37 Find Her
If you give her the freedom she wants
Yan Qizheng smiled bitterly in silence.
It's not that he doesn't care whether she comes back or not, nor does it mean that he doesn't want to live with her, but everything doesn't depend on him at all.
Their active and passive roles in this marriage have been misunderstood by everyone since their wedding. Yan Qizheng doesn't want to lie to his mother, but if he reveals the whole story of his and Ziyan's marriage, it will inevitably cause an uproar between the two families.
"Mother," Yan Qizheng could only half-kneel before her, full of apology. "I tried my best, but some things are truly difficult to change."
He tried hard, but unfortunately she still couldn't like him.
The same words, however, had the opposite meaning to Mrs. Yan - her son had tried hard, but unfortunately he still couldn't like the girl from the Wei family.
Mrs. Yan wanted to persuade him again, but seeing that her son seemed sad, she paused for a moment and held back.
"You can handle your own affairs." Madam Yan stood up and instructed the maid beside her, "Xing'er, you stay and serve the eldest master for the time being."
Yan Qizhen also stood up to see Madam Yan out, then called Xu Ji over and asked about the conditions of the three maids.
Fortunately, the doctor had already examined him and confirmed that his injuries weren't serious. He needed bed rest for about ten days to half a month. Yan Qi nodded and was about to go back inside when Xu Ji stopped him. "Master, go check on Bai'er. He's been cooped up in the study for too long, and he's been barking non-stop."
Leng Xiang usually takes better care of it, but today she didn't take care of it, fearing it might be hungry.
Yan Qizheng went to the study to feed Bai'er, then carried him back inside. Bai'er, sated and full, started running around as soon as he touched the ground. Yan Qizheng ignored him, staring intently at the chaise longue.
The scene before my eyes flashed back to when I woke up this morning and saw her sleeping curled up on the couch, her face pressed against the edge, half of her arm hanging down, her posture not looking comfortable...
Bai'er called out from the inner room. Yan Qi was walking in and his eyes fell on the somewhat empty dressing table where Bai'er was squatting.
The pile of things that had originally been filled was now half gone, and among the remaining boxes, a small red brocade box looked very familiar. Yan Qizheng slowly stepped forward, pushed aside Bai Er's feet, grabbed the box, and slowly opened it.
She rushed to get it to her on Chinese Valentine's Day, and not a single hairpin was missing...
Yan Qi was tightening his fingers, feeling a sense of astringency. Bai'er was meowing and howling in his ear again, making him feel irritated.
"Be quiet, or I'll—" His voice stopped abruptly, and the rest of the words "I'll lock you up back" were all swallowed back into his mouth.
He remembered that time, when she went back home, Bai Er always loved to stay on the bed in the bedroom and howl loudly, just like now...
"Is it your cat?"
"I didn't even know you had a cat."
"Is it fierce?"
"Be gentle, don't make it anxious."
......
The brief moment of tenderness softened Yan Qizheng's expression. He stepped forward, gently picked up Bai Er, and rubbed his head soothingly...
"Master," Xing'er said, after she had tidied up the chaise longue, holding a stack of papers in her hand, "I just found this under the pillow."
Yan Qizheng recognized it as the letter paper from his study at a glance.
He took it and unfolded it quickly, and the first line of words "Yan Qizhen, you disgusting bastard" jumped into his eyes.
Yan Qizheng's eyelids twitched slightly, and he moved to a brighter spot. Several sheets of paper were covered in words that cursed him. He didn't need to guess who wrote them.
He recounted his hateful, despicable, and shameless deeds. He stared at the last two sentences, "You're even more annoying than when you were a child," and "No matter who I like, I can never like you," and read them over and over again...
The wine Xu Ji found wasn't as good as the "Luo Fu Chun" from Qingfeng Pavilion. It left a bitter taste in his mouth, and he couldn't quite recapture the original flavor. However, alcohol was relaxing, allowing his mind to wander to happy memories. All that came to mind were the same faces, each with a different smile...
There was the smirk of secretly tricking Wu Guanyi, the hearty laughter of playing the pipa, and the silly smile of being drunk and unconscious...
Every smile and frown was like a hook brewing in the wine, drilling deeper and deeper into Yan Qizhen's memory.
He remembered that when he was ten years old, his mother told him that she had arranged a marriage for him. The other party was Wei Taizhong's only daughter, whose maiden name was Zi Yan.
Not long after that, he saw her for the first time in the garden of the mansion.
