Who should be tortured?
Lucan Lu didn’t have a clue either. He just stopped thinking and dumped the headache on his underlings.
What’s a subordinate for? To take the blame and do the grunt work.
"Put the prisoner on the rack." Lucan Lu snapped, his voice full of authority—he somehow managed to sound even more intimidating than Nolan Dongling.
The officers stepped forward, glancing left and right, hoping Commander Lucan Lu would give them a hint as to who should be strapped to the rack.
But Lucan Lu just looked up at the ceiling, refusing to help.
With Lucan Lu unreliable, the two officers tried to read Ninth Royal Uncle Nolan Dongling and Princess Serenity’s faces, but didn’t dare look directly at the imperial family. So...
They gritted their teeth, stepped up, and grabbed Serena Feng, strapping her onto the torture rack—the Punishment Room only had one.
Serena Feng didn’t resist, nor did she look at Nolan Dongling. She knew that what happened next was out of her hands.
Nolan Dongling picked up his teacup and took a slow sip. Only when the officers were about to bind Serena Feng’s limbs did he lazily say, "Commander Lu, I’m truly curious how you ever became head of the Bloodcloak Guard."
"Buzz..."
Lucan Lu felt a chill run down his scalp—like a man hearing his own death sentence. He trembled and stammered, "N-Ninth Royal Uncle, please don’t be angry."
Too bad Nolan Dongling didn’t even bother to respond. He just sipped his tea, looking totally relaxed, like he was only here for a drink.
Sweat poured down Lucan Lu’s forehead, but he didn’t dare wipe it away. He spun around and yelled at the officers, "What the hell are you doing? I told you to put the prisoner on the rack, and you strapped Miss Feng up there instead? Hurry up—get Qian Jin on the rack!"
The two officers turned pale, wanting to beg for mercy, but Lucan Lu’s fierce glare froze them in place.
It was obvious Lucan Lu was just using them to take the fall.
"Yes, yes, we were foolish. Please forgive us, sir." The two officers hurriedly begged for forgiveness, then carefully released Serena Feng and bowed repeatedly to apologize.
Serena Feng just shook her head and said nothing.
She knew she was safe as soon as Ninth Royal Uncle showed up. Hearing him defend her so bluntly, she felt a rush of warmth inside.
She snuck a glance at Nolan Dongling, only to find he wasn’t looking at her at all. A pang of disappointment made her lower her head and hide the bitterness in her eyes.
In front of Ninth Royal Uncle, she felt deeply inferior.
Ninth Royal Uncle was too perfect—so perfect, he seemed utterly out of reach.
Things were going completely differently than Princess Serenity had imagined. She was so angry she dug her nails into her own palm until they broke, but didn’t dare show it on her face.
Seeing Serena Feng still standing and not kneeling after so long, Princess Serenity couldn’t vent her anger. She snapped, "Serena Feng, who told you to stand? Kneel!"
Serena Feng rolled her eyes but didn’t argue. She was about to kneel when Nolan Dongling raised his hand: "Forget it. Let her stand. Commander Lu, go ahead with the interrogation."
By now, the prisoner Qian Jin had already been strapped to the rack.
He’d long known what fate awaited him. Though terrified, he didn’t dare cry out—his whole body curled into a strange posture, as if he feared the rack itself.
It made sense—no one in this world wasn’t afraid of the Bloodcloak Guard’s torture rack.
"Ninth Royal Uncle, what instrument should we use first?" Lucan Lu’s nerves frayed even further under Nolan Dongling’s rebuke.
Ugh... Serena Feng felt her stomach turn and wanted to shut her eyes, but Ninth Royal Uncle was always one step ahead. Before she could, he said, "Serena Feng, keep your eyes wide open."
"Yes, Ninth Royal Uncle." Serena Feng forced herself to swallow the nausea and stared wide-eyed.
"How about starting with the whip?" Lucan Lu didn’t dare decide on his own and asked again.
