"Let her go," Jiang Lan said casually, glancing at the County Captain's attendants.
The mute girl had a frail, thin frame and was dressed in patched, coarse linen clothes.
Before this, she had clearly been bullied by the villagers, who feared being implicated. Her clothes were soaked through.
Her hair was a mess, matted to her face in strands, its color tinged yellow from malnutrition.
She was like a frightened quail, shivering uncontrollably from the cold.
Even after they let her go, she didn't dare to lift her head.
"Can you understand what I'm saying?"
"Don't be afraid. I won't hurt you."
Jiang Lan spoke, his voice calm and gentle.
Perhaps because his voice was so gentle, the girl timidly raised her head and glanced at him before nodding. She then raised a slender finger to her lips, as if to tell him she couldn't speak.
Looking into her clear, bright eyes, Jiang Lan smiled. "As long as you can understand me, that's all that matters. I know you can't speak."