A little girl, who knew nothing but chasing butterflies among the flowers, was not at all shy about this stranger and called out to him in a clear voice, "Brother, come help me catch butterflies!"
Later, when she learned his name, she called him "Brother Yan".
Of course he couldn't accompany her to catch butterflies.
At that time, he couldn't say he liked this childish little girl, nor did he dislike her. He just felt that she was different from the future wife he had imagined.
She is never quiet for a moment and likes to play with others, but she is also domineering and unreasonable.
Seeing that he ignored her, she went to find Qizhu. She was two years older than Qizhu, but when they fought over something, she refused to give in at all. When she couldn't get it, she would run to her mother and cry and complain.
He never understood why his mother loved this girl so much, and he often thought that he had silently accepted this marriage because his mother liked her.
By the time he was seventeen, the little girl had grown into a thirteen-year-old, and she had probably learned about her "fiancé" and had become somewhat reserved, and began to avoid him intentionally or unintentionally.
At that time, he still had no obvious hatred for her. He just felt that she had become a little more educated and well-mannered, and had a little bit of the shadow of his ideal wife.
If he hadn't overheard her conversation with Qizhu by chance, he wouldn't have started to hate her.
"You always snatch things from me. I don't like you being my sister-in-law!"
"I don't like being your sister-in-law either!"
"Then don't marry my eldest brother! Anyway, my eldest brother likes dignified and virtuous ladies like Miss Wei, not a crazy and unruly girl like you!"
"But I insist on marrying your elder brother. He's my fiancé. It doesn't matter who I like..."
The girl's tone was arrogant and domineering. She only regarded him as "my" property and would not allow anyone else to take it away.
Seventeen was the age of rebellion, and the next day he asked his mother to cancel the engagement. Unexpectedly, not only did the marriage not go through, but she continued to pursue him, becoming increasingly aggressive over the next two years, which made him increasingly annoyed...
However, it was not until the end that he realized that all this was just a trick she put on to deceive him...
Yan Qi was holding the wine glass, thinking silently. When did those thoughts of pursuing him under the guise of love start?
Was it the thirteen-year-old who initially avoided him, or... even earlier?
When he thought about the fact that she had secretly liked another man for three years, or even longer, Yan Qizhen felt a surge of tightness in his chest, which made him feel suffocated.
if--
At the beginning, he patiently accompanied her to catch butterflies and became the Brother Yan she wanted. Later... would she...
Won't you fall in love with someone else?
Yan Qizhen raised the back of his hand to cover his eyelids, trying to ease the discomfort in his heart.
if--
The closed eyes slowly opened again, and there was a hint of crimson at the corners of the eyes.
If she is given the freedom she wants, will she...
It won't be like now...
Hate him?
…
"Nonsense! How long have we been married and you're already thinking about getting married?"
The sun was setting in the west. Madam Yan finally waited for her master to come back and told him everything that had happened today. Yan Sunwei blurted out what he had heard by the end.
"If our Yan and Wei families go from being relatives to being enemies, how can I face Wei Taizhong?" Yan Sunwei put his half-undressed clothes back on in frustration. "I'll go find him!"
"Master..." Madam Yan stepped forward to stop him, "Qi Zheng doesn't want to do that either."
"He doesn't want to? Could it be that his daughter does?"
In this world, even if a couple separates peacefully, it will still have a significant impact on the woman. If life can only be barely manageable, what woman would want to divorce?
In addition, before the marriage, his own son kept saying that he did not like the girl from the Wei family and repeatedly insisted on canceling the engagement. Yan Sunwei was naturally certain that the problem lay with his own son.
"You can't say that," Mrs. Yan felt sorry for her son. "Qi Zheng has done his best. He must be feeling bad after arguing with Zi Yan like that, drinking alone in the study..."
Seeing his wife's red eyes, Yan Sunwei softened his attitude and said, "Then tell me, what should we do?"
We can't just let it go and do nothing, right?
Madam Yan had no such plans. When a young couple is at odds, their elders might not want to interfere, but they can't just sit back and do nothing. Now that they've just had a falling out, and their minds are still hot, it's good to cool down a bit.
"When the master goes to court tomorrow, find an opportunity to have a private chat with Master Wei. Let's see what the Wei family says first, and then think about what to do next."
After listening to it, Yan Sunwei thought that what the lady said made sense, and immediately nodded in agreement.
But then he thought, if he were Master Wei, and the other party hadn't given an explanation tonight, the resentment accumulated overnight would be even harder to let go. For something like this, we must strike while the iron is hot and act as soon as possible.
