Xing Ran circled the Lingnan area and returned to the capital in the middle of the night.
Before reaching her doorstep, her mind had already conjured a scene.
The room was illuminated by dim candlelight, and a man's profile was visible.
That man was an escapee, a descendant of the Qi Rong people she hated to the bone. She tormented him, humiliated him, yet he acted like an idiot, showing no anger, even asking if she was in pain.
No, he was truly an idiot.
The "niangzi" he spoke of was not her.
Though she was born of low status, she still possessed some dignity. She wouldn't want what wasn't hers.
She was tired of it. She'd let him go when she returned; it was no longer interesting.
Xing Ran walked slower and slower. Just as she neared her home, a dark figure suddenly emerged from the alley.
"Don't go back."
It was Ji Jian, her brother from the Xian Wang Sect.
Xing Ran was startled, a moment of panic seizing her heart.
"What is it?"
"The person you hid has been discovered. He's already been captured and locked up in the Censorate's mansion. The guards haven't left; they're waiting for you to return so they can capture you together and claim the reward."
He was caught?
Hadn't she told him not to go out, not to go out!
"What are you going to do?" Ji Jian blocked Xing Ran, who was turning back. "Do you know his identity? He's a Qi Rong remnant!"
"I know, but if he's to die, it will be by my hand."
"Don't lie. Do you think I don't know your relationship? You've slept in the same bed, and you would have killed him long ago!" Ji Jian growled, "When did you become so foolish, willing to sacrifice yourself for someone who should have died long ago?"
"You don't need to worry about it. I'll explain to the Master myself!"
Without a moment's delay, Xing Ran rushed towards the Censorate's mansion.
In the dim woodshed, Lu Yan Mo, head bowed, was covered in blood. Leaning against the firewood, it was clear he had been severely beaten.
Before him, a woman was squatting. It was Chi Qiu Ying, the daughter of the former Prime Minister, and his former wife.
The woman's face was filled with malice, as if facing a past enemy.
Her face, smeared with thick makeup, couldn't hide her gauntness, indicating she hadn't been living well either.
"Tsk tsk, Young Master Lu has fallen so low. It's truly retribution."
She recalled how she had tried every means to win over this unfeeling man, enduring so much neglect. Later, she had an affair, and wasn't it him who forced her to it?
If she hadn't married him, perhaps she would still be living a life of luxury instead of constantly appeasing an old man on the verge of death and enduring the torment of the main wife!
The more she thought about it, the more she felt her suffering was all caused by this man!
"Lu Yan Mo, we were married once. Tell me how many more of your accomplices are in this city, and I'll beg my father to release you."
Lu Yan Mo remained silent.
Chi Qiu Ying knew this man wasn't that fragile. Seeing his silence, her eyes grew even more venomous.
"Look at you now. Do you still think you're the Grand Tutor's son, held in high esteem by everyone? A Qi Rong remnant, worse than a condemned criminal!"
She reached out to pinch Lu Yan Mo's chin, trying to force his head up.
Unexpectedly, the man suddenly broke free and ferociously bit her hand. His grip was so strong, as if he wouldn't let go until he broke the bone, causing Chi Qiu Ying to scream.
A servant woman from outside ran in and forcefully struck his head with a stick, allowing Chi Qiu Ying to escape.
"Pah! Filthy woman!"
He hadn't made a sound during his capture and beating, but this was the first time he had spoken, his tone fierce, yet somehow strange.
However, Chi Qiu Ying didn't dwell on it at the moment, almost losing her mind from the insult of being called "filthy."
"Beat him! Beat his mouth until it's ruined!"
"Miss, the master only asked you to extract information, not to torture him," the servant woman reminded her coldly.
Chi Qiu Ying's chest heaved violently. Even a servant woman no longer showed her respect.
If she hadn't married this man, she wouldn't have been divorced and sent back to her maiden home, nor would she have been implicated by her father. It was this man, he had ruined her entire life!
"Lu Yan Mo, tomorrow, the Master will hand you over to the authorities. You won't survive, you won't survive!"
She shrieked, her heavily powdered face appearing particularly stiff, making her look like a ghost in the dim woodshed.
Just then, the lantern placed on the ground suddenly went out with a "poof."
The servant woman felt a gust of wind beside her and cried out, "Who?"
When another person from outside brought a lantern, illuminating the entire woodshed, they discovered that where Lu Yan Mo had been lying, there was only a pool of blood. Chi Qiu Ying had a knife plunged into her chest, her eyes wide open, and she had been murdered.
"Niang...zi."
The petite Xing Ran found it difficult to carry the tall Lu Yan Mo on her back. Gritting her teeth, she thought of how fiercely he had acted towards that woman earlier.
With that look in his eyes, she had almost thought he wasn't an idiot.
Could the "niangzi" he mentioned not be that woman?
"You, leave me, go quickly. Here, there's someone, very powerful."
Lu Yan Mo's mouth was still bleeding, the blood dripping onto her neck, hot and scalding. Xing Ran couldn't help but scold, "Shut up!"
"Really, very powerful. Niangzi, go quickly."
He had seen that person. Although he was foolish, he could sense the immense power emanating from that person. He listened to that wicked old man.
She couldn't leave now.
Xing Ran looked at the person blocking her path. Indeed, he was not simple. If it were her former skills, and without carrying a burden, she might have been able to escape.
Now, it would be difficult.
At this critical moment, another person landed beside her.
It was Ji Jian.
"Go quickly! After this, your past life-saving grace will be repaid!" Ji Jian said, and then engaged in a fierce battle with the other person.
Xing Ran silently uttered, "Thank you."
She knew Ji Jian's abilities; this opponent was no match for him.
Xing Ran fled out of the city. Lu Yan Mo had already fainted. Finding a derelict temple, she hid him and returned to the city to find medicine.
Ji Jian, as expected, had returned safely.
She met him again as she was running out of the city with a pile of medicine.
"What are your plans? To live on the run with him?"
"Thank you just now. I, I will confess my guilt to the Master." She hadn't figured things out yet; her mind was a mess, but she knew she couldn't bear to see him die.
"The Master's last letter indicated he was in Dong Lin." Ji Jian said, and then quickly disappeared into the night.
Xing Ran tightly clutched the medicine and returned to the ruined temple.
Lu Yan Mo's entire body was covered in bloody wounds. Xing Ran had also hit him, but not this severely. Seeing him like this now, her heart ached intensely.
What was happening to her?
"Niang...zi, did you get... hurt, when you went out this time?"
He slightly opened his eyes and asked hazily.
Xing Ran often returned from missions with injuries, and many scars remained on her body. Earlier, when she was applying medicine, he had seen it. To her surprise, he had cried like a child.
He had even leaned over and blown on her wounds, snatching the medicine from her hand and crying as he applied it to her.
This was when she had just beaten him.
Why didn't he get angry?
The princess had once taken meticulous care of her, making her crave that warm feeling.
But Lu Yan Mo, unlike the princess's care, made her feel even more...
"I, I'm not your niangzi." Xing Ran turned her head away.
"Niang...zi, is my, niangzi."
Lu Yan Mo fainted again.
Xing Ran bit her lip hard, forcing herself not to cry, and at the same time, made a silent decision.