"Alright, Your Highness. It's time for us to set off." The two of them alighted from the carriage and continued their journey eastward.
Mu Shengze had heard what the black - clothed men said earlier. They claimed that the place they were taking him to was a place where no one could find him. He initially thought they were going to kill him. But then he thought that if they really intended to kill him, there was no need to go so far.
So he sat in the carriage at ease, leading the two men to their destination.
Mu Yanming's men chased for hundreds of miles but still couldn't find any trace of Mu Shengze.
So they left two men to continue tracking forward, while the rest returned to report the news.
Mu Yanming left the palace and passed by a marketplace. He heard someone shouting to sell date - paste cakes.
"Selling fresh date - paste cakes! Homemade date - paste cakes!"
The carriage stopped in front of the date - paste cake stall. Mu Yanming lifted the curtain and looked at the date - paste cakes on display.
Bai Ke turned to look at Mu Yanming. "Shall I buy a box for the princess?"
The old woman selling the date - paste cakes immediately handed over a box. "Buy a box for the princess. They're soft, sticky and sweet. Women all like them."
Mu Yanming took the box of date - paste cakes himself. After Bai Ke paid, they rode the horses back to the Regent's Mansion.
When Mu Yanming returned to the Yangyang Hall, he didn't see Mo Qinghuan. Dan'er and Shuang'er were tidying up the room, carrying the quilts out to dry.
Dongxue and Dongmei were standing on either side of the door, but Mo Qinghuan was nowhere to be seen.
He called Dan'er over. "Where is the princess?"
Dan'er lowered her head, biting her lips and saying nothing. Mu Yanming looked down at Dan'er from above. The aura of authority emanating from him made Dan'er's palms sweat.
After a few breaths, Mu Yanming asked again, "Where is the princess?"
Dan'er knelt on the ground with a thud. "The princess has gone to the backyard."
Mu Yanming frowned and then headed towards the backyard.
At this moment, Mo Qinghuan was standing at the door, peeping through the crack.
There was a woman locked in the room. She was dressed in gorgeous clothes and sitting upright at the table.
Mo Qinghuan asked softly, "You've been locked up here for a long time, haven't you?"
The woman inside lowered her eyes and nodded gently.
Mo Qinghuan asked again, "Why are you locked up here?"
Only then did the woman look up at Mo Qinghuan. Mo Qinghuan was shocked by the woman's appearance.
The woman had an oval face, fair skin, and a pair of almond - shaped eyes looking at her, as if with a bit of curiosity.
But the woman's originally calm eyes suddenly shrank, full of panic.
She stood up and took two steps back. Only then did Mo Qinghuan notice that her hands and feet were chained.
Mo Qinghuan turned to look behind her. Seeing that it was Mu Yanming, she glared at him, then got up angrily and walked out of the yard.
She couldn't quite figure out why she was angry. But when she saw the woman, she just felt stuffy in her heart.
Mu Yanming glared fiercely at the woman. The woman panicked and kept shaking her head. "I didn't say anything. I really didn't say anything. My lord, you must believe me. I didn't say anything."
Mu Yanming snorted and then went after Mo Qinghuan.
She had already walked out of the yard quickly and returned to the Yangyang Hall. Mu Yanming followed her into the room and sat in front of her.
"Qing'er, listen to me."
Mo Qinghuan looked up at him. She knew that Mu Yanming only called her Qing'er when he was extremely nervous or when they were very intimate.
It seemed that the identity of the woman in the backyard was even more suspicious. Could it be that Mu Yanming loved her but couldn't have her, so he imprisoned her here?
"Who is she?"
She asked directly.
But at this moment, Mu Yanming averted his eyes. He took a deep breath and looked down at the ground.
She rarely saw Mu Yanming like this, which made her even more convinced that the woman's identity was not simple.
"Forget it. If it's inconvenient for you to say, then don't."
Mo Qinghuan got up and was about to walk out when he reached out and grabbed her wrist.
"I'll tell you."
Mo Qinghuan frowned. He always referred to himself as "this king" in front of her, even when they were in the heat of passion.
She held her breath and listened to Mu Yanming's answer.
"The story is a long one. Are you sure you don't want to sit down and listen?"
Only then did she return to her seat, pour a cup of tea and push it in front of Mu Yanming.
"The story begins when this king first returned to the capital."
Mo Qinghuan reached out and held his hand. "Can you first tell me who she is, and then tell your story?"
Mu Yanming withdrew his hand and stroked her face. "Don't think blindly. This king has no relationship with her. As for why she is imprisoned here, you should understand after listening to the story."
He told the whole story to Mo Qinghuan. After listening, Mo Qinghuan got up and hugged him.
On the one hand, she felt sorry for him, and on the other hand, she felt guilty.
Mu Yanming was a man of moral integrity and there had never been any random women around him. This was well - known to everyone in the capital.
But just now, she actually suspected that this woman was his...
"Then you've imprisoned her for so many years, and she still hasn't told you the truth?"
Mu Yanming nodded.
"This king suddenly doesn't want to know the truth anymore."
Mo Qinghuan could understand what was on his mind. Sometimes, when you are desperately eager to know something but can't get your wish.
After a long time, there may be a moment when you suddenly feel that the truth is not that important.
There is also another possibility that the other person has kept it a secret for so many years. As time goes by, you may be afraid to know the truth.
Mu Yanming should belong to the latter. After listening to his story, she learned that the woman was the most intimate maid beside his mother - concubine and knew almost everything about his mother - concubine.
But for the one thing that Mu Yanming wanted to know, she still hadn't said a word until now.
This meant that the truth was something that Mu Yanming couldn't accept.
"My lord, shall we let her go, okay?" Mo Qinghuan asked softly.
Mu Yanming lowered his head and held her face. "This king kept her here not only to find the truth, but also to protect her. Because once she appears, those related to the truth will surely get rid of her."
She sighed softly. "But you've locked her up for so many years and she hasn't said anything. She probably won't say anything in the future either."
Mu Yanming hugged her back into his arms. "This king doesn't care anymore. Qing'er, with you by this king's side, this king is already content. You are everything to this king now. Do you understand?"
She nestled in his arms. The smell of his body came from the tip of her nose, and she felt his warmth on her body.
At this moment, she suddenly felt lucky.
Lucky to have all of his concern and to live the life she wanted under his protection.
However, he still had a heavy burden on his shoulders and a great enmity to avenge.
She decided to return to the General's Mansion and enter the study again to see if she could trigger the original owner's memories again and help him find the "Landscape in One Color" more quickly.