Chapter 369: The Cooked Duck has Flown Away

Qin Wanru had already resigned herself to her fate. She even felt a dash of gratitude that she wouldn’t have to be humiliated by Chu Tiesheng.

A scream echoed from close by. “Traitor! You dare?!”

This voice seemed slightly familiar to Qin Wanru. However, the drug had already spread through her entire body, and she had begun to lose her grip on her consciousness. She couldn’t identify the owner of this voice at all.

Hong Zhong was startled. He quickly turned towards the source of the scream, but saw a large rock flying towards him instead.

He smashed the rock to pieces with a single punch, then turned quickly back towards Qin Wanru. A man was now standing at her side.

Zu An noticed the seal on her body, and quickly unraveled it. Fortunately, Hong Zhong hadn’t employed any special technique, so it wasn’t too difficult.

Qin Wanru had completely succumbed to the effects of the ‘Bull’s Cream’. Once her acupoints were unsealed, her legs immediately gave out.

“Madam, be careful!” Zu An immediately reached out to support her.

The masculine aura of a man’s embrace threw her mind into absolute chaos. She wanted to struggle free, yet she found that she couldn’t move at all. However, she immediately relaxed when she saw who it was. “Ah Zu, it’s you…”

After all the deceit and betrayal she had experienced today, she had truly come to believe that there was no one left that she could trust.

However, as she lay in Zu An’s embrace, she felt a mysterious and unexplainable sense of ease.

Perhaps it was what her daughter had said before she left, or perhaps it was the camaraderie they had shared on their adventure that night.

Her heart was full of regret. If, instead of seeking out Hong Zhong, she’d sought out Zu An first, things might not have turned out this way.

Zu An could spare no time to talk to her. Even though he was usually lackadaisical in nature, he was still an intelligent person.

Hong Zhong was the Chu clan’s butler, which meant that he was at least at the pinnacle of sixth rank. There was even a chance that he was at the seventh rank.

Hong Zhong was also a traitor, so there was no way he would hold back in a fight. It would be a death sentence if Zu An challenged him head on.

Instead, he instantly used Grandgale to carry Qin Wanru away.

“Huh? Why is your body so hot?” Qin Wanru’s body felt extremely strange. Not only was she soft like cotton, her body was heating up and giving off a rich fragrance. Zu An was puzzled, but this wasn’t the time to be worrying about something like this.

Hong Zhong was thrown off by the sudden rescue. “Where do you think you are going?!” He immediately gave chase. If Zu An successfully rescued Qin Wanru, it would mess up the entire scheme.

Even though Zu An’s instantaneous movement was fast, the distance he could cover with each use was limited, and there was a limit to the number of times he could activate it. Not only that, but he was carrying someone as well. Slowly but surely, Hong Zhong was closing the gap.

Soon Zu An’s back came into range of his attack. A flash of hesitation crossed Hong Zhong’s face.

He wasn’t malicious by nature, so killing an innocent person still pained him. Not only that, these two were individuals that he had served diligently as well. 

Just then, a fierce shout came from off to the side. “Hong Zhong, what are you standing around for?!”

Apparently, Chu Tiesheng had already rushed over as well. He had been so horny earlier that he’d let his guard down, and Qin Wanru had almost taken his life.

His injuries weren’t slight, and it had taken him a while to catch his breath. He had rushed over just in time to see this scene play out in front of him.

His voice shook Hong Zhong out of his daze. Zu An was the reason why his son had begun walking this path to hell. 

Allowing Qin Wanru to escape would also mean more trouble for them.

A vicious glint flashed across his eyes, and he directed a punch towards Zu An’s back.

As his arm moved, a projection of a fist materialized in the air ahead of him, flying towards Zu An’s back.

Zu An had seen that there was still some distance between them, and he was completely focused on running. He had yet to realize that he was already in danger.

However, Qin Wanru saw all of this. “Be careful!” she cried out in alarm. 

She didn’t know where she found the strength to do so, but she managed to move around behind Zu An with great difficulty. She blocked the strike with her own back. 

She didn’t know why she did this either. Perhaps it was because of how dismally everything had turned out for her so far—subconsciously, she believed that it was probably better to exchange her own life for Zu An’s safety.

That way, someone else would still know the truth about what had happened.

If Zu An died from this punch, then her helpless, drugged-up self would be subjected to an even worse fate.

Even if Zu An somehow managed to save her, she had already been poisoned by such a vile drug. It was already hard for her to control her own impulses, and her mental faculties were in tatters. If something really happened with him afterwards, she would take bitter regret with her to her grave and beyond.

“Pfft!” Qin Wanru felt a huge impact batter her body. Blood sprayed out of her mouth, robbing her of the rest of her strength. Her body was powerless, like a leaf swirling in the air, buffeted by a gust of wind.

