Chapter 181: Hello Chang’an
"IF YOU LIKE THE TRANSLATIONS, CONSIDER SUPPORTING US ON PATREON ads free with exclusive updates."
**Chapter 181: Disappearance**
Admiration?
Such pure and sacred words.
Ming Jin gave a faint, ambiguous smile and coaxed gently, "If you want to marry into the Ming family, you don't need to seek my mother's approval. As long as I like you, that's enough, do you understand?"
Feng Min's eyes trembled, and a sudden surge of hope rose within her as she lifted her gaze to the face so close to hers.
At that moment, his hand slid lower, settling on her waist, then suddenly pulling her toward him.
The action made Feng Min nervous and flustered. Instinctively, she tried to pull away. "Your Highness…"
But Ming Jin held her tightly, pinning her down, his other hand expertly untying her belt. "Don’t be afraid. As long as you become mine, do you think I’d ever leave you?"
The words hit her like a thunderclap, and she truly understood what he intended to do.
He actually meant to…
In a place like this?!
If she had been nervous and shy before, now she was terrified.
"No, Your Highness, this... this isn’t right!"
His hand had already ventured inside her clothes, the familiar, practiced motion showing no respect for her at all, as if she were nothing more than a courtesan from a brothel.
But she wasn’t!
She was a noble young lady, raised with etiquette and discipline by her grandmother, the matriarch of their family. She had her own dignity and honor. Even though she desired to marry into Marquis Ying’s family, even though she knew he wasn’t a righteous man, she never thought of submitting in this way!
On the contrary, it was precisely because she sought to marry into such a powerful family that she could not lose her purity before marriage!
And here... if anyone found out, not only would she never marry into the Ming family, she might not even survive!
Given her grandmother’s way of handling things, she would likely be given a length of white silk to end her own life...
This wasn’t what she wanted!
Confusion filled her mind, and as she was just a young girl with little experience, shame and fear overwhelmed her, leaving her completely panicked.
When Ming Jin ripped her skirt open, Feng Min’s mind blanked, and she screamed, struggling wildly, accidentally scratching his neck.
Ming Jin, losing all patience, slapped her face with a sharp "smack."
"You came to me willingly, and now you're pretending to be a saint!" he sneered.
Feng Min shook her head in desperation. "Your Highness, it’s not like that..."
Seeing her eyes darting away, as though she found it hard to speak, Ming Jin’s gaze darkened suddenly, and he seized her neck. "What? Did you hear some rumors about me... is that it?"
Feng Min, terrified by the sudden dark look on his face and the grip tightening around her neck, shook her head, struggling to speak. "I... I don’t know what rumors you mean..."
"What else could it be?!"
With a twisted expression, Ming Jin threw her down onto the ground.
"I’ll prove it to you right now!"
To prove his point, he had taken a double dose of medicine before coming here. The feverish heat now coursing through him nearly consumed the last bits of his rationality.
Feng Min, trapped beneath him, could feel her life at risk. Instinctively, she began to scream for help.
"Shout! Shout louder! It’s better if everyone hears it!" Ming Jin sneered, his eyes gleaming with a sickly excitement. "I would love for them all to see!"
Tears slid down Feng Min’s cheeks as she struggled, pleading with him for mercy.
Just as she neared the brink of despair, someone hurriedly approached from the woods, the dry, fiery leaves crunching underfoot.
…
As the autumn sun sank in the west, the crimson maple leaves stretched far and wide, painting the sky in a deep scarlet.
As the evening wind scattered the burning clouds, the night quickly followed, swallowing the last vestiges of sunset, and the world was plunged into darkness.
That night, Dayun Temple was far from peaceful.
But this unrest didn’t reach the solemn and quiet Tower. In the middle of the night, Chang Suining, who hadn’t slept, opened the window and, by chance, her gaze landed on the stone table in the tower courtyard.
In the intermingling light of starlight and lanterns, she seemed to see the figure of the young man sitting quietly in the darkness.
She blinked, and the figure disappeared.
Chang Suining regained her focus and looked out toward the tower’s edge.
The situation in Bingzhou was urgent, and there could be sudden changes at any moment. Not a second could be wasted. Given that he needed to leave secretly from the capital, tonight was indeed a good time to depart.
She began to think about which city gate he would exit, and which road he would take after leaving the city.
The map of the empire was etched in her mind. The cities and official roads leading from the capital to Bingzhou appeared vividly before her, along with the image of the young man riding his horse, crossing mountains and rivers.
Chang Suining rested her chin on the window ledge, lost in thought for a long time.
A group of riders was moving swiftly through the night.
At this moment, the man dressed in black robes suddenly slowed his horse and reined it in.
Cui Yuanxiang, following closely behind, also stopped his horse, instinctively reaching for the sword at his waist, warily scanning the surroundings. However, he noticed that his lord, the Commander, had turned his head and was quietly gazing off into the distance.
Cui Yuanxiang followed his gaze and silently put his half-drawn sword back into its sheath.
So they had passed by Dayun Temple. No wonder.
Cui Yuanxiang, ever observant, suggested, "My Lord, since we’ve already passed by, why not stop by the temple and light an incense? Every time I leave home, my mother always lights incense for me."
After saying this, Cui Yuanxiang couldn’t help but feel a bit proud of himself.
