Chapter 7 The Kidnapping
The Yangtze River flows along its banks, its waters a clear blue expanse stretching to the horizon. The trees are shady and the willow branches brush against the windowpane, accompanied by a gentle breeze.
The wind blew aside Yu Wanyin's hair near her ear, the ends of which outlined her profile and snow-white neck.
A ray of sunlight fell on her, and Yu Wanyin stared in astonishment at the handsome and powerful minister downstairs, wondering how she could meet his gaze so easily with just one glance.
Perhaps it was because he stood out too much in the crowd.
He was as elegant and refined as a jade tree, with a handsome face and gentle demeanor, but a beauty mark at the corner of his eye gave him a lingering and captivating charm.
Chu Yu looked at her, paused for a moment, and then quickly urged his horse forward.
The soldiers behind him had clearly not reacted yet, and were two steps behind Chu Yu.
Yu Wanyin felt a sudden, inexplicable fear rise in her heart. As she stood up, she could already hear the sounds of people coming downstairs.
The waiter was calling out to the newcomer, but he couldn't keep up with his pace.
Chu Yu arrived at the pavilion and looked at the person in front of him to confirm that it was indeed her.
Chu Yu frowned and took a few steps forward. He moved his lips, but only asked, "Are you alright?"
Yu Wanyin was speechless for a moment, "I'm fine, everything is fine."
Chu Yu frowned as he looked her over to see if she was injured, but thankfully she didn't seem to be. "Come with me to the car first."
Yu Wanyin hesitated, but Chu Yu noticed and asked, "What's wrong?"
Chu Yu considered a thousand possible reasons for Yu Wanyin's hesitation, and finally came up with the worst one: someone was coercing her. "Is there some difficulty?"
After all, anything can happen when a young woman falls on hard times. "Who is it? Tell me."
"If you're afraid he'll tell others, or if he'll make things difficult for you, or if you want revenge, I'll help you." Let him die a worthy death.
The second half of the sentence remained hidden in Chu Yu's heart, his eyes still gentle and serene.
Yu Wanyin listened to his tone, which, though gentle, was forceful, yet instilled fear in her heart. "No."
She quickly stepped forward and supported his arm, a subconscious attempt to make amends for their intimacy. "The woman who saved me was a farmer from the village. She was very kind to me and quite knowledgeable about medicine. She brought me here to buy things, and I was thinking of telling her."
From the very beginning of their meeting, Chu Yu restrained himself from touching her, knowing that he was not yet married.
Suddenly, she grabbed his arm, and he was momentarily stunned. "How about I take you to her door to express your gratitude?"
“How can you come here?” Yu Wanyin refused outright. “The people of Jiangling live in hardship. They fear and hate officials. When I was rescued, I heard them cursing officials, and they all lied and said they were just ordinary women.”
"If you take me there like this, they'll probably hate me to death."
Yu Wanyin hesitated for a moment, then realized that she couldn't possibly say goodbye to Rong Si before leaving.
If Chu Yu finds her and she doesn't leave, it will arouse his suspicion, and finding out about the village would be a loss.
"Alright, let's go."
Chu Yu didn't ask any more questions and took her to the car first.
Before getting into the car, Yu Wanyin glanced at the streets and alleys. There was still no sign of Rong Si on the streets.
Suppressing her anxiety, she entered the carriage.
Chu Yu stayed in the teahouse for a while, secretly taking everyone away before getting into the car and riding with her.
They left, and the search party continued to make a show of circling the city twice.
Rong Si was trapped in the shop until the soldiers dispersed before he could leave.
By this time, all the street vendors had long since disappeared.
Rong Si felt a strange sensation and immediately walked towards the direction of the teahouse.
Not only was there no sign of Yu Wanyin at the teahouse, but the entire teahouse had inexplicably closed down.
The door was kicked open by Rong Si, and the place was deserted; there wasn't even anyone to ask questions.
*
The carriage was spacious and luxurious, truly befitting a prime minister.
Even though the space was large enough, Yu Wanyin was still not comfortable riding with him.
This was the closest they had ever been to each other since their engagement.
Chu Yu did not ask much about what she had been through these past few days.
She will say what she wants to say, and he doesn't need to know what she doesn't want to say.
It's good that he's back.
The rest is unimportant.
He can only blame himself for not picking her up first, for arriving too late.
Yu Wanyin was also somewhat puzzled by his silence.
But thinking about it, she probably doesn't care. But that's fine, so she won't make any mistakes.
The palace was heavily guarded this time, and Chu Yu placed her in the most secluded forbidden garden and assigned a female doctor to take care of her.
Yu Wanyin sat in the room as the female doctor took her pulse.
Chu Yu sat beside him, keeping watch.
A moment later, the female doctor removed the plain handkerchief draped over Yu Wanyin's wrist. "Looks like you were ill before, and you're very weak."
Chu Yu frowned upon hearing this.
Yu Wanyin nodded, "Yes."
"Fortunately, the medication was administered in time, and it didn't harm your health. Has someone taken a look at you?"
This statement is the same as what Yu Wanyin said.
Yu Wanyin repeated it again.
The female doctor understood, "Fortunately, they've found a good family, so the Prime Minister can rest assured."
Yu Wanyin looked at Chu Yu, who lowered his eyes, feeling her gaze was warm and comforting, and did not dare to look directly at her.
After sitting there for a while, Chu Yu had no choice but to get up and bow to the female physician, saying, "Please take care of me."
The female doctor was startled and quickly stood up, saying, "How can this be?"
Yu Wanyin observed that although the Left Prime Minister held a high position and wielded great power, he seemed to be a very polite and gentle young man.
Chu Yu left the room and went to check on the nourishing meal prepared for Yu Wanyin.
