Xie Yanlai stood with his shoulders straight, appearing no different from anyone else, but his steps were actually quite slow. It was just that his long legs made each stride less noticeable.
Did it hurt?
Xie Yanlai thought to himself, what a stupid question—
Before he could voice it, the female voice behind him let out a self-deprecating laugh: "What a stupid question. Of course it hurts."
Xie Yanlai sneered inwardly.
"Indeed," he said, turning his head. "Miss Chu, please send more medicine quickly and take good care of this injured person."
Chu Zhao hummed in acknowledgment but didn't offer any further pleasantries.
How dull. Xie Yanlai suddenly lost interest in speaking and strode forward.
Chu Zhao followed behind, silent and lost in thought.
A Le, seeing that neither of them was speaking, also followed quietly.
Step by step, Xie Yanlai walked slowly, and even the short alley eventually came to an end. As he turned onto the main street and noticed the girl still following him, he could no longer hold back. He stopped and turned around.
The girl behind him, completely unaware, bumped right into him.
Caught off guard—who would have thought this girl would run into him? She looked thin and small, but her strength was surprisingly strong. The impact against his chest forced him to brace himself to avoid stepping back, straining the wound on his back—
He let out a sharp hiss.
Chu Zhao looked up, startled, and hurriedly asked, "Did I reopen your wound?" Then she complained, "Why did you stop so suddenly?"
Xie Yanlai retorted angrily, "You're the one who wasn't watching where you were going!"
Chu Zhao smiled. "I was lost in thought, distracted."
Xie Yanlai was so exasperated he didn't know what to say. He stared at the girl, speechless. "What could you possibly be thinking about while following me?"
Chu Zhao replied, "A lot of things! Tomorrow's literary gathering, for instance. I'm sure there will be plenty of trouble waiting for me. But I'm not afraid. I've always been targeted anyway—I'm used to it—"
She actually answered! Who asked her? His words were meant to be sarcastic! Xie Yanlai looked down at the girl, who only reached his chest. Her face was tense, her cheeks puffed out, making her look indignant, yet her eyes and brows carried an unyielding arrogance—as if she feared no one.
Truth be told, this girl had indeed stirred up plenty of trouble. From the moment he met her, it had been one thing after another, yet she had managed to persist and make it this far.
Xie Yanlai swallowed the words on the tip of his tongue and turned away. "Stop following me."
Chu Zhao hummed in acknowledgment, then asked, "Why did you come out? If you can avoid going out, you should. Your injury hasn't had enough time to heal."
"Don't worry," Xie Yanlai said without looking back. "Even if I recover fully, I won't deliver your letters for you. And if it gets worse, you don't need to care."
Chu Zhao laughed and moved in front of him. "Don't be so heartless. What if, after you recover, you change your mind and decide to help me?"
Xie Yanlai raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Fine, then wait slowly."
Chu Zhao reached out and handed him a letter. "How about you take this first, and we'll wait and see?"
"Do you think I'm easy to bully?" Xie Yanlai asked, leaning slightly closer and lowering his voice. "Just because of Xie San, you think I wouldn't dare tear up your letter?"
Chu Zhao said with a straight face, "How could that be? I know you well enough—with or without Xie San, you'd tear up anything you want!"
Xie Yanlai couldn't help but chuckle.
When he laughed, his eyes sparkled like scattered starlight.
Just as Chu Zhao was about to speak, a voice called out from behind, "A Zhao?"
Chu Zhao turned and saw a carriage stopped on the street. The curtain was lifted, and Qi Leyun and two other girls were crowded together, staring at her.They looked at her with surprise, then turned their gaze toward Xie Yanlai, unable to look away.
Who is this?
How could someone be so handsome!
Qi Leyun couldn't hold back and blurted out, "Who is this?"
Fortunately, she managed to restrain herself from saying anything further.
Chu Zhao felt she should go over and speak with them, but she was worried Xie Yanlai would seize the chance to slip away—and he absolutely would!
"This is Young Master Xie, Xie Yanlai," she said, turning to Qi Leyun but not moving from her spot. "I have some matters to discuss with him. You all should head home now."
She was actually shooing them away! Qi Leyun glared at her, thinking, How could she abandon her friends for a pretty face? She had no intention of leaving; she wanted to keep looking. The young man was dressed in black, yet he seemed to glow like snow.
So this was Xie Yanlai?
The other two girls also couldn't tear their eyes away from the young man.