"Mm." Nolan Dongling gave a noncommittal reply.
Princess Serenity stood in the back, her whole face twisted with rage.
She never imagined Ninth Royal Uncle would defend Serena Feng so openly.
It was just...
Too infuriating.
But she couldn’t do anything about it. In terms of status, Ninth Royal Uncle outranked her; in terms of seniority, he was above her too. She stood no chance against him.
All she could do was twist her handkerchief in frustration and glare viciously at Lucan Lu, silently urging him to be smart and remember this was an order from the Empress herself.
Lucan Lu quietly lowered his head, avoiding Princess Serenity’s gaze. He personally picked up the whip and struck Qian Jin.
"Crack, crack..."
Each lash landed without breaking the skin or drawing blood, yet Qian Jin—a grown man—howled in agony.
"Ah..."
"Ah..."
That’s the real secret of the whip—the pain comes not from torn flesh or blood, but from the red welts it leaves behind.
The whip was used with expert precision: each strike pulped the flesh beneath the skin, making the pain so unbearable you’d wish for death.
After ten lashes, Lucan Lu was already out of breath.
"Sir, I confess, I confess—it was Miss Feng, Miss Feng ordered me to assassinate the princess!" Qian Jin sobbed, snot and tears streaming down his face.
"Keep going." Nolan Dongling ordered.
"Yes, sir." Lucan Lu caught his breath and kept whipping. The screams rang out nonstop. Serena Feng turned her eyes away, unable to watch.
"Serena Feng, watch closely."
Serena Feng quickly looked back, but saw that Ninth Royal Uncle wasn’t looking at her. Still, she obeyed his command and stared.
Another ten lashes passed. Lucan Lu was drenched in sweat, but Qian Jin stubbornly insisted it was Serena Feng.
Lucan Lu couldn’t be bothered anymore and reached for the iron comb, preparing to use it for the next torture.
"I confess, I confess, sir—I confess!" Qian Jin sobbed, his whole body wracked with pain, snot and tears everywhere.
"Fine. Who ordered you to assassinate the princess?" Lucan Lu waved the iron comb in front of Qian Jin, full of menace.
If Qian Jin didn’t answer, he’d have to endure the pain of having his flesh scraped off like noodles.
Qian Jin shuddered, a look of despair flickered in his eyes. He closed them and said, "Miss Feng. It was Miss Feng."
"You little brat, refusing the easy way and choosing the hard way... Fine, if you won’t learn your lesson, you’ll see just how cruel the world can be."
If Lucan Lu didn’t understand Nolan Dongling’s intentions by now, he had no business being commander of the Bloodcloak Guard.
But just then, Ninth Royal Uncle spoke again: "Enough, Commander Lu. The Bloodcloak Guard may use torture in investigations, but we mustn’t force confessions. What if the prisoner kills himself? Cut out his tongue first, so he can’t bite it off."
Pfft... The first half sounded reasonable, but the second half was chilling.
Cut out his tongue?
Serena Feng swallowed hard, sneaking another look at Ninth Royal Uncle.
She didn’t know whether to feel grateful or sad.
Grateful that Ninth Royal Uncle spared no effort for her sake; sad... that the brutality of this era was so terrifying.
Human life was worth so little.
"Yes, Ninth Royal Uncle." Lucan Lu felt nothing; for the Bloodcloak Guard, cutting out tongues was routine.
Two officers stepped forward, dislocated Qian Jin’s jaw, and produced a rusty iron pair of scissors.
Ugh... Serena Feng felt nauseated and wanted to close her eyes, but Ninth Royal Uncle, ever perceptive, spoke before she could: "Serena Feng, keep your eyes wide open."
"Yes, Ninth Royal Uncle." Serena Feng forced herself to suppress the nausea and kept her eyes open.
She understood Ninth Royal Uncle wasn’t trying to torment her; he wanted her to see the rules of this world, to understand the methods of the powerful.
It would benefit her.