Chapter 85 if·Yuan Shuyun (8)
The two stayed in Long County for half a month, inviting Liu Changsheng to drink tea, go boating on the lake, and admire the flowers every day, saying that they wanted to repay his kindness in lending them an umbrella.
The excuse was really far-fetched, but Liu Changsheng secretly grumbled to himself and still agreed amicably, simply because Miss Luo's husband always hid behind her and threatened her with his mouth.
Would he dare refuse?
Furthermore, Long County was a prosperous place, and Liu Changsheng had seen many wealthy merchants who traveled with throngs of servants, unlike this young couple who seemed so down-to-earth.
At first, he suspected that the two had ulterior motives, but then he thought that he was just a worthless person and no one would care even if he died on the street tomorrow, so he simply stopped caring and just ate and drank to his heart's content.
Of course, the main problem is that we can't control it.
Young Master Zhu was tall and straight, with a sword at his waist. With a flick of his finger, a man in black would appear silently. He seemed more like a martial artist than a wealthy merchant.
Miss Luo was born delicate and pretty, but her jewelry was made of hidden weapons. She also loved playing with slingshots and was an expert archer.
As soon as he finished speaking, Luo Yan felt the ground beneath her feet tremble slightly.
How could this be? She clearly...
Suddenly, the figures of men in black riding horses appeared not far away. They were all masked, but their eyes were fixed on Luo Yan.
Yuan Ling gestured for Luo Yan to take a few steps back, then deftly drew his sword from his waist and went to meet her.
He instantly engaged the men in black. There were about ten men in black who came. Yuan Ling was skilled in martial arts and managed to defend against all those who wanted to attack Luo Yan without leaving any gaps.
To avoid being discovered, she tied her horse a mile away to avoid being noticed, and Yuan Ling tacitly did the same, so she can't ride away now.
A whooshing sound came from beside her ear, and the sunlight reflected off the silver arrowheads stung her eyes. Luo Yan instinctively tried to dodge, but a figure suddenly appeared in front of her, slashing the arrow in two with his sword.
The man was tall and wiry, his sleek silver-white riding clothes with bamboo embroidery clearly outlining his figure. His wrist guards were tightly fastened, revealing a string of black jade beads that he usually kept hidden in his sleeves and never showed to anyone.
Luo Yan paused for a moment, "Cousin."
Zhu Yun arrived so quickly. Although he sent people to protect him secretly, it was still too fast.
She reached out slightly and grabbed the belt around his waist.
As if by unspoken agreement, he accepted her touch much more readily this time, unlike before when he was stiff. He didn't know if it was because he was used to it or if he had anticipated that she would take the opportunity to touch him inappropriately.
The men Zhu Yun brought also joined the battle, but they were clearly not as skilled as Yuan Ling and struggled to parry.
The leader of the men in black broke through Yuan Ling's defenses, charged straight at Luo Yan.
Zhu Yun shielded Luo Yan behind him with his unhandled sword, while using his other hand to twirl the sword and block the killing blow.
With a flash of silver light, the rope snapped, and the smooth, rounded pieces of black jade, as if freed from their restraints, tumbled to the ground.
Luo Yan instinctively grabbed one of them.
The man before him seemed to pause for a moment, but in the next instant, he swung his sword without restraint. In a flash, he pressed the sword against the enemy's throat, making a fluid stroke as if wielding an ink brush, and blood spurted out.
Luo Yan was shielded behind him, but a few drops of blood still inevitably splattered onto her cheeks.
It's hot and humid.
Luo Yan tightened her grip on the beads in her hand.
She had never seen Zhu Yun so ruthless. Last time, he defended himself alone, but today he disregarded everything and launched a deadly attack.
A gentleman who was always calm and respectful of etiquette committed murder.
A loud bang exploded in the sky, and the golden auspicious cloud pattern almost blended into the twilight.
It was a signal for the Yunyi Guard to be summoned.
The men in black who were blocked by Zhu Yun and Yuan Ling were also injured. When Yuan Ling gave the signal, they quickly grabbed horses and fled.
Only a few corpses remained on the ground, along with a pool of blood.
The surroundings fell silent. Zhu Yun remained motionless, his breathing heavy, his face slightly lowered, it was unclear whether he was looking at the ground or at the scattered bracelets.
Luo Yan walked up to him.