So Yan Sunwei tidied his clothes again, called a servant and drove straight to the Wei Mansion.
Wei Jizhi quickly came out to greet him with a smile. Yan Sunwei wondered in his heart that maybe he didn't know that his daughter had returned to her parents' home out of spite?
In any case, Yan Sunwei was somewhat relieved that he was not glared at by his old friend right from the start.
"Brother Lunwu, let me first apologize to you on behalf of Qi Zheng." As he said this, he cupped his hands and bowed towards the other party.
Wei Jizhi was confused: "What's going on? What happened to Qi Zheng?"
Yan Sunwei stood up straight again: "Qi Zheng and Zi Yan had an argument last night. I guess he said something too much, and Zi Yan was so angry that she went back to her parents' home."
Wei Jizhi's expression suddenly changed: "Are you going back to your mother's house in anger?"
"Yes... Zi Yan probably didn't tell you the reason..."
"No—" Wei Jizhi interrupted him, "Zi Yan has never come back!"
"Not back?" Yan Sunwei was surprised.
"No!"
…
The two looked at each other in silence, and suddenly said in unison: "Then where did she go?"
Realizing that something was wrong, Wei Jizhi quickly sent a maid to ask his wife to come over.
Yan Sunwei's words were so certain that Wei Jizhi was afraid that his wife had concealed the news of his daughter's return, so he wanted to confirm it. However, when Madam Wei arrived at the hall, her reaction after hearing the news was even more intense than that of the two masters.
"I haven't seen Yan'er. She didn't go home. Where did she go?" Before she finished speaking, tears were about to fall from her anxious face.
Now that they were sure that their daughter had not returned home, Wei Jizhi and his wife were extremely anxious and asked Yan Sunwei to go back home quickly to check again. What if their daughter had returned home after all?
As soon as Yan Sunwei got on the carriage, the Wei couple caught up and wanted to go with them, so the three of them took two carriages and rushed to Yan's mansion.
Yan Qizhen has been staying in the study.
The wine was strong, and although he wasn't drunk, he was already sleepy. He didn't know when he fell asleep, but when he woke up, he was slumped over his desk, with half of his arm numb and unable to feel.
As I was leaning back in my chair to relieve the pressure, I accidentally caught sight of Haitang on the stage.
"This pot of crabapples should be sent to the study."
"Put it wherever you want. If you don't buy enough, buy more tomorrow..."
The bitterness in my chest rose again.
Was he treating her badly? Or was it too late?
After all, there are already people there, so no matter how much he does, it will be meaningless, right?
Apart from--
Let her go...
When his numb arm could be lifted again, Yan Qizheng spread out a piece of letter paper and started writing.
White-eared crickets paced back and forth across the desk, occasionally nudging his pen-holding hand to cause trouble. With no other options left, he had to chase it away. After the writing was finished and dried, he brought it back to the desk. But it seemed to lose its temper, slipping out from under his hand and taking off. Its claws sent the freshly written letter flying, and Yan Qizheng quickly reached out to hold it down.
A closer look revealed that the words "Let's part ways and be happy" had been scratched by its claws into several tiny cracks.
Yan Qi was still debating whether to rewrite one when Xu Ji rushed in, shouting, "Oh no! Oh no! The young lady is missing!"
"What's going on?" Yan Qizheng stood up suddenly.
"Master Wei and Madam Wei are in the front hall. They said that the young lady never returned to her parents' home... It seems that now, no one knows where the young lady has gone."
After hearing this, Yan Qizhen's face changed, and he threw down the letter and hurried out.
"Who arranged the carriage for the young lady today?"
"I don't know, I have to ask Aunt Lengxiang."
The three maids were still lying in the room resting. Yan Qizheng was not in a position to come out, so he asked a maid to go in and question them. He soon got the answer: because the young lady was afraid that using the mansion's car would alarm the eldest lady, Du Juan hired a car from outside.
Yan Qizheng immediately rushed to the front hall. Madam Wei was already as anxious as an ant on a hot pan. When she saw him, she asked if there was any news about Yan'er. Yan Qizheng could only shake his head.
"I just asked the maid, and she said Ziyan is riding in a carriage from outside. I'm afraid it will be difficult to find a driver for the time being. I plan to..."
Upon hearing this, Madam Wei's face changed drastically: "You mean Zi Yan was kidnapped by him?"
Yan Qizheng: "..."
"Don't let your imagination run wild. Liangjing has always been peaceful. Who would dare to kidnap someone in broad daylight?" Madam Yan consoled Madam Wei. "Qi Zheng's point is that if we find the driver, we'll know where Zi Yan went."
