"Smack!"
Prince Beite lashed the whip, and Joanna's thin silk nightgown was torn at once. A bloody whip mark bloomed across her snow‑white skin.
"Smack!"
Another lash came down. Joanna's body swayed; the pain made it hard for her to stay upright.
"You ruined my grand plan!" Prince Beite glared at Joanna with hatred.
"Beite, I really did my best…" Joanna weakly tried to defend herself.
"No, you didn't." Prince Beite sneered. "If you'd gone all out, we wouldn't have ended up like this today."
"Beite, I…"
"You went soft, didn't you? Because Jian Xi is your daughter!"
Joanna's face drained of color. "How do you know that?"
"Heh, isn't it just reincarnation? I've known for a long time." Prince Beite clapped his hands. A woman walked out from the inner room—it was Yin Ruo.
"Yin Ruo?" Joanna froze. "You're not dead?"
Yin Ruo gave a sugary smile and snuggled up to Prince Beite. "Beite saved me."
