Chapter 6 Ling An was caught off guard by a bright red...
Then, a bright red suddenly caught her sight.
She looked up and saw a young man in red standing before her.
He was like a fairy walking on the moon, his red clothes intertwined with the bright moonlight, cold and hot, and his body was surrounded by a dazzling light that could not be ignored.
His face was cold, his brows were slightly furrowed, and his deep eyes flashed with a hint of carelessness and...disdain?
Then, Tang Suzi saw him stretch out a hand towards her. The hand was white and slender, with the palm facing up, motioning her to stand up.
She took that hand without hesitation, and with his strength, she slowly straightened her back.
At the moment the two held hands, the bracelet on her wrist glowed with a fiery red light, and as she looked, an elk was gradually running away and finally disappeared at the end of her sight.
Tang Suzi retracted his gaze and once again stared at the young man in red in front of him.
"Ling An."
This time, there was no hesitation in her voice.
There was no response, but Ling An let go of her hand, took a step forward, and walked towards an unknown direction outside the birch forest.
"Ling An, aren't you going up the mountain?"
Tang Suzi couldn't help but ask, feeling confused.
However, Ling An did not stop, nor did he give any response, but just continued to move forward, as if he didn't hear it.
Tang Suzi was anxious and quickly caught up and reminded him again,
"Ling An, you need to drink the holy water on time, otherwise your life will be in danger!"
But her reminder still received no response. In a hurry, Tang Suzi mustered up the courage and grabbed Ling An's sleeve.
"Ling An, wait a minute!"
Ling An was forced to stop by this pull. He turned around abruptly, and his sleeves were pulled out of Tang Suzi's hands, his eyes revealing obvious displeasure.
"I've already drunk the holy water, so you don't need to worry about it. Also, don't follow me!"
Have you drunk?
Tang Suzi was stunned when he heard this, and became even more confused. He had been guarding the path in the birch forest. When did he go up the mountain?
After a brief moment of stunned silence, Tang Suzi quickly gathered his thoughts and continued to follow Ling An's pace.
"Ling An, you have already violated the rules of Buddhism by escaping without permission. If you don't return soon, you will probably face even more severe punishment. Come back with me, okay?"
However, Ling An still did not give any response, and his back looked more resolute in the morning light.
Seeing this, Tang Suzi gradually fell silent, thinking to himself:
Does Ling An have some unspeakable secret that makes him escape so desperately?
She decided to uncover the mystery before she could truly persuade him to go back.
In this way, Tang Suzi followed Ling An's footsteps and walked out of the birch forest step by step.
As the sky gradually brightened, they passed through the bustling morning market and finally arrived at a simple yet grand mansion.
When Tang Suzi was about to find out where this was, a beautiful figure suddenly came into his sight. It was a woman standing quietly beside the drum stone in front of the door.
The woman had a beautiful face, a gentle and charming demeanor, a figure as graceful as a willow, and her hair was dotted with pearls and jade, making her look elegant and refined.
Her face was as beautiful as a newly blossomed peach blossom, but there was a hint of sadness between her eyebrows, as if she was hiding something unknown.
At this time, she was wearing a gorgeous brocade winter coat, a woolen cloak embroidered with intricate patterns, and holding an exquisite heater in her hand, she paced gently, as if waiting for someone.
When Tang Suzi and Ling An slowly approached, the woman seemed to sense something and looked up at them.
Surprise flashed in her eyes, and she ran towards them with quick and slow steps, finally stopping in front of Ling An.
"Ling An, you're back!"
Tang Suzi was confused for a moment. She turned to look at Ling An, only to see him respond softly in a gentle tone that Tang Suzi had never heard before, as if he had become a different person.
“Who is this…?”
The woman quickly noticed Tang Suzi's presence. Her eyes turned to Ling An as gentle as the blue waves and asked.
"I……"
When Tang Suzi was thinking about how to answer, Ling An's cold voice came to his ears.
"I don't know him. Let's go in quickly before we freeze outside."
As he spoke, he gently pulled up the woman's hood and embraced her as they walked into the mansion.
Seeing this, Tang Suzi was confused for a moment and didn't understand what was going on.
She wanted to follow in to find out what was going on, but was politely stopped outside the door by two servants who quickly appeared.
She looked at the slowly closing door, her heart filled with confusion and puzzlement:
Where exactly is this place?
Who is that woman?
What is her relationship with Ling An?
…
All of this was like a mystery, lingering in Tang Suzi's mind, and she began to eagerly want to uncover the truth behind these mysteries.
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Worried that she would lose Ling An again if she left, Tang Suzi resolutely decided to wait in front of the mansion. She had to see Ling An and find out everything.
The cold wind gradually rose. She sat on the cold stone steps without eating in the morning, her body shaking involuntarily.
She kept rubbing her hands and arms, trying to resist the invasion of hunger and cold in this way.
Time seemed to stand still. I didn't know how much time had passed until a slight "creaking" sound broke the silence.
The rosewood door quietly opened a little, and a servant poked his head out, looking around curiously.
Seeing this, Tang Suzi was about to stand up and ask the servant to help summon Ling An, but the moment their eyes met, the servant hurriedly closed the door, leaving her alone to continue waiting in the cold wind.