"Yeah, don't scare yourself..." Wei Jizhi also echoed.
"I'm scaring myself?" Madam Wei cried in fear. "Someone dared to assassinate the Crown Prince in broad daylight! It's been a whole day, Master, report it to the authorities immediately!"
"Okay, report to the police." It was Yan Qizhen who spoke, and Wei Jizhi and the others looked at him.
On the way here, he had thought about it carefully. The reason why Wei Ziyan didn't go home was most likely - or he should say, he hoped it was this possibility - Wei Ziyan didn't want him to come to her.
So she took a few boxes of things and hid herself.
Just like the last time I ran away from my marriage.
But Madam Wei's words also reminded him that Liangjing was not always peaceful. A young woman carrying several boxes of household items might run into someone who would risk his life for money and sex.
"Father," Yan Qizheng said quickly, "I'd like you to go and report to the authorities in person. I'll take some people to look for him separately, and will send someone back to report as soon as we have any news."
Yan Sunwei: "Okay."
Wei Jizhi: "I'll go with you."
Yan Qizheng divided his servants into several teams and went from street to street, alley to all inns to inquire. However, they searched the entire capital and found no news. Just as he was about to leave the city to look for her, he suddenly remembered Liu Yu'er, so he took Xu Ji and headed straight for Liu's residence.
He didn't hold much hope, but he didn't want to miss any possibility.
The door to Liu's residence was closed, and no one answered when I knocked. It was already late, but there were no lights on inside. It was impossible for them to be asleep at this hour; it seemed more like no one was home.
Yan Qi felt something was amiss, so he used Xu Ji's strength to leap onto the courtyard wall and lightly jumped in. As soon as he landed, there was a light "bang" sound from inside, the sound of the door closing.
There is someone in the house!
Yan Qi ran over following the sound and pushed open the door. A shadow screamed "Ah" and hid behind it.
In the dim moonlight, Yan Qizheng saw a man huddled in a corner, his head in his hands. He seemed terrified, his voice trembling as he said, "I don't know... I really don't know..."
"Don't be afraid," Yan Qizheng stopped moving forward, "I won't go over there."
The man was still huddled there, secretly looking up.
"I have no ill intentions. I just want to ask you, little brother, have you seen one of your cousin's sisters, the young lady from the Wei family, today?"
The man was the doorman of the Liu residence. He knew the young lady of the Wei family and had seen the face in front of him.
"Are you Master Yan?" the servant asked anxiously.
"Exactly."
The servant heaved a sigh of relief: "Miss Wei hasn't been here...and Miss Cousin hasn't come back either."
A sense of loss flashed through Yan Qizheng's heart, and he asked again: "Why are you so scared? Why are you the only one in the house?"
"After my cousin disappeared without a trace, soldiers came to ask about her whereabouts first, and then a few more people came to the door..." Their ferocious faces emerged in the boy's mind, and he became afraid again.
“Those people held knives to our necks and threatened to kill us all if we didn’t tell the truth…”
"But we really don't know where our cousin has gone. The master and his wife were afraid those people would come back and commit murder, so they all hid outside and left me alone to look after the house..."
The servant's trembling words floated into his ears, and Yan Qi's mind raced.
Apart from the officers and soldiers, who else would look for Liu Yuer?
Having a bad feeling, Yan Qizheng came out of Liu's house again and headed straight for the city gate.
If he guessed correctly, those people were probably looking for Liu Yu'er to silence her. Wei Ziyan's feet were covered in mud when she returned yesterday, so Liu Yu'er's hiding place must be outside the city. And he suddenly had a hunch that Wei Ziyan might be there too.
"Captain Yan——"
Before Xu Ji and he left the city, two soldiers caught up with them halfway.
"Captain Yan, we finally found you..." The two men seemed to have been running for a long time, panting. "Lord Yu sent us two to report that he has captured Young Master Wu..."
"Where?"
"Still, still outside the city..."
It turned out that Yu Sugong had sent them to deliver a letter. They first went to Yan's residence but couldn't find him. Then they walked around the city for a while before finding him. So they asked for directions. Yan Qizheng took Xu Ji out of the city first.
Having captured the person, Yu Sugong did not return immediately. This move was really strange.
Several bonfires dotted the dense elm forests outside Beijing. Yan Qi was about to approach on horseback when soldiers stopped him and allowed him entry only after verifying his identity.
There were officers and soldiers resting near the bonfire. Yan Qi was taken to a bonfire with only two people. Next to him sat Yu Sugong and Wu Guanyi, who was tied up.
