Zhu Yanyu wanted to say more, but suddenly a soldier approached, pointing at her and another girl of similar age, ordering them to fetch water from the river to cook. In this wilderness, the soldier wasn’t afraid that the two weak women would try to escape. For convenience, he untied their ropes.

Of course, Zhu Yanyu had no intention of escaping. If she did, what would happen to her brother? She couldn’t bear to leave him alone and helpless.

She resignedly picked up the empty wooden bucket and headed towards the river. The other girl also stood up leisurely, but as soon as they entered the woods, the soldier hurriedly caught up with them.

“Soldier brother!” the other girl said, understanding his intentions, her eyes flashing with mockery, but her lips curved into a smile. “You’re so mean, making a delicate girl like me fetch water! Look, my hands are all red.”

“Oh, my dear Miss Yu, let me see. They really are red! Put down the bucket, brother will give you a massage.”

“But it hurts here, and here too.” Miss Yu cooed sweetly.

“Alright, alright, brother will give you a good massage, okay?”

“You’re so annoying!”

The two flirted shamelessly, ignoring Zhu Yanyu as if she didn’t exist. She tactfully quickened her pace, increasing the distance between them.

The girl named Yu was originally the daughter of Minister Yu from the Ministry of Personnel, a noble lady in the capital of Qi, Li Jing. Known for her beauty and talent, she was proud and had not yet been engaged at the age of seventeen. Who would have thought she would fall to such a state now?

Do all women change so drastically after losing their virtue?

Zhu Yanyu sighed sadly. She filled the wooden bucket eight-tenths full at the river and struggled to carry it back. Meanwhile, Yu and the lustful soldier were still playing around, kissing and embracing each other shamelessly.

Yu turned her head and met Zhu Yanyu’s gaze, her expression changing slightly.

Both of their fathers were officials in the capital, and they had met a few times in the social circles of noble ladies. Because they were both beautiful, they were often compared, and there were rumors that Yu had feelings for Song Shu Hua, the youngest grandson of the Grand Secretary Song Qi, to whom Zhu Yanyu was engaged. Whenever they met, they were like fire and water, ready to explode at any moment.

Now that they were both in a similar predicament, Zhu Yanyu only felt pity and sympathy for Yu, but Yu seemed to still harbor hostility towards her.

Zhu Yanyu did not want to argue with her and deliberately took a different path. As she did, she got a little lost and overheard a conversation mentioning her brother’s name near a large tree.

She tensed up and quietly hid behind the tree.

“…You’re going to sell him to that rich man, Wang?” a rough male voice asked.

“Yes, once we enter the border city tomorrow, I’ll go find him,” replied a slightly more refined voice, which belonged to the leader named Lin, the “Brother Lin” her brother had mentioned.

“No wonder you’ve been treating that kid differently on this journey. I thought you had grown a conscience!”

“Conscience? What’s that worth? Can you weigh it?”

The two men laughed vulgarly.

“But seriously, that kid is quite handsome. After you’ve taken care of him on this journey, even I feel a little tempted. I heard that rich man Wang loves boys of this age and has several at home. But none of them can compare to this handsome young master from the capital! You’ve struck gold this time!”

“We’re good brothers, what’s mine is yours!”

Zhu Yanyu listened in horror. These soldiers were actually planning to sell her brother to a rich man as a catamite! How despicable!

“By the way, doesn’t that kid have a sister? Aren’t you afraid she’ll come after you?”

“She can barely take care of herself!” Lin sneered. “This time, these female slaves are being sent to the Iron Armor Camp.”

“The Iron Armor Camp? Which one?”

“Which one could it be? There’s only one great commander stationed in the northern border of Qi.”

“You mean… the War God?!”

The War God?

Zhu Yanyu quickly searched the original owner’s memories. The founding emperor of Qi was originally a prince who established the dynasty after overthrowing the Mongol Yuan Dynasty. However, the current emperor, fearing that his descendants would follow the example of the usurping emperor, decided to abolish the princedoms. Since then, Qi had been defended by famous generals for decades.

The current commander of the northern border, General Fu Yun Sheng, was the most formidable general in Qi, known as the invincible “War God.” He commanded a personal army of iron-clad soldiers who were undefeated in battle.

“This Iron Armor Camp is the War God’s personal army. He specifically requested these convicted officials’ daughters from the emperor to serve as military prostitutes—just imagine, these women who were once noble ladies in the capital, now lying beneath soldiers like whores, moaning… That must feel incredible!”

“No wonder! The War God truly understands his men’s needs.”

More vulgar laughter followed as their footsteps faded into the distance.

Only when she could no longer hear any sound did Zhu Yanyu allow herself to collapse, kneeling on the ground.

They were going to be sent to the military camp as prostitutes! Thousands of men would have their way with them, living a life of endless misery and despair. And her brother would be sold to a rich man as a catamite, subjected to endless humiliation…

Zhu Yanyu shuddered in horror, her body drenched in cold sweat.

She couldn’t just sit and wait for death!

She had to find a way to escape this cruel fate—

Zhu Yanyu did not return immediately. She crouched down and searched the woods. In her past life, she loved growing plants and had read extensively about them. She knew that many common plants were actually poisonous, such as lilies of the valley, daffodils, and deadly nightshade.

After a frantic search, she spotted a wild rehmannia plant and her eyes lit up.

The roots of wild rehmannia are toxic and can cause vomiting and diarrhea if ingested, with severe cases leading to dizziness and fainting. She quickly uprooted the plant, crushed it with a stone, and wrapped it in her handkerchief, hiding it in her bosom.

Then, she found a few more poisonous weeds and processed them in the same way. Finally, she found two sharp stones and hid them.

By the time she returned, it was already getting dark. The cook scolded her for being slow, and she explained that she had spilled the water and had to go back to refill it.

“Go, go, go! You pampered little girls can’t even do a simple task properly!”

“Auntie, let me help you,” Zhu Yanyu said, trying to make up for her “mistake” and eagerly offered to help. “I can help with the fire or whatever you need.”

“Alright, then you go start the fire! Be quick, the soldiers are hungry.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

She quickly gathered some firewood and started a fire. The cook was busy plucking and cleaning two wild chickens they had caught on the road, preparing to make chicken soup.

While the cook was distracted, Zhu Yanyu threw the poisonous weeds into the pot of chicken soup. She knew that this pot of soup was meant for the soldiers, and the slaves would only get a pot of bland vegetable soup.

She wasn’t worried about innocent people drinking the soup; she was only afraid that the amount of poison wouldn’t be enough to cause symptoms, making all her efforts in vain.