Chapter 31: Memories

“Miss Yan Xi, please reconsider. If you understand clearly now, I won’t report your earlier actions to the master.”

The young girl was panting heavily.

She broke free from the two women holding her hands, then quieted down, remaining still.

The situation was hopeless...

A brief hope, quickly shattered.

That man had taken Cheng Beiming away; others knew that since it was Lu Zhi’s carriage, no search would be conducted.

Sure enough, it was just as expected.

Soon, the carriage she was in was stopped and searched.

The commander in charge ordered the coachman to get down and open the door.

The coachman did not move; instead, an attendant stepped down first, raising Lu Zhi’s token.

The commander nodded slightly and immediately let them pass.

But after a short while, the carriage passed through the gates of Chang’an and sped away.

In the distance, Lu Zhi caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye, narrowed his eyes slightly, and chuckled softly.

******

At the Ningduke Mansion, Lu Bailing’s residence.

The man had just finished bathing, dressed in white undergarments, sitting alone on a low couch in the heated pavilion, pouring and drinking by himself.

His expression was cold and heavy, with obvious worry etched on his face, as he drank several glasses in a row.

After a moment, Lady Fang came in after changing clothes and took away the wine jar he had just reached for.

“That’s enough...” Lu Bailing looked up at his wife. “This matter is very strange. If she truly does not want to stay in the Lu family and only wants to leave, I can let her go. But now she’s vanished without a trace—neither seen alive nor dead. Such a complete disappearance is highly unusual!”

Lady Fang understood.

Over these six days, her feelings had shifted from anger to confusion, then to worry.

Why she left no longer mattered; what was important was her safety.

Lady Fang said nothing, only gently stroked her husband’s back, soothing him softly.

“It’s alright.”

Lu Bailing closed his eyes. “I feel like I’ve let Brother Shen down...”

Lady Fang stood beside the couch, slowly cradled her husband’s head, pressing it against herself. Her voice choked with emotion but she forced a smile and comforted him gently:

“You did your best...”

******

What exactly did Lu Zhi say to Cheng Beiming?

The north wind howled as night fell swiftly. The carriage raced on, only slowing gradually after more than twenty miles.

Inside, the women wrapped a cloak around Yan Xi and handed her a hidden hot water bottle to hold.

Qinglian and Taohong switched seats, one sitting beside the young lady, the other opposite her.

They put on her coat and hat, warming her hands.

Outside, snow began to fall silently, colder than during the day.

After more than two hours of travel, they finally arrived at the nearest county.

The carriage headed directly to a certain place, where lights had already been lit inside, the silver frost charcoal burning, the bedroom cleaned meticulously, the bedding fresh—everything clearly prepared in advance.

Yan Xi was led inside.

No sooner had she stepped in than she heard Atai’s voice behind her.

“Miss!”

All three women’s hearts stirred as they turned to see the young man.

His eyes were red and tearful as he rushed forward and knelt down with a thud.

“Miss, Atai is guilty! Atai deserves to die!”

Apparently, he now understood much of what had happened.

He hadn’t been able to help Miss and had become a burden, a weak spot.

What did he, a mere servant, truly mean to Miss Lu Zhi?

Atai raised his hand and struck his own face.

“If I had known it would be like this, I’d have smashed my head against a wall or bitten my tongue and died. I never would have let Miss be used as a tool by others.”

Yan Xi stepped forward quickly, stopped Atai, and helped him up.

“Don’t say that. Don’t think like that. You have no guilt. You suffered, and both Qinglian and Taohong and I worry and care for you. We’re human, not wood. Humans have hearts and feelings; as long as those remain, there will be vulnerabilities and control by others. Even without you, there would be someone else. So it’s not your fault at all.”

Atai sobbed loudly, tears and snot streaming down his face. After all, he was only eighteen.

As he cried, Qinglian and Taohong cried too.

Usually as soft as a kitten, Yan Xi became the strongest among them.

“All right, stop crying... we’re together again now...”

After a long while, the three finally stopped their tears.

The door was firmly closed; only the four of them remained inside.

They gathered around the low table, reminiscing. Tea and food were laid out, but no one had the heart to eat.

Taohong said, “In the end, it’s because they bullied us orphans. If the master or the Prince of Sheng were still alive, who would dare bully our Miss? I really miss the Crown Prince of Qianjin... I really do...”

Her heart fragile, she spoke incoherently, then began to cry again.

Qinglian wiped her tears and comforted her, “It’s all right...”

Atai also said angrily, “Yes, if the Crown Prince of Qianjin were still here, Miss wouldn’t be suffering this!”

Yan Xi listened as they spoke back and forth, recalling people so distant and ethereal. She didn’t interrupt or correct them, letting them vent freely and say whatever they wished.

She glanced at each of them with tearful eyes—the only one among the four not crying.

But the words of the maids and servants reminded her of the time at dusk when they left the city.

What exactly did Lu Zhi say to Cheng Beiming?

If Yan Xi remembered correctly, Cheng Beiming was just over thirty this year.

When the Shen family was still intact, her father and uncle had joked about him.

They said he was a military prodigy, brave and fierce, but stubborn and inflexible, unable to adapt or understand social nuances, seeing the world strictly in black and white. Once he made up his mind, not even eight oxen could drag him back—except for one person.

That person was the Prince of Sheng.

Her father once said that even if the Prince of Sheng ordered him to die at noon, he wouldn’t die a moment later.

His loyalty to the Prince of Sheng was not only because the prince was kind, beloved by the people, a savior in times of disaster, a war hero, and a flawless gentleman who had guarded the people of Dayong for half his life. To Cheng Beiming, it went even deeper.

It was said that Cheng Beiming was a child saved by the Prince of Sheng on the battlefield; his life had been given by the prince.

Lu Bailing and Yan Xi’s father were close friends.

Yan Xi’s father and the Prince of Sheng’s family shared a profound bond.

After the Prince of Sheng died, Cheng Beiming first pledged loyalty to Yan Xi’s father, Shen Xun.

After the Shen family’s downfall, he then served under Lu Bailing.

So what did Lu Zhi say to him to call him away?

Keep in mind, this was an order from Lu Bailing, and it concerned her.

Yet he was somehow lured away by Lu Zhi?

Yan Xi couldn’t understand.

Unable to understand, she chose not to dwell on it for now.

That night, the four of them talked until midnight before resting.

The next day was the twenty-sixth day of the twelfth lunar month, only five days left until the year’s end.

Judging by the escort’s attitude, they intended to stay put and not leave for the time being.

With her heart pounding wildly, Yan Xi guessed that Lu Zhi’s plan was probably for her to wait here until the sixth day of the first lunar month.

Though this was unfamiliar territory, having Qinglian and the others with her made it bearable.

Besides, Lu Zhi had plenty of money; though the house was in the countryside, it was warm and well-provisioned. Staying a few days was no trouble.

There was only one major concern.

She would have to see that man again sooner or later.

While with the maids and servants, she hadn’t cried and kept comforting others, but in truth, no one wanted to cry more than she did.

She truly did not want to see Lu Zhi again.