When Xu Rong arrived at Li Yuan, Wei Shi was sitting by the window embroidering.

After Xiao Xin became the top scholar in the provincial examination, even Lord Xiao changed his attitude. Only Lady Wei remained the same. She did not dress up specially, nor did she ask for better treatment. Xu Rong did not know what she was like when she was a girl at home, but she thought that it should not be much different from now.

Xu Rong used to think that her life trajectory had been suddenly changed. But now, looking at her through the window, she wondered for the first time whether Wei's closed-off and stagnant life was a helpless drifting along or a completely autonomous choice.

"Second Madam is here." Madam Wei noticed her, hurriedly put down the handkerchief she was embroidering halfway through, and politely came out to greet her personally.

Xu Rong didn't stand on ceremony and dismissed all the maids in her room.

Mrs. Wei was good-natured and let her do as she pleased, only looking at her with an innocent and questioning expression.

"Aunt, is it true that Wei Daxiong secretly told the people around the young master that the second young master is not the Marquis's biological son?" Xu Rong asked directly.

Her gaze was fixed on Ms. Wei's face without blinking, taking in her momentary shock, fear, and evasion... followed by a stiff, lifeless calm.

"No--"

Xu Rong interrupted her: "Wei Daxiong said he knows where the midwife who delivered my aunt's baby was. Whether it was premature or not, an ordinary person might not be able to tell, but an experienced midwife would definitely have a clue, right?"

Thump.

Wei slumped back onto the kang (a heated brick bed). Her hand touched the handkerchief still attached to the needle. The needle pierced through, and blood immediately gushed out. She was completely unaware of it, but her beautiful face lost all color and vitality.

Xu Rong didn't have time to talk to her anymore and reached out to pull her up: "Come with me."

"Second Grandma, please—"

"The young master is in the palace now. He'll know by evening at the latest when he finishes his shift and leaves the palace. We only have half a day, Aunt, do you understand?"

Xu Rong turned his head, his eyes like blades scraping across Wei's face.

"..."

Mrs. Wei kept her mouth tightly shut.

In her extreme shock, she realized that Xu Rong clearly had no intention of betraying her.

That's enough. She can't think of anything more, and she doesn't have time to think of anything else.

She obediently followed Xu Rong all the way to the north courtyard, watched as Xu Rong went into Bai Fu's room and rummaged around for a while, then came out and threw a set of clothes in front of her: "Change."

Weiss mechanically undressed and changed clothes.

Xu Rong didn't have time to watch over her; she was rummaging through her room, tidying up, when Bai Fu returned, panting: "Grandma, I've settled everything with them, they've already left—"

It was relatively easy for people from the outer courtyard to leave the mansion. Since it did not involve female relatives, there were generally no strict curfews except in the morning and evening. They could simply say they had something to do and that was it.

Xu Rong hummed in agreement, glanced at the clock in the corner of the wall, and realized it was noon.

She turned around and handed a bundle she had packed to Bai Fu. Bai Fu took it and felt a sudden heaviness in its weight: "Grandma?"

Xu Rong looked around the room and sighed, "It's too late, this is the only way."

She had taken all the movable cash she could carry, but in an era where payment methods still largely rely on physical goods, there was still too much she couldn't take with her.

"Keep this bunch of keys and take it back to the Marquis of Ji'an's residence to give to my mother."

Xu Rong handed over the keys to the side rooms and the back rooms where her large dowry items were kept. These rooms were normally locked, so there was no need to go and check them.

Bai Fu felt a sense of foreboding: "—Miss?"

She was terrified and subconsciously uttered all the old names she hadn't used in a long time.

"Don't be afraid." Xu Rong patted her hand. "The Xu family is still safe. You can go back now."

If Lord Xiao learns the truth and loses control, he might take her people for interrogation, but he wouldn't go so far as to storm the Xu family. After all, this is his family scandal, and if he escalates the attack, it will damage his own reputation.

Bai Fu asked anxiously, "What about the girl? Isn't she going back together?"

She knew the real storm was coming, so Xu Rong had to settle them, but what about Xu Rong herself?

Xu Rong was silent for a moment before answering her, "I want to give it a shot."

spell?

