Chapter 17 The Woman Has Been Waiting Here for a Long Time

Xue Zhiying's face turned red almost instantly.

Her eyes widened, her lips slightly parted, her throat tightened as she spoke, "I... didn't."

The man sneered, his laughter was cold, and it was obvious that he was mocking her sophistry.

At this point, Xue Zhiying's face became even hotter, her cheeks slightly bulged, and as red as cherries.

It looks round and soft, and probably feels good in the hand.

Xiao Yunqi withdrew his hand and casually placed it on his leg, rubbing it lightly with his fingertips.

"Really?"

Xue Zhiying was in tears, unable to understand why he would keep harping on such an insignificant matter when he usually ignored her.

She was so embarrassed.

I can't think of any other answer except the real reason.

Xue Zhiying lowered her head and said in a low voice, "Really not."

At this time, the carriage stopped.

Xue Zhiying was as if she had been pardoned: "Cousin, I'm at the embroidery workshop. I'll be right back."

The girl ran away.

Xiao Yunqi looked at the swaying door curtain in front of him, then lowered his eyes after a moment and looked at the hand on his leg.

His fingers paused, as if once again entangled by the girl's wanton and straightforward gaze.

Ten days passed, and her previous actions that he had implicitly exposed did not make her restrain herself in the slightest. Instead, she became bolder and the way she looked at him was more explicit than before.

He always appears weak, but deep down he is extremely bold and lustful.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, and suddenly felt that the punishment of just letting her stay in Huining Temple for a few days was too light.

At this time, Mu Yan boarded the carriage and said hurriedly, "Master, Miss Liu wants to see you."

Xiao Yunqi's eyes darkened suddenly. After a moment of silence, he said, "Let her come over."

…

Xue Zhiying walked quickly into the embroidery workshop with the embroidery products.

The servant at the door said that Yunniang was in the private room upstairs. She smiled, thanked him, and went back upstairs.

She was still a little anxious. She was worried that if they delayed too long, Xiao Yunqi would become impatient waiting outside.

But handing over the embroidery would take some time, and she couldn't help wondering if saying something nice to him later would make him feel better.

She didn't want the atmosphere between them to become cold and tense just as the journey began.

Thinking of this, Xue Zhiying was stunned for a moment.

Why did she unconsciously feel that the atmosphere would eventually become like this?

Maybe they can always live in harmony.

After Xue Zhiying made up her mind to behave better and more obediently in front of Xiao Yunqi, she had already arrived at the door of the private room.

She knocked on the door and Yunniang was inside.

Yunniang was a little surprised to see Xue Zhiying arrive: "I told the people in the store this morning that I had a feeling you could catch up with this order. It seems I really am a prophet."

Xue Zhiying came over with a smile, her eyebrows bent. "Yes, thanks to Yunniang, I just got a chance to leave the house."

In fact, Xue Zhiying has always been very well-behaved.

Her soft personality makes her almost without any edges, so she is naturally easily bullied.

Yunniang still remembered that she was sitting here ten days ago, worried about whether she could leave the house. Seeing her smile now, she was worried that she must have been bullied to get such an opportunity.

Yunniang couldn't help but ask, "How did you get out?"

"I wasn't bullied." Xue Zhiying answered the question irrelevantly.

Although that day was a bit rough, it couldn't be considered bullying.

Yunniang was stunned for a moment, then she chuckled softly, "Let me see the embroidery."

Xue Zhiying happily took out the embroidery and handed it to Yunniang.

Yunniang took the embroidery and examined it carefully.

Xue Zhiying suddenly asked, "Yunniang, do you know where Huining Temple is?"

Yunniang looked up when she heard the voice: "In Jiangdu County, south of the capital."

"Is it far?"

"It's about a three-day drive."

Then it would only take six or seven days to go back and forth, so why did Mu Yan say it would take more than half a month?

Xue Zhiying tilted her head and thought for a moment. Seeing that Yunniang had lowered her head to continue examining the embroidery, she took the initiative to say, "Yunniang, I left the mansion this time to pray for the old lady, and I am heading to Huining Temple in Jiangdu."

When talking about this trivial matter, her eyes sparkled and there was a smug expression on her face.

When Yunniang looked up and saw it after checking the embroidery, she blinked a little embarrassedly, but did not hide her emotions.

Since she learned about this, it was not until this moment that she fully expressed the excitement in her heart.

It's like showing off, but also sharing the joy in my heart.

Xue Zhiying has no friends or relatives in the Xiao Mansion. Chuntao cannot fully understand her joys and sorrows most of the time, and there is no one to share many things with her.

It’s a pity that she can’t stay in the embroidery workshop for too long every time, and it’s the same now.

Yunniang reached out and rubbed her soft face: "Then you must watch it carefully and have fun. I wish you a safe journey."

