Chapter 5

Chapter 5

It was already late autumn, and the mountain wind was bitter, yet the osmanthus blossoms still clung stubbornly to the branches. Their fragrance was so thick it felt impossible to brush away, which only made me more inexplicably irritated.

The higher I climbed, the colder and more desolate the wind became. It froze tears and snot right out of me. After a few more steps, I saw moonlight ahead, white as unrolled silk, spilling in a thin stream over the mountaintop. There stood a small hexagonal pavilion. Faint lamplight glimmered within. I pulled my flimsy clothes tighter around myself and shivered as I hurried toward the summit.

When I reached the entrance, I saw a figure behind the stone table, reading a book. His profile was half hidden in a dense shadow of deep green, his skin gleaming with the clear, moist luster of jade. A pale wrist extended from his wide sleeve, almost indistinguishable from the snow-white fabric. His tall, elegant bearing was as unrestrained as drifting clouds.

Once I saw who it was, I said nothing at all. I turned and left.

“Stop.”

The voice behind my ear was cool and pleasant to hear, yet it chilled me to the bone.

Before the words had even faded, three swordsmen stepped out from the left, right, and front outside the pavilion. Their armor was neat and severe, their weapons cold and menacing, forcing me to take a step back.

With that one step, I retreated right back into the pavilion.

“What is that in your hand?”

The next instant, a well-defined hand reached over and drew the silk letter from my grasp. The hand was like a cold sculpture of a beautiful woman, both lovely and slender.

“Hmph! Insolent brat!”

That furious rebuke made its owner’s attitude perfectly clear. Wang Yu seemed thoroughly enraged, pacing back and forth inside the pavilion. “I ordered someone to lock him in his room. She is only a woman, yet he actually dared to act so recklessly!”

I did not dare make a sound. I merely lowered my head in silence.

Even though I lowered it further, he still saw the streaks of tears on my face. His tone turned mocking. “A mere concubine-born daughter, and you dare dream of marrying into the Cui Family?”

“Hah. As if you are worthy.”

I could not help but argue back, my voice as faint as a mosquito’s buzz. “I am a concubine-born daughter. I am looking for a concubine-born son. How am I unworthy?”

“Jinping has been of marriageable age for a long time. I am only trying to arrange a marriage for myself. What wrong is there in that?”

At that, Wang Yu gave a cold sneer. “If that is so, why did you have to set your sights on every concubine-born son in the city?”

In other words, he was condemning me for flirting with half the city.

All I could do was patiently explain, “My lord, I have never tried to climb above my station. I was only forced to choose a husband for myself.”

“If I do not plan my own marriage, my legitimate mother will surely marry me off to some old man from an aristocratic family-and as a concubine, no less. Just like the six elder sisters before me!”

Wang Yu’s expression revealed neither joy nor anger. “As long as it is not a son of my Wang Clan or the Cui Family, do as you please.”

At that, I hesitated.

Young Master Cui had already become my only hope at present.

He was handsome, pure-hearted, and of excellent character. He had also been raised by his legitimate mother, so his future prospects would surely be bright. If I truly could marry him as his wife, it would be the greatest fortune imaginable.

My reluctance fell into Wang Yu’s eyes, making him even more displeased. “I heard your father was just promoted to county magistrate of Yunshui County a few days ago?”

“………Yes.”

High above me, with lacquer-black hair at his temples and vermilion lips, he was dazzlingly beautiful. Yet he curved his lips at me in a faint, almost gentle smile, as though gazing down with mercy upon an ant crawling on the ground. There was an ethereal aloofness to him, high and distant, utterly detached.

That smile already made his stance clear.

At this moment, though I clenched my teeth and refused to bow my head, I understood perfectly well that this was the last bit of dignity he was willing to leave me.

Just as the stalemate dragged on, several startled cries rang out outside. A moment later, a swordsman came to report, “My lord, beacon smoke has risen several hundred meters ahead. It is moving toward the summit from the east, north, and west.”

Wang Yu took a few steps forward, seemed to have some misgivings, then turned back and sat down at the stone table. “You three, go in three directions and investigate.”

“Yes, my lord.”

After the three men accepted the order and left, I remained standing in the pavilion, drinking in the cold wind.

Judging by Wang Yu’s attitude, if I did not give him an answer, he had no intention of letting me leave today.

Looking down the mountain again, I did see three columns of thick smoke rising straight upward. If not for tonight’s bright moon and clear air, the black smoke would not have been so obvious-so obvious that it even seemed deliberate.

“How strange!”

Hearing me mutter to myself, Wang Yu said nothing. Clearly, he did not take me seriously. For some reason, however, panic swelled in my heart, growing more intense by the moment. “Why are there three columns of beacon smoke?”

His gaze sharpened. At last, he looked directly at me. “What did you say?”

“Young Master Wang only brought three armored guards, and there happen to be three columns of beacon smoke down the mountain. Is this not a little too coincidental?”

Unless…

A diversion!

The thought had only just flashed through my mind when Wang Yu darted aside. A feathered arrow tore through the air and sank deep into the stone table at the center!