Chapter 80 if·Yuan Shuyun (3)
I have no feelings for you.
These words kept echoing in Luo Yan's ears. She glared resentfully at the closed door and decided that leaving was the best option.
The reason was simple: she needed to find out where her grandmother, Changsheng, and Qingcao had gone. And Yufang City was quite large; Shuangyetang likely had a shop there, so she wouldn't be short of help.
But as soon as Luo Yan stepped out of the corridor, she suddenly felt a sense of lightness. After thinking for a moment, she remembered that she had left her sword and hidden weapons in Zhu Yun's room. She had taken them all off as soon as she entered because she thought they were too heavy, truly shooting herself in the foot.
Should we go back?
She had been talking until her throat was parched, but he remained unmoved. If she went to him again, he would mockingly accuse her of "offering herself to his bedmate."
Luo Yan hesitated for a moment, then silently postponed her plan to sneak away and went downstairs with light steps.
The night shift worker was dozing off at the cash register, and beside him, a young man in black sat by the window. She walked over and asked in a low voice, "Yizhou, were you waiting for me?"
Yizhou was the most taciturn of Zhu Yun's subordinates, often being ordered around to run errands for her. Unexpectedly, even though she had lost her memory, her jealousy remained strong.
The young man nodded stiffly, pointed to the bulging bundle, and then led the way.
Luo Yan lifted the bag, suspecting that she had bought at least ten outfits. She could also hear the clinking of jewelry. She could only call out to the person and give a polite smile: "It's a bit heavy."
Yizhou was too shy to look her in the eye, so he lowered his head and prepared to accept the gift, but when he caught a glimpse of the indigo robe, he quickly withdrew his hand and respectfully took his leave.
Her wrist suddenly felt empty, and she saw Zhu Yun chasing after her with the Floating Light Sword. He said, "You live in Tingxue Pavilion."
He was the only guest in the entire inn, and Tingxuexuan was two floors away from his room. Luo Yan casually asked, "Isn't the room next to yours empty too?"
Zhu Yun frowned: "Too close, I don't like it."
Luo Yan took a step to follow his pace.
She suddenly softened her tone, her voice gentle and sweet: "Cousin, please don't be angry. I will definitely be more careful in the future."
Zhu Yun's expression did not soften in the slightest, and it was impossible to tell whether he believed her or not.
Luo Yan bit her lip, a hint of disappointment in her voice: "Is my cousin planning to stop talking to me?"
The man beside her paused slightly, a hint of helplessness creeping into his voice: "No."
Luo Yan smiled happily at him: "That's good. I was just worried that my cousin would ignore me."
"Cousin, I will keep your secret."
Zhu Yun suddenly looked up.
Seeing his surprise, Luo Yan seemed to find it amusing, and the corners of her mouth lifted in a playful and lively way, but her expression remained completely innocent and pure: "It's the person behind you, cousin. Isn't that His Majesty?"
Zhu Yun's gaze suddenly became complicated.
Meeting his deep gaze, she said softly, "But don't worry, cousin, let's keep this a secret between us, known only to the two of us."
The shadows of the trees swayed, blocking out the moonlight, and the air seemed to stagnate between the two.
Luo Yan blinked her eyelashes lightly: "Cousin, staring at me like that makes me uneasy. Just now you told me to follow the rules, so what does this mean now?"
Zhu Yun immediately looked away and said in a low voice, "Excuse me."
Luo Yan couldn't help but smile slightly, lowering her eyes to hide the pleasure rising within them.
A gentle drizzle softly pattered on their faces and bodies. Suddenly, through the light mist, a dozen or so figures appeared to emerge from it.
"Cousin! Big brother!"
Zhu Zhaoyue's voice drifted from not far away with the drizzle.
In the vast darkness, Lan Hui and her family of four, accompanied by several servants, rode in on horseback. Several flames flickered, dispelling the darkness, and the light grew brighter as the figures approached.
Luo Yan breathed a sigh of relief without showing any emotion.
Upon seeing Luo Yan, Lan Hui spurred her horse even more anxiously and galloped to Luo Yan's side in no time.
Lan Hui nimbly dismounted and rushed forward to examine Luo Yan thoroughly.
"I was terrified! Commander Yuan said there were assassins in the woods, and Shenzhi escorted you away first. But your uncle and I waited and waited in the tent for a long time and you still didn't come. We thought something had happened to you again!"
Lan Hui choked up as she finished speaking: "It's all my aunt's fault."
Luo Yan felt a pang of sadness, thinking that Lan Hui was blaming herself for bringing her out and causing her to encounter the assassin. She quickly comforted her, "Aunt, you're too kind. It just rained along the way, and my cousin and I took shelter from the rain, which is why we were late."
As she spoke, she turned to look at Zhu Yun, her eyes, brimming with tears, filled with pleading.
But almost as soon as Luo Yan gave him a look, he turned his eyes away to avoid eye contact, his actions decisive.
This means they're not willing to help her.
Seeing Lan Hui's guilty expression, Luo Yan felt a pang of pity. After all, Lan Hui was the only person in the world who truly cared for her. In Luo Yan's eyes, Lan Hui was her only blood relative.
Just as she was about to speak again to comfort him, she heard the man beside her give a soft "hmm," his voice as clear as a mountain spring: "What my cousin said is true, Aunt doesn't need to worry."
Luo Yan's eyes curved like crescent moons reflected in the Zhu River as she silently said to him, "Thank you, cousin."
As expected, Zhu Yun ignored her.
At this moment, several people followed behind, and the servants held torches, instantly illuminating the small area.
Zhu Yun's clothes were pure white, and in the firelight, the blood splattered on the front of his clothes looked even more glaring. Seeing his elder brother covered in blood, Zhu Mingxun exclaimed in surprise, "Brother, you fought with the assassins?"
