The veil beneath the hat obscured Zhilan's face and also blocked the waiter's view.
Zhilan nodded and stepped into the store.
At this moment, she was completely focused on her young mistress's injury and did not pay attention to anything else.
The letter was written in a handwritten style, and the inn was unsigned. It was located in a remote area without a signboard and did not open its doors to guests at night.
Everything seemed suspicious and unusual, but Zhilan was too careless to notice.
After she entered the shop, the waiter gave a cryptic smile before closing the door to conceal it.
The next morning, Lin Qinglan woke up alone in her room and found that Zhilan was missing. She neither cried nor made a fuss. She dressed and put on her shoes and then went to knock on the door next door.
Zhi Mei happened to be going out as well. Seeing that she was alone, she asked, "Where's Sister Zhi Lan?"
Lin Qinglan replied, "Sister Zhilan wasn't here. I was all alone when I woke up."
Zhi Mei found it strange: "Not here? Did she go to prepare food?"
He led Lin Qinglan downstairs, where there was only the innkeeper and no other guests staying or eating.
"Shopkeeper, did you see that girl who was with us? She's the one who was holding this little girl's hand yesterday."
The shopkeeper thought for a moment, then suddenly realized: "Oh, that girl, she went out last night and hasn't come back yet."
Zhi Mei frowned instantly, and her voice rose considerably: "You went out last night? Why didn't we know?"
The shopkeeper patiently explained, "It's like this. Last night, someone delivered a letter, saying it was to be given to that girl. Not long after I gave her the letter, I saw her go downstairs and leave. I asked her what she was doing out in the middle of the night and when she would be back, but she didn't answer. I've been keeping watch here all night, but she hasn't come back."
"A letter? What letter? Who sent it?"
The shopkeeper shook his head: "I don't know about that. The messenger was a little beggar, the kind you see on the streets. I'm afraid he'll be hard to find."
Thinking about the scene she saw in the city yesterday, Zhi Mei felt terrible.
She turned to look at Lin Qinglan: "Qinglan, did Sister Zhilan mention where we were going last night?"
Lin Qinglan opened her eyes wide and shook her head in confusion: "No, I was already asleep when Sister Zhilan left."
Zhi Mei remembered what her mother had told her and immediately became anxious. She turned around to go upstairs, only to see that everyone had come down.
"Madam, Zhilan has disappeared!"
Madam Ning frowned: "What do you mean Zhilan is missing? Explain yourself!"
Zhi Mei recounted the whole story and then said, "This is the first time we've been to Nanjiang City. Zhi Lan couldn't possibly know anyone here, but she went out immediately after reading the letter, so it must be something very important."
Ning Wenyi's face was serious: "Zhilan and you are both servants, raised in the manor since childhood. How could you possibly know people from Nanjiang City?"
Madam Ning's face was also very grim: "Go to her room and see if that letter is still there."
Upon hearing this, Zhilan released Lin Qinglan's hand and ran upstairs.
The shopkeeper observed for a while before coming over and saying, "Please be patient, everyone. Sit down and wait. Perhaps it's someone that girl knew before, who has also come to Nanjiang City."
Madam Ning remained silent with a sullen face. Apart from Lin Qinglan, everyone else knew that Zhilan was Ning Yao's personal maid. The two grew up together, and later followed Ning Yao into the palace for more than a year. Then, the group was heading to Licheng.
Apart from that, she had no way or opportunity to contact anyone else.
A moment later, Zhi Mei came down with a piece of paper in her hand, her face looking very unwell: "Madam, it's a letter from Miss."
"Yao Yao? How could that be?" Ning Wenyi's voice rose. He, as her father, knew best where Ning Yao had gone.
He probably knew where Ning Yao was at that moment, so how could she possibly be in Nanjiang City and have called Zhilan out alone?
After reading the letter, Madam Ning handed it over to Ning Wenyi and the others for circulation.
"This is obviously fake!" Ning Jin exclaimed. "I can still recognize Third Sister's handwriting. Besides, how could Third Sister be injured? This is utter nonsense! How could Zhilan believe such a lie?"
Holding the letter, Shen Wei said in a deep voice, "Zhilan and Yaoyao have a deep bond. Moreover, Zhilan is a person who values loyalty and righteousness. She would never sit idly by when her master is in trouble."
"I think it must be that the letter mentioned that the young lady was injured, which threw her into a panic. In addition, she knew some martial arts, which gave her the courage to go out alone."
Ning Jin frowned: "No matter what, she should have informed us. Whether it's true or not, it would be better if someone was with us. Now that she's missing, what should we do?"
Shen Cile said, "She wrote in her heart that Third Sister didn't want Father and Mother to worry, and even specifically told Zhilan not to tell anyone. It's clear that this person has done a lot of work and even knows us very well!"
“The other party came prepared and only lured Zhilan away. We don’t know their purpose. If their purpose is Zhilan, then she is already in danger. If their purpose is all of us, then we must be on high alert.”
Ning Wenyi looked at Shen Wei: "You mean, it could be someone from the Zhang family?"
Shen Wei shook his head: "Not necessarily. It's not just the Zhang family in our hometown who have a problem with us, the Lin family..."
Shen Wei suddenly looked up, his gaze sharp: "The Lord of Nanjiang City and the Prefect are both from the Lin family..."
Ning Wenyi instantly understood that if the Lin family was also wary of them, then Nanjiang City was now in danger for them.
Each city in the Yan state had three officials: the city lord, the prefect, and the governor. They were in charge of the army, the people's livelihood, and the law, respectively. The prefect was the head of the three, which also meant that the three were in a tripartite balance of power and checked each other.
However, as time went on, things changed. For example, two of the three official positions in Nanjiang City were held by members of a collateral branch of the Lin family.
City Lord Lin Licheng and Governor Lin Lixuan are from a collateral branch of the Lin family in the capital, but they are actually brothers, and their official positions were obtained through the Lin family's efforts.
The two men respectively controlled the army and the law, but the position of governor was held by someone else.
The position of prefect is ultimately a civil official, lacking the power of the army and the law. In addition, the Lin brothers are birds of a feather, making the prefect of Nanjiang City a difficult position.
Inside the city lord's mansion, a middle-aged man hurried towards the backyard.
"Is the person awake?" the man asked.
A servant nearby replied, "He hasn't woken up yet. He's been using the sleeping incense that the second master gave him; it has a strong aftereffect."
The man paused, saying, "Don't cause another death for me!"
"My lord, no, this incense will only put her to sleep. She won't be in any danger. At most, she'll just be weak from sleeping for too long."
"That's good. Let's go and see where the Second Master is."
The servant stammered, "The second master... probably... hasn't returned yet..."
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