Chapter 51

The carriage travelled at an unhurried pace, with General Huang and his garrison soldiers following behind.

The first day was clear and sunny, making for easy travelling. By the time night fell, they had arrived at the post station within the prefectural city of Nanling Prefecture.

The Prefect of Nanling and the sub-prefect had already received word and guessed the truth of the matter. They were waiting at the post station.

After exchanging courtesies, the Prefect dismissed his subordinates and apologised for the matter concerning Magistrate Wang Gong. Tearfully, he lamented that his health had been poor and that he had failed to notice that Wang Gong was a wolf in sheep’s clothing, leading to His Highness being placed in danger… He cried so hard that snot ran from his nose, and he ended up sitting on the ground.

Gu Yun was standing behind a screen. He had come to find Chao Yan for supper. Seeing this scene, he was utterly dumbfounded.

Was this old man really the Prefect? How was he acting like a street thug? Was he trying to extort someone?

Chao Yan patiently listened until he had finished speaking before asking, “Did you report yourself?”

The Prefect answered through his sobbing, “I did.”

Chao Yan then said that those who became aware of mistakes made in official business and voluntarily reported themselves were exempt from punishment. He added that he would not blame him and offered a few words of comfort.

The Prefect immediately smiled, washed his face, and invited Chao Yan to visit his residence.

Chao Yan declined the Prefect’s banquet invitation and instructed the officials of Nanling Prefecture, high and low alike, to return to their duties.

Even after the Prefect and his entourage had left, Gu Yun still had not recovered from the shock. Chao Yan walked over, waved a hand twice in front of him, and asked, “What are you staring blankly at?”

Gu Yun looked at Chao Yan. After a moment, he came back to himself. Glancing around to make sure nobody was nearby, he cautiously asked, “Husband, didn’t you say you’ve lost your memory? How were you able to deal with Lord Prefect? And how did you know about things like self-reporting?”

Lowering his eyes, Chao Yan smiled.

“Lord Prefect? Isn’t he just an old man? Why wouldn’t I be able to deal with him? As for things like self-reporting, I read about them in books. Books contain houses of gold, my wife. You should read more books yourself. Otherwise, if you ask such foolish questions again one day, you’ll truly become a laughing stock.”

Gu Yun: “…”

You’re the one who’ll become a laughing stock! How is that a foolish question? What do you know?

You wretched Crown Prince. Dog king. I was probing you! Probing you!

Not only had Gu Yun failed to probe anything out of him, he no longer needed supper either.

He was full of anger.

…

After spending a night at the post station, they continued on their journey the next day.

Concerned about their safety, General Huang left behind a detachment of garrison soldiers to serve as escorts when they parted ways.

The second day was overcast, making the journey unusually comfortable. That evening, they rested at another post station along the official road, as usual.

After travelling for another two days, they arrived in the prefectures surrounding the capital. Unfortunately, it was raining there.

At first, the rain was not particularly heavy, and the party could still continue with some difficulty. However, after an hour, the rain became torrential. It was no longer suitable for travel, so they had no choice but to retreat several li and find the nearest post station, where they would rest for a day.

The moment Gu Yun heard the news, the man who had been wilted and listless the entire journey immediately perked up.

On the first day, there had been all sorts of books in the carriage, purchased who knew when and placed there to pass the time. That had made the journey bearable.

By the second day, every part of Gu Yun’s body seemed uncomfortable. He kept changing positions inside the carriage, one after another, until even Chao Yan could no longer bear watching. He simply pulled Gu Yun into his arms and pressed his head down, forcing him to sleep.

By the third day, Gu Yun was suffering even more. He had even begun missing long-distance coaches. Leaning against the carriage window, he seriously considered whether he should jump out.

At one point, Chao Yan had taken him out to try riding a horse. However, because of his injuries, his body could not remain tense for long periods. After riding for a while, the insides of his thighs became painfully chafed, forcing him to give up and return to the carriage.

Swaying and rocking all day long, his brain had practically turned to mush. He could not muster any energy, and all thoughts had left him.

He looked towards the capital the same way he looked towards home, wishing it would appear in the next instant.

Although that wish had not come true, he was still delighted to be able to stop for a day. Everyone else looked unhappy, so he suppressed his soaring spirits and sighed along with them.

Chao Yan glanced over at him. Gu Yun let out another sigh. Chao Yan narrowed his eyes. Gu Yun immediately shrank his neck and edged backwards.

Raising a hand, Chao Yan rubbed his head and said in a low voice, “Enough. Go and get some rest.”

