In an instant, the room fell silent, as if even the surrounding air had stopped.
Suddenly, Young Master Yi could no longer suppress his anxiety and shouted angrily, "Speak now..."
Seeing that even though he was furious, Zisu was still stubbornly clinging to her own thoughts, Young Master Yi suddenly realized something.
Feeling quite surprised, he tentatively asked, "Could it be... that you've already found out about the girl?"
Everything she has done in this life is for the sake of the master before her.
But when her one and only selfish thought was exposed so quickly, Zisu looked at Young Master Yi's face in astonishment and said, "I..."
But as soon as he opened his mouth, he quickly looked away and stopped talking.
Seeing that he had already acquiesced, Young Master Yi was both surprised and delighted.
He longed to rush to Yi Shangyun's side immediately and embrace her tightly in his arms.
Unable to contain his anxiety and joy any longer, he took two steps forward, reached out and grabbed Zisu's shoulders tightly, asking excitedly, "You really found the girl? Where...where is she now?"
Little did she know, Zisu had already secretly decided that she would never reveal any trace of Yi Shangyun's whereabouts to him. However, she really didn't dare to look at his face, fearing that she would be completely captivated by the charm of the man in front of her with just one glance.
He lowered his head, disheartened, and said sadly, "It's too late, it's all too late."
Not understanding what she was talking about, Young Master Yi looked at Zisu's face with a puzzled expression for a moment, then said, "Too late? What's too late?"
Zisu gritted her teeth, finally raised her head, looked into her eyes, and said seriously, "Now, everyone in the streets and alleys of Xiqin knows that the eldest daughter of the Yi family has risen to prominence and is about to marry the King of Xiqin by the Empress Dowager. The wedding will be held soon."
Upon hearing this, Young Master Yi felt a sudden jolt in his heart and released his hand from Zisu's shoulder.
She thought to herself in surprise, "The Empress Dowager of Western Qin bestowed a marriage upon me? It's only been a few days since I parted from the girl, yet so much has happened! So this is what Zisu wanted to hide from me..."
No wonder he felt uneasy on his way back to Nan'an. Fortunately, he sent Bai Zhi back to the country first to report, and he returned himself.
After thinking for a while, he asked Zisu again, "Where is that girl now?"
Seeing that he was still so persistent, Zisu was taken aback.
Immediately afterwards, he reached out and grabbed one of Young Master Yi's sleeves, pleading with him, "Young Master, don't continue to be so stubborn. There's no future for you and her."
But all he saw was Young Master Yi staring intently at him, insisting on getting an answer, completely unmoved by his pleas.
Zisu slowly withdrew her hand in despair, took a deep breath, and said quite seriously, "No matter what you say this time, I will not tell you the whereabouts of the eldest daughter of the Yi family."
Seeing that the anger in Young Master Yi's eyes was burning even more intensely.
Zisu then said, "However, I can tell you something else?"
Young Master Yi listened attentively.
Zisu said, "She lost the baby in her womb."
"What did you say?" Young Master Yi asked in disbelief.
Zisu continued, "It was the King of Qin of Western Qin who personally took action."
"Xuanyuan Han...you're not even human."
As Yi Sanshao spoke, he clenched his fists tightly.
"I can't believe it! Do you know that the King of Western Qin did this because that child would take her life..."
Before Zisu could finish speaking, she saw Young Master Yi suddenly turn around and stride away angrily, as if he hadn't heard what she said.
Upon seeing this, Zisu already knew the answer in her heart, but she still couldn't help but raise her voice and ask, "It's late, Third Young Master, where are you going? Why are you doing this?"
Upon hearing this, Young Master Yi immediately stopped in his tracks, which was about to step out the door.
Zisu felt a sharp pain in her heart: "Third Young Master, why don't you understand even now? From beginning to end, she never liked you at all. Even now, Third Young Master, are you still unwilling to give up?"
Young Master Yi stood at the door, his back to Zisu, and said, "No matter who bestowed the marriage upon us, unless the girl tells me herself that she is willing to be Xuanyuan Han's woman, I will not believe anyone."
He paused, then added, "As long as she doesn't want to, no one in this world can force her, unless... I die!"
Hearing such sincere and touching words, Zisu walked slowly behind him with tears streaming down her face.
Mustering her courage, for the first time in her life, she took the initiative to hug him tightly from behind.
He said, "Why does it have to be her? You are the most distinguished man in Nan'an. Is your love so lowly?"
Suddenly, a strong floral fragrance wafted over. Young Master Yi didn't speak. After a moment of silence, Young Master Yi slowly raised his hand and ruthlessly pried Zisu's hands away.
Then, without looking back, she left Xiaoyao Pavilion with firm steps.
Watching her departing figure, Zisu's heart broke.
He rushed to the door, leaned against it, and shouted, "Third Young Master..."
But in the pitch-black night, where you couldn't see your hand in front of your face, there was only emptiness.
