High-class Spring Joy

Qingyuan's massage technique was indeed excellent and satisfying, especially for Chu Jingyu.

It was only because Qingyuan, as an ordinary maid, didn't know how to massage it. At that time, Chu Jingyu was in poor health and always had aches and pains here and there.

Because I was born weak and sickly, I spent a lot of time lying in bed, and lying in bed for too long would cause my whole body to ache.

Back then, Chu Jingyu never let anyone touch him. Even among the maids and servants in the courtyard, only Qingyuan could get close and serve him personally.

So Qingyuan followed suit and learned that skill, which was specifically for serving Chu Jingyu.

Steam rose from the bathtub, filling the entire room and blurring Chu Jingyu's vision, making it difficult for him to see clearly what it was.

Chu Jingyu leaned against the bathtub, his head resting on the edge of the tub. He stared blankly upwards as the hot water spread up, enveloping his entire body in warmth. Chu Jingyu relaxed, and his thoughts began to wander.

These days, the stay at Xiangguo Temple is not good; the conditions there are naturally inferior to those at the Zhenguo Marquis's residence.

In Israel, he was just an ordinary prince. He was no different from the ladies, young women, officials, and ministers, at least in front of the Empress Dowager, the princesses, and the crown prince.

I returned to the Marquis's mansion in China, where he was the pampered and high-ranking young master of the Marquis's mansion. The difference in treatment was immediately apparent.

I didn't sleep well at Xiangguo Temple, so the usual conditions there were considered gentle and carefully arranged for the monks. But no matter what, it was still far from the comforts of the Zhenguo Marquis's residence.

He had been sleeping for so many days that his back ached, his muscles were sore.

Chu Jingyu stretched his shoulders, which were quite sore. A little impatient, he urged towards the door, "Where's the person I asked you to invite? Why haven't they returned yet?"

Just as he finished speaking, footsteps approached from the doorway. Chu Jingyu leaned back and said matter-of-factly, "Since you're here, come in!"

After saying this, Chu Jingyu closed his eyes, enjoying the warmth and comfort of the hot water.

Soon after Chu Jingyu finished speaking, he heard the sound of the door being pushed open. Someone walked in, but the person didn't speak, as if he was hesitating about something, or perhaps waiting for something.

Chu Jingyu was convinced that it was Qingyue who had come in, and thought that Qingyuan was probably still angry with him for helping Xiangjiao at Xiangguo Temple.

Chu Jingyu sighed deeply, still not opening her eyes: "So much time has passed, even if you're still angry, it should have subsided by now, right? I know you're sulking, and I spoke up for Banana, which hurt you and made you feel like I don't care about you. But don't you know whether I care about you or not? Are you going to deny the past ten years or so between us just because of this one thing? Do we have to keep explaining our relationship back and forth? Don't you find that exhausting? I said, Banana is very important to me, but you are also very important to me. This is never a matter of choosing only one person. Why can't we? You are important to me, and Banana is also important to me? Does that mean that in the future, or rather, I can't have another person who is important to me and cares about me? There's no such logic. A-Yuan, isn't your possessiveness a bit too strong? Do you want me to have only you in my entire life? Isn't that a bit too domineering?"

Chu Jingyu spoke without any emotion in his voice, as if he were talking about something very ordinary, without any seriousness.

After he finished speaking, Chu Jingyu heard footsteps shift in the room, but the person still didn't say anything, seemingly still hesitating about something.

Chu Jingyu snorted coldly, feeling both helpless and somewhat irritated: "You were at Xiangguo Temple for so many days without saying a word to me or even visiting me once. I know you were angry, you were sulking, so I didn't blame you or punish you for it. Now you're back at the Zhenguo Marquis's residence. Tell me how long it's been? Did you plan to never see me again? I've already sent someone to invite you; you should be able to feel how much I value you, right?"

As he said this, Chu Jingyu smiled, which he thought was a doting smile: "Alright, come over here. Let's just consider those days at Xiangguo Temple as the past. We still have a long way to go and a long time to spend together. Are you just going to keep sulking and being stubborn with me like this?! Even if you're not upset, I feel sorry for you. Come over here and let me massage your shoulders."

As he spoke, Chu Jingyu shrugged.

But the next moment, the voice that rang out in the room was not a woman's voice, but a man's voice:

"Young...Young Master..."

As soon as Mo Lin's voice came out, Xigua, who had been enjoying the moment with her eyes closed, immediately opened them, sat up straight, and looked at Mo Lin beside her. She frowned and asked, "Why is it you?? Where's A-Yuan? And the people you invited? You can't even get one person back? Your job is really getting worse and worse!"

Mo Lin was so overwhelmed by the scathing rebuke that he dared not speak. Even when Chu Jingyu's face showed anger, Mo Lin still dared not utter a word.

