95: Chapter 95 From Heiress to Fortress Vassal

The master bedroom door closed behind Jiang Xiaowan.

The thick soundproofing layer dampened the footsteps, machine noises, and wind from outside, suppressing them all.

The main light in the room was not turned on.

Only a warm bedside lamp was lit.

Lin Yuan sat on the edge of the bed, his profile carved into a cold, hard outline by the light.

Jiang Xiaowan stood at the doorway.

The bright red, high-slit qipao given to her by Su Xiaonuan looked particularly jarring in the dim light.

The scent of roses mixed with the smell of laundry detergent, creating an incongruous combination.

Jiang Xiaowan forced her chin up, trying to regain the tone she used to have at banquets.

"If this were back in the day, I could make it impossible for you to survive in Jiangcheng."

As the words left her mouth, she realized her voice sounded a bit shaky.

Beneath the slit of the qipao, her calves were tensed tight.

Lin Yuan didn't turn around, nor did he call her bluff.

"Come here."

Jiang Xiaowan's feet felt like they were nailed to the floor; she didn't move.

Lin Yuan finally turned his head to look at her.

"Aren't you very capable?"

"Do it yourself."

Jiang Xiaowan's body stiffened.

A few seconds later, she cursed under her breath.

"Are you sick or something..."

She took a step forward.

Her high heels made no sound as they stepped onto the carpet.

The closer she got, the more Jiang Xiaowan felt she couldn't breathe.

She awkwardly fumbled to undo the frog buttons on the side of the qipao.

But her fingers were trembling violently.

She failed to undo them twice in a row.

This appearance was completely unlike the Jiang Family's eldest daughter who used to navigate the vanity fair of the old world with ease.

Lin Yuan finally noticed something was wrong.

He raised his hand, gripped her chin, and forced her to look up.

Under the light, her cheeks were flushed with an unnatural red, and her eyes darted around, refusing to meet his gaze.

"First time?" Lin Yuan's voice was very soft.

Jiang Xiaowan exploded instantly.

"Who are you looking down on!"

"The Jiang Family has strict upbringing; we aren't allowed to mess around before marriage!"

"My dad would break a man's legs... Are you satisfied?"

Her voice was fierce.

But that bit of arrogance had been crushed by shame until only a thin layer remained.

Lin Yuan let go.

"You chose this path yourself."

"It's still not too late to regret it."

Jiang Xiaowan was stung painfully by this sentence.

She wanted to stubbornly say, "I just wanted a change in treatment."

But when the words reached her lips, they turned into an almost self-abandoning confession.

"Lin Yuan."

"I want to live... better than those people outside."

After saying this, she took the initiative and kissed him.

Ten minutes later.

Lips parted.

Jiang Xiaowan's gaze was somewhat unfocused, and her breathing was still ragged.

She stared at Lin Yuan, her voice hoarse, but she still refused to yield.

"You dog, have you liked me for a long time?"

"Otherwise, why did you use your tongue?"

...

The night grew deeper.

Su Xiaonuan passed the master bedroom door while holding a tablet, paused for half a second, but ultimately didn't knock.

She simply placed two glasses of milk gently on the carpet by the door.

There was no arguing or begging for mercy inside the room.

Only a water glass on the nightstand had been knocked over, the water stain seeping into the carpet.

That bright red qipao had fallen to the floor at some point, like a crushed rose.

"Tomorrow... do I still have to do the laundry?"

"Depends on your performance."

Before dawn.

Jiang Xiaowan could barely move.

She was curled up in the quilt, with only a segment of her neck exposed.

The scent of roses on her body had long been washed away by sweat.

She buried her face in the pillow and cursed softly.

"You dog..."

"You're not human at all."

[Ding! Target Jiang Xiaowan (Beauty 92), emotional fluctuation has reached the extreme!]

[Favorability critical hit +18%! Current favorability: 25%!]

[Favorability has broken through the critical threshold, gaining 50% of the target's base attribute bonus! (Target Physique: 8, Spirit: 14)]

[Host: Lin Yuan]

[Physique: 54 (+4)]

[Spirit: 80 (+7)]

Conquering the body is just the first step.

For a woman this proud, it will take much longer for her to admit from the heart that she is an appendage.

...

The next morning.

In the dining room, Jiang Xiaowan was absent for the first time ever.

Tang Qiqi bit her straw, looking left and right.

"Strange, Long Legs isn't online today?"

She finally got to sleep while hugging Sister Yumou last night, so she was in an exceptionally good mood today.

Wang Ya carried a bowl of freshly served beef porridge and said softly, "I'll go check on her."

When she stood up, she grabbed a painkiller and a bottle of warm water.

Su Xiaonuan looked up at her, didn't speak, which counted as tacit permission.

Tang Qiqi muttered under her breath.

"Tsk tsk, the eldest miss has finally been beaten to low health by the Great Demon King."

Despite saying that.

She reached into her snack bag, pulled out a heat patch, and shoved it into Wang Ya's hand.

"Give this to her."

"Don't say it was from me."

Wang Ya nodded and went upstairs with the items.

Su Xiaonuan crossed out Jiang Xiaowan's name after "Laundry Room Duty" on the tablet.

"Notify Zhao Ya to take the clothes to Villa No. 12 to be washed."

Inside Tiangong No. 1, the new gears continued to turn.