Gu Yun had been waiting for exactly those words. Tugging lightly at Chao Yan’s sleeve, he turned and ran.

The “Crown Prince” was supposedly recuperating in the Eastern Palace, so Chao Yan was returning to the capital under a concealed identity. They were currently staying at the post station under the official identities of Meng Xuan and Ning Fu.

Meng Xuan held a higher rank than Ning Fu, so the post station had arranged a rather good courtyard residence for him. That courtyard had been given to Chao Yan instead.

Meng Xuan himself was staying in the quarters originally assigned to Ning Fu.

Gu Yun stayed together with Chao Yan. Arriving at the principal room of the courtyard, he found everything inside spotlessly clean and orderly. Pushing open a window, he dragged a reclining chair over beside it and, accompanied by the sound of rain, settled down to catch up on sleep. He had slept poorly every night after the first day, and sleeping in the carriage had been even more impossible.

While Gu Yun was busy making up for lost sleep, Chao Yan, after dismissing everyone to rest, went to the west wing where the supplies they had brought on the journey were stored and began checking the medicines. His medicines and Gu Yun’s medicines.

By the time Gu Yun woke up, Chao Yan had already left.

Some of the medicines had been damaged by water, so he had gone out to replenish them.

The rain had eased somewhat, though it was still inconvenient to travel. Ning Fu tried to dissuade Chao Yan, but Chao Yan said that after so many days of travelling he felt stifled and might as well take the opportunity to go out and clear his head.

Unable to stop him, Ning Fu led several men and followed after him.

Gu Yun wanted to go out as well. He felt equally stifled.

Then another thought occurred to him. Wasn’t this precisely the time to defy fate and change his destiny?

Picking up a book, he sat in a pavilion and buried himself in it. Reading more books could make one wiser. Perhaps he might discover some solution besides Chao Yan recovering his memory or himself running away.

As for running away…

Leaving aside the fact that the post station was full of people, where could he possibly go in such heavy rain?

The flower tea in the teapot had long since gone cold. Gu Yun asked an attendant to brew another pot and continued reading. It was a travelogue and quite interesting.

Just then, he heard a faint rustling sound. Following the noise with his eyes, he saw a patch of flowers and shrubs ahead swaying slightly.

Immediately alert, Gu Yun stood up and stepped out of the pavilion into the rain. Within the flowers and shrubs, he could just make out a vague dark figure.

For convenience during travel, the attendants who had previously remained hidden had now come into the open. There should not have been anyone secretly watching them.

Gu Yun’s heart began hammering.

He quickly looked away and called for his attendants, saying he was feeling somewhat unwell and wished to return to his room.

The attendant abandoned the tea he had only half finished preparing, opened an umbrella, and hurried after him. Hearing that he felt unwell, he supported Gu Yun on the way back. Several other attendants also hurried over.

On the way back, apart from the sound of rain striking the ground and the sound of their footsteps, there was nothing else.

Clenching his fists, Gu Yun shifted one step to the left. As he stepped up onto the stairs, he turned back for another look. Among the flowers and shrubs, there appeared to be nothing unusual at all.

After standing there and thinking for a few breaths, Gu Yun led his attendants quickly towards the neighbouring courtyard.

Ning Fu had left with Chao Yan. Meng Xuan was still there. If something happened, he was the person to find.

If the weak did not seek help from the strong, were they supposed to sit around waiting to be slaughtered?

None of the attendants had noticed the person earlier, which was enough to prove that the other’s martial skills were impressive. Dressed entirely in black and skulking about the post station. If he did not have ill intentions, that would be the strange thing.

Gu Yun quickly reached the courtyard. Before he had even entered, the sounds of fighting erupted from within. With a tremendous crash, the courtyard gate collapsed and a figure flew out.

Focusing his gaze, Gu Yun recognised the man as one of Meng Xuan’s attendants.

Looking through the wide-open gateway, he saw Meng Xuan locked in combat with a black-clad figure wrapped from head to toe, so thoroughly covered that even little of his eyes could be seen.

Meng Xuan had already fallen into a disadvantage. Several attendants lay on the ground, blood spilling from their mouths.

In a single instant, Gu Yun saw the black-clad man stab Meng Xuan in the shoulder with the xuandao in his hand. It was a short-handled blade, narrow, curved, and extraordinarily sharp. Cutting through clothing and flesh was effortless.

In that moment, Gu Yun felt as though he had returned to the day disaster struck the county yamen.

As his elder brother often said, he was a born optimist. No matter what unpleasant things he experienced, he could quickly recover and happily carry on with life.

