How could I possibly be confined in a cage?

The violent jolts jolted Qingru awake from her unconsciousness. She struggled to open her eyes, her vision blurred. Unable to see clearly, Qingru tried her best to calm herself and rationally consider her current situation.

Just now, the person who knocked her unconscious looked very familiar. Slender and quick-witted, she looked a lot like the human trafficker "Second Sister-in-law" who had escaped before.

Who would have thought that the honest-looking coachman could change his attitude so quickly? If he really is "Second Sister-in-law," then there's no need to worry. Jiang Shen and Guo Zixing are nearby and will soon find themselves missing.

The reason why "Second Sister-in-law" waited until the city gate to make her move was perhaps to humiliate Guo Zixing. To be able to escape right under Guo Zixing's nose and then to kidnap someone right under his nose was a clear act of trampling on his dignity.

Trying her best to suppress the urge to vomit, Qingru tried to keep her breathing even so that no one would notice that she was awake.

After a long while, Qingru's eyes were finally able to see clearly, but what was in front of her was... a sack? No wonder she felt so suffocated; it turned out she had been stuffed into a sack.

The coachman didn't ride a horse; he simply carried a sack and hurried quickly through the reeds, which were as tall as a person. The city of Sifang had a tranquil river flowing through it, as well as lakes, and countless small islands were hidden within the reeds.

With a "bang," the driver threw the sack into a small fishing boat, poled it, and quickly disappeared.

When the man arrived with Jiang Shen, they only saw a path made of reeds, but the man was nowhere to be seen.

Jiang Shen, consumed by anger and frustration, accused the man, "I shouldn't have saved you! If it weren't for saving you, we wouldn't have gone to Jingzhen, and we wouldn't have encountered human traffickers. She's your savior, and you just stood by and watched her get arrested?"

The man was so ashamed that he couldn't lift his head. He knew that no matter what he said, it was his misjudgment, so he took the blame: "I'm sorry, I will definitely save her."

Jiang Shen looked at the man's guilty face and wished he could kill him immediately, but at this moment, having one more person would mean having one more helper, so he swallowed his anger.

Looking around, the man spotted a wooden stake standing on the bank. Examining the marks carefully, he confirmed, "A small boat was recently moored here, and it left not long ago."

Jiang Shen, barely clinging to life, stared at the ripples spreading in the distance, a look of surprise crossing his face. "It's there."

The man noticed and immediately tried to jump into the water. Jiang Shen stopped him, saying, "Your injuries haven't healed yet, you don't need to do that. You take my soldiers, leave a mark, and find a boat to pick us up."

Without much hesitation, the man immediately agreed. As Jiang Shen went into the water, the man suddenly said, "My name is Liu Wu, and I will never change my name. I will never let Qingru be in danger. If I cannot save her, I am willing to give my life."

Jiang Shen was taken aback, then said disdainfully, "You should tell her that yourself."

He immediately stopped arguing and plunged into the water. The water in the reed marshes wasn't very deep, but it was murky, and there were branches, hooks, and pebbles in the shadows. Before long, Jiang Shen was scratched.

As if oblivious to everything, Jiang Shen swam straight towards the small boat, like a fish that thrives in water.

The sound of waves could be heard not far away, and the coachman could clearly sense that Jiang Shen was about to catch up, so he couldn't help but start to get anxious.

However, rowing a boat on the water is far less agile than swimming alone. After only a few laps, Jiang Shen's dark head bobbed up and down on the water.

The driver, his face contorted with rage, threw down the oar and pulled out his gun, firing several shots in quick succession.

A splash of bright red appeared on the water, and a moment later a figure surfaced. Only then did the driver put away his gun and continue rowing.

Qingru could hear clearly from inside the sack who had come to rescue her. Could it be Guo Zixing?

But with so many shots fired, could he already be dead? Qingru couldn't help but struggle, tearing at the knot in the sack.

Seeing that Qingru was awake, the coachman thought he had been awakened by the gunshot, so he kicked her a few times angrily and shouted, "Behave yourself, or I'll kill you right now."

The sack flinched for a moment, then fell silent.

The driver smirked and quickened his pace.

Qingru was filled with doubt and suspicion. She was almost certain that this person was "Second Sister-in-law," the human trafficker Du Tao. Although he could raise his voice, his voice was still more feminine than that of an ordinary man, given his years of pretending to be a woman.

Now things are likely to turn out badly, and Qingru can imagine how much Du Tao hates her. Back then, when "Second Brother" Chen Dahu was brought to justice, she almost risked her life to buy him a chance to escape. She still remembers the resentful glare Du Tao gave her when he turned back, as if he wanted to kill her.

