No Longer Escaping (ABO) - Chapter 54

On the way back to the Li family home, Dujuan walked at the back of the group with her head bowed; her eyes were red and slightly swollen from her earlier crying.

Father Li walked in front, and Li Wuyue followed obediently behind him. Father Li was tall, though he was still half a head shorter than Li Wuyue. A small mustache sat above his lip, and his brow carried no trace of malice. Despite his height, he did not feel imposing; much like Li Wuyue, he radiated a gentle and elegant aura.

Despite such a major incident occurring, Father Li did not blame Li Wuyue when he saw her. He wasn’t in a hurry to interrogate her about the details, either. He simply sighed and said, “It’s good that you’re alright…” He patted her head comfortingly and said no more.

The interaction between the father and daughter fell into Dujuan’s eyes, causing a wave of sourness in her heart. Her gaze involuntarily flickered with envy. Then, a self-deprecating smile flashed across her face… To pity someone whose family was wealthier and more loving than her own—how ridiculous.

Just as she was hanging her head in low spirits, a warm hand took hers. She looked up and saw Li Wuyue smiling at her; it was the first time she had seen her smile since they met.

Dujuan, however, whose mood was at rock bottom, did not return the expression and instead pulled her hand back.

Being given the cold shoulder by Dujuan, Li Wuyue was quite confused and felt aggrieved. She turned to catch up with her father’s pace again, but occasionally looked back at Dujuan. Seeing her still hanging her head and looking listless, Li Wuyue stopped bothering her.

“Do you really not need help?” The family servant asked several times, watching Yang Lulong carry Wan Niang on her back for a long stretch of the road.

“No, no, I’ll carry her,” Yang Lulong declined. “It’s fine.” Besides, letting someone else carry Wan Niang would make her feel strange.

The group returned to the Li residence in this manner.

The moment they stepped through the door, Mother Li, who had been waiting in the hall, rose excitedly and rushed over. She went straight to Li Wuyue, checking her face and hands. “Let Mother look, are you hurt? Did anyone bully you?” Her tone was anxious and urgent.

Li Wuyue looked at her mother, her mouth closed, not saying a word.

“The child is fine,” Father Li answered for her.

Only then did Mother Li notice Yang Lulong and the others following behind. After calming down, she asked, “And these people are?”

Father Li introduced Yang Lulong and the others to Mother Li, telling her that it was Yang Lulong and Wan Niang who had helped find Li Wuyue.

Mother Li expressed her gratitude excitedly. However, since Wan Niang was still fast asleep, Yang Lulong responded to the thanks with slight embarrassment while still carrying her, and then took Wan Niang to the guest room arranged by Father Li.

“And this one…” Father Li paused when it came time to introduce Dujuan. His mouth hung open for a long time without a word coming out, while Mother Li waited expectantly.

Instead, Father Li took a sharp breath and choked back the rest of his words; he pulled Mother Li aside to speak with her privately.

At this moment, only Li Wuyue and Dujuan remained. Dujuan looked despondent, and Li Wuyue stole occasional glances at her, also looking quite dejected.

Dujuan watched Father and Mother Li whispering in the distance, her heart filled with trepidation. Would they really let Li Wuyue marry her? How could that be possible? They cared so much for Li Wuyue; how could they let her marry someone of unknown origin and lowly birth like herself? While she was still agonizing over this, Li Wuyue suddenly ran off. She returned a moment later and held out some pastries to Dujuan, indicating for her to eat.

Looking at her round eyes, her smiling face, and the pastry in her hand, Dujuan thought she looked exactly like a big dog wagging its tail with a bone in its mouth, wanting to give its bone to her.

Only then did she reveal a slightly less sorrowful expression, yet she still rejected Li Wuyue: “Thank you, but I won’t eat…”

Seeing Li Wuyue look so dejected after being rejected made Dujuan feel an unbearable sense of guilt. Dujuan felt restless and agitated by her own contradictory feelings toward Li Wuyue.

Just as the two were caught in an awkward standoff, Father and Mother Li returned. Father Li came over and put an arm around Li Wuyue’s shoulder. “Come, go play chess with your father.” He led Li Wuyue away, leaving Mother Li and Dujuan alone.

