Wen Zilong looked somewhat crazy tonight.
Having his hair bun undone by Caiyu and then rushing over in a hurry, he reeked of alcohol.
His pair of narrow phoenix eyes were bloodshot.
The whole man looked dejected and sinister. When he stared at people, it sent shivers down their spines.
Even Peilan, who was usually fearless, noticed his unusual look. She took a frightened step back, lowered her head in terror and replied,
"O... okay. I'll follow your arrangement, my lord."
Only then did Wen Zilong's expression improve. He turned his gaze to Lan Jinqin again.
He strode forward and put his arm around Lan Jinqin's shoulder, not allowing her to break free. Smiling, he said, "My lady has gone to great lengths to arrange a concubine for me. You've done a great job. Hurry back to the mansion with your husband to rest. We can deal with Peilan's matter tomorrow. It's not urgent."
Lan Jinqin couldn't break free from his big hand. She was half-pushed and half-led out of the Orchid Fragrance Residence and then onto the carriage.
"Wen Zilong!" As soon as Lan Jinqin got on the carriage, she sat in a corner. Furious, she said, "What do you mean? Aren't you happy that I'm taking a concubine for you?"
Wen Zilong snorted, ordered his attendants to drive the carriage away, and then sat back inside.
He half-lyed on the cushioned couch, twirling the jade finger ring on his thumb. His voice was cold:
"What good things did my lady find in the Orchid Fragrance Residence? Do you have any solid evidence against me?"
Lan Jinqin's heart skipped a beat. Then she regained her composure and pretended not to understand as she looked at him:
"I don't understand what you're talking about, husband."
"Don't understand?" Wen Zilong drawled lazily, "That day I heard you questioning Peilan about the flower note outside the Wen Mansion... My lady, I only wrote such a letter of promise to Peilan. As for other love letters, love poems, and vows, I've never written them again."
Lan Jinqin was silent for a moment.
So Wen Zilong was worried that she would find another letter of promise?
Was he just worried that she would find a new letter of promise and then expose his true face to the world?
Lan Jinqin looked at him suspiciously. Finally, she sneered as she followed his words, "It's just you and me in this carriage. Don't you feel tired acting like this, husband? Whether you love Peilan or not, I don't care... As long as you can keep me firmly in the position of the wife of the Wen family."
Wen Zilong gave a soft laugh. Suddenly, he sat up straight, staring at Lan Jinqin with a dark look in his eyes. "Naturally, I once thought of growing old with you. It's just a pity that things didn't go as I wished. There are too many variables in this world that I can't control..."
"But don't worry. Since we're husband and wife, I will surely let you live a stable life as the wife of the Wen family. Of course, as a return, my lady should also try to please your husband, right?"
Caiyu had given him a terrifying experience tonight. Then Lan Jinqin's actions made Wen Zilong feel a strong sense of crisis.
He hardly wanted to pretend to be that gentle and elegant gentleman anymore.
He urgently needed an outlet to pour out all the terror he had experienced tonight.
Lan Jinqin stared at him in horror as he bent down and approached her. She fiercely pushed him away:
"What... what are you doing?"
"Wen Zilong! Let go of me!"
"This is in the carriage! You brute!"
Wen Zilong grabbed her with a sneer. "What can I do? You've been using all kinds of excuses to avoid me all day long. Do you think I can't see it?"
"I'm your husband. It's only natural for you to serve and satisfy me. I've given you too much face in the past, which has spoiled you into being so ungrateful."
"Today, you have to agree whether you like it or not!"
Wen Zilong frowned and tore at the silk undergarments on her body. The veins on his arms bulged, looking as terrifying as wriggling snakes:
"What are you shouting for? Others might think you've been raped. I'm your husband. It's not our first time... Don't act like a chaste martyr!"
"Help!" Lan Jinqin struggled to avoid his thin, wine-smelling lips. A few tears welled up in the corners of her eyes.
He was her husband, but also her enemy!
To yield to her enemy made her feel extremely humiliated. She would rather die than accept it!
Wen Zilong's knee pushed open her legs. His desire was overwhelming through the thin summer clothes.
"Let... let go of me... No..."
