescue her son from his confinement.
Thus, she hurried to the little boy hiding in the corner, grabbed him, and placed the long needle directly at the back of his neck.
This made the little boy cry out in fear.
"None of you come closer. If anyone dares to approach, I'll kill this child."
Dutchess Zhong used the little boy to threaten the King and his consort.
"Dutchess Zhong, don't you regret your actions? Are you still going to harm this innocent child?" Leng Ruoli asked Dutchess Zhong, her brows furrowed.
"I don't want to, but if I don't cultivate the Beauty Gu, my own son will die," Dutchess Zhong said, revealing a shocking truth.
Uncle Zhong, who had been hiding outside the cave entrance, could no longer bear to hear Dutchess Zhong's words and walked into the stone cave.
"Qingdai, hurry and stop. Don't hurt these innocent children anymore."
Uncle Zhong glanced at Dutchess Zhong, closed his eyes slightly, and two tears welled up in the corners of his eyes.
"Brother Zhong, why are you here too?"
"You, why did you bring Brother Zhong up the mountain?"
Dutchess Zhong's entire demeanor shifted to panic and bewilderment upon seeing Uncle Zhong.
This was because she absolutely did not want him to know about her actions.
"Qingdai, hurry and stop. Put down the child in your hands. I don't want to see you become a demon."
Uncle Zhong persuaded her again.
"Brother Zhong, I can't let him go. If I let him go, they will destroy my plan to cultivate the Beauty Gu, and cultivating the Beauty Gu is the only condition to save my useless son," Dutchess Zhong insisted.
"Qingdai, put the child down. Please don't hurt him. Your son is the apple of your eye, and he is also the apple of his parents' eye. Whatever troubles you have, you can sit down and talk with all of us. Perhaps we can help you find a solution. The King and his consort are not unreasonable people."
Uncle Zhong implored her again with earnest words.
Later, Dutchess Zhong finally removed the long needle from the back of the little boy's neck and put the boy down.
Upon being freed, the little boy immediately ran behind the King and his consort for protection. Leng Ruoli reached out and stroked the boy's head, offering him some comfort.
At this moment, Uncle Zhong slowly walked to Dutchess Zhong's side, took the long needle from her hand, dropped it on the ground, and led her to sit on a stone stool nearby.
Seeing that Uncle Zhong had not uttered a single word of accusation throughout the entire ordeal, Dutchess Zhong was deeply touched.
Meanwhile, seeing that Dutchess Zhong's emotions had stabilized, Leng Ruoli hurried to the stone bed to check on the little boy who was unconscious on the bed.
After a careful examination, Leng Ruoli discovered that the little boy had merely fainted from fear and was otherwise unharmed. This immediately relieved Leng Ruoli.
Subsequently, Leng Ruoli asked the conscious little boy to watch over the unconscious boy on the bed, while she and Jun Mohan came to sit before Uncle Zhong and Dutchess Zhong.
"Brother Zhong, I'm sorry. I've kept many things from you."
"I know!"
Dutchess Zhong's face showed a slight surprise upon hearing Uncle Zhong's words.
"Brother Zhong, you know my background, and..."
"Oh, that I don't know. But I've always known you have something hidden in your heart. However, if you don't bring it up yourself, I won't ask," Uncle Zhong stated frankly.
Upon hearing this, tears began to stream down Dutchess Zhong's face.
"Brother Zhong, I'm not a good woman. My full name is Miao Qingdai. I was originally a disciple of a Miao witch and learned a considerable amount of Gu art. I was once my master's pride, but I fell in love with a married man and had relations with him multiple times."
"However, our happiness was short-lived. His wife discovered our affair and reported it to my master and the clan leader. To my surprise, her father was the clan leader of our Miao family. When my master and the clan leader learned of this, they were furious and severely punished both of us. I was also locked in a dark room for several days."
"When I was released from the dark room, that man actually blamed me for the entire incident, saying I had seduced him. My master, upon hearing this, became enraged, immediately severed ties with me, and expelled me from the Miao family."
Dutchess Zhong said with a choked voice.