Yinzhen brought the girl to Sanqing Temple.Along the way, the young girl hugged her qin and stood far away from him, keeping a considerable distance. The Fourth Prince pressed his lips together, saying nothing.Su Peisheng followed behind them nervously, glancing left and right, feeling that the atmosphere was somewhat strange. Seeing his master in this state, his heart grew uneasy.With cold sweat on his forehead, he followed behind without daring to take a deep breath.When they finally reached the guest room, Yinzhen ordered someone to fetch clean clothes and hot water. Su Peisheng bent over, not daring to raise his head, and hurried off to handle it.After the servant left, the Fourth Prince led the girl to the soft couch. The room was silent, leaving only the sound of their breathing.To be honest, Yinzhen was at a loss as to what to do with this young girl.When he left that day, he never thought he would see her again. But now, seeing her in this state, he wondered what she had been through. He couldn't feel at ease letting her go back on her own.He took a deep breath and stepped forward.The young girl hugged her qin and immediately shrank back.Yinzhen's already furrowed brow creased even deeper, his brows nearly twisted together. His expression was naturally stern, and now with his brow furrowed and his eyes dark and somber, he looked quite intimidating.On the soft couch, the young girl hugged her qin and, seeing his expression, her voice trembled with fear: "Don't… don't come closer."The dark robe paused, and Yinzhen's steps forward unconsciously slowed. He stood before her, bent down, and reached for the qin in her arms."Put it down first."Beneath her black hair was a fair, delicate face. Her clear, bright eyes cautiously glanced at him, then she bit her lip and let go of the qin.Yinzhen's gaze fixed on the bloodstains on the qin. The girl had been holding it tightly, and some of the blood had already dried—it didn't look like a fresh wound.His dark eyes sank deeper. He pretended not to notice and set the qin aside.The room was quiet. Su Peisheng hadn't arrived yet. Yinzhen stared at the qin in silence. After who knows how long, the young girl on the soft couch suddenly reached out a hand.Her fingers were slender and delicate, the fingertips faintly flushed. She tugged at his sleeve and spoke in a cautious voice: "Can… can you go save Banxia?"This was the first sentence she had spoken since entering the room.Yinzhen let out a low laugh and looked down at the hand on his sleeve: "Not pretending you don't know me anymore?" He lifted his eyes to look at her, and the young girl on the soft couch instantly turned pale.A cool breeze blew in from outside, making the candle flames in the room flicker slightly. The light cast a lovely glow on half of the girl's face—red lips, white teeth, strikingly beautiful.He didn't know why, but he thought of what had happened before.Back then, she had worn a veil, hiding her features, but her eyes were lively and alluring.That day, she had knelt on the bed, poking her head out from behind the bed curtains, and said in a crisp voice: "Actually, it's because I'm too beautiful, and men are so easily swayed by looks. I was afraid that if you saw my face, you'd be too taken with me, so I wore a veil."He had only laughed at the time. Now, looking at the face before him, he had to hold back his breath to keep from gasping. She had been honest—not a single word of deception. A face like this would make any man's heart stir.Seeing that he remained silent, the eyes looking at him gradually dimmed, and the hand gripping his sleeve slowly loosened. Just as she was about to let go—Yinzhen moved, catching her hand in his.On the soft couch, the young girl was startled and looked up at him. Yinzhen pretended not to notice her gaze, lowering his head as he slowly unfolded her palm.She was fair and soft all over, and her hands were delicate and boneless, beautiful to behold. Her fingers were slender, even her nails tinged with a faint pink.But such a beautiful hand—when her palm was opened, it was covered in wounds. Fine scars and cuts ran across nearly the entire palm. Some wounds had already clotted, while others still oozed blood.His dark eyes froze at the sight of her hands, a flicker of anger burning in his black pupils.He wet a handkerchief and gently wiped her palm: "What exactly happened?""I…" The young girl tilted her head up to meet his gaze, biting her lip with her teeth, her face full of helplessness: "I… I went down the mountain, and on my way back, I noticed two men following me. I… I was scared."Perhaps recalling that scene, she trembled all over: "My nanny wasn't there, so I didn't dare go back to the pear garden. I had no choice but to hide in the woods. Banxia got separated from me in the chaos. I… I couldn't find her."At this, she grew both angry and anxious, her hands twisting together tightly. But she forgot about her injuries—the moment they touched, she winced in pain, her face turning pale."Don't move." Yinzhen's brow furrowed as he immediately restrained her hands.Seeing her watery eyes looking at him timidly, full of apprehension, she asked: "Can… can you help me go out and look for her?"Yinzhen glanced at her appearance—lips red, teeth white, her face was simply too captivating. The look she gave him now was full of pleading, stirring pity in one's heart.He averted his gaze and called out toward the door, "Su Peisheng."Su Peisheng had already been waiting outside. Upon hearing this, he immediately set down what he was holding: "This servant will go at once." Good heavens, with that girl's looks in there, no wonder the master couldn't stop thinking about her.After the man left, a hint of joy finally flickered in the young girl's eyes. She glanced at him and said softly, "Thank you, sir."Yinzhen pressed his lips together, lowering his head to wipe her palm with a handkerchief. "So you acknowledge me now?" His expression was grim, but his movements were exceedingly gentle, careful as if afraid