Lin Shaotang traveled tirelessly to Changyang Manor and then went from house to house, searching according to a somewhat vague address. He finally found an inconspicuous farmhouse. He knocked on the door with a “dong dong dong,” startling the birds perched on the branches.
With a creak, the wooden door was pushed open from the inside, and an elderly man with one arm trembled as he walked out.
“Who are you looking for?” The old man hunched over, trying hard to lift his head to see Lin Shaotang’s face, taking a long time to confirm that he was a stranger.
“Old man, does Miss Luo live here? Her master sent me to find her.”
The old man scrutinized Lin Shaotang suspiciously.
A strange man coming to find a young lady couldn’t be trusted so easily. This courtyard was home to the elderly, weak, sick, and disabled. If this boy with rosy lips and white teeth was actually a bad person, how would they survive?
The old man kept silent.
“Uncle Zhao, what’s the matter?” Luo Muge came out, standing at the doorway, looking towards the main gate.
“Dr. Luo, this person says your master sent him to find you.”
“Master?” Luo Muge was taken aback. She quickly walked a few steps closer and, upon seeing that it was Lin Shaotang, asked, “Why did my master send you to find me?”
Lin Shaotang said urgently, “There’s no time to explain. Miss Luo, please come with me quickly. If we delay, you might miss seeing your master for the last time!”
Luo Muge’s expression changed. She asked, “What happened to my master?”
As she spoke, she couldn’t help but take a step forward.
The old man hurriedly extended his arm to stop her, advising, “Dr. Luo, you can’t just go with someone like that. What if he’s a bad person, a kidnapper?”
Several children peeked out from the door, craning their necks to look outside.
“Uncle Zhao, don’t worry, I know this person.”
Lin Shaotang, having traveled such a long distance, was anxious. He finally calmed down and, no longer insisting they leave immediately, allowed Luo Muge to pack up and informed the people in the courtyard.
The elderly and children in this small courtyard were either Luo Muge’s former patients or homeless people she had taken in, providing them with a place to shelter from the wind and rain.
Sun Yinzhu asked Ji Jingyi for the feigned death medicine, and Ji Jingyi eventually revealed that his disciple Luo Muge knew where he kept it.
Changyang Manor was not far from the capital, practically adjacent to it.
On the way back to the capital with Lin Shaotang, Luo Muge heard about Ji Jingyi’s situation and couldn’t help but feel anxious.
However, Lin Shaotang was evidently not privy to the full truth. He only knew that Ji Jingyi had angered the emperor, been imprisoned, and subjected to severe torture, leaving him on the brink of death.
Upon returning to the Xuanyljing Sect and seeing the imperial guards stationed there, Luo Muge couldn’t help but frown.
“Has something happened to senior brother?”
A sudden panic gripped her.
What exactly had transpired in the capital during the few months she had been away? Why had her master gotten into trouble, and why was her senior brother nowhere to be seen? But now wasn’t the time for such details. She sneaked in through a hidden door, went into Ji Jingyi’s pharmacy, found a false death drug, and without delay, left Xuanjing Sect to hand the drug over to Lin Shaotang.
With a slightly somber expression, she asked, “Will Her Majesty the Empress really save my master?”
“The reason I asked for two doses of the false death drug is precisely because one of them is prepared for your master. Of course, saving him won’t be easy, and no one can guarantee success, but we can only do our best.”
We.
Luo Muge keenly caught this word but didn’t think much of it as her mind was in turmoil. She needed to find out what had happened to her master and senior brother as soon as possible.
The little palace maid sent by Sun Yinzhu to assist received the drug from Lin Shaotang and bribed the jailer that very day, mixing it into Ji Jingyi’s food. The drug took effect quickly, and it wasn’t long after Ji Jingyi ingested it that he showed no signs of life. Already severely injured and barely clinging to life, his death aroused no suspicion.
Dou Hongyan, busy preparing for the state banquet, dispatched someone to check on him upon hearing the news, and Ji Jingyi’s body was carelessly discarded in a mass grave.
It was late afternoon, the sunset casting a dim yellow glow, crows cawing mournfully. The desolate and eerie mountain exuded the stench of rotting corpses.
Luo Muge, who had been waiting at the mass grave, trembled slightly as she administered the antidote to Ji Jingyi. Seeing his injuries, her usually cold demeanor broke, and her eyes reddened instantly.
Meanwhile, Gu Jianli and his party had ventured deep into the mountains. The sight before them was nothing but endless snow, not even dead grass was visible.
The thick snow made the path slippery and difficult, obscuring the ground beneath. No one knew if it was solid land or a hidden pit beneath the snow.
Gu Jianli held Ji Xinglou’s hand in one hand and a thin tree branch in the other, using it to test the ground before each step.
Suddenly, Ji Xinglou’s knees buckled, and he fell.
“Xinglou, are you tired?” Gu Jianli hurriedly helped him up, brushing the snow off his knees.
“I’m not tired…” Ji Xinglou sneezed.
Gu Jianli quickly felt his forehead with the back of his hand; it was a bit warm. She was alarmed. If Ji Xinglou fell ill now, it would indeed be adding insult to injury.
