“Don’t believe me?” Ye Lan raised an eyebrow, seemingly having anticipated Mu Xi’s reaction. “Take a closer look. Think carefully.”
Ye Lan leaned down, pointing at a shallow scar on the arm’s hand. “Li Xin’s left hand—isn’t there a scratch on it? Very small, not obvious, but you should still remember it, right?”
Mu Xi struggled to recall, memories flooding back like a tide. Li Xin’s left hand… it seemed… there really was a scar.
That was from when they escaped the Manor earlier; Li Xin had accidentally been cut by a sharp stone on the road. Mu Xi remembered seeing that shallow scar with her own eyes.
Mu Xi’s face instantly turned as pale as paper, her lips losing all color and trembling uncontrollably. She finally realized that Ye Lan wasn’t lying—the arm in the box really was Li Xin’s.
“You… you madwoman! What did you do to Li Xin?!”
Mu Xi’s voice was sharp and piercing, filled with endless fury and fear. She jerked her head up, staring at Ye Lan with eyes burning with hatred, wishing she could pounce on her and tear her to pieces.
“What did I do?” Ye Lan sneered, her tone cold and cruel. “I just made her pay a small price for you.”
“A price?!” Mu Xi’s voice twisted with rage. “You cut off her hand and you call that a price?! Ye Lan, you’re not human! You’re a demon! A demon!!”
Mu Xi completely lost control, struggling fiercely, trying to break free and charge at Ye Lan. But the cold, solid chains held her fast to the wall, leaving her unable to move.
“A demon?” Ye Lan seemed unfazed by the title, instead studying Mu Xi’s angry, desperate expression with interest. “If you think I’m a demon, then you should be even more obedient, shouldn’t you?”
“You… what do you want?!” Mu Xi’s voice was tearful, her eyes red, tears swirling but stubbornly refusing to fall.
“What do I want?” Ye Lan slowly crouched down, leaning close to Mu Xi’s face, her tone ambiguous and dangerous. “I just want you to be good, listen to me, and stop doing things that displease me.”
“I’ve listened to you! I’ve done everything you said! What more do you want?!” Mu Xi screamed hoarsely, her voice raspy from crying.
Ye Lan reached out and gently stroked Mu Xi’s cheek. Her fingertips were ice-cold, like a poisonous snake slowly slithering over Mu Xi’s skin, sending chills through her.
“Have you forgotten what I told you? Resisting me will only make you pay a heavier price.” Ye Lan’s voice was low and seductive, carrying an irresistible magic. “Now, Li Xin has lost one hand. If you keep this up… I wouldn’t mind letting her lose more.”
Mu Xi’s body went rigid. All her anger and hatred were doused like a bucket of ice water, vanishing without a trace. In their place came endless fear and despair.
She knew Ye Lan wasn’t joking. This woman truly meant what she said. To achieve her goals, she would stop at nothing, ruthless and merciless.
Li Xin… Li Xin… and Little An… they were all in Ye Lan’s hands—her deepest weakness, and the chips Ye Lan used to threaten her. Tears finally spilled over, streaming down her pale cheeks.
“Don’t… don’t hurt Li Xin…” Mu Xi’s voice softened, tinged with pleading.
“That’s right.” Ye Lan smiled in satisfaction, a cold, cruel smile. “Good children should obey. As long as you behave, I’ll make sure both you and Li Xin are fine.”
As she spoke, Ye Lan reached out and gently wiped the tears from Mu Xi’s face, but her tone remained icy. “Now, you need to obey.”
Mu Xi’s body stiffened like stone, unmoving. She knew what Ye Lan wanted her to do, and she knew she had no room to refuse.
Humiliation, anger, despair—various complex emotions churned and clashed in her heart, nearly consuming her entirely. But for Li Xin, for Little An, she had to endure, had to submit.
“I’ll listen to you…” Mu Xi forced out the words, her voice hoarse and broken.
Ye Lan’s smile grew brighter. She stood up with satisfaction, took Mu Xi’s hand, and pulled her to her feet.
“There’s a good girl.” Ye Lan said softly, her tone gentle as a lover’s whisper, but to Mu Xi’s ears, it was colder and more piercing than a blade.
Ye Lan kissed Mu Xi’s lips, with a sense of plunder and possession, sucking fiercely until Mu Xi’s breath became rapid and her body began to tremble slightly.
Mu Xi squeezed her eyes shut, forcing back nausea and humiliation, trying her best to cooperate with Ye Lan. This was the price she had to pay to protect everything she cherished.
The cold chains and the nauseating kiss were like sharp knives, slicing away at her dignity and soul. But she couldn’t fall, couldn’t break. She had to live—for Li Xin, for Little An, and for herself, even if she could only survive like an ant, dragging on in misery.
Ye Lan’s crazed possessiveness began to grow inside her, entwined with the pain. Ye Lan’s kiss grew deeper, more fervent, with a near-pathological passion. Mu Xi felt her body growing hotter—a strange, shameful desire began to stir within her, making it even harder to bear.
She could only clench her teeth, using all her strength to suppress the urge to vomit, forcing herself to respond to Ye Lan’s kiss, to comply, to please her.
Only when Ye Lan finally released her with satisfaction did Mu Xi feel like she had woken from a nightmare. She slumped against the cold wall, gasping for air. Her lips were swollen, her face streaked with tears, her eyes filled with despair and emptiness.
She felt like a hollow shell, drained of her soul, barely surviving in the darkness.
“Stay put, my little Xi’er.” Ye Lan’s voice was still soft, but carried a bone-chilling cruelty. “Remember, only by obeying can you live.”
With that, Ye Lan turned and walked toward the door, not sparing Mu Xi another glance, as if she were a mere toy, dispensable.
The metal door slammed shut again, the loud bang making the entire Storage Room tremble slightly.
Darkness surged in like a tide, swallowing Mu Xi completely.
The echo of the metal door’s impact still rang in her ears, making the cold chains on the wall rattle with a faint, grating sound.
The air was thick with dust, mustiness, and a faint, lingering cold fragrance Ye Lan had left behind—a suffocating mixture.
Mu Xi leaned against the rough, cold concrete wall, gasping. Her lips burned with a raw, swollen numbness.
Ye Lan’s kiss—domineering, fervent, with an undeniable possessiveness—had branded her lips like an iron, and also branded her soul. The shame flowed like viscous poison through her limbs. The unfamiliar heat that had been forcibly ignited deep inside her had not yet fully faded, intertwining with cold despair to form an even sharper pain.
She felt like a broken doll, tossed aside after being played with, abandoned in this forgotten corner, with not even the strength to resist. The tears had long since dried on her pale cheeks, leaving chilly traces.