Chapter 165 – How to Elegantly Eliminate Meng Liang (2)
Meng Liang’s young servant was a tad smarter than his master, or perhaps just more perceptive, as he faintly sensed the impending crisis.
Like a croaking frog, he was already being eyed by a venomous snake just an arm’s reach away, with life and death hanging by a thread.
Struggling to suppress the creeping chill of dread, the young servant hastily bowed to Jiang Pengji.
With stiff resolve, he asked, “I wonder if Second Young Master Liu knows where my Young Master… ah, my lady has gone?”
Jiang Pengji let out a soft chuckle, her rich voice quite unlike the bright tones of youth, emanating from deep within, heavy and sinister, “You’re curious where your Young Master has gone, are you? Since you’re so interested, why not descend into hell and ask him yourself?”
At her words, the servant was instantly jolted awake, icy panic coursing through him, as his legs gave way and he collapsed into a heap at her feet, his knees hitting the cobblestones with a painful thud, leaving bruises in their wake.
His usually sharp lips trembled, rendering him speechless for what felt like an eternity before he finally swallowed hard.
With a parched throat, he stammered, “Second Young Master Liu, please, it’s just a joke… my lady was perfectly fine just moments ago…”
As he slowly crawled back to his feet, his steps backpedaled cautiously.
The feud between the Liu and Meng families was already a tangled web; if Liu Zhi decided to take revenge, it certainly wasn’t beyond the realm of possibility.
Thinking along these lines, the servant’s eyes began to redden with panic.
“Why would I joke about anything? Per the rule that villains meet their demise through excessive chatter, I can simply let you die with your eyes wide open.”
Taking a step forward, Jiang Pengji stiffened the young servant, who swiftly turned to bolt towards the house.
Seeing this, Nong Qin’s instincts kicked in, and just as she lunged to catch him, someone was even quicker.
Like a dark wind swirling beside her, Jiang Pengji had already caught up to the fleeing servant, her hand gripping his slender neck tightly, her fingers squeezing gradually. The servant gasped for breath, fighting to pry her fingers away while his feet scrabbled against the ground; at first, his struggles were vigorous and intense, but as time wore on, they began to wane…
Shhhhhh—
His feet finally slumped to the ground, while his hands remained clutching Jiang Pengji’s wrist, his eyes wide open as if they might pop from their sockets at any moment, his face shifting from a deep purple to a sickly green.
Witnessing the struggle of the servant as he faced an impending death, Nong Qin felt her breath quickening, a cold chill enveloping her as the night air seemed to carry an eerie, oppressive cold.
“Are you afraid?”
Frozen in place, Nong Qin heard Jiang Pengji’s gentle inquiry.
She gasped in surprise, her chest quaking from the icy shock, biting her tongue to regain her composure.
With steely determination shining in her eyes, she answered, “In response to my Young Master, Nong Qin is afraid now, but never will be again!”
“Good. Now go fetch the steward and have someone deal with the body. In the coming days, I’ll assign you a few maidservants, and remember to take a step out in front of people from time to time. The cousin who visited from Liu Residence hasn’t left this courtyard even once, do you understand?”
Nong Qin nodded vigorously, as if she could overcome her growing fear through the force of her head movement.
Expecting the steward to panic upon seeing the body, she was surprised to find he remained calm and collected.
“His neck is twisted this much; just how much strength was used?”
The Old Steward grasped the situation quickly from Nong Qin’s vague and mysterious words, bringing two confidants with him.
By the light of a flickering match, he inspected the lifeless body and the completely contorted neck, clicking his tongue in disapproval.
Nong Qin, feeling anxious, stammered, “Steward, this… this… my Young Master sent me here, and I heard strange noises, then came to find this body… I don’t know who did it. Someone suddenly died in the courtyard; what should we do?”
The Old Steward snorted coldly, waving his hand dismissively. His two confidants efficiently began bagging up the body in a black cloth sack.
“Discreetly removing it won’t work. Just toss it into the night soil bucket; we can avoid being seen, preventing misunderstandings.”
Sending someone to covertly remove the body was the most foolish approach, akin to covering one’s ears when stealing a bell.
The people living near the Liu Residence were not ordinary folks; it was impossible to guarantee no one would see it, regardless of the exit.
The Old Steward, with his seasoned experience, had the young servant’s body packed into the bucket of roundworms to be removed. Who in their right mind would bother to inspect that?
Nong Qin felt a twinge of fear, yet seeing the Old Steward’s composed demeanor, she couldn’t help but feel a strange sense of admiration and envy.
The System had witnessed Jiang Pengji kill before, but nothing had quite matched the shock of this instance.
She handled the bandits with swift efficiency, sending them to an early grave, but that young servant had been personally choked to death by her hands.
Her power had been sufficient to crush his neck bones completely.
The System, having held its tongue, finally asked weakly, “You even killed such a defenseless ordinary person.”
Jiang Pengji replied coldly, “That was for you to see.”
The System: “…”
“When did I ever say I wouldn’t kill those without the ability to fight back? That young servant was indeed weaker than a chick, but being a nobody doesn’t mean he lacked the capacity for evil; the lives lost at his hands, directly or indirectly, exceed twenty. More importantly, if he were to stay alive, he would pose an uncontrollable risk to the conclusion, so it’s best to nip it in the bud.”
The System suppressed its voice to interrogate her, “Alright, I won’t argue about that, but—what did you mean by ‘killing for me to see’?”
“I don’t know the caliber of the previous host, but one thing’s for sure, don’t treat me, Jiang Pengji, like an emotionless doll. System, you’ve already pulled off several actions that irritate me. I hope there won’t be a repeat of today’s task!”
The System, feeling somewhat stifled, replied in an exasperated tone, “I’ve told you, these immediate tasks are randomly generated; I can’t possess control. If you don’t want to carry them out, just refuse outright… After all, I can’t force you if you don’t want to take on a task.”
Upon hearing the System’s words, Jiang Pengji suddenly smiled, a smile laced with unfathomable meaning.
The System, feeling it might be onto something, added, “However, you still have to face the consequences of failing the task, so when it gets tough, don’t blame me for not warning you.”
At this moment, it had barely been two hours since Jiang Pengji had refused to execute the task.
【System: Rescue Meng Liang mission failed. Please accept punishment: Level 5 electric shock, duration three minutes. Prepare yourself.】