Chu Jingyu waited for an answer, but Mo Lin dared not speak. Chu Jingyu grew increasingly angry, his voice growing colder: "Speak! Why didn't you invite them?! Did you expect me to personally go and invite them??"

"No, young master... it's not that I've failed in my duties..." Mo Lin truly dared not tell the Fifth Young Master the news he knew.

He went to Qingyuan's courtyard very quickly, but then he received news that Qingyuan had left.

That meant Qingyuan's departure wasn't just from this courtyard, but from the entire Zhenguo Marquis's mansion, and that she would never return.

Although Mo Lin arrived later, he has at least witnessed the relationship between Qing Yuan and his young master over the years.

He might not know about other things, but his young master cared extremely much about Miss Qingyuan.

Even if the young master and sister Qingyuan were to quarrel on ordinary days, it was just a quarrel and it didn't affect anything else.

For example, in this matter, there was no other maid in the entire Zhenguo Marquis's mansion who could elicit such a tone from the young master.

Not to mention the maids, even the old lady might not be able to.

So, seeing Chu Jingyu's increasingly anxious and angry expression, how could Mo Lin dare to speak so easily?

Until he could no longer withstand Chu Jingyu's sharp, knife-like gaze, he said, "Young Master, it's not that Miss Qingyuan didn't want to come, but I heard from Miss Hongdou, who shared a room with Miss Qingyuan, that Miss Qingyuan has already left the Zhenguo Marquis's mansion."

Upon hearing this, Chu Jingyu froze for a moment, his whole body stiffening, and he squinted, staring intently at Mo Lin's face in front of him.

It's as if they're pondering the veracity of Morin's words.

Chu Jingyu's face darkened. At first, he was indeed startled by Mo Lin's words.

She's gone?

How could she possibly leave?

But Chu Jingyu quickly realized that Qingyuan couldn't possibly leave. He knew in his heart how much Qingyuan loved him. She wanted to marry him, so why would she suddenly leave?

Qingyuan has wanted to marry him since she was a child, it's not like today is the first time she's wanted to marry him. How could Qingyuan, who has wanted to marry him since she was a child, suddenly not want to marry him anymore just because of that little thing at Xiangguo Temple? How could that be?

Moreover, it's not like he hadn't made choices before; this wasn't the first time he'd done something like this with bananas. Why didn't Qingyuan leave back then?

Are we leaving at this time today?

Moreover, even if Qingyuan had that get-out-of-jail-free card, and the appreciation and attention of the Empress Dowager and the Princess, it would still be nothing more than an get-out-of-jail-free card.

At least no one dared to accept the pardon she was trying to pawn, and it wouldn't be able to be pawned. Qingyuan wouldn't be that stupid; how could she leave the manor without money?

Chu Jingyu quickly realized what was happening and came to a conclusion he firmly believed. He sneered:

"Alright, I understand. You may leave now. In the future, if Qingyuan doesn't come to my courtyard on her own initiative, you must not invite her."

It seems he still has too much patience with Qingyuan and spoils her too much. She has spoiled her so much that she is still sulking with him even after so long!

He wanted to see how long Qing Yuan could hold out in this temper!

-

Besides Chu Jingyu, those around the Third Young Master also learned of this news.

The Empress Dowager and Princess Banana, in front of so many ladies and young ladies at the gates of Bianjing, bestowed upon Qingyuan a pardon from death, as a warning and to tell these ladies and young ladies not to easily harm Qingyuan.

Regardless of Qingyuan's identity, she has at least rendered great service by protecting the emperor and saving the Banana Princess's life.

But this also comes with risks. In front of everyone, Qingyuan is no longer an ordinary maid or a girl, nor is she a commoner who can be easily identified by anyone thrown into Bianjing City.

With Qingyuan attracting more attention, there will naturally be more gossip and discussion, and her profile will also rise.

Especially in Chensha and Zheji's territory, ever since Qingyuan's incident, Chu Jingxian has instructed his subordinates to pay extra attention to Qingyuan's whereabouts.

The moment Qingyuan stepped out of the Zhenguo Marquis's mansion, she immediately received the news of her defeat.

At that time, Zheji was watching Sai Huatuo feed Chu Jingxian medicine, while Chensha was guarding the door.

The servant rushed in, "Guards, something bad has happened! We heard from the gatekeeper that Miss Qingyuan has left the Marquis's residence with her belongings."

Zheji's expression immediately turned serious: "Did you hear me clearly? Did the gatekeeper and the others see clearly?"

When the servant returned, he was still panting. Supporting his legs, he nodded hurriedly and said, "I heard you clearly, I heard you very clearly. I even asked the gatekeeper several times to make sure he saw it clearly. The gatekeeper said he saw it very, very clearly. To be honest, although the Marquis's mansion has many maids, very few can compare to half the beauty of Miss Qingyuan. Even if you look at all the high-ranking families in the entire Bianjing city, you can't find many who are more beautiful than Miss Qingyuan. The possibility of mistaken identity is extremely small."

