"Hmph, your ambition is no less than any man's. I can give you what you want; it doesn't necessarily have to be Nangong Ling."
"What I want, do you even know what I want?" I saw the sarcasm in my own eyes as I looked at his amber gaze. "To be honest, I have no desire to deal with you. Your son is a cunning man too. You'd better watch your position, or he might... Hiss!"
When you can't win an argument, you resort to brute force. You're supposed to be a marquis, aren't you?
"You don't even know the saying 'trouble comes from the mouth,' then I must have misjudged you."
After he left with those words, I didn't see him for several days, and I was happy to have some peace and quiet.
Not far behind the Chuishui Pavilion is the Glazed Pagoda. I often see the young marquis standing on the jade steps outside the Yanheng Pavilion for half a day at a time.
His silhouette was graceful and elegant. Sometimes, when you caught a glimpse of his profile, you would see his eyes gazing at the sky, bright and clear, yet not with loneliness but with a profound despair.
I closed the window and began to slowly pack my things, while also taking a quick look at the items in the house that could be sold for money.
What are you trying to do?
The window was opened again, and a few wisps of cold air blew in through the cracks.
"I haven't seen you for a few days, where have you been?" I asked casually without looking up, as I was pondering what I could take out to exchange for some cash.
It's surprising how wealthy Li Mu is; I wonder where he amassed this fortune from among the people. His house is filled with valuable items. But they're useless; ordinary people can't afford them, and even wealthy people might not dare to buy them—they don't bring in any real money.
Who went to play?
Suddenly, I felt a jolt in my heart and realized that something was wrong. I looked up and saw that Li Yu, who had been standing on the jade steps like a statue, had now moved to the window.
"You know kung fu?"
He nodded, his youthful face expressionless.
"You just said someone's been missing for days. Do you have someone with you?" Before I could even gather my thoughts to answer, he saw what was in my hand and added, "That bundle you're carrying, are you planning to run away? Aren't you waiting for Nangong Ling to arrive?"
"...Why do we have to wait for him to come? I have hands and feet, can't I walk by myself?"
Since I was caught red-handed anyway, and his suddenness left me no time to think things through, I simply admitted it directly, only ignoring his first question.
Chapter 91
"That would be great, how about you take me with you?" With that, he scrambled in through the window.
At first, I thought it was Shaoyou who had been missing for several days returning, but I never expected it to be Li Yu. I just stumbled upon this by sheer luck.
Give me a reason.
"For me, the capital is just an enlarged cage. Every move I make is under the watchful eyes of others. Is that interesting?"
There's definitely something fishy about this child; the dealings between high-ranking officials and nobles are fraught with corruption.
"Won't betray me?" If Li Mu catches me red-handed, I don't think he'll let me off easily.
"Just don't hold me back."
Forget it, I'd better not let my compassion get the better of me, lest I keep getting humiliated.
At this time, the sun is high in the sky, it's noon, and it's the time when people are most relaxed after a good meal.
"Generally speaking... don't you people in the martial arts world prefer to operate masked at night?"
"As you said, generally speaking, midnight is now the most vigilant time. With the scale of the Guanhou Mansion, not even a fly can get in, let alone get out."
"I didn't realize you actually had any brains."
You're the one who's brainless!
"Could it be that you always fail because you choose the middle of the night?"
"Hey, how did you know?"
That's why I said you're the one who's brainless! It's such a waste that you have such great lightness skills.
"Who taught you kung fu?"
"..." Her almond-shaped eyes dimmed for a moment. "My mother only had time to teach me light-body skills."
Uh, I asked a question I shouldn't have. Suppressing my overwhelming curiosity, I pretended to peek out from behind the artificial hill. It's better not to know too much; I don't want to get too involved with them.
Aren't you going to ask?
After circling around from one artificial hill to another, we were finally getting closer to the back gate.
"What do you mean?" I asked absentmindedly, glancing around.
"My mother's matter, she..."
"Stop! You've chosen the wrong person to confide in. You little brat, are you trying to drag me down with you? What did I do to offend you that you have to pick a fight with me?"
Its dark eyes darted around, a faint glint of light flashing across them.
