Unarmored | Chapter 55 | Flight at Dawn | Novela.app

The Sun Mansion was silent the next morning, the air thick with the stale, sour stench of wine left over from the revelry. Within the secluded courtyard where Tian Wei’er was kept, a figure crept stealthily out of the house. She wore the clothes of a maidservant, though her hair was pinned up in a messy, haphazard fashion. She tiptoed past the snoring pages and maids slumped by the door, glancing around warily before heading out of the courtyard. Hearing the footsteps fade into the distance, Xiao Nanhui finally opened her eyes. She glanced at Wu Xiaoliu, who was sleeping like a log beside her, before rising to follow. Tian Wei’er’s pace quickened, her heart thumping against her ribs. This was the first time she had ever dressed herself without the help of a servant. Her wedding robes were too conspicuous and the ornaments in her hair far too grand, so she had discarded them all. Unfortunately, she did not know how to style a "Floating Cloud" bun herself, so she had simply twisted her hair up and tucked away a single favorite hairpin to take with her. However, these minor frustrations vanished the moment she thought of the person she was about to see. A smile as sweet as honey touched her lips. Her gait lost all the dignified grace expected of a well-bred young lady as she broke into a light run. The guest courtyards in the Sun Mansion were all located on the eastern side to prevent the scorching afternoon sun from overheating the rooms. Though the seven or eight courtyards were separated, they were actually interconnected. Only the innermost courtyard had a back gate, intended for the convenience of the cleaning servants. At this hour, the masters of each courtyard were still deep in their dreams. Aside from the night watchmen, no servant would be foolish enough to start cleaning the yards yet. However, a figure stood by the back gate of that guest courtyard. the man paced restlessly, glancing toward both ends of the corridor from time to time. Before long, Tian Wei’er appeared at the end of the path. Seeing the man at the gate, the excitement and joy she had suppressed for so long finally overflowed. "Brother Han!" Jia Han’s face, pale from lack of sleep, finally regained some color at her call. He carefully took the hands of the girl who came flying toward him, though he did not yet dare to embrace her. "Wei’er." The young woman gripped her lover’s hands tightly, as if she had a thousand words to pour out, but they turned into bitter grievance the moment they reached her lips. Before she could speak, her tears began to fall. The man frantically tried to wipe away her tears, his eyes filled with both heartache and regret. "Wei’er, don't... don't cry. It’s all my fault. I should have come for you sooner." Tian Wei’er shook her head and finally whispered, "It is enough that you came." Jia Han gently brushed the girl’s soft hair, his heart aching with a mixture of bitterness and tenderness. He gritted his teeth and said, "I will definitely take you away from here." Recalling her lover’s words at the banquet the previous night, Tian Wei’er was filled with both joy and moved emotion. Just as she was about to speak, two muffled groans suddenly erupted from the bushes beside the corridor, followed by the sound of heavy objects hitting the ground. The two lovebirds were startled. Jia Han forced himself to remain calm, slowly turning to look behind him, only to see a pair of feet being dragged slowly into the shrubbery. "Who... who is there?" His voice trembled. No one answered from the bushes; there was only a rustling sound. Taking a deep breath, he spoke again, his voice louder this time. "Who—" He had barely uttered two words when a figure suddenly stood up from the grass. "Stop shouting. Do you want everyone to come out and watch your secret tryst?" Tian Wei’er widened her eyes as she studied the maid, who was dressed only in her inner robes. She felt the woman looked somewhat familiar. "Why are you here..." Xiao Nanhui made a shushing gesture and tilted her head to listen. Once she was certain no one else was nearby, she beckoned impatiently to Jia Han. "Come and give me a hand." Jia Han stood dazed for a moment before stepping forward. To his shock, he found three or four men dressed as guards lying haphazardly in the grass. "Drag them behind the bushes so they aren't discovered." After a flurry of activity, Xiao Nanhui looked at the still-bewildered Young Master Jia and said, "Did you really think that man named Sun kept you here because he was actually considering selling her to you?" Jia Han looked convinced. "Was he not?" Taking a deep breath, Xiao Nanhui decided to knock some sense into this dull-witted young master. "The Tian family are not of the slave class. They married off a daughter; they didn't sell a domestic entertainer. Where would a deed of sale even come from? Without a deed, and with the Sun family having conducted a formal marriage, even if you paid the silver and took her away, the Sun