That night, under the pale moonlight, the pedestrians on the road gradually dispersed in twos and threes.
Outside the gate of Ruyi Residence in the south of the city, a young woman dressed as a commoner was drenched and disheveled by a sudden downpour during the day.
At this moment, she was standing on the roadside outside the door, looking at the imposing door plaque with joy, and murmuring, "Yun'er, I have finally arrived at the Ruyi Residence you mentioned."
A moment later, she gently lifted her skirt, slowly walked up the stone steps, leaned against the door, and looked around expectantly. Every guest who came in and out frowned and covered their noses, casting disdainful glances at her.
At this moment, the shopkeeper saw this and gave a wink to the servant, who then quickly walked towards the woman.
"Go, go, go... Do you know where this is? Is this a place where someone like you can just come in and look around?" The servant grabbed the woman's wrist and dragged her to an inconspicuous corner far from the gate before shoving her hard and letting go.
"Young man, I'm here to see someone. Please let me in, okay?" the woman pleaded earnestly.
Upon hearing this, the servant looked the woman up and down carefully again, and asked suspiciously, "Looking for someone? You..."
The woman then realized her lapse in composure, clutching her clothes tightly in her hands. She nodded weakly and said, "Yes, I really am here to find someone. I'm looking for a young master named Jiang Zhixuan. Her friend asked me to come here to find him."
"Jiang Zhixuan?"
Just as the servant hesitated and pondered, the woman quickly described, "Oh, that young master is wearing a butterfly-shaped mask?"
The servant suddenly realized that she was looking for the masked, mysterious man. "Oh, it's him, but he left Ruyi Residence a long time ago."
"What? He left? No way, absolutely no way! You're lying to me, you must be lying to me, trying to get rid of me, right? I need to go in and find him, I need to go in..." The woman said as she ran quickly toward the door.
The servant, quick as a flash, reached out and grabbed him back again, blocking him fiercely. The two of them were locked in a struggle, neither willing to give way.
The woman pleaded desperately, "Brother, this is a matter of life and death! Please, let me in! Please, let me see Young Master Jiang, just once, even just one word to him, I beg you."
The servant, equally earnest, pushed and shoved, saying, "Sister, it's not that I don't want to help you, but there's no such guest as Jiang Zhixuan wearing a butterfly mask in our shop. He left a long time ago. Besides, look at your disheveled appearance. Our Ruyi Residence is full of wealthy and powerful people. How can you go in like this? If I let you in today, I'll be fired! I beg you, please have mercy on me and spare me. I have elderly parents and young children at home who are all waiting for my wages to come home and eat."
Seeing that the servant showed no sign of letting his guard down and was staring intently at her, the woman decided to cup her hands around her mouth and shout with all her might towards the upstairs of Ruyi Residence, "Jiang Zhixuan, Jiang Zhixuan, come out quickly! Come out quickly! Your friend sent me here to find you, come out quickly!"
"See? I already told you there's no guest here. He's gone, he's left, but you wouldn't believe me. If he were here, he would have heard you and come out to see you by now. Clearly, you can't summon someone out of thin air even if you shout until you're hoarse. I advise you to save your energy and go home quickly. It's already so late, and it won't be safe for a young lady like you on the road later." The servant continued to gently advise her, glancing at the few remaining figures on the road.
Unexpectedly, upon hearing the servant's words, the woman suddenly collapsed to her knees with a thud, seemingly heartbroken and desperate. She then burst into tears, muttering to herself, "Yun'er, Jiang Zhixuan is really not here anymore. What should I do? What should I do? You must not be hurt. You must find a way to come back here safely."
The servant stood by and watched helplessly as the woman shook her head. After a while, just as he was about to turn around and return to Ruyi Residence, the woman who had fallen to the ground seemed to suddenly remember something and immediately stopped crying. "Young man, please wait."
"Is there anything else?" The servant's words were already somewhat impatient, but he still turned around with a hint of reluctance.
The woman hurriedly wiped away her tears with the back of her hand, sniffed, then got up and quickly walked to the waiter's side, asking, "Brother, I'd like to inquire whether there is a guest named Yi Junhao staying at Ruyi Residence?"
The servant scratched the back of his head, muttering to himself as he tried to recall, "Yi Junhao, Yi Junhao..."
This was practically the woman's last lifeline, and she desperately wanted to hold onto it tightly.
Although Yi Shangyun had instructed her that she would only be allowed to go to Yi Junhao if she hadn't returned by dawn the next day, now that Jiang Zhixuan had already left, she had no choice but to go to this man.