Tang Suzi sighed softly, struggling in his heart:
Should I go find some food to fill my stomach first, or continue waiting here?
After an inner struggle, she finally chose the latter.
She rubbed her empty stomach, picked up a withered sycamore leaf, and tore it carefully along the veins to pass the time, divert her attention, and temporarily distract her mind from hunger and cold.
Just when she was about to be swallowed by sleepiness, the door opened again, and the familiar servant appeared in front of her with a bowl of hot egg fermented glutinous rice soup in his hand, and said in a gentle voice,
"Miss, please warm yourself up first."
Tang Suzi was extremely grateful and took the bowl of soup. The warmth from the bowl instantly dispelled the chillness around her body and made her consciousness gradually clearer.
After drinking the soup, Tang Suzi handed the bowl back to the servant and once again asked to see Ling An.
The servant was also a little puzzled. Master Ling had clearly asked him to prepare hot soup for the young lady, but he was unwilling to see her. Why was that?
He couldn't figure it out, but remembering Master Ling's instructions, he had to persuade him politely.
"Miss, please go back. I'm afraid Master Ling won't meet you."
After saying this, he picked up the empty bowl and closed the door again.
Tang Suzi looked at the door that slowly closed, feeling mixed emotions.
She slowly sat back on the stone steps, her hands supporting her chin, and fell into deep thought.
How can I see Ling An again?
Do we really have to wait here passively and endlessly?
At this moment, a familiar voice came from the front.
"Miss Tang, why are you here?"
Tang Suzi looked up when she heard the voice, and saw Fang Buyu and the friend who had walked side by side with him in the night market walking slowly towards her.
In the cold wind, he was wearing a dark purple official robe with delicate patterns embroidered on the lapels, which swayed gently in the cold wind. The sable fur on the outside was shiny and soft, adding a bit of extraordinary demeanor to him.
"I...why are you here?"
Tang Suzi was surprised, and at the same time he was puzzled as to why Fang Buyu appeared here.
"I'm here to take care of some business."
Fang Buyu answered briefly, glanced at the door, and then looked at her gently.
Tang Suzi followed his gaze and looked at the tightly closed door of the mansion. Something in his heart moved and he asked,
"Is this the family?"
Fang Buyu nodded slightly.
Tang Suzi hesitated for a moment, and finally mustered up the courage to ask,
"Then when you go in later, can you... take me with you? The person I'm looking for is in this mansion."
When she said this, she no longer dared to look the other person in the eye, as she knew how abrupt her request was.
"Okay, I'll take you in."
Fang Buyu agreed without hesitation.
She gave him a feeling too much like Tiao Tiao, and he didn't want her to feel embarrassed in front of him.
Tang Suzi had never expected Fang Buyu to agree to her request so quickly. A hint of sincere gratitude flashed across her eyes, and she uttered two words softly,
"Thanks."
Fang Buyu responded with a smile, and then they went forward together and knocked on the door.
The waiting time seemed to be extremely long, until the door finally opened slowly, revealing the servant's slightly helpless face.
The servant swallowed back what he wanted to say when he saw the two men in official uniforms beside Tang Suzi.
“You are…?”
The servant glanced back and forth between the three people, obviously confused.
After Fang Buyu showed the token, he spoke at the right time.
"I'm Fang Buyu from the Sky Eagle Pavilion. I'm here to visit your young lady, Lin Xiangli. Please let her know."
Fang Buyu's voice was deep and resounding.
"Sky Eagle Pavilion... Fang Buyu..."
The servant's face turned pale in an instant.
He naturally knew the name of the Sky Eagle Pavilion, and as the head of the Sky Eagle Pavilion, Fang Buyu's name was even more well-known, especially for the master's unresolved case. It was said that the court specially sent him to inspect it.
The servant couldn't help feeling nervous.
"Okay, okay, please wait a moment."
He responded quickly, turned around and left in a hurry.
Not long after, the door opened again, and the servant appeared behind the door, his attitude had become respectful.
"Pavilion Master Fang, please come in."
He bowed and extended his hand in an invitation.
Seeing this, Tang Suzi was about to follow Fang Buyu inside, but was stopped by the servant.
"Miss, you can't go in."
Fang Buyu frowned slightly when he heard this, then he gently placed his hand on the servant's arm that was holding Tang Suzi back, his tone filled with unquestionable firmness.
"I brought her here, so she must go in with me."
The servant looked embarrassed and hesitated for a moment, but he was ultimately unable to withstand Fang Buyu's cold and majestic aura, so he had no choice but to step aside and make way.
Then, led by another servant, they passed through the winding corridors and arrived at the spacious and bright lobby of the mansion.
In the lobby, the woman whom Ling An and Tang Suzi had just seen at the door was sitting upright, obviously having been waiting here for a long time.
When Tang Suzi's figure appeared at the door of the lobby, a hint of surprise flashed in Ling An's eyes, but he quickly returned to normal and stood up to greet him with the woman beside him.
The woman next to him also spoke slowly at this moment.
Her voice is like a mountain spring, soft and delicate, with a hint of imperceptible charm that makes people feel pity and love when they hear it.
"Pavilion Master Fang, I'm sorry for not coming to greet you. Please take a seat."
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