His silver robes were stained with a lot of blood, even the hem was stained with a few drops of blood, and his face, which was as handsome as snow on a high mountain, was also stained with splattered blood, like white jade stained with filth.
But his face remained ashen, as if he were completely oblivious. His sword-like eyebrows were heavily lowered, making his dark eyes appear even more unfathomable and cold. He suppressed an impulse in his eyes and stared intently at Luo Yan.
Luo Yan carefully put away the bead she had instinctively caught, then took out an embroidered handkerchief from her sleeve and gently pressed it against his cheek.
A corner of the white brocade was embroidered with pale yellow forsythia, which was instantly stained with bright red.
The man's long, drooping eyelashes trembled slightly, but surprisingly he did not look away.
Luo Yan wiped the bloodstains carefully, making sure they were completely removed, revealing her originally flawless white face.
Throughout the entire process, Zhu Yun simply lowered his eyelashes and stared at her, neither scolding her nor reaching out to stop her, silently watching her wipe his face clean little by little with her embroidered handkerchief.
It wasn't until Luo Yan reached down to wipe his neck that he raised his hand and grabbed her wrist.
His wrist, which had been adorned with a string of black jade beads, was now bare. His Adam's apple bobbed, and his thin lips parted slightly: "Stop rubbing."
Luo Yan looked up and met his gaze, preparing to pull her wrist away.
His long, slender fingers tightened around her wrist.
"cousin?"
He released his grip again and took the handkerchief away.
The moment the handkerchief touched Luo Yan's cheek, she froze, staring in surprise as the man lowered his eyes and gently wiped her cheek clean, just as she had just done.
The amount of blood splattered on Luo Yan's face was very small, almost negligible, and was wiped away in just a couple of strokes.
She instinctively reached for the handkerchief, but saw him turn his wrist.
"It's dirty, I'll wash it and return it to you."
His voice became hoarse as he tucked the blood-stained handkerchief into his hidden pocket.
Luo Yan paused.
"Miss Luo." Yuan Ling's voice suddenly came from beside her.
Yuan Ling picked up the sandalwood box that had been scattered during the fight, as well as his black outer robe that had fallen on the sandy ground, casually put them back into the box, and closed the lid.
"My outer robe is dirty again, could you please wash it for me again?"
He took a few steps closer and handed her the sandalwood box. As Luo Yan reached out to take it, she heard him lower his voice.
"Give me your things along with this."
Luo Yan gave him a look, indicating that she understood.
Yuan Ling suddenly smiled, his dark eyes shining, and turned to look at Zhu Yun.
"Lord Zhu, the assassin's arrival is suspicious and may endanger His Majesty's safety. Please excuse me."
The Yunyi Guards also arrived at this time.
Zhu Yun's expression was inscrutable, and he only said, "Commander Yuan is too polite."
A hint of amusement flashed across Yuan Ling's face. After agreeing, he led the Yunyi Guards, who had just arrived, to investigate the area.
The crowd dispersed, and Zhu Yun turned to Luo Yan, "I'll see you off."
"etc."
Zhu Yun paused for a moment.
Suddenly, Luo Yan squatted down and picked up the scattered black jade beads. The dark black jade gathered in her palm, making her skin look even more like jade.
Before Zhu Yun could react, two hands suddenly reached out in front of her, each hand holding a round, dark jade bead. Her sleeves moved up slightly, revealing a section of her fair wrist.
She held the beads in her hands, her beautiful eyes even brighter than the black jade in them. "Cousin, your bracelet."
Zhu Yun stared at the scattered beads, listening to Luo Yan continue, "This is important to you, isn't it? I've picked it up for you, so don't be upset."
Black jade is warm and gentle, like the luster of a gentleman. When he was eight years old, his father obtained a fine piece of jade and personally crafted it for him. This was to instill in him the virtues of a gentleman and the principles of propriety. Greed, anger, and delusion are all delusions. Whether he succeeded was the most important thing in his parents' eyes. Even his grandmother never asked him if he was happy.
Seeing his silence, Luo Yan held the beads forward even further.
Zhu Yun raised his eyes, but Luo Yan couldn't understand his expression. The thick fog that had gathered in his eyes had dissipated at some point, and the fading sunlight shone back into his dark eyes.
He raised his hand, which was hanging by his side, to take the bead.
Luo Yan suddenly tightened her grip.
