The capital—a young lady has gone missing?

The station master was somewhat surprised.

Every year, many people went missing—from naughty children to the elderly, from unmarried girls to young wives—it was nothing unusual. A missing young lady really was just a small matter.

What could make it a major matter was only if the young lady came from an important family.

“Which powerful family in the capital does this young lady belong to?” he asked curiously.

Supervisor Qi waved his hand: “Not exactly powerful, but her family background is not simple either.”

Now this was interesting. The station master grew even more curious.

“This young lady’s surname is Chu,” Supervisor Qi said. “Her uncle holds no official position—he teaches at Qiaoshan Academy. Her father, however, is quite a figure. You must certainly know of him.”

He looked at the station master with a smile.

“The Wei General of Yunzhong Commandery, Chu Ling.”

The station master blinked. He wasn’t struck with sudden realization or surprise at the revelation of the missing young lady’s background. The first thought that flashed through his mind was: what a coincidence—this seemed to be the second time he’d heard General Chu Wei’s name.

“What are you muttering about?” Supervisor Qi asked, puzzled by his reaction. “What about General Chu Wei? Don’t tell me you can’t even remember who he is.”

The station master quickly smiled: “How could I not remember? I was just thinking that for so many years, General Chu Wei’s name has rarely been mentioned. What’s happened recently that I keep hearing his name—it’s almost as frequent as during his most glorious days.”

“Who else mentioned him?” Supervisor Qi asked.

“A few days ago, there were courier soldiers heading to the border commanderies,” the station master said simply. Such matters were technically not to be spread around, or there would be suspicion of leaking secrets.

Of course, no one really treated courier soldiers heading to the border commanderies as a confidential matter of importance either.

It wasn’t strange for soldiers going to the border commanderies to mention General Chu Ling. Supervisor Qi dismissed it without further inquiry: “General Chu Wei has fallen into obscurity now, but his daughter has become notorious in the capital.”

The station master asked with a laugh: “Could this young lady have also gone to discuss military and state affairs with His Majesty?”

“If that were the case, it would at least be following in her father’s footsteps,” Supervisor Qi laughed. “Unfortunately, this Miss Chu is unlearned and incompetent, arrogant and domineering, running roughshod over others. A few days ago, she kicked the daughter of Minister Liang of the Court of State Ceremonial into a lake and nearly caused a death.”

Who would have thought—the aristocratic young ladies of the capital actually fought like village shrews.

The station master shook his head and sighed: “How could General Chu Wei have raised his daughter this way? Could it be that he’s truly given up in despair with no ambition left?”

“I’d say there’s no need for teaching—it’s in her nature. The father is defiant, and the daughter is arrogant,” Supervisor Qi sneered.

So he’s lost his spirit and doesn’t even manage his children, just muddling through life, the station master thought, then asked: “If this Miss Chu is so formidable, how could she go missing?”

At this moment, the runners who had gone to fetch wine returned. Cao the Fourth brought a jar of wine to their table. Hearing this, he let out a “ha.”

“This Miss Chu didn’t go missing—she ran away after beating someone,” he said. “Miss Liang nearly lost her life. How could her parents, crying their hearts out, let it go? They insisted on reporting it to the Emperor to punish this Miss Chu, so Miss Chu ran away.”

The station master laughed: “The young lady lacks accountability.”

As Cao the Fourth poured wine, he spoke with animated gestures: “This young lady is quite formidable. After beating someone, she made no sound, didn’t cry or make a fuss. The next day, she climbed over the wall and ran away, even stealing a lot of money from home. Elder Brother Chu is a scholar—he lost face outside, apologizing and making amends. His wife and daughter personally went to the Liang family to care for Miss Liang. But the troublemaker ran away, and he was so angry he nearly fainted. The household fell into complete chaos.”

The station master said with a laugh: “Raising this daughter is even more worrying than raising sons.”

In the past, one commonly heard only of dissolute young men causing trouble for their families. This was the first time hearing that a daughter could do the same.

Supervisor Qi picked up his wine bowl and took a drink. One gulp was more effective than hot water—the cold that had penetrated from head to toe was completely dispelled.

“I knew old Xu had good stuff,” he said with a laugh.

The station master picked up his wine bowl and took a small sip, then continued asking: “So this Miss Chu is going to find her father, is that it? This child is truly bold. From the capital to Yunzhong Commandery is so far. Even though the realm is at peace now, for a young girl—how old is this Miss Chu?”

Supervisor Qi couldn’t quite remember and looked at Cao the Fourth. He himself was only out here for show—the real work was all done by his subordinates.

Cao the Fourth quickly said: “I think they said she’s almost thirteen years old.”

He even gestured with his hand.

About this tall.

They’d been given a portrait.

A thin, small girl who looked refined and quiet—one couldn’t tell at all that she was so capable of causing trouble.

Thirteen years old. The station master held his wine bowl, slightly dazed. The Yang family woman’s daughters seemed to also be twelve or thirteen years old. For no reason at all, why did he keep thinking of that mother and daughters?

