Chapter 15 Farewell to the Stars (Part 3) He tossed her mask aside with the sheath of his sword. ...

The surroundings were quiet, and the sound of swaying flowers could be heard. The morning light caressed her face, carrying a pure innocence.

This time, Song Qiyu genuinely laughed, a rare warmth in his eyes. He gazed at her for a moment, then asked with a smile, "With me? Why?"

The two were not close, and to be more realistic, they weren't even acquainted. Was she just being playful when she said that, or was she secretly plotting something?

The boy's voice wasn't loud, but his eyes were sharp. When Zhi Rou met his gaze, she panicked. She clenched her fist tightly and replied, "Nobody wants to play with me..."

He spoke haltingly, sounding rather pitiful.

If it were anyone else seeing her with such an expression, they might soften a little, but Song Qiyu was cold both in body and heart.

He stood in front of her for a moment, then said, "Then let's go find it."

Zhi Rou pouted, watched Song Qiyu's figure disappear under the corridor, and sighed dejectedly.

Upon arriving at the family school, she had just stepped inside when she happened to see Wei Yuanzhan taking a handkerchief from Chang Huai to wipe his hands. He seemed to notice her, glancing up at her before looking away before looking away again.

Zhi Rou walked to her seat and sat down. When she looked up again, Song Peiyu tossed her a book, which landed in her lap and knocked the storybook she had been hiding to the ground.

"Can you write?" he asked, as if giving an order. "Copy these for me."

"No!" Zhi Rou was already annoyed with him, and because she dropped the storybook, her tone became even worse. She bent down to pick it up and said, "Don't talk to me."

Song Peiyu was slightly taken aback, then frowned: "Are you still angry?"

That big mud ball hit his buttocks, and it still hurts when he sits down!

"Song Zhirou," he now knew to call her by her name, and asked angrily, "what gives you the right to be angry?"

This prompted Wei Yuanzhan to glance at this spot again.

For some reason, Zhi Rou always felt a little guilty in front of him. She wanted to say something, but only threw the booklet back to Song Peiyu and made up her mind.

I must go to Qiyun Garden today and pick some persimmons.

When school ended in the afternoon, Xinghui greeted her at the door with a smile and said, "Fourth Miss, Madam sent someone to bring you another silver fur coat so you can try it on when you get home."

Recalling the care the Second Madam had shown her these past few days, Zhi Rou raised her eyelashes and asked, "Does the Second Madam have some good news lately?"

Xinghui thought for a moment, then suddenly pursed her lips: "Fourth Miss, your heart is too heavy. The Madam treats you well, isn't that a good thing? Why think so much?"

Zhi Rou just found it strange.

When she went to pay her respects in private, the Second Madam was always indifferent, even somewhat cold. When Song Congzhao was around, the Second Madam would occasionally mention her; if he wasn't there, she would act as if she didn't exist, and she didn't care whether Song Congzhao was standing, sitting, or daydreaming.

It's really unusual that she's being given so many winter items right now.

Indeed, Xu Yueyuan's kindness towards Zhirou was all calculated.

When Zhi Rou was taken to the Xu family to celebrate Old Madam Xu's birthday last time, she was left with a bruise on her eye. After Song Congzhao found out, he had a few arguments with Xu Yueyuan.

She was angry and disliked the mother and daughter from the beginning, so she conspired with those around her to give them benefits first, thus preserving her reputation for virtue. Then, she would wait for the girl to make a mistake, and over the years, she would accumulate the blame and then have a legitimate reason to send her back to Jiangnan.

So, if the child leaves, what reason does the mother have to stay in the Song household? It always sounds better to discipline an uneducated and willful child than to discipline a favored concubine.

In the past, after school, Zhi Rou would stay at Xi Xiang Yuan for a while and have dinner before returning to Long Yue Xuan. But today was different.

Worried that answering Lin He's questions would give her away, Zhi Rou decided to be on the safe side and left after only a short while, using the excuse of feeding the turtles to go back to her room.

The road from Xixiang Garden to Longyue Pavilion wasn't long. Zhirou walked slowly, her brows slightly furrowed, as if deep in thought.

Xinghui called her a few times, but seeing that she was lost in thought, she quickly went up and pulled her back: "Fourth Miss, watch where you're going."

Zhi Rou stopped, her shoe tip scraping against the side of the steps, almost causing her to fall. Xing Hui supported her arm, scrutinizing her as she asked, "What are you thinking about, Fourth Miss? You haven't uttered a sound since you came out from in front of Aunt Lin."

Having spent so much time together, Zhi Rou had come to understand Xing Hui's character quite well. She was timid, and asking Xing Hui to protect her wasn't necessarily reliable. Therefore, Zhi Rou didn't tell her about her plan to leave the manor, only giving a vague smile: "A little hungry..."

Because of this sentence, Xinghui separated from Zhirou as soon as she approached Longyuexuan and ran to the small kitchen to find food.

The afternoon sun was bright, and the maids and servants, having finished their work, all hid under the eaves to steal a moment of rest. A short while later, the sound of weeping came from inside. Everyone was startled, but immediately realized it was the Fourth Young Lady's voice.

The servants in the courtyard had already been replaced once, and none of them dared to be disrespectful to their master. Hearing the commotion, they swarmed to the bedroom, waiting for the head maid to check and give instructions.

It turned out that the Fourth Sister's turtle was lost. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief and then scattered to help the Fourth Sister search for it.

When Xing returned, Zhi Rou had already disappeared without a trace.

As December approached, the climate in the capital became increasingly dry and cold, and fewer people were walking around the city. A peddler carrying a bamboo box called out as he passed by, brushing past a young boy in a narrow-sleeved, round-necked robe.

