"A single word can awaken a dreamer." Clearly, Yi Shangkun's words had caused Xuan Yuanhan to walk steadily, but in reality, his mind was in turmoil.
He even had the illusion that everything that had just happened was like a dream, ethereal and unreal.
How could a woman about to give birth fall from such a high cliff and not be smashed to pieces?
He frowned, and as he hurried along, he spoke in a deep voice, deeply incredulous, to Cheng Liang, who was following closely behind, seeking confirmation: "Cheng Liang, did you hear everything Yi Shangkun said just now? That nameless benefactor from back then, she didn't die after falling off the cliff, and even gave birth to a baby girl. But how is that possible from such a high cliff?"
Cheng Liang was equally surprised by what Yi Shangkun had just said. He remained silent for a moment, then said, "It is indeed hard to believe. But a few days ago, didn't Your Highness also fall from that cliff, exactly the same one that the woman fell from seventeen years ago? Yet Your Highness is unharmed. Physician Le has examined Your Highness many times and said that Your Highness's injuries were only caused by the thorns on the cliff edge, and there were no other wounds. So, what Pharmacist Yi said may not be impossible. It's unlikely that Pharmacist Yi would fabricate such a lie just to get Your Highness to help find Miss Yi. Besides, very few people know about Your Highness's savior when you were young. How could a mere pharmacist like him know? I can't help but think that if that woman hadn't been pregnant at the time, she might not have died. Thinking about it that way, Miss Yi must still be alive and well. That's good news, Your Highness."
As Cheng Liang finished speaking while pondering, a surge of joy welled up in his heart.
Unexpectedly, upon hearing this, Xuan Yuanhan's expression turned even colder, and he clenched his fists tightly. As soon as he stepped out of the palace gate, he seemed to be possessed, hastily mounting a tall, gleaming black horse. He then reached for the reins, and with a shout of "Giddy up!", he rode off alone as if using all his strength.
Only Cheng Liang remained behind, seemingly unaware of what had happened or perhaps having said something wrong. He stood frozen in astonishment for a moment, then cried out in alarm towards the departing figure, "Your Highness, Your Highness..."
Seeing that there was no response to his calls, he suddenly realized that something was wrong, and then he hurriedly mounted his horse and chased after his back.
After a period of rapid galloping, master and servant, the speed of Xuanyuan Han's horse gradually slowed down until it finally came to a stop. He then dismounted, stood on the ground, and, seemingly in a daze, wandered to a cliff in a secluded valley. He stood with his legs slightly apart, clenched his fists, and gazed at the swirling, verdant clouds in the deep valley before him, a sea of clouds roaring and raging like waves, venting his anger: "Ah...ah...ah...why, why, why..."
Instantly, echoes reverberated throughout the valley. These loud, heart-wrenching roars seemed to shake the mountains and rivers with their fury, and his entire body trembled with each roar.
Indeed, ever since he fell off the cliff and fell into a coma in the northern mountains of the city, he has been silently enduring whatever situation Yi Shangyun might encounter, good or bad...
All these unknown possibilities and slim chances of survival were already beyond his control, and then he learned from Yi Shangkun about this miracle of life that he never expected.
It turns out that the woman from that year didn't disappear completely after falling off the cliff. Not only that, she also managed to save a child.
He never imagined that the child would be her, that it was actually her.
It turns out that for the past seventeen years, that child has been living such a difficult and arduous life right under his nose.
If he had known sooner, perhaps she wouldn't have lived so cautiously and mistreated in that mansion; if he had known sooner, he would have treated her twice as well, with a kindness he had never shown to anyone before; if he had known sooner, perhaps everything would be different now… But all these years, he knew nothing, knew absolutely nothing…
At this moment, Cheng Liang, who had finally caught up, was stunned by the sight of his master, who had never been so out of control and unrestrained. He sat on his horse, staring at the noble and imposing figure for a long time before silently dismounting.