“I heard from her father about what happened between you two…” Mother Li began.

Dujuan lowered her eyes and did not look at her, waiting for the reprimands to follow, bracing herself to be humiliated.

But Mother Li did not say a single word against her. Instead, she sighed and spoke in a gentle tone: “Yue’er, that child… I only have one request. I hope you won’t break her heart. We don’t care how you two ended up like this or what your intentions are. Even if you are lying to her, please continue to lie to her—at least don’t let her find out.”

What did this mean? Dujuan was confused. She looked up at Mother Li. This was completely different from what she had imagined. She thought a wealthy family like this should be angry about such a thing. Why was it like this?

“Her father and I will arrange the wedding, so please, you and your brother must not speak of this outside. Although Yue’er doesn’t talk much and doesn’t like to show her feelings, she is very sensitive inside…”

“You aren’t angry with me? You don’t think I have ulterior motives?” Dujuan plucked up the courage to ask.

“What use is there in being angry? Yue’er likes you. Should we, as parents, force you apart just because we are angry? We don’t want to make Yue’er sad…”

Li Wuyue liked her… how could that be… she probably didn’t even know what “liking” someone meant.

“Don’t think Yue’er is a fool. She knows everything in her heart; she just doesn’t say it…” Mother Li’s words made Dujuan feel ashamed, and she lowered her head again, speechless.

“I know that to you, Yue’er might seem slow or foolish, but she isn’t. She just isn’t good at expressing herself to outsiders. But to her father and me, she is undoubtedly a good child. She is very smart…” She took Dujuan’s hand. “Come…” She led her to the place where Li Wuyue and her father were playing chess, watching the two from a short distance away.

Dujuan looked toward the small pavilion and saw Li Wuyue staring at the chessboard with intense concentration. Indeed, she did not look like a “fool” at all.

“Every time she plays chess with her father, it ends in a draw. It’s not that her father lets her win; it’s that she lets him.” At this point, a smile appeared on Mother Li’s face, and she watched the father and daughter with a tender gaze.

Dujuan looked at her in confusion, “But… if that’s the case, why say those things about her to the outside world?”

“Those aren’t things we said. It’s just rumors and people repeating what they hear.”

“But there must be a reason why she became like this, right?”

At this question, Mother Li sighed again. “When she was small, there was a servant in the house. She was a good person, but she married a lazy man. Her husband was a gambling addict who squandered all the wages she worked so hard for and even sold their child. It drove her insane. One day, she took Yue’er away, treating her as her own child… At that time, I truly felt like I didn’t want to live anymore. We searched for days without a clue. Finally, we found them in a dilapidated house in the deep mountains. The servant had already committed suicide by poison, and Yue’er was just there, not crying or making a sound…”

Dujuan listened intently, her brow gradually furrowing. “So… do you… hate that person?”

“Hate?” Mother Li tucked away the sorrow in her eyes. “Before Yue’er was found, I certainly hated her. I hated her for stealing my Yue’er away. But… when I saw her corpse, I felt more of a sense of tragedy, I suppose…”

Dujuan looked toward Li Wuyue again.

Li Wuyue, who was focused on the game, seemed to notice someone watching her. She looked up toward Dujuan and offered her a smile.

Being caught, Dujuan quickly averted her gaze…

••••

Wan Niang gradually woke up from her deep sleep. As soon as she moved, she felt a wave of soreness, and she struggled to sit up in bed.

Yang Lulong was just entering the room with dinner. Seeing Wan Niang awake, she immediately set the food on the table and sat down by the bedside.

“Where is this?” Wan Niang surveyed the room, only then realizing they were in a new place.

“The Li residence. After you… fell asleep, that person arrived with Master Li. Then they brought us out together.”

“Then how did I… get here?”

Upon learning that Yang Lulong had carried her back, Wan Niang was instantly hit with a wave of shame. To be carried by Yang Lulong in front of everyone all the way back—the thought of it was embarrassing.

“You just carried me like that the whole way?”

“Yes.”

“Was it tiring?” Wan Niang asked with concern. “Was it a long way?”

