Chapter 53 We Just Had Some Past Acquaintance

Chapter 53: Merely an Acquaintance from Days Past

When Bai Xiuming returned to Lotus Garden with A Chan, the elders of the hunting party finally realized their children were missing. One by one, they came to seek an audience with the Elder Princess.

Having heard Chen Hui’s earlier words, the Elder Princess already held a poor impression of these young nobles. Their misfortune, she believed, was entirely self-inflicted. Yet, she couldn't voice such blunt thoughts. Instead, she instructed her matron to usher them into a reception hall.

The women who had brought their children to Lotus Garden were mostly noble ladies. As the princess entered the hall, several duchesses, their eyes red-rimmed, immediately rushed forward to greet her.

The most distraught was the Duchess of Li. She clutched the Elder Princess's sleeve, her voice choked with sobs, “Your Highness, has my son truly met with misfortune?”

When she married the Duke of Li, he already had two legitimate sons, and the ducal heir had long been established. Over the years, she had only borne Zhang Xuyao, whom she cherished like a precious jewel. Though her son was neither particularly ambitious nor capable, she had always assumed his elder brother would at least ensure he was provided for. Never had she imagined such a calamity would befall him so swiftly.

“Your Highness, we heard that officials from the Mirror of Justice Bureau have gone into the mountains to rescue them—is this true?” pressed Lady Yao, wife of the General Who Pacifies the West. Inwardly, she blamed her cousin’s son for leading her own astray, but she dared not speak it aloud. She could only pray her son would escape unscathed.

“Ladies, please compose yourselves,” the princess’s matron interjected, stepping forward to gently hold them back.

The Elder Princess didn’t mind their distress. After seating herself, she addressed them, “I have already reported this matter to the magistrate’s office, and they will dispatch men beyond the city walls tonight to investigate. Additionally, I have sent my own guards to search along the trails. Please rest assured.”

Though the princess’s words offered little comfort, the noblewomen had no choice but to wait. They had already sent their own guards to search upon hearing the news, leaving them with nothing to do but sit in anxious, helpless silence.

Before long, a guard delivered a message.

The matron whispered to the princess, “Your Highness, Official Bai has returned.”

A flicker of relief crossed the princess’s face. As she rose, the noblewomen, who had been watching her closely, rose as well.

Ignoring them, the Elder Princess had her matron escort her to Bai Xiuming’s courtyard. The guards outside promptly bowed. “Greetings, Your Highness.”

“Did Bai Xiuming bring anyone back?” she asked.

The two guards exchanged uneasy glances before one hesitantly replied, “Official Bai only brought back one person.”

The Elder Princess was taken aback. “Only one?”

She had assumed that if Bai Xiuming had gone to rescue them, he would have found at least a few survivors. How could there only be one? Did that mean the others were dead?

Her unease grew as the Countess of Ningyuan collapsed behind her, bursting into loud wails, “My son!”

The guard quickly added, “The person Official Bai brought back… is a young woman.”

The cries ceased abruptly. For now, no news of their sons was still good news.

The Elder Princess ordered the guards, “Step aside. I will see for myself.”

“Yes.” The guards opened the gate, and the princess entered, followed closely by the noblewomen. Even without news of their sons, they hoped Official Bai might have some answers.

Before they could knock, Bai Xiuming pushed the door open and stepped out.

Under the lantern light beneath the eaves, the Elder Princess studied her cousin. He wasn’t wearing the same clothes as when he left—had he been injured?

“Were you hurt?” she asked with concern.

“No,” Bai Xiuming replied concisely. The blood on his clothes was from the tiger demon. “Did you need something, Princess?”

“We heard you rescued someone. Were there truly demonic creatures in the mountains?”

“Yes. They’ve been dealt with.”

The Elder Princess sighed in relief, but the noblewomen remained tense. Lady Yao pressed, “Official Bai, did you see any trace of my son in the mountains?”

“No.”

“Would it be possible for the young lady you rescued to speak with us? We only wish to ask her a few questions,” the Duchess of Li interjected.