Uncle Zhu Wen turned around and exclaimed in surprise, "Shenzhi, you..."
In everyone's eyes, Zhu Yun was polite and sensible from a young age, and as he grew up, he became even more exceptionally talented, upright and pure, like flawless white jade. Zhu Wen and the others were not unaware that he practiced martial arts, but when they actually saw him kill and stained with blood, they were still horrified, as if he had committed a heinous crime of betraying his master and ancestors.
Zhu Yun's eyes darkened, and he gave a soft "hmm," not intending to explain to Zhu Wen and the others.
He didn't care what others thought of him, but if this got back to his grandmother, he would be in trouble.
Thinking of this, Zhu Yun's sharp eyebrows furrowed, and his expression became serious.
When Zhu Wen and the others saw his expression, it felt like a chilling rain on their bodies, and they were jolted back to their senses.
Zhu Yun was not only their relative, but also a powerful minister highly regarded by the emperor. He rose to the position of Grand Chancellor at a young age, wielding the power of life and death. So what if he killed someone with his own hands now?
Their words were insubordination.
Zhu Wen forced a smile, his heart pounding, trying to smooth things over, when a clear, melodious female voice suddenly rang out:
“My cousin is a righteous man. He happened to be passing by and saw an assassin trying to hurt me, so he fought back. Swords have no eyes, and death and injury are inevitable. The most important thing is to avoid harming innocent people.”
As soon as he finished speaking, everyone present was stunned. Zhu Zhaoyue, who was the most expressive of her emotions, stared wide-eyed in surprise.
It seemed no one expected that the usually gentle Luo Yan would defend someone and utter such sharp words. Not only did she not deliberately conceal Zhu Yun's murder, but she also directly acknowledged it as a righteous act of eliminating evil.
Zhu Yun turned his head slightly to look at Luo Yan, his eyes deep and unfathomable, his upright profile flickering in and out of focus under the swaying flames.
Luo Yan noticed him looking over out of the corner of her eye, and turned to look at him as well. Her gentle smile contained both tender comfort and a hint of pride, but these two contradictory expressions blended together gracefully and subtly on her face.
Suddenly, the woods fell silent, save for the gentle patter of rain on the green leaves. Lan Hui was the first to react, smiling broadly, "Shenzhi, thank you so much this time. Your aunt will definitely thank you properly when we get back."
Zhu Yun's expression did not soften because of Lan Hui and the others' attitude; he merely nodded slightly in response.
"By the way, cousin, didn't you say you were going to fish by the stream? Why are you here in the crabapple forest?"
Zhu Zhaoyue asked in confusion.
Luo Yan's expression remained unchanged as she calmly explained, "I was originally going, but I heard that Commander Yuan would be going to Houqin Forest this afternoon. I haven't returned the outer robe he lent me at the last lotus banquet, so I thought I'd take this opportunity to return it to him."
After saying that, she secretly turned to look at Zhu Yun. He was perceptive; her words might deceive Zhu Zhaoyue and Lan Hui, but they might not be able to deceive him.
The man's expression was indifferent, and his gaze never lingered on them for a moment, as if he wasn't listening to them at all.
Lan Hui's expression turned somewhat serious: "Luo Yan, has Master Cheng sent you a letter?"
Luo Yan showed a perfectly timed look of confusion: "Master Cheng did indeed want to meet me before, but it would be against the rules for me to meet him in private, so I refused. But he seemed particularly insistent, and I don't know why... By the way, why did Aunt suddenly ask about this?"
"He was injured by a wild beast by the stream today and nearly died, but fortunately he encountered the Imperial Guards on patrol."
Luo Yan asked instinctively, "What?"
Lan Hui's voice tinged with anger, "He said he went to the stream because he had an appointment with you, but he clearly wants to pin this accident on you!"
Luo Yan said innocently and helplessly, "Aunt, I did not make an appointment with him."
"Your aunt believes in you."
Lan Hui patted Luo Yan's hand reassuringly, but her face remained ashen.
The thought of Luo Yan marrying an old man her grandfather's age, and her stepson already eyeing her even before the marriage, made Lan Hui both angry and sad. Cheng Yi was already in his early forties, while Luo Yan was only eighteen. How could she possibly win?
Zhu Zhaoyue chimed in, "In my opinion, this Master Cheng heard that you were going to the stream, so he followed you, only to encounter a wild beast instead. But you don't need to worry, cousin. The Yunyi Guards have already determined that you never sent him a letter. He really is something, how could he utter such a flimsy lie?"
Zhu Zhaoyue kept nagging on Luo Yan's behalf, but Luo Yan wouldn't listen to a word she said.
That person clearly knew she was going to the Crab Grove, otherwise he wouldn't have sent his shadow guards.
But if she knew the stream was a trap, why would she still let wild beasts go to the stream?
Zhu Yun's dark eyes were filled with anger as she gritted her teeth and said, "Who is her husband after all?"
The subordinate holding the secret letter looked up blankly and saw the young master break the corner of the table, wood chips falling everywhere. Immediately afterward, the handsome young man stepped out of the window and flew away like a swallow towards another figure.
At the entrance to the bamboo forest, Luo Yan hesitated, gazing at the scattered bones on the ground.
Although it wouldn't hurt her once she went inside, it was no different from a haunted house, and she just happened to be terrified of ghosts.
After thinking it over, she decided to back down. Just as she was about to leave, her back bumped into a hard chest, and her scream was instantly caught in her throat.
Cold, long fingers gripped the back of her neck, the calloused tiger's mouth dangerously caressing her delicate skin. In her ear, the boy's voice, tinged with laughter, sounded sinister.
He said, "Trying to run?"
"My future—"
"wife."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
