As soon as Wei Dongchen entered the courtyard, he saw Qingying sitting on the swing with a bitter and resentful expression. She kicked the dust with her feet, sending it flying onto the white deer lying in the sun in front of her. The little cat didn't even try to dodge, and just lay there lazily, only occasionally shaking its head to shake off the dust piled on its head, but it couldn't shake it off completely, and its white fur turned brown.
"What's wrong? Who upset our second daughter?"
When Qingying saw him, her face lit up with joy: "You've come! Quickly, Yu Yue, please take a seat!"
"So happy to see me?" Wei Dongchen grinned from ear to ear, and walked behind her to help her push the swing.
"Of course, the young master is handsome, who wouldn't be happy to see him?"
"Oh, you're being so sweet-talking today, is there something you want from me?"
Qingying touched her nose somewhat guiltily, "It's not a difficult thing..."
Yu Yue brought over a chair, and Wei Dongchen walked to the opposite side of Qingying, sat down, leaned back, crossed his legs, and lazily propped his forehead with one hand. "So, what do you want me to do for you?"
Qingying stopped the swing, looked at him seriously and said, "Could you lend me another person, preferably someone with good lightness skills?"
"do what?"
"I want to investigate something, but it requires climbing onto rooftops or scaling courtyard walls. However, you know I don't know martial arts, so..."
"Understood, this is simple. Although I, the young master, have no military power, I can still command a few subordinates who are skilled in martial arts."
"Then thank you very much, Your Highness." Qingying smiled, her eyes crinkling.
However, she couldn't smile when she saw Wei Dongchen at the alley entrance.
At this moment, she was dressed in all black, staring at Wei Dongchen, who was dressed similarly.
"Why are you here? Where's the person I asked you to borrow?"
Wei Dongchen said, "It's not appropriate for too many people to be involved in petty theft. I, the young master, am enough."
"Who's stealing chickens or dogs? I'm doing something serious!"
"Wearing night clothes for serious business?"
Is there a problem?
"Uh...no problem, as long as you like it."
Qingying glanced at him.
I thought to myself: Oh well, being alone is better than being alone.
She pulled Wei Dongchen into the alley, and when they reached the Liu family's gate, she made a shushing gesture, then pointed to the courtyard and made a leaping motion with her hands.
Wei Dongchen understood, bent down and picked her up around the waist, whispering in her ear, "Hold on tight."
Qingying frowned, unsure if he was taking advantage of her, but obediently wrapped her arms around his neck.
Wei Dongchen found a good spot outside the courtyard wall, stepped on a protruding stone at the base of the wall, and with a light leap, he carried her up the courtyard wall. Then, with a few more steps, he jumped onto the roof.
There was only a bare tree in the Liu family's courtyard, its leaves all gone, clearly not a place to hide. The roof was covered in snow, and Qingying slipped as soon as she landed, clinging tightly to Wei Dongchen.
She was too nervous to notice the man's upturned smirk.
As dusk fell and night began to fall, the lights were lit inside the Liu family's house.
Wei Dongchen helped her squat down slowly, then used one hand to gently brush away the snow, revealing the black tiles underneath, and carefully lifted them off.
You can glimpse the inside of the house by removing four tiles.
Inside the house, an old woman sat on a low couch, with a girl of about seventeen or eighteen sitting beside her. Upon closer inspection, one could see a small, red birthmark the size of a palm on the girl's left cheek.
The woman stared blankly ahead, but her hands moved with practiced skill as she picked out medicinal herbs. The girl then put the herbs she had picked out into a stone mortar and crushed them into powder.
"Yan'er, how much more is needed?"
"Almost done, Mother. It's getting late. Go and rest after you finish this basket."
There weren't many medicinal herbs left in the winnowing basket, so the woman nodded and smiled, "Once this batch of herbs is sold, it will be enough for your dowry. This time, your mother will definitely find you a good family."
"Mother, I don't want to get married. I want to stay by your side for the rest of my life."
"What nonsense are you talking about? What woman doesn't get married?" the old woman scolded, but her tone was soft and gentle, without any threat.
The girl smiled and said, "What? Does Mother dislike me?"
"How could I? Yan'er is my precious darling, I cherish her so much, how could I possibly dislike her?"
"Then why are you still urging me to get married?"
"I'm afraid that after I'm gone, I'll leave you all alone in this world, all lonely and helpless, with no one to take care of you."
"Pah, pah, pah! Mother is in good health and will live to be a hundred years old. Don't say such unlucky things."
"Alright, alright, Mother won't say anymore." The old woman smiled helplessly yet affectionately.
What a beautiful scene of a loving mother and filial daughter! Qingying couldn't help but feel a little envious.
Wei Dongchen noticed her emotional fluctuation and patted her head reassuringly.
Qingying gestured for him to put the tiles back in place, and then the two of them flew down from the roof.
Once outside the alley, Wei Dongchen asked, "Who was that just now?"
Qingying frowned and said, "That old woman called her Yan'er, which means she is Liu Yan, but the A-Yan I know doesn't look like this... Could it be that they are not the same person at all?"
However, after following her for so many days, she had indeed seen Ayan frequently entering and leaving that courtyard, and the voice of that Yan'er just now was exactly the same as the voice of the Ayan she knew.
Which face is the real Ayan?
If the woman she just saw was Ah Yan's true appearance, then what was her purpose in approaching Liu Chengfeng with a disguise?
"Wait, I think I missed something..." Qingying pulled Wei Dongchen back.
Wei Dongchen didn't ask why, and just let her lead him forward.
As they walked, Qingying suddenly stopped, grabbed him, and slipped into a side alley.
Before he could even ask, Qingying covered his mouth, making a shushing gesture, and then leaned slightly out to the side.
Not far away, the gate to the Liu family's courtyard opened, and the girl with the birthmark on her face walked out. Qingying quickly withdrew her outstretched body, subconsciously shrinking back and pressing herself against the wall.
The fit was so perfect that Wei Dongchen gasped, his heart skipping a beat.
The alluring scent of orchids emanating from the girl in front of him rushed into his nostrils. She turned her head and stared warily at the alleyway, her cheek less than a finger's width away from his neck, forcing him to tilt his head back.
His body grew hotter and hotter, and his heart pounded like a galloping horse, almost leaping out of his chest. He didn't even dare to look at her anymore, pursed his lips, closed his eyes, and his fingers around her waist trembled slightly.
Qingying was completely oblivious to the strangeness of the person in front of her. At this moment, her attention was entirely on the woman who was gradually approaching, and she was afraid of being discovered.
Fortunately, Liu Yan was in a hurry, as if she had something urgent to attend to, and passed by the alleyway next to them without looking to the side, not noticing the two people hiding in the corner at all.
Once she was out of sight, Qingying finally breathed a sigh of relief, released her hand from Wei Dongchen's, and whispered, "She's gone far away, let's hurry and follow her to see."
After speaking, she suddenly noticed that her palms were damp and sticky, and paused for a moment, "You..."
She looked at Wei Dongchen in astonishment, "Why are you bleeding?"
"N-nothing... I'm just a little feverish." Wei Dongchen hurriedly wiped his nose with his sleeve, then took out his handkerchief to wipe the blood off her hands.
"Aren't we supposed to keep up with her? Let's go." This time, Wei Dongchen took the lead and pulled her along.
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