To find Qin Miao's whereabouts, Xie Lin repeatedly asked for leave from the Ministry of War for two days and personally led people to search the city inside and out, but still couldn't find any trace.

  In the distance, the sun had set, leaving only a faint glow. Xie Yun rode his horse, muttering to himself: "An Nuan, where are you..." He was afraid, more than ten days had passed, anything could have happened. His An Nuan, although she had some skills and backbone, was still just a young girl, a weak and helpless girl. He dared not think of the things that those noblewomen who were kidnapped by bandits and thieves had gone through. But as he watched the sun slowly set, his hopes were also slowly shattered.

  "Master, I have news!" Po Feng rushed in on horseback from a distance, and before the horse had even stopped, he jumped down to the ground. "The carriage driver who went out of the city has been found! However, he said..." As soon as he received the news, Po Feng was eager to report it. But thinking about what the carriage driver had said, he hesitated for a moment, wondering how Master would react upon hearing it.

  "What's going on!" Now there was news that it was better than no news at all, Xie Xun heard and opened his mouth, and he couldn't wait any longer, blurting out.

  "The coachman said that on the day, Madam and her entourage got off the carriage at a place ten miles away from the city gate. He was told that the temple would arrange for a horse-drawn carriage to pick them up, so he should return to the mansion first and not delay the use of the carriage in the mansion. I just took the coachman to see where Madam got off the carriage, and not far from there is the fork in the road leading south and north. One path leads to Zhangjiakou, which can be used to leave the pass. And the other one..."

  "Another way is to go south, towards Yangzhou, whether it is or not!" Xie Yan had already realized the problem when he spoke at the fork in the road.

  It was all a ruse from the start, there was never any intention of praying for blessings. She had planned to leave long ago, and it's likely that she's already arrived in Hangzhou by now. Qin Miao, Qin Miao, can't you tolerate me? Are you so unwilling to stay by my side? Just thinking about this possibility made Xie Lin's internal organs feel like they were being twisted, his teeth ached with coldness.

  The next moment, his mind inadvertently flashed back to the nightmare that often plagued him, thinking of that woman and his father. In an instant, a chill ran from the top of his head down, a terrible thought slowly forming in his mind.

  "Break the wind, go take a look at Qingfengpu and Langyue Pavilion in the city to see if they are still there. Also, has Qin's house in the capital been replaced by someone else?"

  After being busy for several days, things have become even clearer. In the evening, the wind brought the latest news. As expected, it was exactly what he had thought - this woman and her sworn brother had eloped together, and they had even sold their house and shop. This was a long-planned private escape, like a loud slap in the face that left him stunned.

  Admire him? Want to enter his heart? Those bowls of soup, those warm gestures, were they all fake? Could it be that she was trying to curry favor with the Madame of the Hou Mansion from start to finish? How ridiculous! Now that she knows her position is in jeopardy, she's running away with her childhood sweetheart? Indeed, a merchant's daughter, full of calculations and reeking of copper stench!

  This is the way it is. The more one loses and cannot attain, the easier it is to think of others' hearts as being wicked, thinking of all sorts of evil intentions, and no matter how hard one tries, they can't escape. And at this moment, Xie Yan is also an ordinary person, unable to escape this kind of psychological curse, and has been trapped by it.

  Such a thing, wanting to deceive, ultimately can't be deceived. The next day, Xie Yan told Old Lady Xie the news that Qin Miao had left voluntarily. The old lady heard it and thought about the meaning of the letter again, and suddenly understood everything.

  "How could this child suddenly want to separate from you?" Suddenly, the old lady thought of Qin Miao's strange behavior recently. Looking at her grandson with red eyes and a face full of stubble, she was even more furious. "It's all because of you, bringing that unscrupulous woman into the house. Now it's good, even your wife is estranged from you, doesn't want you anymore. Are you satisfied now?"

  Xie Xuan only mentioned that Qin Miao had escaped from the capital to pray for blessings, but did not mention his own guesses or the fact that all of the Qin family's properties in the city had been sold. He was afraid that if the old lady heard about it, she would become even more angry. But since the old lady was so carelessly "covering up" for Qin Miao, he couldn't help but want to expose everything about being cuckolded.

  It all boils down to Xiangxiang, but would she be able to calm down and live a good life without Xiangxiang? It's because of Xiangxiang that he indeed owes her an apology. But now, with the green hat on his head, those feelings of guilt have long been thrown into the corner.

  At this moment, Xie Yan hated that he couldn't grab Qin Miao in front of him and interrogate her as to why she had done such a despicable thing! Right, it can't just end like this. Why did she say leave and then leave, say divorce and then divorce? Did she think he, Xie Yan, was some kind of housekeeper without any temper?!

  Returning to Tingyu Zhai, Xie Yun immediately ordered someone to pack up their luggage. Whether right or wrong, he wanted to go and ask for an explanation in person. However, as soon as the order was given, it was blocked by Po Feng.

  "Master, you can't leave the capital for now. The king said that the war in the northwest has begun, and our top priority is to gather the troops from both routes under our control. Otherwise, we'll become a sacrifice for others!"

  What Po Feng said was indeed true, but another layer of meaning only he himself knew and couldn't be told to Xie Xu. However, even if he spoke till his mouth was sore, he still couldn't stop the already infatuated Marquis Xie, who had been driven mad by Qin Mo's affair.

  That afternoon, Xie Yun hastily rode out of the city and rushed towards Yangzhou. After passing through Yangzhou, he abandoned his horse and boarded a ship, landing at the nearest crossing point on the opposite bank of the Yangtze River, where he changed horses and continued to rush day and night, exhausting three horses in the process. In less than five days, he arrived at the gate of Hangzhou City.

  On the ancient city wall, the two characters "Hangzhou" are prominently engraved. If you think carefully, this is also a scene of yourself coming to welcome your relatives years ago, looking up and gazing into the distance. Unfortunately, now I am alone, without the red and resplendent procession, nor the resistance at the time of welcoming relatives. At this moment, he really can't wait to rush to the Qin's house, to see that woman who makes him both love and hate.

  Although she had been to the Qin's house once before, Xie Xuan didn't quite remember the way. After asking around, she finally found the door with great difficulty, and it was already past noon. The autumn in Hangzhou was not as bleak and cold as Pingyang, but instead had a warm atmosphere, with a hint of floral scent in the air, making her feel as if she had arrived in late spring. The fatigue from traveling had just begun to set in

  In such an atmosphere, Xie Lin slightly relieved himself, so that when he arrived at the Qin's residence, he was already prepared to remain calm and speak well. After all, Qin Miao loved him, and he also loved her now. As long as he could clear up the matter with Qing Xiang and her second brother, things might not be as bad as he thought.

  Xie Xuan thought so, and soon he would see his little wife again, his mood inexplicably improved. But when he arrived at the gate of the so-called Qin family's mansion, he was stunned.

  The mansion was still the same as he remembered, but strangely, the gate was quiet and cold, with a copper lock on it. The plaque that originally hung above the door with the words "Qin Manor" had also disappeared. He tied his horse to a stone pillar and went forward to knock on the door, but no one came to answer after knocking for half a day. Xie Yan didn't give up and circled around the outer wall of Qin Manor, occasionally finding some white paper on the ground and in the woodpile, which seemed like funeral objects. He was shocked in his heart, wondering if someone had passed away inside? At this time, it was still daytime, so he couldn't directly climb over the wall to enter. He could only go back to the door and knock on the copper door again, but still no one responded.

  What's going on?