Although the young man’s injuries were in the same places as her older brother’s, Shen Chuyun had never seen her brother before and didn’t know what he looked like. Therefore, she couldn’t yet be completely certain of the young man’s identity.
She wanted to save him and bring him around first.
“Tap, tap!”
Suddenly, footsteps sounded outside the door.
Shen Chuyun’s gaze turned cold. In a flash, she slipped beside the wardrobe and concealed herself in the darkness.
Creak!
The door opened, and a boy of around thirteen or fourteen quietly tiptoed inside.
He made his way to the bed in the dark. When he saw Su Linzhou lying there, his eyes suddenly grew hot with tears.
“Your Highness, are you still alive?”
He nudged Su Linzhou, but when the young man didn’t react, he reached out to check his breathing.
“He’s still breathing. Thank goodness he’s still alive.”
Tears rolled down the boy’s cheeks.
“Your Highness, your body is burning up. Please, you mustn’t die!”
He wiped away his tears.
“I’ll get you out of here. You have to stay alive!”
He reached out to lift Su Linzhou, muttering angrily as he did so.
“The Marquis is truly heartless! You’re his own biological son, yet he treats you like this. He’ll get what he deserves sooner or later!”
“Your Highness, I found out something. Your younger sister is still alive. She didn’t die! As long as you hold on and keep living, you’ll be able to see her again. Haven’t you always missed your little sister? She’s back now. You’ll get to see her!”
“However, the eldest young lady isn’t in a good situation. I heard the Marquis sent people to bring her back because he wants her heart’s blood. Your Highness, I, A-Qing, am useless. I can’t save the eldest young lady.”
Hidden in the darkness, Shen Chuyun listened silently to the boy’s words, her nose growing slightly sore.
So her older brother had never forgotten her, either.
The heir of a marquis, reduced to such a miserable state. Su Zhen, that scumbag of a father, was truly heartless.
Even the most vicious tiger wouldn’t eat its own cubs.
Su Zhen was more frightening than a wild beast. No matter how much he disliked his older brother, he had no right to hurt him like this. After all, Su Linzhou was still his own biological son.
The letters her sixth senior brother had sent her contained information about the Marquis’s household.
Without their mother’s protection, her older brother had eventually become mentally unstable and was despised by his own father, Su Zhen.
Su Zhen had banished him to a secluded courtyard and forbidden him from going outside.
After Xu Yuru married into the family, she had been particularly skilled at putting on a show of being a virtuous stepmother. She treated her older brother with seemingly meticulous care, attending to every detail. He had never lacked food, clothing, or other necessities.
However, the maids and servants assigned to him were replaced every year. Xu Yuru had even dismissed all the servants who had once served their mother, leaving her older brother without a single trustworthy person by his side.
Xu Yuru also frequently manipulated him with her words, provoking him into embarrassing himself in front of his father and spreading his reputation for madness throughout the capital.
Although her older brother held the title of heir, he possessed none of the authority that should have come with it. Nobody respected him, and nobody truly loved him.
However, this boy seemed to treat her older brother differently.
Seeing that the boy was trying to carry Su Linzhou away but couldn’t lift him, Shen Chuyun hurried out of the darkness. She was afraid that his clumsy efforts might aggravate Su Linzhou’s injuries.
“Don’t move him!”
“Ah!” A-Qing cried out in fright.
Shen Chuyun quickly covered his mouth with her hand.
“Don’t shout. I’m here to save him, too.”
A-Qing’s eyes widened.
Shen Chuyun whispered into his ear, “I’ll let go of you, but you mustn’t scream. Otherwise, you’ll attract people here.”
A-Qing nodded.
Shen Chuyun released him.
A-Qing turned and backed away several steps before looking at her. Under the moonlight, he could see her face. When he realized she was merely a little girl carrying a large backpack, he was astonished. Nevertheless, he remained wary and demanded, “Who are you?”
Shen Chuyun made no attempt to conceal her identity.
“I’m the eldest young lady you were just talking about.”
A-Qing didn’t believe her.
“Don’t lie to me! The Marquis brought the eldest young lady back to his residence. There’s no way she would appear here!”
Shen Chuyun glanced at him indifferently.
“Believe whatever you want. I have no need to prove myself to you.”
She walked to the bed and lifted Su Linzhou into her arms, carrying him in a bridal-style hold.
A-Qing was astonished once again.
This little girl was incredibly strong! She had lifted the heir with such ease, even though he had struggled desperately and still couldn’t manage it.
“What are you standing there staring at? Come over and help me! Use both hands to support his feet,” Shen Chuyun ordered without ceremony.
A-Qing immediately snapped out of his daze and instinctively reached out to support Su Linzhou’s feet.
