Chapter 4

Fu Yu and Liu Hao entered Zijun Villa. Fu Yu headed into the council hall and ordered Liu Hao to release Jiang Mei.

As soon as Liu Hao entered the dungeon, he saw the two unconscious guards. Jiang Mei was gone! Realizing something was terribly wrong, he dashed out of the secret room and heard Nanny Zhou’s scream. He quickly mounted a horse and chased after the sound.

“Help! Help!” Chen Yuwei shrieked.

“Young Madam, what happened?” Liu Hao spotted her.

“Jiang Mei just ran out with a man! And Nanny Zhou was murdered!”

Liu Hao fired a warning shot into the air and sprinted out in pursuit. That girl who used to love smiling, the true Young Madam in his heart—she absolutely could not be in danger!

Wu Xiang, having abducted Jiang Mei, threw her horizontally across his horse outside the estate. He vaulted onto the saddle and galloped away.

Hearing Liu Hao’s gunshot, Fu Yu’s expression changed sharply, and he led his men out in pursuit.

He saw Xiao Hong supporting a trembling Chen Yuwei. “What happened?” he asked, pulling Chen Yuwei into his arms.

“I just saw Jiang Mei running out with a man. Nanny Zhou thought they were thieves and shouted, and the man killed her! Liu Hao went after them!”

Fu Yu’s face darkened. He already knew the secret chamber guards had been drugged, and he had seen Nanny Zhou’s corpse.

“That bitch! She even killed Nanny Zhou?” Fu Yu tilted his head to ask Chen Yuwei. The situation seemed highly suspicious.

“The man killed her! I guess he didn’t know Nanny Zhou. It was terrifying!” Feeling guilty, Chen Yuwei weakly leaned against Fu Yu, turning her face away.

“Quickly, help the Young Madam back to rest!” After giving the order, Fu Yu drew his gun and mounted his horse. “Chase them!”

Wu Xiang rode furiously along the back mountain road. To the left of the road roared the turbulent Han River. Liu Hao was closing in, and he could hear Jiang Mei cursing angrily.

Liu Hao fired two shots at the horse’s legs ahead. Wu Xiang and Jiang Mei crashed to the ground.

Liu Hao dismounted, aiming his pistol at Wu Xiang. “Who are you to dare trespass into the Fu estate?!”

Wu Xiang pressed his pistol directly against Jiang Mei’s head. “Drop the gun! Or I’ll blow her brains out!”

“Liu Hao, don’t listen to him! If you drop the gun, we’ll both die! He’s Chen Yuwei’s man, and the child in her belly is his! They even plotted to lure you all to Qinglong Mountain! They want to destroy Fu Yu!”

“Who exactly are you?” Liu Hao asked in a heavy voice.

“Didn’t she just tell you who I am? Cut the crap and drop the gun!”

Jiang Mei reached up and raked her nails across Wu Xiang’s face! She was terrified Liu Hao would actually disarm himself. She would rather die—she had had enough of living lately anyway.

Furious and humiliated, Wu Xiang kept his gun pointed at Jiang Mei with his right hand, while his left hand drew a knife and stabbed it into Jiang Mei’s left leg! She screamed in agony.

“If you don’t drop the gun, I’ll carve up her pretty little face!” Wu Xiang stuck out his thick tongue and licked Jiang Mei’s cheek.

“Alright, I’m dropping the gun. Don’t do anything rash!” Liu Hao slowly crouched down. Just as he placed his gun on the ground, Wu Xiang fired two rapid shots—Bang! Bang! Liu Hao rolled, but he was hit and collapsed.

Wu Xiang walked over and kicked Liu Hao straight into the Han River!

Jiang Mei was dumbfounded. Liu Hao had been by Fu Yu’s side for ten years; he was like family to him. She lunged forward, fighting Wu Xiang desperately.

With his internal hostility finding no other outlet, Wu Xiang looked down at her. “You’re actually quite a beauty! Fu Yu slept with my woman, so I think I’ll get a taste of his!”

He threw her to the dirt and walked toward her step by step, like a predator stalking helpless prey. When he got close, unable to hold back, he pounced, tearing at her clothes. The brutality in his eyes and the viciousness on his face finally melted into a twisted, perverted smile. “You really are a stunner. So beautiful!”

