Chapter 78

This question is hard to answer.

Although Chinu didn't say anything, Du Shanü always felt that if she gave any inappropriate answer......

Chinu would immediately faint again from anger.

By then, not to mention a single golden mansion, even ten or a hundred would hardly coax the person back.

Du Shanü's hand kept drawing the motions meticulously, but her mind had already made a decision:

"Never loved."

Nonsense, of course I've never loved.

In my previous life I didn't even have an emperor, where would any consort come from?

Suitors were not few, but she was constantly immersed in work; in her free time she'd rather stay asleep, preferring to lie at home reading storybooks rather than go out.

Over time......

The peonies bloom so gorgeously.

Du Shanü wiped away a bitter tear for herself, then focused intently on sketching the human body.

In a corner she couldn't see, a gaze like substance was subtly entwining and probing.

It twined in her hair ends, in the corners of her clothes, in every inch of air she passed.

He slowly raised his hand, fingertips tracing that outline in the air, a zhang away, as if wanting to transfer her silhouette onto his lips and tongue.

He believed it.

He truly believed it.

He wasn't the type to investigate the truth, and he couldn't possibly discern any "past life."

As long as she was willing to deal with him on the surface, that would suffice.

As long as she said she hadn't loved, then he... he would reluctantly believe she hadn't loved.

It wasn't really a big deal.

Anyway, she wanted the world.

Even if she had loved, she would soon find out—

It's not that the world chose her as its lord, but that he chose her as his lord, enabling her to gain the world.

In this world, there is no better tool than Chinu.

She will have only one beloved consort in her lifetime.

Du Shanü's side heard Shasha rustling; she wasn't foolish and could feel a gaze behind her constantly watching her.

However, Chinu has always been gloomy and sneaky; she's grown somewhat accustomed to it.

If others want to look, just let them look!

Looking won't take away a piece of meat!

Chinu is called "slave"; what ill intentions could he have?

Du Shanü collected her spirit, and in one sitting she drew for half a day, during which she also checked her teeth, tongue base, etc.

Although she wasn't a coroner by training and couldn't state corpse details definitively, she knew that anything she could record should be noted carefully for later vindication.

Only after checking everything did Du Shanü put away her typewriter and charcoal pencil, preparing to turn and summon Chinu to return.

But not turning would have been fine; turning, she was shaken by the sight before her, her heart and liver trembling—

Chinu had at some point lain sideways on a low horizontal branch, already asleep.

His whole body curled there like a cat nesting on a beam.

One arm dangled, fingers loosely resting, fingertips almost touching the ground.

The other hand was drawn to his chest, gripping the collar loosely, just resting, as if afraid of cold, or as if protecting something in a dream.

His usual slender frame now formed a bent arc, back arched, knees drawn up, his whole body lodged between the branches, utterly still.

His dark clothing piled on him, making the exposed wrist look ever paler, thin, with distinct knuckles, like a withered branch.

The usual chill on his face faded, his brows relaxed, his breathing extremely light and even.

His eyelashes lay still on his lids, not trembling, not moving, like two settled feathers.

Perhaps because today's old wounds flared up, he slept deeply—so deeply that even when Du Shanü reached over to brush away the dry leaf on his brow, he didn't wake.

Du Shanü's fingertip traced his brows and eyes, nose bridge, then lightly touched his lips.

That face in the twilight appeared extremely white, white as translucent, white as fragile.

The contour of his features remained sharp as ever, yet now, softened by sleep, it showed a hint of childishness.

Like..... like a sheathed blade, the edge still sharp but hidden, revealing only the exquisitely crafted scabbard.

Du Shanü's throat tightened a bit, and her fingertip unconsciously pressed a little harder.

His thin lips instantly showed a red mark.

Chinu faintly sensed something, shrugged his shoulders, and curled himself tighter, as if trying to hide.

Hide into his clothes, into the twilight, into a place no one could find.

That resembled the usual mischievous wildcat that arches its back, bristles, and scratches at people, yet now he lay at the wall base basking in the sun, exposing his soft belly, asleep utterly unaware.

Du Shanü couldn't stand it, abandoned the plan to wake him, tidied her belongings, took out the map Afang had given her earlier, and began to examine it carefully—

On the map, a tributary of the South Flowing River runs from north to south, dividing the three riverside cities.

To the left, the terrain is more rugged and fertile land scarcer, so there is only one city and a few scattered villages.

To the right, the plains are more extensive, and so are the villages.

Logically, the insider in the Xian Xie who wants to steal yet fears discovery would certainly convert grain and fodder into silver, securing the bag, which is the best choice.

Cang Cheng's collected tax grain is not small; since the left side has no one or place that can consume it, it can only be sold to the various cities and villages on the opposite bank—...

Du Shanü's gaze swept around, finally settling on Zhenjiang Village, which lies across the water from Cang Cheng.

If we overlook the South Flow River, this settlement is certainly the most recent and largest village.

If a large amount of grain and fodder were to enter, and each household received a small bag, the originally conspicuous large amount of grain and fodder could quickly be broken up and hidden from sight......

But the problem lies in the fact that the South Flow River occasionally suffers floods, and not everywhere has a bridge built.

Although both Cang Cheng and Zhenjiang Village lie along the shore, they have no bridge, only a ferry crossing.

If a large amount of grain and fodder had to be transported out by small boat, that would truly be a waste of tremendous effort.

But if we didn't use the ferry crossing......

Du Shanü then turned her gaze to another spot——

On this map, the point where the left and right banks are closest is a bridge built forty li northeast of Cang Cheng, where the river water is slightly gentler.

Du Shanü's finger moved slightly, pointing to the city named Ju Cheng.

In an instant, some previously scattered fragments of clues surged into her mind once again.

Cang Cheng backs onto a mountain range, surrounded by forest on three sides.

If those two men who came to dump corpses wanted to go to Zhenjiang Village, they could simply toss the bodies into the water, which would naturally drift downstream along the South Flow River; why go to the trouble of heading north into the mountains and forests, only to run into them tangled in the thicket by chance?

Unless, they originally intended to head northeast.

Du Shanü's heart rose with this thought, and she could not suppress it; she examined the map again carefully and made several marks.

Until the light filtering through the leaf gaps slanted westward, did a faint rustling sound arise from beside her, and she whispered softly:

"..... Are you waiting for me?"

Wounds and illnesses piled up, and anger flared in his heart.

Chinu's sleep this time was actually quite long.

He had thought that upon waking he might have to face the dark, quiet forest, or perhaps an empty, deserted surroundings, but he had not imagined that everything would remain as before, and she was still waiting for him.

Even, a piece of outer clothing had been placed over his belly.

This had never happened before.

And yet someone still cared about his comfort.

In that instant, he even felt a hint of hope in his heart that he himself had not noticed.

It would be best if she could coax him, saying, "Of course I'm waiting for you; you are my beloved, who else could I wait for?"

Then he would reluctantly go along with her and head home......

"Of course I'm waiting for you."

Du Shanü struggled to sit up, and Chinu felt a stir in his heart as he saw the girl in front of him rub her slightly sore back and cheerfully say:

"I've thought it over, but I still need to say this: after you go back today, could you please not mention our affair to Yu Baobao......"

Chinu: "......"

Hehe.

He just knew.

This damned woman is always eating from the bowl while eyeing the pot!

Sooner or later I'll give her and Yu Baobao each a knife wound—one cut makes two holes, two cuts make four holes!

?? Shasha: Play is play, noise is noise, but we can't bring the matter before Yu Baobao—these are the rules..... 【entire paragraph crossed out】