“Ah!”

“Yaoyao, Yaoyao? Wake up.”

Song Yaoyao suddenly woke up. There was still fear in her eyes.

Her fingers were gripping the bedsheet so tightly that her expression changed. Her fingertips were so white that there was not a trace of blood.

“Did you have a nightmare?”

There were no incense candles, no altar, no ferocious stone statues, and no bloody smell that came from God knows where…

She lay on the comfortable bed, and when she opened her eyes, she saw a worried face staring at her.

The fragrance from the man was reassuring.

Song Yaoyao suddenly sat up and pounced into Huo Yunque’s arms.

She took a deep breath, and then she felt alive.

“Wh-What happened to me?”

Her head throbbed, and the broken images from her dream flashed past, leaving only a few fragments. But when she thought about the man and woman in the dream, and the face of the evil girl… her head immediately hurt as if a big hand had reached in and messed with it.

“Ah!”

Song Yaoyao gasped softly. She leaned softly into Huo Yunque’s arms and gradually recalled the scene before she fainted.

Her face turned even paler.

She hugged Huo Yunque’s waist tightly and pursed her lips.

“It’s okay, I just slept,” Huo Yunque replied gently. He stroked her hair lightly and changed the topic.

It was as if nothing had happened.

“That finger…” Song Yaoyao’s voice trembled slightly.

She was not a timid person, but for some reason, when she saw the blood oozing out of the gift box and the broken finger rolling on the ground, she suddenly felt a strong sense of fear from her soul.

There was also a hint of unexplainable agitation…

She knew she was easily agitated when she saw blood.

But why? What exactly happened?

Everyone had kept the truth from her. Now, she did not know if she still had the chance to find out.

“The finger was fake.”

Huo Yunque’s eyes were cold and murderous.

But when he spoke to Song Yaoyao, he was as gentle and calm as ever. “The blood was also chicken blood. Someone must have pranked you and scared you?”

Song Yaoyao heaved a sigh of relief and gradually regained her senses.

She nodded slightly, feeling a little embarrassed. “Okay…”

She was actually scared by chicken blood and a fake finger?

Because of her embarrassment, her pale little face gradually turned red, making her look more normal.

“Don’t be afraid. Be good.”

The man’s deep voice had the effect of stabilizing people’s hearts, gradually dispelling Song Yaoyao’s fear.

…

“I don’t know! I really don’t know anything! Ah…”

In a dark room, an object that looked barely human was hanging from a cross-shaped wooden frame. The air was filled with the nauseating smell of blood.

“Sir, please spare my life!”

“Tch—”

Huo Jiu was standing at the door when he heard this. He suddenly sneered and flipped the switch on the wall. There was a large amount of light in the room, illuminating everything clearly.

The man on the frame was bloody.

“Brother Jiu.”

The subordinate in black saw Huo Jiu, lowered his head, put away his whip, and retreated to the side.

“You’re quite stubborn.”

Leather shoes hit the ground, echoing in the empty room.

Finally, Huo Jiu stopped in front of a row of cabinets, took out a pair of gloves from the drawer, and carefully put them on.

His lips curled up. Hidden behind his glasses was a flash of malice and killing intent.

“I’ll do it.”

Hearing this, the subordinates in the room paused. Then, their bodies trembled in unison. They didn’t dare to refuse.

“Yes!”

“What are you doing? What do I need to do for you to believe me? I really don’t know who sent this gift. I only gave it to Miss Song after I made sure there was no problem. Please… don’t do this to me…”

As Huo Jiu got closer, the other party became more and more flustered, almost unable to form a sentence.

Slice!

“Ahhhh!”

Without a word, Huo Jiu cut the man’s chin first.

“You’re too noisy.” Huo Jiu took off his glasses and smiled politely. “Since you’ve decided to betray the Master, you should have thought of your own ending.”

“Ugh, no… Ughh”

A few minutes later…

The few subordinates supported each other as they came out of the room with weak legs. As soon as they left the room, they bent down, clutched their stomachs, and began to retch.

Huo Jiu’s footsteps paused slightly as he glanced at them with a smile that was not a smile. “Am I really scary?”

“No!”

The few subordinates whose faces were pale immediately stood up straight and shook their heads in unison.

Huo Jiu said, “He’s of no use now. Just feed him to the dogs,” he whispered. “This rotten meat can’t even be used as fertilizer.”

The subordinates were speechless

They saw Huo Jiu’s neat clothes; there was not a single wrinkle on his shirt. He walked out of the basement with his head held high as the subordinates watched him from behind with respect.

Sure enough, no one from the Twelve Guards could be compared to a normal person.

…

Huo Yunque had just put Song Yaoyao to sleep and entered the bedroom when he saw Huo Jiu walking towards him.

He lowered his eyes and buttoned up his sleeves at a moderate pace. His posture was elegant, and his slender fingers glowed with a warm jade-like luster under the light.

“Did you get an answer?”

He walked towards the study as if he was talking to the air.

Huo Jiu said, “He’s just a small fry who was bribed. He was tortured half to death, but I couldn’t get any useful information out of him.”

“Who was it?”

“Jiang Tao.”

Huo Yunque paused for a second when he heard this name. He searched through his memory, but he couldn’t remember who this person was.

Huo Jiu saw Huo Yunque’s expression, and he suddenly felt a little sympathetic for Jiang Tao. She had worked hard to get Mr. Huo’s attention, and she even treated Miss Song as an enemy. However, she didn’t know that Mr. Huo had no impression of her at all.

“She was left behind by the Eldest Young Master’s father. Later, you transferred her to the front to take care of Miss Song.”

He did not know this part at first, but Huo Jiu was used to getting all the information before doing anything.

Huo Yunque raised his eyebrows, and his tone did not change as he said, “Oh.”

That was it.

Huo Jiu lowered his head and waited for a while. He did not receive any other instructions from Huo Yunque, so he could only ask in a low voice, “Then, Master, how should we deal with her?”

“Chop her up.”

The man’s eyes were clear and bright, and he looked like a cold and ascetic immortal as he parted his lips and said these three simple yet merciless words.

Huo Jiu was stunned, but he still nodded in agreement immediately.

The truth was, he had many doubts in his heart. Jiang Tao was someone left behind by the Young Master’s father. Did she really do all this out of jealousy toward Miss Song? And just because she treated her as a love rival? She had disappeared for so long. Why did she have to do it now?

However, Huo Yunque had naturally considered the same things that he did. His order was not without reason.

Therefore, Huo Jiu followed Huo Yunque’s order without hesitation.

Just as he was about to carry out his order, Huo Yunque suddenly said, “Wait.”

“What else do you need, Master?”

“Sometimes, death is a relief.” Huo Yunque’s fingertips swiped across the title page of the book and he said nonchalantly, “Since she likes pranks, let her have a taste of her own medicine.”