Those filthy hands roamed over her body. She reached out, scratching and resisting. He slapped her viciously across the face, leaving her dizzy and disoriented, which only excited him further!

Jiang Mei went mad. She bit down ruthlessly onto his arm, not letting go until she drew blood! Enraged, Wu Xiang delivered another brutal slap, then stood up and kicked her mercilessly, over and over again…

She still wore the heavy shackles. As he kicked her around, the spikes on the shackles drove deeply into her ankles. At this rate, her feet would be crippled.

Finally, Jiang Mei stopped moving. She could no longer move, lying there like a pile of torn, discarded cotton.

Wu Xiang let out a breath, ripped open her clothes, and leaned down to press his weight against her…

Suddenly, Jiang Mei reached up, pulled a silver hairpin from her hair, and with every ounce of strength she had left, stabbed it toward his eye. Caught off guard, Wu Xiang took the hairpin squarely in his left eye!

He screamed in agony. Humiliated and enraged, he raised his knife to hack at her.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Gunshots full of sheer fury rang out from behind, shattering Wu Xiang’s arm. He rolled on the ground. Seeing a figure galloping furiously toward them, he hastily fired back two shots, scrambled onto Liu Hao’s horse, turned around to fire one last shot at Jiang Mei, and spurred the horse away into the night.

Fu Yu rushed over like a madman.

Jiang Mei lay there, her clothes torn, covered in blood. Her eyes were hollow and panicked, her hand gripping a blood-dripping hairpin tightly. The heavy shackles bound her legs, her ankles a mangled, bloody mess.

Fu Yu’s heart spasmed with agonizing pain. He carefully gathered her into his arms, brushing the messy hair from her face. She was still alive.

“Who… who put this on you?!” Fu Yu demanded, seeing her ruined ankles.

Seeing him, she reached out and touched his face. “Is it you, Fu Yu?”

“It’s me,” he said, helping her sit up.

“Fu Yu, Nanny Zhou is dead, and Liu Hao is dead too…” Jiang Mei’s voice sounded distant and detached. The Nanny Zhou who had cared for her all her life was gone forever. That young man with the little tiger canine teeth, who often looked at her with pity and brought her a shred of warmth in that freezing villa, was also dead.

Fu Yu’s eyes hardened. “Liu Hao is dead? Where is he?”

She pointed to the adjacent Han River. “Thrown into the river. It was Chen Yuwei…”

A chilling glint flashed in Fu Yu’s eyes, his fingers turning ice-cold. “Jiang Mei, stop spouting nonsense! Who was that man? Yuwei said you ran off with him. Who the hell was he?! Who were you trying to elope with this time?”

Jiang Mei gave a tragic, miserable smile. She pulled away from his grasp and gently took a few steps back. “Fu Yu, you still don’t believe me! His name is Wu Xiang. If I told you he is Chen Yuwei’s man, would you believe me? If I said the child in her belly is his, would you believe me? If I told you they plotted to destroy you, would you believe me?”

Fu Yu stared at her with a dark, cold gaze. “Jiang Mei, are you framing Yuwei? I told you, Yuwei is my bottom line!”

“You really don’t believe me. But it doesn’t matter anymore. Nanny Zhou is dead; I have no family left in this world. Fu Yu, my two years of unprovoked disasters were simply because I fell in love with you!” Her face was deathly pale, her hair a mess, looking like a hollowed-out puppet.

She used to be the eldest daughter of the Jiang family. She met him in the prime of her youth; he gave her a cold, faint smile, and she gave him her entire life.

Jiang Mei slowly stepped back. Blood gurgled from her wounds—her leg, her chest, her ankles, all bleeding. Her heart was bleeding too, as if sliced by a thousand knives. So this was how agonizing it was to love the wrong person!

Wu Xiang’s panicked shot hadn’t killed her instantly, but it had struck somewhere in her chest, slowly draining her blood drop by drop.

