Mo Li

In the sixth and seventh months, the central plains were unbearably hot. In Guangling City north of the Cloud Ripple River, a young woman in yellow strolled leisurely through the streets. Though the recent wars had just subsided, all territories north of the Cloud Ripple River had already fallen under the control of Prince Ding's Estate. The once-vast Chu Kingdom was now truly confined to a corner. The efficiency of Prince Ding's Estate was remarkable—within just two or three months, Guangling, a place largely untouched by the war, had already regained its former prosperity.

The girl in yellow wandered the streets unhurriedly, occasionally stopping to look at or touch things here and there, her beautiful face lit with a radiant smile that drew the gazes of passersby.

This girl was none other than Yunge, who had run away from the Xu family in Li Cheng. After leaving the city, she had traveled south, practicing medicine and sightseeing along the way, living quite freely. Though she had encountered minor troubles, her martial skills made them easy to resolve. Thus, this young girl, who had never traveled alone before, had made her way smoothly to Guangling.

"Miss… Miss, are you Shen Yunge?"

Yunge was frowning at a candy stall on the street, debating whether to buy some, when a strange man suddenly rushed over, grabbed her, and called out. She blinked in confusion and asked, "I am Shen Yunge. Who are you? How do you know my name?"

"Miss Shen… Miss Shen, please save my mother!" the man pleaded anxiously, even starting to kneel. Yunge quickly steadied him and said, "Don’t panic. Speak slowly. How did you know… I could help your mother?"

The man replied, "Miss Shen, your medical skills are extraordinary, and your heart is kind. You’ve saved many lives. I… I heard about you from others and rushed here when I learned you were in Guangling. Please, show mercy…"

Seeing his flushed, desperate face, Yunge nodded quickly. "Don’t worry, I’ll definitely help your mother. Where… where is she?"

The man flushed with shame. "I was in such a hurry to find you in the city that I left my mother at a farmhouse outside the walls."

"Then let’s go quickly." Seeing his urgency, Yunge didn’t dare delay and headed straight for the city gate.

Meanwhile, in a teahouse elsewhere in Guangling, Qingchen Gongzi sat by the window in white robes, leisurely observing the bustling street below.

"Gongzi," a man in gray cloth hurried upstairs and whispered to Xu Qingchen, "Miss Shen has left the city again."

Qingchen Gongzi frowned slightly. "She just entered the city. Why is she leaving again?"After Qingchen Gongzi left Li Cheng, he followed the trail of Yunge all the way. However, Yunge was capricious by nature, her whereabouts unpredictable. It was not unusual for her to cover two or three hundred miles in a single day on a whim. Qingchen Gongzi, who lacked even the strength to tie up a chicken, clearly couldn’t keep up with such a pace. Thus, it wasn’t until a few days ago that they finally caught up with Yunge’s trail. Yet, Xu Qingchen didn’t immediately seek her out. Instead, he followed her from a distance with his men. Yesterday, Xu Qingchen guessed that Yunge might come to Guangling, so they arrived first and waited. Unexpectedly, Yunge had barely entered the city before leaving again without meeting anyone.

“Just now, someone approached Miss Shen on the street seeking medical help, and she followed them out,” a plain-clothed man reported in a low voice. “We’ve already sent people to follow her.”

“Seeking medical help?” Qingchen Gongzi frowned. Along the way, Yunge had always lent a hand whenever someone needed assistance. Her medical skills had earned praise from Shen Yang, proving they were indeed quite remarkable. Over time, she had gained some reputation among the common folk, but…

Seeing Qingchen Gongzi’s expression darken, the guard quickly reassured him, “Don’t worry, Gongzi. Miss Shen’s martial arts are not weak, and there are guards secretly following her. Nothing should go wrong.” Xu Qingchen pondered for a moment before standing up. “Let’s go and take a look as well.” Yunge’s martial skills were indeed good, but she had almost no experience in the jianghu. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have remained completely unaware of being followed all this way. Xu Qingchen couldn’t shake the feeling that the person who had stopped her on the street for medical help was suspicious. Even if Yunge had left some reputation in the places she passed through, it couldn’t have spread so quickly. And given Yunge’s erratic travel route, it was impossible for someone to have followed her with a sick person in tow.

