“The Ghost Doctor of Southern Xinjiang is so old, he must have apprentices by now. If we can’t get him to come, we should be able to get his apprentices!” Shen Lixue subtly steered the conversation toward Bai Ling’er.
"That wretched woman Bai Ling'er, relying on her looks, is incredibly arrogant and haughty. She's even harder to serve than the Ghost Doctor of Southern Xinjiang. You'd be better off asking the Ghost Doctor of Southern Xinjiang instead of her!"
Shen Lixue looked at Qin Ruoyan's fiery eyes and her expression of wanting to tear someone to pieces when she mentioned Bai Ling'er, and realized that she must have suffered a great loss at Bai Ling'er's hands.
"Who is Bai Ling'er? Does she act more arrogant than the Ghost Doctor of Southern Xinjiang?"
Qin Ruoyan huffed angrily: "The Ghost Doctor of Southern Xinjiang claims to be from Southern Xinjiang, and she herself says she is from Southern Xinjiang, but I have never believed that such a devastatingly beautiful face could come from that barren and desolate place!"
"Beautiful mountains and clear waters nurture people, naturally producing beautiful women!" Shen Lixue blinked, giving a perfunctory reply.
Qin Ruoyan scoffed dismissively, "It's Poisonous Miasma Mountain, Miss Chen. The whole mountain is poisonous. It's good enough if you don't die!"
Shen Lixue sighed, feigning helplessness: "It seems that it's not easy to find a ghost doctor in Southern Xinjiang!"
"It's harder than asking a god for help." Qin Ruoyan snorted resentfully, tied the ribbon around her waist, and looked at Shen Lixue: "Which of your friends is sick? My medical skills are quite good. Considering that you gave me a male concubine, I can reluctantly take a look at him!"
Shen Lixue waved her hand to interrupt her: "No need. The princess is extremely skilled in poisons and doesn't like to research antidotes. What if my friend's injuries are healed, but he dies from the princess's poison? It would be a loss!"
Qin Ruoyan snorted lightly: "It's their good fortune that I used them to test the poison!"
"I won't disturb the princess's rest any longer, farewell!" Shen Lixue had already found out what she wanted to know, so there was no need to stay any longer.
"Wait!" Qin Ruoyan turned around and came to the door, blocking Shen Lixue's way.
"Is there anything else, Princess?" Shen Lixue raised an eyebrow at Qin Ruoyan.
Qin Ruoyan chuckled twice and said mysteriously, "Since you rarely have time to see me, why don't you go and meet some old acquaintances while you're at it?"
"An old acquaintance? What old acquaintance?" Shen Lixue didn't understand who she was referring to.
"You'll know when you see them. Come with me!" Qin Ruoyan smiled mysteriously and turned to leave the room first.
Shen Lixue frowned and hurried after him. Shen Caiyun and Shen Yingxue were both at the post station. Could it be that she wanted to see the two of them?
Shen Lixue followed Qin Ruoyan out of the courtyard and into the backyard. Standing in the long, carved corridor, she looked at the pool five meters away.
Beside the pool, a beautiful woman dressed in cloth squatted down, her brows furrowed, two wads of cotton stuffed in her nose, fiercely scrubbing a wooden bucket in her hands, as if she regarded the bucket as an enemy.
"That's Shen Yingxue?" From Shen Lixue's perspective, she could only see the woman's profile. After taking a closer look, she recognized the woman.
"That's right, the former legitimate daughter of the Prime Minister's mansion is now my third-class maid, in charge of cleaning toilets!" Qin Ruoyan introduced proudly.
Shen Lixue looked towards the shore and saw dozens of toilets lined up, some still wet, others already dried by the sun.
There were hardly any people staying at this inn, so there couldn't possibly be so many toilets. Did Qin Ruoyan really give the task of cleaning the maids' toilets to Shen Yingxue? Knowing that Shen Yingxue is a clean person, why make her do the dirtiest and most tiring task of cleaning toilets? She really knows how to torture people.
After Shen Yingxue finished cleaning a toilet and carried it ashore, she was about to straighten up and rest for a moment when a rough-looking old woman walked over fiercely and lashed her with a rattan cane: "You little slut, slacking off again! I'll beat you to death!"
