Chapter 52 A Feeling of Being Scorned by It

A strangely shaped carrier pigeon is flapping its wings and landing on the window frame.

Its entire body is snow-white, except for its sharp beak, which is a rare vermilion color.

A few blue-green feathers are interspersed among its long tail feathers.

Most notably, it has a patch of emerald-green feathers shaped like maple leaves on the inside of its left wing.

This is Qin Ye's personal carrier pigeon.

Yun Si recognized the special little guy at a glance.

It has a name: maple leaf.

Upon seeing the red leaves, Yun Si knew that Qin Ye must have sent her a message.

Yun Si couldn't wait to walk over.

It was Maple Leaf's first time in her room. She was tilting her head, her black bean-like eyes warily scanning her surroundings.

This little guy looks incredibly intelligent.

They're quite wary.

"Cute Maple Leaf".

Yun Si slowly approached it, her voice soft and gentle: "Did your master send you to find me?"

My gaze fell on its paws. No message tube?

Yun Si had only seen maple leaves a few times from afar before, but she didn't know exactly how they carried messages.

Maple Leaf cautiously took two steps forward, its pointed red beak gently pecking twice at Yun Si's sleeve, as if confirming something.

Its black bean-like eyes rolled around.

In a daze, Yun Si seemed to see a hint of arrogance and pride in its eyes.

There was a feeling that it had looked down on me.

Is this still a pigeon?

"Where's the letter?"

Yun Si's face darkened, and she raised her hand as if to slap him.

Maple Leaf quickly spat out a piece of paper from its mouth, then rubbed its tail against Yun Si's sleeve to express its friendliness.

It turns out he was just a bully who preyed on the weak.

Yun Si withdrew her hand and picked up the note from the windowsill.

When I opened it, there were only a few words inside.

"Everything is going well, don't worry."

A faint smile involuntarily appeared on Yun Si's lips.

Maple Leaf tilted her head and looked her over, seemingly puzzled.

The woman who was just now looking fierce and about to hit it, how come she's now showing such a beautiful smile?

Yun Si raised her hand again, and Maple Leaf thought she was going to hit it again, so it closed its eyes in fright. But Yun Si just gently patted its head.

"Beautiful maple leaves."

She smiled at it, her voice softening again: "Wait for me a moment, okay? I'll write back to your master and then send it back for me, alright?"

The maple leaf gently fluttered its wings, as if in response to Yun Si's words.

Yun Si picked up her brush, dipped it in ink, and wrote a few lines of delicate characters on the plain white letter paper.

"I am well, do not worry."

After thinking for a moment, she changed to a different piece of paper and rewrote it.

"I am well, and I miss you."

After finishing writing, she rolled the letter into a thin strip, wondering how to get Maple Leaf to take it with her.

As a result, the little guy opened his mouth on his own, indicating that she should put the note in his mouth.

Yun Si chuckled and stuffed the note into Maple Leaf's mouth, patting its head: "Go on, be careful on the road."

The maple leaf proudly raised its head, spread its wings, and flew into the night, disappearing without a trace.

That's fast!

With Maple Leaf around, wouldn't she receive messages from Qin Ye every day?

However, she couldn't contact Maple Leaf on her own initiative; she could only wait for Maple Leaf to come to her.

After receiving Qin Ye's message, Yun Si went to bed feeling relieved.

During this time, Qin Ye held her every night while they slept, but she complained that he was too hot and always tried to push him away.

But each time he would immediately pull her back, and at this moment, she suddenly felt a little uncomfortable without his warmth on the bed.

Yun Si hugged the quilt, which carried Qin Ye's scent. Smelling this scent, she quickly drifted off to sleep.

After a good night's sleep, I finally felt my strength return.

Yun Si was a woman of action. Before dawn, she got up and jogged around the mansion a few times until she was covered in sweat before returning to her room to wash and change.

After breakfast, he took Ah Wu to Wutong Lane in the south of the city.

When the carriage arrived at the alley entrance, Yun Si remained seated inside, not getting off immediately.

Instead, he looked out the car window and observed the surrounding environment first.

Although the location is relatively remote, it is not dirty or messy. On the contrary, the alley is very clean and spacious, which is obviously not a cheap area.

This time, Yun Si still didn't bring a driver; it was A Wu who drove the carriage outside.

Yun Si was a little surprised that A Wu could drive.

I don't know what she did before. She was so young, so smart and capable. How could she have fallen to such a state?

But every time she asked A-Wu, she said she had no recollection of it and didn't remember anything from the past.

"elder sister."

Yun Si was observing outside when A Wu suddenly poked her head in: "Someone is following us."

"Someone is following us?"

Yun Si hesitated for a moment, then asked, "When did you start following me?"

"From the gate of the mansion."

"Are they secret guards from the Prince's residence?"

"No, I've never seen it."

Awu said, "I'll go kill him."

After saying that, he immediately turned to leave.

"etc."

Knowing her fiery temper, Yun Si pulled her into the car and continued to ask her questions.

How many people are there?

"One...two."

Ah Wu counted on her fingers and said it three times before she was sure.

“Three. Two are together, and one is alone. I saw the one alone in the Prince's mansion; it was an extra one.”

These words successfully confused Yun Si for a moment.

"Wait a minute, let me sort this out."

"You mean there are three people following us, two of them together and one alone. You saw that one alone at the Prince's mansion before, right?"

"Um."

"So, that lone person is the Prince's secret guard or shadow guard, but why do you say that lone person is an extra one?"

