The sound of a click echoed.
Ye Yunniang walked over to Wen Nuan and reached out a hand to help her up.
"Ah!" Wen Nuan cried out in pain, tears welling up in her eyes.
Thinking she had hurt Wen Nuan, Ye Yunniang was about to ask when a crisp child's voice chimed in, "Cry, ugly." This was followed by a fit of giggles.
Ye Yunniang looked down to see Jiang Tingjun's tiny hand poking at the broken part of Wen Nuan's arm.
She quickly wrapped her hand around Jiang Tingjun's and pulled it back.
"Sorry, little—" Ye Yunniang wanted to say that the young master didn’t know better, but seeing Jiang Tingjun reach out with his other hand to poke again, she couldn’t bring herself to finish.
She took two steps back and lightly patted Jiang Tingjun’s bottom twice, a silent warning for her mischievous charge to behave.
"Cry, ugly, ugly..."
Wen Nuan took a deep breath, trying to suppress the pain while listening to Jiang Tingjun call her ugly.
Gritting her teeth, she said, "I’ve figured it out—your kid is a little devil. He enjoys seeing others cry, and he’s even happier seeing me hurt."
Her words left Ye Yunniang flustered, unsure how to explain.
Truthfully, Ye Yunniang also had a feeling that Jiang Tingjun had a bit of a… well, mischievous streak.
With an awkward cough, she offered another stiff apology.
"Sorry." She then pulled out a steamed cornbread from her sleeve and handed it to Wen Nuan as compensation.
Wen Nuan took it without hesitation and instructed Ye Yunniang to find two sticks.
"Alright." Ye Yunniang searched the room but only managed to find one—the same stick she had tried to pick up earlier.
Under Wen Nuan’s guidance, Ye Yunniang bound her injured arm.
"Thank you," Wen Nuan said before taking a bite of the cornbread.
Ye Yunniang walked over to the basket and picked up the other cornbreads that had fallen to the ground.
She distributed one to each child, telling them to eat something to stave off hunger.
"It’s too hard! I don’t want this. I want egg custard!" A chubby child dressed in fine silk took a bite, failed to chew through it, and angrily threw it away. The bread rolled to Wen Nuan’s feet.
"All we have right now is cornbread. If you don’t eat it, you’ll stay hungry." Wen Nuan picked it up and tucked it into her own sleeve.
"Eat." Jiang Tingjun curiously reached for it.
Ye Yunniang broke off a small piece and placed it near his lips, letting him take a tiny bite.
After tasting it and finding it unappetizing, Jiang Tingjun lost interest. Instead, he watched the other children struggle to eat their portions, giggling at their efforts.
This kid… really, what could be said about him?
Glancing out the window, Ye Yunniang noticed the sky darkening. She wondered if the Jiang family had realized the child was missing yet.
Unbeknownst to her, Jin Huifang, distracted by well-wishers, remained unaware of her son’s disappearance.
Li'er, noticing Ye Yunniang’s absence, recalled her mentioning earlier that she might visit her family if she had time. Assuming that was the case, Li'er didn’t think much of it.
Through a mix of intention and coincidence, neither Ye Yunniang nor Jiang Tingjun’s absence had been discovered by the Jiang family.
After finishing their meager meal, the children huddled close to Ye Yunniang and Wen Nuan for warmth.
BANG! The door was kicked open again.
Wang Dachu strode in, followed by several burly young men.
"Grab them!" Wang Dachu ordered, shaking open a sack.
Like ravenous dogs pouncing on helpless lambs, they lunged forward.
"What are you doing?"
"Let go!"
"Don’t take me!"
"Help! Mom! Dad!"
Ye Yunniang and Wen Nuan, the only adults present, tried to shield the children behind them.
But their efforts were futile—a swift chop to the neck sent them both crumpling to the ground unconscious.
Before blacking out, Ye Yunniang clung tightly to Jiang Tingjun, who was wailing uncontrollably.