The cramped space and the intense sense of humiliation made Lan Jinqin's throat tremble and her whole body shake violently.
Wen Zilong felt her body trembling and sneered obscenely, "No... My lady's body is much more honest than her mouth. Look at your reaction. You clearly desire your husband to come in quickly, don't you... Mm!"
Before he could finish his words, Lan Jinqin suddenly felt the man on top of her fall heavily onto her.
His heavy body almost crushed the breath out of her.
The carriage moving through the night had stopped at some point.
Lan Jinqin stared at him in horror with wide eyes. She felt Wen Zilong's body being flipped over and thrown to one side.
She was lying on the narrow cushioned couch in the carriage, looking up at the silent figure like a mountain in the carriage.
Most of the man's face was covered by a mask. The curtain of the carriage was torn open, and the attendants were casually thrown by the roadside.
The moonlight outside shone through the carriage door on the man's broad back. Only his pair of exposed eyes were as turbulent as a furious deep sea.
Lan Jinqin stared at him blankly, not noticing when the tears in the corners of her eyes had slid down.
"Who... who are you?" Lan Jinqin's voice trembled. Her mind was in a mess.
The events tonight were too shocking for her to react immediately.
Xiao Rencheng stared silently at the woman curled up on the couch.
Just now, due to her desperate struggle and fear, the hair on her temples was wet with the tears in the corners of her eyes, and her cheeks were flushed.
She didn't look embarrassed but rather exuded a captivating charm.
But at this moment, there was no hint of lust in Xiao Rencheng's heart. He only hated himself for coming too late.
His carriage had been following Wen Zilong.
He had seen clearly when Lan Jinqin was thrown onto the carriage by Wen Zilong.
But the carriage of the Wen Mansion started quickly, and there didn't seem to be anything unusual.
It wasn't until Lan Jinqin's faint cry of "help" came out that he realized something was going on inside.
Immediately, he covered his face and forced his way into the carriage. He happened to see Wen Zilong assaulting Lan Jinqin.
Xiao Rencheng clenched his fingertips in his sleeves, then loosened them with a muffled sound. Without saying a word, he bent down to rummage through the valuable items on Wen Zilong's body.
Lan Jinqin came back to her senses from the brief shock and watched the masked man rummaging through Wen Zilong's body.
The purse, the jade pendant, the belt... He didn't let go of anything inlaid with gems.
Lan Jinqin was silent.
...She didn't expect that the other person was actually a bandit.
Well, it was late at night and in the suburbs. Apart from bandits, who else would appear at this time?
She didn't expect that she would be saved by a bandit.
For a moment, she was speechless.
Of course, Xiao Rencheng didn't really want to rob for money.
He just didn't want to cause trouble for Lan Jinqin, so he pretended to be a money-robbing bandit.
When Wen Zilong woke up again and found that the valuable things on his body were gone, he would only suspect that it was the work of a bandit.
Lan Jinqin also kept silent.
Presumably, the bandit lord didn't want to make a sound for fear that she would recognize him by his voice in the future.
So she silently watched him strip Wen Zilong naked and throw him by the roadside.
The clothes, pants and items were scattered in a mess in the carriage.
Just as Xiao Rencheng had put all the valuable things into his bag, he heard the weak voice of the woman beside him:
"Sir, do you want to make a fortune?"
Xiao Rencheng's fingers on his side paused. He looked at Lan Jinqin in surprise.
Lan Jinqin pointed to the bunch of keys on the carriage floor, cleared her throat and said,
"That's the key to my husband's private treasury. There's estimated to be a million taels of silver in the private treasury. If you, sir, can find a way to take it out..."
Xiao Rencheng stared coldly at Lan Jinqin.
It was the first time he had ever met someone who wanted to steal from her own family's treasury and make a deal with a bandit.
Lan Jinqin said to herself, "I know the location of the private treasury and the situation of the guards there. If you, sir, are willing to take the risk... After the success, you can give me 250,000 taels of silver. You can take all the rest away."
Finally, Xiao Rencheng couldn't help but speak in a hoarse voice, "My lady, have you heard the story of seeking the skin from a tiger?"