"Granny, stop hitting me! Stop hitting me! I'll get back to work right away!" Her coarse clothes were torn to shreds, revealing streaks of blood. Shen Yingxue dodged and wept, pleading incessantly.
"Quickly clean the toilet!" The rough-looking maidservant slapped Shen Yingxue hard on the back, ordering her angrily.
"Yes, I'll get to work right away!" Shen Yingxue, her face streaked with tears, sobbed and carried a wooden bucket. She hurried to the pool and squatted down to continue scrubbing the toilet.
"Shen Yingxue's life is quite exciting, isn't it?" Qin Ruoyan blinked her thick eyelids, her expression haughty.
"Indeed wonderful!" Shen Lixue nodded. If it comes to the ability to torment people, Qin Ruoyan is undoubtedly the best in the world.
"There's more to come!" Qin Ruoyan smiled mysteriously and turned to walk away.
Shen Lixue glanced at Shen Yingxue, who was scrubbing the toilet with a bitter face, and slowly followed. The hatred between her and Shen Yingxue had ended. As long as Shen Yingxue did not overestimate herself and try to deal with her, she would no longer interfere in Shen Yingxue's affairs.
Turning the corner, Shen Lixue and Qin Ruoyan walked onto another luxurious corridor. A maidservant approached them and said, "Princess, that Aunt Jin is here again!"
Qin Ruoyan frowned unhappily, her beady eyes narrowing: "Have her daughter deal with her at the door."
"Yes!" the maid replied and quickly left.
Qin Ruoyan complained, "I've never seen such a shameless person in my entire life!"
"What happened?" Shen Lixue asked knowingly.
"It's not just my brother's concubine, Consort Shen, but your half-sister, Shen Caiyun." Qin Ruoyan scoffed. "Her mother is Consort Jin from your Prime Minister's residence. She comes to the post station every day, pitifully crying and saying that her master is dead, she has no one to rely on, only a daughter, and she wants to live with her daughter..."
"I heard that Caiyun gave Aunt Jin enough money to live on for several years!" Dongfang Heng's information was never wrong.
"Yes, but that Aunt Jin is taking advantage of the situation. She complains that the money is too little and that we are not living a wealthy life. She makes exorbitant demands, which makes Shen Caiyun unhappy. When she stops paying attention to her, she turns to my brother and me and cries. It's really annoying!" Qin Ruoyan emphasized the last four words, and a sharp glint flashed in her beady eyes.
Shen Lixue raised an eyebrow. If Aunt Jin didn't restrain herself, she would be in trouble.
"We're here!" Qin Ruoyan stood in front of a small house, her anger instantly turning into a strange smile. She reached out, pushed open the door, and stepped inside.
As Shen Lixue stood at the door, she felt a gust of cold wind blowing in her face, carrying a faint smell of mildew and blood, which almost made her nauseous.
"Don't stand outside the door, come and see my masterpiece!" Qin Ruoyan stood in the center of the room, proudly showing off and inviting Shen Lixue. The dim light reflected her small figure, making her look eerie and sinister.
Shen Lixue stepped into the room and slowly walked to Qin Ruoyan's side. Following her gaze, she looked into the corner and saw a woman whose wrists and ankles were tightly bound by bracelets and anklets. She was naked, her head was hanging down, and her long hair covered her face, making it impossible to see her appearance. She looked lifeless and devoid of any vitality.
"Is she still alive?" Shen Lixue raised an eyebrow at Qin Ruoyan. This woman must have offended her unintentionally to be tortured into this state.
"Half-dead, huh!" Qin Ruoyan stepped forward, tossed the woman's hair aside, and said smugly, "Look who she is!"
The woman's face was covered with whip marks, one after another, making it impossible to see her original appearance. However, Shen Lixue knew that there were only two people in the world who possessed this appearance: Ruan Chuqing and Su Yuting: "She is Su Yuting."
Su Yuting was injured earlier and more severely than Ruan Chuqing. Shen Lixue recognized her identity after just one glance.
“That’s right!” Qin Ruoyan raised her chin slightly, her smugness overflowing: “I found her in a pile of beggars. At the time, she and dozens of male beggars were in a state of ecstasy, looking completely blissful. I tried to imitate her, but I couldn’t make such a seductive sound!”