Meister der Mehrdeutigkeit

Kapitel 21

"Lord Luo Wu, we can't find the person who was just shot." A disciple on patrol came over quickly and said.

Luo Wu frowned and looked at Lian Zhao.

“My arrows never miss; with careful inspection, they will be easily caught.” After saying this, Lian Zhao turned and chased after Xiao Xiao in the direction she had fled.

"Go quickly." Luo Wu waved his hand.

The disciple responded and followed after them.

Just as everyone was in a state of chaos, Mo Yun slowly walked out of the secret passage.

For a moment, everyone fell silent.

"What are you doing here!" someone in the crowd suddenly exclaimed. Wei Ying took a few steps forward, looking anxious.

Mo Yun glanced at him, her expression calm, and did not answer.

At that moment, those with sharp eyes noticed the wooden box in his hand.

"How dare you!" Lady Xi stepped forward. "How dare you trespass into the 'Crystal Chamber'!"

Mo Yun frowned and looked at her. "Madam, if I remember correctly, you sent me here."

Lady Xi retorted angrily, "You scoundrel! I am a woman, how could I invite someone here in the middle of the night? Don't you dare make false accusations!"

Mo Yun slowly sheathed his sword. "Madam, it was the maidservant by your side who relayed the message. You might as well ask her."

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhao Yan, who was standing next to Madam Xi, was terrified. She knelt down with a thud and cried, "Madam, I'm innocent!"

Lady tide looked at her with a solemn expression.

Zhao Yan wept, her face streaked with tears. "Madam, I've been in the kitchen all day making ginseng soup for you. I only left for dinner at Yuexiang Pavilion. After that, I've been with you. If you don't believe me, you can ask Uncle Liu in the kitchen. Please understand, Madam, I'm innocent..." She gradually broke down in sobs, looking utterly pitiful.

Mo Yun looked at her, his expression no longer calm.

"Mo Yun! I have treated you like an honored guest, yet you have repeatedly provoked me. Today, you have trespassed into the forbidden area of my Hero's Fortress and even slandered my maid. What are your intentions!" Lady Xi became increasingly furious.

Mo Yun looked at her and said nothing more.

At this moment, the disciple who had entered the secret passage to investigate hurriedly retreated, saying, "Madam, Lord Sanying, all the brothers who went in are dead!" He looked at Mo Yun and said with grief and indignation, "It was the work of the Qi family's swords!"

"What?!" Zhang Jiyuan of the Three Heroes couldn't hold back any longer. He looked at Mo Yun with a hint of sorrow, "Could it be that you really..."

Mo Yun's expression returned to indifference, and he said, "I'll say it again, it wasn't me."

"Lies!" Lady Xi trembled with anger. "It's clearly you who colluded with outsiders and plotted something nefarious!"

Mo Yun turned his head to the side, offering no further explanation.

"How can you make such a judgment without evidence!" The one who retorted was none other than Wei Ying. "Second Brother... what exactly happened?"

Mo Yun looked at him and said, "I've said everything I need to say. Believe it or not is up to you."

Wei Ying frowned, turned around, and looked at Zhao Yan, who was kneeling on the ground, crying bitterly.

"Stop arguing. There are many doubts in this matter. Before the other two accomplices are found, no one should speak recklessly." Zhang Jiyuan walked to Mo Yun's side and put his hand on his shoulder. "If you are innocent, I will naturally give you justice."

Mo Yun did not agree, but gently pushed his hand away and said, "I will not go anywhere. You can investigate however you want."

After saying that, he left on his own.

The disciples of Hero's Fortress knew his identity, and none of them dared to block his way.

"Damn it!" Madam tide clenched her fists and cursed under her breath.

Zhang Jiyuan glanced at her. "Madam, there's no need to be angry. I, Zhang, am here to investigate this matter thoroughly! No one can be wrongly accused..."

Lady tide raised an eyebrow. "Very good. Yan'er, let's go."

Zhao Yan got up crying and followed.

On one side, Hero's Fortress was in a state of frantic worry about the secret passage and chamber. On the other side, Little Xiao was exhausted from running around. The pain in her shoulder was getting stronger and stronger; even if she were invulnerable, she would probably have a large bruise. She was truly unlucky; how could she be so unlucky?

Although her lightness skill wasn't as good as Yin Xiao's, it wasn't too bad either. She evaded the pursuing disciples, turned onto the corridor, and slipped into Lian Zhao's room. Just as she closed the door, she heard shouts from the disciples not far away.

