Just then, a servant came upstairs. He had come specifically to open the door for Yi Junhao after seeing him return. The servant seemed to be holding a letter in his hand. As soon as he reached Yi Junhao's side, he respectfully handed over the letter and said, "Young master, there is a letter for you."
Afterwards, she quickly opened the door for Yi Junhao. Yi Junhao took it and read it in one go. Then he muttered, "Well, there are still some things to take care of in the south of the city. I'll come back to Xiangmanlou to meet up with the girl and go back to the west of the city after I've finished everything."
Coming to his senses, Yi Junhao asked the servant, "Do you know if the guest in the next room has returned tonight?"
"It's so late already, the guests should all be back to rest by now!" the waiter said, scratching his head and guessing.
After a slight hesitation, Yi Junhao instructed the servant beside him, "I have something to attend to and need to leave Xiangmanlou for a few days. I'm leaving a letter here now. Tomorrow, you can deliver it to the guest in the next room."
As Yi Junhao spoke, he walked to the desk, picked up a pen, left a letter, handed it to the servant, and rewarded him with a silver ingot.
Then, he went downstairs with the servant.
When the servant escorted him to the entrance of Xiangmanlou, Yi Junhao reminded him once again, "Remember, you must personally deliver this letter to that guest."
"Rest assured, young master, I will personally deliver the letter to that guest," the servant replied confidently.
Yi Junhao glanced at him, then looked up at Yi Shangyun's window on the second floor with lingering reluctance for a moment, thinking to himself, "Little girl, wait for me to come back." Only then did he turn and leave, disappearing into the vast morning mist…
No sooner had Yi Junhao left than Xuan Yuanhan, dressed in a white brocade robe with his black hair tied up, descended slowly from the third floor like a deity.
Cheng Liang led him directly to the top-tier guest room on the second floor. As if afraid of disturbing the sweet dreams of the person inside, he carefully and gently opened the door to Yi Shangyun's room.
Then, Xuanyuan Han slowly walked in, gazing at everything before him, lost in thought and silent, immersed in the aura that still lingered on his clothes...
The furnishings in the guest room were all those used in a young girl's boudoir, and all the items were of the highest quality, extremely luxurious.
The room was draped with light purple gauze curtains, creating a hazy, warm atmosphere. A morning breeze blew by, and the purple gauze curtains danced and fluttered with the gentle breeze blowing through the window.
Looking around, the room was filled with the finest sandalwood, its fragrance wafting through the air, creating a serene and beautiful atmosphere. The wooden furniture was intricately carved with various patterns, exuding a delicate and gentle charm characteristic of a young woman.
Near the window, there was a beautiful pearl bush planted in a porcelain pot.
Inside the window, a stack of fine Xuan paper lay on a rosewood desk, and several brushes of varying thicknesses sat in a brush holder beside the inkstone, seemingly suggesting that the person living in the room was a young lady from a scholarly family. A vase on the desk held a sprig of winter plum blossom, giving it an air of detachment and isolation.
After pausing and observing for a while, he slowly walked into the inner room, where there was a dressing table, a common feature in the homes of young women. On it was a bronze mirror with a rhombus pattern, a jewelry box with vermilion lacquer carvings of magpies and plum blossoms, and some delicate pearl and jade ornaments.
Gently lifting the beaded curtain adorned with tassels, the peony screen beside the couch immediately comes into view.
Behind the screen, a double-layered violet bed canopy, with an outer layer of silk and an inner layer of light gauze, hung on a sandalwood carved bed. Above, tassels swayed in the wind.
In a corner of the inner room near the window, rose soap was placed on the horizontal shelf of a tall washbasin stand, and a clean white silk scarf was neatly draped over the top of the shelf.
Everything here makes anyone staying in this room feel right at home, from the room design and furnishings to personal items and even the smallest details like cosmetics.
As Xuanyuan Han walked inside, his eyes carefully explored the surroundings.
Suddenly, his gaze fell on a neatly arranged dark-patterned brocade bundle placed on the bed.
Immediately, his deep, piercing eyes widened in surprise as he looked at her. He strode over to the bedside, lifted the hem of his robe, and sat down. Looking at the bundle in front of him, he wondered to himself, "Is this her luggage?"
After a slight hesitation, he slowly extended his large, well-defined hands and gently opened the bundle on the bed.
Suddenly, a set of lotus root pink dress that he knew all too well and a heavy red brocade cloak embroidered with a few white plum blossoms appeared.
On New Year's Eve, she was wearing this outfit when she had her first extremely intimate physical contact with him, which brought him mixed feelings of joy and sorrow.
Thinking of this, he gently stroked it again and again with one hand, as if he were carefully caressing the fair, delicate, and flawless face of a beautiful woman in his heart.
A moment later, he gently picked up the long tassel hairpin with two peach blossoms inside, held it in his hand and turned it gently while gazing at it with tender eyes.