They assumed that if a demonic creature had taken the girl, their sons might have met the same fate. Perhaps she knew something of their whereabouts.

But Bai Xiuming showed no courtesy. “No.”

Turning back to the princess, he said, “Please send a maidservant to tend to her, and summon an imperial physician.”

The Elder Princess was surprised. Was this for the girl he’d brought back? Since when was her cousin so considerate?

She glanced at her matron, who immediately went to fetch a maidservant and the imperial physician.

The noblewomen, rebuffed so coldly, wore displeased expressions—especially Lady Xue, whose resentment toward Bai Xiuming deepened.

If he could save Ji Chan, why couldn’t he have saved her son as well?

Eyeing the anxious noblewomen, she decided to reveal what had happened earlier. Bai Xiuming had abandoned the young nobles to rescue an insignificant Ji Chan—surely this was favoritism!

She refused to believe he could afford to offend not just the Marquis of Jin's Sun’s household, but the entire nobility. Even with the emperor’s favor, he wouldn’t escape unscathed from their collective impeachment!

Seeing that Bai Xiuming had no intention of letting anyone meet the girl, the Elder Princess gently urged the noblewomen to leave. Though reluctant, they dared not disobey the princess. Only she remained behind.

Soon, the matron returned with the imperial physician and a maidservant.

Bai Xiuming led them inside, and the princess stepped lightly, following quietly. In the inner chamber, she saw a young woman asleep on her cousin’s bed.

The imperial physician first took A Chan’s pulse, but she remained unconscious.

After the examination, he stepped out and reported, “This young lady’s constitution is too weak. She may have taken ill from the cold mountain wind, but it’s nothing serious. She might run a high fever tonight, but with proper care, she should recover without medication.”

Bai Xiuming nodded. “She often suffers from persistent fevers. Please remain on duty here tonight.”

“Of course.” Though the imperial physician thought it unnecessary, he knew better than to refuse someone he dared not offend.

The Elder Princess, however, was too intrigued to care. She stared at her cousin in amazement. He even knew about her frequent fevers? Just what was their relationship?

As the matron settled the imperial physician in an adjacent room and the maidservant fetched water, the princess and Bai Xiuming were left alone.

She ventured, “Is that young lady someone special to you?”

“No.”

“Truly?” She didn’t believe him.

“We just have some past acquaintance. She’s frail, so I helped her.” To him, saving her had required little effort—the tiger demon wasn't even enough to warm him up.

“I’ve never seen you so helpful before.”

Bai Xiuming arched a brow. “Perhaps it’s because I find everyone else disagreeable.”

“For you to take a liking to someone is no small feat,” the princess teased.

Was it really so difficult? Bai Xiuming pondered briefly. Not particularly.

Ji Chan was full of subtle intentions in front of him, yet someone like her could still win his approval. If others failed to catch his eye, they had only themselves to blame.

After settling A Chan, Bai Xiuming left the room. He hadn’t stood by the pond for long before a group of Bright Mirror Bureau Guards streamed into the Lotus Garden.

"My lord, we are late," Feng Yang and Jiang Kai said in unison. Upon receiving the news, they had rushed out of the city without delay.

Bai Xiuming said little to them, only stating, "There is another tiger demon in the mountains behind Huangxi Village."

Jiang Kai froze for a moment before his expression darkened. He immediately knelt and admitted his fault, "This subordinate has failed in his duty. I beg for punishment, my lord."

Bai Xiuming did not reprimand him, merely saying, "Report for discipline when you return."

"Yes." Jiang Kai let out a relieved breath—as long as it wasn’t dismissal.

He had been the one to investigate the tiger demon case and had already captured a Second Realm tiger demon. Who would have guessed there was more than one in those mountains?

"My lord, what of the demon in the mountains?" Feng Yang asked cautiously. Since his lord knew of the tiger demon’s existence, it was likely already dead.

"The demon is dead. Take men to retrieve the corpse."

"Understood."

"My lord, what about me?" Jiang Kai asked.

"That tiger demon abducted several people into the mountains. Lead a search party—find them, whether they’re alive or not."