Yuanshun quickly took out a small coat for Ji Xinglou from his bag and put it on him. Ji Xinglou, already wearing a small cotton coat, now had two layers, making his small body appear round and plump.
Words are always powerless.
Gu Jianli stood up silently, holding Ji Xinglou in her arms, and continued walking forward in silence.
As long as they got through today, everything would be better once Ji Wujing woke up tomorrow. It was this belief that had kept the delicate and soft Gu Jianli going for so long.
But would the pursuers really not catch up before tomorrow?
Gu Jianli dared not think about it.
She looked at the setting sun behind the distant, overlapping mountains and suddenly felt desolate. When the sun set and rose again, it would be her birthday.
She had grown up with all the love and affection, and every year on her birthday, her family would celebrate it joyfully, and she would receive many gifts.
However, the past two birthdays had been more miserable each year.
Last year’s birthday, she faced with a heart ready to die. This year, she was fleeing for her life again…
Ji Xinglou’s small head was dizzy. He held Gu Jianli’s neck, quietly watching her and listening to her increasingly heavy breathing.
“Gu Jianli, I will be good to you in the future,” Ji Xinglou suddenly said.
Gu Jianli was a little surprised and looked down at him.
Ji Xinglou awkwardly added, “I mean it!”
Just as Ji Xinglou finished speaking and before Gu Jianli could respond, her foot slipped. She stepped on some unstable snow, and her body fell to one side, breaking through the snow surface and revealing a large slope underneath. Gu Jianli instinctively held Ji Xinglou tightly, protecting his head and face, as they rolled down the slope.
“Madam!” YuasShun was shocked, stumbling and tumbling as she ran down after them. The slope was steep, and Yuanshun almost rolled and crawled down.
Changfeng also chased after them, carrying Ji Wujing on his back.
Gu Jianli finally stopped when her waist hit a tree at the bottom of the valley.
Her hands, which had been protecting Ji Xinglou’s head and face, were now covered in cuts from stones. But the exhaustion and cold made the pain feel duller.
Ignoring the pain, she quickly sat up and checked on Ji Xinglou, anxiously asking, “Are you hurt anywhere?”
Ji Xinglou shook his head. His clear eyes were fixed on Gu Jianli, and after a moment, he suddenly started crying. Ji Xinglou never cried quietly or sobbed; when he cried, he let out loud, wailing sobs.
“Tell me where it hurts.” Gu Jianli asked, feeling at a loss.
“Mother, mother…” Ji Xinglou buried himself in Gu Jianli’s arms, crying and shouting, “I want to kill them all, kill them all! Dig a big pit in the snowy mountains, cut off their legs, and bury them all alive! Make them hurt, make them cold, make them scared, make them die!”
Gu Jianli was stunned for a while, then quickly hugged Ji Xinglou, gently patting his back, comforting and soothing him. Using the excuse that his crying might attract the pursuers, she finally managed to calm him down.
He stopped crying but was exhausted, resting his heavy head against Gu Jianli’s chest without a word.
“Who goes there!” Changfeng suddenly shouted sharply.
Changfeng rarely spoke, and his voice was usually cold. His sudden outburst startled Gu Jianli.
Someone was there?
Immediately, Gu Jianli’s heart sank. Had the imperial guards already caught up?
Following Changfeng’s gaze, Gu Jianli saw two children, one older and one younger, hiding behind a rock. Upon being discovered, the children turned and ran. The older girl appeared to be about ten years old, and the younger boy around six or seven.
Gu Jianli was taken aback.
How could there be children in the depths of these snowy mountains? There must be adults nearby!
Changfeng easily caught up with the children. They were clearly terrified, with the little boy hiding behind his sister, head tucked down. The girl, also frightened by Changfeng, had red eyes.
Gu Jianli quickly handed Ji Xinglou to Yuanshun, then crouched down in front of the children and asked gently, “Where are your family members? How could you run out here? Your parents must be worried.”
“Catching rabbits!” the little boy peeked out from behind his sister and said.
The girl looked at Gu Jianli suspiciously and said, “We come here to play every day.”
Gu Jianli’s heart was pounding.
Seeing these two children, she had a guess. There might be a household or even a village in the depths of the snowy mountains.
Gu Jianli felt a surge of hope, as she was utterly exhausted. They had also run out of food to lighten their load. They needed clean water, food, and warmth. If there were medicine for colds, that would be even better.
Gu Jianli’s group followed the children to an unseen village nestled in the snowy mountains.
The snow houses were half above ground, with the other half hidden below, providing better warmth. As dusk fell, smoke rose from a few houses, and some people sat around a fire, roasting sweet potatoes. Perhaps because of the cold, the free-range hens walked around listlessly.
The appearance of Gu Jianli’s group clearly startled the villagers. People stopped in their tracks, and the men sitting by the fire stood up, staring at them with expressionless faces. Some even frowned.
Yuanshun, standing beside Gu Jianli, exclaimed happily, “I knew the heavens wouldn’t forsake us. We can rest here until the Fifth Master wakes up!”
Gu Jianli’s eyes quickly scanned the faces of the villagers, feeling a little uneasy. She cautioned, “Be careful. Don’t eat anything here lightly.”