Chapter 8: Qi Yao

  Everyone followed the old lady back to He Xiang Yuan, and the dishes were already laid out on the table. Father waited for the old lady to sit down. Yang Shi sat beside her. Pang Luo Xue stood by her side and served the dishes with the old lady. The meal was eaten without incident.

  After dinner, Guo Gongye and Yang stayed behind to talk. Pang Luoxue obediently brewed a cup of tea before retreating, leaving the time for the couple.

  Snow hurried back to the Snow Pavilion, changed into men's clothing, and instructed Zi Juan before leaving with Lian Ye from the back door. All the way back to the Qi manor they had bought, making sure no one was following, they quickly entered through the back door of the Qi manor. Lian Ou had been waiting on the side for a long time.

  "Miss, you've arrived. As per your instructions, I've found a reliable nanny to buy the maid and young servant. The place has been cleaned up. Miss, that girl is awake now, but she's still recovering from her serious injuries and can't get out of bed."

  "Alright, I'll go take a look at her. Lotus root, how did you buy this house?"

  "This house has been empty for a long time, and there are no other households nearby. I thought the young lady must not want anyone to know, so I bought this courtyard and had it cleaned up, and it's still quite good."

  "I didn't expect you to be a little clever, indeed knowing my thoughts. From now on, you and Lianye will be my right-hand men. We grew up together since childhood, so I naturally regard you as my younger sisters. Just call me sister in private."

  "Miss..."

  "Don't call me Miss, I'm getting angry. I scowled and said on purpose"

  "Miss will bully us, see who still cares about you." Lotus leaf heard and came over to help lotus root speak.

  "You two little rascals, aren't you trying to gang up on me? Alright, first take me to see that girl for a bit before I deal with you."

  "How dare I, this is taking you sister to go." After that, he led the way for me in front.

  The mansion had been swept clean, and indeed it was refreshed. Along the way, I followed them as they walked in a winding path to the room. The room was filled with the smell of medicine, mixed with a faint scent of blood.

  On the bed in the room, under the thick mosquito net, a frail figure looked especially small and pitiful. The pale face had no hint of rosiness. Perhaps feeling someone's presence, her breathing was slightly agitated. Indeed, she was a martial artist. The person on the bed slowly opened their eyes, and the amber-colored pupils held a sense of weariness that didn't match her age, making one feel extra sympathy. That hatred made me seem to see my past self. This girl's background is probably not simple either; it's just this intense hatred that has kept her alive, thinking about which makes me think that I too relied on intense hatred to be reborn in this life.

  "Miss, my name is Pang Luoxue. I heard your cries for help on the way to a broken temple and brought you back with me. Do you still have any family members? I can send someone to find them for you. The doctor said that because of your severe injuries, it's not suitable to move you, so I brought you here instead. Please don't be offended, miss."

  "Thank you, Miss Pang, for saving me. Judging from your attire, I can tell that you are a young lady from a wealthy family. I, Qi Yao, thank you again for saving my life, and I will definitely repay this kindness with my own life. Alas, I am now alone and have no home to return to." She said, her face revealing a faint look of sorrow.

  Qī Yáo? Could it be that you're the daughter of General Qī? I recall that she was three years older than me, and had already died when General Qī's entire family was exiled two years ago. Could the rumors have been false? So I carefully asked, "Are you General Qī's daughter?"

  As soon as Qi Yao heard this, she was immediately on guard, and I knew that this matter was not trivial. This girl was indeed Qi Yao, the daughter of General Qi. Looking at her tense expression, I smiled and said, "General Qi is loyal to the country, and I absolutely do not believe that he would embezzle military funds and disregard the lives of his soldiers. This matter probably has a large element of framing."

  "Hmph, it's not just big, it's simply framing and trapping. It's all because my father refused to surrender to the King of Jin that we ended up in this situation." The two eyes turned bright red as she spoke.

  It's indeed the King of Jin who is playing tricks, causing others' families to be broken and ruined. How can such a person deserve to be the ruler of a country?

  "Qī Yāo sister, don't be sad, take good care of your injuries here. This is the original Qī estate, I'll arrange for people to renovate it anew. Sister, rest assured and stay here safely. I also have some grudges against the King of Jìn, but it's not convenient to tell you now, please don't worry, my hatred towards him is no less than yours. Sister, rest assured, I will definitely make him atone for what he has done." My eyes burst forth with intense hatred, startling Qī Yāo as well, and although she had doubts in her heart, her guard was lowered by a lot.

  Then he told me that he was on his way to assassinate the King of Jin, but was injured by the king's bodyguards. He is a persistent person, but his whole family risked their lives to save Qi Yao's life. How can Qi Yao not hate him? At this point, Kuang said, "Revenge is not urgent, in my opinion, the King of Jin's worthless life is far less precious than my sister's. Why bother wasting our family's efforts? If you die, how can our ancestors rest in peace?"

  Qī Yáo heard this and also couldn't help but shed tears.

  I see that she seems to have understood, so I won't force her. After all, one has to get through their own struggles first. So I let her rest well and told her I'll come visit again another day, if there's anything urgent, just instruct the servants. If anything comes up, someone can notify me. For now, the most important thing is to focus on recovering from her injuries.

  Qī Yāo also had both external and internal injuries, so she went to sleep honestly. I took the lotus leaf and lotus root and retreated. Let her rest well.

  "Miss, after buying this house, Miss's expenses for this month have already been more than half spent. Although there were always some surplus every month before, it was never enough to spend. Miss should ask the madam to pay out some."

  "I'll take care of the silver matter myself, I don't want Mother to know about these things, do you understand what I mean?"

  "Yes, sister."

  "Alright, I'll head back for today. Tomorrow is the Peony Banquet and I still need to rush and finish embroidering something for Mother, otherwise it will be too late." Moreover, tomorrow is the Peony Banquet, Wang Niang definitely wants to find a way to get Pang Luoyu to come out. Such an opportunity, how can she not cherish it? I suppose tonight my good sister will come to Luoxue Pavilion to chat with me. What big gift should I prepare for her, this needs to be carefully planned."

  After entrusting the servants to take good care of Qi Gu Niang, he stayed behind to give Qi Yao some ginseng and lingzhi to nourish her body, then brought back lotus leaves and lotus roots to return to the Duke's mansion.

  We sneaked back to the Snowflake Pavilion through the back door, and just as we finished changing our clothes, a servant came to report that Cong Zhi, the personal maid of the eldest miss, had come to say that today's weather was very good and she wanted to have a good talk with the second miss. I naturally couldn't wait for her to come and talk to me, so I nodded and said I knew, and I would definitely wait for my sister to arrive. I will prepare a big gift to welcome her. I hope she won't think this gift is too small. My gentle and virtuous talented sister.

  It's no wonder, Wang Yiniang is indeed skilled, and Pang Luoyu was able to get out so quickly. Everyone knows that the old lady has a quirky temper, and it must have taken some effort. I'm getting more and more excited.