When the reality was laid bare, thinking back to all her odd behaviors when they were together, Lu Ziyuan felt his heart plummet straight down.

No wonder her attitude towards him softened suddenly, and she no longer mentioned letting Pei Yuqing go.

She even agreed to be intimate with him in the bath last night, took the initiative to hold him, kiss him...

He was overjoyed, thinking she had been moved by him, but it turned out to be just a means to lull him into letting his guard down.

If the tension between them had persisted, once she left the manor, he would have surely had trusted aides watch her closely; escaping wouldn’t have been so easy for her!

Escaped!

With a ’bang’ sound.

The heavy solid wood desk was shattered into pieces with a slap, Lu Ziyuan took a deep breath, but his full chest of anger couldn’t be suppressed, instead, making his cold face show a few savage features.

"Go! Gather the men, block the city gates, and get the person back for me!"

"Yes!" The guard bowed their head in salute and left.

As long as she is still in the city, now that the city gates are sealed, and the search is conducted house to house, she will surely be found.

But if...

Lu Ziyuan looked towards Mingjian standing aside and asked, "Where is that sickly person now?"

"Judging by the time, he should be in Yunzhou City now..." The girl he longed to marry had just run away; Mingjian didn’t dare to look at the master’s face, kept his head extremely low, and whispered, "Miss Xie does not know that person’s whereabouts... she probably didn’t go to find him..."

Perhaps when he got to that point, even he found the credibility quite low and couldn’t continue.

In his heart, a thousand grievances against the runaway Xie Wanqing welled up.

Their young master was an eminent hero, holding sway over the court, cherishing her almost as if holding her on the tip of his heart. When he learned of her troubles, he ignored military affairs and rushed back to save her after several days and nights.

For her, he even knelt before a defeated enemy.

He misunderstood she was humiliated, yet still stayed by her side, treasuring her like a precious jewel.

Such burning love couldn’t warm that cold heart.

At this point, in Mingjian’s eyes, Xie Wanqing had become the epitome of cold-bloodedness and heartlessness.

For a woman without a heart like her, he thought, the same methods should be used against her.

Gentle kindness didn’t work, so using some force and robbery tactics might teach her the lesson. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

In case she grows even more reckless.

Thinking of this, Mingjian mustered up his courage, dropped to one knee, and quickly said, "I must speak my mind; since Miss Xie is so ungrateful, why should you keep seeking her cool face?"

Lu Ziyuan looked at him, his pupils were an unfathomable black, "What do you want to say?"

"I’ve seen how you treat Miss Xie; I dare say any girl in the world would be moved by your devotion, but Miss Xie is so cold-blooded and heartless," Mingjian said, "My point is, a heart that can’t be warmed, it’s better to just leave it be. If you can’t let go, you could keep her in the back courtyard..."

The rest of the words vanished amidst a killer aura.

"Keep her in the back courtyard for what?" Lu Ziyuan squatted in front of him, his crimson eyes were filled with overwhelming killing intent, "As a bed companion?"

For the first time being stared at by his master with such eyes, Mingjian felt cold to the bone. He had been with Lu Ziyuan since childhood, more like a right-hand man than a servant...

And now, his master had a murderous intent toward him.

All because of what he said...

Mingjian’s forehead touched the ground, and he trembled, "I overstepped."

Lu Ziyuan looked down at his rigid back, not asking him to rise.

After a long silence, the deadly aura around him slowly dissipated.

"I know you all are dissatisfied with her leaving me to marry another, but this is between her and me. Just remember, she will be your only mistress, and disrespecting her is disrespecting me. Next time..." he paused, then said, "Those who disrespect her will die."