Abused

A servant spoke with concern, "The Second Young Miss is so skilled—what if Young Master Lin Xuan gets hurt?"

The other servants also grew worried at these words. "Yes, Young Master Lin Xuan must not be injured. If he gets hurt and we failed to protect him, we’ll be finished too."

A bodyguard who had witnessed Lin Xuan’s abilities couldn’t help but interject, "Don’t worry. Young Master Lin Xuan is no ordinary man. His skills are terrifying—even ten Second Young Misses combined might not be a match for him."

Xu Xiaoman was nothing but a punching bag in front of Lin Xuan.

The servants looked at the bodyguard skeptically.

Are you sure?

Young Master Lin Xuan looks so frail.

The bodyguard didn’t bother explaining further. "If you don’t believe me, just wait and see."

Xu Xiaoman sneered at Lin Xuan, then charged forward, trying to snatch the whip back.

At the same time, Lin Xuan raised the whip in his hand.

Xu Xiaoman dodged nimbly, but the whip seemed to have eyes—wherever she moved, it followed.

Crack! The whip landed on Xu Xiaoman’s body.

A searing pain shot through her.

Her eyes widened in disbelief.

What just happened?

She hadn’t been able to dodge the whip!

Then—crack! crack! crack!—stroke after stroke lashed down on Xu Xiaoman.

She wanted to fight back, but it was impossible.

Forget reclaiming the whip—she couldn’t even get close to Lin Xuan.

The whip tore through her clothes, leaving bloody marks on her delicate skin.

The pain was unbearable, but Xu Xiaoman clenched her teeth, refusing to cry out.

If she screamed in pain, that pretty-faced Lin Xuan would surely gloat.

And she refused to admit defeat to him.

She had thought he’d be easy to bully—who knew he had some skill?

"Xu Xiaoman, you like whipping people, don’t you? Then let me give you a taste of your own medicine."

Lin Xuan chuckled darkly. "How does it feel? Not pleasant, is it?"

"Xu Xiaoman, today I’m taking back every bit of suffering you’ve inflicted on me."

"I believe in repaying every slight tenfold—women are no exception."

"Now, enjoy the show."

Mercy?

Hah, he had none.

After everything he’d endured from the Lin family and Qin Ruoyao, his heart had turned to stone.

The whip struck Xu Xiaoman’s body with sharp cracks. At first, she endured in silence.

But soon, she couldn’t hold back.

"Ugh—" A pained whimper escaped her lips.

"Ah—!" She even rolled on the ground, writhing.

It hurt—so much.

Tears spilled from Xu Xiaoman’s eyes.

The servants watching Lin Xuan’s brutal display instinctively stepped back.

"Young Master Lin Xuan looks terrifying. Just seeing Second Young Miss like this makes me ache in sympathy."

"Who would’ve thought? Young Master Lin Xuan seems so gentle on the surface, but when he lashes out, he’s ruthless."

The servants quickly racked their brains, trying to recall if they had ever offended Lin Xuan.

Relief washed over them when they realized they hadn’t.

Thank goodness. Since the Young Miss valued Lin Xuan, they had never dared to cross him.

The servants continued murmuring among themselves.

"Out of all people, why did Second Young Miss have to provoke Young Master Lin Xuan?"

"Exactly. She overestimates her importance to the Young Miss. In her heart, Second Young Miss isn’t half as important as Lin Xuan."

"Do you think the Young Miss will scold Lin Xuan when she returns and sees Second Young Miss in this state?"

"I bet fifty cents she won’t."

"I’ll also bet she won’t. The Young Miss frets over even the tiniest scratch on Lin Xuan—why would she reprimand him? I’ve never even seen her raise her voice at him."

"Well, I’ll bet fifty cents she’ll say a few words to Lin Xuan—but nothing more. Second Young Miss is just too pitiful right now."

It wasn’t just the servants. Even the bodyguards and shadow guards watching the scene swore to themselves—they’d rather offend anyone but Lin Xuan.

If even Second Young Miss could be tortured like this for crossing him, what hope did mere bodyguards and guards have?

"Lin Xuan!" Xu Xiaoman writhed on the ground, teeth gritted. "Just you wait—when my sister gets back, you’re dead!"

"What’s there to fear?" Lin Xuan scoffed. "Let’s see if Hua takes your side or mine."

In his past life, after Xu Xiaoman had beaten him half to death with the whip, she had mysteriously vanished.

Now that he thought about it, Hua must have dealt with her.

Though Hua had disappeared from his life after his marriage to Qin Ruoyao, after his death, his corpse had been brought back to Night Garden.

His spirit had lingered in Hua’s room, where he found countless photos she had secretly taken of him over the years.

Clearly, she had been watching over him all that time.

When he had been bedridden from the beating, Hua must have investigated and discovered Xu Xiaoman’s role—then disposed of her.

Otherwise, someone as vengeful as Xu Xiaoman would never have let him off so easily.

He was certain—even if he had been the one at fault this time, Hua would still stand by him without hesitation.

With Hua’s favor, he had nothing to fear.

"Lin Xuan, you’re so full of yourself!" Xu Xiaoman spat. "I’m her blood sister—and you’ve beaten me like this! How could she possibly side with you?"

Lin Xuan smirked.

Let her cling to that delusion a little longer.

Crack! Crack! Crack! The whip struck Xu Xiaoman again and again.

"Ah—!" She rolled on the ground, screaming.

No matter how she tried to dodge, she couldn’t escape. Every time she ran a few steps, Lin Xuan’s whip coiled around her and yanked her back.

Lin Xuan raised an eyebrow. "Maybe if you call me ‘brother-in-law,’ I’ll consider letting you off this time."

Thank you to Brother Nine-Turn Intestines, Xiao Chaoxi, the Keali’e of Zhongyuan Road, Hotpot_. Lazy Capybara, Jun Wuyi, and all the other dear friends for your gifts.

Don’t worry, I’ve recovered—just busy handling my grandfather’s funeral arrangements.

Uu.