He Ying gave Sang Yan three days to recuperate her body and mind.
Three days passed, and he quietly left the Imperial Palace.
He was dressed in a snow-colored brocade, with a dark golden dragon pattern belt around his waist, his long hair flowing, confined by a White Jade Hairpin, holding an ivory folding fan in his hand. At first glance, he appeared much younger, a gracefully elegant noble young master.
The young master's ride was a carriage.
The carriage was a low-key luxury.
It looked ordinary from the outside, but the interior was very spacious, equipped with a small tea table, tea, and pastries on the table, and soft carpets on the floor. At each corner hung a sachet, with tassels embedded with agate and jade.
"Emperor, Second Master—"
Pei Muyang lifted the carriage curtain, his face flushed with panic, "Just now, the guard went to deliver a message, saying that Miss Sang hasn't—hasn't returned to the mansion."
"What?"
He Ying frowned, his face displeased, "She hasn't returned to the mansion? Where did she go then? To the Jiang Family?"
He thought Sang Yan had missed her deceased husband and gone back to the Jiang Family to mourn.
Pei Muyang would rather have Sang Yan return to the Jiang Family than face the current situation.
"It's said—said she entered the palace. Hasn't—hasn't come back."
His voice trembled with fear—had something happened to Miss Sang on the road after she left the palace? Or perhaps... she had run away?
Whichever possibility was not good news at all!
He Ying was sitting leisurely in the carriage, sipping tea, but upon hearing this, he crushed the cup in his hand.
"Crack."
The fragments of the cup pierced into his skin.
Blood flowed profusely.
"Emperor!"
Pei Muyang whispered urgently, quickly taking out a handkerchief to bandage and stop the bleeding.
"No need. It's nothing."
He Ying pushed him away, his face terrifyingly cold.
He seemed not to feel the pain as he pulled out the shard, saying, "First, have the Hidden Guard go in to investigate. Search the Sang Family and the Jiang Family secretly."
"Yes."
Pei Muyang hurried down from the carriage to instruct the Hidden Guard to search for the person.
In a while, he returned and reassured, "Emperor, please rest assured, under the Emperor's feet, Miss Sang will certainly be fine."
He Ying also didn't think she would come to any harm.
When she left the palace, it was daylight, and from the Imperial Palace to the Sang Mansion, as Pei Muyang said, under the Emperor's feet, within the martial law of the Imperial City, patrols were ongoing, and nobody would dare to commit evil deeds.
If no one did evil, it must have been her own doing—ha, she ran away, didn't she?
"I've been too soft-hearted towards her."
He had overestimated his control.
He should have seized her back immediately after she left the palace.
Even more, he should have claimed her early on, instead of thinking of winning her heart first.
Waiting was long and agonizing.
The wound on his hand gradually clotted and stopped bleeding.
Pei Muyang took some water, dampened the handkerchief, and gently wiped the dried blood from his hand.
He watched silently, without uttering a word, already so irritable in his heart that he felt like killing someone.
There was a moment when he felt like he was back in his childhood—the feeling of being constrained, suppressed, mocked, and powerless, pitifully struggling like a trapped beast.
Then the news came back from the Hidden Guards—
"Miss Sang is not at the Sang Mansion."
"Miss Sang is not at the Jiang Residence."
These words pierced him with pain—had she really run away? His favor and preference for her were met with her avoidance as if from a snake or scorpion?
How outrageous!
"Back to the palace!"
His face darkened, his lips pursed tightly, and those two words seemed to squeeze out of his mouth with a certain resentful viciousness.
Upon hearing this, Pei Muyang immediately had the coachman turn back to the palace.
The journey back to the palace was particularly quiet.
Pei Muyang knew the Emperor was in a bad mood, the kind that couldn't be soothed, so he wisely kept quiet.
Once back at Qingning Palace, he immediately had the eunuch call for the Imperial Physician.
He Ying's hand was bleeding again.