“You aren’t heavy, it was fine.” Yang Lulong returned a smile. “You’ve slept for so long; you should eat something first so you don’t go hungry.”

“Have you eaten?”

“Yes, I just ate with Master Li’s family.”

“I haven’t even thanked them yet…” Wan Niang suddenly realized, and immediately got up to leave.

Yang Lulong quickly pulled her back. “I already thanked them. Master Li’s family is very nice. They even gave me money…” As she spoke, she pulled a silver ingot worth a full twenty taels from her robes.

“What? You just accepted it?” Wan Niang looked at the silver ingot, feeling increasingly awkward. “It was enough that they helped us and let us stay the night. How could you accept this as well?” she scolded.

“I…” Yang Lulong didn’t understand the art of declining such things; after all, she hadn’t grown up with the experience of the “red envelope struggle” with relatives during New Year. Furthermore, their luggage had been stolen at the Chunxiang Pavilion. Aside from the small change Wan Niang had on her, they had almost nothing left.

“We should go back and return it to them quickly.”

“Return it?” Yang Lulong was startled. “I… I don’t know how to return it…”

Wan Niang took the silver from her hand. “Then I’ll go.”

“If we give the money back, how will we manage the rest of the journey? We still have a long way to go to reach the capital,” Yang Lulong called out to her.

“I have my own ways for that…” Before her voice could fade, Wan Niang was already gone.

Yang Lulong was left alone in the room. She looked at the still-warm food and furrowed her brow… She waited and waited, but Wan Niang did not return. She propped her chin on her hand, her fingers tapping incessantly on the table. The longer she waited, the more restless she became, until she finally got up and left the room as well.

The Li family guest rooms were built in the courtyard—a row of three compartments on one side. Directly opposite the guest rooms was the servants’ quarters, connected to the kitchen. In the center of the courtyard was a small pavilion surrounded by emerald bamboo. As winter approached, the bamboo was not as vibrant as in spring; instead, it was a somber yellow, looking even more sluggish and dim under the glow of the setting sun.

Yang Lulong squinted at the sunset over the distant mountains. Suddenly, her gaze was drawn to the person sitting in the pavilion.

That splash of vivid red—it had to be Dujuan.

Yang Lulong watched her and realized she seemed to be lost in thought, sighing from time to time. Thinking of their stolen luggage, a wave of displeasure rose in Yang Lulong’s heart.

She walked down the steps and headed toward the pavilion.

Dujuan was currently troubled by all sorts of matters. Being disturbed made her very displeased, and she frowned as she stared at Yang Lulong walking toward her. Her unhappiness was written plainly on her face.

“Where is our luggage?” Yang Lulong’s first words annoyed Dujuan.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Her seductive eyes were full of hostility.

“You lure people into rooms and then rob them blind. It’s a den of thieves.” Yang Lulong stood outside the pavilion, confronting her.

“What den of thieves?” Dujuan stood up. “Weren’t you and your wife having quite a good time? As the shopkeepers, isn’t it only natural for us to collect a bit of compensation?”

“That was…” As Yang Lulong spoke, a red flush crept up her neck toward her face. She sputtered for a moment before continuing, “…that was… you used those underhanded tricks…”

Hearing her mention the drug made Dujuan furious; she was so angry she laughed. “Heh… it certainly was an underhanded trick…” Her brother’s words echoed in her ears again. Doing it for my own good… He only did those things because of that man… it was all just an excuse.

Dujuan’s sudden frankness actually caught Yang Lulong off guard.

“Your things are likely never coming back. I’m a clay Buddha crossing the river myself… It was them who took your things, not me.”

“Wasn’t you marrying Li Wuyue part of your plan?”

“It was them, not me. When it comes down to it, I’m nothing more than a pawn.”

“That man… isn’t he your older brother?”

“He is, but now… I don’t know if he still sees me as his sister.” After she finished speaking, she let out a self-deprecating laugh.

The awkward sibling relationship she described somehow resonated with Yang Lulong, reminding her of her own younger brother…

When the memory ended and Yang Lulong looked up, she found that Dujuan had already vanished without a trace.