When he saw the bloodied wounds on the young man’s knees, his eyes reddened again.
“The heir has suffered so much!”
“Stop talking. Help me carry him out. Someone is coming this way.”
As Shen Chuyun spoke, she headed toward the exit, and A-Qing hurried after her.
A-Qing was very familiar with the farmstead’s layout. He followed closely behind Shen Chuyun, guiding her along the way.
However, he soon realized that Shen Chuyun wasn’t following the route he had indicated.
“You’re going the wrong way! We should go this way!” A-Qing cried anxiously.
Oh no! What if she’s deceiving me? What if she isn’t here to save the heir at all?
Should I stop her?
Shen Chuyun didn’t slow down.
“Stop talking nonsense and keep up.”
A-Qing gritted his teeth and continued following her. He decided to trust her for the time being. After all, there was no way he could rescue the heir on his own.
If this girl truly dared to harm the heir, he would fight her to the death.
Above the farmstead, a crow spread its wings and flew through the night sky.
Following Yaya, Shen Chuyun exited through the eastern gate of the farmstead and entered a narrow path. Before long, they reached the mountains.
A-Qing was panting heavily, his forehead covered in sweat. Shen Chuyun was moving so quickly that he could barely keep up.
“We can’t go this way! There are wild beasts in the mountains!”
He wanted Shen Chuyun to turn back. But when he looked over his shoulder, he saw torches lighting up the farmstead. People were already searching along the path he had originally pointed out.
If they had taken that route, they would certainly have been cornered by now.
A-Qing immediately felt relieved.
Thank goodness I didn’t stop this girl. Otherwise, we would have been done for!
“Someone’s chasing us! Hurry, run!” A-Qing urged anxiously.
Shen Chuyun remained calm and continued running into the mountains.
A-Qing didn’t want to go into the mountains, but he couldn’t stop Shen Chuyun. With pursuers behind them and no way to turn back, he could only grit his teeth and follow her.
He continued supporting Su Linzhou’s feet steadily. Even when his arms grew painfully sore, he didn’t utter a single complaint.
Suddenly, a white wolf appeared ahead of them.
A-Qing’s mouth fell open in shock.
Shen Chuyun said, “Don’t scream. It’s my wolf.”
A-Qing: “???!!!”
What does she mean? Did I just imagine hearing that?
Only when Shen Chuyun placed Su Linzhou on the wolf’s back and gently stroked its head, speaking a few tender words to it, did A-Qing finally come to his senses.
He hadn’t misheard her. This really was the eldest young lady’s wolf!
The eldest young lady was incredible. She could actually tame wild animals!
Shen Chuyun and A-Qing followed the white wolf to a cave.
“Doudou, did anyone see you when you came out?”
Shen Chuyun wiped the sweat from her forehead. While instructing A-Qing to gather firewood and start a fire, she questioned Doudou.
The white wolf nodded.
It had walked right out through the main gate of the Marquis’s residence in broad daylight. Plenty of people had seen it, but they had been so frightened that none of them dared to stop it.
Shen Chuyun asked another question.
“Does anyone know you came to the farmstead? Did anyone there see you?”
The white wolf shook its head.
No one had. Doudou had taken the small path to get there.
Shen Chuyun nodded.
“Got it. You did wonderfully. I’ll reward you with some meat when we get back.”
The white wolf happily wagged its tail.
Inside the cave, Shen Chuyun found a flat spot, gathered some soft grass, and spread it out. She then opened her backpack, took out a bedsheet, and laid it over the grass to create a simple makeshift bed.
She had anticipated that her older brother’s injuries would be serious and that he would need immediate treatment, so she had carefully prepared many essential supplies before leaving.
However, his injuries were far worse than she had expected. Treating him would take a considerable amount of time, and she would need to find a safe place where he could recover.
She would have to contact her sixth senior brother later. She didn’t know what position he held in the capital or where he was staying.
Shen Chuyun lifted Su Linzhou down from the wolf’s back and placed him on the makeshift bed.
When A-Qing returned with the firewood and saw the prepared bedding, he was rather surprised.
The eldest young lady really had planned ahead!
He looked at Shen Chuyun with newfound admiration.
Shen Chuyun beckoned him over.
“Come here for a moment. I need your help with something.”
A-Qing immediately put down the firewood and hurried over.
“Please tell me what you need, Young Lady.”
Earlier, in the room, he hadn’t believed that Shen Chuyun was the eldest young lady. Now, however, he addressed her as Young Lady at every opportunity.
Shen Chuyun had no time to concern herself with his change in attitude. She took a bottle of medicine from her bag, poured out a pill, and handed it to A-Qing.
“My older brother is unconscious and can’t swallow medicine, but he needs something to bring down his fever. Take this pill and put it into his…”