"Are you going out?" Yujin asked.
"I’m going back for a bit," Gu Jiao said.
Yujin smiled, "You’ve stayed for a few days; it’s about time to go back and have a look. Don’t worry about the princess; I’m here for her."
Yujin prepared a carriage for Gu Jiao.
On the way back to Bishui Alley, the route would pass near Liu Yisheng’s house. As they approached the alley, Gu Jiao said to the coachman, "Stop for a moment, I have something to do."
"Yes, Doctor Gu!"
The coachman stopped the carriage at the entrance of the alley.
Gu Jiao was just making a detour to see if Liu Yisheng had returned without much hope, but as she came to the door without even raising her hand to knock, a white figure swooshed over the wall and desperately leapt into her arms.
"Xiaoshi!"
Gu Jiao embraced the plump little bundle in her arms.
The little bundle snuggled into her embrace dependently.
Gu Jiao curved the corners of her lips.
"Who’s here?"
Liu Yisheng opened the peeling wooden door from inside the courtyard, and he saw Gu Jiao standing outside.
Dressed in a green garment, Gu Jiao still looked the part of youthful beauty, though her brows carried an inadvertent air of decisiveness.
Liu Yisheng’s gaze fixed on her for a moment.
Gu Jiao said, "You’re back?"
She spoke of returning.
Which showed she knew he had left before.
Liu Yisheng explained, "Wen Momo was getting old, so I took her back to the countryside... to return to her roots."
Wen Momo was the old servant who had worked in the courtyard, frail with age and hindered mobility.
Liu Yisheng had taken her to live in the countryside for a while.
Gu Jiao suddenly realized, "I see, then she..."
Liu Yisheng said, "She passed away."
Her descendants were gone, and it was Liu Yisheng who had seen her off to the end.
"She died peacefully in her sleep," Liu Yisheng said, making way for her, "Come in and sit."
Carrying the little bundle, Gu Jiao entered the courtyard, "I was just passing by today. I didn’t expect you to be actually home. Yuan Tang asked me to bring you some things; I’ll bring them over in a moment."
Liu Yisheng led Gu Jiao into the main room and poured her a cup of tea.
Someone was cooking in the backyard.
It was his last remaining servant, Anu.
Gu Jiao’s gaze fell on a few trunks perched on the chairs: "Have you just come back, or are you leaving again?"
Following her gaze, Liu Yisheng looked at his and Anu’s luggage and said, "Actually, I was about to go find you. I must say farewell to you."
Gu Jiao’s expression paused: "Are you leaving the Capital City?"
"Yes," Liu Yisheng said with a relieved smile, "I’m leaving, and it’s probably not just the Capital City."
"You’re leaving Zhan Country," Gu Jiao said.
Liu Yisheng smiled helplessly, "No choice, who made me lose a bet to someone? I understand the principle of honoring a bet." freewebnoveℓ.com
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