family could snatch her back at any moment." Jia Han’s face grew paler and paler. "How... how could that be?" "Furthermore, I saw how that man Sun looked at your lavish spending. He likely intends to detain you as well. Just now, you were meeting a female member of his household in private. If I hadn't dealt with the men lying in wait, they would have caught you red-handed. They would have slapped you with a charge of enticing a new bride to elope. If you wanted to keep your life, your family would have had to pay a fortune to ransom you." Tian Wei’er’s face also turned white as she listened. "Then what should we do?" Xiao Nanhui held up two fingers. "Two choices. First, you go back and continue being Governor Sun’s wife and never think of eloping for the rest of your life. Young Master Jia can find an excuse—saying he’s going home for money or that his father is ill—and leave this place immediately, never to return." She paused, about to state the second option, when Tian Wei’er interrupted her with a look of determination. "There is no need to say more. We choose the second." Xiao Nanhui blinked, realizing that this girl was actually much more decisive than she appeared. ****** ****** ****** Fifteen minutes later, a patrol was making its rounds near the back gate of the Sun Mansion. The guard had been on the night shift for several hours and was at his most exhausted. Seeing his relief approaching from a distance, a hint of doubt rose in his mind. The night watchman hadn't passed by yet; it should still be a while before the shift change. Before he could ask, the newcomer stood below the watchtower and shouted, "Ke Sang told me to replace you. He wants you to go keep an eye on the guest courtyard." The guard frowned. "Which guest courtyard?" "Which one do you think? The guests staying with Lord Bai, of course." The guard’s expression cleared. The boss had said long ago that the person named Yan Zi staying in that courtyard was a difficult character and that Governor Sun had instructed them to pay extra attention. Without thinking further, he climbed down the watchtower. Just as he was about to hand over his post, he looked up and realized the man had an unfamiliar face. He was about to question him when a dark shadow suddenly descended behind him. A single palm strike to the neck knocked him unconscious. Xiao Nanhui clapped her hands and stepped forward to perform a quick check. Once certain he was truly out, she dragged him to a hidden spot. Young Master Jia, now dressed in a guard’s uniform, felt a lingering fear. He called out to Tian Wei’er, who was hiding by the back gate. The three of them took the guard’s camel and hurried toward the valley entrance that led to the Gobi Desert. As the ground beneath them turned back into hard, dry yellow sand, Xiao Nanhui handed the camel’s lead to Jia Han. She thought for a moment and couldn't help but ask the question that had been on her mind: "Actually, I’ve been wondering—without a guide and being all alone, how did you manage to cross Sanmu Pass before?" Hearing her ask this, a strange light flickered in Jia Han’s eyes, and his tone took on a hint of excitement. "Even now, I find it somewhat unbelievable. That night, I reached Sanmu Pass in the middle of the night. My waterskin had been empty for days, and I was so thirsty I could hardly bear it. I was looking for an oasis to see if I could beg for some water, but instead, I ran into a pack of wolves." Xiao Nanhui listened silently, not at all surprised. Water was the most precious thing in the Gobi, and at night, wolf packs loved to wait by water sources for thirsty prey to deliver themselves. "I thought my life was over, but then I suddenly heard the sound of a zither. That music was truly as lofty as a kite soaring above peaks, as a swimming dragon descending into a deep abyss..." "Wait." Xiao Nanhui felt something was off and couldn't help but interrupt. "How could there be zither music in the Gobi?" Jia Han grew even more animated. "I thought it was strange too, but what happened next was even stranger. The wolves seemed cowed by the music and didn't dare move. Then, a swordsman in green suddenly descended from the sky. With lightning speed, he decapitated one of the wolves, and the rest scattered like birds and beasts. They say Sanmu Pass is like the gates of hell and few travel it at night. Looking back, perhaps Heaven was helping Wei’er and me by sparing my life..." Xiao Nanhui’s head began to ache as she listened. Thoughts swirled in her mind as she tried to connect the dots, but she couldn't quite grasp the key. "You’re saying someone rescued you from the wolves? Were the zither player and the swordsman the same person?" "They were not. The swordsman was the swordsman, and the zither player was someone else. Actually, before I saw the zither player, I thought he would be an old man in his eighties. The level of mastery in that music is something few zitherists could achieve even after forty years of bitter practice. But when I saw him, he was only in