"You've come just in time," the firelight reflected the helpless look on Yu Sugong's face, "try to persuade your good brother, he won't say anything."
Yan Qizhen understood as soon as he heard it, and he was still hiding Liu Yuer.
No wonder Yu Sugong didn't bring him back to report. If Minister Wu knew, he would be furious. Yan Qizheng strode forward and grabbed his collar: "Did you hide Ziyan as well?"
Wu Guanyi turned his face away, as if he would not confess. Yan Qizheng was so anxious that he raised his voice and shouted, "I want to ask you a question!"
Yu Sugong, standing by, interrupted in astonishment, "Didn't your wife go back to her parents' home?"
"Yes." Seeing his friend's anxiety, Wu Guanyi finally said, "Don't worry, my sister-in-law is safe."
Safety?
Yan Qizhen wanted to kick him!
"Do you know that someone is hunting Liu Yu'er? Do you think you'll be safe if you hide them?"
"Who's chasing us?"
"Who said that?"
Yu Sugong and Wu Guanyi said in unison.
Yan Qizheng quickly repeated what the Liu family servant had just said and angrily asked Wu Guanyi, "If those people found Liu Yu'er first, do you think you could still save her?"
Wu Guanyi was a little confused by what he heard.
"You didn't lie to me?"
As soon as he said that, he was glared at by Yan Qizheng and jumped up from the ground: "Untie me quickly!"
Yan Qizhen was quick-witted and quick-handed. With a "swish", he drew out Yu Sugong's sword and slashed the ropes that bound Wu Guanyi with a flick of his sword.
"Borrow two horses." Yan Qizhen handed the hilt of the sword to Yu Sugong with his backhand.
Yu Sugong blinked his wide eyes, said "OK" in submission, turned around and ordered people to bring the horses and prepare to gather and set off.
The three of them walked quickly out of the elm forest. Yan Qizheng sent Xu Ji, who was waiting by the roadside, home to report the news: "Tell them that the young lady has been found and that the master and his men don't need to look for her anymore."
"Isn't something wrong with the young lady?" Looking at the situation before him, all the officers and soldiers were going with the eldest master, so Xu Ji couldn't help but make wild guesses.
"Don't go back and tell them nonsense. It'll make them worry." Yan Qizheng said solemnly, "I'll take the young lady back with me."
As soon as Xu Ji left, the horses were brought in, and Yu Sugong even kindly lent them two swords. Yan Qizheng and Wu Guanyi each took their swords and mounted their horses.
"Qiyunlin."
Wu Guanyi left Yu Sugong's destination behind and rode his horse forward with Yan Qizhen, one in front and one behind.
Liangjing is located in a basin, surrounded by mountains to the east and west. These rolling hills, high and low, form a continuous mass. The highest peak in the west is called Yuping Mountain, while the highest point in the east is called Qiyun Ridge.
The two mountains are covered with green trees and have cascading waterfalls, making them a popular summer resort. To provide a comfortable stay for dignitaries, people have been paying to build holiday villas in the mountains.
Now that it was early autumn and the weather was getting cooler, fewer people were heading to the mountains to escape the heat. Wu Guanyi's decision to hide his men in the mountains was also a good emergency measure.
The two men galloped on their horses. Just as they reached the foot of the mountain, they heard a "whoosh" sound. A flare was shot into the night sky not far from them, drawing a conspicuous arc of light.
The two of them looked at each other smartly, and chased in the direction where the signal was released. Sure enough, they found a suspicious person nearby who had not had time to run away.
He was panicked and terrified. When Yan Qizheng put a long knife on his neck, he was so scared that he trembled all over and knelt down to beg for mercy: "Master, please spare my life. I am only following orders..."
"By whose orders?"
"Yes, it's Master Qi...Master Qi sent me to follow Master Wu..."
"Follow me?" Wu Guanyi raised his thick eyebrows.
"Master Qi said that he wanted to know where the young master went to fool around..."
Wu Guanyi: “…”
Yan Qizheng exerted force with his hand, pressing the broadsword against the man's neck. "What does that signal mean?"
The cold and sharp blade immediately cut through the skin, causing blood to flow out, and frightened the man to death.
"I, I don't know..."
"Really, I didn't know those two people. I just happened to be hiding nearby and overheard some of their conversations... They seemed to be looking for a girl, and when they saw you two coming, they fired their weapons and ran away..."
girl?
Yan Qizheng and Wu Guanyi's expressions changed at the same time.
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