Qu Yao bowed solemnly: “The master is indeed not in the mansion. We’ve interrogated all potentially unruly servants, searched the place where Miss Yan had her incident, and sent people to search the city. No news.”
Qu Xiaojue’s suppressed anger erupted.
She hurled the teacup, shattering it, and stood up cursing: “Useless! Can’t find a living person in the house. Are the Qu Family raising corpses?!”
Tea splashed on her shoes, but Qu Yao was unconcerned, tightly pursing her lips, fearing the master had left voluntarily – a statement that would only add fuel to the fire.
“Bring the dogs!”
The servants’ eyes lit up, quickly fetching the hunting dog Old Zhao had raised like a daughter. Qu Xiaojue threw down the blanket the master had used last night. The dog sniffed it and immediately ran toward the back mountain.
The Qu family members followed, understanding.
Nothing was missing from the room. Qu Xiaojue slammed her fist on the table: “Xu Wan, I’ve been so sincere to you. If you’ve abandoned me today, I’ll make you regret it for life!”
Her face icy, she rushed to the back mountain. The dog stopped at the cliff’s edge, only moving to relieve itself before returning to howl.
Everyone’s heart raced – had the master sleepwalked here and fallen off last night?!
They called out for a long time with no response. Qu Xiaojue’s expression darkened: “Go down and search!”
Understanding they would die for their master, they still hesitated facing the unknown below. Qu Yao immediately tied a thick rope to a tree root and leaped down without hesitation.
Qu Xiaojue stood at the cliff’s edge, hands behind her back, expressionless.
Qu Yao climbed back up, presenting a pearl: “This was the pearl Miss Yan gave the master yesterday. Twenty feet down, there’s a small stone slab with sliding marks. Below that, nothing is visible…”
Qu Xiaojue trembled, staring at the pearl, her voice hoarse: “Are you saying the person who slid down was… him?”
Qu Yao knelt silently, offering no response.
Yan Ziyan waited blankly for a long time and saw no return. Feeling thirsty and bored, she got up and went out, grabbing a young servant to ask what happened. It turned out the master had disappeared. She asked in shock what was going on, and the young servant’s face turned pale, unable to answer. Finally, seeing everyone running towards the back mountain, she asked the servant to take her there, only needing support when she could no longer walk.
The young servant couldn’t refuse such a beautiful lady’s soft plea, carefully guiding her over. They just happened to see that dust-stained pearl and heard those words… Remembering the demeanor and words of the person who brought her small stone yesterday, she suddenly went limp and fell to the ground, biting her lip in extreme grief.
Qu Xiaojue was not as intense, only staring into the empty space and murmuring, “Why… Could it be that I didn’t treat him well enough for something like this to happen?”
“Master,” Qu Yao called out, “Perhaps there are stone slabs below. This subordinate will go investigate.” She leaped down and returned after a while, finding nothing.
Qu Xiaojue stood in a daze for a long time, slowly composing herself, her voice cold and chilling: “Search the entire back mountain, go down to the mountain base. Find him alive, or find his body!”
With such a big outburst today, losing the master was indeed a serious matter. The servants scattered to search everywhere.
As everyone dispersed, Qu Xiaojue stood blankly, asking Qu Yao: “If this is his own doing… do you know why?”
The head of the Qu family, usually decisive, was now helplessly asking a subordinate such a question. A dull pain crossed Qu Yao’s heart, but she replied, “This subordinate does not know.”
Qu Xiaojue’s figure swayed slightly, sighing deeply: “…You may withdraw.”
After respectfully bowing, Qu Yao turned and walked away.
Qu Yao looked at the disheveled Yan Ziyan, who suddenly burst into tears, choking, “Foolish wood… how could he just disappear like this…”
Qu Yao couldn’t offer any comfort.
She reached out and gently lifted Yan Ziyan, placing a large hand on her back to soothe her. Nestled in her warmth, Yan Ziyan felt heartbroken, crying into her chest.
Qu Yao frowned, looking down at her trembling head, and finally sighed helplessly, holding her as they walked down the mountain.
Everyone was still curious: Was Xu Wanzhi dead? Transported? Fallen off a cliff with no remains? Or simply… melodramatic?
Let us now turn our lens to this master who, with one thought, harmed others and himself. He lay on a small stone slab between heaven and earth, completely motionless.
He had been lying there from black night to white day, unable to turn over. He weakly smiled: Trying to die was still troublesome. In his predicament, he could only wait to die of thirst or hunger before meeting the King of Hell.
During this waiting-to-die process, he witnessed a pure sunrise, its beautiful light almost blinding him. Suddenly, all life’s flavors surged in his heart, and he was momentarily grateful to be alive.
He had to reconsider life and death again: Living here or there? What was the obsession he couldn’t let go of?
He made one choice, and heaven gave him another answer.
He closed his eyes for a long time, slowly breaking into a smile. At this moment, he finally understood the principle of going with the flow.
After leaving the door, Xu Wanzhi understood even more that there were too many things in this world he had never seen or experienced. The name “Three Hearts Sect” sounded quite interesting. He was unwilling to “return” to the Qu family, and Jun Xiangwei appearing in front of him seemed like a good choice.
“Thank you for your invitation, I agree.”
Qu Xiaojue was two hours late. Xu Wanzhi was taken away by Ding Xiangwei, and they were now in a small town at the edge of Lan City.
Ding Xiangwei’s character was as pure as her appearance. She had heard from her master that this man was about to commit suicide before she stopped him, suggesting he had inner pain that others could not comprehend. Hearing that he seemed to have no home, she boldly invited him. He responded with a genuine smile and did not look down on her.
Although the Three Hearts Sect had only three members, it was a proper sect with an established location, situated at the corner of Lan City. Knowing that wandering around with a male companion was inappropriate, Ding Xiangwei planned to bring Xu Wanzhi to her sect.
They walked on the street of the small town, which was bustling with people coming and going.
A woman’s increasingly harsh cursing mixed with a man’s sharp crying appeared in a corner of the town. The woman was pulling the man’s hair, repeatedly slapping him hard. The man knelt beside her leg, enduring the pain but desperately clinging to her sleeve.
People gathered around pointing and whispering, with no one trying to intervene. Ding Xiangwei and Xu Wanzhi saw this scene. They both frowned. This was Xu Wanzhi’s first time seeing a woman beating a man, creating an indescribable sense of discomfort. He softly asked, “Do all women beat their husbands?”
“Ah?” Caught off guard by his question, Ding Xiangwei looked at him blankly. Seeing his poor expression, she said softly, “No… Some crude women don’t know how to cherish their husbands, but there are also those who love them like life itself.”
Realizing she had spoken too much, she blushed and stopped mid-sentence. “If the gentleman finds it unbearable, I’ll go and advise them.”
As the woman beat her husband more viciously, Ding Xiangwei’s chivalrous heart was stirred, and she was about to step into the crowd. Xu Wanzhi narrowed his eyes coldly: “Miss Jun, do as you please.”
I won’t get involved.”
