Lu Huaice suddenly felt a surge of heroic spirit welling up in his heart.
He straightened his posture slightly.
“Having known each other for years, Miss Yu need not stand on ceremony with me.”
Yu Yang forced a faint smile.
She walked toward the carriage, and upon reaching it, turned back to bow in respect.
“Thank you again, General Lu.”
Lu Huaice replied, “It’s nothing.”
Then added, “Take care of yourself. Don’t worry about other matters—I can handle them!”
Yu Yang nodded, her gaze trembling as she looked at Lu Huaice, showing complete trust as if everything depended on him.
Only after the carriage curtain fell did she lean against the armrest, closing her eyes to rest.
Cheng Liu jumped into the carriage and exclaimed in surprise, “Miss, General Lu actually took it upon himself to have Young Master Pei’s body cremated?”
Yu Yang lazily lifted her eyelids and said, “His mother is Chang Gongzhu, the Emperor is his uncle, and Chief Pei is his brother-in-law. Of course, he dares to make such a decision.”
“That’s true. Who would have thought General Lu had such an esteemed background?” Cheng Liu muttered.
Yu Yang fell silent.
If Lu Huaice didn’t have that status…
Back when she first met him and he “stepped all over her,” she should have just killed him then.
And today, there would have been no need to call Lu Huaice to identify the body.
But admittedly, Lu Huaice’s status was quite useful. Over the years, it had helped her quite a bit.
At the very least, it was a case of making the most of what was available.
Yu Yang curled her lips slightly and closed her eyes again.
By the time they returned to the Yu Family, it was just past midnight.
The night breeze refreshed Yu Yang, making her feel somewhat more alert.
Cloud Abode Courtyard
A few fireflies danced among the autumn leaves in the courtyard.
Stone candles illuminated the room brightly.
The window cast silhouettes of the interior, where a man sat beside the table.
Cheng Liu remarked in surprise, “It seems Shizi has just woken up.”
Yu Yang only felt a gnawing hunger.
She said, “The kitchen probably prepared some midnight snacks. Bring two bowls of clear broth noodles for Shizi and me.”
Cheng Liu acknowledged with a “Yes” and left.
Yu Yang stood still, recalling everything that had happened in the forest earlier and planning how to explain the situation to Xie Chi.
She walked to the door and knocked.
“Shizi.”
“Please come in.”
Yu Yang pushed the door open and entered.
The warm, dim candlelight fell on the man’s refined features. He rubbed his temples, as if still somewhat dizzy.
Raising his eyes to look at Yu Yang, fragmented glimmers gathered in his weary gaze.
He stood up and bowed, saying, “Regarding today’s events, thank you…”
“Shizi, you flatter me. Acting on your behalf is the Yu Family’s duty,” Yu Yang interrupted Xie Chi and asked, “Are you feeling better, Shizi?”
“Doctor Xi just left. Aside from some dizziness, there are no other discomforts.”
Yu Yang nodded. “Fortunately, Shizi is unharmed. If anything had happened to you in that forest, even my life wouldn’t be enough to repay you and Wangye.”
If Xie Chi had also died in that forest, her uncle would probably go mad, and she would be furious too…
Oh, good people shouldn’t talk about death.
She poured herself a cup of water and refilled Xie Chi’s cup, casually saying, “Shizi, the person you killed was Pei Chiye.”
A trace of helplessness appeared on Xie Chi’s face.
“I’ve caused you trouble.”
He said, “Occasionally, I lose my senses. Today, for some reason, I lost my way there and killed someone…”
Yu Yang couldn’t even drink her water upon hearing this.
She exclaimed in surprise, “Lose your senses?”
So Xie Chi really has a mental illness.
She looked at Xie Chi and suddenly felt the distance between them shrink. So they both had illnesses—they were fellow patients.
Xie Chi only felt that Yu Yang’s gaze had turned somewhat strange.
Perhaps it was just his imagination?
