Disguised as a man, she became the biggest villain in the book.

Chapter 241 Choice

Having avenged his great enemy, He Jin should have been overjoyed, but strangely, he felt little joy at this moment. Instead, he was overwhelmed by an indescribable sense of depression.

After a moment of silence, He Jin slowly spoke, asking in a heavy tone, "Lord Zheng, if I may be so bold as to ask, what are your plans regarding Cao Yan's family?"

Zheng Luoqi glanced coldly at He Jin and answered decisively, "Leave none alive!"

Upon hearing this reply, He Jin couldn't help but show a look of astonishment. He opened his mouth, as if he wanted to say something.

Before he could speak, Zheng Luoqi added, "There is no Huiling in Cao Yan's family. As far as I know, she passed away a long time ago."

"Wh...what!" He Jin seemed to have heard some unbelievable news, and stood there dumbfounded as if struck by lightning.

"Have you brought the things I asked you to do?" Zheng Luoqi's face was ashen, his narrow phoenix eyes slightly narrowed, revealing a hint of coldness.

Zheng Luoqi was clearly uninterested in the past of the two people in front of her; all she could think about was what she had to do. As for the truth, she guessed that only Cao Yan knew.

Upon hearing this, He Jin dared not delay and quickly replied, "Please wait a moment, sir!" Then, he turned around and shouted loudly, "Little Zhao, quickly bring the things up!"

Before long, a small, thin child named Xiao Zhao slowly walked out from behind the Buddha statue.

As he approached, it became clear that he was holding a piece of burlap. The burlap was covered with mottled bloodstains, a shocking sight.

Seeing this, Zheng Luoqi slightly raised her hand in greeting. Xiao Zhao quickly stepped forward and respectfully handed the item in her hand to Zheng Luoqi.

Zheng Luoqi took the burlap and examined it carefully. His gaze fell on the bloodstains, and he nodded, indicating that he was quite satisfied with the item.

This petition written in the blood of ten thousand people was merely an object presented to the emperor for his perusal.

Zheng Luoqi accepted the piece of burlap with a smile, his slightly upturned lips revealing an inscrutable expression.

He seemed casual, but in reality, he was deliberately probing as he asked, "Uncle He, I have a few things I'd like to ask you!"

Standing to the side, He Jin hurriedly and respectfully replied, "Please ask whatever you wish, sir! I will answer all your questions to the best of my knowledge."

Zheng Luoqi's gaze was fixed intently on He Jin's face, not missing even the slightest change in his expression. He then pressed on, "Do you know what those commoners did?"

Upon hearing this, He Jin hesitated for a moment before slowly replying, "In response to your question, sir, I only know that they were forcibly conscripted to do labor, but I am not really clear about what kind of work they were doing."

Just then, He Jin suddenly heard footsteps approaching from all around, growing louder and more frequent, as if many people were rushing towards them. His heart tightened, and an ominous premonition washed over him. He couldn't help but ask, "Sir, what's going on...?"

Before He Jin could finish speaking, Zheng Luoqi immediately ordered his men to quickly surround the temple.

The temple was instantly enveloped in a tense atmosphere.

As the encirclement gradually tightened, Zheng Luoqi's voice rang out: "I've said it before, once you're on my ship, it won't be so easy to get off!"

"Sir, wait!" Just as Zheng Luoqi was about to make his move, He Jin hurriedly shouted, his voice filled with urgency and panic.

"My lord, I only have some guesses, but these children really don't know what they did. Please be merciful and spare their lives!" He Jin said as he knelt down directly in the direction of Zheng Luoqi's voice.

Zheng Luoqi clearly didn't believe everything He Jin said. He turned to Xiao Zhao beside him and asked, "Xiao Zhao, tell me the truth, do you know what the prefect did to force your family members to do?"

At this moment, Xiao Zhao was already terrified by the tense scene before him, his face turned pale. He trembled all over, his mouth slightly open as if he wanted to answer, but his throat seemed to be choked by something, and he couldn't utter a sound.

Tears welled up in his terrified eyes, threatening to spill over, but the child bit his lip tightly, trying his best to keep the tears from falling. Finally, he shook his head with all his might.

Seeing Xiao Zhao's expression, which didn't seem fake, Zheng Luoqi knew she wouldn't get any information out of him at this point.

The only option was to have the guards arrest all the children who were hiding in the shadows.

A moment later, the guards brought all the hiding children to Zheng Luoqi.

The children all looked terrified, their eyes filled with fear and helplessness.

Zheng Luoqi turned her gaze to Hejin again and said coldly, "Hejin, you now only have two paths to choose from. One, death; two, submission to me, and from now on these children will become my subordinates! The choice is yours!"

"Subordinates? What does subordinate mean?" Suddenly, a childish voice rang out, instantly breaking the suffocating tension.

Zheng Luoqi looked in the direction of the sound and saw a child of about five or six years old standing not far away. The child's delicate face was adorned with a pair of big, watery eyes, which were blinking and looking at her with curiosity. The child asked in a clear voice, "Sister, what exactly are the subordinates?"

Upon seeing this, He Jin's face instantly turned ashen, and cold sweat poured down his forehead.

He inwardly cried out in alarm, fearing that the child's ignorant words might offend the icy and aloof Lord Zheng Luoqi.

He Jin hurriedly opened his mouth, wanting to stop her, "Erhua, don't talk nonsense! Shut up! That's an official! Lord Zheng, Erhua is still young and doesn't understand, so she called him by the wrong title. Please forgive her, sir..."

Before He Jin could finish speaking, Zheng Luoqi interrupted him: "Erhua? Your name is Erhua, right?"

Zheng Luoqi waved her hand slightly, signaling the guards around her to step back for the time being.

Upon seeing this, the guards dared not be negligent in the slightest. They bowed respectfully and quickly retreated to the side.

After doing all this, Zheng Luoqi ignored He Jin, who looked terrified, and walked straight toward the little girl named Erhua.

Upon closer inspection, Zheng Luoqi realized that the little girl named Erhua was extremely cute.

Her round body was like a fluffy little rabbit, and she seemed to have more flesh than other children her age, making her look particularly plump and cute.

Looking at the other children around her, they were all pale, thin, and malnourished, a stark contrast to Erhua.

Therefore, it's clear that Erhua is doing quite well here...