How can we even spell it out?

Bai Fu clutched the bundle in her hands in a panic, clearly preparing to flee for her life; she would be lucky to survive.

She then looked at Madam Wei, who had already changed her clothes. She understood Xu Rong's meaning and changed her hairstyle as well, combing it into a style similar to Bai Fu's. At first glance, she looked like a servant woman. Although her appearance was a bit striking, it wasn't so obvious when she lowered her head.

"Is Auntie alright? Let's go find the Second Young Master."

Wei immediately followed her. Bai Fu wanted to say something, but seeing this, she had no choice but to hurry out as well.

Standing under the eaves, Xu Rong clapped his hands and called Xin Chenghongliu and the others over: "Let's go out to eat today and try something different."

Xin Cheng exclaimed in surprise, "Huh? Grandma, I just went to get the food—"

"Just leave it there." Xu Rong said firmly. "I'm in a good mood and want to go out and have some fun." She glanced at Madam Wei and smiled with a wink. "I'll bring my concubine along, but Madam might not agree, so we'll have to do it secretly."

Although Wei had changed her clothes, Xu Rong's maids knew her well. With one extra person suddenly appearing, how could they not notice? So Xu Rong didn't try to hide it from her.

"ah?"

"Aunt Wei?"

The maids were curious and puzzled, but soon their obedience to Xu Rong and their desire for excitement after being cooped up in the mansion for so long won out. Anyway, with their master taking the lead, it didn't matter if they caused trouble.

They laughed and joked, quickly dropped their duties, and gathered together to head outside.

The group of seven or eight people encountered a checkpoint when they reached the second gate.

It was alright if Xu Rong only brought Bai Fu, but with so many people at once, how could the old woman guarding the gate not ask questions?

Xu Rong reached out and stuffed one of the prepared purses into the hands of each of the two old women: "It's the middle of the day, aren't you old women taking a break? Buy some tea and have some so you don't get sleepy."

The two old women perked up and quickly greeted her with ingratiating smiles: "Greetings, Second Madam! Are you going out? Have you informed Madam yet?"

“Madam is busy, and the eldest daughter is not feeling well, as you know. Madam has been very busy lately,” Xu Rong said with a smile. “I don’t have much to do either, but my maids are bored staying at home and have been urging me to take them out for a meal to get some fresh air. They’ll come back after we’re done.”

The two old women hesitated for a moment, and one of them said, "Second Madam means that Madam doesn't know—?"

“We’ll be back in the afternoon, and we haven’t gone far, so why bother Madam?” Xu Rong smiled again. “The nannies should be lenient with us. Madam won’t know. If she does find out, just say I’m naughty and restless, and it has nothing to do with the nannies.”

The two old women were still hesitant to make a decision, but Xin Cheng, unaware of the situation, became bolder and interjected, "Mother Xia, didn't your second son want to be with our second young master? When you sent someone to say that whether it would work out or not was up to the second young master, you've become so tactless."

Upon hearing this, the old woman surnamed Xia softened and pulled another old woman back, saying, "We were confused. Second Madam is a proper mistress. What's wrong with her going out for a stroll?"

Another old woman squeezed the purse in her hand, not thinking it was a big deal—the only ones under tight guard in the mansion were Concubine Ruan and the eldest daughter, and she would never dare to let the other two go. She gently instructed, "Second Mistress, please come back as soon as possible."

Xu Rong smiled and agreed, leading the group steadily out.

Wei Shi mingled in the crowd, her head bowed low, her heart pounding in her chest. Every moment she worried that someone would expose her whereabouts, but Xu Rong's servants provided her with excellent cover. The maids were excited about going out, chatting and laughing as they jostled each other, until they escorted her out of the Marquis's mansion gates, and the journey was smooth.

When she stood on the long street outside the mansion, Madam Wei felt as if she had been transported to another world.

It's been too long...

So long ago, it truly feels like a past life.

Xu Rong had no time for sentimentality. After leaving the gatekeeper's sight, she smiled at Cai Die and said, "Oh no, I left something important at the bookstore earlier. Could you ask Xiao Yue to get it for me?"