Feng Yang soon left with the Bright Mirror Bureau Guards, while Jiang Kai first met with the ladies of the households to confirm the identities of the missing before departing the Lotus Garden.

With matters arranged, Bai Xiuming returned to his room. His bed had been given to A Chan, so he rested on the couch in the anteroom.

By midnight, the maid assigned to care for A Chan hurriedly fetched the physician—A Chan had indeed begun to fever.

The physician applied needles and instructed the maid to cool her with towels soaked in well water. After nearly an hour of effort, her fever finally broke.

Bai Xiuming had long been awakened by the noise. He lay awake but did not enter.

Only when the physician said quietly, "She’s fine now," and left with his medicine box did Bai Xiuming close his eyes again.

Unaware of her illness in her sleep, A Chan, perhaps because she’d mentioned Qingyu Mountain to the tiger demon earlier, dreamed of returning there.

In the dream, she overheard her grandmother and the clan elder.

The elder said to her grandmother, "Though A Chan’s bloodline is impure, she was born with eight tails. Why not train her properly?"

Her grandmother replied coldly, "She has no place in Qingyu Mountain. We took her in only because her father was my first son."

"Then… will neither sister’s name be recorded in the clan?"

"No."

Young A Chan had quietly mourned for a long time then. Even now, dreaming of it again, she felt the same sorrow.

She had grown up in Qingyu Mountain, yet it was never her home. Her grandmother denied their kinship.

Her father abandoned her, her grandmother rejected her, and her younger sister was gone…

A Chan let out a soft cry in her sleep. Bai Xiuming opened his eyes again, resigned.

The maid attending her also heard the crying. She tried soothing her quietly, to no avail, and was about to wake her when, after a few gentle shakes, the door opened—Bai Xiuming stood there, his expression stern.

The startled maid whirled around and bowed. "Forgive the disturbance, my lord?"

Ignoring her, Bai Xiuming approached the bed just as A Chan blinked sleepily.

"Lord Bai," she mumbled, clutching his sleeve.

Seeing him seemed to reassure her, and she closed her eyes again.

Noticing the traces of tears on her face, Bai Xiuming reached out but withdrew his fingers before touching her.

He turned to the maid. "Wipe her face."

The maid didn’t dare delay, immediately fetching warm water and a clean cloth to tend to A Chan.

Once her face was clean, A Chan rubbed her cheek with her sleeve, rolled over, and tucked the wide fabric beneath her.

Untroubled by dreams, she slept soundly the rest of the night.

She awoke at dawn, stretched with a yawn, feeling refreshed.

Recalling the night, she half-remembered disjointed dreams—and Bai Xiuming.

He had sat with his back to her by the bed, as if every time she opened her eyes, she saw only his back.

A Chan shook her head. That part was probably just her mind playing tricks—who dreamed of someone’s back?

The maid, seeing her awake, quickly fetched fresh clothes and shoes, then brought warm water for her to wash. A Chan didn’t notice the strange glance the maid gave her.

The maid kept sneaking looks. Last night, Lord Bai had sat by this girl’s bedside for over an hour, leaving the maid on edge, wide awake the entire time.

Luckily, she’d finally let go of his sleeve—otherwise, the maid might not have slept at all.

After washing up, A Chan learned from the maid that she was in the Lotus Garden, in Bai Xiuming’s courtyard. After changing into her new clothes, she went looking for him to ask about Hui Niang and Lin Sui.

The maid mentioned he had slept in the anteroom, but when A Chan went there, he was already gone.

Stepping outside, she was about to search for him when anguished wails reached her ears.

Pushing the door open, she surveyed the scene in the courtyard.

The yard was crowded—men and women, some standing, others lying down. Bai Xiuming stood at the center, flanked by Feng Yang and Jiang Kai.

Before him, four injured men and a corpse lay in a row, seemingly just delivered. Nearby stood several well-dressed noble ladies, likely their relatives.

Physicians worked frantically over the four moaning survivors, their grave faces suggesting the situation was dire.

The most severely injured was Lin Heng on the far left, his legs fractured in multiple places, writhing and howling.