He shook his head and said, “Only after seeing you did I become somewhat clear-headed. I remembered that person’s appearance and recalled it was Pei Chiye.”
Yu Yang seemed lost in thought.
“So that’s how it is…”
It seemed Xie Chi had no idea what had actually happened.
He probably didn’t even know Pei Chiye was a transmigrator, let alone anything about Xu Jiatong.
In an instant.
Countless thoughts raced through her mind—
Saving an untainted transmigrator in the Black Ledger could extend one’s lifespan.
The Zoumadeng Manghe draws from the “auspicious” signs seen that day.
Xie Chi wants to find transmigrators.
Xie Chi said those with special fate patterns are more likely to encounter transmigrators.
Conclusion: She needs to find a way to team up with Xie Chi to search for transmigrators.
The first step now is to tell Xie Chi about her knowledge of the Celestial Child’s secrets.
When two people share a common secret, they naturally become “accomplices.”
Having reached this conclusion, Yu Yang set down her teacup and said quietly, “After the Shizi fainted, I followed your blood trail to the Crooked Neck Tree and witnessed something extremely terrifying.”
Xie Chi looked at her in surprise.
“I only stabbed Pei Chiye once.”
He didn’t seem deranged enough to dismember Pei Chiye, so it probably wasn’t that horrifying…
Yu Yang paused, then shook her head, “It wasn’t Pei Chiye’s corpse.”
She continued softly and slowly, “Have you ever seen someone return from the dead, Shizi?”
The candle flame flickered, their shadows writhing on the floor, creating a perfectly tense atmosphere.
Xie Chi’s gaze trembled.
“Return from the dead?”
Could it be that Pei Chiye had come back to life?
Yu Yang’s voice quivered slightly, “I saw it—a female ghost who had clearly hanged herself, her eyes bulging and tongue protruding, but she came back to life. She walked toward me, her face transforming from bluish-purple to flushed with blood in an instant…”
“Then, I killed her.” Yu Yang suddenly looked at Xie Chi, her already sickly pale face now completely drained of color from terror and lingering fear.
Yu Yang feigned fright, saying, “I stabbed her once, and she died immediately. But she… she turned back into the hanged ghost right before my eyes. Even though I’ve seen many poisoned corpses in Medicine Valley, even though I’ve killed many people and handled numerous bodies, I’ve never witnessed anything so horrifying. For a moment, I thought I had gone mad.”
Xie Chi noticed how quickly Yu Yang was speaking due to fear.
He said with compassion and sympathy, “You’ve had a terrible shock.”
It sounded truly horrifying.
Although he knew about the Celestial Child matter, he had never seen anyone return from the dead.
He truly owed Yu Yang an apology today.
Yu Yang took out a handkerchief and wiped her tears.
“Forgive my unsightly display, Shizi.”
Now they shared a common secret.
The second step was to make the Shizi understand that she was a capable partner who wouldn’t be a burden.
Yu Yang then recounted her series of actions regarding Pei Chiye.
“To be honest, I never expected Pei Chiye would show two different causes of death. After General Lu saw the changes in the lungs, he no longer cared about Pei Chiye’s death, which indirectly confirms my suspicion—Pei Chiye truly was that Celestial Child.”
She looked at Xie Chi and said, “I thought handling it this way would prevent Pei Chiye’s death from causing a major incident. What does the Shizi think?”
As he listened, Xie Chi’s gaze toward Yu Yang changed, now containing a trace of appreciation that made her want to preen.
He stood up and bowed solemnly before Yu Yang could stop him.
“Today’s matters were fortunately handled with discretion by Yu Xiaojie. This favor is one Xie Chi will remember.”
In the quiet of the deep night, under the dim lamplight, the tall figure of the man bowed with such sincerity that it left Yu Yang somewhat dazed.
No wonder it’s said that those in high positions must show courtesy to their subordinates.
At least at this moment, as his subordinate, she found the Shizi more pleasing to the eye.
Next came the third step: attempting to make a request.