Chapter 197: Chapter 196: Traces
Du Yunluo was surprised.
That was the Holy Emperor’s royal tent, with strict protocols for entry and exit. For someone to rush in like this without notification, could something have happened?
The fire pit outside the royal tent burned fiercely. Even some distance away, Du Yunluo could hear the crackling of the firewood.
Crack—
It was as if a string in her heart had snapped.
She turned to look at Princess Nanyan, whose expression was somewhat grave, and her hands hanging by her side clenched involuntarily.
Du Yunluo opened her mouth to ask a question but suddenly realized it herself.
The sky was completely dark. By this time on any other day, the hunters would have returned, but now, aside from the Holy Emperor who had come back early, there was no sign of anyone else.
No horns, no hoofbeats, never mind the accompanying military officers and young nobles—even Li Ke, Li Luan, and Li Yu hadn’t returned.
Du Yunluo pressed her lips together, wanting to comfort Princess Nanyan, but then she saw someone rushing out from the royal tent. He grabbed a horse’s reins, mounted it, and sped off.
It was indeed Mu Lianxiao.
Even if it was just a back view, Du Yunluo wouldn’t mistake him.
"The Princely Heir..." Du Yunluo whispered.
Princess Nanyan was taken aback, watching the person ride away, and asked, "Is that the Heir of Duke Dingyuan?"
Du Yunluo slowly nodded. She thought something must have happened in the hunting ground, otherwise, Mu Lianxiao wouldn’t be in such a hurry.
Princess Nanyan took a deep breath and sent someone to gather more information. After a while, the news came back.
At dusk, they encountered a leopard.
Li Ke led the chase; the Crown Prince was at the forefront. Those behind naturally followed at a gallop. The leopard was agile; they chased for a quarter of an hour, but rather than catching up, they even lost track of Li Ke.
Not just Li Ke, but Li Luan and Li Yu who were with him also went missing.
The guards panicked and counted heads. There were still five or six people who had followed the nobles.
But a hunting ground at night couldn’t be searched with just a few people.
Moreover, they had already chased deep into the forest, where the dense vegetation made it hard to even find a path, let alone travel on horseback.
In a hurry, the guards alerted others to join the search and sent someone back to inform the Holy Emperor.
It was the Crown Prince and two Princes that were missing; injury to any one of them would cost several heads.
In the royal tent, the Holy Emperor’s face was ashen. Mu Lianxiao wasted no time and went directly to search for them.
Du Yunluo’s eyelids twitched.
The three of them went missing?
For a moment, a thought flashed through Du Yunluo’s mind: she feared Li Luan might orchestrate an accident.
She grasped Princess Nanyan’s hand and asked, "Princess, how was it before?"
Princess Nanyan’s body swayed slightly: "Before..."
Before, at this time, she hadn’t come to the hunting ground.
Back then, Li Luan’s marriage to Mu Lianhui had been arranged, and the wedding was set for autumn, not as rushed as Nanyan’s situation.
Because of this, Nanyan had fallen ill, as if all the strength and hope in her body had been drained. During the raw chill of spring, she caught a cold and didn’t recover until late April.
Princess Yunhua had thrown numerous fits about it, scolding the Imperial Physician for his incompetence, as a simple cold had confined Nanyan to bed for over two months.
When the Princess set off to the hunting ground with the Holy Emperor, Nanyan remained in the palace.
The once lively princess’s chamber fell quiet. Annoyed by the smell of medicine, Nanyan had the palace maids open the windows to let in the spring breeze and view the flowers outside.
She knew her body should have recovered long ago; the severity wasn’t from the cold but from pent-up frustration.
She didn’t wish to go to the hunting ground, still unsure how to face Li Luan.
She wanted to hide; if she could avoid it even for a moment, she would.
Nanyan’s illness finally passed before the May Empress Dowager’s birthday celebration.
When she went to Cining Palace to pay respects, she encountered Li Luan, not seen in several months.
Li Luan stood under the veranda, with Li Yu gesturing and talking beside him. Something amused Li Luan, making his peach blossom eyes gleam, rippling like waves.
Nanyan was transfixed until the owner of those eyes noticed her and looked up, giving her a smile as gentle as a spring breeze.
At that moment, Nanyan suddenly realized she no longer wished to avoid him. Even if he was to be married, she wanted to watch him like this—watching him would be enough.
Overtaken by emotions of that day, Princess Nanyan’s eyes reddened, and her heart clenched tightly. She shook her head at Du Yunluo.
Though they were both reborn into this world, neither knew what had happened in the hunting ground, feeling powerless and helpless.
The camp bustled with activity.
The Holy Emperor ordered that the women should return to the traveling palace first and not delay any longer.
Du Yunluo was concerned about Mu Lianxiao, but she had to leave. The women in the camp all had fathers, brothers, or husbands searching in the hunting ground. If they all used that as an excuse not to leave, what sense would that make?
Only Princess Nanyan was allowed to stay, because Li Luan was one of the missing.
Princess Nanyan reassured Du Yunluo, saying, "You should go back. Once there’s news, I will have someone send word to you, no matter when it is, even if it’s in the middle of the night."
Du Yunluo, being sensible, took Princess Nanyan’s words to heart and didn’t delay any further, boarding the carriage to return to the traveling palace.
Huang Jie shared the carriage with her, looking relatively at ease.
Seeing Du Yunluo glance at her, Huang Jie said, "Miss Du, are you wondering why I’m not worried about my brother? I’m used to our father going on expeditions, often gone for half a year or more each time."
Du Yunluo felt a sharp pang in her throat.
Used to it?
This was something one could never truly get used to.
In the past, whenever Mu Lianxiao went on expeditions, she was always on edge, unable to sleep soundly.
At Dingyuan Marquis Mansion, neither Madam Wu nor Mrs. Zhou were indifferent. It wasn’t about being used to it; it was about forcing themselves not to think about it.
Seeing the worry on Du Yunluo’s brow, Huang Jie tentatively said, "I heard that Heir Mu has gone to the hunting ground? There will be many more days like this in the future. Families like ours are used to it. Unlike those of scholarly backgrounds like you, who never have to worry about such things, it must be hard for you."
Understanding Huang Jie’s good intentions, Du Yunluo smiled softly, "There’s nothing particularly hard about it."
Upon returning to the traveling palace, Du Yunluo felt somewhat more at ease after washing up.
It wasn’t that she was impatient; when Mu Lianxiao went to De’an for half a month, she wasn’t particularly anxious. But today, as the situation arose, she became increasingly nervous.
As night deepened, no messenger came with news.
Jin Ling, holding scissors, trimmed the lamp wick and asked, "Miss, it’s almost midnight, aren’t you going to sleep?"
Setting down the book in her hand, Du Yunluo walked over to the desk, "I’ll write for a while. If you’re tired, go ahead and sleep."
Du Yunluo wrote scripture for nearly an hour, her mind much calmer. Looking up at Jin Ling, who sat nodding off, head propped by her hand, Du Yunluo smiled, "Go to bed."
Unable to stay awake longer, Jin Ling, seeing Du Yunluo had no intention of sleeping, didn’t insist and murmured, "Then I’ll go lie down for a while. Call me when you want to rest."
Jin Ling swayed slightly as she went to the adjoining room opposite. Du Yunluo added water to the inkstone and began grinding gently. Just as she lifted the brush to write, she heard noises outside the north window.
Thud, thud.
Someone was lightly tapping on the window lattice.
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