Back at the hunting lodge in the mountains, Sang Shisi and Niu Qiniang were anxiously waiting to greet them.
Han Fourth Uncle, ever vigilant, turned to keep watch at the courtyard gate, twisting rope for straw sandals in the moonlight. Yang Jingyuan closed the door behind him. He could barely bring himself to look at Sang Shisi and Niu Qiniang, and instead poured himself a cup of tea, gulping it down.
“Quick, tell us! Did you find Second Miss Ji?” Niu Qiniang asked impatiently as she watched him drink cup after cup of tea.
Sang Shisi studied Yang Jingyuan’s face. Even in the dim lamplight, he noticed something amiss: “Third Brother, you’ve been crying, haven’t you?”
Yang Jingyuan immediately straightened his back, but his shoulders slumped under Sang Shisi’s concerned gaze. He wanted to say nothing had happened, but when he opened his mouth, his eyes began to burn.
“Second Miss Ji tried to assassinate Sheng Fengze—she wasn’t killed by him, was she?” Niu Qiniang cried out, quickly spitting on the ground several times before carefully moving behind Sang Shisi. “Second Miss Ji must be fine. If Sheng Fengze wanted to kill her, he would have done it at the dye house. He wouldn’t have taken her back to the palace…”
Better if she were dead, Yang Jingyuan thought, his heart bleeding from Niu Qiniang’s words. How had he not thought of it? Could Ji Yingying assassinate Sheng Fengze? Yang Jingyuan recalled his confrontation with Sheng Fengze atop the walls of Yizhou. If Sheng Fengze couldn’t defeat him in combat, he would have been more than capable of defending against Ji Yingying, who had no martial skills. Even if she had managed to stab him, how close must they have become for the cunning and ruthless Sheng Fengze to lower his guard enough for Ji Yingying to get near him?
The image of Ji Yingying and Sheng Fengze together appeared before Yang Jingyuan’s eyes again. He closed his eyes in pain.
“Third Brother, did you find Second Miss Ji?” Sang Shisi asked worriedly.
“She’s with Sheng Fengze,” Yang Jingyuan said woodenly.
Niu Qiniang immediately let out a sigh of relief, patting her chest repeatedly as she said, “As long as she’s alive. We’ll find a way to rescue her.”
Yang Jingyuan didn’t want to discuss this topic any further. He turned and opened the door. “We’ll head to Taihe City tomorrow morning. Niu Qiniang, you’d better find out how involved Fifth Miss Niu was. She’d better show some remorse, or even if she is your sister, I won’t show mercy. Yingying… let’s not worry about her for now.”
Do not worry about Ji Yingying. Niu Qiniang suddenly understood: “Right, the palace guards are too strict, it won’t be convenient to rescue…”
Before she could finish, Yang Jingyuan had already left.
Niu Qiniang stood dumbfounded for a moment before turning to ask Sang Shisi: “Brother Shisi, why isn’t Third Brother Yang happy at all about finding Ji Yingying alive?”
Ji Yingying is with Sheng Fengze. Sang Shisi mulled over these words, his heart inexplicably bitter. He remembered the night of the lantern festival at Huanhua Stream when Ji Yingying had kicked Zhou Qilang into the river for harassing her. How could such a spirited and lively woman now be living in disgrace with Sheng Fengze? He stroked Niu Qiniang’s hair and said softly, “Qiniang, don’t mention Second Miss Ji in front of Third Brother anymore. She’s… though near at hand, she might as well be worlds apart. The third Brother must be heartbroken. Following his lead, we’ll go to Taihe City tomorrow to find your sister.”
“I understand.” Niu Qiniang felt sorry for Yang Jingyuan and Ji Yingying. She nestled against Sang Shisi’s arm and whispered, “Brother Shisi, let’s never separate, alright? Compared to Third Brother Yang and Second Miss Ji, I feel so fortunate.”
Sang Shisi’s heart darkened, but he said gently to her, “We won’t separate.”
After a moment of tenderness, Niu Qiniang thought about searching for Fifth Miss Niu tomorrow and began to cry with worry: “Brother Shisi, what if Fifth Sister remains unrepentant and Third Brother Yang wants to kill her? Mother is still waiting for me to bring her back, she’s still waiting!”