Perhaps he had unconsciously exerted force, and the wound on his palm reopened, bleeding profusely.
Pei Muyang watched in trepidation, gently advising in a hushed voice, "Emperor, Miss Sang's disappearance may be due to an unavoidable situation. You must look after your dragon body and find her as soon as possible."
He Ying's face remained cold, and he didn't say a word.
The atmosphere in the hall had dropped to freezing point.
Until the guard leader, Lu Zijin, came in, "Emperor, I have found out where Miss Sang has gone."
Upon hearing this, He Ying's expression remained calm, but his body betrayed him, visibly relaxing a bit.
He leaned against the Dragon Couch, watching the Imperial Physician bandage his wounds, and asked, "Where is she?"
Lu Zijin replied, "The Sang Family owns a villa outside the Capital City. After Miss Sang left the Imperial Palace, she hired a coach directly and went straight to the villa."
"A villa?"
He Ying hadn't expected this outcome, and he felt both heartache and anger at once, "Why would she go there? Who allowed her to go?"
A sheltered young lady from a distinguished family going to a villa?
Were the people of the Sang Family tired of living?
"I do not know."
"Go and investigate!"
"Yes!"
*
Sang Yan had no idea what was happening in the palace.
She had been lazing around in the villa for four days and hadn't seen anyone from the palace, so she figured He Ying was fed up with her and that she had gained her freedom.
Her mood was incredibly liberating.
When one feels good, one feels like going out and having fun.
Sang Yan thus took a carriage ride and went out to enjoy herself.
Considering she had run into Jiang Ke near the villa last time, this time she simply decided to go play in the Imperial City.
The Imperial City was bustling with activity.
She had only glimpsed it briefly the day she left the palace, and she was still very eager to return.
Although the Emperor was a dog, under his rule, the Dahe Dynasty indeed had the vigor of a powerful nation.
"Just stop here."
Sang Yan looked at the lively rouge and make-up shop, with her eyes sparkling with laughter.
No woman doesn't like to be beautiful.
Even if she was as lazy as a salted fish, she was still very interested in cosmetics.
"Yes, Miss."
The Sang Family's servant, Dong Chuan, reined in the horses, stopped the carriage, jumped down, knelt on the ground, and offered his back as a stepping stool for her.
Sang Yan saw this but didn't step on him; instead, she lifted the hem of her dress and jumped down.
The action was quite indelicate.
She was aware of it, but in her rare good mood, she indulged herself and let out her true nature.
It gave Dong Chuan quite a fright, "Miss!"
His exclamation was met with her safe landing, yet he still feared the worst, "Miss, you can't be so reckless. What if you had fallen?"
"No worries. A height like this is nothing."
Sang Yan dismissed the concern with a wave of her hand and headed into the shop.
Little did she know that He Ying had witnessed this entire scene.
"So this is what she's like outside."
After learning that Sang Yan was staying at the villa and finding out the reasons, He Ying didn't go to retrieve her; instead, he ordered her to be under surveillance, wanting to see what she would do after leaving him.
Knowing she was going out today, he also left the Imperial Palace and met her halfway.
At that moment, he opened his folding fan, partly covering his face, and followed her into the shop.
Pei Muyang also wanted to go in.
He Ying gave him a glance and said softly, "Let Zijin follow."
Lu Zijin was the guard leader and had been on leave. For Sang Yan, he was a new face and wouldn't be recognized.
It was different for Pei Muyang; Sang Yan had seen him too many times. If he showed up, his identity would be obvious.
"Yes."
Pei Muyang, knowing his place, returned to the carriage.
Lu Zijin followed into the shop.
The shop was crowded, almost exclusively with women.
He was very nervous, thinking of the Emperor's strange illness, shielding him from the front and back, fearing women might touch him.
"You don't need to be so tense."
He Ying, watching from a distance, saw the delicate figure selecting items and smiled indulgently, "Buy everything she looks at."