So she quickly reminded the servant, "Young man, please think about this carefully. It concerns the lives of many people. Please, you really need to remember this."
Finally, the servant's eyes widened in surprise, and the woman at the same time stared wide-eyed and asked anxiously, "Young master, you've remembered, haven't you?"
The waiter finally spoke up, "Yes, we have a distinguished guest in our hotel named Yi Junhao staying in the top-tier room..."
Before the servant could finish speaking, the woman suddenly grabbed his wrist and burst into tears of joy, pulling him along as she said, "Quick, take me to see him! He'll definitely see me..."
The servant stood frozen in place, motionless. Seeing this, the woman turned around and asked in confusion, "What's wrong? Why aren't you leaving?"
"Is that young master not at Ruyi Residence at this time?"
Upon hearing the servant's words, the woman could hardly believe her ears. This was her last straw; if even he left, then she...
Without time to think, the woman quickly asked him to confirm, "Could it be... that he also left like Jiang Zhixuan?"
"Oh, he didn't leave. It seems he had some important business to attend to and went out to run errands. He'll be back in a few days." This servant happened to be the one who went upstairs to open the door and deliver the letter to Yi Junhao that night.
"What? He won't be back for several days?" the woman exclaimed in surprise. She then paced anxiously in front of the servant.
Seeing this, the servant advised, "Miss, don't be too anxious. This guest seemed to be in a hurry to come back when he left. Maybe he'll be back tonight or early tomorrow morning. Just wait patiently for now."
"Really?" the woman asked, looking at the servant with suspicion.
The servant smiled and nodded vigorously. "It's true, I was the one who served him when he left, and he even gave me a lot of money as a reward!"
"Okay, I understand. I can't go home either, and even if I did, it would be almost dawn. So I'll... I'll wait for him to come back here."
Upon hearing this, the servant became worried again and asked in surprise, "Wait here? You're not going to run off to the front and cause trouble again later, are you?"
"No, I believe you won't lie to me. I'll... I'll just stay here and watch him from afar." The woman looked around at the dark, cold, open environment and said these words to reassure him.
Hesitating for a moment, seeing her pitiful appearance, the servant could only mutter helplessly, "Fine, whatever you want, as long as you promise not to cause trouble in the shop again."
Just as the servant turned to leave, the woman suddenly shouted again, "Young man!"
"Stop making a scene, or I'll really get rough with you." The servant hurriedly turned around to warn her, thinking she was about to change her mind again.
Unexpectedly, the woman only wanted to ask him, "Young man, please don't misunderstand. I just want to ask you, what does that young master look like? I've never seen him before."
Upon hearing this, the servant shook his head, speechless, and sighed deeply. He was about to begin describing what had happened when he realized he might say something wrong or misunderstand her. He feared that if she couldn't find him, she would run back to the shop and cause a scene.
If that's the case, the shopkeeper will definitely scold him for not being able to handle such a small matter, and he'll get a good scolding. So, he impatiently rebuked him, "You don't even know anyone, what are you looking for? What if you encounter a swindler and get cheated, a weak woman like you?... I'm really fed up with you. Sigh, forget it, forget it, meeting you is the worst luck I've ever had. You just stay here obediently and don't wander around. When that young master comes back, I'll come and call you myself."
"In that case, thank you so much, thank you," the woman said happily.
Finally, the servant angrily shook his head and strode away.
The woman was now filled with anticipation and waiting. She only hoped that time would pass quickly, that the person she was waiting for would return soon, and that God would bless her so that Yun'er could successfully escape with her grandmother.
It seems that Wanjiao Pavilion really can't tolerate her anymore, and is so eager to kill her to silence her. They may even want to wipe her out completely, not even sparing her family.
At this moment, she only hoped that Yan Hong would be more vigilant and not be used by others to expose her home address, so that her grandmother could not be arrested before Yun'er returned home.
A sudden gust of cold wind blew, and the woman instinctively squinted, gritted her teeth, and shivered. Finally, she walked over and leaned against a towering ancient tree, gently hugging herself tightly, murmuring, "Yun'er, do you know, this time I was right. Those two people you mentioned are indeed not in Ruyi Residence..."
Then, she slowly raised her head, gazing at the hazy, pale moonlight in the silent night sky. Only then did she recall her Erlang and everything that had happened in the Dream Garden during the day. Unable to hold back her tears, two lines of sorrowful tears quietly streamed down her face, carried away by the wind…
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