“Madam!” Blood splattered over Zu An’s cheeks. He couldn’t be bothered to wipe it off right now. Even his heart was shaking.

Hong Zhong and Chu Tiesheng were about to catch up. Suddenly, a massive tree fell, blocking their path.

Instinctively, they dodged the falling tree. By the time they recovered, Zu An was already nowhere to be seen.

“We need to catch him!” Chu Tiesheng said in a panic. He wanted to keep running.

Hong Zhong held him back. “Stop chasing them!” 

“Why?” Chu Tiesheng was confused. Even his eyes had begun to turn red. The only thing on his mind right then was that Qin Wanru needed his treatment.

If he didn’t catch them, wouldn’t he have only ended up helping Zu An?

“Are you deaf? The estate is in an uproar right now!” Hong Zhong snarled. “The guards of the Chu Estate guards have been mobilized thanks to the sudden activity. We have to think about how to deal with this situation! Where do we have the time to satisfy that thing in your pants?!”

Chu Tiesheng turned around. Sure enough, he saw a smattering of lights bobbing about. A considerable number of people were hurrying in their direction.

His face grew dark. However, he knew that he had to deal with the current situation in the Chu Estate, and he was under pressure from Sang Hong as well. He had to give up the chase. “If we let Qin Wanru go now, wouldn’t whatever we say count for nothing when she returns?”

Hong Zhong shook his head. “Don’t worry. Madam cannot possibly survive my blow.”

A flicker of sadness flashed across his eyes. He had wanted to avoid this if he could, but it had been the only choice left.

Chu Tiesheng’s expression changed immediately. As a member of the Chu clan, how could he not know about the formidable power behind Hong Zhong’s Heart-smashing Fist?

If she had been in her usual state, Qin Wanru might still have had a chance of surviving the strike.

However, in her weakened state, there was practically no chance of survival if his blow had landed on a vital area.

“Sigh, what a pity.” Chu Tiesheng looked miserable. Why had he been so obsessed earlier? He’d ended up allowing this cooked duck to fly away…

Hong Zhong snorted. “How do you still have the nerve to say that? If it hadn’t been for your muddle-headedness, there wouldn’t have been so many mishaps!”

Chu Tiesheng felt a flash of resentment. This guy had no qualms about embarrassing him in the open!

He made a mental note to himself. Hong Zhong simply held too much prestige in the Chu clan. He had to find a way to get rid of him once he rose to the position of clan master. He wouldn’t be truly in command until that happened.

Neither of them noticed the old man hiding in the shadows, silently watching everything play out. Satisfied that they were not giving chase, the old men turned and left.

Old Mi frowned in Zu An’s direction. If he had known things would turn out like this, he would have interfered earlier.

The fallen tree had been his work.

A weak voice came from behind Zu An. “Don’t bother with me anymore. Let me down. You should try to escape by yourself.”

Zu An said gravely, “You are Chuyan and Huanzhao’s mother. How can I give up on Madam’s life?! You even sacrificed yourself to save me. Wouldn’t I be considered less than a beast if I abandoned you now?”

Qin Wanru shook her head weakly. “You don’t understand… I’ve been drugged… death is already the best form of release.”

“Drugged?” Zu An was stunned. He stopped to take a look at her.

Qin Wanru’s face was flushed with an unnatural redness. “Chu Tiesheng, that despicable man, used ‘Bull’s Cream’ on me. It’s a powerful… aphrodisiac. No medicine can eliminate its effects—the only way to neutralize it is by joining with a man. That is why I would rather die.”

“Doesn’t that mean that we just need to find father-in-law? What’s so hard about that?” Zu An replied. At the same time, he cursed that shameless Chu Tiesheng. He remembered the looks of desire that the man had directed towards Qin Wanru in secret, but he never expected him to be so daring to do such a thing to her.

Qin Wanru was furious. “You know nothing!” 

You have successfully trolled Qin Wanru for 233 Rage points!

Zu An was stunned. Why did she suddenly get mad at him?

“You won’t be able to get far if you carry me with you. I’m already doomed. Instead of dying together, it would be better if you escaped first. You can still expose their plot! With that, I wouldn’t have died for nothing,” Qin Wanru said anxiously.

Zu An refused. “I have no status at all. How could I hope to overcome the prestige that Hong Zhong and Chu Tiesheng hold? No one would believe me even if I told them.”

Qin Wanru was stunned. She realized that what he’d said was the truth. “You can at least tell Chuyan. She will definitely believe you.”

Zu An picked her up again. “The best outcome would be for you to personally expose their schemes. Don’t worry, I know someone who can definitely get rid of your poison.”

After saying this, he sped off in another direction.

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