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墨書 Inktalez
Everything was proceeding exactly as Jiang Yu had planned, without any mistakes. At this moment, Madam Liu could not have imagined that everything happening today was orchestrated by someone else, merely a performance aimed at gaining her trust.
People in the capital knew that Liu Qiankun was famous for being devoted to his wife. After so many years of marriage, he had never taken a concubine, which was quite unlike most men today. This meant that as long as they secured Madam Liu, it was equivalent to securing Liu Qiankun himself!
"It turns out you are Lord Liu's wife! I have long admired Lord Liu's reputation; today I have truly done a good deed."
Jiang Yu's surprise was evident on her face. "However, given what has happened, Madam Liu should refrain from going to White Horse Temple today. It would be best to return home first. In the future, when you go out, make sure to bring more guards; you must not let things happen like today again," she advised.
"Of course, thank you for the reminder," Madam Liu replied.
The carriage swayed gently as it made its way towards Liu Manor. Along the way, the two exchanged a few words now and then. Jiang Yu spoke little but exuded a friendly demeanor that was completely different from her usual self, leaving a very good impression on Madam Liu.
Half an hour later, the carriage came to a stop. As they disembarked, someone from the manor immediately came forward to take the sleeping child from Madam Liu's arms, their face showing obvious panic.
"I had someone return to Liu Manor earlier to wait for you at the entrance. Once you get back, make sure to rest well and don’t dwell too much on today's events," Jiang Yu said kindly as she held her hand. In just half an hour, they had become like old friends, sharing intimate words.
Madam Liu expressed her gratitude repeatedly before seeing Jiang Yu off.
Once Old Madam got into the carriage, the friendly expression on her face vanished instantly, replaced by a cold demeanor that was entirely different from before.
When the carriage had traveled far enough that Liu Manor was no longer visible, she slowly lifted the curtain and softly asked, "What do you think Madam Liu's impression of me is?"
Rong Mama, who had been following closely behind her, immediately replied, "Naturally it is very good. From Madam Liu's demeanor, it seems she has already regarded you as a lifesaver; in the future, she will likely think of you first in everything."
Jiang Yu nodded in satisfaction; this was exactly what she wanted to achieve!
"Go tell my brother that I have completed the task. If there are any further instructions, have someone reliable convey them," she said before lowering the curtain and resting her hands on the table.
After all, this friendly facade was not her true nature and naturally left her feeling somewhat fatigued. With some free time now, her thoughts inevitably turned to Night Star and how that troublesome matter was progressing.
After resting for several days in the village, Night Star's body had mostly healed. The stitches done by Mo Xier, combined with the herbs she had found, had allowed new flesh to grow over the wounds.
He couldn't help but believe that this woman truly possessed remarkable medical skills. However, he was puzzled as to why she kept her abilities hidden.
After ten days of rest, the two of them bid farewell to Dog Egg and Aunt Liu and set off on their journey to Gaochang.
They had discussed it carefully; although Gaochang already had Liu Qiankun, there was no guarantee that the doctor he brought could cure the Plague. Mo Xier felt that since she could treat it, not making the trip would be a disservice to her knowledge.
The man was more than happy to delay his return to the general's residence, so he naturally agreed to whatever she said. Little did they expect that this departure would be a final farewell to Aunt Liu and Dog Egg.
Before leaving, she quietly pulled Aunt Liu into the house and handed her some silver coins. Not knowing how much these coins represented in ancient times, she simply took a handful based on her instincts. Although it didn't seem like much, it was already a significant amount for such a remote village.
Aunt Liu's eyes widened in surprise as she refused, saying, "Miss, what are you doing? I consider you both like family; why are you giving me useless things?"
As she tried to push the coins back into her hands, Mo Xier firmly refused to accept them and softly said, "Auntie, I don't have much silver left; it's what I picked up from the carriage before. You've taken care of us for so long; this is my token of appreciation!"
"You young couple will need money on your journey. I'm old; I don't need so much!" Aunt Liu insisted.
Mo Xier was not one to give up easily. She pushed the coins back into Aunt Liu's hands again and said, "Even if you can't use it, Dog Egg surely can! Use this silver to find him a wife; he's a good man!"
"He's still my son; I can't accept your money!" Aunt Liu grabbed the coins and stuffed them into her bag, saying, "If you really care, just come back and visit me when you can!"
