Through the gap in the carriage curtain, her suppressed grief was fully visible to Qi Xuan.
His eyes inexplicably welled up. He pursed his lips and silently turned to withdraw.
A young maidservant should have many things to say to her young lady.
Raising his eyes, what he met was a distant, cold figure.
The crimson killing intent in Ye Tinglan's eyes had long since receded. That expanse of darkness gazed in the direction of the carriage, its sternness still palpable.
But whether it was an illusion or not, Qi Xuan surprisingly detected a trace of dejection within it.
His heart faltered. Before he could look again, that gaze had already withdrawn.
The events of the night replayed in his mind intermittently. Qi Xuan looked up at the figure in black robes, his heart filled with a bitter ache.
The Prince had been searching for his Consort for a long time. Now that he had finally found her, who would have imagined such an outcome…
Inside the carriage, Yuping's tears had finally stopped.
Confirming that there were no more tears on her hands, she carefully covered herself again with her outer robe.
Just as she was about to stand, her peripheral vision fell upon a pair of藕色 (ou se – lotus root colored) embroidered shoes, and she immediately froze.
She had sprained her ankle these past two days and hadn't been serving her young lady.
But as she recalled, her young lady didn't seem to favor lotus root colored shoes much.
These shoes…
The more she looked, the more something felt wrong. She frowned and examined them for a long while, her expression suddenly stiffening.
Wrong!
Her young lady's shoes were clearly a bit smaller than these!
The moment this thought occurred, she reached out to measure them, and the result sent chills down her spine.
These shoes were almost an inch larger than her young lady's!
This person… this is not my young lady!
A mixture of relief and terror surged through her. Looking at the female corpse inside the carriage, she recoiled in fright.
"What is it?"
Qi Xuan's voice from outside immediately called out.
Yuping suppressed her fear and replied, "No… it's nothing."
Her voice carried a slight tremble, but it was so subtle that it sounded like a sob.
Qi Xuan assumed she was overcome with grief. Upon hearing her response, he pursed his lips and offered words of comfort.
"Don't be too sad. The Consort, she…"
He wanted to slap himself mid-sentence.
The Consort was already gone, how could she not be sad? He must have lost his mind to say something like that!
He expected Yuping to scold him as before. To his surprise, there was silence from within, and no sound, which was unusual.
Qi Xuan felt unsettled, but he forced himself to explain.
"That's not what I meant. I am also deeply saddened by the Consort's passing, but…"
"Are you annoying or not!"
This outburst was forceful, tinged with a hint of impatience.
Hearing this, Qi Xuan inwardly sighed with relief.
Yes, this sounded like her.
Nodding, he immediately stepped back to the side. "Alright, alright, I won't say another word."
Yuping had no attention to spare for him.
Her gaze lingered on the female corpse for a few moments, and she forced herself to calm down.
She had already confirmed that this woman was not her young lady.
But if so, why was she wearing her young lady's attire?
And her build, her proportions, even her belly…
Everything was too similar.
So similar, in fact, that even the Prince had been deceived.
Wait…
The Prince?!
Suddenly recalling Feng Yinwan's recent actions and the sudden turn of events tonight, Yuping's small face tightened, and her expression turned to astonishment.
Could it be that her young lady had faked her death?!
But… but such a major undertaking, and she hadn't even told her!
Was it because she thought Yuping's sprained ankle would be a burden?
Upon realizing this, her sorrow immediately returned.
Her young lady had changed!
Truly!
Even as she disembarked from the carriage, she remained lost in her grief, her small face dejected, not even glancing at Qi Xuan beside her.
However, this scene seemed entirely reasonable to Qi Xuan.
He merely assumed she was too overwhelmed with sorrow to speak, and he remained silent, his gaze subtly following her.
Meanwhile, on the official road heading towards the border of Jinzhou, two swift horses were galloping.
Their figures were shrouded in long robes, making them almost indistinguishable from the night from a distance.
Suddenly, the woman on the horse shuddered and quickly lowered herself.
"Achoo—"
This sound was exceptionally clear in the night but was quickly swallowed by the rapid clatter of hooves.
The man beside her immediately looked over with concern.
"Are you feeling cold?"
The autumn night was chilly, and they had to travel through the night, a considerable drain on their physical strength.
Just as he was about to unfasten his robe to give to her, the woman shook her head, her voice speaking first.
"I'm not cold. Perhaps someone is thinking of me."
She chuckled indifferently and immediately asked,
"If we ride from Jinzhou, when will we reach the desolate territory?"
The man hesitated slightly and replied, "Two days."
These two days, it seemed, would be spent on the road.