In a private room on the second floor of the Du Jiang Building, Sun Tang's voice echoed through the street, drawing the attention of countless onlookers.
This was precisely what Sun Tang desired.
Who told the Ji family to be so ungrateful? They deserved to become targets for others.
A quarter past the hour of Hai (9:15 PM).
Having eaten and drunk their fill, Sun Tang waved goodbye to a group of drunken rich young masters and stumbled out of the Du Jiang Building.
The thought that his words would spread through every street and alley of the imperial city, and that the common folk would curse the Ji family in unison, made his heart swell with delight, as if it had bloomed with flowers.
Suddenly, several unfamiliar men walked towards him.
Before Sun Tang could even react, a sack was pulled over his head.
Sun Tang: "..."
What was this?
Zhang Ji, the leader, seeing that the person had been captured, directly hoisted him up and tossed him into a carriage waiting in the alley. He then drove away with his subordinates, not uttering a single unnecessary word from start to finish.
Inside the carriage, Sun Tang, belatedly realizing what was happening, began to scream, "What do you want? I'm telling you, my father is the Left Vice Censor-in-Chief of the court. If you capture me, my father will surely kill you all..."
However, no matter how much he yelled until his throat was raw, no one answered.
Not long after, the carriage stopped by the side of a street. Sun Tang, still blindfolded, was once again hoisted up.
Sun Tang felt the person carrying him push open a door, and then a strong scent of medicinal herbs wafted towards him.
Before Sun Tang could ponder further, he was thrown to the ground again.
Immediately after, the sack on his head was removed.
Under the moonlight, he saw a square room. There was no inner chamber or outer hall. Like a warehouse, it was filled with rows of wooden shelves, piled high with various medicinal ingredients he couldn't name.
"Swish!"
The candle flame inside the room was suddenly lit.
In the candlelight, a woman's face gradually became clear and bright.
She possessed ethereal beauty, skin like jade and bones like ice, with bright eyes and pearly teeth.
Yet, within her eyes, which were like flowing water, there was a chilling coldness, as clear as autumn water and as frigid as deep ice.
She sat upright on a chair, seemingly radiating a cold radiance.
Sun Tang, proud of having seen countless beautiful women, was still stunned, unable to recover for a long time.
It wasn't until Zhang Ji kicked his knee, forcing him to kneel on the ground, that Sun Tang seemed to snap awake.
"Who are you? What do you want?" Sun Tang tilted his head back, staring intently at Ji Zizhao.
"You don't seem to recognize me," Ji Zizhao shifted slightly, her slender five fingers propping up half of her face. After a pause, she continued, "But my third sister had the good fortune to meet Young Master Sun today."
Sun Tang was taken aback, and then his eyes widened in disbelief, "You, you're Ji Zizhao!"
The second daughter of the Ji family was known for her wild nature, and Sun Tang, being in the imperial city, was not unfamiliar with her. And besides the second daughter of the Ji family who could call a third daughter 'sister,' there was only...
The obscure eldest daughter of the Ji family!
"It seems you're not entirely foolish," Ji Zizhao's calm gaze fell upon Sun Tang, revealing nothing of her thoughts. "I heard you seem to know a lot about the war in Luoyi?"
Sun Tang finally understood why he was here.
"The defeat in Luoyi was entirely the Ji family's responsibility. Ji Zizhao, I warn you, if you expect me to change my story and deceive the people, you are dreaming!" He had spread such rumors precisely to embarrass the Ji family and cause them trouble.
Ji Zizhao remained unmoved. "You seem to be thinking too much."
Sun Tang was taken aback.
Ji Zizhao suddenly smiled, but the frost in her eyes deepened. "I invited Young Master Sun here today simply because I wanted... to beat you."
Sun Tang: "..."
To beat someone so righteously?
How could she be so arrogant!
