If there was a lock, there was definitely a key. Qi Qingzhu left the room and went to the back courtyard. She went to the toilet for a bit and then came back. Qi Qingzhu thought that she needed to test her mother a bit and ask her where the key was. She did not see any keys when she was looking around just now.
She returned to the hall and sat in front of the brazier, warming up with everyone. Qi Qingzhu was a little absent-minded, her gaze sneakily searching her mother twice.
It seemed like…
Qi Qingzhu contemplated for a bit and decided she could only soak her mother’s clothes. While it would be really unfortable to get wet in this winter weather, she still had to get her to take off her clothes so she could look through the sleeves of the clothes and any other places.
She would do whatever she said.
Qi Qingzhu went and brewed a pot of tea. When she brought it over, she pretended to trip, knocking over a tea bowl and spilling the water all over Madam Wu.
The hot tea splashed all over Madam Wu. She gave a start and hurriedly stood up, snarling, “How do you even walk?”
Qi Qingzhu hurriedly apologized.
Seeing that the cotton jacket was soaked, Madam Wu raged, “Honesty! It’s already winter and I’m soaked in tea now. It’s a good thing my winter clothes are thick. So only the surface got wet and I wasn’t burned to death by the hot water! If this happened in the summer, I would have skinned you!”
Qi Qingzhu smiled and supported Madam Wu up. With a smile, she said, “Mother, let’s go in, e on. You need to take off this wet coat and change into a new one quickly lest you catch a cold.”
Madam Wu did not suspect anything amiss.
She followed Qi Qingzhu into the house.
Madam Wu took off the top cotton coat and a key fell out from the cotton coat sleeve. Qi Qingzhu pretended to pick up her clothes and then sneakily palmed the key. She proceeded to dry the cotton coat on the shelf.
Madam Wu changed into another cotton-padded jacket and then left.
Qi Qingzhu thought, ‘Mother did not suspect anything.’ Perhaps it was because she had not brought up her younger sister’s name when she came back this time.
Qi Qingzhu took the key and quickly opened the chest. She flipped through the bottom of the box and found a hard object. Qi Qingzhu fished it out—it turned out to be an old handkerchief. She unfolded the handkerchief to find a jade tablet and a white jade thumb ring tucked inside the cloth.
Qi Qingzhu was a little excited. She hurriedly scooped the items into her arms. Then, she closed the box and locked it back up!
She hurried back and stuffed the key back into the sleeve of the soaked cotton jacket.
Since she already got what she needed, she wanted to rush to Longmen Inn in Baishui Town as soon as possible.
Qi Qingzhu came out of the room, but she did not dare to leave immediately, for fear that it would be too conspicuous. She sat outside and chatted with everyone for a while longer. After taking her afternoon meal, she saw that the rain had gotten a little lighter and took the initiative to say, “Mother, the rain has subsided a little now. I will head back to my husband’s house first before he gets angry. ”
Madam Wu saw nothing wrong with that and exhorted, “Be careful on your way back. It’s been raining for the past two days, the roads are slippery. When you’re home, tell your husband that you came back late because of the rain.”
Qi Qingzhu smiled and agreed. She put on her rain cape and bamboo hat before she left the village.
It had been raining for two consecutive days and the surface of the roads was slippery with mud.
There were no carriages or carts on the road; Qi Qingzhu was all alone as she trudged quietly back to Baishui Town. She even slipped a few times.
The light rain was still drizzling.
Soon, night fell and the land was shrouded in dark, cloudy rain.
Since the terrain was difficult to walk on, it was half-past seven in the evening when Qi Qingzhu finally arrived in Baishui Town.
The inn server was taken aback when they saw a mud-covered person at the entrance of the inn.
How filthy.
Qi Qingzhu took off her hat and robes before she dared to enter the inn.
“Miss, are you here for some rest, or are you looking for a room?”
“I… am looking for my younger sister.”
“Your younger sister?” The servant asked confusedly.
“My younger sister is the lady who has three kids with her! She stays at your inn,” Qi Qingzhu said anxiously.
The servant glanced at the girl with surprise, then said, “Oh, you’re talking about that girl. She checked out on the third day of the Lunar New Year.”
“She left?” Qi Qingzhu was so devastated at that moment she could cry. Had she missed her again? Where had her sister gone to now?
“That’s right, said she won’t be back for some time,” the servant supplied kindly.
“Did she say where she was headed?” Qi Qingzhu hurriedly asked.
The Longmen Inn servant knew the beautiful woman with her three children. She had stayed at their inn for a long time and was very humble, so they were very happy to answer her questions. “They seemed to have followed Heir Pei and gone to Qingzhou City together.”
“Ah!!” Qi Qingzhu was stunned.
She, she, she, she, she just came back from Qingzhou City.
Yet in the end, her sister had gone to Qingzhou City…
It seemed like she had to return to Qingzhou City quickly or she would miss her again!
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