Qianyun Pavilion was quiet. Apart from the two guards at the gate, it was as if no one was inside.
The moment he walked in, Leng Ji's heart ached.
His mood instantly became heavy.
Looking at Feng Yexuan's side profile, which remained as cold and sharp as a knife carving, Leng Ji whispered, "Before, at least Qian'er accompanied Miss Li."
Feng Yexuan said nothing.
Leng Ji dared not say more.
But his meaning was clear.
When Qian'er was around, even if Chu Qianli was confined to Qianyun Pavilion, she at least had a companion.
But now, Qian'er was gone, and she was here alone, imprisoned for seven days and seven nights.
He wondered how she had endured those seven days.
"Is she still in the sleeping quarters?" Feng Yexuan's brow furrowed slightly.
He vaguely remembered saying that she was not allowed to step out of her room.
Leng Ji quickly said, "I'll go check."
Feng Yexuan did not react. Leng Ji pondered for a moment, thinking that His Highness had probably agreed, and immediately rushed to the sleeping quarters.
However, the door to the sleeping quarters was open, and Chu Qianli was nowhere to be seen.
Leng Ji felt a little uneasy, unsure if His Highness would be angry if Miss Li left her room.
Turning around, Feng Yexuan was already standing not far behind him.
Leng Ji immediately explained for Chu Qianli, "Your Highness, a normal person confined for seven days and seven nights would probably go mad. Miss Li... Miss Li probably couldn't bear it anymore, so..."
Feng Yexuan's expression remained unchanged. He turned and walked towards the backyard.
He heard music.
The sound of a strange instrument.
Based on his knowledge of musical instruments, he had never heard such a peculiar sound.
Feng Yexuan quickened his pace.
Leng Ji did not know his mood, or if he was angry.
Anxiously, he quickly followed behind him.
The two soon reached the backyard.
From a distance, they saw a girl sitting on a tree in the backyard.
She was wearing a white dress, a very special dress, light and flowing. It wasn't gauze, but it was more beautiful than light gauze.
Her long hair, uncombed, cascaded down.
As the wind blew, her soft long hair fluttered.
Her long dress billowed in the wind, her sleeves dancing, indescribably beautiful.
What was most beautiful were her feet.
Her smooth feet, because she was sitting on a branch, were now dangling.
As the skirt was blown up by the wind, those snow-white feet, like lotus blossoms, were faintly visible...
Feng Yexuan's heart was struck with a jolt.
A woman, unadorned, elegant and refined, yet as ethereal as a fairy.
She leaned against the trunk of the tree, looking into the distance, seemingly unaware that someone was approaching.
She held something in her hand, brought it to her lips, and was playing a tune.
It was this thing at her lips that produced the melodious and mournful tune.
This instrument was one he had never seen before.
The melody drifted in the wind, carrying an unspeakable sense of oppression, yet also an inexpressible peace.
Even Leng Ji's heart tightened with the music.
Sometimes quiet, sometimes heavy, as if she had figured something out, and then as if she were suppressing something.
Finally, it was melancholic and languid, with an indescribable flavor.
He secretly glanced at His Highness. The latter was still looking at the figure on the tree, his expressionless face betraying a hint of haze in his eyes.
Perhaps tired, the girl on the tree stopped playing before the song was finished.
She held the harmonica in her hand, still leaning against the tree trunk, gazing at the distant sky.
Such a lonely figure...
Feng Yexuan's heart was suddenly clutched.
In the past few days, due to Chu Huaiyu's uncertain fate, he hadn't had much time to attend to other matters.
It wasn't that he didn't know she would be lonely after returning.
But he knew very well that before Leng Ji went out, he would visit Qianyun Pavilion several times a day to accompany her.
He thought that with Leng Ji's company, at least it would alleviate some of her suffering.
But he hadn't expected that upon seeing her again, she would be so lonely and dejected.
Her posture was indescribably frail.
Sitting on the tree, she looked as if she could be blown off by the wind at any moment.
As he thought this, perhaps by coincidence, a gust of wind suddenly blew.
The figure on the tree swayed slightly.
Although Feng Yexuan remained still, even Leng Ji could feel that His Highness would act at any moment to save her.
However, wasn't this scenario of a beauty falling from a tree and a hero saving her a bit too common?
Somewhat cliché.
Did Miss Li know they were here?
Leng Ji's heart was in turmoil. On one hand, he wanted to see Miss Li in trouble, for His Highness to save her, and for the two of them to have an opportunity to be together.
On the other hand, he was afraid that such a cliché scene would make His Highness dislike Miss Li.
His Highness detested women who put on a show in front of him the most!
Unexpectedly, Chu Qianli only swayed on the tree for a moment before quickly stabilizing herself.
Perhaps feeling unsafe on the tree, Chu Qianli decided to come down.
Despite appearing to have little strength, her slender figure looking incredibly weak, she simply flicked her wrist as if throwing something, catching a branch above her head.
Then, she slowly descended.
The entire scene was like a fairy descending to earth, exquisitely beautiful!
If Leng Ji hadn't known he shouldn't be staring, he would have been unable to resist looking at her continuously.
Later, feeling a chill, he quickly lowered his head.
Miss Li was not wearing shoes. No, it seemed she was. The moment she landed, Leng Ji caught a fleeting glimpse and clearly saw her put on shoes.
But why could he still see her snow-white lotus feet through those shoes?
As for what happened next, Leng Ji dared not look.
He lacked the courage.
Feng Yexuan was also staring at Chu Qianli's feet.
Had the Xuan King's Mansion become so poor that they couldn't even afford a decent pair of boots?
These shoes were tattered, full of holes!
The moment Chu Qianli landed, she sensed intruders in the courtyard.
Turning around, although they were far apart, her gaze met Feng Yexuan's.
She was momentarily stunned.
After the initial shock, her mood seemed to quickly settle.
Stepping in those slippers that Feng Yexuan considered dilapidated, she slowly walked towards him and inclined her head, "Greetings, Your Highness."
Feng Yexuan's heart felt inexplicably blocked.
He thought that upon seeing her again, she would resent him for protecting another woman at that time.
He never expected that upon their reunion, she would be so calm.
Even graceful and polite.
Feng Yexuan's thick eyebrows furrowed, his gaze falling on her feet again.
"Are the people of my Xuan King's Mansion really so poor?"
Chu Qianli lowered her head and looked at her slippers.
After a moment of surprise, she suddenly smiled, "Your Highness misunderstands. These are shoes from my hometown, called slippers."