Not to brag, but wasn’t he really good at reading his superior’s thoughts? And this reason was perfect!
Cui Jing actually considered it for a moment before saying, "It’s too late, the temple gates are closed, and it would be inappropriate to disturb the monks."
Cui Yuanxiang thought for a moment and said, "Then we could climb the wall and go in. The people guarding the temple are all our own people!"
Cui Jing: "…"
He wasn’t the type to engage in such secretive acts. Moreover, he had urgent matters to attend to. Since he was leaving the capital in secret, it would be unwise to complicate things.
If it were merely to secretly meet her, that would be childish. He wasn’t someone who could act in such a frivolous manner. How could he be worthy of seeing her, let alone leading the Xuanzhe army for her?
Cui Jing held the reins with one hand and placed his other hand on the sword at his waist.
There were two chestnuts in the scabbard.
He gazed into the distance at Dayun Temple, where the highest tower, the Tower, could be seen, its faint light flickering like stars.
After a moment, the young man spurred his horse forward, riding through the starlight, leaving only a breeze in his wake.
The night wind brushed through the trees, rustling the leaves and carrying the sound into the tower’s window.
Inside the tower, the young girl had stood for a long time. Eventually, she looked up at the stars and then closed the window.
…
After three days of prayer, the next day would mark the day that Chang Suining would leave the tower.
As she stepped out of Tower, she felt as though she were a long-imprisoned spirit, almost revealing her true form within the tower. Fortunately, the "Demon-Repelling Mirror" had been broken just in time, preventing her from being exposed.
Ming Luo glanced to the side and saw the young girl, dressed in an autumn yellow robe, stretch and yawn in the morning light like a cat released from a cage.
Soon, two figures waiting outside the tower ran up to her.
"Sister!"
"Lady!"
"Brother?" Chang Suining was somewhat surprised. "When did you arrive?"
"I arrived the day before yesterday afternoon," Chang Sui'an explained, "I didn’t want to disturb your prayers, so I kept it from you… Ning Ning, how have you been these past few days in the tower? Have you been eating and sleeping well? Is the praying exhausting?"
Seeing his sister, Chang Sui'an couldn't stop talking.
Before he could finish his questions, Cui Lang arrived with a pot in hand, followed by Yao Xia, Wei Miaoqing, and more than ten other young ladies. They crowded around her, calling out, "Sister Chang, your merits are boundless," and "Lady Chang, you’ve worked so hard."
Chang Suining estimated that even when the National Master of Tianjing returned from his three-year seclusion, his reception might not have been as grand as hers.
The girls surrounded Chang Suining, leaving Chang Sui'an and Cui Lang standing awkwardly, unable to get close.
"Lady Chang probably hasn't had breakfast yet. Why don't we all have the morning meal together?" one suggested.
"Yes, yes, let's all go!" Wei Miaoqing eagerly grabbed Chang Suining's arm with a proud smile. "We should go to my place. Yesterday, I had the kitchen at the temple borrowed, and I made some chrysanthemum cakes."
Unlike Yao Xia and the others, who only knew how to flatter with sweet words, she was the one taking actual action!
"Even if there are chrysanthemum cakes… Miss Wei shouldn’t monopolize Lady Chang," one noblewoman muttered, displeased.
Her words were quickly echoed by others.
After all, there was only one Lady Chang. Everyone had come a long way just to meet her. How could they let Wei Miaoqing take her away all for herself?
Lady Chang was everyone's Lady Chang!
Wei Miaoqing seemed to lack the grace to share with others. If she didn’t change her ways, they might not share any more news of Lady Chang with her in the future!
Seeing Wei Miaoqing being reprimanded, Cui Lang couldn’t help but feel it was absurd. "…Why are they still arguing?"
"Enough, enough, everyone be quiet!" Chang Sui'an quickly stepped forward, raising his hand to stop the noise. "Ning Ning isn’t going anywhere. We’re going to Master Wu Jue’s place for the vegetarian meal! It’s his specific request!"
The noble ladies sighed in defeat.
How could even a monk like Master Wu Jue be involved in this?
Fortunately, Chang Suining promised that once they returned to the capital, she would invite them to the Chang residence, which helped settle the situation.
Though reluctant, the young ladies had no choice but to disperse.
On their way out, they gathered around Wei Miaoqing, trying to reason with her and guide her with some constructive advice.
Meanwhile, after parting ways with the Chang siblings and Cui Lang, they headed toward Master Wu Jue’s private chamber.
Chang Suining knew well that this so-called meal was merely an excuse. Master Wu Jue wanted to meet "her."
But what would happen after they met? What would they talk about?
These were questions Chang Suining had pondered countless times during the past few days in the tower. Now, they had finally come to a head.
In her hand, she tightly grasped the stone ring, its surface weathered and chipped, her emotions swirling with uncertainty.
At that moment, a group of imperial guards quickly passed by.
Chang Suining noticed that this was the third such group she had seen on this journey, and it appeared they were heading in the same direction.
"Brother, has something happened at the temple?" she asked cautiously.
Chang Sui'an nodded, gazing in the direction the guards had gone. "I heard that a young lady went missing yesterday, and they still haven’t found her."
Missing?
Chang Suining immediately asked with a serious expression, "Which family does she belong to?"
---
[End of Chapter]
Comments
Post a Comment