"However, I suspect that since Young Master Sun dares to publicly smear the Ji family, he must have a tough backbone. Therefore, before coming, I specially prepared a generous gift for Young Master Sun."
As Ji Zizhao spoke, she slowly rose from her chair. As she squatted in front of Sun Tang, she took out a small porcelain bottle.
"Please accept it, Young Master Sun." The beautiful curve of her lips turned upwards, her alluring face blooming like a magnificent white orchid. Yet, Sun Tang's hair stood on end at her smile.
Watching Ji Zizhao open the small porcelain bottle, Sun Tang frantically tried to struggle.
Ji Zizhao gave him no chance, forcefully prying open Sun Tang's jaw. With a few deft movements of her fingers, the entire bottle of liquid was poured down Sun Tang's throat, not a single drop wasted.
Sun Tang, in his terror, tried to claw at his throat, but he could only gag, to no avail.
Soon, darkness enveloped his vision, as he saw Zhang Ji and his men surrounding him.
"What do you want?"
"You're crazy! You dare to disrespect me, I'll have my father kill your whole family!"
"No, don't, ahhh—!"
Zhang Ji and the others' fists and feet were like iron, raining down on Sun Tang, blow after blow.
Screams like a pig being slaughtered instantly filled the entire pharmacy.
Ji Zizhao sat back down in her chair, her dark eyes like water, her expression indifferent. Su Dan Novel Network.
Her visit this time was by no means solely to vent anger for her third sister.
But she also knew clearly that to get the answers she wanted, she could only wait.
No haste.
She had once gone with the flow, disdaining to fight and compete in this backward world.
But she had never said she was a good person.
Sun Tang, bombarded by continuous blows, watched as his initial resentment gradually turned into fear.
Only now did he belatedly recognize a reality.
Ji Zizhao was not a pushover at all.
She was a lunatic!
This was clearly a situation where they intended to beat him to death...
"I, I really didn't touch the Ji family's third young lady today, she fell herself..."
"And that defeat in Luoyi, I didn't actually witness the reasons for it. The soldiers were all saying that the Ji family couldn't escape blame, so I, I just followed along with what they said..."
"Oh, right, when we were in Luoyi, the Second Prince was constantly communicating secretly with a mysterious person. Every time after such communication, the Second Prince would issue orders to the army."
Sun Tang was truly scared.
What was even more terrifying!
Ji Zizhao did not explain her intentions at all.
To save his life, he could only blurt out everything he could think of.
Ji Zizhao fiercely gripped the armrest beside her, her throat feeling tight to the point of suffocation.
It appeared that the Second Prince not only harbored ill intentions to frame the Ji family, but was also colluding with others to harm the Ji family!
Ji Zizhao's fury surged, her entire chest burning with pain, aching.
Suppressing the immense hatred within her, Ji Zizhao waved her hand at Zhang Ji and the others. "Enough, let him go."
Zhang Ji nodded, signaling his men to put a sack on Sun Tang and drag him out.
Ji Zizhao stood up and took some medicinal powder from a nearby shelf, sprinkling it on the ground.
Soon, Sun Tang's scent completely disappeared.
Her medical hall was not to be polluted by the air of a scoundrel.
Having finished everything, Ji Zizhao then rose and walked towards the outside of the pharmacy.
She clearly remembered Sun Tang mentioning that the Second Prince had been secretly communicating with someone in Luoyi.
Therefore, having exposed the Second Prince this time was still not enough...
She wanted all those who had caused the death of the Ji family men to reveal their true faces!
Zhang Ji, who was waiting outside, met Ji Zizhao. "Eldest Young Lady, are you returning to the manor?"
Ji Zizhao shook her head.
Zhang Ji was stunned.
At such a late hour of the night, what else could she do besides return to the manor?
Ji Zizhao, however, said, "Uncle Ji, what do you think the Left Vice Censor-in-Chief would do if he knew his only son had been beaten?"
Zhang Ji frowned, and then his eyes widened.
Could it be...