Light followed him and suddenly broke into the deep room.
Xie Miao glanced sideways and slowly moved her gaze upwards, looking at the young man's smooth chin, handsome facial features, and eyes that were so gentle that they were almost cherishing.
"Cui...Cui Muli?" She said in a low voice.
Cui Muli guided her hand out, grabbed the dagger as if inadvertently and threw it away. He hugged her body towards himself, and said with a smile: "It's me."
Xie Miao was stunned, "Why are you here?"
Cui Muli took out a handkerchief, and wiped the blood on her hands. Then he took off his cloak and put it around her.
"You are here, so I am here."
Xie Miao looked confused, still submerged in haze.
Cui Muli's heart felt like it was being rubbed over and over, causing slight but tight pain. He stretched out his hand, and cupped her cold cheek. He said, "A-Miao, don't be afraid."
Xie Miao looked back stubbornly and subconsciously denied: "I'm not afraid."
He smiled, more like sighing, "Yes, you are not afraid."
He followed his inner desire and hugged the sixteen-year-old Xie Miao tightly. But it felt like he had travelled back in time to four years ago, back to Meng Mansion in Pingjiang, and found the trembling little girl at the fire scene. And tell her, over and over again, "Sorry, I came too late."
*
Cui Muli did not mention how he mobilized all the manpower he had, and even asked Fan Lekang to send people. It took a lot of time to search for her whereabouts in the city. Nor did he mention that when he came, he bumped into the three thugs who were leaving. Then he was stopped by Fu Lu outside the house.
Thinking of this, Cui Muli's mood was ups and downs, and his whole body fell into a terrible suffocation.
Half a quarter of an hour ago, he led people outside the deserted house and was stopped by Fu Lu who was guarding the door. He didn't take this little maid seriously at all, and was about to tell Shen Yang to get her away, but he saw her pulling out a hairpin and pointing it at her neck, threatening herself with death.
She said: "Second Young Master, I promised the Young Lady to stay here."
She threatened: "If you want to go in, you will have to step on this slave's body."
She prayed: "Can you just pretend you didn't see it? This is the Young Lady's private matter and has nothing to do with you or Cui Mansion."
Cui Muli said coldly: "I know everything."
Fu Lu asked: "What do you know?"
Cui Muli dismissed the people around and said one word, "Fire."
It's over.
Fu Lu felt like she had been hit in the head. Her head was buzzing, and she thought desperately: It must be Lan Xia's big mouth that made the Second Young Master notice the abnormality. Now that he knows the truth, what would he think of the Young Lady? Will he dislike the Young Lady? Drive her away from Cui Mansion...
In the chaos, Fu Lu suddenly remembered Xie Miao's words.
She said: Fu Lu, Meng Yuantang is not as omnipotent as he imagines, and we are far stronger than we think.
She said: Fu Lu, everything will be fine.
"Second Young Master, the Young Lady is not wrong!" She suddenly had the courage to look up at Cui Muli and said, "Everything is Meng Yuantang's fault!"
"Oh?" Cui Muli's eyebrows were dull, "You know the truth of the matter, tell me what happened that night in detail."
Fu Lu's eyes were full of shame, and she knelt down heavily on the ground, crying: "Speaking of which, it's this servant's negligence so I am to blame... Back then, the Second Lady entrusted the Young Lady to the Meng family, and this slave and Lan Xia also followed the Young Lady. Due to money matters, there is a huge difference in the attitude of the uncle and his wife towards the Young Lady. However, Meng Yuantang remained the same towards the Young Lady, so this servant thought that he was a good person and treated him a bit leniently. "
"That day Lan Xia went home to visit her relatives. After nightfall, the Young Lady went to sleep in the back room. This servant finished her work and was about to go in and stay with her for the night. Meng Yuantang's servant suddenly came and said that Meng Yuantang had something important to tell me about the Young Lady and asked me to follow him at once."
