Chapter 47.1

The pair set off in their carriage again but this time, they travelled faster than before.

The two people on the carriage looked at each other with fear lingering in their hearts.

It was unknown whether it was because Jin Wang Mansion was too infamous in Jinzhou or something else. The young master was scared away and repeatedly said that everything was just a misunderstanding. The group of people had gone to the teahouse to take a short break, but now they don’t dare to rest anymore. They couldn’t be quicker in leaving, it was as if there was a tiger on their heels.

Zhou Sheng blushed and he glanced at Yaoniang who was sitting next to him. "Nanny Su, you are great at remaining calm under pressure. I was so scared."

"How could that be? It was just because Brother Zhou was afraid that I would be hurt."

Honestly, Yaoniang was actually very moved. Under those circumstances, Zhou Sheng did not choose to run away on his own, but he remained behind to keep those men away from her. Besides the father and son of the Su family and her brother-in-law, Yao Cheng, Yaoniang had come in contact with very few men in her life. Su Xiucai was a conservative and inflexible man. Su Yucheng was a lazy man who only cared about satisfying his stomach. Her brother-in-law, Yao Cheng, acted more like Yaoniang's real brother.

Then there was Jin Wang, but Jin Wang couldn’t be counted as an ordinary person. Zhou Sheng could be regarded as the first unrelated man to be close to Yaoniang.

"It was me that was stupid. I thought it would be too eye-catching to park the carriage by the main road, so I parked it by the forest out of sight. If I had parked the carriage by the road, where everyone could see, even if they ate a bear’s heart and a leopard’s gall, they wouldn’t dare to do anything. This must have frightened Nanny Su."

With the Jin Wang Mansion emblem on the carriage, it was the same as a free pass. In Jinzhou, there was nowhere that it couldn’t go.

"Brother Zhou is considerate, but no one could have expected this to happen…"

The two continued to talk aboard their carriage. In the woods to the back of the teahouse, a man in black, who sat upon a large horse, suddenly whistled. This whistle sounded like a bird’s cry and it wasn’t noticeable by other people. Before one could even blink, a black hawk flew down from the sky and landed on his shoulder.

The man took out a bamboo tube. He poured out a special thin charcoal pencil and a small roll of paper from the bamboo tube.

As he sat on the horse, with the pencil in one hand and the small roll of paper in the other, he wrote: harassed by a local despot on the road, the coachman saved the beauty, Nanny Su is safe.

He paused and considered whether he should add another sentence to report that the evil people have fled because they heard his highness’s name. After he thought about it, he decided not to add it because the paper was limited and it would be better to be concise. Then, he put the small roll of paper into a silver tube, tied it to the black hawk's talon and released it into the sky.

After he finished all this, he braced himself and started to chase after Yaoniang and Zhou Sheng.

Before night fell, the two finally arrived in Linyun County.

The carriage stopped in front of Yaoniang's house and she felt a rush of nervousness and homesickness. Zhou Sheng took the initiative to get out of the carriage and knock on the door. "Hello? Is there anyone home?"

After a while, the sound of footsteps came from the inside and the door was opened.

It was Yao Cheng.

When he saw Yaoniang getting down from the carriage, Yao Cheng was a little surprised. "Yaoniang, you are back!"

As he greeted her, he wanted to turn his head back inside and announce her arrival, but he soon changed his mind for some reason. "Quickly, come inside. We’ll talk once you are inside."

Yaoniang walked into the house, and Zhou Sheng was also dragged inside by Yao Cheng.

Yao Cheng said that Zhou Sheng had worked hard during this trip. He also urged him to eat a meal before leaving. Zhou Sheng refused several times before he finally agreed. He wasn’t desperate for a meal with the Yao family, but he didn’t want to miss any chance to be together with Yaoniang.

As soon as Yaoniang walked inside, Huiniang, who heard her movements, rushed up and hugged her in her arms.

"You stinky brat, you haven't come back for such a long time!"

Tears streamed down Huiniang’s face as she scolded her and Yaoniang sobbed too. As soon as the men entered, they saw the two women hugging and crying together. Yao Cheng instinctively looked over and made eye contact with Zhou Sheng. When he saw that Zhou Sheng had such a tacit understanding as himself, Yao Cheng looked over at his younger sister-in-law again. Then back at Zhou Sheng. Yao Cheng couldn’t help but have some thoughts.

Yaoniang had thought that upon her return this time, Mrs. Li would say some sour words and make some snide remarks. But contrary to her expectations, the Mrs. Li that she knew had changed from her previous attitude and instead, treated her very warmly.

Not only to Yaoniang but also to Zhou Sheng. Mrs. Li expressed an unusual enthusiasm that made people feel uncomfortable. She even asked Yao Cheng to go out to buy some food and drinks, then come back and entertain Zhou Sheng. After all, as a visitor, he was a guest and should be treated as such.

Yao Cheng obeyed. After he finished buying some food and wine, he returned. It was perfect timing because Yaoniang and Huiniang had also just finished preparing dinner. Ordinary citizens didn’t have any rules about separating tables for masters and servants. With everyone sitting together at the same table, it was very lively.

But one person was missing from the dinner table- Yan’er.

Yaoniang didn’t know what had happened to the Yao family recently. She cared even less about that person. After all, a large part of her current circumstances was caused by Yan’er. It was already good that she wasn’t taking revenge, how could she bother to care for the other party?

During dinner, Mrs. Li repeatedly asked Zhou Sheng about himself.

The questions were very detailed. They included: where are you from, what is your family like, and what do you do for a living. Yaoniang was puzzled about why Mrs. Li was so interrogative, but Yao Cheng and his wife understood. The couple interrupted Mrs. Li several times, which dampened her spirits. But her mood soon improved when she thought of how she already got a good grasp of Zhou Sheng's general situation.

After dinner, Yao Cheng invited Zhou Sheng to stay for the night. He didn't refuse the offer. After all, everyone knew that it wasn’t safe to travel in the dark.

After organizing a room for Zhou Sheng, Yao Cheng went to look for Yaoniang.

Yaoniang was holding Xiaobao in her arms and she was reluctant to place him down. At his current age of six months old, babies were simply too cute.

His small hands were chubby, and his tiny arms and calves were like lotus roots. They tempted people to take a bite. Xiaobao was not like the little princess, who had ice in her room to reduce the heat. It was already very good for ordinary people to have a basin of water in the room, so Xiaobao wore little clothes. With a big red dudou wrapped around his small body, he looked even more cherubic.