They had seen him before, but that was when he was being punished on the street. In that state, no one had paid him much attention.
Unexpectedly, this son of the Xie family was even more handsome than Xie Yanfang, and with a completely different aura. Xie Yanfang was as warm and refined as jade, while this youth was as sharp and intimidating as a blade—
"What he said was actually true," one of the girls murmured. "Liang Qin isn't as good-looking as him."
Chu Zhao could see the girls had taken root and refused to leave. There was nothing she could do.
"Then you should go back first," Chu Zhao could only say to Xie Yanlai.
Xie Yanlai shot her a sidelong glance. Since when did he need her dismissal? They were each going their own way anyway. Just as he was about to step away, another voice came.
"Xie... Yan... Lai?"
This time, it came from behind, each syllable drawn out. Xie Yanlai turned and saw a young man slowly approaching from the alley he had just walked through.
When he first entered the alley, Xie Yanlai had noticed someone watching him—
It didn't matter. Whoever wanted to stare could stare.
Xie Yanlai paid no mind and withdrew his gaze, but the girl in front of him leaned forward to look. "Young Master Liang."
Young Master Liang?
Xie Yanlai glanced back at the young man. He was around seventeen or eighteen, dressed in simple cloth clothes, his hair slightly disheveled, as if he had rushed out from somewhere—
Though he didn't know him, he immediately realized who it was: a member of the Liang family, who had been exiled to the Border Commandery.
Xie Yanlai withdrew his gaze and looked at Chu Zhao, suddenly breaking into a smile.
Chu Zhao looked up, noticing. "What are you laughing at? That smug, gloating expression again!"
"Laughing at you—you bring all your troubles upon yourself," Xie Yanlai said with a slight bow, still smiling.
Seeing this, Qi Leyun nearly got pushed off the carriage by the other two girls, who leaned out even further in their excitement. The young man's smile was truly captivating—
Chu Zhao turned to Liang Qiang and asked, "Young Master Liang, why have you come here?"
Weren't the Liang family supposed to be escorted out of the capital by now?
Liang Qiang looked at the young man and woman standing side by side. Somehow, his heart felt even heavier than when the Liang family had been convicted.
He had already had an inkling of his uncle's impending downfall.
Though the crushing blow brought sorrow and despair, it hadn't left him utterly hopeless. After being released from prison and escorted toward the Border Commandery, as he left the capital, he suddenly wanted to come back for one last look.
It wasn't out of attachment to the lost wealth and luxury, but to catch a glimpse of that girl.
His aunt and cousin were cursing Chu Zhao at home, blaming her for the Liang family's ruin. Of course, he didn't see it that way. His uncle's downfall was due to political strife—the struggle between the Crown Prince and the Third Prince, the power plays between the Yang and Zhao Families. This girl had merely provided them with a pretext—just one of many reasons.He came back to see Chu Zhao, not with any particular thoughts in mind, but simply to share a self-mocking smile with her and tell her she had overestimated him—he wasn’t actually some brave and valiant youth.
But he never expected that, after going to great lengths to evade his guards and come to the capital, he would witness such a scene.
He saw the girl and was about to call out to her when she rushed toward a young man.
He watched as she and the young man met joyfully, as they spoke with unrestrained expressions, as they walked together in comfortable silence, as she smiled at the young man, and as the young man gazed intently back at her—
Xie Yanlai.
He hadn’t just recognized him now.
Unlike the girls, earlier on the street when he was being whipped, he had stared fiercely at Xie Yanlai’s face, memorizing it.
At that time, he saw Chu Zhao run out to shield this son of the Xie family. Back then, and later when Chu Zhao entered the Xie household, he told himself that this was Chu Zhao’s way of getting close to Xie Yanfang—
There was nothing wrong with getting close to Xie Yanfang. What girl in the world wouldn’t want to be acquainted with Xie Yanfang? He wouldn’t mind. It was only natural for Miss Chu to admire someone like that. Everyone could admire outstanding people—after all, he himself was the brave and valiant one praised in Miss Chu’s heart.
But now, all those self-justifications had shattered.
That girl had run out then, heedless of the consequences, to shield against the flying whip—not for Xie Yanfang, but only to protect this one, Xie Yanlai!
So the rumors were true after all.
“Miss Chu,” Liang Qiang said, looking at Chu Zhao. “So it turns out my Liang family truly stood in the way of your good marriage. I, Liang Qiang, have come especially to apologize to you.”
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