Cai Die was a servant of the Xiao family and also had family members in the mansion. Since she couldn't go back to the Ji'an Marquis's mansion with her people, she could only try her best to extricate her from the situation.

Cai Die paused for a moment, then nodded: "Yes, Grandma."

Xu Rong had indeed been to the bookstore before; it was she who relayed the message. Moreover, since she was most familiar with Xiao Yue, she had been there before if Xu Rong had any instructions to deliver to the bookstore, and she knew the way. Therefore, she had no suspicions and went there immediately.

After she left, Xu Rong took the bundle from Bai Fu's hands, looked at her, and whispered, "I'm entrusting them to you. Take them back to the manor and tell Zhang Ge'er what happened. Tell Zhang Ge'er not to act impulsively and not to have a direct conflict with the Xiao family. Don't worry about me; I will come back safely."

Bai Fu nodded with tears welling up in her eyes, filled with fear.

"Alright, go ahead."

After saying that, Xu Rong called to Madam Wei, "Aunt, let's go too."

Weiss's cooperation is top-notch; he stays right next to you.

"grandmother?"

"Grandma, what's wrong?"

"Don't make a fuss, listen to me, Grandma has something to attend to, let's go back to the mansion first—"

Xu Rong ignored the buzzing questions from the servants behind him and Bai Fu's attempts to stop him. He simply pulled Wei Shi along quickly. When they arrived at a place where they could hire a carriage, they got in and gave the Su family's address.

"Second Madam," Madam Wei finally couldn't hold back any longer and asked timidly as they got into the carriage, "Where will we go after we find Erlang?"

"Get out of the city first, then find a place to stay, try to go as far away as possible." Xu Rong glanced at Wei Shi, "Survival is the most important thing."

Lord Xiao was able to handle Xiao Shan prudently because he was already aware of the situation. Xiao Xin's situation was completely different; no one could predict how enraged he would be when the truth came out.

Anyway, running away is the right thing to do.

Save your life first, then we'll talk about other things.

Ms. Wei said softly, "...Hmm."

The car was finally empty, but Xu Rong wasn't in the mood to ask her any more questions. They arrived at the Su family's residence in the East City in silence. As they got out of the car and stepped into the alley, they saw Brother Hongliu and Xiao Xin wrestling at the Su family's door. It wasn't really wrestling; Xiao Xin was trying to walk away, but Brother Hongliu wouldn't let him go. He sat on the ground and clung to his leg, while Xiao Xin bent down to pull him away. There was also a Mr. Su, with half his body exposed, peeking out from the door to watch the commotion.

"Second Young Master," Xu Rong called out.

Xiao Xin paused and looked over.

His eyes were bloodshot.

With just one glance, Xu Rong suddenly understood what he knew.

Brother Hongliu couldn't hide it from him.

That's good, it saves Xu Rong the trouble of explaining. She said calmly, "Second Young Master, let's go."

When Brother Hongliu saw her, he let go of her hand, but Xiao Xin did not move.

Xu Rong didn't have time to waste with him at this moment. She walked over directly, greeted Mr. Su, and then reached out to pull Xiao Xin: "Let's go."

Xiao Xin's hands were icy cold, and he offered no resistance. After taking two steps, he suddenly turned back, knelt down, and bowed to Mr. Su.

This is a very important ceremony, and even between masters and disciples, it is generally not necessary to do so except when the master and disciple formally become disciples.

Mr. Su was a little stunned: "—What's wrong?"

He came out after hearing the commotion. He found it strange to see his usually aloof junior disciple wrestling with a kid, so he glanced at him but didn't know what had happened.

Xiao Xin had stood up, speechless.

Xu Rong said on his behalf, "Thank you for your guidance, sir. I will explain to you again when I have the opportunity in the future."

They left under Mr. Su's stunned gaze.

**

The carriage started moving again, and they arrived at the city gate before it closed at dusk.

There were many mule carts waiting for customers on both sides of the gate. Xu Rong changed carts here, but instead of hiring one, she picked a specific person and bought the mule cart directly from him. The price she offered was enough to buy two mule carts. The cart owner was not unhappy at all, but he was afraid that she would change her mind. So he quickly jumped off the cart, handed the whip to Brother Hongliu, and ran away.