“Understood.” Seeing Qingchen Gongzi’s grave expression, the guard knew something might go wrong and promptly followed Xu Qingchen downstairs.

Outside Guangling City, Yunge grew increasingly puzzled as the man seeking medical help led her further into desolate areas. She finally stopped in her tracks.

“M-Miss Shen, what’s the matter?” The man turned back with an ingratiating smile. Yunge frowned at him. “Where is your mother? There’s no sign of anyone around here.”

The man’s expression stiffened slightly. “Just ahead. Miss Shen, let’s hurry.” Yunge hesitated but nodded and continued following him.

After walking a bit further, Yunge finally sensed something was wrong. “Where exactly are you taking me?” Along her journey, Yunge had encountered various situations and knew the world wasn’t filled only with good people. Initially, she hadn’t thought much of it due to the man’s anxious and pleading demeanor, but if there really was a patient, why would they be in such a remote and hard-to-find place?

The man turned back and grinned at her. His once-honest face now bore a malicious smirk, making him appear downright repulsive. “Heh heh, Miss Shen, just follow along and you’ll find out. Why ask so many questions?”

“I’m not going any further!” Yunge said firmly. “I’m turning back. You never had anyone for me to treat in the first place.”"Though you say there's no illness to see? Miss Shen... don't you see this young master is gravely ill?" A somewhat slick voice came from behind. Suddenly, several men appeared on the previously empty mountain path, led by a gaunt young man. His sallow face and emaciated frame were matched by a pair of turbid eyes filled with lewdness, making his already plain features appear even more repulsive—one glance was enough to evoke disgust.

Yet Yunge silently observed the men before her. None were ordinary folk; even the sallow-faced man knew some martial arts. "Step aside. I'm going back," Yunge frowned, displeased. She wasn't entirely without temper—having come in good faith to treat someone only to be deceived, it would be a lie to say she wasn't angry.

"Step aside?" The men exchanged glances and burst into laughter.

"Miss Shen, this young master has followed you for half a day just to see you. Letting you go back like this would be a great loss for me," the gaunt man leered, his lustful gaze fixed on Yunge. "This young master sincerely wishes for you to treat his illness. Why not come to my humble abode for a few days?"

Meeting those turbid eyes made Yunge nauseous. She glanced at him coldly. "You're not ill. Just practice temperance and self-restraint." The man's emaciated face and dull, lifeless eyes clearly indicated excessive indulgence.

With that, she ignored them and turned to leave. Enraged by her dismissal, the man waved his hand. "Hurry up and invite this beauty to be my guest!"

"Yes!" his followers chorused, surrounding Yunge.

"Be careful not to harm my beauty." This man was a young master from a prominent family near Guangling, though he himself was talentless. Relying on his family's wealth, he indulged in debauchery and frequently abducted women. With the newly stabilized empire and the emperor far away, no one bothered to intervene. That morning, he had spotted Yunge treating refugees in a small town and, driven by lust, followed her for miles before devising this scheme to lure her away.

Yunge was no pushover. Annoyed, she glared at the men and struck one who approached her. Though his followers weren't experts, they knew some martial arts. Seeing her fight back, the others joined in, encircling her. The gaunt man grew even more excited. "She knows martial arts? Excellent! Quick—bring this little beauty back! I'll take her as my concubine!"

Furious, Yunge's face flushed red. With a flick of her wrist, a streak of dark light shot toward the man. Skilled enough to dodge, he barely avoided the hidden weapon, breaking into a cold sweat when he saw the dart embedded in a tree.

"Useless! Hurry up! Can't even handle a woman!" the man roared.These men, though tall and burly, were no match for Yunge in terms of martial arts. During the fight, they exchanged glances, and two of them immediately blocked Yunge while another took out a packet from his robe and flung it toward her. Yunge’s heart skipped a beat—"Tendon Weakening Powder?!"