The motion of stuffing the coins stopped abruptly as tears filled Mo Xier's eyes.
Aunt Liu reminded her of her grandmother in modern times—always wanting to give her the best things and saving delicious food just for her. Even when she had enough money while studying away from home, her grandmother would still scrimp and save just to give her a little extra pocket money without letting her parents know.
Such affection could only come from family. But they had only known each other for a few days; what merit did she have to receive such care?
Tears streamed down her face as she looked at Aunt Liu with red eyes. All words were choked in her throat, leaving only muffled sounds.
"Hey, you're a grown woman; why are you crying? It's so unbecoming!" Aunt Liu wiped away her tears with a smile and added, "Take good care of your husband and don't argue like you did a few days ago; it really affects your relationship!"
She could only nod repeatedly, as if this was the only way to show that she had truly listened to her words.
"Aunt Liu, please take care of yourself. I will definitely come back to see you! I promise!" This promise was uncertain whether it was meant for Aunt Liu or for herself.
The person in front of her, with a somewhat weathered face, broke into a brilliant smile, radiating warmth like the sun in July. "As long as you remember me, that's enough. It's getting late; you should hurry and leave. Otherwise, you won't make it out of this forest before dark."
Standing at the door, Night Star paused, his intention to push the door open halted by the conversation inside.
A hint of vulnerability appeared on his otherwise indifferent face. He didn't understand where this woman found so much emotion; he only knew that now was not the time to disturb them.
After standing quietly at the door for a while, he imagined the woman crying, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't reconcile that image with the person he remembered.
He didn't have to wait long. Moments later, the woman with red-rimmed eyes emerged from the room. Their eyes met briefly before she quickly looked away, forcing a loud tone to mask her embarrassment. "What are you looking at? Haven't you seen someone cry before?"
With that, she walked away without looking back, leaving the man behind with a bitter smile.
He followed her closely. After saying a final goodbye to Dog Egg, they picked up their belongings that had been packed since last night and left the village they had become familiar with over the past few days.
Due to his previous hunting trips with Dog Egg, Night Star was now quite familiar with these woods. Even without a guide, he could accurately determine directions and avoid getting lost, so leaving the forest was not an issue.
Mo Xier felt a deep sense of reluctance; she found herself glancing back after every few steps until she could no longer see any trace of the village. Only then did she stop looking back, but the atmosphere around her had noticeably darkened, and she even lost interest in speaking.
The man didn’t want to make things awkward; since she wasn’t talking, he remained silent as well.
Silently following behind him, Mo Xier felt an overwhelming sadness. Looking at his tall figure in front of her, she couldn’t help but reach out and tug at his clothing.
"What is it?" He didn’t turn his head, his voice as cold as ice from a frozen cellar. Just one sentence nearly extinguished all warmth in the air.
"Are you not even a little sad about leaving?"
"Is being sad useful?"
She thought for a moment, realizing it might be useless, but still dissatisfied with his attitude, she said angrily, "Even if it's useless, isn't this a basic human emotion?"
Looking at the figure of the predecessor, she pondered for a while and then said, "That's true; you are like a block of wood, how could you have human emotions?"
This response was exceptionally coherent, leaving him no chance to speak. However, he wasn't in the mood to explain; she could think whatever she wanted.
Silently, he continued walking forward, his entire focus on finding a way out of the forest.
After a long silence, she spoke again, "I'll quietly tell you that when I left, I put the silver under Aunt Liu's pillow. She'll see it when she goes to sleep and can't return it to me. Don't you think I'm clever?"
She simply couldn't stand the silence and desperately sought a topic to lighten the mood. But clearly, the man wasn't interested in her chatter and continued walking ahead, only lightly saying two words: "Clever."
Such a half-hearted response felt dismissive to her! She silently marked him with a big cross in her mind. "If you don't want to answer, you don't have to. Just let me be a neurotic talking to myself."
She shrugged as if she didn't care at all.
Suddenly, the man in front stopped in his tracks and turned to look at her intently, making her feel somewhat uncomfortable.
Before she could voice her confusion, Night Star interjected, "I know you're unhappy about leaving Aunt Liu, but we must keep moving forward. People can't always stay in one place; we have to keep looking ahead, right?"
This was the longest sentence he had spoken in days, leaving her momentarily stunned.
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