Then, he slowly walked up behind him, looking at his master with heartache and sorrow, who had never seen such helplessness and indignation before. He spoke in a deep, pained voice, "Your Highness: I know you are sad, but now is not the time for sorrow. Right now, Your Highness has many important matters to attend to. Miss Yi is still missing without a trace; the Dowager Consort's death is also shrouded in mystery. The Empress Dowager and the Emperor must have their own ulterior motives. Your Highness must take precautions and ascertain the truth as soon as possible; the King of Dongning Kingdom clearly rejected our marriage alliance request..." But Mei Zhixuan suddenly appeared, so eager to marry Princess Yue; there must be some conspiracy involved. The Emperor's tyranny has lasted too long, and the people of Western Qin are still living in misery. I've heard that recently, there's been another large-scale internal rebellion on our border, which the local government is powerless to quell. Now that Your Highness has recovered, the Emperor will likely soon issue an edict to send Your Highness to personally suppress it… All of these matters are urgent. Therefore… Your Highness must pull yourself together!”
Upon hearing this, Xuan Yuanhan's turbulent heart seemed to gradually calm down a bit, and he finally breathed a sigh of relief, his clenched fist slowly loosening.
He remained silent, refusing to utter a single word. No matter how much Cheng Liang tried to persuade him, he remained motionless, gazing intently at the clouds drifting across the deep valley. In his heart, he silently prayed, "Yun'er, can you hear me? I'm calling your name in my heart. If you hear me, come back to my side quickly. I can never lose you again in this life. We've already missed out on far too much..."
Cheng Liang had already given up trying to persuade him, so he simply stopped talking altogether and just stood quietly by his side, guarding his master.
After an unknown amount of time, Xuanyuan Han stared blankly at the clouds in the sky above the deep valley, motionless, until a setting sun appeared and gradually dyed them red.
As the sun set and night quietly fell, he suddenly turned around and said, "Back to the manor."
With that, he strode forward, mounted his horse, and spurred it on. Cheng Liang followed closely behind, and the two of them galloped off toward the mansion in the east of the city, raising a cloud of dust.
In Taohuadian Village.
For some reason, Ruoxi seemed drowsy and extremely sleepy all day, but something happened that made everyone feel both strange and excited.
After breakfast, Huan'er prepared a new white cloth and medicine to change Ruoxi's dressing.
However, when she carefully removed the original white cloth, she was surprised to find that Ruoxi's head injury had completely healed.
Not only that, but overnight, even the wounds disappeared without a trace, as if she had never been injured at all.
The old woman, however, always seemed preoccupied and sullen. Upon waking early in the morning and seeing that Ruoxi's head injury had largely healed, she too seemed somewhat unhappy.
Seeing that Ruoxi was drowsy all day, he wondered what was wrong.
In his heart, he also had too many questions about this woman who had finally appeared after waiting for so long.
So he decided he should ask the master from the City God Temple to come and take a look in person before he could feel at ease.
Looking up at the sky, I realized that if I didn't set off soon, I might not be able to reach the City God Temple by nightfall.
With this thought in mind, the old woman hurriedly began packing her belongings. A simple bundle was placed over her head, covered with a long black veil, and she was ready to leave.
Unexpectedly, as soon as she stepped out of the room, Huan'er rushed out of the west room, supported her with both hands, and hurriedly asked, "Madam, where are you planning to go?"
The old woman stopped and looked solemnly at the woman sleeping in the west room. She said, "I'm worried about Ruoxi's condition. I'd better go to the City God Temple myself. Perhaps Master Xuankong has just returned from his travels. I need to ask him to come to our house to examine Ruoxi in person before I can feel at ease."
Before she could finish speaking, Huan'er reached out to take the bundle off the old woman's shoulder. "Madam, please put it down. Let Huan'er go and ask for it for you. You've never left this village in all these years. How can Huan'er let you go out alone?"
The old woman grabbed Huan'er's hand, stopping her, "Huan'er, don't be silly. Ruoxi has just woken up, and everything is still unstable. She can't see, and you need to stay and take care of her. Remember to give her her medicine later. I'll be fine, don't worry!"
"No, Huan'er won't let you go no matter what." Huan'er pouted, not letting go of the hand on her bundle even slightly.
Just as the two were struggling and neither was willing to let go, a woman's murmured voice, as if in a nightmare, suddenly came from the west room: "Who are you? Who are you? Who are you..."
Upon hearing this, the two of them immediately looked at each other in surprise. In a moment of panic, Huan'er suddenly let go of his hand and then ran quickly into the house.
Only then did the old woman seize the opportunity to sneak out the door...
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