Suddenly a gust of wind arose, scattering the fallen leaves all over the yard, rustling them incessantly in his ears.
That night.
Before I knew it, it started to drizzle outside the window.
The night was hazy, the rain was hazy.
After Tuoba Ze left, Yi Shangyun experienced the heart-wrenching pain of losing her son. She clutched her heart tightly and cried for a long, long time.
I hadn't slept all night as dawn approached.
At this moment, she lay quietly on the bed, motionless, her eyes seemingly not even blinking.
Only one hand remained, still gently resting on her abdomen as if out of habit, as if she were extremely afraid that the little one inside would be hurt again, and was vigilantly protecting him.
"I'm sorry, it's my fault. I shouldn't have fallen asleep. I failed to protect you. I'm so sorry..."
Finally, she muttered something to herself.
As soon as she finished speaking, tears welled up in her eyes again.
How could she accept that Xuan Yuanhan, who had been so confident and gentle just a moment ago, would be so cruel the next?
Even if he had lied to him himself, saying that the child was not his, he still couldn't bring himself to harm such a vulnerable life!
But she had to admit that the little life she had depended on and spent more than a hundred days with had truly vanished completely and would never come back.
A bond between mother and son ended so abruptly before it even began.
At this point, all hope vanished.
It felt as if even the last bit of strength in his body had been drained away.
Finally, dawn broke.
I listened to the sound of rain pattering on banana leaves outside my window all night.
Exhausted, Yi Shangyun, dressed in white, finally got up from the bed and stood by the window, gazing at the shimmering beaded curtains in the courtyard.
After a while, he slowly walked to the door again, reached out and opened it, paused, and then stepped into the rain...
And in the past night, Xuan Yuanhan continued to search tirelessly throughout the city for Yi Shangyun's whereabouts.
At this moment, he had just returned to his residence, utterly exhausted.
A guard quickly approached and anxiously reported, "Your Highness, General Cheng has returned."
Upon hearing this, Xuanyuan Han immediately perked up and asked, "Where?"
The guard said, "General Cheng knelt in the main hall as soon as he returned, awaiting His Highness's judgment."
Before he could finish speaking, Xuanyuan Han had already strode towards the main hall.
Upon seeing his master appear in the main hall, Cheng Liang lowered his eyes and said, "This subordinate has failed in his duty and performed his duties poorly. Please punish me, Your Highness!"
However, Xuan Yuanhan slowly walked to his side, squatted down, placed a hand on his shoulder, and said with concern, "It's good that you're back! Get up quickly!"
“Your Highness…” Cheng Liangdun looked up at Xuan Yuanhan’s face and was helped up by Xuan Yuanhan.
After overcoming numerous hardships and braving a night of torrential rain, Cheng Liang finally returned to the Prince of Qin's residence with his guards and met his master.
At this moment, he felt ashamed, yet also grateful that he could see his master again in this lifetime.
After the master and servant sat down, Xuanyuan Han asked, "What exactly happened? Why did we suddenly lose contact?"
Cheng Liang recounted to him in a low voice: "Under the master's orders, to ensure that nothing goes wrong, I personally led a team to escort the medicinal herbs to Longhu City to support the fight against the epidemic. But just as we were about to arrive at Longhu City, we were poisoned in a teahouse on the outskirts of the city."
"Poisoned?" Xuan Yuanhan asked in astonishment.
Cheng Liang nodded seriously and continued, "Once my men and I left the city, we didn't dare stop for a moment, fearing we'd delay the disaster relief efforts. But after several days, the men were exhausted, so we stopped by the roadside to rest. We drank tea from a teahouse, and then we were all poisoned, suffering excruciating abdominal pain. Luckily, an old Taoist priest passed by and cured us. Otherwise, we'd all probably be..."
Looking back on the past, Cheng Liang still feels extremely frightened.
Upon hearing this, Xuan Yuanhan's brows furrowed with extreme anger, and he anxiously asked, "What about the medicinal herbs for disaster relief..."
Cheng Liang hurriedly replied, "Your Highness, rest assured, after the old Taoist priest cured our poison, I followed the trail. Strangely enough, all our herbs were eventually sent to Longhu City and used to treat the disaster victims."
"What's going on?" Xuan Yuanhan asked, puzzled.
Cheng Liang shook his head, still not understanding the reason, only analyzing, "If someone deliberately robbed us, they wouldn't have taken our lives. But it definitely wouldn't have been His Majesty's doing..."
Xuanyuan Han said, "He certainly won't lend a helping hand to Longhu City."
"Who could it be?" Cheng Liang asked, puzzled.
The master and servant then fell into deep thought together.
Just then, Young Master Yi suddenly appeared at the Prince of Qin's mansion without anyone noticing, standing in front of Xuan Yuanhan.
Upon seeing Xuan Yuanhan in person, Yi Sanshao was furious and said, "Xuan Yuanhan, you bastard!"
As he spoke, he stepped forward and delivered a heavy punch to the man's face...
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