Xue Zhiying blushed slightly and whispered, "We're going to pray, not to play."

Xiao Yunqi was still waiting outside, and Xue Zhiying didn't dare to stay any longer.

After quickly handing over the embroidery to Yunniang, she had to leave.

Before leaving, Yunniang called her and took out some cloth from a box beside her, with a sewing kit on top of the cloth.

"Take this."

"Yunniang?"

"Aren't you going to the temple? You should be free. Help me with the work in your spare time."

Xue Zhiying took the thing in a daze and held it tightly in her arms. Her eyes felt a little sore, as if they were about to be covered with tears again.

Yunniang laughed at her: "Don't shed tears and wet my fabric. Go quickly."

Xue Zhiying took a deep breath and quickly held back her tears.

She nodded seriously and said, "I will do my best. When I come back from Huining Temple, I will find a way to send the embroidery to you."

"Yunniang, thank you."

Xue Zhiying still had a lot to say, but there was no time left.

She walked out of the private room quickly, holding the cloth given by Yunniang, and went down the stairs.

I just reached the corner and because I was walking so fast, I didn't pay attention to my surroundings.

A figure suddenly jumped out from the other direction, and she bumped into that person unexpectedly.

"Sorry, I wasn't paying attention to the road. Are you okay?" Xue Zhiying apologized hurriedly without even looking up.

"I'm fine. I don't blame you. I left too hastily."

The woman spoke in a gentle voice and reached out to help Xue Zhiying.

Xue Zhiying raised her head and was about to say something else.

When he raised his eyes, he paused.

The woman was very anxious and didn't pay attention to her expression. After helping the person up, she let go, nodded slightly, and was about to leave.

Xue Zhiying subconsciously curled up her fingers, as if to keep the other person.

But the woman walked so fast that her hand grabbed nothing, and in the end, all that remained in her sight was her hurriedly receding back.

It turned out to be her...

Xue Zhiying remained where she was.

That was the woman she had run into before who was related to Xiao Yunqi's secret.

I didn't expect to see her again in the embroidery workshop.

In fact, there was nothing special about the meeting. The other party didn't know her at all, let alone know that she had followed her.

Xue Zhiying gradually came to her senses, remembered that she had wasted time again, and hurried downstairs.

Chuntao was waiting in the hall on the first floor.

Seeing her coming downstairs, he hurried to meet her.

"Girl, what are you holding?"

Xue Zhiying replied perfunctorily, "The cloth Yunniang gave me."

"My cousin is still waiting outside, let's hurry."

Just as she was about to take a step, Chuntao pulled her back.

"Miss, the eldest master has already left. You don't need to be so anxious."

"……What?"

Xue Zhiying looked back in surprise.

Chun Tao followed the instructions she remembered in her mind and relayed, "The eldest master left first in a carriage. Mu Yan told us to wait here and come back to pick us up when the matter is over."

"What is it?"

Chun Tao thought for a moment and shook her head: "I didn't tell this servant."

Xue Zhiying still walked out of the embroidery workshop and saw that there were no carriages or horses from the Xiao family in front of the door, not even a single attendant was left.

How could they all suddenly leave due to urgent matters after such a short while?

Even though Chuntao was able to hear the explanation from Mu Yan, Xue Zhiying couldn't help but feel abandoned.

The original long journey was something she was looking forward to, but in the blink of an eye, only she and Chuntao were left, which made her feel panicked and helpless.

"Girl, the eldest master will come back to pick us up."

Perhaps it was because Xue Zhiying's expression was so obvious that even Chuntao could see her worry and couldn't help but comfort her in a low voice.

Xue Zhiying forced a smile and nodded: "Well, let's wait in front of the door."

Xue Zhiying also calmed down and comforted herself.

Xiao Yunqi didn't bring many people with him on this trip. He had to leave temporarily for something and needed more people around him, so naturally everyone followed him.

He is already very busy, so it is normal for him to have sudden emergencies at any time.

Of course, it was impossible that he deliberately abandoned her just because of something as trivial as her peeking at his hand in the carriage.

Also, it didn't take her too long from the time she got off the carriage to the time she separated from Yunniang, not even as long as the time she spent returning to the house to pack her luggage in the morning.

Even if she bumped into that woman halfway, she would quickly...

Xue Zhiying was about to comfort herself when her thoughts stopped.

That woman.

She was a woman who had approached Xiao Yunqi and cheated him out of a large sum of money.

The words I heard when I was following that woman are still ringing in my ears.

She should believe that meeting here was just a coincidence. Given Xiao Yunqi's personality and having been cheated before, he would not pay any attention to the other party again.

His sudden departure had nothing to do with the woman.

Probably... not.

Xue Zhiying just stood quietly at the door of the embroidery workshop waiting.

