Chapter 36: Early Night Watch

Lu Mansion.

Perhaps truly exhausted from the journey, Mu Yang slept until the sun was high before getting up. For Mu Yang, who strictly adhered to family rules, this was an immense happiness. In the past, if he had slept in a little at home, his father would have nagged him endlessly.

Only at Elder Sister Yuner’s place could he be free and at ease, unbound by rigid etiquette.

At first, when Mu Yang entered the mansion and saw a dog, it was only after Qiu Yi the housekeeper’s explanation that he learned it was Elder Sister Yuner’s dog, named Juzi.

However, it was now injured.

At this moment, Mu Yang was playing with Juzi in the courtyard to cheer it up.

He learned from Qiu Yi that Juzi had a pile of its own little toys stored in the warehouse, so he took out Juzi’s favorite playthings from the warehouse to play with it.

Mu Yang squatted next to the cloth bag, rummaging inside for a moment. Suddenly, he touched something cool. Taking it out for a look, he found in his hand a wooden box covered in brown soil, shaped like a round bamboo tube. Getting a bit closer, he could smell a strange, musty odor. He looked at it with a slightly disdainful yet curious gaze, “Ah! What’s this?”

At this moment, Juzi suddenly barked excitedly, “Woof woof woof!”

“Juzi, you want to play with this? But how do you play with it?” Seeing Juzi particularly excited about this object, Mu Yang turned his attention back to the wooden box, gently weighing it in his hand. He found that there seemed to be something inside and was about to try to open it.

Suddenly, Juzi pounced on Mu Yang. Caught off guard, Mu Yang fell backward with a cry of surprise, “Ouch!”

Mu Yang came to his senses and struggled to get up, enduring the pain. Angrily, he said, “Juzi, how could you…” He saw Juzi use its paws to place the wooden box in front of itself, then lie on top of it, not letting anyone touch it. Its innocent eyes, however, looked at him wetly.

“Juzi, what’s wrong with you?” Mu Yang didn’t approach. He knew that they had been playing well just now, and Juzi would definitely not push him on purpose. Puzzled, he could only move his astonished gaze to the box.

Mu Yang sighed lightly, deciding to wait for Elder Sister Yuner to return. He was about to get up and put the cloth bag back in the warehouse.

“Qiu Yi, what are you holding?” Mu Yang inadvertently saw Qiu Yi hurriedly walking in from outside the mansion gate, holding a square, seemingly precious box in her hands.

Another box.

Caught, Qiu Yi stopped, slightly moving the box behind her. Looking at Mu Yang, she laughed dryly, “Nothing, just a gift someone sent for the master. I’m taking it to put away.”

After a brief explanation, she was about to turn and leave.

“Oh, I see!” A mischievous glint flashed in Mu Yang’s dark eyes. Taking advantage of Qiu Yi’s unpreparedness, he snatched it with one hand and immediately opened it curiously. His expression suddenly froze, and he stammered, “Qiu… housekeeper, is this… the rare… Tianshan Snow Lotus? Who sent it?”

Mu Yang had been involved in business with his mother since childhood and had seen many rare treasures, but he had rarely heard of the Tianshan Snow Lotus. In all his years, he had only seen it once, and that was in a book illustration.

He had heard that “In the extremely cold places where snow accumulates and doesn’t melt in spring and summer, there’s a plant among the snow, resembling a lotus with a single stem, standing gracefully and lovely in the snow” and “There’s Tianshan Mountain where snow accumulates in winter and summer, and among the snow there are lotuses, with those at the peak of Tianshan being the finest.”[1]

Therefore, the Tianshan Snow Lotus, due to its extremely high medicinal value yet rarity, is known as a “celestial herb.” It grows in high, cold places with treacherous terrain, and many have lost their lives trying to obtain it.

He never thought he’d have the fortune to see it in person today.

“This…” Qiu Yi was at a loss for words, the young master having immediately identified it.

