Chapter 10: 9 Encountering the Kidnapper: A Narrow Path for Enemies

As a result, Rong Jichang did not go out with his circle of literary friends to compose poetry and admire the moon today. Instead, he was overcome with fatherly affection, intending to personally lead Rong Jie and Rong Yin out to see the lanterns. When A-Wu saw this, she grew so anxious that she nearly ruined her hard-won reputation as a lady, nearly jumping up in protest.

Having been deeply instructed by his wife, Rong Jichang had no intention of bringing A-Wu along.

In the end, A-Wu bit her lip, blinked her large eyes, and while her heart was spitting blood, her exterior remained lovely as she opened her arms toward Rong Jichang. "Daddy, hug."

Her composure broke.

Rong Jichang eagerly stepped forward to pick A-Wu up. Ever since she had "grown up" over the past six months, this daughter of his had been extremely averse to physical closeness; even when he occasionally wanted to scent her apple-like little face, she wouldn't allow it. Now that he was suddenly receiving such treatment, how could Rong Jichang not be overjoyed?

His youngest daughter's body was soft and fragrant, like a sweet-smelling dough dumpling, melting Rong Jichang's heart into mush. Even if A-Wu were to ask for the stars in the sky at this moment, he would be willing to build a ladder to pluck them down for her.

A-Wu hugged Rong Jichang's neck and sniffed him. Fortunately, there was no strange smell and it was tolerable, but she still quite disdainfully moved her head half a foot away. However, this action did not affect Rong Jichang's love for his daughter in the slightest.

Thus, with a face full of smiles, Rong Jichang carried A-Wu out the main gate, followed by Rong Jie and Rong Yin.

A-Wu was wearing a bright red cotton padded jacket embroidered with gold thread and hibiscus patterns, paired with a pale yellow skirt embroidered with trailing hibiscus. She wore the double-fish jade pendant bestowed by the Old Master during the New Year, and her hair was styled in flower bud buns, making her look like a New Year's painting doll. Most wonderful of all was that, fearing she would get cold, her wet nurse had specially brought her a rabbit hat, a favorite for children during the New Year.

A-Wu's rabbit hat was not expensive, made of snow-white rabbit fur, but her wet nurse's hands were very skillful. The two rabbit ears stood pointedly upright, just tucked into her flower bud hair buns, looking particularly perky. Once worn, it made everyone melt with cuteness; anyone who saw her couldn't help but want to scent her plump, tender little face.

Rong Jichang couldn't bear to let A-Wu walk on the ground and carried her the whole way, smiling foolishly with a sense of shared pride. Any passerby on the road would stop and look back at A-Wu; the bold ones even wanted to step forward to tease her, prompting A-Wu to let out a coquettish cry and bury her head in Rong Jichang's neck.

Although A-Wu had been pampered by her parents in her previous life, she had never experienced being carried by her father for such a long distance. For a moment, while encircling Rong Jichang's neck, she didn't find this "stinky man" of a father so repulsive after all.

Walking along the bustling street, A-Wu's sharp eyes spotted a bookstore. Mimicking the tone of her four-year-old eldest niece from the Duke of Anguo's manor, she said, "Daddy, books." In truth, even that earlier "Daddy, hug" was learned from her eldest niece; it was simply that A-Wu, a woman who had once been in her twenties, had long forgotten how to act like a child.

"Ah, does our A-Wu want to read books?" Rong Jichang patted A-Wu's rabbit ears.

A-Wu endured it. *You think you can just pat me like a cat or a dog?*

Rong Jichang was also a lover of books. Since his beloved daughter liked them, he figured he might as well take her inside for a stroll and perhaps buy her some calligraphy practice sheets, as A-Wu's calligraphy had been improving lately.

To his surprise, everything A-Wu flipped through were contemporary prose works, leaving Rong Jichang quite astonished. A-Wu ignored his surprise, flipped to a book she was looking for, and placed it directly into Rong Jie's hands. "Brother, look."

So she was buying it for Jie-ge'er; the siblings were truly affectionate. Rong Jichang paid the money with a beaming smile.

After leaving the bookstore, Rong Yin pulled A-Wu around to look at everything, pointing out interesting little trinkets to her: bamboo-woven grasshoppers, sugar-blown figurines, and five-colored spinning windmills. As A-Wu watched, she regained a sense of childhood whimsy. Er, actually, most of Lady A-Wu's childhood had been spent lying in bed, so today's sense of whimsy felt exceptionally interesting.

Those little toys were the missing chapters of Princess Kangning's childhood, and unexpectedly, they were being realized here. The two children, looking like a pair of golden boy and jade girl, ran and laughed while holding hands, and A-Wu also cast aside all the precepts of being virtuous and tranquil.

"Yin-ge'er, watch your sister carefully!" Rong Jichang could only shout from behind as the two little monkeys ran ahead, making it difficult to catch up to the two little things.

Rong Yin was a child after all; he responded verbally, but whether he actually listened in his heart was anyone's guess. There was a monkey performer by the roadside, and the two little ones squeezed in with great interest to watch. Taking advantage of their small size, A-Wu and Rong Yin ducked into the very front of the crowd, leaving Rong Jichang and his party standing on the periphery.

By the time the performance ended and the performer held out a tray to collect money, the crowd dispersed with a roar. For a moment, Rong Jichang lost sight of the two little ones, and by the time he found them, only Rong Yin was left before his eyes.

Rong Jichang turned pale with fright, and Rong Yin began to wail loudly. Being children only ten years apart, Rong Jie grew so anxious that he began to scold and hit Rong Yin. The family servants had already scattered to search everywhere.

As it happened, A-Wu had indeed been eyed by a group of human traffickers.