“Regardless of her age, for a young girl—how can she travel such a long distance? Setting aside safety concerns, can this young lady even find her way?” he said, pulling his emotions back.

Mm, the Yang family’s two daughters at least knew to find courier soldiers to take them along.

“That Miss Chu is no fool,” Cao the Fourth said. “She left a letter saying she would hire the best escort service to take her back to Yunzhong Commandery.”

So that’s why she stole money from home. The station master nodded with a laugh, then shook his head: “I wonder which escort agency is bold enough to dare accept this job.”

“They’ve asked around all of the capital—none would,” Supervisor Qi said. “They estimate she found an escort agency outside the capital under a false name. There are always bold escort agencies nowadays—as long as there’s money, they’ll take any job. So we’re searching all along the route.”

He seemed to only now remember and looked at the station master.

“Old Xu, have you seen any escort agencies these past few days?”

The station master shook his head: “Supervisor, you know as well—those escort agencies won’t come to our government relay stations.”

Escorts carrying weapons always kept a certain distance from officials and would never rest at relay stations.

Supervisor Qi clearly knew this and nodded: “I’m just asking. The people from the capital are also making inquiries in the towns and cities.”

The station master urged the attendants to bring food more quickly, and couldn’t help thinking of Chu Ling. He couldn’t resist continuing to ask: “Did General Chu Wei’s family come searching? Speaking of which, since that incident, General Chu Wei has never returned to the capital—it’s been over ten years…”

Supervisor Qi shook his head: “One of Elder Brother Chu Ling’s sons came searching, but he’s accompanied by people from the Commandant’s Office. The Commandant dispatched Left Deputy Deng Yi, Minister Deng.”

The station master was very surprised: “Even the Commandant dispatched people? This must have alarmed His Majesty, right?”

Chu Ling was the second-born and had an elder brother, a scholar with no official position—he couldn’t possibly command the Commandant’s Office.

So it could only be on Chu Ling’s account—

“It seems His Majesty still treats General Chu quite generously,” the station master probed.

This time, he didn’t even use the title Wei General, directly calling him General. Back in the day, when Chu Ling was still just a border commandery colonel, they had flatteringly called him General.

At that time, everyone thought Chu Ling would not only become Wei General but would definitely become Grand General too. Who could have known that when Chu Ling was at the height of his prominence, something happened, his fortunes plummeted, and his future was destroyed.

Over ten years had passed, and he was still just a Wei General. Until death, he would have no promotion or ennoblement.

However, His Majesty was getting old, and his health hadn’t been good these past two years. When people age, they easily become nostalgic. Could he be planning to employ Chu Ling again?

“You’re overthinking it. His Majesty hasn’t paid any attention,” Supervisor Qi said disdainfully, then explained in a low voice. “It was the Liang family who requested it. They wanted to file charges, wanted the Court of Judicial Review to arrest her. Minister Liang’s status is no ordinary matter, and moreover, his daughter had just been betrothed. Do you know who the in-laws are?”

Though the station master was well-informed, he didn’t know everything happening in the capital, especially regarding marriages and such. He asked curiously: “It must be no ordinary family either.”

Supervisor Qi spoke with animated expression: “The Xie family of Dongyang—the maternal family brother of the current Crown Princess.”

In the current Great Xia Dynasty, there was the Yang family clan of the former Empress, and also the Zhao family clan, which had become prominent through the favor of an Imperial Consort and was jokingly called the new national uncles. But with the Second Prince being designated Crown Prince, his wife Lady Xie giving birth to a son in one stroke, her position secure, the Xie family was also gradually becoming a force to be reckoned with among the imperial relatives.

After all, whether the Yang family or the Zhao family, neither could compare to the Xie family, who would become Empress in the future.

With the Liang family young lady forming a marriage alliance with the Xie family, her being beaten truly was no small matter—it had even provoked the Xie family, which meant provoking the Crown Prince.

That Miss Chu had caused big trouble indeed.

“However,” Supervisor Qi said with some regret at not seeing the drama unfold, “the Court of Judicial Review, out of consideration for the Chu family’s dignity, ultimately had the Commandant’s Office dispatch people. The pretext is searching for someone, not arresting her.”

This was merely to deceive people, the station master said: “General Chu Wei will still have headaches ahead.”

He certainly couldn’t let his daughter truly be prosecuted—how would she discuss marriage in the future? Her whole life would be ruined.

Poor Chu Ling. Already a disgraced official, living these many years with his tail between his legs, avoiding notice. With great difficulty, everyone had forgotten about him, allowing him to live peacefully until death. And now he’d raised such a daughter. With this commotion, his fate was truly sealed.

Discussing others’ family matters didn’t delay the three of them from drinking heartily and eating large portions. The hall was lively and warm, dispelling the cold.

“Sir, sir!” A station attendant ran in, his expression somewhat tense. “Someone claiming to be the Deputy Commandant has arrived.”

Supervisor Qi threw down his half-finished wine, so hastily that wine spilled on his robe.

“Quickly, quickly,” he said. “This Minister Deng has a very frightening temper.”