At the same time.

In front of the temporary medical point in the Outer Circle, a bowl of thin porridge was knocked over into the mud.

A woman shrieked, "Why does Chen Jing get to eat beef porridge while we can only drink this?"

Envy, jealousy, and undisguised malice permeated among the survivors.

"Isn't it just because she was... that by Captain Lu? And now she's in the Inner Circle?"

"Heh, she knows how to seize an opportunity, trading her body for rations. Can you do that?"

"If I'd known, I would have rushed over too."

The vulgarities became increasingly nasty.

Captain Han Xue sat at the entrance of the medical point, her expression darkening bit by bit.

She was wearing that blood-stained old police uniform, with a freshly bandaged wound on her shoulder.

A gun lay by her side.

But she didn't move.

Just then, a middle-aged woman whose husband had died rushed over, crying and wailing with a few other survivors in tow.

Yesterday, Lu Yan's awakening went out of control, tearing through the outer wall.

Many survivors from the shantytown had rushed in during the chaos.

Some people had also fallen into pits during the confusion and were buried alive.

Lin Yuan did not order them to be driven away.

He only had Fat Dragon put them under quarantine observation.

After a night without any zombie transformations, this group was released.

The middle-aged woman threw herself in front of Captain Han Xue, crying hysterically.

"Officer Han! You have to stand up for us!"

"Lu Yan lost control and hurt people; that's a fact!"

"According to the law, he needs to be arrested and put on trial!"

"Lin Yuan also has to compensate us with supplies!"

She claimed to be seeking justice for Chen Jing.

But her eyes kept glancing in the direction of Tiangong No. 1.

Her greed couldn't even be hidden.

Captain Han Xue instinctively wanted to speak.

File a case.

Gather evidence.

Assess injuries.

Determine liability.

These terms popped into her mind one by one.

But the next second, she got stuck.

Where is the court?

Where is the detention center?

Where is the procuratorate?

Even an office that could properly stamp documents no longer existed.

Xiao Li, leaning against the wall, used his only remaining left hand to support himself and whispered:

"Captain Han, don't bother."

"In this world, reason no longer holds any sway."

Captain Han Xue opened her mouth.

She couldn't refute it.

Not long after.

Chen Jing, having changed into clean clothes, was being led by Shadow, preparing to enter Lu Yan's Villa No. 13 in the Inner Circle.

Captain Han Xue stood up to stop her.

Her voice was very low.

"Do you need help?"

"I can..."

Chen Jing shook her head, cutting her off.

Her eyes were very calm.

There was no resentment, nor was there any joy.

Last night's incident had completely crushed certain things within her into the mud.

"Captain Han, I know you're a good person."

She glanced in the direction of Tiangong No. 1.

"At least Mr. Lin gave me a way to survive."

Captain Han Xue fell silent.

Upon hearing this, the middle-aged woman immediately incited the crowd as if she had seized an opportunity.

"Officer Han! You're a police officer!"

"You can't just stand by and watch Lin Yuan treat people like objects to be distributed!"

"If he can decide Chen Jing's fate today, he can decide ours tomorrow!"

"The Inner Circle should be opened for all affected homeowners to live together!"

Several old homeowners joined in the commotion.

"That's right, our villas were left in a mess by Lu Yan, we must be given an explanation!"

"What if our wives and daughters are violated too?"

"An upright official like you, Officer Han, will definitely help us, right?"

While they shouted about justice, they cowered behind Captain Han Xue.

They didn't want justice.

They just wanted to push Captain Han Xue to the front.

To be a shield.

Click.

The pistol was cocked.

Captain Han Xue didn't point the muzzle at anyone.

She just pointed it downwards.

Her voice was colder than usual.

"Whoever uses my name to stir up trouble again."

"I will be the first to treat them as rioters."

The crowd instantly quieted down.

The indignation on the middle-aged woman's face froze.

She looked at the dark muzzle and took half a step back.

A few men lowered their heads, their eyes darting away.

But their mouths were still spewing filth.

"Has this Officer Han been bought off too?"

"With the way she looks, she can definitely rely on her face to make a living."

"Who knows how she got promoted before."

The voices weren't loud.

But Captain Han Xue heard them clearly.

She didn't fire.

She just held the gun and stood there.

Before, she always felt that as long as she explained things clearly, she could get people to quiet down.

Now she realized.

At least here, reasoning couldn't suppress people.

A muzzle could.

Captain Han Xue returned to the medical point.

She took the blood-stained police badge from her chest pocket.

She carefully wiped it three times with her sleeve.

Until the metal edges gleamed with a cold light again.

Then, she put the badge back into the deepest part of her pocket.

Xiao Li looked at her and asked in a low voice:

"Captain Han, what are you..."

Captain Han Xue's voice was somewhat hoarse.

"It's not that I'm not a police officer anymore."

"I just can't lie to myself anymore."

She stood up and turned to walk toward the intersection of the Outer Circle.

Fat Dragon was biting on a cigarette, directing people to move the isolation barriers.

Seeing Captain Han Xue approach, he raised an eyebrow.

"Captain Han, is someone looking for you to preside over justice again?"

Captain Han Xue looked at him.

"Tell Lin Yuan."

"I want to see him."

She paused for half a second and added a sentence.

"I will trade intelligence on the South Suburb Military District for a chance to talk."