Thanks to Xiao Xin's still-existing status as a top scholar, they no longer needed to bother with travel permits and were able to leave the city directly after changing carriages.

As October arrives, darkness falls very quickly.

Brother Hongliu kept his head down, trying hard to identify the path and drove for a while, but still didn't reach the next place to stay. However, their luck wasn't too bad, as they found an abandoned earth temple by the roadside, so at least they didn't have to sleep in the wilderness.

"Second Young Master, Grandma, we'll have to make do tonight." Brother Hongliu got out of the car and busied himself for a while, setting up a fire, wiping his sweat as he spoke.

"It's alright, you've worked hard. Come and rest for a while and have something to eat."

Xu Rong wasn't idle either. She bought some dried food such as cakes and pastries, as well as two water pouches on the way. She placed these next to the fire and warmed her hands by the fire. It was already early winter. She hadn't realized it until now, as her emotions had been stretched to the limit. But now that things had calmed down, she felt quite cold.

While warming herself by the fire, she glanced outside.

After getting off the carriage, Lady Wei went to talk to Xiao Xin.

The mother and son must have a lot to say to each other. At this point, Madam Wei could no longer hide it from Xiao Xin. Regardless of others, she had to give Xiao Xin a clear explanation first.

Xu Rong did not participate. She felt that they needed a private space. As for her remaining questions—mainly how the Wei family had the ability to hide for so many years—she could ask them later.

...

It took Wei Shi and Xiao Xin quite a while to leave. It wasn't until Brother Hongliu had hurriedly filled his stomach and found a corner to curl up and take a nap that the mother and son finally returned one after the other.

Wei's eyes were swollen like two bubbles, and she was wiping away tears as she came in. Xiao Xin didn't have such an obvious change; he just felt cold again, like the night wind of early winter. When he walked to Xu Rong's side, the wind he brought seemed to dim the fire.

He reached out and pulled Xu Rong up, leading her outside.

Xu Rong followed him, thinking to herself, "So soon it's my turn to talk to her?"

Xiao Xin stopped and turned around when he reached the carriage parked outside the temple.

Xu Rong waited for a moment, but he didn't speak. It was too dark outside, and she could hardly see his face, let alone his expression. But even without looking, she knew that he must be in terrible condition.

How could fate be so cruel?

She spoke first in a low voice: "Two—"

The pressure hit her head, and her vision suddenly changed—although it only turned into another dark blur. Xiao Xin suddenly grabbed her shoulder and pressed her against the outside of the car. She felt a pain in her back when she hit the car, but before she could speak, she felt a pain on her lips.

A cool yet soft aura filled all her senses in the darkness.

After a while, Xu Rong finally realized that Xiao Xin had kissed her.

At such a moment.

His lips were thin and soft, trembling slightly, yet conveying a fierce intensity that revealed his clear desire to take and possess.

Xu Rong: "..."

It took her a while to realize that she could finally free her hand to refuse.

She had to be pushed; she was almost out of breath.

And is this the time to do something like this?!

It's unbelievable that he still has the interest!

Xu Rong mentally prepared a hundred or so lessons to teach him, but when he finally stepped aside, she couldn't utter a single one.

She really couldn't breathe and needed to catch her breath.

Xiao Xin wasn't quite as at ease either, but as the one in charge, he recovered faster. When Xu Rong was finally able to speak, he spoke first, close to her ear, his voice hoarse, "Go back."

Xu Rong: "..."

She forgot all the hundred or so words she had been thinking about in an instant.

Xiao Xin stepped back and said, "Go back and tell them that the Xiao family tricked you into marriage by giving you a child born out of wedlock. This marriage is invalid."

His cold fingertips traced her face, touched her face briefly, and then left. "Go back. You'll still be the eldest daughter of the Marquis of Ji'an's mansion."

Xu Rong stood there, stunned, without moving.

She knew Xiao Xin had feelings for her; she had known for a long time.

But she saw it as the stirrings of a young boy, and her procrastination and polite refusals stemmed from the fact that she didn't take it seriously.

This was the first time she had truly witnessed his love.

He actually did love her.