of hurting her.The young girl sat obediently on the soft couch without moving. Only when she heard his question did she speak in a soft, delicate voice: "I thought… I thought it was you, sir, who didn't want to acknowledge me."He lowered his head to look at her, and the young girl happened to raise hers to meet his gaze.Her eyes were filled with pure sincerity—clear and bright with not a trace of evasion. Seeing that he remained silent, she muttered as if lodging a complaint: "You left without saying goodbye, sir, and the look you gave me just now was so unfamiliar. I thought you didn't remember, that you had long forgotten Nanyuan."Her glistening eyelids drooped as she petulantly clutched at the moon-white gauze skirt beneath her.Her hairpins were askew, her dress torn, her face bare of any makeup—yet she was strikingly beautiful in a way that was almost bewitching.Yinzhen met her face, took a deep breath, and looked away. "You were wearing a veil before. Besides, we hadn't seen each other for over half a month." He was explaining himself to her.The young girl kept her head lowered and didn't raise it even after hearing this, only saying, "But I recognized you at a single glance, sir."Her voice was soft and gentle, yet the words came out so naturally. Yinzhen squeezed his eyes shut tightly, then opened them again. "It's my fault." He placed his hand on her head and patted it soothingly.The one who had kept her head lowered finally lifted her chin, and the glistening look in her eyes met his—the grievance within could no longer be hidden."Sir." She moved forward like a child, throwing her arms around his waist, sinking entirely into his embrace, sobbing breathlessly: "Nanny wasn't there, Banxia was nowhere to be found, and I was hiding there all alone—I was so, so scared."Hot tears immediately seeped through his clothes and into his chest.Yinzhen's hands had been raised in helpless bewilderment, but the person in his arms was crying so pitifully, each sob soft and fragile, tugging at the heartstrings. The somber expression he'd been holding back could no longer be contained.He let out a helpless sigh and finally stepped forward, reaching out to embrace her."Don't be afraid." His voice was gentle, full of reassurance. "Your sir is here."What he didn't see was the person in his arms lifting her head slightly, the corner of her rosy lips curving upward.
Ye Nanyuan fell asleep crying right there in his arms.When Su Peisheng walked in, his steps were deliberately slow, afraid of waking her."Master…" He approached cautiously, seeing his master seated in a chair applying medicine to her. Her skin was like jade—fair and delicate—and the injury on her palm was especially conspicuous.Her palm was flushed red, the tiny wounds looking particularly pitiful on such a pair of hands."How did it go?"Seeing how carefully his master tended to her, Su Peisheng knew this girl held no small place in his master's heart. He glanced once and dared not look again, keeping his head lowered as he spoke."The maidservant has been found. She wasn't hurt, only twisted her ankle while running. She's been calmed down now.""And the men who were following her?" Yinzhen asked again.Su Peisheng's eyes flickered. "They've been captured. When this servant arrived, those two were still wandering around the pear garden."Yinzhen set his hand down, looking at the tear-swollen eyes on the bed before lowering his voice to ask, "Did you find out who they were?""This servant deserves death." Su Peisheng knelt down, his face somewhat pale. "Those two didn't know themselves. They only said that a young master from a wealthy family had taken a liking to… to the young lady's beauty, and paid them to follow her."An icy voice, devoid of any emotion: "How did that man get scared into such a state?"Su Peisheng felt his scalp tighten and stammered, "Those two… those two were lecherous sorts as well. When they… when they saw the young lady's face, they conceived wicked intentions. Fortunately, the young lady was clever enough to hide herself."He was left breathless by the time he finished this account.He raised his head to cautiously test his master's expression, and upon seeing those eyes blazing with fury, he was nearly frightened out of his wits.He quickly lowered his head again.Yinzhen clenched his fists, then suddenly released them. "Break their legs and throw them into the back mountain." Su Peisheng broke out in a cold sweat of terror—at this hour of night, with one leg broken each and thrown into the back mountain, they'd either freeze to death or be torn apart by wild beasts.But he didn't dare utter a single word of protest, hastily shrinking back and retreating: "Yes, this servant will see to it at once."After he left, the room fell quiet. Yinzhen picked up the teacup beside him and took a sip, then spoke toward the bed: "Since you're awake, stop pretending to sleep."The person on the soft couch had eyelashes trembling slightly, and only after a moment did they quietly open their eyes. She turned her head to look at him standing by the bedside.Her gaze was uneasy, and she murmured, "Master…" just like a child who had done something wrong."When did you wake up?"She braced herself with her hands to get up, but upon seeing this, Yinzhen immediately bent down to lift her into his arms: "Your hands have just been medicated, don't touch them carelessly."Ye Nanyuan was completely nestled in his embrace, carrying a faint, sweet scent of lotus flowers, her voice soft and obedient: "Just now, Master said after Banxia was found.""If you were awake, why pretend to sleep?" He lifted her up, then set her down.The young girl was clearly taken aback for a moment, then curled up, hugging herself into a ball. She wrapped her arms around herself, burying her face in her knees."I… I was afraid that once Master saw I was awake, he would chase me out."She quietly lifted her head.Her clear, black-and-white eyes held unease, like a cat cautiously testing the waters: "Master, can I sleep here tonight?"