Yao Shi clutched at the physician’s arm. "Doctor, can my son’s injuries be healed? Will his legs recover?"

The physician didn’t want to say it, but the bones were too badly shattered to mend.

He answered truthfully, "Madam General, your son’s legs are too severely damaged. Even if they heal, he will never walk again."

Yao Shi reeled backward, barely caught by her maid.

Lin Heng kept shrieking, "It was that bitch Lin Sui! Mother, Lin Sui broke my legs! I’ll kill her! I swear I’ll kill her!"

Seeing her son’s hysterics, Yao Shi dug her fingers into her maid’s arm and snapped, "Where is that wretched Lin Sui?"

The maid glanced at the tightly closed door of the side room and whispered, "Miss Lin is in the side chamber. They say her brother still hasn't regained consciousness, so she's been keeping watch by his side."

"Go fetch her for me."

The maid wavered. She looked at Bai Xiuming standing in the courtyard and the menacing Bright Mirror guards stationed outside the side room, then cautiously advised, "My lady, we should attend to Second Young Master first."

Yao Shi slapped the maid across the face and marched toward the side chamber, only to be blocked by two blades crossed before her at the doorway.

"Step back!"

Yao Shi retreated a step but then advanced again. "I want to see Lin Sui. I'm her mother—tell her to come out!"

The two Bright Mirror Bureau Guards remained expressionless, unmoved by her demands.

Perhaps realizing her son was beyond saving, Yao Shi finally shed her lady's composure and began shouting outside the side room: "Lin Sui, you jinx! Show yourself! You've been my curse since childhood, and now you've crippled your own brother! How dare you keep living in this world? Why aren't you dead yet?"

As Yao Shi continued her tirade at the door, on the other side, Xue Shi collapsed beside the body draped in white, sobbing herself nearly senseless.

A Chan stood at the doorway, watching Xue Shi collapsed in wailing despair.

She thought to herself: People really were complicated. When they lost someone they loved, they suffered unbearable pain—yet when they rid themselves of someone they despised, they celebrated with abandon.

Compared to seeing Xue Shi smug with victory, she much preferred seeing her cry.

Xue Shi hadn't noticed A Chan yet. She couldn't understand why everyone else had survived—only her son had died. He was still so young, with his whole life ahead of him!

She tore away the white cloth covering Xue Zhao's body. One glance at his corpse made her faint immediately.

Xue Zhao's death was gruesome. His body appeared crushed by some massive weight, flattened from the chest downward.

The other noblewomen recoiled in shock when they saw the body, some turning away while others retched nearby.

Now they no longer pressed for explanations from Bai Xiuming. Compared to this, they considered their own sons fortunate just to be alive.

They had waited all night for news of their sons' rescue.

They should have been overjoyed—but earlier, Xue Shi had told them Bai Xiuming could have saved their sons sooner, yet deliberately only brought back that one woman. She claimed he valued lives no more than grass, showing no regard for their families.

Already resentful, their anger grew when they learned their sons were seriously injured. They had come here demanding explanations.

But upon arrival, they saw that while their sons' injuries were severe, recovery was still possible. At least compared to Lin Heng's crippled legs or Xue Zhao's horrific death, their situations seemed almost fortunate. Their will to argue drained away.

After the imperial physicians finished bandaging the three less gravely wounded young men, the waiting noblewomen stepped forward to ask, "Lord Bai, may we take our sons back to our own courtyards for further treatment?"

"You may."

With Bai Xiuming's permission, they immediately summoned guards to carry their sons away.

Soon, only Lin Heng's screams of agony and Xue Zhao's corpse remained in the courtyard.

Outside the side room, after Yao Shi's relentless cursing, the door finally opened. Lin Sui emerged, her body still battered with cuts and bruises.

Without a word, Yao Shi slapped her viciously across the face. Lin Sui didn't dodge—the blow snapped her head to the side.

Still unsatisfied, Yao Shi raked her sharp nails toward Lin Sui's face, only for her wrist to be caught in a vise-like grip.