And just like that, Qin Qinxi was bought.

Five million US dollars. She was sold to those pair of light-gray eyes.

The lewd, perverted faces in the audience flashed before her eyes.

When that octogenarian old man was helped off the stage, he kept looking back at her, his gaze filled with unyielding resentment.

Qin Qinxi didn’t dare look at the second floor again.

She was yanked off the stage.

It wasn’t the auctioneer— it was a group of women, led by that woman with an Asian face.

The very same one who had announced the rules in the ship cabin earlier.

“Take her away.”

Qin Qinxi was supported by them, stumbling down a corridor. They turned a corner, went downstairs, then turned again.

She had no idea where they were taking her.

All she knew was that those women’s hands were gripping her arms so tightly it hurt her skin.

Qin Qinxi was pushed into a room.

Not a cage. A bathroom.

A spotless bathroom, complete with hot water, a bathtub, and a pleasant fragrance.

“Wash her clean,” said the Asian woman. “Inside and out—wash her clean.”

Several women gathered around and began bathing her.

They didn’t wash her gently; it was as if they were cleaning something they’d just bought.

They scrubbed her whole body vigorously, rinsed her thoroughly, and rubbed her hard.

Qin Qinxi stood there naked, the pain making her vision blur and darken, yet she could only let them do as they pleased. The agony was so intense she couldn’t help but let out a sharp gasp.

The hot water poured over her, scalding her skin until it turned red.

But she didn’t flinch. She didn’t dare. She just stood there like a rag doll.

All she could think about was that man’s smile.

Those light-gray eyes of his. That dark, sinister smirk at the corner of his mouth.

For some reason, Qin Qinxi felt an ominous premonition—a thorn lodged deep in her heart, impossible to pull out.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. A man’s cough came from outside.

Qin Qinxi froze.

Instinctively, she tried to cover herself, to hide, to find something to shield her with.

She was afraid that man would barge right in.

The woman washing her gave her ear a hard twist. “Behave! Don’t move!”

Qin Qinxi cried out in pain. She bit her lip, too scared to scream.

After twisting her ear, the woman shoved her aside and walked toward the door.

The other women kept on bathing her as if nothing had happened.

Just a slave.

Even if they knew she’d been bought at a high price, bought by a big shot, they still acted brazenly.

On this ship, the buyers would keep buying more.

Some people liked to buy slaves, keep them at home for their amusement, or torture them to death before buying another batch.

They were used to it.

After all, a slave was just a slave—dead is dead, and the next shipment would arrive soon.

The Asian woman opened the door, and her expression instantly shifted from cold indifference to warm enthusiasm.

“Hey, little brother Tuxi.”

Hearing that name, Qin Qinxi’s heart skipped a beat.

Tuxi…

The very person she had once saved.

The one who had tied her up and brought her here.

Qin Qinxi pricked up her ears.

Tuxi stood in the doorway, neither entering nor looking inside.

His voice came through the crack in the door, soft and indifferent: “That woman—send her to my room later.”

The Asian woman was momentarily taken aback, then her face lit up with understanding.

She smiled, her tone laced with a hint of teasing: “Oh—I thought Mr. Mansero wanted her.”

“See? Mr. Mansero never buys slaves. None of the women on our ship have ever caught his eye. So it turns out you’re the one he’s buying—your boss really does spoil you.”

Tuxi chuckled.

Qin Qinxi couldn’t tell what that laugh meant; all she heard was, “Stop talking nonsense.”

The Asian woman didn’t reply.

There was a soft sound from the crack in the door—like Tuxi reaching out to cup her chin.

The woman slapped his hand away. “Behave yourself.”

Tuxi didn’t linger. “I’m leaving now. I’ve got things to attend to.”

The door closed.

Qin Qinxi stood beneath the cascading hot water, the stream pouring down from above, running into her eyes and mouth. She didn’t care.

She heard it all.

That underworld boss had bought her on behalf of his henchmen.

He wasn’t the one who wanted her—he was buying her for Tuxi.

End of Chapter 14: Chapter 14