Cui Huan glanced at Yu Zixi, who was lying on the bed full of remorse, and sighed softly. "Miss Wei was once kidnapped by the crown prince. When she learned from the crown prince that you had fallen off a cliff and died, she was heart - broken. She secretly went to Hanzhong to look for you, afraid that you might really have an accident and die in a foreign land without anyone to bury you."
Yu Zixi was stunned, and his heart trembled.
Cui Huan continued, "She traveled day and night without a moment's rest, fearing that if she was a bit late, you would be gone. As soon as she and Jing Zhe arrived in Hanzhong and couldn't get in touch with you, she hurriedly set up a milk tea stall. The poem carved on the bamboo tube was exactly the one in the letter you sent her before. She guarded the milk tea stall painstakingly until the fourth day when she finally got in touch with Senior Brother Tian Qi. She didn't want to believe that you were dead and dragged Senior Brother to look for you without a moment's delay. When they came back the next day, she had a terrifying fever. When we arrived, she was lying in bed, delirious from the fever, and had lost a lot of weight. I've never seen her look so haggard. Even Ruan Niang was shocked. We managed to save her with great difficulty, but she was scolded by Brother Long. At that time, your life or death was unknown. Why did she do all this? Wasn't it just to bet on the slightest possibility that you were still alive? And what were you doing, Young Master? How could you let Miss Wei suffer so much in vain? Now that you're back, you still find ways to make her angry. Doesn't your conscience ache?" As Cui Huan spoke, hot tears rolled down her face. Remembering the past scenes, she felt a pang in her heart.
Hearing this, Yu Zixi was filled with remorse, and his heart ached terribly. He had vaguely heard about these things, but he never expected the process to be so heart - wrenching.
Tian Qi was silent for a long time and then said softly, "Yes. At that time, there was no news of you in Hanzhong City. I was at a loss. I really found you because of the milk tea cups from the Tingfeng Tower. The young mistress immediately dragged me to look for you under the cliff. After searching for a long time, she found a cold and rushing underground river. Even I, who am good at swimming, didn't dare to go down rashly, but she jumped in without hesitation and actually found another exit. I, a grown man, didn't even dare to think about how cold and dark that underground current through the cave was, and how long she had to hold her breath in the water before she could surface for a moment of gasping. If there was no exit in that cave, what would she do? Fortunately, after waiting for a very long time, I finally heard her calling my name at the foot of the opposite mountain. She took me to inquire about your news all night and only then learned that you were still alive. Young Master, I've never seen a woman so desperate to look for you. If you were to let her down, you'd really be a heartless man."
The words of Cui Huan and Tian Qi were like a cruel blow to Yu Zixi's heart!
Yu Zixi felt a sharp pain in his heart like being pricked by needles. Wei Dongling had done so much for him, but he had known nothing about it. He had even made her cry again and again! He had bullied her in the camp of the Iron Cavalry Army! She must have thought that she had lost her chastity, right? She must have been so panicked and sad! What should he do? How could he explain this?
Cui Huan said earnestly with red - rimmed eyes, "I feel really bad seeing her like this. Why don't you go back and marry your cousin to let her give up? After all, Prince Yun is actually a nice guy. He's sincere to her and will surely not let her down. If she follows Prince Yun, she won't have to suffer so much..."
Yu Zixi got angry. "How dare he touch my woman!"
Cui Huan was taken aback, rolled her eyes, and said angrily, "Is this a matter of daring or not? You're about to marry another woman. What do you think Miss Wei will think?"
Yu Zixi said anxiously, "That's not what I intended! No, I have to go and get her back quickly!" Saying this, he pushed Tian Qi aside and tried to get out of bed.
Cui Huan said coldly, "If you really want to get her back, you'd better go and break off the engagement with your cousin first. As long as the engagement is not broken, do you think Miss Wei will be willing to talk to you?"
Break off the engagement? Yu Zixi's face darkened. He had planned to break it off sooner or later, but because it was a thorny issue, he had kept delaying it, which had led to these unexpected troubles. It seemed that he really should end it earlier. Yu Zixi hesitated and asked, "Dongling won't really..."
Cui Huan glanced at her young master and sighed. "Are you really stupid or just pretending? Miss Wei has never had any other feelings for Prince Yun. How could she follow him? Even if she did follow, it was just to say goodbye."
Yu Zixi was in a complete mess. A bitter smile appeared on his lips. He was usually very capable of handling any situation, but when facing an angry Dongling, he really didn't know what to do.
After Tian Qi applied medicine and bandaged the wound on his buttocks, Yu Zixi trembled as he supported the bed and stood up. He ordered Tian Qi, "Go and keep an eye on Prince Yun. It's getting so late. I'm afraid she'll be scared of the dark on her way back."
Tian Qi twitched the corners of his mouth. Scared of the dark? You must have some misunderstanding about the young mistress. If you're worried that she'll run away with Prince Yun, just say it directly, okay!
Tian Qi turned around and left. Yu Zixi said to Cui Huan, "I'll go and settle the engagement first. If you have any news about her, inform me immediately."
Cui Huan was a bit uncertain. Lord Yu was afraid that the young master would run away from the wedding and had tied him up tightly under strict supervision. This marriage couldn't be resolved through negotiation at all.
Cui Huan watched worriedly as her young master limped away.
At noon the next day, a dusty carriage stopped in the area of Dazhu Mountain, a scenic place. This was the place where Wei Dongling had lived with Wei Jiang before she was eight years old.
Wei Dongling jumped out of the carriage first, then reached out to lift the curtain and helped Old Su out of the carriage. Jing Zhe and Uncle Li also got out of the carriage, and the group walked towards the distant village.
When passing by a short and fat persimmon tree at the village entrance, Wei Dongling clapped her hands and laughed. "I always thought this tree was extremely tall when I was a child. Now it turns out that it's only this short!"
Seeing her so happy, Old Su couldn't help but smile and said softly, "That's natural. Dongling was so small when she was a child that everything seemed tall to her. Now that she's almost seventeen, she's already a grown - up girl."
Uncle Li nodded. "Hey, that's right! It's time to think about finding a husband for her. Is that stupid young man from the Yu family okay? If not, we can consider someone else." Uncle Li thought to himself that Miss A Ru was already pregnant with Dongling at her age.
Wei Dongling was speechless. Was she being urged to get married? She rolled her eyes and said, "I haven't even lived in the Su Mansion for a few days. What? You want to marry me off so quickly? I won't agree." Besides, Uncle Li, you've been single all this time. How dare you urge me? It's like the upper beam is not straight and the lower beam is crooked.
Old Su laughed. "Don't talk nonsense. Grandpa can't bear to part with you. Grandpa is just afraid that he's getting old and doesn't have much time left. He's afraid that you'll miss your best years and be left alone after we're gone. If I don't see you happily settled, I won't be at ease even when I'm gone."