I slightly closed my eyes, and now that it has come to this, I have a thousand thoughts, but in the end, I still can't outsmart heaven. However, even if it's heaven's will, I still can't give up and do nothing.

  A clear image emerged in my mind of the day he went to battle, the back view of his white armor, although our love was not yet fulfilled, our affection remained, I couldn't just stand by and do nothing when I knew he was in danger.

  "Miss Qing, why don't you go stay in another courtyard for a few days first, until Young Master Yan returns..."

  "Uncle Chen, I really have something urgent to discuss with Wei. Would you please arrange for someone to go to the depths of Maple Forest immediately and look for him? If they're lucky enough to find him, just tell him it's me looking for him and he'll surely return with them."

  "What if we can't find it......" Chen Bo's face showed a hint of difficulty as he looked at me.

  I paused for a moment, composed myself, and spoke in a calm tone: "When night falls, whether you find him or not, all of you come back."

  Chen Bo had some doubts, but he didn't ask any more questions and immediately selected a group of strong men from the other courtyard to head in the direction of Maple Forest.

  I cast a glance at the maple leaves that were stunningly red after the frost, and without another word, I turned around and entered another courtyard.

  If he can be found naturally, it's the best. But if he can't be found, I don't have time to delay any further. In that case, I'll have to make a trip to Mobei myself.

  I have never been a hesitant and indecisive person, my father often said that my calmness and decisiveness are not inferior to those of men. In the midst of gains and losses, I know what is best to do and also understand when to make prompt decisions.

  I'm not a delicate lady who can't step out of the house either, I've had days when I sailed on the five lakes with Su Xiu and Mei, which taught me to adapt to all kinds of unexpected events, so I don't have too much fear or worry about traveling far.

  Having made up my mind, I gradually calmed down and walked straight into the study in the other courtyard, spread out paper and picked up a pen.

  If I couldn't find him, after a few days he would return from hunting and someone in the other courtyard would surely tell him that I had been there. I didn't want to deceive him, and I needed his cooperation to wrap things up properly, so I had to leave a letter explaining everything.

  "Miss, what's going on?"

  I finished writing the letter and only then did I realize that Shuying had been staring at me intently from the side, and when she saw that I was done, she finally couldn't help but open her mouth hesitantly.

  I comforted her with a smile, and handed the envelope to her: "Nothing, just that I'm going out for a few days. When Mr. Yan returns to Bieyuan, you remember to hand this letter to him personally, and then he'll tell you what to do, just listen to him."

  Unexpectedly, Shu Ying suddenly withdrew her hand and didn't take the letter from my hand. I reacted too slowly, and with a "slap", the letter fell to the ground.

  "Xu Ying?" I slowly shifted my gaze from the ground to her face, calling out softly.

  She shook her head like a rattle drum, backing away while saying: "I don't want to, Miss goes wherever, Piao Ying follows you wherever, I don't want to stay here to pass on messages for Xiao Shao, I don't want to be separated from you!"

  "Silly girl, I'm not going out to have fun, it's just a few days apart." I softly persuaded her, feeling a bit helpless and moved at the same time.

  She still shook her head, no matter how I comforted and persuaded her, she refused to do it.

  I'm getting a headache from looking at her, so I deliberately put on a gloomy face and ignore her, pretending to be angry. The cold wind of Mengbei is bitter, the hardships of this trip are really not necessary for her to accompany me and suffer together.

  After a moment of silence, she looked up at me with eyes that shone like a deer's, though they were already welling up with tears. Her face was resolute: "Miss, you can scold me or be unhappy if you want, but I'll listen to you on everything else. Just this one thing, I absolutely won't leave your side no matter what. Mr. Su saved my life and didn't ask for anything in return, only telling me to take good care of you and never leave your side. Shuying understands that her life is dedicated to serving you, Miss."

  "My heart ached: 'How could he say such things to you? How could you think that way? Your life is your own, what am I supposed to do?'"

  She still looked at me with a stubborn face, not answering me, but continued to talk to herself: "Miss, Piao Ying knows that you didn't go this time just for fun, otherwise you wouldn't leave me behind. Piao Ying also knows that you are doing it for my own good. But we have always been inseparable, and this time you left me behind alone, isn't that going to raise suspicions? Besides, I made a vow to Mr. Su that I would take care of you as if you were more important than my own life, not leaving your side even for a moment. Even if, even if you insist on not wanting me to go, I will still find ways to secretly follow behind you!"

  I was speechless for a long time, and my heart couldn't tell whether it was joy or sorrow, with a sour taste.

  She gazed at me blankly, but eventually couldn't hold back her tears and stammered: "Miss, are you really angry?"