Even so, he remembered every bad thing that had happened to him. The events of that day surfaced vividly in his mind, bringing wave after wave of nausea.

Grabbing an attendant’s arm to steady himself, he shouted, “Help him!”

The attendants had long been unable to hold themselves back. Drawing their sabres, they charged forward.

Gu Yun turned and ran to find the commander of the garrison detachment and the person in charge of the post station to seek reinforcements.

He had not gone more than a few metres when a cool breeze stirred behind him. A cold blade pressed against his throat through his collar.

“Don’t move,” the black-clad man said.

There was no need to guess. From the man’s tall frame and hoarse voice, Gu Yun immediately knew he was male.

He froze where he stood, cold sweat breaking out across his back. Keeping his expression calm, he parted his lips, intending to speak. Instead, the man seized him and forced him forwards.

Several attendants cursed under their breath but dared not act rashly. They followed behind. The black-clad man dragged him to the east wing of the courtyard.

Rain soaked both of them.

Kicking the door shut, the man pressed the blade harder against his throat.

“You’re that bastard Meng’s woman? Fine. If I can’t take his life today, then I’ll take the life of you troublesome woman instead.”

Rainwater blurred Gu Yun’s vision.

Grabbing the man’s arm, he squeezed tightly. “I’m not Lord Meng’s woman. I’m the wife of one of the people travelling with him.”

The man let out a mocking laugh. “Who besides that bastard Meng would have a strange woman like you?”

Strange? Was he talking about his short hair?

Gu Yun explained, “I cut it short deliberately so I wouldn’t suffer another calamity.”

The moment the words left his mouth, pain flared at his neck.

The man barked, “What calamity can be avoided by cutting your hair short?”

“A villager wanted to keep me as his wife. I refused, but he grabbed me by the hair and dragged me back. After I escaped, I felt my hair was too troublesome. To avoid something like that happening again, I cut it short.”

The man said, “Looking at you, you’re clearly the wife of some wealthy and powerful family. How would mere villagers dare harbour such intentions towards you? Where were your servants? How did you end up being captured by mere villagers?”

The questioning came one after another. Gu Yun had no time to think of a proper response.

In desperation, he blended together his modern identity and his transmigration experiences with the background of the Xuan Dynasty.

“I am the daughter of a wealthy merchant. Not long ago, disaster struck my family. During our flight, I became separated from them and ended up stranded in a foreign place.”

The man fell silent. Neither releasing him nor tightening his grip.

“I can swear…”

Before Gu Yun could finish, voices came from outside.

“You audacious thief! Release Madam immediately! Otherwise we’ll break down the door and leave not even your corpse intact!”

Before Gu Yun could feel relieved, he sensed the man’s body shift.

His heart jumped. He stamped hard on the man’s foot.

As the man loosened his grip from the pain, Gu Yun seized his arm and yanked violently to the side. The blade moved away from his throat.

The distance was enough. Breaking free, Gu Yun kicked viciously at the man’s groin and threw himself towards the door.

The door was not locked. He burst through it, staggered forward several steps, and was caught by someone.

Turning back, he saw the black-clad man hunch over briefly before spinning around and leaping through the window. One attendant immediately shouted to the men stationed outside. “Don’t let him escape!”

Unexpectedly, the man was an expert. With several swift bounds, he vaulted onto the wall and vanished from sight.

“After him!” The group rushed around the wall and followed his tracks. They chased him all the way into the woods outside the post station, only to lose him completely.

While they were still cursing their bad luck, the sound of approaching hoofbeats rang out nearby.

Chao Yan had returned through the rain. After hearing the attendants’ report, he jerked the reins and rode straight into the post station.

Hurrying to the courtyard, he found Gu Yun and urgently asked, “Are you hurt?”

Gu Yun sat at the table, wiping his face with a dry cloth. Shaking his head, he said, “I’m fine.”

The tension in Chao Yan’s eyes eased. “Good.”

Grabbing his arm, Gu Yun said, “Lord Meng is badly injured. Let’s go and see him.”

Chao Yan took two steps before raising a hand to his forehead. Pain crossed his features. In a low voice, he said, “Wait. Let me sit down for a moment.”

Concerned, Gu Yun asked, “What’s wrong?”

Chao Yan sat down. After a moment, he said, “My head hurts a little. I was in a hurry to get back and didn’t use an umbrella. I think I’ve caught a chill.”

Gu Yun poured him a cup of hot tea, blew on it, and handed it over.

“Take a moment to recover.”

…

In the capital, as usual, it was a rainy day.