Seeing Qiu Yi’s hesitation, Mu Yang looked at the Tianshan Snow Lotus in his hand with a serious expression. Seeming to think of something, his face suddenly filled with worry and anger, “Elder Sister Yuner is known for her integrity and incorruptibility, always keeping her hands clean. Qiu Yi, you mustn’t do anything foolish out of momentary greed that would harm Elder Sister Yuner.”

How could someone give such a valuable item to Elder Sister Yuner for no reason? There must be an ulterior motive.

“How could I possibly do anything to harm the master!” Seeing Young Master Mu’s misunderstanding, Qiu Yi hurriedly explained.

Mu Yang frowned and pursued the question: “Then who sent this?”

Qiu Yi has been with Elder Sister Yuner for many years and surely wouldn’t harm her, but who would be so generous as to send such a precious thing?

Qiu Yi looked troubled and lowered her head, “I can’t say.”

“Alright, you can’t say.” Mu Yang returned the box to Qiu Yi, his tone light, “Since this is for Elder Sister Yuner, she should have the right to know who sent it. I’ll tell her as soon as she returns.”

“Don’t… I’ll tell you, but Young Master Mu must also keep it a secret.” Qiu Yi said with a serious face.

Seeing the housekeeper slightly relent, Mu Yang smiled and immediately promised, “Alright, I absolutely won’t say anything.”

“Because the master was unwell some days ago, this Tianshan Snow Lotus was sent by Young Master Su.”

“What! It was sent by Young Master Su.” Mu Yang looked shocked, then grew puzzled, “But why would he send it to Elder Sister Yuner? And not let her know about it.”

Suddenly recalling the “Elder Sister Yuner” that Young Master Su had called out last night when they first met, he had initially thought he had misheard. After learning that he was indeed Young Master Su, there hadn’t been anything to suggest otherwise at the time, so he was sure it couldn’t be possible. Perhaps he had misheard due to the mixed voices at the time.

Who would have thought it was actually the case.

As a man himself, Mu Yang instantly sensed something amiss. He stared at Qiu Yi and spoke frankly, “It couldn’t be… Young Master Su towards Elder Sister Yuner?” Mu Yang left the speculative words unsaid, but it was enough for Qiu Yi to understand.

“This…” Qiu Yi hesitated, caught off guard by Young Master Mu’s words. Indeed, with Young Master Mu’s intelligence, he would certainly deduce something, but she really couldn’t say anything about this matter. “I’m not sure about that, but please keep this a secret, Young Master Mu.”

Mu Yang nodded thoughtfully, “Don’t worry, Qiu Yi. I won’t say anything.”

The competition didn’t end until near dusk, with Lu Yuner’s side ultimately winning. Zhu Miaomiao and the others planned to host a celebration banquet, but Lu Yuner, thinking of the important matter she had tonight, found an excuse to decline.

After returning to the Lu Mansion, Lu Yuner first went to bathe and change into clean clothes.

“What’s wrong? Didn’t go out to play today?” Lu Yuner came to the dining hall and saw Mu Yang with one hand supporting his head, silently staring at the dishes on the table, not at all like his usual lively self.

“No.” Mu Yang suddenly shifted his gaze to Lu Yuner, looking her up and down. Lu Yuner naturally felt the gaze fixed on her.

“It’s time to eat, or the food will get cold.” She calmly ate while saying, “Later, I need to go out for a while.”

Mu Yang naturally understood the implication. “I just…” He was about to express his doubts when he suddenly caught sight of Qiu Yi gesturing to him from the side. He had to swallow his words and change the subject, “I was just playing with Juzi today, and when I took out Juzi’s toys from the warehouse, I found it seemed particularly interested in a wooden box.”

Hearing this, Lu Yuner’s movements paused. She furrowed her brow, put down her chopsticks, and said, “You keep eating, I’ll go take a look first.”

Lu Yuner quickly came to Juzi’s side and saw it lying on the wooden box with tears in its eyes, looking particularly protective.

Lu Yuner carefully observed the box. From what Mu Yang said, this wooden box was taken out from that pile of toys, but Juzi’s things were all packed by her personally, and she certainly hadn’t seen this wooden box before.

Could she have forgotten about it?

From Juzi’s reaction, could this be something belonging to Juzi’s previous owner?