"A bundle..." Upon hearing this, Chen Sha hurriedly came over and asked, "Why is Miss Qingyuan carrying a bundle? Could it be that Miss Qingyuan is leaving the Marquis's mansion? But Miss Qingyuan's indenture should be with the Old Madam. If it were to be retrieved, it could only be that the Princess retrieved it for Miss Qingyuan, but we have never heard of such a thing. Moreover, the Princess and the Old Madam did not have any interaction at Xiangguo Temple this time, nor did they meet. Although we are not clear about the Princess's whereabouts, we are very clear about the Old Madam's behavior."

Chen Sha couldn't figure it out. "Could it be that Miss Qingyuan is going out to buy something and is worried she won't be able to carry it all, so she took a package with her?"

Broken Halberd:………

Zheji didn't even bother to glance at him, his gaze falling on the servant who came to report: "Tell me in detail what exactly the gatekeeper saw and what the scene was like. Be specific to every detail, to what they saw and what you know."

Upon hearing this, the servant nodded and carefully recounted all the details he knew to Zheji: "I don't know many details either, because I'm not a servant after all. I can only describe what the gatekeeper told me. According to the gatekeeper, Miss Qingyuan and Miss Hongdou arrived at the back gate together. The two talked for a while not far away. At that time, Miss Qingyuan already had a small bundle on her, but besides that bundle, she didn't carry anything else. Miss Hongdou and Miss Qingyuan were not far away..." They talked for about half an hour. As they spoke, Hongdou seemed a little agitated, and it was unclear what she was saying. In any case, Qingyuan seemed to be trying to persuade Hongdou and giving her some instructions. Afterwards, Hongdou didn't approach, but stood a short distance away, watching Qingyuan leave. Only after Qingyuan had been gone for a long time did Hongdou turn and leave. Qingyuan didn't say anything specific to the gatekeeper; that was all the gatekeeper told the servant. The servant told everything; as for anything else, neither the servant nor the gatekeeper knew.

Shen Sha, who was standing nearby, might not have quite figured it out yet, but Zhe Ji already had a complete guess in his mind.

Zheji simply turned his head to look at the Third Young Master lying on the bed, who was still asleep. He frowned, his expression somewhat serious, as if he was pondering something.

Having experienced what happened before, Chen Sha knew she was no match for Zheji in this regard, and impatiently asked, "Tell me, what exactly happened to Miss Qingyuan? Did she go out to buy something, or has she really left the Marquis's mansion and will never come back?"

Zheji glanced at him sideways: "Do you think what I said is even plausible? Qingyuan just returned, what does she need to buy? What is the Marquis's mansion lacking that Qingyuan has to go and buy? And why does she have to carry around a small bundle to buy it? Can't you use your brain?"

"So, Miss Qingyuan is really leaving the Marquis's mansion and never coming back?!"

Chen Sha finally realized what was happening and, for once, understood a little better after being scolded by Zhe Ji: "What are we going to do? Young Master is still injured, and we don't even know when he'll wake up. Qing Yuan is gone now and will never come back. What will happen to our young master? We don't know when he'll wake up, and we can't ask Qing Yuan or go looking for her... We don't know where Qing Yuan went this morning. What if Young Master wakes up and can't find her?"

Chen Sha looked at the broken halberd.

Zheji: ...You're asking this as if he has a solution?

Zheji made a decisive decision: "Now is the time to use you."

-

Qingyuan left the Zhenguo Marquis's mansion through the back gate. She said she asked Hongdou to help her pack, but in reality, she didn't have many pieces of luggage or anything large.

It was just some small valuables.

As for the things from the Marquis's mansion, Qingyuan didn't bring them out if she could avoid it, and she left many things that Hongdou could use to Hongdou.

As Qingyuan stepped out of the back door of the Marquis of China's residence, carrying her small bundle, she felt an indescribable sense of ease.

It's not just that the burden on her shoulders has lightened, nor is it just that the pressure on her body has lessened; it's as if she has drawn a line between herself and the first 10 years of her life.

Qingyuan walked out of the back gate of the Zhenguo Marquis's mansion without looking back, not even glancing back.

Next, Qingyuan carried her small bundle and, instead of going home or looking for her mother, went to the gate of the government office.

Qingyuan is going to change her name; she wants to get rid of this name, the name that Chu Jingyu gave her.

The household registration office was actually slow, but Qingyuan didn't want to wait, so she slipped a few taels of silver to the officer on duty.

It took more than an hour for the name to be changed. Qingyuan looked at the two characters written on the yellowed paper—Qinghe.

