Chapter 178 Notes
Su Mingxuan took out a wire and easily unlocked the study door.
The three entered the study, which was pitch black. They could only vaguely make out the outlines of the furniture by the moonlight coming through the window.
"The hidden compartment is under the desk drawer!" Su Mingxuan lowered his voice, took the lead, walked to the desk, squatted down, and fumbled to open the hidden compartment.
Sure enough, there was a brocade box in the hidden compartment. Su Mingxuan took it out and opened it. Inside was a notebook, written in Ye's mother's handwriting.
"Found it!" Su Mingxuan said excitedly.
Just then, the study door was kicked open, and countless torches were lit, illuminating the entire room.
Master Su stood at the door with a group of servants, holding knives and clubs, his face ashen.
"So! You really are here!" Master Su roared. "You stupid son! How dare you conspire with outsiders to steal from my Su family!"
"I'm going to kill you all today!"
Ye Wanning's heart sank; she had been discovered after all.
"Father, please let us go!" Su Mingxuan stood in front of the two. "These things don't belong to the Su family. They are Miss Ye's mother's belongings and should be returned to her!"
"Bullshit!" Old Master Su roared, "My Su family raised you all these years, and you're siding with outsiders!"
"I don't have a son like you! Men, attack them all!"
The servants rushed forward, slashing at the three men with their swords and clubs.
"Wanning, take the notebook and go first!" Pei Zhi pushed Ye Wanning aside and blocked the doorway. "Young Master Su and I will stop them!"
"No! I can't leave you all!" Ye Wanning refused to leave.
"Listen to me!" Pei Zhi said firmly, "The notes are very important; we can't let Master Su get his hands on them!"
"You go out first, I'll be right there!"
Seeing Pei Zhi's determined gaze, Ye Wanning knew that now was not the time to be willful.
She gripped her notebook tightly, nodded, and said, "Be careful!" Then she turned and rushed out of the study, running towards the outside of the mansion.
Upon seeing this, Master Su roared, "Stop her! We can't let her take the notebook away!" Several servants hurriedly chased after her.
Pei Zhi and Su Mingxuan exchanged a glance and rushed forward to block the other servants.
Pei Zhi was skilled in martial arts, and these servants were no match for him.
Su Mingxuan hadn't practiced martial arts much, but he was familiar with the layout of the Su residence and could manage to hold his own.
Soon, the study was in chaos, with the sounds of clashing knives and sticks and shouts rising and falling.
Pei Zhi fought while keeping an eye on Su Mingxuan.
Seeing a servant raise a wooden stick and strike Su Mingxuan on the back, he rushed over and pushed Su Mingxuan away, but was hit on the arm by the stick himself.
"Lord Pei!" Su Mingxuan exclaimed.
Pei Zhi frowned, a sharp pain shooting through his arm, but he didn't stop moving, continuing to cover Su Mingxuan's escape.
"Young Master Su, you should leave quickly! I'll cover the rear!" Pei Zhi shouted.
"No, I can't leave you alone!" Su Mingxuan said.
"Stop talking nonsense!" Pei Zhi said while hitting her. "After you get out of here, go find Miss Ye immediately and protect her!"
Su Mingxuan understood Pei Zhi's meaning, gritted his teeth, turned around and rushed out of the study, chasing after Ye Wanning in the direction she had fled.
Pei Zhi breathed a sigh of relief when he saw him run far away, and continued to fight with the servants.
His arm was getting more and more painful, and his movements slowed down.
When Master Su saw Pei Zhi injured, he laughed heartily: "Pei Zhi, you've finally met your match! Let's see how long you can hold out!"
Pei Zhi sneered, said nothing, and simply swung his fist even harder.
He knew that Ye Wanning and Su Mingxuan were not completely safe.
Not long after, the sound of horses' hooves came from outside; it was the secret guards arranged by Pei Zhi arriving.
The guards stormed into the Su residence and quickly subdued all the servants.
Master Su looked at the servants lying on the ground, his face turned pale, and he collapsed to the ground.
Pei Zhi breathed a sigh of relief, clutched his injured arm, walked out of the study, and chased after them outside the mansion.
After Ye Wanning ran out of the Su residence, she ran towards the dilapidated temple outside the city—that was their agreed meeting point.
She stopped to catch her breath when she reached the entrance of the dilapidated temple. Turning around, she saw no pursuers and felt a little relieved.
She entered the dilapidated temple, which was pitch black inside, with only a pile of dry grass in the corner.
Sitting on the hay, she gripped her notebook tightly, her heart filled with worry: How are Pei Zhi and Su Mingxuan?
Not long after, footsteps could be heard outside.
Ye Wanning's heart tightened. She picked up a wooden stick beside her and stared warily at the door.
"Miss Ye, it's me!" Su Mingxuan's voice came.
Ye Wanning breathed a sigh of relief and put down the wooden stick: "Young Master Su, are you alright? Where is Pei Zhi?"
"I'm fine." Su Mingxuan walked in, panting heavily. "Lord Pei injured his arm while covering for us, but he should be here soon."
Ye Wanning's heart jumped: "Is he seriously injured?"
"It doesn't look like a minor injury; there's been a lot of blood loss," Su Mingxuan said.
Ye Wanning was extremely anxious and kept looking towards the door.
A while later, Pei Zhi appeared at the door.
He clutched his arm, his face pale, but a faint smile remained on his lips: "I'm fine, I'm sorry to have worried you."
"Pei Zhi!" Ye Wanning rushed over to support him. "How are you? Are you badly injured?"
"It's just a minor injury, it's nothing," Pei Zhi said with a smile, but the cold sweat on his forehead betrayed him.
Ye Wanning helped him sit on the hay, took out her medicine box, and slowly rolled up his sleeves.
There was a long bruise on his arm, the skin and flesh were broken, and the bloodstains had congealed on his clothes.
"You're injured like this, and you still say you're fine!" Ye Wanning's voice was choked with sobs as she took out wound medicine and gauze and carefully bandaged him up.
My heart clenched as my fingers touched his warm skin.
Seeing her flustered state, Pei Zhi felt a warmth in his heart and couldn't help but reach out and gently stroke her hair: "Don't cry, it doesn't hurt."
Ye Wanning didn't speak or stop him, but simply sped up the bandaging process, tears streaming down her face and dripping onto Pei Zhi's arm.
Su Mingxuan stood aside, watching the two being so intimate, and said softly, "Lord Pei's feelings for Miss Ye are genuine."
Ye Wanning's cheeks flushed slightly. She didn't reply, but quietly tightened the gauze, a strange emotion rising in her heart.
She knew that Pei Zhi's concern for her was genuine. He had even been injured while protecting her and the notebook, and she would never forget this kindness.
After bandaging him up, Ye Wanning took out a clean handkerchief and gently wiped the cold sweat from his forehead: "How are you now? Are you feeling better?"
"I'm feeling better," Pei Zhi said with a smile. "With you here, even the worst injuries don't hurt."
Ye Wanning's ears felt a little hot, so she quickly turned her head and pretended to look at the notes in her hand: "Let's take a look at my mother's notes, maybe there's something useful in them."
She opened the journal, and sure enough, it recorded how her mother had been forced by the Su family back then.
The mother wrote that when Master Su took a fancy to "The Secret of the Green Bag" and wanted to possess it for himself, he tricked her into going to the Su Mansion and locked her up.
She was forced to write a document agreeing to give away the book, and her mother had no choice but to comply in order to protect her young daughter.
The notes also contain many secret recipes that were not written in "Qing Nang Mi Yao", as well as resentment towards the Su family and longing for her.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com