6,006

"Dead?"

Pei Yannian stood up abruptly, one hand pressed firmly against the desk. Beneath his coarse hempen tunic, his taut, bulging muscles were faintly visible, betraying his emotional agitation.

After the initial shock, he regained his composure. His gaze swept past the chief constable kneeling in the hall and the stable manager, who had shrunk into a trembling ball, before settling on the county magistrate. He asked in a deep voice, "After they took her away, did you ever interrogate her? What about her travel permits? Her bill of sale?"

His throat tightened as he let out a cold, humorless laugh. His expression was as frigid as ice. "And if she is indeed dead... where is the body?"

Under the weight of his increasingly icy tone, cold sweat broke out across the magistrate's forehead, and his back bent even lower. "I... I have never seen any of those."

"A fine 'never seen any of them.' Since you have seen nothing, how did you close the case, and how did you determine that she was dead!"

The dossier in his hand was slammed heavily onto the desk.

Pei Yannian took two steps forward and noticed the elm wood bookshelf that occupied the entire front wall.

Various files were neatly arranged on the shelves, each marked by date, and the signs of frequent handling were clearly visible. The magistrate of Qian County might not have achieved great political feats, but from this level of meticulousness, it was clear he was not a man who idled away his time in a sinecure.

Pei Yannian suppressed his rising fury, closed his eyes, and articulated the crux of the matter: "Since the Xu family lingered in Qian County for several days, going to great lengths to search for her whereabouts rather than commissioning the local government to capture a fugitive slave, there must be a hidden motive. You knew this, yet you chose not to offend the Xu family due to their influence, and simply allowed them to take her."

A window beside the bookshelf had been opened, and in the daylight, the room should have been bright. However, fearing that the dossiers would be damaged by direct sunlight, the magistrate had hung dark green, plain curtains, blocking out most of the daylight and making the room feel dim and oppressive.

The man stood in this cramped space, his stature nearly reaching the height of the bookshelf. With broad shoulders and a narrow waist, his demeanor was solemn, and an aura of lethal decisiveness radiated from him, so suffocating that it made it hard to breathe.

Cold sweat dripped into the magistrate's eyes, but he dared not raise a hand to wipe it, inwardly offering a bitter smile.

The Xu family of Weinan was a prestigious and powerful clan. The head of the family, already over forty, was a man of immense influence, and it was foreseeable that he would one day reach the pinnacle of officialdom. A legitimate scion of the Xu family was certainly not someone a small, sesame-sized official like himself could afford to offend.

Yet, the great figure standing before him was someone he could offend even less.

The Pei Army was known to all. Old General Pei, starting as a commoner, had followed the ancestors to conquer the empire, with four members of his family serving as generals, dedicated to pacifying the borders and defending the territory of the Great Zhou. Old General Pei and his two sons had successively died in battle, securing the twelve border cities, their military achievements legendary. Even if this Duke, who had inherited his title at only ten years old, had done nothing, he could have lived a life of glory on the laurels of his father and brothers. But this Duke had gone to the battlefield at sixteen, and not only did he quickly stabilize the border, he defeated the enemy time and again, even striking deep into their lair to capture their leader alive.

When the news reached Great Zhou, who had not been stirred to excitement and spoken of it for a long time?

But how was he to know that the young lady who escaped on a donkey could be linked to such figures?

Had he possessed the power of foresight, he would not have just let her ride a warhorse; he would have knelt and begged the young lady to ride on his own back to escape.

"Your Grace... it is truly because the young lady and that young master of the Xu family appeared to be acquainted. While the loss of a warhorse is indeed a serious matter, it had nothing to do with the county's stables, and with the Xu family's young master acting as a guarantor, no trouble arose. I... I felt it was not my place to... alas."

The chief constable, who had cursed his brother-in-law a thousand times in his heart, seized the opportunity and quickly added: "The young lady was indeed acquainted with the young master of the Xu family. After she arrived in Qian County, she went to various inns to inquire about him."

Pei Yannian opened his eyes abruptly and turned around to ask, "She came to ask about people?"

His towering stature blocked most of the light, leaving his face entirely submerged in shadow. His taut jawline looked like a sharp blade, and his overwhelming presence felt like a divine punishment descending from the heavens.

