Chapter 65: The County Lady Goes Missing

On this side, Jun Jun Shuyan was the first to notice that Jun Jun Zijin's carriage, being dragged by a maddened horse, had sped away from a fork in the road.

She cried out in panic, "Stop the carriage! Something has happened to Second Sister."

The driver hurriedly pulled the reins tight, bringing the carriage to an abrupt halt. Jun Jun Shuyan, disregarding everything else, lifted her skirt and ran toward the direction where Jun Jun Zijin's carriage had vanished. She ran while calling out Jun Jun Zijin's name, her heart burning with anxiety.

Seeing Jun Jun Shuyan run out without a care, Zhou Zhou Yiniang was also filled with panic, fearing her own daughter might come to harm again, and she shouted for someone to quickly go bring the Fourth Young Lady back.

Soon, the news reached Xiang Xiang Junzheng. Jun Jun Shuyan was also chased back by several maids and nannies. Xiang Xiang Junzheng summoned the driver, who was still trembling in fright, and questioned him, learning that Jun Jun Zijin's carriage had been attacked.

Xiang Xiang Junzheng recalled that Jun Jun Zijin had been attacked not long ago; who could be so bold as to trouble his Jun family? He glanced toward Lady Wu and Jun Jun Yiyi; both wore expressions of worry, and Jun Jun Yiyi's face seemed to still bear traces of tears.

Xiang Xiang Junzheng had no time for further thought; his second daughter had been kidnapped, and several carriages were filled with women, so who knew what other chaos might arise? They could not go to Putuo Temple. Xiang Xiang Junzheng ordered everyone to turn the carriages around and return to the manor. He would personally lead the Retainers to search; no matter what, she was his daughter, especially since his view of the second girl had improved recently. Zhou Zhou Yiniang and Jun Jun Shuyan, worried about Jun Jun Zijin's safety, were unwilling to return to the manor first. Lady Li and Jun Jun Zhidie, wanting to see the spectacle, were also unwilling to leave.

The First Lady and Jun Jun Yiyi exchanged a glance, both seeing triumph and ruthlessness in the other's eyes. It was done; that low woman, even if she didn't die from the fall, would be killed by the assassins. According to the news from the Wu family, the assassins this time were of extremely high caliber; she could not escape even with wings. If that low woman fell into the hands of those assassins, suffered some defilement before being killed, it would be even better if she was spat upon by the world after her death. Either way, she could not escape this time.

Xiang Xiang Junzheng led the group and the accompanying Retainers to search along the way. Another fork appeared ahead, and both paths showed chaotic wheel tracks. Xiang Xiang Junzheng frowned deeply; he pondered in his heart, could it be that the kidnappers deliberately created two paths to confuse their vision?

Just as Xiang Xiang Junzheng was about to order the group to split into two teams, Jun Jun Yiyi gently raised her hand, stopping the command Xiang Xiang Junzheng was about to give, and said softly:

"Father, wait. Although the wheel tracks on both paths appear chaotic, upon close observation, the tracks on one path seem deeper and more tangled, while the other appears slightly shallower."

Hearing this, Xiang Xiang Junzheng's eyebrows furrowed slightly, and his gaze sharpened accordingly. He began to carefully examine the tracks on both paths, nodding inwardly, finding that what Jun Jun Yiyi said made sense.

"Jun Yiyi, what do you mean?" Xiang Xiang Junzheng asked in a deep voice, clearly waiting for Jun Jun Yiyi's further analysis.

Jun Jun Yiyi smiled slightly and continued:

"I guess the horse that startled Second Sister had no reason at all, dragging the carriage at high speed. With the weight of two people inside the carriage, it must be the path with the deeper and more tangled tracks. The slightly shallower path must have been deliberately created to mislead us. We should all search along this path."

After hearing this, a look of approval flashed in Xiang Xiang Junzheng's eyes. He turned to the group and said, "According to Jun Yiyi's opinion, all of us will continue to pursue along the path with the deeper wheel tracks."

However, after searching for most of the day, not even a single person was seen.

As the sky grew dark, Jun Jun Yiyi's face turned pale, her brows knitted tightly, and her lips trembled slightly. She pressed one hand firmly against her chest, her face filled with worry, and tears even welled in her eyes.

"What should we do? What if we can't find Second Sister?"

Her words were full of concern, sounding truly like an elder sister who cared deeply for her younger sister.

The First Lady also wore a worried expression and said softly, "Kidnapped, and it's already dark. Regardless of whether we find her or not, I fear Second Girl's reputation... Alas, what a pitiful child."

Jun Jun Zhidie pouted and shouted loudly:

"Even if we find her, what then? Second Sister must have been taken by thieves. She is now a broken flower and a withered leaf; who would want her in the future?" Jun Jun Zhidie hoped nothing but misfortune would befall the First Branch.

Jun Jun Shuyan rolled her eyes:

"This is not yet decided; do not talk nonsense. Second Sister will be fine."

At this moment, Jun Jun Shuyan and Zhou Zhou Yiniang stood together. Zhou Zhou Yiniang held Jun Jun Shuyan's hand tightly; earlier, Jun Jun Shuyan's rush to chase after Jun Jun Zijin's carriage had frightened her greatly. She feared that if anything happened, her own daughter might also come to harm.

"It is clearly bandits who took her. In the dead of night, how can she remain pure? Even if Second Girl returns safely, who would believe it if it gets out?" Lady Li shouted.

Lady Li was in a particularly bad mood today. She had originally thought that with Lady Wu demoted to a concubine, she held the highest status among the women of the Jun manor, aside from the Matriarch. Although she was merely a side wife of the Jun family, she was at least the principal wife, incomparable to these concubines. Who knew she hadn't even enjoyed her triumph for two days before Lady Wu had risen again to press down on her head.

Lady Wu said nothing today, merely searching carefully along with the others. Jun Jun Yiyi wiped away a few tears from time to time; the mother and daughter appeared to genuinely care about Jun Jun Zijin. And indeed, they did care, for the mother and daughter, following the news from the Wu family, led people to search along the other path. How could they possibly find anything? With no news of Jun Jun Zijin, the longer time passed, the more at ease their hearts became.

Seeing that the sky was about to darken, Xiang Xiang Junzheng knew these ladies and Young Ladies could not stay here any longer. If they hurried, they could still return to the city before nightfall.

Seeing that Xiang Xiang Junzheng had no idea either, Zhou Zhou Yiniang became anxious:

"Master." She stepped forward, "Let us spread out and search again. Just now, we only focused on this path, but we haven't searched the woods by the roadside or the other path!"

Jun Jun Yiyi cried out with anxious tears:

"Zhou Zhou Yiniang, but this is the most likely path! The startled horse ran so fast, and there are no cliffs along this route; it must have been dragged far away. Why don't we search a bit further ahead?"

Jun Jun Yiyi covered her mouth and sobbed softly, but her gaze secretly met that of the First Lady, who had remained silent.

"But there are no more carriage tracks ahead. It seems we have all been following you, Big Sister, but how can you be certain that Second Sister's carriage definitely took this path? What if it was the other fork? Why don't we go search the other fork?" Jun Jun Shuyan said urgently.

Just as Jun Jun Yiyi was about to say something more, Xiang Xiang Junzheng gritted his teeth and gave the order: "Split into two teams. One team will search the mountains, leaving no corner unchecked. The other team will return with me to search the other fork."

The people of the Jun manor lit torches in the forest, illuminating half the hillside as bright as day. They searched for half the night, but alas, amidst the vast night reflected by the firelight, there was not a single shadow of Jun Jun Zijin to be found.