About fifteen minutes later, the water surface widened, and it was clear that we had left the reed marshes.

Looking up, you can see several tall cruise ships not far away.

Du Tao rowed his small boat to a stop beneath a two-story pleasure boat, waiting for a rope ladder to be lowered down. He slung the sack containing Qingru over his shoulder and quickly climbed up.

Once on the deck, the guards who were waiting searched Du Tao thoroughly before letting him pass.

Inside the room, Du Tao tossed the sack to the ground, where it landed with a heavy thud. The woman at the head of the table, an extremely alluring woman, frowned upon seeing Du Tao's rudeness.

"What are you doing? What if you hurt someone? I've already paid for it."

Du Tao forced a weary smile: "Don't worry, you won't die from the fall. But you still need to train Madam Zhu, so she won't be seeing guests so soon."

Lady Zhu frowned slightly, as if a thin mist had gathered between her brows and eyes. She said with great reluctance, "I am a person who cherishes women, unlike you who doesn't like women. Let me see the goods."

Du Tao's expression shifted between light and dark. He then untied the sack, and Qingru peeked out in fear, looking around at everyone with alarm.

Mrs. Zhu's eyes lit up. "Oh my, she's quite nice. She's beautiful and has a good figure. It's just a pity she's not young. It would be even better if she were a teenager."

Speaking in a soft, Wu dialect, Lady Zhu's slender, white hands, adorned with bright red nail polish, gently lifted Qingru's chin to examine her closely. "Tsk tsk, it's her! She'll definitely become our courtesan queen."

Qingru had already guessed that this must be some kind of brothel, and that she was sure to suffer a bad end after being caught here.

Unfortunately, with burlap stuffed in her mouth, Qingru couldn't speak even if she wanted to.

Lady Zhu opened her folding fan and fanned herself lightly and casually. She was quite satisfied with Qingru's appearance. Then she beckoned to her subordinate, "A-Jian, go and calculate the money. I only paid the deposit."

Du Tao refused, but said fiercely, "Madam Zhu, I don't want money, I only ask you for one thing."

Mrs. Zhu smiled, her eyes sparkling, "Tell me, and I'll think about whether I should agree."

Du Tao glared at Qingru resentfully and said, "She is my enemy. My husband died because of her. I don't want money, I can even give you money. I only have one request: she must never leave Qinhuai Tower. I want her to sell herself until she dies."

Madam Zhu used her fan to cover the lower half of her face as she chuckled, and then said, "You know, the rules here are that we don't interfere with where the girls go. If some important person takes a fancy to her and wants to make her a concubine, I can't stop them."

Du Tao immediately put away the sack, his expression indifferent. "Madam Zhu, I took your money first. I didn't want to break the rules, so I came here first. Now that I've seen the goods, since we can't reach an agreement, I'll go to the next shop. Farewell."

Having said that, he was about to set off immediately when Lady Zhu lightly raised her hand, and dozens of knives appeared before her, with a dark opening in the doorway pointed at her. Du Tao angrily said, "Are you trying to double-cross me?"

Madam Zhu covered her mouth and smiled, "How can you say that? We're just talking business." Her voice was soft and gentle, but her words left no room for refusal, "You know us, we're always approachable. We're just having a good business discussion, why are you getting angry?"

Du Tao's expression was unpleasant, but he was wary of Madam Zhu. Upon hearing this, he took a step back and said, "You mean you agree to my conditions?"

Lady Zhu seemed tired of standing, so she sat down and leaned back, asking, "What's the background of this girl? Whose daughter is she?"

Du Tao said, "An unknown nobody."

Lady Bamboo scoffed, "Oh dear, you're not new to this business. You know we deal with high-ranking officials and nobles, whose relationships aren't incredibly complex? Such a beautiful woman couldn't have come from a farming family. If she were truly an unknown nobody, such a beauty would be under ten years old, otherwise farm work alone would have ruined her skin."

Du Tao still had some reservations, so after thinking for a moment, he simplified the story, saying, "This woman is from Sifang City. Her family owns a shop, but they're not very wealthy. Her surname is Lü. You can go and inquire whether there's a wealthy family like that in Sifang City."

Lady Zhu looked at Qingru's expression and made a decision after a moment, "I'll trust you this time. Go and rest."

Du Tao was asked to leave, and Lady Zhu looked down at Qingru, both beautiful and ruthless.

With her hands tied and mouth gagged, Qingru stared at Madam Zhu in utter terror. Was she doomed to perish today?