She raised her lips, revealing her pearly white teeth, and a hint of lightness flashed in her bright eyes. "My cousin's bracelet broke because of me. How could he possibly string it back together himself? It's only proper that I string it back together for him. I was just careless."
Zhu Yun pursed her lips and remained silent, letting her put the loose beads into her purse.
Luo Yan continued, "Cousin, my horse is a mile away, shall we go there?"
"Um."
Zhu Yun whispered a few instructions to his subordinates, who then left to carry out their orders before he stepped outside.
It was getting slightly dark, and the forest was even darker. The two walked for a mile before finally arriving at the place where Luo Yan had tied up her horse.
Luo Yan untied the reins from the tree and mounted her horse. Zhu Yun had come on horseback, but since there was only one horse available, he had led it on foot. Now, he also mounted his horse with ease.
Luo Yan walked ahead, while he rode his horse a step behind.
Neither of them spoke.
Luo Yan wasn't unaware of Zhu Yun's silence. Although he was usually quiet and sparing with his words, he was different now.
She recalled his ruthless killing move and the suppressed expression on his face after he killed the man.
A bolt of lightning suddenly cleaved the dark blue sky, followed by a deafening clap of thunder. The forest was instantly illuminated as if it were daytime, and then large raindrops began to fall.
Luo Yan's snow-blue riding outfit instantly blotted out water droplets, blooming brilliantly.
"Cousin, it's raining, let's hurry back..."
Before he could finish speaking, Zhu Yun suddenly said, "There's a cave ahead. Let's take shelter there for a while."
It's at least a quarter of an hour's walk from here to the camp. If we rush back in the rain, we'll definitely get soaked. It's better to take shelter in the cave than to rush back in the rain.
Led by Zhu Yun, Luo Yan soon found the cave he had mentioned.
When they entered the cave, their clothes were already half wet.
Several large stones were placed in the cave, and in the center there was a pile of dry branches with traces of fire. A flint was also lying nearby, indicating that the palace servants who were guarding and working on Yue Mountain had also taken shelter from the rain here.
Zhu Yun quickly started a fire with flint.
Luo Yan gripped the dagger at her waist and walked deeper into the cave.
The cave was quite large, and it wasn't impossible for someone to be hiding in the gaps within it. She couldn't feel at ease until she found out the truth.
The cave was winding and had many hidden crevices. Luo Yan explored them one by one. The innermost crevice was deep and secluded, and it took her a lot of effort to find it.
When she returned, Zhu Yun had already started the fire.
He sat on a large rock, the firelight casting flickering shadows on his handsome face. The pristine green bamboo on his silver riding attire was stained with splattered blood, more glaring than the fire. He was always meticulous about cleanliness, yet he didn't even bother with a cursory treatment, simply staring at the burning flames, lost in thought.
Luo Yan sat down on the large rock opposite him, rested her chin on her hand on her knee, and looked at him with a bright smile, asking, "Cousin, have you been here before?"
"It was found during a previous hunt."
Luo Yan drew out an "Oh," then suddenly changed the subject and asked, "So, cousin, you've also taken shelter from the rain in the cave with other young ladies before?"
"No."
Luo Yan smiled, her eyes crinkling slightly: "So, cousin only ever sheltered from the rain with me?"
A gust of wind carrying rain blew into the cave, and the fire burning from the pile of branches flickered. Zhu Yun looked up, and the flames in her eyes were reflected in Luo Yan's eyes through her long, dark eyelashes.
Yes, only you.
Luo Yan guessed that although the world in the book restarted for some reason and everything followed the plot, the traces she left behind were engraved in everyone's subconscious.
I can't remember it, but it's always there.
Zhu Yun called her back to her senses: "The people in Qingyuan Village have been settled. Where do you plan to go next?"
Luo Yan hesitated before asking, "Can we go to Luoxia Manor?"
In the original book, Zhu Yun never revealed his identity, meaning that neither the Shangguan family nor the Jun family knew of his existence. However, Jun Lan treated her extremely well, and she actually missed them somewhat.
“Sure,” Zhu Yun said calmly. “To me, they are no different from Liu Changsheng.”
Luo Yan nodded: "I didn't dare to mention it before because I was afraid you would feel uncomfortable. Since you don't mind, then go ahead. One of us has to be comfortable, right?"
He gave me a meaningful look: "Got it, tonight I'll make sure you're both comfortable."
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