Suddenly, every single moment from the beginning of their acquaintance, right up to the present, flooded back into her mind…
After a while, he regained his senses and suddenly frowned, clutching the long tassel hairpin with two peach blossoms in his hand tightly, holding the name "Cheng Liang".
Cheng Liang, who had been quietly waiting at the door, rushed into the room upon hearing the sound and respectfully bowed to the prince. "What are your orders, Your Highness?"
Upon seeing him enter, Xuan Yuanhan slowly rose and approached Cheng Liang, saying softly, "Last night in Wanjiao Pavilion, ostensibly you were looking for Yun'er, but in reality, you were having me personally verify the identities of Yu Niang one by one. Now it's clear that the woman who took Yun'er away must know about Yu Niang. But I don't understand, since you were certain that Yu Niang's safety wouldn't be a problem, how exactly did she disappear?"
Cheng Liang recalled, "To this day, I still have some questions. The people I had deployed inside and outside Wanjiao Pavilion were always keeping a close watch on her. But then one day, Yu Niang suddenly brought another girl to meet me, saying that the madam was keeping a closer eye on her and that a girl named Lanxiang would be helping her deliver messages. This girl Lanxiang did indeed help deliver messages a few times, but nothing went wrong. But just when I sent someone to deliver the portrait of the eldest prince of Beilie, Tuoba Ze, to Yu Niang, I suddenly discovered that she had disappeared."
"But was it that woman named Lanxiang who told you that Yu Niang was missing?" Xuan Yuanhan asked anxiously upon hearing this.
“That’s right,” Cheng Liang replied.
Xuanyuan Han anxiously followed up with, "Was the portrait of the eldest prince of Beilie, Tuoba Ze, ever given to that Lanxiang?"
Cheng Liang suddenly seemed to sense that something was amiss. "Because it was Yu Niang who personally introduced him, and she also helped pass on messages a few times later, so... I had someone give Tuoba Ze's portrait to Lan Xiang. But a few days after the portrait was sent out, Lan Xiang suddenly returned it. She said that Yu Niang was no longer in Wan Jiao Pavilion, and told us not to send her any more messages. When we asked her what she meant by Yu Niang being no longer in Wan Jiao Pavilion, she stammered and said she didn't know either, that was all she said."
Xuan Yuanhan suddenly seemed to understand. "It seems that Yu Niang was still in Wan Jiao Pavilion when Lan Xiang got the portrait of Tuoba Ze. She must have disappeared after Lan Xiang took the portrait. In other words, Lan Xiang must be lying. She must know where Yu Niang is and what happened. But she must have something she can't say, and her conscience is not completely dead. Otherwise, she wouldn't have returned the portrait of Tuoba Ze..."
As they were talking, Xuan Yuanhan suddenly remembered the woman who had taken Yi Shangyun away from Wanjiao Pavilion, and exclaimed in alarm, "Oh no! The woman who took Yun'er away last night must be that girl named Lanxiang. Could it be..."
Xuanyuan Han seemed hesitant to continue speaking after saying this much.
At this moment, Cheng Liang hurriedly bowed and said urgently, "Your Highness, I will immediately go to Wanjiao Pavilion to find the woman named Lanxiang."
However, Xuanyuan Han waved his hand and said thoughtfully, "Don't be anxious. I think Lanxiang won't harm Yun'er."
"How can Your Highness be so sure that Lanxiang taking Yi-guniang away won't harm her?" Cheng Liang asked anxiously.
However, Xuan Yuanhan calmly analyzed, "When Lanxiang learned that Yu Niang was missing, she still dared to risk coming to return Tuoba Ze's portrait without immediately turning her back on her. She must have genuine feelings for Yu Niang. Yun'er came to Wanjiao Pavilion precisely out of concern, hoping to find news of Yu Niang for Ling'er and her grandmother. However, instead of finding Yu Niang, she happened to run into Lanxiang, who was very close to Yu Niang. Lanxiang still has a conscience; how could she possibly harm the innocent Yun'er?"
Cheng Liang was still puzzled. "Then I don't understand. If that's the case, why did Lanxiang take Miss Yi out of Wanjiao Pavilion? Why not just say that Yu Niang is no longer in Wanjiao Pavilion and send her away? Where did she take Miss Yi?"
Suddenly, Xuan Yuanhan's gaze became extremely distant. With one hand behind his back, he stood tall and straight at the window of the inner room, looking at the thin mist rising from the riverbank as dawn broke. After a long silence, he suddenly spoke, "There are indeed too many conspiracies in this Wanjiao Pavilion. This time, I must completely destroy them and show no leniency. Yu Niang must be inside Wanjiao Pavilion. Lan Xiang took Yun'er away to protect her."
As soon as he finished speaking, Xuan Yuanhan withdrew his gaze, lowered his head, and slowly opened the fist that had been tightly clenched behind his back. Then he stared blankly at the long tassel hairpin with two peach blossoms that he was holding tightly in his hand...
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