That night, after Bai Yuning spoke briefly with Zhou Yuanzhen, she climbed back out of the window.
The moment she landed, she saw the Second Young Master standing there, arms crossed, his expression cold and sharp.
His brows were furrowed as he spoke, his words measured and deliberate:
“I just heard him say he wants to marry you.”
A young man, unfamiliar with love or hate, driven purely by instinct, blurted out the words without restraint.
It sounded like accusation, but beneath it was something strange and tangled, like sour jealousy mixed with shards of ice, striking out directly at her.
An ordinary person might have mistaken it for disgust.
But Bai Yuning was not an ordinary person.
She was too clever, too perceptive capable of manipulating Zhou Yuanzhen into bringing her back with just a few words.
With a single glance, she could sow discord between Zhou Chiye and his elder brother.
The delicate and elegant girl appeared embarrassed, then softly replied:
“That is just your brother’s wishful thinking.
He has always wanted to divorce his wife and marry me, but my parents would never agree.
And I would never bear such a disgraceful name.
He only brought me here because I had nowhere else to go.
After my family’s downfall, no one was willing to take me in.
Tonight, I came merely to repay the kindness he once showed me.
I am poor and have nothing to offer him in return only this farewell visit.
From now on, I will never see him again.
I only wish for him and his wife to live in harmony.”
Two simple sentences were enough to quiet the restlessness in Zhou Chiye’s heart.
Yes.
It wasn’t her fault.
It was his brother’s greed.
Her family had fallen from grace, she was a weak and helpless woman, struggling to survive how could he blame her?
She seemed unaware of the strange, misplaced emotions simmering inside him.
In a soft, gentle voice, she said:
“May I trouble the Second Young Master to escort me back once more?
Once I have recovered, I will leave this place forever.”
Zhou Chiye pursed his lips and, once again, carried her in his arms.
This time, she did not scream.
She did not stiffen in resistance.
Instead, she was soft, like a pool of water, leaning against his chest.
Zhou Chiye’s heartbeat suddenly surged.
The distance between them felt shorter than ever.
The summer breeze rustled the bamboo in the courtyard, and the whispering sound made his ears tingle.
The delicate girl nestled in his arms, the feather-light sensation against his skin making his breathing unsteady.
When he finally set her down at her guest residence, he could barely hear her words.
His gaze was locked onto her, and only when she disappeared behind the door did he realize that his heartbeat was deafening.
As he turned to leave, something on the ground caught his eye.
A handkerchief.
It looked… like hers.
For some reason he could not explain, he picked it up.
After that night, Zhou Chiye felt restless.
Paying respects to his mother felt meaningless.
He refused to visit his brother in the ancestral hall just the thought of him was irritating.
He had no patience to care for his father’s illness.
Instead, he wandered aimlessly around the manor, a secret expectation growing in his chest.
Maybe…
Maybe he would see her again today.
But he didn’t.
The pear blossom-like Bai girl no longer appeared in the courtyard.
His agitation worsened.
Finally, using the excuse of returning the handkerchief, he went to see her.
She took it with surprise, then gave him some pastries in return.
And after that…
She never sought him out again.
Of course, she wouldn’t.
She was a well-mannered lady, careful with propriety why would she take the initiative?
Yet an unnamed urgency gnawed at him, urging him to do something, anything.
He fought it for days, suppressing it again and again.
Until the night before he was due to leave for the martial academy.
He could hold back no longer.
That night, he sought her out.
But what he saw shattered him completely
She was crying.
Sitting alone in the dimly lit room, her face buried in her hands, tears glistening like snowflakes.
The moment he saw her, his soul felt like it had been swept away.
Before he even realized it, he had climbed through her window.
“Who bullied you?”
His voice was low and tight.
“Was it my sister-in-law?
Tell me.
I will stand up for you.”
The girl at the table jerked upright, hastily wiping her tears.
Her voice was choked as she asked:
“Second Young Master, why are you here?”
Zhou Chiye’s brows furrowed.
“Who made you cry?”
His voice was firm.
“I will make them pay.”
The delicate girl wiped her tears again.
After a few moments of silence, she whispered:
“No one bullied me.
I just… miss my mother.”
A long silence stretched between them.
Then, Zhou Chiye lowered his gaze.
“Where was she exiled to?
I can send someone to find her.
Perhaps they can help her on the journey.”
Bai Yuning shook her head, forcing a lighthearted smile.
“No need.
I wouldn’t want to trouble you, Young Master.”
Zhou Chiye’s thin lips trembled.
His fox-like eyes darkened as he stared at her intensely.
“I want to help you.”
“Tell me what you need.”
For a moment, Bai Yuning hesitated, then she gathered her courage and said:
“There is… one thing.
After my family was raided, I was left with nothing.
I miss my mother dearly but have nothing to remember her by.
However, I know that years ago, she gifted Madam Qin a hairpin.
If possible… could you take me to find it?”
It was an unusual request.
But Zhou Chiye immediately agreed.
Blinded by infatuation, he had no way of seeing the poison hidden within honey.
He rushed forward eagerly, swallowing it whole.
“Would Madam Qin allow you to enter her treasury?”
Bai Yuning feigned unease.
“Madam Qin is already unhappy with my presence.
If I get involved with the treasury, it will only make things worse…”
Seeing her troubled expression, Zhou Chiye instantly relented.
“I will take you there in secret.
I know my mother’s storage room like the back of my hand.”
That night, Zhou Chiye successfully led Bai Yuning to the treasury.
By the light of an oil lamp, he opened the chests for her to search through.
The dim flickering light cast a soft glow over her face.
And he… could not stop looking at her.
Then, at a certain moment, she turned to him, her cheeks flushed, and whispered:
“You are so kind.”
And then
She suddenly leaned in and kissed his cheek.
Like a wild west wind crashing through the clouds, his entire body froze.
His oil lamp slipped from his hands, plunging the room into darkness.
Meanwhile, Bai Yuning, hidden in the shadows, quietly slipped a folded cloth into the pocket of her dress.
That night, Zhou Chiye was lost in a dream of first love.
Meanwhile, the stolen military strategy map slipped out of the Marquis’s estate straight into the Second Prince’s hands.