Confused and afraid
Hao Xuan got down on one knee to try and help her up but it was like trying to pick up a lifeless doll. Her eyes were half open but her mind was long gone. It had to be after everything she had endured these last few days.
She was wrapped up in some rags that barely covered anything. Most of her body was obscured by grime from days of laying in this filth but even through that, he could see dark black and blue marks around her neck and various other body parts.
This once proud daughter of heaven that was at the center of attention wherever she went now resembled a walking corpse. If someone saw her on the street in this condition they would change lanes just to avoid getting close to her.
Hao Xuan's mind, still reeling from the shock of seeing Ma Jiang's self-immolation, was pushed even further when the voices began to speak up again.
'Look at her state, the poor girl.'
'What was her crime? To fall for someone like you? Someone far beneath her station?'