Chapter 386: A Token
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Ge Lihua opened the door and gestured to the shadow waiting nearby, signaling that the situation had changed. She then quickly went to Tao Pengnan’s room to find the token.
The shadow was Chu Xujin. Seeing the gesture, he felt a sense of urgency and immediately left Tao Mansion to find Chu Qingzhi. Only Fifth Sister could handle this situation.
Zhao Er’s face was full of doubt. “Did you guys notice that Young Master is acting strange today?”
Li San immediately responded, “Yes, in the past, Young Master would never forget something like taking the token. And Young Master values the token more than his own life, so how could he leave it behind?”
Zhou Si looked at everyone and speculated, “Could Young Master be impersonated by someone?”
Zhao Er became concerned, “If he can’t retrieve the token, then he must be fake. Let’s wait a bit. What if Young Master really forgot?”
Li San furrowed his brows, “If Young Master is fake, what should we do?”
Zhou Si made a throat-slashing gesture, “Kill him. If he doesn’t die, we’ll die.”
Zhao Er agreed, “Let’s do as Zhou Si says. Everyone needs to act quickly.”
Everyone nodded in unison.
On the other side, everything was going smoothly for Chu Qingzhi. However, the sudden sound of footsteps made everyone uneasy.
The only person who would come here now was Chu Xujin, and his hurried footsteps did not sound like good news.
Chu Qingzhi said, “You guys continue, I’ll go check.”
Everyone nodded, but this time they couldn’t focus anymore.
Chu Qingzhi walked out of the room and opened the courtyard door. As soon as she did, she saw Chu Xujin rushing towards her. Sensing something was wrong, she asked, “Third Brother, why are you so anxious?”
“Fifth Sister, let’s talk while we walk.” Chu Xujin grabbed Chu Qingzhi and hurried back…
When the two returned to Tao Mansion, Chu Qingzhi learned the reason for the urgency. She thought the matter was simple and didn’t intervene, not expecting it to take a different turn.
“Third Brother, don’t worry, I’ll go in and take a look.”
Chu Xujin reminded her, “Fifth Sister, if you can’t do it, just give up. Your safety and Lihua’s are more important.”
Chu Qingzhi nodded and entered Tao Mansion.
When she entered, Ge Lihua happened to come out of Tao Pengnan’s room. Not finding the token there, she planned to search other rooms.
Chu Qingzhi flew directly in front of Ge Lihua, “Lihua, what happened?”
Ge Lihua saw Chu Qingzhi, and her tense heart relaxed. She quickly explained what had happened in the study.
It wasn’t a big deal. Chu Qingzhi breathed a sigh of relief. “You go out first; I’ll handle things here.”
Ge Lihua didn’t want to put Qingzhi in danger, “I’ll stay and help you.”
Chu Qingzhi accepted Ge Lihua’s good intention, “Find a place to hide, and be ready to assist me.”
Ge Lihua quickly replied, “Okay.”
Chu Qingzhi quickly walked to the study, passing by a pillar. She used her transformation technique, changing her appearance and face to resemble Tao Pengnan perfectly, without leaving any trace that would betray her.
She entered the study, surveyed the room, and said, “I brought the token. Show me your tokens.”
Zhao Er and the others exchanged glances and took out their tokens, forming a circular plate with a missing center.
Chu Qingzhi extended her hand, placing the missing center into the slot, seamlessly completing the circle.
In reality, it was just an illusion. Chu Qingzhi hadn’t put anything in the missing center.
Everyone saw Tao Pengnan taking out the token and immediately dispelled their doubts.
Meanwhile, Chu Qingzhi raised her hand, releasing a fragrance. The next moment, everyone fainted.
Chu Qingzhi collected all the tokens and stored them. She then called Ge Lihua, instructing her to tie up everyone.
Having finished her instructions, Chu Qingzhi immediately left the study.
A total of thirty-five people had entered Tao Mansion just now. They split into two groups and gathered in two separate locations. Another group should still be inside the mansion.
As long as they were inside the mansion, it would be easy.
Chu Qingzhi released her divine sense and covered the entire Tao Mansion…
There were no people in the rooms of the mansion, so they must be in one place—Tao Pengnan’s secret chamber.
Not the secret chamber for hiding gold, but another one located in his room, specifically used for torturing girls.
Chu Qingzhi hurriedly made her way there.
Entering the room, she faintly heard the painful cries of a woman, “No, please, help, help!”
Chu Qingzhi’s face turned cold. This beast!
She quickly found the mechanism, entered the secret chamber, and witnessed a horrifying scene.
A girl was tied to a specially made chair, with over a dozen naked men standing nearby. One of them was inflicting torture, and the scene was nauseating; she almost vomited.
Anger erupted within Chu Qingzhi. She lifted her finger, and a beam of light flew out, slicing all the men in the room into eunuchs.
The room echoed with screams, and everyone curled up, too pained to move on the ground. Blood quickly stained the small secret chamber, turning it into a hellish scene.
Chu Qingzhi released the girl, picked up some clothes, and gently said, “You are safe now.”
The girl, whose eyes were totally unfocused, was brought back from the brink of madness by Chu Qingzhi.
Chu Qingzhi was still disguised as Tao Pengnan. She used a female voice when she spoke, and the girl understood that she was impersonating Tao Pengnan. Despite the relief, the harsh reality made her feel despair. She asked lifelessly, “Miss, can 1 still survive?”
“As long as you want to, you can.” Chu Qingzhi’s voice was firm. “It’s not your fault; it’s theirs. No one can take away your life. Tonight, everything will come to an end, and they will all die.”
The girl looked at Chu Qingzhi with a glimmer of hope in her eyes. “Miss, thank you. 1 will do my best to start anew.”
Chu Qingzhi helped the girl out, saying, “I’ll keep your secret. Life is precious; take care.”
The girl nodded tearfully. “I will.”
After seeing off the girl, Chu Qingzhi returned to the secret chamber. She scattered sleeping powder, causing everyone to lose consciousness, and then took away all their tokens before quickly leaving.
This filthy place was unbearable to look at for even a moment.
Chu Qingzhi found Ge Lihua, instructing her to inform the constables to capture the people. Meanwhile, she went to search for Tao Pengnan’s token.
She had a hunch that the purpose of that token was more than just to verify his identity.
The token was not in the room; Ge Lihua had checked it. Chu Qingzhi decided to search the study.
The group led by Zhao Er was now securely tied up, still unconscious.
Chu Qingzhi walked to the center of the study, released her divine sense, covering the entire room, meticulously searching.
Surprisingly, it wasn’t there!!
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