They were stuffed into sacks and tossed into a cart like cargo, then transported to the next gathering point.
As the cart departed, hidden figures emerged. Some entered the house to capture more victims, while others tailed the cart.
Ye Yunniang stirred awake, the rumbling of wheels telling her she was in a moving carriage.
The young master—! She tried to sit up.
A sharp pain shot through her neck, forcing a gasp from her lips.
"Don’t move." A familiar voice spoke beside her.
Ye Yunniang looked up and locked eyes with Jiang Mingzhe, who was leaning over her.
"Second Master! The young master—he was taken by traffickers! You have to save him!" She struggled to rise, but her legs gave way, nearly sending her tumbling in the carriage.
"Little Six is fine. Someone is looking after him." Jiang Mingzhe reassured her, pouring a cup of water and helping her drink.
Ye Yunniang gulped it down. "What about Wen Nuan and the other children? Are they alright? Were the traffickers caught? I heard them say their boss wanted to capture a hundred—" She spilled everything she knew, desperate for Jiang Mingzhe to bring the criminals to justice and reunite the kidnapped children with their families.
"All the abducted have been rescued by the authorities. The traffickers are locked up in the prefectural prison. The new magistrate, Bao Min, despises evil—he’ll ensure they face the full extent of the law."
Relieved, Ye Yunniang slumped weakly.
Jiang Mingzhe caught her, pulling her into his arms. His expression darkened. "Do you know what you did wrong?"
"What did I do wrong?" Confused, Ye Yunniang had no idea why he was asking.
Before she could react, Jiang Mingzhe flipped her over his knee.
SMACK! SMACK! SMACK!
Her eyes widened in shock—she was being spanked! Humiliated and furious, she blurted out his name.
"Jiang Mingzhe! Let me go!"
"Admit your mistake," he demanded, continuing to strike.
The rhythmic sound of spanking filled the carriage.
Ye Yunniang wanted to disappear.
"What did I even do? Give me a hint!"
Jiang Mingzhe ignored her, delivering swat after swat.
Her bottom throbbed, and tears spilled down her cheeks, landing on Jiang Mingzhe’s arm.
The droplets seemed to burn him. He paused, looking down at her tear-streaked face.
Something twisted in his chest. "Don’t cry."
"You’re bullying me!" Her sobs only grew louder.
Jiang Mingzhe tried to pull her onto his lap, but the moment her sore backside touched his leg, she yelped and cried harder. She had never been spanked before!
Now, Jiang Mingzhe regretted his harshness.
He adjusted his legs, letting her sit suspended without pressure on her bottom.
"When you encountered the traffickers, your first move should have been to call for help." He wouldn’t admit how agonizing the past day had been for him, not knowing where she was.
"But the young master is so small—I was worried!" She hadn’t thought things through in the moment.
Leaning against Jiang Mingzhe, Ye Yunniang reflected on the incident and realized she had acted recklessly.
"How did you find out, Second Master?"
"I was upstairs discussing business." He didn’t mention the men he had secretly assigned to protect her.
The moment he received word of her abduction, he had dropped everything to find her.
Remembering the traffickers’ cruelty, Ye Yunniang shuddered.
"Don’t be afraid. They’ve all been caught. No one will hurt you again." Jiang Mingzhe tightened his embrace.
"Really?" Her hatred for those people ran deep.
"Really. As long as I’m here, no one will lay a finger on you." His promise was firm.
Touched, Ye Yunniang whispered, "Thank you for saving me, Second Master."
"I don’t want empty words of gratitude," Jiang Mingzhe said, his gaze raking over Ye Yunniang with undisguised hunger.
"Using Second Master Jiang as your remedy to ease desire." The words Cai Damei had spoken flashed through Ye Yunniang’s mind, sending a rush of heat through her body.
Ye Yunniang’s resolve softened, and Jiang Mingzhe noticed.
If there was an opportunity, he would never let it slip away.
