Yangzhou
Xu Ruoyan felt that although the wound on her arm was very painful, it would not delay her journey, so she refused Pei Jue's suggestion to rest, packed her things and set off again.
"Madam, when did you first meet this Sun Yutao?"
Xu Ruoyan didn't expose his feigned indifference, and said, "I met him once when I went to the Sun residence to find Sun Yulin. We didn't exchange more than a few words, so I wouldn't say we know each other."
Her fingers unconsciously fiddled with the rough reins, her brows furrowing slightly.
She genuinely didn't know that Sun Yutao was Qi Feng's man, nor did she expect that Qi Feng would want to kill her now.
"Wait!" She suddenly looked up at Pei Jue, "Brother Yulin is in danger!"
To everyone's surprise, Pei Jue burst into laughter.
"What are you laughing at?" Xu Ruoyan was completely baffled.
Pei Juechao blinked and said, "Don't worry, I've already sent a message to Zhuying. He will take people to protect Young Master Sun."
Hearing that it was Zhu Ying who was protecting them, Xu Ruoyan finally felt relieved. Although both of them knew that the trip to Jiangnan was fraught with danger, they still didn't let Zhu Ying accompany them, as Pei Jue had more important matters to entrust to him.
"Qi Feng has made his move. When did he discover us?"
Pei Jue's smile gradually faded. He slowly shook his head: "I don't know. I thought I hid it well, but I didn't expect him to find out anyway."
As Xu Ruoyan pondered, she lowered her head slightly to avoid the low-hanging branches above.
Don't you think Qi Feng is a bit strange?
After asking, she realized that Pei Jue might not have seen Qi Feng since he came back. Just as she was about to dismiss the idea, she heard Pei Jue hum in response.
“I have never met him in person, but I once secretly went to the palace to see him. He did give me a different feeling than before, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on what was different.”
Just as I expected.
Xu Ruoyan closed her eyes wearily, feeling like her brain was about to explode.
She mentally listed all the existing information together, trying to string them together into a coherent whole.
The awkwardness she felt the moment she saw him was also something Pei Jue sensed; why was he targeting her when they had no grudge against each other...
A thought flashed through her mind.
She was stunned.
Pei Jue noticed out of the corner of his eye that Xu Ruoyan's body stiffened slightly, and thinking that her wound had torn open, he anxiously called out to her, "Madam?"
Xu Ruoyan stared intently at the road ahead.
If Qi Feng is also a time traveler, then all of this makes sense.
Had she already been targeted by him the moment she arrived? Or was Qi Feng's target never Pei Jue, but rather her...?
But even if they are both time travelers, why is Qi Feng so fixated on her? What good does it do him?
"lady?"
Pei Jue was almost frantic when he saw that Xu Ruoyan hadn't come to her senses for a long time. He jumped off his horse and grabbed the reins in Xu Ruoyan's hand.
Xu Ruoyan was startled by his actions, and when Pei Jue suddenly pulled the horse to a stop, she was jolted violently and almost fell off.
She was about to get angry when she turned her head and saw Pei Jue's worried gaze, and immediately shut up.
“I’m fine,” she sighed, “I just had some thoughts on my mind.”
"What came to mind?"
Xu Ruoyan fell silent again.
I definitely can't tell Pei Jue about being a time traveler. Putting aside whether he can believe it or not, I'd be lucky if he didn't chop off his own head on the spot.
"I must have misunderstood," she said vaguely, managing to get away with it from Pei Jue.
If that's really what she thinks, then Qi Feng's plans are perhaps far more extensive than they could have predicted. Now, the enemy is in the shadows while we are in the open, and the situation is becoming increasingly critical.
Having gone through such an ordeal, the two dared not linger and hurried towards Yangzhou. As a result, they arrived in Yangzhou half a day earlier than originally planned.
Pei Jue didn't plan to go directly to Song Mingyang's residence to meet him, so he found an inn to settle down first, wanting Xu Ruoyan to get some rest.
Xu Ruoyan was sitting at the table tending to her wounds when Pei Jue pushed the door open and came in.
"Is it serious?" He walked quickly to Xu Ruoyan's side, gently lifted her arm to examine her wound, his eyes filled with undisguised heartache.
"It's alright, I'm a doctor myself, how could I not know? It's not serious." She smiled at Pei Jue, pulled her arm back, and then rolled up her sleeve to cover the wound.
What are you planning to do?
Pei Jue turned his gaze away and pushed the snacks he had brought in front of her: "Have something to eat first, the kitchen will bring up the main course in a little while."
"It's rose cake!" Xu Ruoyan's eyes lit up immediately. She moved her chair forward, grabbed a piece, and stuffed it into her mouth.
Although they had enough money for the trip, they were in a hurry and rarely had time to stop and buy something to eat. Sometimes they even skipped meals in order to keep going. As a result, Xu Ruoyan was really starving.