The whole person seemed to be completely renewed.

Qingyuan stood in the middle of the crowd in Bianjing City with her small bundle. People came and went in a hurry, and there was a constant stream of ordinary people and pedestrians.

The surrounding area was filled with vendors hawking their wares, and the restaurants and shops were lined up one after another.

The crowds are still surging, and the world is still noisy. Some people cry, some laugh, some are happy, and some are sad.

This is how the world has always been, flowing forward like a never-ending stream, never ceasing and never changing.

Qingyuan knew that she was just a tiny existence in this world and could not change anything. But when she stood in the surging crowd and countless people passed by her without her being moved, Qingyuan hugged her little bundle and seemed to have a completely different state of mind.

She looked up at the sky.

sister.

Your Qinghe is back.

In this world, Qingyuan no longer exists; what follows will be Qinghe.

Qingyuan subconsciously reached out and gently stroked her lower abdomen; the baby…

She will definitely work hard to give her child a better future, and she will never let her child end up in the same situation as her.

elder sister…

She is finally ready to leave the past behind and start a new life for herself and her child.

The most pressing matter right now is for Qingyuan to find a place to stay.

Qingyuan had also thought about going home to take a look and rest for a while, but when she thought of her mother, Li Shi, she immediately dismissed the idea.

She had just come out of one fire pit and didn't want to jump back into another. She also absolutely didn't want to argue with her mother. If Madam Li knew that she had left the Zhenguo Marquis's mansion and was no longer working as a maid, then the mother and daughter would definitely have another unavoidable argument.

In the end, the argument only led to a bitter breakup. Besides, where would Qingyuan find the extra money to give her mother?

Besides, Qingyuan no longer trusts her mother.

Rather than going back to suffer, Qingyuan thought, "Thank you, thank you," and decided to use the few dozen taels of silver she had left to rent a small place to stay. At least she and her child would have a place to live.

Qingyuan glanced at the sky and realized that the royal carriages had returned to Bianjing City at noon. After all the commotion Qingyuan had caused at the Zhenguo Marquis's mansion, it was already afternoon. Rushing to rent a house now would only lead to making a mistake.

Qingyuan then decided to go ahead and rent an inn for a couple of days.

Qingyuan knew that she wouldn't be able to get it back easily.

She wanted to go into the water to look for it, but she could only wait for another opportunity.

Qingyuan had no intention of saying anything more. She simply tidied up the tray and teacups, gave a perfunctory bow, and withdrew.

Hongdou never expected that, in just half a day, two more wounds would appear on Qingyuan's back.

Seeing the bloody whip marks and the white flesh curled outwards, Hongdou felt heartbroken and burst into tears: "The medicine applied this morning hasn't even worn off yet, how come there are more injuries like this? This is too much! She just broke off her engagement with the Third Young Master, and she's already arrogantly seducing him. If she really enters the manor, how difficult will your life be, sister? You should leave and redeem yourself as soon as possible."

For most of the day, Qingyuan was preoccupied with the purse her sister had left behind, and she was somewhat absent-minded. She decided that once everyone was gone, she would go into the water to look for it herself.

When she was little, her older sister taught her how to swim. The lake looked scary, but it wasn't too deep, and she was confident she could find it.

However, for some reason, the two Jiang sisters insisted on having tea and conversation with Chu Jingyu at the lakeside pavilion. It wasn't until nightfall that Qingyuan finally got her chance.

-

Dark as ink.

"Shen Sha, have you found the person I asked you to find?"

Chu Jingxian sat in a wooden wheelchair, being pushed by Chen Sha, with a long, thin, dark scarf tied around his eyebrows, as they passed through the back garden.

Chen Sha said with some difficulty, "Young Master, it's not that we are incompetent, but you have given us too little information. In the entire Bianjing City, including the surrounding villages and farmers, there are over a million people. There are as many as twenty-eight people of the right age who are named Qing He, and twelve people with slightly hoarse voices. However, you can't see what the girl looks like, so we can't be sure."

"Never mind, I'll bring them to you in a few days and examine them myself."

As Chu Jingxian spoke, he suddenly turned his head.

"Who!" Chen Sha noticed something was wrong with the movement in the lake next to him almost at the same time.

Chu Jingxian hid in the night, saying, "Go closer and take a look."

Chen Sha nodded and walked to the lakeside, his gaze icy as he looked at the turbulent water: "This is the Marquis of Zhenguo's residence. Are you coming out on your own, or am I going to drag you out?"

Qingyuan was startled by the sound and quickly floated to the lakeside. Seeing Chen Sha display the Marquis's token, she explained:

"Brother Guard, please don't misunderstand, I'm not a thief! I'm Qingyuan, a maid from the Fifth Young Master's courtyard!"