He was led by an old woman as they walked slowly down the street, his face flushed with a childlike redness, perhaps from the wind.

Who else could this person be but Zhi Rou?

To avoid attracting attention, she specially asked an old woman to accompany her. The two of them walking together made it seem quite convincing.

So much so that when Song Qiyu and her companions passed by them, they only glanced at them briefly before turning away and leaving.

Zhi Rou had been to Qi Yun Garden before and vaguely remembered the way. As she approached, she parted ways with the old woman, took out a mask and put it on, then climbed the not-too-high earthen wall in a secluded spot.

Even though she was naturally active and used to jumping around, she was now dragging her icy hands and feet as she climbed up like a thief, feeling extremely regretful.

It's not worth it for her to go through all this trouble for a trivial persimmon and a trivial person.

Then she thought dejectedly, "Who told me to owe him? If I don't keep my promise, I really won't be able to stand up straight in front of Wei Yuanzhan."

Zhi Rou had already planned it out. She would just pick one, and then next time she could leave the mansion legitimately, and she would go to Mr. Xue Nan to apologize in person.

In the garden, Wei Yuanzhan sat on a stone table, meticulously wiping his sword with a handkerchief.

Sheng Xingyun had skipped school early in the morning to come find him. Stretching her numb legs, she praised him, "You're so diligent! One morning wasn't enough, you had to come back this afternoon to continue. When you go back, will you still practice?"

"There is no room in the mansion."

This was truly a humble remark. Sheng Xingyun chuckled, "If the Marquis's mansion has no space, then wouldn't my home be nothing more than a mud-brick hut?"

Wei Yuanzhan chuckled as he listened and returned the sword to its sheath.

Sheng Xingyun looked up at the sky, and after a long while, he sighed softly, "After you left the academy, I hung out with Feng Duo and the others, and it was so boring."

"Is it interesting to come to Qiyun Garden to sleep?"

He clicked his tongue, then shook his head: "It's boring."

Wei Yuanzhan just smiled and said without much politeness, "Then you should leave quickly."

"Yes, I've been waiting for you. Can we go now?" After saying that, she got up and stood there lazily, casting a sly shadow under her long eyelashes.

Wei Yuanzhan couldn't help but scrutinize him.

Sure enough, he chuckled smugly: "Isn't Gong Yan's youngest son a cricket fighter? Coincidentally, Gong San's crickets are trained by a friend of one of my shopkeepers. I asked someone to hold them off until we get there. Let's see how he can fight without his star."

"Did Gong San provoke you again?"

"He didn't, it was his father..."

As soon as he finished speaking, Sheng Xingyun's expression turned cold. Wei Yuanzhan did the same, his eyes filled with icy contempt.

Gong Yan was an old-fashioned and conservative man who looked down on Sheng Xingyun, who had spent money to get into the academy, and often suppressed him. Unexpectedly, the heir of a noble family stood up for him time and time again.

Gong Yan repeatedly tried to dissuade Wei Yuanzhan from associating with the son of a merchant, but Wei Yuanzhan "willingly degenerates" and turned a deaf ear.

This gradually led to the current hostile situation.

Wei Yuanzhan mimicked his tone, pushed the stone table aside, and strode out: "Then let's find his father. What's the point of messing with Gong San?"

"Do you think I don't want to?" Sheng Xingyun scoffed. "Gong Yan is a teacher, and he has many ways to embarrass me. If I want to retaliate, I'd have to do what you did and not go to Tingsong Academy anymore."

Sheng Xingyun was disheartened and suddenly realized that bullying Gong San would not help him get back at him. If Gong Yan found out, he might even make things more difficult for him.

When he spoke again, his voice was muffled: "Forget it, I'll send someone to Guangchunlou to tell them that we won't bother with Gong San's 'heart and soul' anymore."

Wei Yuanzhan didn't ask him how he changed his mind. He glanced at the sky and said, "Shall we go feed the sparrows?"

Sheng Xingyun, who usually loved to tease birds, perked up at the suggestion and produced a grass root from somewhere, holding it in his beak. He then put his arm around Wei Yuanzhan's shoulder and said, "Come on, come on, we won't be able to catch any later."

As they approached Mingguang Courtyard, they suddenly heard an unusual noise on the grass. The two gradually fell silent and looked down at the wall.

A figure was squatting there, brushing the dust off his boots, then straightening up and turning around. A pair of dark eyes, hidden behind a mask, met the gazes of the two boys without warning.

She seemed startled, staggering back a step, her palms clenched with cold sweat.

While Sheng Xingyun was still wondering who dared to steal in broad daylight, Wei Yuanzhan had already recognized Song Zhirou at a glance.

He stepped forward and used the sheath to remove her mask, revealing a slightly timid face.

Then he stood imposingly in front of her, a slight, pleased smile playing on his lips: "You thief."

While Zhi Rou was still in a daze, she trembled upon hearing this and immediately retorted, "I am not a thief."

"If you're not a thief, then why did you climb over the wall instead of taking the right path?"

The boy raised an eyebrow, knowing her purpose but still wanting to tease her.

Sheng Xingyun discerned something, glanced at the two of them, and walked closer to examine Zhi Rou.

With them watching her like that, Zhi Rou, who wasn't a thief, suddenly felt like one, and she was both flustered and angry.

Her initial guilt vanished, and when she looked at Wei Yuanzhan, her gaze was once again the same as when they first met—straight and unreserved: "Don't you know best?"

"What do I know?" He still refused to admit it.

Zhi Rou gritted her teeth and looked around: "Where is the persimmon tree? I'll pick them."

Wei Yuanzhan crossed his arms and held his sword, feigning innocence, but his tone clearly carried a provocative laugh.

"Who told you there were persimmon trees in Yun Garden?"

A note from the author: