Drag Me Down

As soon as Qin Rongrong stepped into Shen Yuyao's room, she frowned.

The room was cold and deserted, with only one maidservant serving her. All the utensils and furnishings inside were dilapidated. It was probably better than the living quarters of even the maidservants in the mansion, let alone the legitimate daughter of a marquis.

Moreover, as soon as she entered the house, she smelled a strong medicinal odor, which suggested that the owner of the house had been taking medicine for a long time.

Qin Rongrong felt a surge of anger rising within her, secretly cursing the Yongchang Marquis's family as inhuman.

She hurried to the bedside and saw Shen Yuyao, pale-faced and leaning against the headboard, her exposed wrists covered in whip marks, and she was so thin that she was barely recognizable as a human.

Qin Rongrong's eyes immediately reddened, and she choked out, "You were framed and suffered so much, and they not only didn't care about you, they beat you like this. What kind of parents and brothers are they?"

Shen Yuyao smiled weakly, raised her hand to wipe away the tears from the corner of her eyes, and said, "In my heart, they are no different from strangers. But you, at least, remembered to come and see me."

Qin Rongrong said awkwardly, "I wanted to come see you a long time ago, but Liu Yanran said you were traumatized and didn't want to see anyone, so I didn't come to bother you." She slapped her hand hard, "I was stupid! I actually believed Liu Yanran's words. If I had come to see you sooner, you wouldn't have suffered so much. Look at this house, it's not a place for a human to live!" As she spoke, tears rolled down her cheeks again.

Shen Yuyao shook her head, grabbed her hand and smiled, "To me, this entire Marquis's mansion is a cage, it doesn't matter where I live."

As soon as she was imprisoned, her parents and brothers gave her room to Liu Yanran. After she returned, they used family discipline on her, banishing her to the most remote and dilapidated courtyard of the Marquis's mansion and forbidding her from leaving. It was a miracle that she survived.

Now she is extremely grateful that she had long since given up on these so-called family members, otherwise she would have died of grief even if she hadn't been beaten to death.

Remembering the purpose of her trip, Qin Rongrong looked around and lowered her voice, saying, "Yuyao, tell me honestly, when did you meet His Highness the Seventh Prince?"

"Seventh Prince?" Shen Yuyao was completely bewildered. Could it be—

She recalled that day at the execution ground when the little immortal shouted that he was a prince. Could it be that he had really been recognized and brought back to the palace?

Overjoyed, she blurted out, "You saw the little fairy?"

"Little fairy?" Qin Rongrong asked, puzzled.

Shen Yuyao realized her slip of the tongue and smiled as she tried to make amends, saying, "The Seventh Prince is so handsome that he looks like a god, so I call him that."

Qin Rongrong nodded knowingly and said to the maid standing to the side, "You may leave now. I want to have a private talk with your young lady."

The maid looked at Shen Yuyao, and only after Shen Yuyao nodded did she curtsy and retreat.

After dismissing the servants, Qin Rongrong sat on the edge of the bed and whispered, "Actually, my father asked me to come today. The Seventh Prince asked me to pass on a message that there is a flood in Xiangyang and His Majesty wants to set up a donation box in the downtown area to raise money for disaster relief."

Shen Yuyao was so startled that she sat up.

She was incredibly clever; in a flash, she understood why Youlu had asked Qin Rongrong to deliver a message—the little fairy was showing her the way to survival.

A warm feeling welled up in my heart; it turned out the little fairy still remembered her.

Shen Yuyao struggled to her feet and bowed towards the direction of the palace, saying, "Yuyao kowtows to express her gratitude to the Seventh Prince for his great kindness."

Qin Rongrong quickly got up to help her, "What are you doing..."

Shen Yuyao grasped her hand, tears of joy streaming down her face, and exclaimed, "Rongrong, I can break free from this cage!"

Qin Rongrong was stunned on the spot.

At first, she didn't understand why the Seventh Prince wanted her to deliver this message to Yu Yao, or why her father repeatedly instructed her to do so. Now she understood.

She grasped Shen Yuyao's hand in return, and said firmly, "Yuyao, what can I do to help you?"

