Chapter 68 The Disappearance Chapter 68 The Disappearance...
Chapter Sixty-Eight: Disappearance
This was my first time in Kyoto, and before I even had a chance to experience the city's charm, I was soaked to the bone by a downpour. Thank goodness I was in a carriage, otherwise it would have been a real hassle. Looking out the window at the rain, I thought to myself.
But something was strange. She turned to look at Gongzi Yu, her eyes full of inquiry. She felt that his emotions had been off since earlier, with an inexplicable...fear? But how could that be? He was Gongzi Yu.
Although the emotion was subtle, Ling Hao was certain she truly felt it. It was precisely because of this that she developed a curiosity about Gongzi Yu.
"Why are you staring at me?" Gongzi Yu, who had been keeping his eyes closed, reluctantly opened them and looked at Ling Hao. "Is there something wrong with me?"
"Yes." Ling Hao didn't hide anything and nodded directly. "You've been acting strangely since earlier. What's wrong? Do you need my help?" After all, there were no other conflicts between her and him besides Mingyue, and he had helped her so much. If he really needed her help, she would definitely do her best to help.
Gongzi Yu's eyes narrowed for a moment, then softened again. "You're very perceptive." He thought he had concealed it well; at least his master and the others couldn't detect anything amiss with him, but she had.
If the timing weren't so bad, he would have been quite smug. Her heart was set on him; how could he not be pleased? But… Gongzi Yu didn't want things to be exposed yet. "But I'm fine, just a little bored."
Ling glanced at Gongzi Yu's attire and said, "Now that we've arrived in the capital, you no longer need to wear women's clothing." Her regret was evident in her words.
He looked absolutely stunning in women's clothing, a truly pleasing sight. She felt a pang of regret at the thought of never seeing him again. Perhaps it was Gongzi Yu's strong mentality, but aside from a slight discomfort on the first day he wore women's clothes, he was completely at ease afterwards. Coupled with his good looks, he was indeed a sight to behold.
Her regret was so obvious that Gongzi Yu couldn't pretend not to see it. He said helplessly, "We're going to one of my villas now, which my sister gave me. It's very quiet there, and no one will dare to disturb us."
"Okay." Ling Hao nodded, but then realized something was off. "Why do you seem so sure I know who your older sister is?"
Of course she knew who Gongzi Yu's elder sister was, because Mingyue had mentioned it before. But Gongzi Yu shouldn't know this; he had never mentioned his elder sister's identity to her. Ling Hao then remembered that when Gongzi Yu exchanged the token for the county magistrate, he hadn't mentioned the token's origin at all.
He seemed to assume she should know everything about him, his background, and who his so-called "elder sister" really was. Linghao sensed something was wrong.
Gongzi Yu's gaze seemed to pause for a moment, yet it also seemed to remain unchanged. "I knew he would tell you."
"What if he didn't say?" Linghao felt an increasing unease in her heart, as if something was about to burst forth.
Gongzi Yu chuckled lightly, "Your reaction tells me right now that you know what he said, don't you?"
“That’s true.” Ling Hao suddenly chuckled. “Mingyue did mention it, but only once.” No, he had told her everything, mentioning it more than once.
Before this, Linghao had nothing to hide, but now, she subconsciously concealed it.
More than once. Gongzi Yu thought to himself. Gongzi Yu Mingyue cared so much about Linghao, he had said everything he could, including about his elder sister. He had mentioned her far more than once, but Linghao said it was only once.
She was wary of him. The thought sent a pang of pain through Gongzi Yu's heart. No matter how much he did, the order of arrival could never be reversed, could it?
Inside the carriage, Ling Hao and Gongzi Yu remained silent, a deathly silence spreading. There were times before when they didn't speak, but never had there been such a suffocating atmosphere.
The poet outside the carriage glanced at the carriage, a hint of worry in her eyes. She wondered if the young master's secret would be exposed, and if the young lady found out, would she abandon him? The thought of the young master being abandoned, and how his already bad temper would worsen, filled her with anxiety.
Being a subordinate isn't easy; all I want is to have someone with stable emotions to deal with while I work. My dear lady, your son has a thousand faults, but he's handsome and rich. Even for that reason alone, please don't ignore him. Poetry silently cried out in her heart.
However, her cries went unheard by Ling Hao, for poetry was something no one dared to utter aloud, and Ling Hao lacked the ability to read minds. At this moment, however, Ling Hao wished she had mind-reading abilities so she could see what Gongzi Yu was hiding.
Ling Hao's intuition told her that what he was hiding was definitely related to Mingyue. Now that she had caught him red-handed, she certainly wouldn't press the matter further. Hadn't she come all this way precisely to find Mingyue's whereabouts?
Although her plan was well-thought-out, unfortunately, she couldn't catch Gongzi Yu at all, because he disappeared after checking into the villa. Or rather, he vanished, leaving only a note saying he had something to take care of.
Something's not right, he's acting guilty! Ling Hao gripped the note tightly, a thought flashing through her mind. Ah, Gongzi Yu must have kept Mingyue locked up in the capital, that's why he's acting guilty and hiding, afraid she'll discover him!
This guess thrilled Ling Hao. Ah, she was finally going to find Mingyue! No, Kyoto wasn't that big, but it wasn't that small either. It wouldn't be so easy for her to find someone, but it would be very easy for Gongzi Yu to hide someone.
Ling Hao immediately calmed down and tried to figure out how to find Mingyue. Unfortunately, all her skill points were invested in combat strength, and she knew nothing about the capital, so she couldn't come up with a good way to find her. Therefore, she turned her gaze towards the imperial palace.
Looks like I'll only be the protagonist of an adventure comic this time. Looking for friends? I'll go look for them at his "home."
That night, the emperor was reviewing memorials. The imperial study was quiet, and the palace servants all stood silently by, not daring to make a sound to disturb him.
"You may all leave." As he spoke, the emperor continued to bow his head and review the memorials, without raising his head.
"Yes." The head palace maid bowed to the emperor, then led all the palace servants in the imperial study to leave.
The door was closed, and the Imperial Study was quiet once again.
"Now that you're here, why don't you say anything?" The emperor continued reviewing memorials.
"The Emperor knows I'm here?" Ling Hao flipped down from the roof beam without making a sound. "I thought I concealed my presence very well." Her turtle-breathing technique had even fooled her old master, so how could the Emperor know?
Ling Hao's inquisitive gaze fell on the other person. She seemed to have martial arts skills, but they were definitely not as good as his.
Only then did the emperor look up, smiling as he said, "The beauty has arrived; how could I not know?"
A note from the author:
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Linghao: I inexplicably feel like I've been teased.
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