So, Yang Ruyu took the little silver she usually clutched tightly and hired a carriage to go to the county town. Of course, she didn’t know that her whereabouts had already been revealed to Yang Ruxin.
It was easy to find the Baosheng Inn in Baihua County. It was not far from the entrance to the county town. Although its location was somewhat remote, the environment and facilities were good, attracting mostly wealthy people who preferred a quieter stay.
Yang Ruyu stood at the entrance of the inn, gazed at the imposing, gold-plated signboard, took a deep breath, and then stepped inside.
"Miss, are you here to stay or to dine?" Xiao’er came over politely, showing no negligence due to Yang Ruyu’s unimpressive attire.
"I’m looking for someone," Yang Ruyu said, showing a very pretty smile, "Is there a Master Qi staying here? He’s a very handsome and aristocratic gentleman, and he’s with someone who looks like a guard..."
"Master Qi?" Xiao’er frowned slightly, then nodded, "Yes, there was an aristocratic gentleman with the Qi surname who stayed in the Tianzihao room, but he checked out and left half an hour ago..."
"What?" Yang Ruyu exclaimed without regard for her image, "He left?"
Xiao’er jumped, looking at her with eyes as if he had seen a ghost.
Yang Ruyu quickly realized her lapse, and smiled awkwardly, "I’m just a bit surprised. We had agreed to meet to discuss matters, but now..." she sighed, "Did he mention when he might return?"
The inn’s Xiao’er also let out a sigh of relief, quickly shaking his head, but with a hint of disdain, this woman probably was looking to climb the social ladder, but he responded without any neglect, "The gentleman stayed for three nights, and when he left, he didn’t say if he would come back. But if Miss has a message, we can keep it for you, and pass it on if he returns..."
Yang Ruyu frowned, not knowing what to do for a moment, but quickly turned and left.
Xiao’er paused, then sneered and went about his business.
Yang Ruyu dared not leave a message for a man – what if someone else found out? But she was filled with immense annoyance. How could she have missed him? If she hadn’t delayed that little bit this morning, would she have met him by now? But what should she do now?
She really didn’t want to go back to the Tian Family, and even less to the Yang Family; both places filled her with revulsion.
She didn’t want to return to Budong Village because the Yang Family’s troubles made her feel ashamed, but the Tian Family, at first, seemed okay; they provided good food, and the grandmother even bought her new clothes and a silver bracelet. However, last night when she went to the outhouse, Uncle Tian Geng suddenly barged in. Thankfully, she was already pulling up her trousers. It might have seemed accidental, but then Tian Jialiang sneaked onto her bed that same night. Had she not screamed, who knows what would have happened...
She wasn’t foolish. How could there be so many accidents in the world? It was clear that... she finally realized that this grandmother didn’t truly like Yang Baihe; she was coveting the girls of the Yang Family, with Yang Baihe merely being a pretext. No wonder they insisted on bringing Erni along before – with Erni’s temperament, she would have likely been devoured by the Tian men long ago, yet here she was, foolish enough to have insisted on coming...