Shen Yuyao smiled slightly and said without any hesitation, "There is indeed something I need your help with." She beckoned, and Qin Rongrong leaned in to listen.

Qin Rongrong did not linger and left quickly.

No sooner had she left than Liu Yanran stepped into Shen Yuyao's room carrying a food box, and said sarcastically, "As expected of the eldest daughter of a marquis's family, even in such a state, you still have noble ladies associating with you. Sister, you are truly blessed."

Shen Yuyao sneered, closed her eyes, and ignored her.

She found Liu Yanran's pretentious manner disgusting and decided to avoid seeing her altogether.

What Liu Yanran couldn't stand most was her arrogant and pretentious attitude. Thinking of the words the Third Prince had just sent, her jealousy and hatred grew wildly like weeds in spring.

However, she quickly composed herself, covered her mouth and smiled, feigning intimacy as she said, "Little sister came today to bring big news for big sister. Aren't you curious, big sister?"

Shen Yuyao still ignored her.

Liu Yanran almost lost her smile, her teeth clenched tightly, and she said with a forced smile, "I know you have grievances in your heart, and you wish you could grow wings and fly away from this Marquis's mansion. That's why I've come today to show you a way out. Now the Third Prince intends to take you as his concubine. As long as you agree and promise to give all your dowry to the Third Prince, he can guarantee you a safe and worry-free life away from the Marquis's mansion."

Hearing this, Shen Yuyao finally couldn't help but laugh.

She slowly opened her eyes, looking at Liu Yanran mockingly, and laughed, "Then I really must thank you for your kindness, sister. I just wonder when you will be able to marry into the Third Prince's household? So we can continue to be sisters. Oh, by the way, you've been strategizing for the Third Prince, working tirelessly, even using your looks, why hasn't he welcomed you into his household yet? Is it because you don't want to marry him?"

"You!" Liu Yanran's eyebrows shot up, and she was no longer the composed woman she once was. She pointed at Shen Yuyao, her chest heaving violently, clearly having been hit where it hurt.

Shen Yuyao leaned back comfortably on the soft pillows, a faint smile on her face. "Instead of worrying about me, sister, you should worry about yourself first. Go back and think carefully about how to keep the Third Prince in check. After all, once you have the money, you won't be much of a threat anymore."

Liu Yanran's expression changed drastically. She glared at her resentfully, then turned and hurriedly left.

Shen Yuyao's smile vanished, and she clenched her fists in prayer: Rongrong, you have to hurry!

As for Qin Rongrong, after leaving the Yongchang Marquis's residence, she hurriedly returned to the Qin residence and stayed in her room all day without coming out. It wasn't until Qin Tan returned home from his shift that she stepped out of her room, grabbed her father's sleeve, and said helplessly, "Father, what should I do?"

Qin Tan rarely saw her daughter so panicked, so she comforted her, "Rongrong, don't worry, tell me what happened slowly."

Qin Rongrong choked back tears as she recounted Shen Yuyao's ordeal and the request Shen Yuyao had made to her. She sobbed, "Yuyao said that the Third Prince wanted to harm her. If I help her, I will be going against the Third Prince, which will implicate my whole family. I dare not make a decision on my own, so I can only ask for your opinion."

Qin Tan was shocked. After thinking about what had happened in the court these past few days, he finally understood that it was all a scheme set up by the Seventh Prince!

It can thwart the Third Prince's scheme to amass wealth, save an innocent girl, solve the problems of the disaster victims in Xiangyang, and win the hearts of the people for His Majesty. Brilliant, truly brilliant!

It's unbelievable that a teenager could be so far-sighted; one can't help but admire him.

The Qin family has never taken sides, but at this moment, Qin Tan was somewhat hot-blooded and even had the thought of submitting.

Once the thought takes hold, it can't be suppressed.

Considering that he had already offended the Third Prince by testifying for the Seventh Prince, and that his wife still needed the Seventh Prince to cure her poison, he could no longer stand idly by and watch Shen Yuyao suffer. It seemed that he had no better choice than to work for the Seventh Prince.

Qin Tan belatedly realized that this was not just killing three birds with one stone, but killing four! Even he, a neutral party, was dragged into the mess!