Chapter 002 Hot Soup

"Gudu... Let go of me... What do you want to do..."

The man felt the chill behind him intensify, the tree branch lodged in his throat could take his life at any moment.

His face was full of fear, trembling as he swallowed the blood in his throat, and he stammered, "I didn't mean to, I didn't want to kill you, it was them, they said you had to die!"

"I just want to live... I just don't want to die..."

Feng Qiao looked at the man in front of her, seeing the fear on his face and hearing his pleading words, her eyes turned bloodshot.

It was this man who, to save his own life, had placed her in boiling water and used her as live food to satisfy his hunger.

It was this man who, even after she was rescued, had taken away everything a woman should have!

She could never forget the fearful and disgusted looks of those people, she could never forget the malicious and cruel words.

Her blind and resentful grandmother, the malicious and ruthless Feng family, the relentless beatings, the constant insults echoing in her ears every day...

She endured living with a body that had been disfigured by boiling water, a face covered in burn scars, losing her marriage prospects, losing everything, living like a wretched mud.

Gripping the tree branch tightly, the man screamed in pain, "Don't kill me!! You can't kill me... I just want to live, I just don't want to die!!"

"You don't want to die, so you let others die?"

"You want to live, so you exchange others' lives for your own?"

"The reason why humans are humans is because they have a bottom line that animals don't. Eating human flesh to save your own life, you are simply not worth pitying!"

Feng Qiao's words became colder and colder, the man felt the sudden murderous intent, his eyes widened as he tried to speak, but Feng Qiao didn't give him a chance.

The sharp tree branch in her hand fiercely pierced into his neck, and then she quickly pulled it out.

A bloody hole appeared on the man's neck, blood gushed out like a spring, splashing onto Feng Qiao's face.

"Ah!!"

"She's killed someone!"

Everyone was shocked, no one had expected this seemingly ten-year-old girl to actually dare to kill. They screamed and tried to approach Feng Qiao, but before they could do anything, they touched Feng Qiao's eyes.

What kind of eyes were those, even long after that night, they would still be haunted by nightmares.

Those eyes were eerie and cold, like a demon crawling out of hell, devoid of any warmth, reflecting the fresh blood on her dirty face, terrifyingly dark.

Everyone took a few steps back, feeling that this little girl in front of them was a lunatic, as if she could pounce on them at any moment and bite them fiercely.

No one dared to approach her again, and no one wanted to become the second man lying on the ground.

Feng Qiao tightly held the tree branch, feeling weak all over, the warmth on her forehead had not faded, her recent murder and the current intimidation were just her last-ditch effort.

Seeing that the others in the temple were frightened, she withdrew her gaze expressionlessly, reached out and dragged the big back knife on the ground to a nearby fire pit, and sat down in a dry spot.

The flickering firelight illuminated her straight back, showing no signs of weakness, but only she knew that her hand hidden under her sleeve was trembling constantly.

The weakness from long-term lack of food and illness made her almost unable to sit still, and her hands were so weak that she could barely hold the only weapon, the rusty kitchen knife.

Dizziness came in waves, but Feng Qiao dared not close her eyes. She knew how terrifying a starving person could be, and she dared not put her life in the hands of a group of people who wanted to use her as food. Moreover, she remembered clearly that in her previous life in this temple, she was saved by someone, and that person was most likely just outside the temple.

She suddenly grabbed the weapon she had used to kill, fiercely slashing it across her arm.

Blood splattered, the dizziness in her head temporarily disappeared, and Feng Qiao coldly tore off a relatively clean strip of cloth from her undergarment and tied it around the wound on her arm.

Outside the temple, several people stood in the rain, watching the scene in the temple with mixed emotions.

"Master, is she... really a child?" Liusi's eyes flickered.

This little girl was ruthless to others, but even more ruthless to herself.

When she killed before, she was merciless, and now when she hurt herself, she didn't hesitate at all.

Liusi, holding an umbrella, watched the little girl in the temple place the knife where she could reach it at any time. She seemed to be sitting casually, but she had positioned her entire back against the back wall, leaning against a pillar, undoubtedly the safest place in the entire temple.

There was also a person standing under the umbrella, wearing a dark blue brocade robe, with a silver embroidered belt around his waist and a bright yellow tassel hanging in front, swaying back and forth in the night breeze.

The man's expression was cold, and he didn't say a word after hearing Liusi's words.

"Master, the rain outside is getting heavier, and Qiu Pengcheng in Lin'an has ordered the city to be sealed, and Cao Ku is also watching closely. It's probably not safe to travel on this road. Why don't we rest in this temple for the night and leave tomorrow?"

The man responded with a grunt and walked into the temple.

Seeing this, Liusi quickly said, "Except for that little girl inside, none of the others are good people. Let's throw them all out so as not to tarnish the master's eyes."

The people behind were ordered and rushed into the temple. After a while, there were screams of fear coming from the temple. Then those people who were hiding in the temple were all knocked unconscious and thrown out into the dilapidated stable outside the temple, which couldn't shelter them from the wind and rain.

The fire in the temple weakened a lot. After the strangers entered the temple, Feng Qiao's whole body tensed, and she unconsciously gripped the long knife in her hand.

She leaned back a little, hiding in the darkness, tightly pursing her lips and looking down at the fire, feeling the people walking towards the fire. One of them found the best spot and let the others lay a good blanket on the messy and damp ground, then knelt down and sat beside it.

Liu Xi skillfully prepared a pot and put in the cooked food brought from somewhere. Soon, the aroma wafted out.

He served a portion and handed it to Xiao Minyuan. After taking it, Xiao Minyuan suddenly looked at the little girl huddled in the corner not far away and said, "Give her a bowl."

"Master?" Liu Xi raised his eyebrows in surprise.

Xiao Minyuan ignored him and just stirred the soup in the bowl with a spoon, saying, "Give her two pills of the jade life pill that we brought, and also, bring another blanket."

After hearing Xiao Minyuan's orders, Liu Xi looked even more surprised.

He had been with Xiao Minyuan for more than ten years and knew him extremely well. He was very clear that his master was not a kind person.

Otherwise, when they were outside just now and his master saw the man in the dilapidated temple trying to eat someone, he didn't show any emotion. Even when the little girl was almost thrown into the cauldron to be cooked, his master was equally indifferent and showed no intention of helping.

After hesitating for a moment, Liu Xi saw Xiao Minyuan's slight frown and quickly ordered someone to fetch the items. He then served a bowl of hot soup and walked over to Feng Qiao's side.

Feng Qiao was stunned when Xiao Minyuan spoke.

Just like Liu Xi was familiar with Xiao Minyuan, she also knew Xiao Minyuan. In her previous life, Xiao Minyuan saved her in the dilapidated temple, but she had never been grateful to him.

She had heard with her own ears how the people around Xiao Minyuan laughed and said they had seen her being chopped off her legs and thrown into the cauldron outside the dilapidated temple. She had also heard them say that if she hadn't been scalded awake by boiling water and in a daze shouted that if she died, her father Feng Qizhou would avenge her, the Feng family would not let go of those people, and Xiao Minyuan would not have saved her.

This man was cruel to the bone.

If it didn't benefit him, he was of no use. He had never been associated with kindness and compassion.

But at this moment, he was helping her?