After an unknown amount of time, she realized it belatedly and asked Chuntao, "When did my cousin leave?"

"Ah? I don't remember."

"Oh, that's okay."

After a while, Chun Tao couldn't help but said, "Miss, it seems like we have been waiting for a long time. I am so tired."

Xue Zhiying's feet were actually a little sore from standing, so she said, "Then let's go find Yunniang and borrow two chairs for us to sit on while we wait."

Chuntao was happy: "Okay!"

Xue Zhiying was about to turn around and go back inside when she suddenly thought of something and said, "Chun Tao, go find Yun Niang. I'll wait for you here."

"Well, okay, I'll go right away."

Then Chuntao and Yunniang came out with chairs.

Xue Zhiying couldn't help feeling guilty when she saw Yunniang.

She had just been showing off and sharing her journey with Yunniang in the private room, but she didn't expect that in the blink of an eye, she was left here.

She was a little shy to look Yunniang in the eye and lowered her head.

The chair that Yunniang handed to her just appeared in her sight.

"Sit down."

As Yunniang spoke, she sat down beside her.

Xue Zhiying asked, "Yunniang, is it okay for you to sit here and do business in the embroidery workshop?"

Yunniang smiled and said, "I'll stay with you for a while, it's no big deal."

This is Yunniang’s gentleness, Xue Zhiying likes it very much.

She wouldn't ask questions that would embarrass her, but she would want to confide in her quietly.

However, Xue Zhiying still said nothing and quietly enjoyed Yunniang's company for a while.

Yunniang returned to the embroidery workshop and started working.

The sky was getting gloomy, but Xiao Yunqi had not returned yet.

Now it's not just a wait.

She has been waiting here for a long time.

It lasted so long that Chuntao began to doze off.

It lasted so long that no matter how much she comforted herself, she couldn't stop feeling aggrieved.

Bean-sized raindrops fell from the sky, quickly becoming dense, covering the street scene with a curtain of rain and making a disturbing noise.

The depressing sky enveloped Xue Zhiying's thin figure. She carefully retracted her legs, not wanting the splashing rain to wet her dress.

Otherwise, when Xiao Yunqi comes to pick her up, she will look very embarrassed.

But will he come to pick her up?

Xue Zhiying looked at the misty rain and suddenly remembered the time when she was sent to the Xiao Mansion.

She was still young and innocent at that time, just like Chuntao now. When she heard the person sent by her mother tell her that they would come to pick her up later, she began to wait calmly.

I didn't think about anything, didn't worry about anything, and even fell asleep in that little room due to drowsiness.

When she woke up, she was already carried into the carriage.

Her mother was not there, but the familiar nanny appeared before her.

She hugged Mammy happily and cheered, "You finally came to pick me up. I've been waiting for so long."

Then she asked, "Mammy, are we on our way home now?"

Xue Zhiying couldn't recall how the nanny answered her at that time, but of course she was unable to go home in the end.

She didn't know it then, but she no longer had a home.

I could hear the sound of a carriage rolling over the wet ground, which was a little blurry in the rain.

Xue Zhiying heard it, but didn't look up.

While waiting, she had been attracted by the sound of the carriage and looked up many times, but each time she looked away in disappointment.

She hugged her knees with her hands, and still looked down at her skirt as she listened to the sound.

So annoying.

They were still wet from the rain, and even the embroidered shoes were covered in mud.

"Cousin!"

Someone is shouting.

Xue Zhiying was thinking that she had to wash her embroidered shoes at the inn where she was staying tonight. Fortunately, she remembered to bring an extra pair of shoes in the morning.

"Cousin."

As soon as he finished speaking, there was a slight sound of water around Xue Zhiying.

In her sight, a pair of black boots hurriedly stopped in front of her embroidered shoes.

When she raised her eyes, she saw Mu Yan appear in front of her.

"Finally they came to pick us up!"

Chuntao was awakened by Mu Yan's call.

She was confused for only a moment, and then she became excited and happy, just like Xue Zhiying when she was young.

Xue Zhiying's expression was slightly tense, and she felt uneasy for no reason.

"I'm sorry, cousin. It was such a sudden incident and I was delayed for a long time. I kept you waiting."

Mu Yan rarely showed his usual calm demeanor, his face full of guilt.

He was slightly bent over and spoke very quickly, as if he wanted to express his apology as quickly as possible.

He also looked a little flustered due to his anxiety, so it was hard to blame him.

Xue Zhiying's lips moved slightly, and she asked softly, "So, should we set off now and continue our journey?"

The rain seemed to get heavier suddenly.

It seems not.

It turned out that Mu Yan was silent for a moment.

Then he replied: "No, young lady, there is no need to go to Huining Temple. I have been ordered to escort you back home."

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