Zhao Ling lay sprawled on the ground, her back turned to the sky, her cheeks ablaze with embarrassment as she lifted her head to meet Jin's gaze.
"P-Please…" Her voice quivered with a mixture of desperation and hope.
The weight of their circumstances hung heavily in the air.
They had nothing substantial to offer Jin, save for the precious stone entrusted to them by Mrs. Xiao Yue, which had been long used as trade for them to fill their food stock.
It was a gamble—they needed Jin to undertake an impossible task, and the outcome hinged on their ability to secure his cooperation.
Amidst the choice between sustenance for their daily needs and the preservation of their very lives, the latter had become an obvious, albeit difficult, decision.