"Search every room and find the person who was shot with an arrow!"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Xiao inwardly groaned. So she'd been shot with an arrow… She turned her head and, sure enough, saw an arrow piercing her left shoulder. Though it hadn't pierced her flesh, it had pierced her clothes and was now caught on them. Xiao Xiao reached out and removed the arrow. In the dim moonlight, she clearly saw that the arrowhead was three-edged, incredibly sharp, unlike anything she'd seen before. The Divine Arrow of the Lian family? Could the archer have been Lian Zhao? Alas, what a tragic fate! She was doomed. If they searched house to house, wouldn't she be giving herself away with this arrow?

Then, something else occurred to her. If the archer really was Lian Zhao, this was his room, so it wouldn't be surprising to find his arrow. Xiao Xiao immediately laughed. Luckily, she had just returned to this room! As she was congratulating herself on finding a way out, she heard footsteps approaching. She hurriedly took off her shoes, grabbed the arrow, jumped onto the bed, covered herself with the blanket, and pretended to be asleep.

She had just finished doing all that when she heard someone push the door open and come in. She closed her eyes tightly, calmed her erratic breathing, and lay motionless.

As the person drew closer, her little heart pounded faster and faster. Suddenly, someone spoke up loudly, "Wait."

The speaker was Lian Zhao. His face was cold as he looked at the disciples who had barged into the room. "This is my room; there's no need to search it."

The disciples hesitated slightly, "Young Master Lian, this..."

Xiao Xiao sighed in bed. It would be even stranger if she didn't wake up in this situation. So, she poked her head out, rubbed her eyes, and said sleepily, "What's wrong? It's so noisy..."

Lian Zhao walked to the bedside and chuckled, "It's nothing, just a search. You didn't see anyone suspicious, did you?"

Xiao Xiao shook her head blankly, "No, I was asleep..."

"Okay. I won't disturb you, go back to sleep," Lian Zhao said gently. After he finished speaking, he turned to look at the disciples, "Search elsewhere."

Seeing that Xiao Xiao's voice was normal and didn't seem to be injured, the disciples apologized and turned to leave. Lian Zhao didn't say anything more and followed.

Little Xiaoxiao's right hand, still clutching the arrow, was hidden under the covers. Her palm was sweaty, and her heart was still pounding.

Suddenly, Lian Zhao stopped walking.

Xiao Xiao was shocked and watched nervously as Lian Zhao slowly walked back. He stood in front of the bed, looked at Xiao Xiao, and said, "You..."

Xiao Xiao became increasingly nervous, and even her breathing became rapid.

“You don’t lock the door.” Lian Zhao sighed and said.

Xiao Xiao froze, her eyes wide as she stared at Lian Zhao.

"Be careful," Lian Zhao said with a helpless smile. "Go to sleep." With that, he turned and left, gently closing the door behind him.

Xiao Xiao breathed a sigh of relief, her whole body slumped down. She'd survived a close call; good fortune was sure to follow! This world, it seems, is a place where being a good person is impossible! Sigh…

What a kind person… She took out the arrow and examined it closely. If Lian Zhao knew that the person he had just shot was herself, what would he do? Did he truly cherish her as his betrothed, or did he have ulterior motives?

In her mind, she quietly recalled her master's words: Never try to guess whether someone is sincere or not towards you. As long as you don't feel tired when you're together, that's enough.

She smiled faintly. Yes, why guess? Anyway, she hadn't suffered any losses at his hands yet. This was fine, wasn't it...?

She smiled like that and gradually fell asleep.

A point of doubt

The next morning, Xiaoxiao was awakened by excruciating pain. Her entire left arm felt like it was on fire, the pain spreading from her shoulder to her wrist, and then back to her shoulder. She opened her eyes, covered in cold sweat, and raised her left arm. The silver needles embedded in her meridians seemed to have gone deeper, appearing faintly amidst the bluish-black veins. Xiaoxiao helplessly raised her hand and sealed the meridians again, which finally eased the pain somewhat.

Xiao Xiao stared sadly at the dark bluish-black veins on her wrist. Could something have gone wrong with this silver needle? Heavens above, Yin Xiao was nowhere to be found. She didn't want to die like this, without knowing why.

She sighed and got out of bed. Oh well, life goes on no matter what. She touched her stomach; she'd been up all night and hadn't eaten anything. Poor young woman, going through this cycle of hunger and satiety, what was she going to do?

Her tiny feet had barely touched the ground when she saw Lian Zhao. She was startled at first, but quickly calmed down. He was sitting at the table, asleep with his head resting on his arm. She sighed silently; this young master of the Lian family was truly unguarded. If she wanted to harm him, it would be incredibly easy. She smiled helplessly. As expected of an official's son, he was probably completely unaware of the dangers of the martial world…

As she was lost in thought, her eyes suddenly caught sight of the pair of quivered arrows beside Lian Zhao. That's it! The arrow! She immediately remembered her purpose. She took the arrow from under the covers and tiptoed to Lian Zhao's side, intending to put it back.