"This servant didn't think much at the time. Thinking that he really had something to say, I followed the boy out. He led me to the back mountain and kept pestering this servant about this and that. This servant asked why Meng Yuantang didn't come, and he found some excuses. After a long time, this servant felt something was wrong. Then I saw fire in the courtyard where the Young Lady lived."
"This servant hurried back, only to see, only to see..." She stopped and burst into tears.
Cui Muli asked: "What did you see?"
"This servant saw Meng Yuantang running out of the Young Lady's room with dishevelled clothes. This servant ignored him and rushed in to find the Young Lady. The room was already burning hot. Miss, she shrank into a small ball and hid in the corner. The fire was so intense that this servant couldn't even feel the fire that was reaching the hem of my skirt." Fu Lu wiped away her tears and choked out: "The Young Lady seemed to have lost her soul. She grasped the collar of her clothes tightly with both hands. No matter what this servant said, she didn't respond and just shed tears without saying a word."
Cui Muli's eyes were cold and he clenched his fists.
Fu Lu added: "This servant realized that Meng Yuantang is a beast with a human face and a beast's heart. He actually - he actually wanted to - but this servant swears to you, the Young Lady did not let him succeed! In order to keep her innocence, she did not hesitate to knock over the candlestick and set the curtain on fire, thus narrowly escaping disaster."
Cui Muli asked: "What about Meng Shaogui and his wife? Could it be that they were both dead?"
Fu Lu was particularly sad and angry, "The most hateful ones are the uncle and his wife! They clearly knew what Meng Yuantang did, and instead of reprimanding him, they came to threaten this servant and the Young Lady! They said that the Young Lady is an orphan, and no one would believe her. If she dared to speak out about this, they will say that the Young Lady is greedy for the wealth of the Meng family, is shameless and took the initiative to seduce her cousin! "
Fu Lu cried bitterly again, choking with tears, "It was just after the new year, and the Young Lady was just twelve. She was still a child, just a child..."
Cui Muli closed his eyes, feeling tormented both physically and mentally.
Fu Lu wiped her tears and continued: "Second Young Master, the Young Lady had nightmares every day at that time and woke up crying in the middle of the night. She only relied on reading the Second Madam's letters, thinking about you and the Second Madam so that she could sleep peacefully."
Cui Muli froze slightly, "Me?" It's not strange with Madam Xie, but him?
Fu Lu said: "Since the Second Lady married to the capital, she wrote to the Young Lady every month. In her letters, the Second Lady writes about the latest news in the capital and interesting people and stories about the Cui family. In addition, she often mentions you and the Third Young Lady. She said that the Third Young Lady was young and was very repulsed to her as a new mother at first. However, you were knowledgeable and reasonable, and not only helped her eliminate the hostility of the Third Young Lady, but also helped her integrate into the Cui family. The Second Lady said, you are talented, young and promising, gentle and courteous in your dealings. Polite..."
Fu Lu said a lot of compliments.
So, A-Miao did not fall in love with him after coming to Cui Mansion, but got to know him earlier.
Cui Muli couldn't help but imagine how little Xie Miao would wake up from nightmares in the dark nights, looked at the letters and the lines of black words, and gained some comfort and hope from them. How she felt in the darkness, but looking hard towards the future.
Trapped alone in the Meng Mansion, she could only see him as the embodiment of goodness and redemption through Madam Xie's description.
What was he doing at that time?
Maybe he was studying in the Imperial College during the day, having great talks with his teachers and classmates, and then returned home to receive the teachings from his grandfather and careful guidance from his father. In his free time, he drank and play chess with a few friends, travelled around the lake and listened to music, play the qin or the flute...
He was born into a family of officials, so he didn't have to run around for a living or worry about food and clothing. All he had to do was work hard and continue the glory of the Cui family. Although he understands that people's hearts are dangerous and the world is bleak, he had always been protected by someone since he was a child and has never experienced any kind of unhappiness.
But at that time, the girl he likes was only a child. She had lost her parents, was abandoned by her relatives, and had no one to protect her. She was like a weed weathering the storm alone.
Cui Muli originally thought that the moment he guessed the truth, the regret of hindsight would be the ultimate. He never thought that when he heard the past events with his own ears, a fire was ignited in his body, repeatedly scorching his internal organs.
