The sound of running was getting closer and closer, and in a few breaths, they reached where Xie Nanjia was hiding.
Xie Nanjia clung tightly to the tree trunk, not daring to make any sound.
With heavy breathing, a man in white clothes covered in blood came running over. He stumbled and was tripped by a protruding tree root and fell to the ground. It was not known whether he was seriously injured or fell too hard, but he was motionless after falling down.
Xie Nanjia secretly cursed his bad luck, thinking to himself, you really know how to choose a place, why did you have to fall here when there are so many other places to fall? When the people behind come after you, won’t you implicate me as well
She came out from behind the tree and was about to find another place to hide when she accidentally caught a glimpse of a jade pendant hanging around the man's waist. She suddenly stopped and without time to think, she rushed over, dragged the man by his feet and pulled him into the depths of the woods. After covering him with leaves, she ran back to where she came from.
Hearing a loud sound of footsteps, she quickly bent down and pretended to urinate.
The person chasing her was in front of her in a flash, and without waiting for the other person to say anything, she screamed.
There were four people on the other side, all men. They didn't expect a woman to urinate here, and they were a little at a loss what to do when she called them.
The leader, a fierce-looking man, threatened her with a dark face: "Shut up, or I'll kill you if you scream again."
Xie Nanjia immediately covered her mouth, took two steps back, and asked in horror: "Who are you?"
"Who are you?" the man asked instead of answering.
Xie Nanjia didn't beat around the bush and introduced herself directly: "I am a maid from the Dingyuan Marquis's Mansion. I followed my master passing by here. My master was stopping at a tea stall by the roadside. I, I was in a hurry..."
"Marquis Dingyuan's Mansion?" The man repeated, probably thinking he couldn't afford to offend him, so he softened his tone and said, "Don't be afraid, we are just chasing a fugitive, we didn't mean to offend you."
"Oh, so you are the police." Xie Nanjia patted his chest and said, "I am scared to death. Can I leave now?"
"Go away!" the man said.
Xie Nanjia turned and ran, but was stopped by the man again: "Wait a minute, have you ever seen a man in white passing by here?"
Xie Nanjia shook her head, then nodded: "When I walked over just now, I seemed to see a white shadow flash by and go to the south."
"Okay, thank you, girl." The man clasped his fists towards her, waved his hand and called on his companions to chase to the south.
Xie Nanjia stood there motionless, watching the figures of those people disappear, then he let out a long sigh and leaned softly against the big tree behind him.
She waited for a moment, until she was sure that those people would not come back, and then she walked towards where the man in white was hiding.
The man in white actually woke up and was sitting on the ground, half propped up and gasping for breath. Xie Nanjia stopped five steps away from him cautiously and asked carefully, "Do you know that I saved you?"
"I heard everything." The man in white stood up with the help of the tree trunk. "Thank you for your help, young lady. Can you tell me your name? I will repay you one day."
"Forget about the name." Xie Nanjia smiled slightly and walked up to him. "How are you going to repay me?"
The man in white was dazzled by her smile. He searched his body and finally took off the jade pendant from his waist and handed it to her: "Take this. If you have any difficulties in the future, you can come to Nanzhao Palace with this jade pendant to find me. I will definitely help you with all my strength."
Xie Nanjia didn't refuse at all and reached out to take the jade pendant: "You said it, don't deny it when the time comes."
"a man of his words."
"Okay, I believe you."
The two men bowed to each other and went their separate ways.
When Xie Nanjia returned to the tea stall, Fourth Auntie had already woken up and was instructing Mrs. Liu to look for her in the woods. When she saw her come back, she complained, "Where have you been? If you don't leave now, the sun will soon set."
Xie Nanjia said, "I was delayed for a while because of my stomach discomfort. Auntie, please calm down. Let's get going now!"
The Fourth Aunt was in a hurry to get on with her and didn't bother to argue with her, so they all got on their carriages and horses and set off again.
After walking for about an hour, Xie Nanjia, sitting in the carriage, heard what seemed to be the roar of flowing water ahead.
The fourth concubine lifted the carriage curtain and looked out, saying, "Beisha River is ahead. After crossing the river, we will be close to the capital."
Xie Nanjia had never walked this road before and was not familiar with the road conditions, but Aunt Liu was delighted: "Yes, yes, we will be home soon after crossing the river. When I came here, I was thinking that it would take me a long time to return. I didn't expect that you, my aunt, are so lucky that you can return in just one month."
Fourth Aunt snorted, "Now you know how blessed I am. Back then, you didn't even want to be my stutterer. I was so generous that I didn't bother with you. If it were someone else, I would have left you there to fend for yourself."
"..." Aunt Liu blushed and slapped herself twice, "Aunt, please forgive me. I will do my best to serve you in the future."
This was exactly the effect that the Fourth Aunt wanted. She was afraid that she would have no loyal people by her side after returning home, so she warned Liu Po in advance so that she would follow her obediently.
But she looked down on Granny Liu from the bottom of her heart, and thought that she would slowly search for her former loyal servant after returning, and then replace him with Granny Liu.
As for Xiu'er, she had the same plan. This girl not only had a face that could bring disaster, but also had a very cunning heart. She was useful, but she would never feel at ease keeping her around.
Of course, this is all a matter for the future. Right now, she can only count on these two people.
There are two kinds of smart people in this world, one is truly smart, and the other is someone who thinks he is smart. The Fourth Aunt is very good at calculating, but she doesn't know that when she is calculating others, others are also calculating her.
Although Mrs. Liu said that she was willing to work like a slave for her, she had actually already made up her mind that as soon as she returned to the mansion, the first thing she would go to see was the lady. She would rather be a servant in the lady's courtyard than follow this moody woman and have to obey her mood.
As for Xie Nanjia, her mind was not on the Fourth Aunt. She was just using the Fourth Aunt as a stepping stone to pave a way back to the Marquis' Mansion. As a thank you, she helped the Fourth Aunt eliminate the threats around her and return to the Marquis smoothly. She had done her best.
The three people were each thinking about their own things in their minds, but suddenly the guards outside reported that the bridge over Beisha River had collapsed.
(End of this chapter)