“Stop right there!” Fu Yu roared, his heart pounding violently! Looking at the absolute despair in her eyes, he felt a piercing, bone-deep pain! He slowly stepped forward, reaching out his hand, and said softly, “Jiang Mei, stop backing up! Be good, come back with me! We’ll talk when we get back!”

“Fu Yu, why should I go back? To feed the wolfhounds? You will only ever believe Chen Yuwei! What am I to you? You never loved me! Everyone who loved me is dead! This world is too cold, I’m tired, I’m going to find them. Fu Yu, if there is a next life, I never want to meet you again!”

“Jiang Mei, I forbid you from dying!” He lunged forward to grab her.

But Jiang Mei leaped backward, plunging into the roaring Han River! Like a fallen leaf, she vanished without a trace in an instant.

Fu Yu stood like a statue, leaning against the headboard of Jiang Mei’s bed, inexplicably feeling the urge to weep.

“Jiang Mei! You bastard! Who told you to die! Who gave you permission to die?!”

Fu Yu tried to jump in after her, but several of his personal guards grabbed him tightly from behind. “Young Master, the current is too fast! We will go down!”

Three estate soldiers who were excellent swimmers dove into the water. “Send men to seal off the downstream of the river and search! None of you are allowed to return if you don’t find her!” Fu Yu roared.

It was nearly dawn by the time he returned to Zijun Villa.

His face was pale, his lips tinged with blue. He refused to believe that Liu Hao and Jiang Mei were dead. Liu Hao was missing—alive or dead. But he had watched with his own eyes as a blood-soaked Jiang Mei threw herself into the Han River! He had never considered that she might actually leave him.

He slowly walked into Yun Courtyard, where she lived. He had never truly looked at this place properly.

That girl, that bright-eyed girl, that girl who would be overjoyed just seeing him—she was truly gone. He had thought she would wait for him here for the rest of her life.

She did indeed wait for him for the rest of her life. It was just that her life was too short.

Fu Yu sat like a statue, leaning against the headboard of Jiang Mei’s bed. A faint, warm fragrance lingered in the air, and for no apparent reason, he felt the urge to weep.

Chen Yuwei arrived. She looked at him tenderly, gently smoothing his slightly furrowed brow with her hand.

“I heard Jiang Mei jumped into the Han River. I never imagined…” Chen Yuwei sighed.

“Yuwei,” he gently lifted her chin, staring into her pure, large eyes. “The man who took Jiang Mei away… do you know him?”

“No. It was too dark, I couldn’t see what he looked like.”

“Why were you out there? Where you live is very far from the west gate. Why did you go there? It was so dangerous!”

“I just came out for a walk and happened to see it. I’ll be more careful in the future!”

“Don’t make me worry anymore! I’m so terrified of losing you both!” Fu Yu pulled Chen Yuwei against his chest, his gaze fixed straight ahead, an unfathomable depth hiding in his eyes.

Downstream of the Han River was Shiyang Mountain.

Shiyang Mountain stretched for over twenty miles, boasting numerous peaks, abundant wildlife, hidden treasures, and plenty of bandits.

Gu Ming was the boss of Shiyang Mountain. He had claimed the mountain and crowned himself king at fifteen, pledged allegiance to Jiang Shan—Jiang Mei’s father—at eighteen, and returned here at twenty-three.

Because that was the year Jiang Mei married Fu Yu.

When his subordinate, Da Qing, fished out a blood-soaked, unconscious woman, he was standing right beside him.

“Boss, this woman ain’t bad looking, and she’s still breathing! Fuck me, she’s wearing shackles too, must be an escaped convict! We’re short on women up the mountain, let’s take her back, maybe we can save her!”

“Do whatever you want!” Gu Ming was staring at the opposite bank. Across the Han River was Zhaishan. They were using the twilight to observe the enemy’s movements.

“An Zhentian has been making big moves lately, keep a close eye on him!”

“Understood, we’re watching! I also feel something isn’t right.”

Da Qing had two brothers carry Jiang Mei. The group returned to their stronghold.

“Boss, what should we do with this woman?” Da Qing asked.

Gu Ming glanced over, paused, and then abruptly strode over. He turned the woman’s face toward him and took a look. “Quick! Hurry and fetch Doctor Song!” Panicked and flustered, he scooped the woman up into his arms and carried her straight to his own room.