“Sometimes we hold onto family ties without realizing that person would even betray their father. Qiniang, you still think of her as your sister, but have you considered that in her eyes, you’re no longer her sister?” Sang Shisi said solemnly.
“But…” But she was her sister. Even though their father died in battle because of her, and their mother was bedridden, she still couldn’t let her go. Thinking of this, Niu Qiniang found a glimmer of hope, “If Fifth Sister is willing to repent and return to Great Tang with us to serve Mother and atone for Father’s death through Buddhist devotion, can we forgive her?”
Having Fifth Miss Niu become a Buddhist devotee and repent? Would that sharp and venomous snake-like woman be willing? Sang Shisi smiled coldly to himself. He didn’t want to taint his fiancée’s heart, but he also couldn’t let Niu Qiniang remain blind to right and wrong.
“We’ll know when we see her.”
The sky was high and clear, with a bright white moon.
Sheng Fengze arrived as promised, using the pretext of viewing the moon from the mountain peak. He brought only Chihu, and the three of them rode out from Baiya Palace.
Ji Yingying had changed into a narrow-sleeved jacket and trousers suitable for traveling and rode silently alongside Sheng Fengze.
The moonlight made the winding mountain path gleam. After rounding a mountain ridge, the lights of Baiya Palace disappeared from view. The mountains were quiet, with only the sound of hoofbeats echoing. Each beat seemed to strike Ji Yingying’s heart, making her inexplicably nervous.
What was she nervous about? Zhao Xiuyuan and Du Yan were still in Taihe City, perhaps not yet having figured out how to deal with the situation. Sheng Fengze had already taken her away from Baiya Palace. By the time they realized what had happened, they would never find her.
But how would she contact Yang Jingyuan again? She would figure something out after crossing the Dadu River. With Yang Jingyuan’s martial prowess, he would surely learn that Sheng Fengze had let her go. He would return safely to Great Tang. If she stayed within Nanzhao’s borders waiting for him, she would only become a burden. Thinking this way, Ji Yingying smiled.
Sheng Fengze turned to look at her, softly cautioning, “We’ll leave the main road soon to take the mountain hunting trails. Be careful not to fall from your horse.”
“I understand.” Ji Yingying responded, feeling she should say something more to Sheng Fengze, and asked quietly, “Won’t the King and Du Yan move against you for letting me go?”
As soon as the words left her mouth, she felt foolish. Sheng Fengze must have taken a great risk in doing this. But she longed so desperately for freedom, for leaving Nanzhao. Her guilt grew heavier.
“If Nanzhao hadn’t sent troops, you wouldn’t have been captured and brought here. Nanzhao has many craftsmen; losing one dye master won’t matter.”
He had seen through her thoughts and was trying to comfort her with these words. Ji Yingying was speechless, and after a long while said, “Meeting you was my good fortune.”
But not our destiny, Sheng Fengze thought to himself before saying quietly, “Stay close to me.” He turned his horse toward a small path at the edge of the forest.
With Sheng Fengze in front and the loyal Chihu behind, the narrow mountain path forced them to ride single file as they entered the forest.
After riding through the night, Sheng Fengze stopped by a stream as dawn broke.
Ji Yingying had been riding all night, and her legs and waist were completely numb. Seeing Sheng Fengze about to help her dismount, she gritted her teeth and forced herself off the horse. Sheng Fengze’s outstretched hand silently withdrew.
Chihu unpacked their belongings and fetched water from the stream. The forest had plenty of dry branches, and soon a fire was burning.
“We’ll sleep for two hours before continuing,” Sheng Fengze said as he laid out the felt blankets.
Ji Yingying was exhausted and drowsy, no longer refusing. Wrapped in the blanket, her face warmed by the sun just rising over the mountain ridge, she could barely keep her eyes open. “How many mountains have we crossed?”
“We’ve just crossed this mountain after leaving the pass.”
There were higher and more treacherous mountains ahead. He could only escort her past this mountain before he had to return to the palace. Sleep for two hours, eat a meal, and by afternoon they would reach the mountain pass. He would only have a few more hours with her. After that, he would never see her again.
Sheng Fengze turned his head to look at her, but Ji Yingying was already asleep.
He reached out to pull the blanket up higher, silently gazing at her face. He feared that with time, he would forget her features.