Qin Ren opened the door to find Cui Yingjun standing there, beaming with obsequious enthusiasm, hands rubbing nervously, face glowing red with excitement.
At his feet lay a burlap sack—something inside was twitching faintly. It didn't take a genius to guess there was someone tied up in it.
"Master Qin," Cui whispered with a grin, casting a lecherous glance at the sack, "this is my adopted daughter, Ruo Mei. I've already drugged her with the Qiyin Hehuan Powder—a potent aphrodisiac. Her mind's gone. She's yours for the taking..."
Qin Ren looked at Cui's disgusting face and resisted the urge to smash it in. "I've heard that Qiyin Hehuan Powder isn't just an aphrodisiac—it's also a poison. If the victim doesn't have sex within three hours, blood starts pouring from every orifice. She'll die. And she's your adopted daughter, isn't she? You must have some feelings for her, Cui. Aren't you going a bit far?"
Cui chuckled shamelessly. "To serve you, Master Qin, I'd give anything. Even her. She's just a pawn."
Qin Ren nodded slowly. "You're truly a clever merchant. I'm curious—is there anything in this world you wouldn't sell?"
"If the price is right," Cui grinned, "I'd sell anything—except maybe my worthless life. Even my conscience."
Qin Ren sneered, "What's your conscience worth?"
Cui looked unusually serious for once. "Master Qin... not everyone has a conscience. Mine's been mostly eaten by dogs. But a sliver remains. I know you look down on me, but I just want to live—live happily, without shame. You were born rich. I was born scraping by. Selling sons, selling daughters... that's common in the Empire. In times of famine, people eat each other. I've seen it. I've eaten dirt, rats, roaches, maggots... things I won't describe. But I survived. And since I survived, I'm going to climb, even if it means selling everything to do it."
Qin Ren snorted and pulled out two gold notes worth 100 taels each. "Didn't expect you to spout philosophy. Take the money. Leave the girl. Get lost."
Cui took the gold notes silently. He looked down at the sack, then back up at Qin Ren. His eyes were red.
"Master Qin, I wasn't really going to sell her to Zhen Xiaosa. I planned to use him to kill Dong Xie. Then I'd kill him too."
Qin Ren nodded. "Ah. That's the last shred of your conscience. But now it belongs to me."
Cui turned and walked away in silence. Then, after a few steps, he turned back and said, "Master Qin... please be kind to my daughter. If she asks about me... just say I've gone far away, and won't trouble her again."
Qin Ren was already impatient. From the first time he eavesdropped on this clown, he knew Cui was a talker. Even now, at the end, the man couldn't shut up. Qin Ren wanted to slap him into silence.
Hypocrites... Always acting noble after they've sold everything. Why can't people just be honest about being scum like me? When I say I'm a pervert, I mean it. No excuses, no masks.
Conscience? Qin Ren smirked. Can't say I have much of that left either.
He dragged the sack inside and slammed the door shut.
Cui stared at the closed door. He didn't say a word—just stared at the golden notes. Four hundred taels of gold... that was a fortune. One tael of gold was worth sixty-six taels of silver. Four hundred taels? Tens of thousands in silver!
He tried to smile, but couldn't. His face twisted between a laugh and a sob. Finally, he forced out two tears and muttered, "Daughter... your father has failed you…"
Just then, the door of the adjacent room creaked open.
"Then go to hell," a voice whispered coldly.
A pale, slender hand reached out and dragged Cui inside. His scream was short: "You're Dong—!" Then silence.
His body was dismembered and stuffed into a chamber pot. A man in fine clothes, hairless chin, and a ghostly pale face picked up Cui's bloody head and grinned. "Eighteen years I've hunted you. Didn't expect you to deliver yourself. Deserved. Executed."
From the other side of the room, a younger voice called, "Old Wang, what the hell? What's all that noise? You high on aphrodisiacs or something?"
The pale man quickly replied, "Apologies, boss. Just killed a cockroach."
The spring rain kept falling, silent and eternal. No one noticed that one more sleazy man had disappeared from the world. In the Great Qin Empire, people vanished every day—killed by enemies, robbed, or dumped in the wilderness, never to be found. Especially those without kin. Their death meant no more than squashing a bug.
Such was this twisted world.
Back in the room, Qin Ren dragged the sack into the bedroom. As he opened it, a wave of heat surged out. Before he could react, the girl inside lunged into his arms and started kissing him wildly.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Slow down!" Qin shouted. "I haven't even seen your face! Hey! Stop that! I'm supposed to pluck the cold plum blossom, not the other way around! Damn it—this Hehuan Powder is ridiculous!"
Amid cries of dismay, the infamous flower thief, Master Qin the Third, was swiftly undressed by the girl like a peeled onion. Even she stripped herself bare with shocking speed. Tangled in each other's arms, the usually dominant Qin was forced into a defensive position.
Ruo Mei, despite her virginal status, was a martial arts prodigy. With one hand, she pinned Qin down. With the other, she snuffed out the room's only candle using a burst of finger wind. Darkness swallowed the room. Outside, rain fell softly. Inside—shouts echoed like the howls of wolves.
For once, the flower thief was the one being plucked.
Despite her innocence, Ruo Mei moved with uncanny instinct. The drug had ignited both lust and poison in her blood. Only sex could save her life. Driven by both desire and survival, she pinned Qin Ren and, with a powerful motion, took him in.
A pained yet ecstatic moan escaped her lips as she broke through the barrier. Then she started grinding fiercely.
Qin Ren lay there, dazed, watching her shake wildly, her long hair whipping in the air. In the dim light, he saw two tears trailing down her cheeks.
Pleasure shot through his nerves. With a groan, he finally gave in, grasping the two bouncing jade orbs on her chest.
Closing his eyes, he nearly wept.
All these years stealing flowers... and now I've been plucked like a weed. If word gets out, my reputation's done!