Do you want to know where Nangong Ling is right now?
"Where?" he blurted out without thinking, and when he looked up, he saw the mischievous look in the child's eyes.
“You should know that my father is terrifying when he gets serious. I thought Nangong Ling could stand up to him. Although he escaped from prison, he has been silent ever since, and his men have also disappeared.”
What's going on here? I frowned, feeling a vague unease.
"But this is the first time I've ever seen a woman make my father so angry."
"Hey, it would be better if he got so angry that his nose crooked."
"Virtue and Integrity!"
He suddenly shouted, which startled me.
"What are you yelling about! What if they come to recruit people?!" He quickly pulled him behind the wall and slapped him on the head.
"Ouch, you've got such a strong grip, are you a woman?"
"Young Master?"
The boy who had just been called over carefully moved over. Fortunately, the Guanhou Mansion was large enough, and the guards at the back gate had all changed shifts by this time, so it did not attract much attention.
"Can I bring him along?" Li Yu pointed at Dexin with one hand and turned her head to ask me.
"What are you doing? Is he very skilled in martial arts?"
"No, we'll need someone to take care of us on the road."
Young master is indeed young master, troublesome.
Thirty miles north of the capital lies Peach Blossom Valley, but I wonder if Yan Guhong is still there.
"Take off your clothes." After leaving the Guanhou Mansion, I ordered Li Yu in a hidden alley.
"Take off what? You...you want to..." He looked at me with a terrified expression, then turned and hid behind Dexin, who also looked terrified.
"Wearing such fine clothes, you'll be recognized at a glance. You could get some more money for your journey with these clothes. Anyway, you're definitely penniless and the kind of person who wouldn't know to take any money with him when he runs away."
He was stunned by what I said, which reminded me of the time when my mother scolded me, and I suddenly felt a pang of heartache.
"I'm only responsible for getting you out of the Crown Marquis's residence. Once we're out of the city, we'll each be responsible for our own lives."
The little guy is still spoiled; even in a coarse cloth outfit, he can't hide his arrogance.
"Hmm..." he mumbled a response, "Where are you planning to go next?"
"I naturally have somewhere to go."
Where to?
She glanced at him sideways and asked him so clearly, "What's your purpose?"
"You either tell me where Nangong Ling is first, and I'll tell you where I'm going. It's a fair trade."
What you just said was ambiguous, "disappeared"? You think you can just fob me off like that? Even a three-year-old wouldn't be fooled like that. Pshaw, why are you comparing yourself to a three-year-old?
He pursed his lips and remained silent. I don't know if he genuinely didn't know, or if he simply didn't intend to tell me.
Nangong Ling, if you're so capable, then don't let me catch you! You actually abandoned your own wife, leaving me all alone in this miserable situation while you and your men disappeared and went off to have a good time. So you've already won her over and now you don't care about her anymore, huh?
Chapter 92
After walking a few miles, I parted ways with Li Yu at a fork in the road. Ignoring his mournful expression, I gave him some loose change and left without looking back.
Sometimes, even if you don't go looking for trouble, trouble will still come crawling to you, and it's the kind you can't shake off. I hadn't gone far when I realized I was being followed. I didn't want to get involved, but someone just wouldn't let me go.
There was a long pavilion on the ancient road, which looked quite old. The characters on the plaque were so weathered by wind and rain that they were barely legible. A thick layer of dust had accumulated on the seating area, and looking at it, I lost all desire to rest.
I forced myself to walk a little further, but I couldn't hold back any longer. "What kind of monster are you? Show yourself!"
"..."
The only sound was the wind whipping up withered leaves. For some reason, a crow flew over the clouds, cawing loudly and making one break out in a cold sweat.
Fortunately, the sun hadn't set yet, and the lingering warmth of its golden rays prevented me from going completely mad. How fitting this would have been if it were the middle of the night!
"Can you please use a different phrase? Aren't you tired of hearing the same thing every time?"
The person who walked out with the sound was dressed in a light pink gauze dress, looking cool and ethereal, unlike me who was still wrapped in my padded jacket.
How did you end up here?
The fairy-like woman glanced at me sideways, yawned lazily, and didn't reply to me for a long time.