But after a moment, she was bewildered. The Mandarin Duck Arrow Box, as its name suggested, contained two smaller boxes. Looking from the outside in, all the arrows appeared identical. Oh no, which side's arrow was the one she held?

She was holding an arrow, deep in thought. Lian Zhao woke up and was slightly startled to see her standing beside him. "You're up..."

Xiao Xiao froze, unconsciously looking at the feathered arrow in her hand.

Lian Zhao naturally saw it too. "What are you doing with that arrow?" he asked, standing up.

Xiao Xiao immediately replied, "Oh, I thought this quiver was so pretty that I couldn't resist... I was just about to put it back, but I forgot which quiver I took it from..."

Lian Zhao smiled, took the arrow, and said, "The Mandarin Duck Arrow Box is divided into Yin and Yang boxes. The arrows in the Yin box have tin arrowheads and are only used for minor punishments. The arrows in the Yang box are made of fine steel and will either kill or injure the target." After he finished speaking, he inserted the arrow into the gilded half of the arrow box.

Xiao Xiaoben was worried that if Lian Zhao counted the number of arrows, he would naturally notice something amiss. But he had no suspicions whatsoever.

She breathed a small sigh of relief. Then she felt a little embarrassed.

Lian Zhao also felt a little awkward. He said, "Uh... I just got back this morning, and I didn't make a sound because I didn't want to wake you." He chuckled self-deprecatingly, "I didn't expect to fall asleep like this..."

Xiao Xiao felt increasingly embarrassed by his words. From the first day she met him, his every move exuded none of arrogance; his gentleness was astonishing. He was the young master of the prestigious Lian family, known for their archery skills, and naturally, he was raised in luxury. How had he cultivated such a gentle and kind nature?

Born into wealth, with outstanding looks and superb martial arts skills... If Zuo Xiaoxiao were to marry a man like this, it would be an absolute injustice, and she would surely be struck by lightning! The saying "marrying someone of equal social standing" is not just a joke!

"What's wrong?" Lian Zhao couldn't help but ask, seeing Xiao Xiao's grief-stricken expression.

"Huh?" Xiaoxiao was taken aback, then said, "Oh, I haven't washed my face yet."

Lian Zhao smiled and said, "Go ahead."

Xiao Xiao immediately ran to the washbasin.

Lian Zhao was about to sit down when he inadvertently noticed Xiao Xiao's left shoulder. There was a hole in her left-shoulder dress, revealing a glimpse of her white undergarment. He frowned, walked over, and said sternly, "Xiao Xiao, your left shoulder..."

She'd only heard half a sentence when her small body froze completely. Oh no! She'd slept all night and completely forgotten about the hole in her clothes. Could it be...? She didn't dare breathe, her eyes wide open, waiting for Lian Zhao to finish his sentence.

Lian Zhao hesitated to speak, his cheeks slightly flushed, unconsciously avoiding her gaze. After a moment's thought, he finally spoke, "How many clothes do you... have?"

Xiao Xiao froze, then stiffly replied, "One...one..."

Lian Zhao became increasingly embarrassed: "It is Lian Zhao's incompetence to make his wife wear old clothes."

"Huh?" Her little jaw almost dropped.

Lian Zhao's expression was sincere, not like he was joking. He continued, "Last night was also my oversight, and you were wronged."

"I didn't..." Xiao Xiao didn't know what to say.

“Hero’s Fortress is now fraught with danger. If I hadn’t insisted on staying that day, you wouldn’t have encountered these things.” He said earnestly, “I promise, there will never be a next time.”

"..." Xiao Xiao suddenly felt that she might really be struck by lightning.

Lian Zhao lowered his head, took out three or four coins' worth of silver from his pocket, and handed it to her. "I don't know what girls like. Keep the money. If you want anything, just send a maid to buy it."

Xiao Xiao didn't dare reach out to take it. From childhood to adulthood, she had only ever handled copper coins. Suddenly someone was giving her silver; she really wasn't used to it. Three coins! How many steamed buns could that buy?!

Seeing that she wouldn't take it, Lian Zhao said, "I didn't bring much money with me when I went out, this..."

"No!" Xiaoxiao immediately shouted, "There are too many, I can't take them..."

Lian Zhao laughed. "Xiao Xiao, you are my wife. Everything I own is yours. What is this money?" He placed the silver in front of her and then took out a bone clasp, handing it to her.