As someone trained in medicine, Yunge knew full well the potency of the Tendon Weakening Powder. But with several men surrounding her, despite her best efforts to evade, she still ended up exposed to some of it. Without another thought for her attackers, she struck out with her palm to force one man back and then leaped away, fleeing into the distance. She was acutely aware that once the powder’s effects took hold, she would be utterly at their mercy.

"After her, you useless fools!" The man was furious at seeing his prey slip away and roared at his men.

"Young Master… that girl doesn’t seem like an ordinary person…" one of them ventured timidly. Though they lacked worldly experience, anyone who could still run after being dosed with Tendon Weakening Powder—and with such formidable martial skills—was clearly no commoner. What if they had provoked someone they shouldn’t have?

"I don’t care if she’s ordinary or not," the man sneered. "In Guangling, is there any family more powerful than the Huangs? Once she’s mine…" Seeing his determination, the guards dared not argue and immediately gave chase in the direction Yunge had fled.

Yunge sprinted toward Guangling City using her Light Body Skill, but she could already feel herself breaking into a sweat, her limbs growing weak and unresponsive. Clearly, the exertion had accelerated the effects of the Tendon Weakening Powder. Yet, she had no antidote on hand.

Gradually, even her Light Body Skill failed her. Exhausted, Yunge collapsed by the roadside, too weak to even lift a hand.

Damn it… She cursed the villains inwardly, anxiety creeping in. She remembered… on her way here, she had spotted some herbs that could counteract the poison. Struggling to recall, she forced herself up, trying to stagger toward where she thought she’d seen them. But no sooner had she stood than she fell again.

Soon, the men caught up. Seeing Yunge sprawled helplessly on the ground, the gaunt-faced man laughed triumphantly. "Little beauty, why don’t you run anymore? What’s the matter?"

Yunge glared at him furiously. "You scoundrel… how despicable!"

The man only laughed harder. "Scoundrel? Despicable? This is all your fault, miss. If you’d just obeyed, this young master wouldn’t have had to be so rough. My family is worth ten thousand fortunes—just come with me, and you’ll live in luxury beyond your wildest dreams."

"Who cares about your fortunes?" Yunge scoffed. She had plenty of money herself—Sister Li had told her that the wealth her father left behind was enough to last her a lifetime in silks and satins.

The man had long since lost his patience. At her defiance, he sneered, "Don’t care? You’ll sing a different tune soon enough. Men, take the little beauty back for me."

Two of his lackeys stepped forward to seize Yunge. Biting her tongue hard, she used the sharp pain to fuel a burst of strength, flinging a handful of hidden weapons at them. As they scrambled to dodge, she mustered what little energy she had left and stumbled forward, running for her life."Get her!" came the furious shout of the man from behind.

Yunge ran desperately forward, but even the strongest willpower couldn't always overcome the effects of drugs. From overexertion, she could clearly feel darkness clouding her vision in waves. If she stopped again now, it wouldn't just be complete exhaustion—she would pass out entirely. So she kept desperately telling herself not to stop, not to stop...

"Stop right there! You damn girl..." The pursuers were closing in again.

Yunge couldn't help feeling despair. She was just a young girl who hadn't experienced much in life—holding out this long in such a situation was already remarkable. Unconsciously, tears slipped from the corners of her eyes as she collapsed to the ground once more.

"Wuwu..."

"So foolish, running around like this. What would you have done if I hadn't come looking for you?" A gentle voice tinged with faint exasperation spoke up, sounding like heavenly music to Yunge's ears. She found herself gathered into an embrace that carried a slight coolness and the scent of ink, momentarily stunned. Lifting her head, she met a pair of calm, gentle eyes—though they now held a trace of coldness and rippling emotion.

"Xu... Xu Qingchen, is it really you?"

"Who else would it be?" Xu Qingchen sighed helplessly. Seeing how hard she'd been struggling, he could only sigh with pity, gently stroking her hair as he said, "It's me. You're safe now. Be good... sleep."

Feeling her heart settle at last, Yunge leaned against his chest and slowly closed her eyes.