Four years ago, A-Miao rushed to the capital with high hopes and worked tirelessly to find recognition in the Cui Mansion. But except for Madam Xie, no one in the entire Cui family was willing to accept her...including him. And after countless attempts and failures, she turned her grievances and fragility into strength, molded it into armour, and wrapped herself tightly with it.
Only in this way can one avoid harm.
Cui Muli's Adam's apple rolled slightly, and the ends of his narrow eyes were filled with a deep red.
This is the girl he likes. The girl he likes too late and too deeply.
*
Realizing that the person in his arms was struggling, Cui Muli came to his senses and hugged her more tightly.
"..." Xie Miao's sanity slowly recovered. She endured her anger and said, "Cui Muli, let go."
Cui Muli stroked her long hair, his eyes locked on the unconscious Meng Yuantang. This beast deserves to die, but he doesn't deserve to die so easily.
He had to pay A-Miao back thousands of times for the suffering she suffered.
Xie Miao mistakenly thought that he wanted to settle accounts at an opportune moment, so she pushed him away and said calmly: "You have seen that I wanted to kill Meng Yuantang."
"A-Miao."
"Presumably, you have already found out. When at the Meng Mansion, Meng Yuantang once broke into my wing in the middle of the night and tried to-"
Cui Muli wanted to hold her hand, "A-Miao, there's no need to say anything."
Xie Miao pushed his hand away, "When your Ministry of Justice handles a case, don't you ask the victim to describe the incident in detail? I take the initiative to confess that he bullied me when I was young -"
Cui Muli said, "If you keep talking, I won't mind blocking your mouth."
...What to block it with?
Xie Miao looked at his empty hands, then looked at the other dirty handkerchief on the ground. She thought to herself: They're cousins. It's unlikely to reach that point... right?
Cui Muli saw her concerns. He cupped his hand and covered her lips, and said two words.
Xie Miao heard clearly and suddenly her eyes widened: It would be better to be blocked by dirty silk!
"You-" she held back two words, "crazy!"
Cui Muli's expression was concealed, "A-Miao can give it a try."
Xie Miao was so angry that she had no choice but to give up, "If I can't say it, then I won't say it."
It's possible to not talk about her affairs, but the matter concerning Hua Qing cannot be ignored.
Xie Miao casually made up an excuse that Meng Yuantang made a blunder after drinking, and spoke about his murder of Hua Qing.
After hearing this, Cui Muli shook his head and said, "Those who are obsessed with profit will surrender to greed."
Xie Miao said: "Can you punish him for his crime?"
Cui Muli said: "I will send people to Pixian County to collect evidence. Just leave everything to me."
Xie Miao was silent for a while, then she held out her wrists and said, "You should arrest me too."
Cui Muli said: "A-Miao is not afraid of evil and filth. You punish evildoers and promote good deeds. What crime is there? Don't mention this matter again in the future."
He called Shen Yang to drag Meng Yuantang away. After they left the courtyard, he stretched out his hand to Xie Miao, "A-Miao, let's go home."
The sun was setting in the west, twilight was falling, and the picturesque scroll of rosy clouds above his head made him even more elegant.
It was his home, she thought, not hers. Her home had been abandoned when her parents died, and after her aunt got married, it lost its last pillar and collapsed in the passage of time.
At the other end, Cui Muli did not receive her response for a very long time. So he simply walked over besides her and took the initiative to hold her hand.
"Go home."
"..." Xie Miao tried to remain polite: "Excuse me, did you forget that you were slapped by me?"
"So what if I remember?"
"If you don't let go, I will slap you again."
"A-Miao, for beating an official of the imperial court, according to the laws of Da Qi, it will be a sentence of one month's imprisonment."
"..."
The deserted house shrank smaller and smaller, and the coldness was diluted by the glow of the sunset. The afterglow followed closely behind the two people, and the two shadows walked forward together, side by side.
Like the wind that has found its direction, it keeps moving forward without any distractions