From afar in the crowd, one could see that little girl, like a bright pearl amidst the dew, laughing unrestrainedly in her father's arms, possessing a radiance she herself was unaware of.

A man like Li the Swindler had never seen such a beautiful little girl in his life. Seeing her, his predatory instincts flared, thinking he could surely sell her for a high price.

Thus, taking advantage of the dispersing crowd, he approached, gave a signal to his accomplices to block her father's party, and separated Rong Yin. A-Wu was initially unaware, but as soon as Li the Swindler drew near, she was nauseated by his scent. She whipped her head around to see a man with ill intentions staring intently at her. A-Wu was not a real child after all; startled, she lost her bearings and tried to push through the crowd to run.

Li the Swindler did not expect the little girl to be so alert and lunged after her.

A-Wu had never experienced such things before. In her panic, she accidentally ran in the opposite direction of Rong Jichang and the others, and her cries were swallowed by the crowd. She had no choice but to run with all her might. Fortunately, although she was small and had short legs, she was agile. In the crowded space, she darted through the gaps between people's legs. Unable to catch her immediately, Li the Swindler used a tactic, shouting, "Miss, don't be afraid! This old servant can't keep up with you!"

The surrounding people had initially found it strange that a grown man was chasing a little girl, but now they realized it was a servant chasing his young mistress, so they did not step forward to intervene.

Just as she was about to be caught by Li the Swindler and was feeling incredibly anxious, a pair of black boots embroidered with gold dragons and inlaid with gemstones appeared before her eyes.

A-Wu looked up.

The person before her was like a fallen immortal, with eyes like stars and a nose like a hanging gallbladder. He was tall and slender, with an open temperament and a refined, radiant spirit—a figure of phoenix-like grace that seemed otherworldly. One couldn't help but praise him as a man of "unrivaled, exquisite beauty."

Unfortunately, A-Wu did not know how to appreciate beauty.

They say that enemies never meet by chance, yet A-Wu's greatest enemy from her previous life had just appeared right before her eyes.

Who could have imagined that such an elegant, transcendent figure, as pure as a bright pearl or morning dew, would actually be that very man—the Emperor Zhengyuan, who eventually rebelled, murdered his brother, and wielded his blade to slaughter the capital, a name that made people turn pale with fear.

Both "Zheng" and "Yuan"—it was as if he were afraid people wouldn't know his imperial title was of dubious origin.

Because of differing political views, the Grand Princess had long disliked this Fourth Prince, who was born after the Empress Dowager's period of filial piety and chastity, and instead supported the Sixth Prince born of the current Empress. Naturally, one could imagine the fate of the Grand Princess's manor after Emperor Zhengyuan ascended the throne.

At that time, A-Wu was already dead, her soul wandering the world. Having witnessed the subsequent events, she harbored a deep hatred and loathing for this Emperor Zhengyuan.

This Emperor Zhengyuan was vindictive; against his former enemies, he would strike with his blade, harvesting them completely. Even as the cries of the capital's noble families shook the heavens and blood flowed for three days without ceasing, he remained undisturbed in his sleep.

As for the Grand Princess, this Emperor Zhengyuan specifically did not give her a quick end. Being cut by a blunt knife was the true definition of pain; in the end, he forced the Grand Princess to lose all her dignity, making her kneel on the ground in repentance and begging for mercy.

To A-Wu's mother, the Grand Princess, life was not precious, but that pride she held so dear was the most valuable thing. Yet Emperor Zhengyuan did not want her life; he wanted to utterly destroy her dignity.

A-Wu had not experienced this personally, but witnessing it had already left her face covered in tears of blood.

She hadn't expected that their paths would cross so narrowly, and that she would actually run into him.

With wolves in front and tigers behind, countless thoughts flashed through A-Wu's mind. Now, she had no choice but to "invite the wolf to drive away the tiger."

"Brother, save me." A-Wu looked up with a face full of terror, her large eyes tearful as she looked to Chu Mao for help.

Currently, Chu Mao was only a youth of sixteen by nominal age. Counting from his lineage, he was indeed A-Wu's cousin from her previous life, so it was only right for A-Wu to call him "Brother." It was just that A-Wu felt a sense of disgust in her heart, but since she had a request, she would set aside her grievances for now and use cuteness to seek help first. A-Wu was not a "good woman" who lacked flexibility.

This little girl who suddenly bumped into his sight caused the usually indifferent Chu Mao to pause.

*This girl has eyes as brilliant as stars,* Chu Mao thought. He had seen many beauties; the current Noble Consort Xiang was the famous number one beauty of the Great Xia Dynasty, yet even she did not possess such eyes that made one forget the mortal world upon a single glance. One could imagine that when this girl grew up, she would surely be a beauty.

The guard following Chu Mao, Liu Xiang, was also startled. He wondered which family this little girl belonged to that had run out alone. She was truly too cute; her face was redder than the tenderest peach blossoms in spring, her little mouth was pinker and more translucent than rose jelly, and she had a chubby body with snow-white wrists like lotus stems wearing a pair of gold bracelets. Most adorable of all were those rabbit ears; the girl was as cute and festive as a New Year's painting doll.

Seeing A-Wu, even the heart of this habitually cold-blooded and bloodthirsty guard softened.

Chu Mao's heart was also softened by those rabbit ears, thinking that if his future daughter could be as jade-like and adorable as this little girl, he would be satisfied.

It was no wonder Chu Mao was thinking so much at such a young age; it was simply that the princes in the palace learned the ways of the world early, with palace maids teaching them by the age of fourteen or fifteen.

"Miss!" Seeing that A-Wu had stopped, Li the Swindler stepped forward to grab her, shouting, "Come back with me quickly!"