  I looked at her, feeling both heartache and anger, reached out to wipe away her tears: "Just now wasn't it a solemn oath that even if you had to resort to trickery, you would secretly follow me? What are you crying about this time?"

  She immediately caught the relaxation in my tone and burst into tears of laughter: "Miss, are you willing to take me there?"

  I stretched out my hand and tapped her brow: "You, if I didn't bring you along, who knows what kind of trouble you'd get me into. But let me make one thing clear to you, just like you said, this time I'm not going for fun, the journey will be very tough, and there may even be danger, so you'd better prepare yourself mentally, it's still not too late to regret now."

  "Not yet, not yet, miss, when are we leaving?"

  Just as I was chatting and laughing with Shuying, I suddenly heard a commotion of people outside the door. I looked up to see that it had already darkened outside, so it must be the people Chen Bo sent to Fenglin who have returned.

  He hastily got up and went out to greet him, but in the midst of the crowd, he did not see Yu Zhen.

  My heart sank, and I knew that this trip to the north was doomed from the start.

  "Miss Qing, I'm so sorry, we were unable to find Young Master." Chen Bo saw me come out and bowed respectfully with a guilty expression.

  I hastily helped him up: "Was it I who was too hard on him? Did Chen Bo say this intentionally to make me feel uneasy?"

  Chen Bo Mu sighed with emotion: "It's no wonder that Master and Mistress have always praised Miss, I've watched you siblings grow up, among all these children, you're the most sensible one."

  I took a glance at the sky and knew that even if I wanted to set off, I could only wait until tomorrow morning. So I rewarded the people who had accompanied me to the maple forest today, chatted with Old Man Chen for a while, and then asked: "Do you know whether Nian's horse 'Chasing the Wind' has arrived?"

  Chen Bo burst out laughing: "That's Young Master Liu's treasure, how can he leave it behind. He went to hunt tigers in the maple forest and found it inconvenient to ride a horse over there, so he left it in the stable and told me to take good care of it."

  I was overjoyed and hastily asked Old Man Chen to take me there.

  In the past, when I was at the Prime Minister's mansion, Hui would often take me out for a ride, so "Chasing the Wind" also knew me. As soon as I entered the stable, I heard its excited neighing.

  I stroked its neck gently and asked Old Man Chen, "Is there a gentle and suitable horse for long-distance travel in this stable?"

  Chen Bo smiled and led me to the next horse stall: "Miss Qing, take a look at this purple swallow mare. Every time Young Master Huai's little miss comes, she doesn't dare touch any other horses, but only sits on this one."

  I couldn't help but smile when I heard this, Huan Yue is Big Brother's child and also the first grandchild of the Murong family. Since she was young, she has been weak and sickly, extremely spoiled, if she can ride it, then this horse must be very well-behaved.

  Following Chen Bo's guidance, I looked over and saw that the purple swallow was pure in color, bright and lively, with a spirited appearance. I stretched out my hand and it didn't shy away, instead gently rubbing against my palm, truly gentle in nature.

  I smiled and said to Shuying, "Why don't you go up and try?"

  Shu Ying heard the words, smiled and came forward, agilely flipped onto the horse, and galloped away in a cloud of dust. She had gone through so much with me, and was not like ordinary girls who were weak and timid; she had also learned to ride horses and pick herbs with me.

  Chen Bo asked somewhat puzzled: "Miss Qing, where are you going?"

  I thought for a moment, then took out the letter I had written to Wei from my bosom and said: "Yes, I will set off with Shuying tomorrow. Originally, we were going to go together, but unfortunately, we can't wait for him now. Mr. Chen, would you please help me deliver this letter to him? After he reads it, he'll understand."

  I deliberately avoided mentioning my destination, and as a servant of the Murong family, after asking once, it was naturally not good to continue asking, so he could only hesitantly say to me: "Is it just Miss Qing and Shuying? Do you want me to arrange some more people to escort you?"

  I hastily shook my head: "No need, no need, it's not like we're going somewhere, having someone follow me would make me uncomfortable, if I couldn't have a good time then this trip would be wasted."

  Chen Bo still looked hesitant and asked: "Does Master and Madam know?"

  I secretly took a deep breath and smiled lightly: "Look what you said, if my mother didn't tell me, how would I know that Wei is here? You also saw him this morning, didn't you? I came in the Marquis's carriage."

  Seeing the hesitation on his face dissipate, I carefully put away the letter and felt a huge weight lift off my mind. As I watched Piao Ying's carefree figure galloping in the distance, I thought to myself that we should set out early tomorrow to avoid any unexpected twists and turns that might arise from a long night of dreams.

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