As she chewed on the delicious rose cake, she thought that if she could, she would never want to eat those dry cakes again in her life.
Pei Jue smiled slightly at her and said, "Eat slowly, don't choke."
Xu Ruoyan took the tea he offered and swallowed a large mouthful with a rose cake. She finished three rose cakes before the burning sensation in her stomach subsided somewhat.
She only felt a little embarrassed after she had brushed the crumbs off her hands.
She coughed softly and secretly raised her eyes to steal a glance at Pei Jue.
Then Pei Jue caught him red-handed.
"Um, well..." She chuckled awkwardly and pushed the small plate in front of her toward Pei Jue. "It's really delicious, you should have one too."
Pei Jue chuckled through his nose, picked up a piece of cake, took a small bite, and chewed slowly: "It's really good, not inferior to the skills of the palace chefs."
Xu Ruoyan's face flushed involuntarily as she watched Pei Jue's elegant and reserved movements.
"Stop eating," she interrupted Pei Jue angrily, "tell me your plan first."
Pei Jue held up half a pancake and blinked innocently.
He didn't understand why his wife, who had been enjoying her meal just moments before, suddenly seemed a little unhappy.
He stared at the pancake in his hand for a long time, then silently put it down, and suddenly had a flash of inspiration.
Could it be that the lady is afraid that she will find her eating manners bad?
“So cute!” he exclaimed.
Xu Ruoyan was bewildered by his sudden question: "What's cute?"
Pei Jue pursed his lips and said, "Madam looks very cute when she eats. I don't mind at all."
Xu Ruoyan stared at him, completely stunned.
The next second, not only her cheeks, but her whole body was on fire.
She lunged at him and pinched Pei Jue's face hard, her eyes wide with anger: "What nonsense are you talking about!"
Pei Jue wasn't annoyed. He grabbed her hand, pulled it down, and wrapped it in his large hand: "I'm telling the truth. Madam is especially lovely."
As he said this, his thumb was still rubbing Xu Ruoyan's knuckles.
Xu Ruoyan's brain completely shut down.
Does this guy always start flirting with zero detectives? There wasn't a single hint!
She even forgot to pull her hand away, awkwardly turning her head away so that Pei Jue wouldn't see her blushing face.
"Speak properly, why are you resorting to physical violence?"
Her voice was so soft it was barely audible, like a mosquito's buzz.
Pei Jue gently brushed his thumb across Xu Ruoyan's tiger's mouth, and released her hand with a hint of lingering satisfaction.
"Let's visit Song Mingyang tomorrow."
"What are you planning to say to him?" Xu Ruoyan frowned. "Are you two on good terms?"
Pei Jue nodded: "We were very close when we were classmates, but after he took up a post in Yangzhou, we had less contact with each other."
"Then you still dare to meet him like this? Who knows if there's any affection left between you two?"
Pei Jue subtly moved his chair closer to Xu Ruoyan: "Since we've come this far, it means I'm prepared for the risks."
Xu Ruoyan was furious and slapped him: "Who told you to take the risk? I never said I wanted to take the risk with you!"
Pei Jue just smiled and looked at her without saying a word.
The two stared at each other for a long time before Xu Ruoyan finally gave in, crossing her arms and turning her head away.
What she just said was so unconvincing. Since she started following Pei Jue, hasn't every decision she made been a risk?
Xu Ruoyan was defeated and pursed her lips, unwilling to leave him.
Pei Jue quietly moved a little closer to her.
"I think Song Mingyang will definitely be willing to help us."
Hearing his certainty, Xu Ruoyan scoffed, "Do you think everyone else is stupid? You're lucky he didn't report you!"
Pei Jue shook his head: "Has Madam forgotten what we have?"
Xu Ruoyan reluctantly turned her head back slightly and looked at him sideways.
“The salt fields he manages earn him a lot of money every year, so he probably doesn’t want Pei Huai to find out.”
Xu Ruoyan repeated his words twice, then said, "This isn't enough, is it?"
Pei Jue patted her head very naturally: "Madam is too smart."
Xu Ruoyan was too lazy to argue with him, and just ruffled her messy hair a couple of times.
Pei Jue continued, "Actually, Song Mingyang had long harbored rebellious intentions, and he was waiting for an opportunity."
"Is he waiting too?" Xu Ruoyan glanced at him suspiciously. "With his power already so great, what opportunity does he need?"
Just then, there was a knock on the door three times. After receiving permission, the servants carrying food filed in and filled the table to the brim.
Xu Ruoyan unconsciously swallowed.
"Please eat first, Madam. There's no rush to talk."
Upon hearing Pei Jue's words, Xu Ruoyan picked up her utensils and began to eat heartily, completely forgetting her earlier embarrassment.
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