Da Qing and the other brothers stood dumbfounded.

“What’s gotten into the Boss?”

Gu Ming took a towel and carefully wiped her face. It really was Jiang Mei, the Eldest Miss of the Jiang family whom he had missed so desperately. Had the heavens finally opened their eyes? Gu Ming couldn’t suppress the corners of his mouth from turning up.

“Fu Yu, why don’t you believe me? Fu Yu, Fu Yu, they want to harm you…” She was burning up with fever, yet the words spilling from her mouth were distinct.

When Jiang Mei finally woke up, it was already three days later.

She opened her eyes, and a warm face came into view, grinning broadly at her.

Jiang Mei stared blankly for a moment, finding the face both friendly and familiar. She reached out, touched his cheek, and asked in a daze, “Brother Gu?”

“Eldest Miss, you’re awake?”

“Mhm, are you taking me to school?”

Gu Ming looked deeply saddened. “Miss, you’re already married. You stopped going to school a long time ago.”

“Oh.” She froze, as if suddenly remembering something. The light abruptly vanished from her eyes, and she closed them again.

“I’m still alive?”

“You’re alive, but you’re injured. This is Shiyang Mountain, my territory. No one here will hurt you!” Gu Ming’s large hand gently stroked her hair as he spoke softly.

Jiang Mei said no more. She lay there quietly, her face as pale and translucent as white jade.

The servant, Nanny Song, brought in rice porridge, thoroughly stewed mutton, a cold cucumber salad, and stir-fried lotus root slices.

“Eat something. You’ve been lying here for three days.”

Jiang Mei didn’t move an inch.

Gu Ming helped her sit up, scooped up some porridge with a small spoon, and slowly brought it to her lips.

Nanny Song reached out. “Chief, let me do it.”

“No need, you can leave.”

Gu Ming tried to feed her for a long time, but she only managed a tiny sip of porridge. He put down the spoon. “Eldest Miss, since you didn’t die, you must live well! Tell me, who hurt you?”

Who hurt me? Jiang Mei smiled bitterly.

“Brother Gu, I don’t want to eat right now. Later, when I want to, I naturally will. Don’t worry. Why did you come back to Shiyang Mountain? I remember after my father passed away, your troops all followed…” She wanted to say they followed Fu Yu, but suddenly lost the desire to speak that man’s name.

“I didn’t like being constrained, so I came back. Being a bandit is so much freer! You were wearing shackles, you had knife wounds on your leg, a gunshot wound on your chest, and signs of being beaten on your arms and stomach. Who exactly did this to you! Where is Fu Yu? He couldn’t even protect you!”

“He and I have already separated. He took another wife. Let’s just forget it, I don’t want to talk about him.”

“You separated?” Gu Ming looked thoughtful, seeing that she didn’t want to elaborate.

Fu Yu searched for Jiang Mei for over a dozen days, yet there was still no news. Furious, he smashed over a dozen tea sets. “A bunch of useless trash! Give the order to increase manpower. Leave no stone unturned. If she’s alive, I want to see the person; if she’s dead, I want to see the corpse!” His eyes were bloodshot.

During this time, aside from looking for her, he spent almost all his time at Qinglong Mountain. The men he sent out turned Fancheng and the Han River area upside down, but there was still not a single trace of her. She was like a speck of dust that had blended into the vast world, leaving no mark behind.

Using the excuse that Zijun Villa was unsafe, Fu Yu replaced all the estate guards, tightened security, and brought in many new servants.

Chen Yuwei’s belly grew larger and larger. Every time Fu Yu returned to Zijun Villa, he would take her out for walks. They never mentioned Jiang Mei again, as if she had never existed.

One day, Yuan Jun, Fu Yu’s trusted confidant who remained at Zijun Villa, rushed to Qinglong Mountain. He met with Fu Yu and whispered in his ear for a long time.

After listening, Fu Yu sat there, his gaze icy and ruthless. His voice squeezed out from between his teeth. “I understand. Go back, and be careful not to alert the snake in the grass.”

Yuan Jun left. Fu Yu slammed his fist onto the table in front of him!