“Look at this! Just look! We’ve been begging the entire afternoon, yet they still refuse to let us go. They’re going to kill us!”
The noblewoman wailed in grief and despair, her voice shrill as she turned to Leng Yirou for help.
Leng Yirou’s gaze swept over the scene, only to see bruises and swelling covering the once-delicate and radiant face of her friend. Even her eyes were swollen from crying, leaving no trace of the beauty she once possessed.
“Yirou, please! Save us! Save us!” As if clutching at her last hope, the girl’s plea was even more desperate than her mother’s.
Leng Yirou’s palm trembled.
She felt as if she had been dragged into a swamp.
Should she help?
How could she help?
These were military personnel.
Cold and ruthless, answering to no one.
The military, the government, and the royal family might stand at the top together, but it had always been the military that ruled with absolute authority.
Yet, if she chose not to help, how would she explain herself?
With so many people watching, if she simply stood by and did nothing, would she not destroy the reputation she had painstakingly built over the years?
Leng Yiyao’s gaze flickered toward her eldest brother, subconsciously waiting for his reaction.
It was only now that the noblewoman seemed to realise something.
She stopped begging Leng Yirou and instead turned to the only male heir of the Leng family, her face pale and desperate.
“Leng Chao, please help us! Say something to them! We swear we will never do this again! This was all a misunderstanding—someone set us up! We are honest merchants, we would never scheme against anyone! We only wanted a chance to meet the Marshal…”
Tears and snot covered her once gracious face, now twisted in terror.
Leng Chao listened silently, his expression calm, offering not a single word from beginning to end.
His lack of reaction made his stance painfully clear to everyone present.
He would not interfere.
It did not matter that these people were his neighbors, nor that just a few days ago, they had dined and admired the scenery together.
Leng Yirou’s expression flickered. As if forced by her family’s stance, she took a step back, positioning herself behind Leng Chao. Her face carried an expression of helplessness and self-reproach.
Leng Yiyao glanced at them and couldn’t help but think—the Leng family really was full of actors. One played the good cop, the other the bad cop. One made decisions for the family’s future, while the other showed personal emotion. Their coordination, their tacit understanding—it was almost worthy of a perfect score.
The noblewoman waited for what felt like an eternity. Then, as cold realisation set in, her entire body trembled—the Leng family was simply here to watch their downfall. They had never intended to intervene.
She lifted her head, her gaze blank, only to see herself completely surrounded by soldiers. A terrifying thought crept into her mind—this is the end.
Why? Why?
Just this morning, she had still been a respected socialite. Yet now, in the blink of an eye, she was being treated like an animal, corralled at gunpoint. She didn’t want to go to prison. She didn’t want to have her wealth confiscated. She wanted to live as she had before—lavishly, indulgently.
And the Leng family—they were involved, too! The Leng household had also made suspicious moves this morning. So why weren’t they surrounded like this?
Why were they standing here, watching her family’s humiliation, yet no one dared to do the same to them?
Leng Chao lowered his head and quietly observed the noblewoman. Just moments ago, she had been desperately begging for help. Now, she stared at him with nothing but jealousy and hatred, as if she would drag him down with her if he refused to speak.
He had only himself to blame. The scene earlier—with the grand display of extravagant gifts—had drawn far too much attention.
With their homes so close together, all it took was for one servant to see—and word spread like wildfire.
He silently cursed himself for not stopping Leng Yirou from coming here. Turning away, he caught sight of his youngest sister, Leng Yiyao, standing off to the side, watching everything unfold with complete indifference—as if it was nothing more than entertainment.
She didn’t think the noblewoman was particularly ruthless. After all, Leng Yiyao and Leng Chao had no good intentions either.
Human nature was treacherous. It had always been this way.
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