As I reached the door, I heard voices inside the house saying, "Our daughter has actually come back. I thought she wouldn't be coming back."
Chu Yu stopped in his tracks.
The person speaking was Hanqiao, Yu Wanyin's personal maid, who had been sent out by him to serve her master.
Seeing that the person next to her didn't respond, Han Qiao nudged her again, "I heard that you've been taken as a concubine by someone these past few days, are you aware of that?"
The maid, who worked in the Prime Minister's residence year-round, turned pale upon hearing this. "Don't talk nonsense."
"What nonsense am I spouting? Our lady says that with such a femme fatale look, which man could resist throwing himself at her? She's either dead, or that face of hers is definitely not respectable. Haven't you heard a single word from the Prime Minister?"
The maid kept her mouth shut and dared not pay any attention to her.
Hanqiao sighed, "Actually, we servants have a hard life. Our livelihood depends entirely on our masters' reputation. If she had committed suicide to clear her name, that would have been fine. But now she has returned in such an ambiguous way. We servants will also be criticized. How can we have a good life in the future?"
"It's not just that. She has a good reputation, which benefits our whole family. It will also make it easier for our second daughter to find a husband in the future." Hanqiao saw that she was silent. "Am I wrong?"
The maid couldn't stand it anymore, so she got up, pretended not to hear, and went to get the ingredients.
Turning my head, I was startled to see a shadowy figure standing against the light outside the gate in the scorching summer sun.
The maid was shocked and knelt down in horror, "Prime Minister."
Han Qiao stiffened slightly, turned her head and saw Chu Yu, then quickly stood up and stepped forward to greet him, "Prime Minister."
Chu Yu calmly walked into the room. "Where did these rumors come from?"
Hanqiao secretly raised her eyes, thinking that Chu Yu was probably suspicious because of the rumors. How could a rising star allow his fiancée to be tainted?
Hanqiao was secretly delighted, for this gave their second daughter a chance.
The lady said that if she is clever and handles things properly, she will be promoted to a first-class maid in the future.
Hanqiao replied earnestly, "Everyone says that, and they also say..."
Chu Yu interrupted her, "Who are you all? Say your names."
Hanqiao choked up. She had only used the pretext of a large family to mention the names of the head maids and stewards of the two ladies.
The more she talked, the more she felt something was wrong, so she added, "They might just be making wild guesses. After all, our girl is truly blessed with extraordinary beauty, yet she suffers from a deficiency that makes it difficult for her to escape."
She looked down and saw only the hem of his light gray robe fluttering, his demeanor ethereal. She deliberately steered the conversation toward something unpleasant, "That day, so many pursuers..."
"However, we were just worried. The young lady is a lucky person, and the Prime Minister found her."
“Yes, you girls are blessed with good fortune.” Chu Yu’s tone was light and gentle, but the corners of his eyes were extremely cold. “You, on the other hand, may not be so.”
Chu Yu raised his hand, and his attendant immediately entered the room, grabbed Han Qiao by the collar, and dragged her out. "Prime Minister?"
Hanqiao was dragged away before she realized something was wrong. "Prime Minister! It wasn't me! It was them! It was Madam who ordered me to do it!"
Hanqiao's voice grew fainter and fainter.
The maidservant beside her trembled, "Your Excellency is wise; this servant has been dutiful and dutiful!"
Chu Yu stared at her for a while, his bloodthirsty killing intent flickering back and forth, before finally reminding her, "You still need to prepare some nourishing food."
They've all been killed; Yao Yao's lunch will be late.
The maid could tell that these words were not directed at her, but at him, that she was still useful and could not be killed.
Even after Chu Yu left, the maid's hands and feet were still ice-cold, as if she had just escaped from the gates of hell.
Chu Yu went to his study, and his attendant wiped the blood off his hands before returning to report.
Chu Yu asked, "Are there other people gossiping?"
"No. The search was conducted entirely according to your instructions, making it appear to outsiders that we were looking for Qi Zhong's wife and children, without revealing the news of Miss Yu's disappearance."
"Among the officials, only those from the Yu family knew. All the other officials spread the word that no one from the Yu family had gone missing, and no one knew about it."
Chu Yu nodded. "Have those people from the teahouse been interrogated?"
"They've questioned her. They all say the girl came in on her own, saying she was waiting for someone, and they don't know anything else."
"We'll release them once we return to Shang'an, to prevent word from leaking out and alerting the court officials."
The attendant replied, "Yes."
After arranging everything, Chu Yu pondered that the only person he couldn't kill for the time being was the lady of the Yu family.
He instructed, "Make preparations; we'll visit the woman's family tonight."
*
As night fell, the setting sun cast a blood-red streak across the sky.
Rong Si sat in the empty teahouse, holding a purse in his hand—
The one he gave to Yu Wanyin.
He found this in the gap between the stairs during his third search of the teahouse.
This proves that she did indeed wait for him here.
But why did everyone disappear, and why was the building sealed off, leaving no one behind?
Zong Cheng and his men searched the entire street several times, but still found no trace of Yu Wanyin.
When I rushed back, I saw my master staring at the purse with a gloomy expression.
The village had prepared all the necessary supplies for the celebration, and people were specially brought out to make purchases.
Unexpectedly, this shopping trip led to a search by government soldiers, and his soon-to-be-married wife disappeared.
This is terrible news for a man.
Zong Cheng was so angry that he started cursing as soon as he went upstairs, "Damn it, could it be that those soldiers kidnapped him?"
Rong Si gripped his purse tightly and stood up. "While they haven't returned to Shang'an, let's go and inquire about the Shang'an Imperial Kitchen."
"Is he already dead for treason, and does he have a daughter?"
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