Luo Xuanyuan, who had been standing by, had been silent the entire time. Upon hearing this, he sighed softly. He walked over to his sister, patted her shoulder, and comforted her. "Since Third Brother isn't here, I'm sure he's looking for Third Sister-in-law. If Third Sister-in-law had been interested in the Governor, she would have been with him long ago. Why would she marry Third Brother? Father is worrying too much. It's best not to bother Third Brother right now. He still has things to deal with with Lord Xu, and he's definitely too busy to do anything right now."

Luo Xuanyuan continued, "The most urgent thing is how to explain it. Sixth Sister's reputation can't be ruined. It wouldn't sound good if it got out that sisters can easily marry. How about saying it was Seventh Sister who had been preparing to get married, but she was ill and unable to move, so Sixth Sister completed the ceremony on her behalf, and the Qinghu Bridge incident can be hidden altogether."

Luo Chengzhang's expression softened slightly. Luo Xuanyuan's idea was a good one. No matter what others thought, there had to be an explanation. Whenever he thought of the sweet, tender girl from his childhood, the one who had called him "dad" for over a decade, and who he had helped raise, he couldn't get over it. He always harbored the utmost malice in his suspicions about her.

Luo Yilian cried and threw herself into her brother's arms, feeling his gentle comfort. Only then did she understand what her mother had said to her when she was a child: a boy in the family is like the pillar of the family.

The candles in Jiashu Hall were always lit.

"I have found out that a carriage left the city at dusk, escorted by the Cheng family's guards. But it has gone too far, and I am afraid we can't catch up for the time being. I have sent people to follow it to Datong... There is no movement from the Ningyuan Marquis Mansion, and the governor has not left the capital yet." A man in a short jacket and a melon-shaped hat said with a bow.

Lin Yong and others stood beside Luo Shenyuan with their hands hanging down.

Luo Shenyuan was playing with a seal in his hand. He didn't seem to listen carefully at all and nodded to let him go.

A moment later, another person came in and bowed, "...The spy has replied. He reports that corruption is rampant in Datong, Shanxi. The Emperor has secretly assigned Lord Cheng, the Supervisory Censor of the Censorate, to conduct a secret investigation. He's under imperial command, so I'm afraid he'll be away from the capital for two or three months. Also, the painting you requested has been delivered to the palace. The Emperor accepted it without comment."

The seal was slowly tightened and Luo Shenyuan closed his eyes.

Lu Jiaxue is indeed the man who killed his brother, usurped the title of marquis, and accompanied the emperor to the highest position. This game is full of twists and turns, all for the purpose of truly calculating his wife.

Should he be grateful that Lu Jiaxue finally treated him as a rival? Last time, he directly snatched him away, which meant he didn't even consider him a rival.

It was useless, even chasing him to Datong. Lu Jiaxue had already made Datong his own, heavily garrisoned, and guarded by Cheng Lang. Even his brilliance was powerless to reverse the situation. Luo Shenyuan knew he was constantly calculating. Unless he could uproot Lu Jiaxue's foundation and become even more powerful than him, there was no way he could touch him.

"Everyone go out, I need to rest for a while." Luo Shenyuan said.

The few of them exchanged glances, then bowed and withdrew. Luo Shenyuan stood up and walked toward the west side room. Her maid lit a candle, but no one spoke, and the fire was even unlit. Yi Ning had been making him shoes and socks, with the pattern half-finished. Her usual rabbit-fur cloak, balled up, lay on the Luohan bed. He sniffed it carefully, and there was still the faint fragrance of her body.

Everything was there: her favorite jewelry, the winter plum blossoms she had cut herself. But her presence was absent from the room, the lively sound of her voice gone. The night was cold and silent.

His wife was taken away from him.

Luo Shenyuan sat there for a long time, his warmest possessions taken away from him. Now he didn't even know what he was thinking, or perhaps it was calculations, that urge of destructive revenge. She had only been gone for a day, and it seemed as if all the darkness was about to burst forth.

He slowly stroked the rabbit fur on his cloak, as if she were still beside him, warming herself by the fire as usual, sleeping next to him. This way, the suffocating feeling of drowning would be slightly less severe.

It started snowing again outside.

*

Luo Yining finally woke up. Her neck hurt more than last time and her head was very dizzy.

She usually woke up by his side, reading or writing. He never refused when Yining leaned against him, indulging her in his arms as she fell asleep. But now, all she saw was the unfamiliar rooftop. An oil lamp lit inside, its weak light flickering. She could clearly see it was a room, with a bunk bed, an eight-person table, and a screen. Nothing else, it was probably not a place for long-term residence.

Luo Yining reached out and pinched the back of her neck to relax, only to discover her shoes were missing. Wearing only silk stockings, she walked to the window and opened it. Outside, a snowstorm blew, the north wind sending heavy snow flying down. Outside, a dead peach tree stood, its branches broken. Not far away, there was a stable, its trough covered in snow. The horses were huddled together, apparently because it was very cold outside. Many guards stood with their backs to her; the security here was very strict.

She stood there for only a moment before her hands and feet froze stiff. It was as if she were naked, the wind blasting through her clothes, chilling her to the bone. Luo Yining thought calmly: if she escaped in this weather, she'd probably freeze to death on the road.

What if the third brother found out she was missing? He would be worried, right? Cheng Lang's sudden move definitely caught him off guard, leaving him no time to catch up.

Suddenly, there was a sound of barking dogs and approaching footsteps. Luo Yining turned around suddenly and saw that the door was opened.

Cheng Lang walked in wearing a black fox fur cloak, with snow on his shoulders and a food box in his hand.

He saw Yi Ning standing in front of the window, with snow blowing in. He immediately strode over and closed the window, blocking the cold wind. Then he touched Yi Ning's shoulder and frowned. He took off his cloak and wrapped it around her: "You know there are guards outside, why bother looking? Even if you can go out, it's so cold outside that water will turn to ice. You will freeze to death on the road, believe it or not?"

My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!