After hearing Yun Si's question, A Wu scratched her head, seemingly not quite understanding at first.

"because……"

She thought for a moment, and was about to explain, when footsteps suddenly came from the alleyway.

Yun Si's carriage was parked in an inconspicuous place, but from the carriage window, one could see the very end of Wutong Lane at a glance.

That footstep sound... it was Dillon!

Did he spend the night here last night?

"Let's not worry about that for now and just wait and see."

After Yun Si finished speaking in a low voice, she waited until Di Long's figure was far away before getting out of the car and walking into the alley.

It was still early, and there were few pedestrians on the road.

Yun Si stopped only when she reached the entrance of a quiet and elegant courtyard.

The gate was closed.

But she could hear children playing and laughing inside.

There were two boys.

Dillon's son!

Yun Si approached the door and gently pushed it. Surprisingly, the door wasn't locked, and she easily opened it a crack.

My gaze peeked through the crack in the door.

Two boys, the older one about six years old, were waving a wooden sword.

The little one was only about four years old, holding a small wooden pony.

As the two chased and played, their laughter was as clear and crisp as bells.

“A-Wu”.

Yun Si lowered her voice: "Go and get their toys, and also get one of Liu's personal items. Be careful not to let anyone find out."

Awu nodded, and in a flash, she jumped over the courtyard wall.

Yun Si felt a blur before her eyes, and when she looked again, A Wu had already silently landed behind an old locust tree in the courtyard.

She moved with the agility of a cat, and in the instant the two children turned their backs, she swiftly snatched the wooden sword and the pony.

"..."

Yun Si sighed, rubbing her forehead.

She meant to take the toys away after the two children put them down, instead of... snatching them directly.

Then, Ah Wu sneaked into the inner room through the half-open window, and soon emerged from the wall with a pearl earring in her hand.

"Sister, here you go."

Awu presented her spoils to Yun Si as if they were treasures.

Those pearl earrings were exquisitely crafted and looked to be no ordinary item.

Yun Si packed up her belongings with satisfaction and was about to leave when she suddenly heard a child crying in the courtyard: "Mother! My little horse is gone!"

"My sword is gone too!"

Then came a series of hurried footsteps.

A gentle female voice patiently comforted the child.

Yun Si peeked through the crack in the door and saw a young woman dressed in a light blue silk dress hurrying out.

It was Liu.

"Hurry up."

Yun Si pulled A Wu and quickly retreated to the corner of the alley.

Just as the two disappeared into the shadows, the courtyard gate creaked open.

Liu stood at the door, looking around with a mixture of surprise and uncertainty.

"strangeness."

Liu muttered to herself, "There's no one outside."

Yun Si breathed softly until Liu Shi retreated back into the courtyard before taking A Wu back to the carriage.

She weighed the object in her hand, a faint smile playing on her lips.

"Sister, where are we going now?" A-Wu asked, tilting her head.

"Go back and write a letter to General Di."

He was given one day to release Master Su, or else these items, along with the address of Wutong Lane in the south of the city, would be delivered to Madam Di.

Even if he wanted to move Liu and the others within a day, there wouldn't be enough time.

He only needed to hand those letters over to the people of the Dali Temple, and with a simple check, he would know that those letters were exchanged before the Marquis's family was convicted.

Moreover, there was nothing inappropriate about the contents of the letter.

The letters were just ordinary family correspondence. If Dillon insisted on framing him, then his wolfish ambitions would be exposed.

Yun Si carefully wrapped up the wooden sword, the pony, and the pearl earring, a sharp glint flashing in her eyes.

“I want to see whether it’s more important for this Dillon to frame loyal officials or to protect his mistress and two illegitimate children.”

Awu nodded as if she understood, but then her ears twitched. She jumped off the carriage, lingered outside for a moment, and then returned to the carriage.

"Sister, that lone person is gone."

"ah?"

Yun Si frowned: "What about the other two?"

"They're still here."

"Are you sure you've never seen the other two in the manor?"

"I'm sure I've never seen it before."

Ah Wu was very confident about this.

That's quite strange.

The people Qin Ye sent to secretly protect her withdrew halfway through the mission?

That shouldn't be so unreliable.

Could it be...?

Yun Si decided to observe further.

The carriage traveled back home.

When they came, they took the main road, but there were few people then, and the carriages traveled very fast. Now, the people on the street had all come out, and there were all kinds of pedestrians on their way, as well as oxcarts carrying goods, which directly blocked Yun Si's carriage in the middle.

The more anxious you are, the less you'll move for a long time.

"Awu, turn into that alley and take the back road."

Ah Wu obeyed and did as instructed.

The carriage wound its way out of the alley, a longer distance, but thankfully the journey was unimpeded.

Soon, the carriage turned into a quiet street.

As soon as they turned the corner, Ah Wu realized that the other two people who were following them seemed to have lost them.

Just as A-Wu was about to tell Yun-Si about this, a hidden arrow came flying through the air and accurately pierced the horse's neck.

The horse neighed and collapsed to the ground with a thud.

The entire carriage immediately lost its balance and overturned violently to the ground.

"elder sister!"

The moment the carriage overturned, A-Wu leaped up, ripped open the roof, and pulled Yun-Si out of the carriage.

As soon as the two landed, another arrow grazed Yun Si's hair and embedded itself in the wall behind her.

A cold glint flashed in A Wu's eyes as she swiftly shielded Yun Si behind her, her gaze sweeping like lightning towards the direction from which the arrows had come.

"It's him!"

Awu suddenly gritted her teeth and said, "Sister, I'll go kill him!"