"Yes, I have questioned the innkeepers. But the young master of the Xu family went out this morning, so they missed each other." The chief constable seized the opportunity to rush out the words: "The Xu family's young master left the day after he picked her up. I was worried, so I asked the owner of the inn where he stayed, and according to the owner, they had mentioned going to the capital."

Pei Yannian’s expression grew even darker.

Clearly, Qiaoqiao had not left on a whim after a quarrel; it was a long-planned departure.

Yet, she had repeatedly told him that she loved him, that she could not live without him, and that she would follow him wherever he went. How could she, behind his back, be plotting to leave him?

While he was pouring out his heart, she was playing games with him.

Pei Yannian’s anger flared. He was determined to find her and teach her a lesson she would not soon forget.

"Let the case be closed as it stands. However, since it is known that Zhui Feng is my horse, there is no need to record it in the files," Pei Yannian said, tidying up the mess despite his lingering anger.

The magistrate patted his own chest, which was not particularly broad, and promised, "Rest assured, Your Grace."

Pei Yannian nodded and walked out with long strides, intending to handle the matters here and return to the capital immediately.

Playing games, was she? She had better not let him catch her.

***

Jiang Xinyue knew nothing of the subsequent events in Qian County. By then, she was already sitting in a carriage on the road to the capital when she suddenly sneezed.

It was likely someone was speaking ill of her.

Perhaps it was Pei San, who, upon waking to find her gone, was now pointing at the things she had used and cursing her.

"Be careful not to catch a cold." Xu Yanli draped a cloak over her shoulders and poured her a cup of hot tea. "We still have a long way to go before we reach the county town. It would be troublesome if you fell ill."

Jiang Xinyue was no longer a child; she knew better, and she wrapped the cloak tighter around herself. After hearing Xu Yanli, she couldn't help but ask, "Why aren't we taking the imperial highway? Why take such a long detour?"

"There was an incident on the imperial highway, and I am uneasy about it. The Xu family has its own established routes for trade, so it is better to stick to them."

"I see." Jiang Xinyue trusted Xu Yanli implicitly, so she missed the flicker of stiffness that crossed his face as he spoke.

Besides, her requirements were currently very low; being able to return was enough.

She sat securely in the carriage, with fresh fruit and tea snacks, and when bored, she had Xu Yanli to chat and pass the time.

As a child, Jiang Xinyue had relied on being favored to study alongside her cousins, so their tastes and aesthetic sensibilities were remarkably similar. Xu Yanli could sit with her in quiet appreciation of the autumn rain, understand her casual musings, and point out the flaws in her paintings.

This made her sigh, thinking that Pei San was truly a man who lacked any appreciation for refinement.

She still remembered when Pei San insisted her health was poor and dragged her out at dawn to climb a mountain. Halfway up, she heard the ethereal cry of a deer.

Following the sound, she saw a small deer standing among the lush greenery in the direction of the rising sun, lifting its neck to call out toward the light. The ethereal sound echoed through the deep mountains.

The impact of that moment was profound. She couldn't help but pat Pei San’s shoulder, saying excitedly, "So 'the deer’s cry' is real! Listen, isn't it beautiful?"

"It is," Pei San nodded. He looked at the little deer for a moment, then turned to ask his young wife on his back, "Venison also tastes quite good. Would you like to try some?"

Jiang Xinyue: "..."

Number one in lacking any sense of romance!

She could not help but cover Pei San’s mouth, growling, "Shut up."

Though, the venison roasted that day was indeed quite good.

Before Jiang Xinyue could savor the memory of the venison, she felt her wrist tapped by a folding fan.

Facing Xu Yanli, before she could ask what he meant, she heard him ask with a smile, "What are you thinking about? Can you even daydream while copying Buddhist sutras?"

Feeling guilty for thinking about eating meat while transcribing sutras, Jiang Xinyue felt a twinge of conscience. "Nothing much. I was just missing home a little. I wonder how they are doing."

Xu Yanli saw through her insincerity; his eyes darkened, but he did not press her.

In truth, he had not asked a single question about how Jiang Xinyue had suffered or how she had spent those days, and Jiang Xinyue did not volunteer the information. They shared a tacit understanding not to mention that period.

He only said, with hidden meaning, "It is good to miss home. The capital is where you belong."

Jiang Xinyue paused, then nodded as if nothing were wrong, as if those days in Qingshui Town were the most insignificant and unworthy chapter of her life.

And Pei San was a person she would never see again.