his twenties. It was truly astonishing." Hearing this, Xiao Nanhui finally felt a sense of recognition. The flickering shadow she had seen on the cliff at Sanmu Pass flashed through her mind. She asked almost instinctively, "Was the zither player wearing anything on his hands?" Jia Han paused for a moment, then nodded as if remembering something. "He was wearing something... it seemed to be a string of beads. Come to think of it, zither players rarely wear anything on their wrists, but he didn't seem affected at all. I suppose he must have been used to it for a long time. Ah, I even spoke with him about the Way of the Zither; his insights were truly extraordinary..." Xiao Nanhui could no longer focus on the rest of his words. A young man, wearing Buddhist prayer beads, accompanied by a highly skilled swordsman in green. Only one thought remained in her mind: *Could this be too much of a coincidence?* *Why... why is he everywhere?!* Perhaps the expression on Xiao Nanhui’s face was too conflicted, for Jia Han seemed to notice. He stared at her with innocent eyes and asked, "What is it? Is something wrong?" Naturally, she couldn't explain what was wrong, so she brushed it off. "It’s nothing. It just sounds very unusual, so I was thinking about it." Seeing that they were about to enter the Gobi, she stopped and gave them some final instructions. "The Sun family will eventually discover you’ve escaped and will surely send men after you. Once you pass Sanmu Pass, it’s best not to return directly to Suyan. The Gobi is dangerous, but it’s also a good place to hide. If you ration your food and water, you can last half a month. Once this period passes, find a way to head straight for Tong City." Tian Wei’er looked at Xiao Nanhui again. After what seemed like a struggle to make up her mind, she said, "Why... why don't you come with us!" Xiao Nanhui shook her head. "I have other things to do. I can't leave just yet." "But what if they find out we escaped and make things difficult for you?" Xiao Nanhui felt a warmth in her heart, and the image of that fat fellow flashed through her mind. In truth, she had originally planned to find a nearby cave to hide in after sending these two off, waiting for Pan Mei’er to return to the stronghold so she could follow her. But when she thought of that fat Wu Xiaoliu, she felt a pang of pity. She had already let Tian Wei’er go. If she just up and left as well, Wu Xiaoliu would definitely suffer for it. She smiled and said casually, "I’m a servant; I’m used to people making things difficult for me." "Thank you." Tian Wei’er suddenly grabbed Xiao Nanhui’s hand and whispered, "Actually, I knew before that you weren't from our household. I may be a young mistress, but I still recognize my family's servants." Xiao Nanhui stared into the fawn-like eyes of the pink-cheeked girl and felt herself blush slightly. "That... as I said, you don't need to take it to heart. It was just a small effort." Young Master Jia cupped his fists in the manner of a martial artist. "I am Jia Han, from Jiangbei in Lizhou. We are eternally grateful for your rescue, Heroine. If in the future..." Xiao Nanhui didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Forget the future. If you two don't leave now, the next shift of guards will arrive, and everything will be exposed. Then no one will be able to leave." Tian Wei’er nodded solemnly. Without another word of farewell, she took Jia Han’s hand and climbed onto the camel. The two of them swayed as they rode off into the distance. Xiao Nanhui watched their clumsy retreating figures with a complex expression. One was the son of a wealthy merchant, the other a daughter of a prominent family. Since birth, they had lived lives of luxury, served by others. Now, they were to sleep in the wild amidst the yellow sands. They looked like they couldn't even lead a camel properly, let alone take care of themselves in such a harsh environment. Yet the way they looked at each other was so full of peace. It seemed that as long as they were together, they would never fear the unknown hardships ahead. The word "love" makes people lose their reason, but it also makes them strong. Such a sentiment was something Xiao Nanhui had never experienced herself. Her feelings for Xiao Zhun always carried three parts awe, three parts gratitude, two parts caution, and one part cowardice. The truly sweet part left for her probably didn't even amount to one percent. She stared blankly at the sky and the dusty horizon for a moment before turning and walking quickly back toward the Sun Mansion. *** **Glossary** Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation ---|---|--- 流云髻 | Floating Cloud Bun | A traditional Chinese hairstyle. 贾翰 | Jia Han | The lover of Tian Wei'er. 克桑 | Ke Sang | A name of a guard/servant. 白大人 | Lord Bai | Likely referring to Bai Shijue. 燕紫 | Yan Zi | The alias used by the protagonist's group. 宿岩 | Suyan | A place name. 彤城 | Tong City | A place name. 肖准 | Xiao Zhun | A significant character Xiao Nanhui has feelings for.