Chapter 430: She Might Have Been Kidnapped
Liu Lan glared at the Zhang brothers, let out a sharp scoff, and snapped at them:
“How the hell should I know where she went?!
“You two only said you dropped her off at our teahouse entrance—you didn’t actually bring her inside!
“So why are you asking me?
“Who the hell am I supposed to ask?!
“And even if Lady Lan really had come seeking refuge here, why would we turn her away?
“We’re still family, aren’t we?
“Even if she’s fallen on hard times, she’s still my big brother’s woman!”
Yu Shanhai, seeing that his wife was about to throw a tantrum, knew he couldn’t stay silent.
He quickly stepped forward and reassured Yu Zhengqing,
“Big Brother, Lady Lan never entered our shop.
“If we had known she came, we would have taken her in.
“Perhaps you should ask Yu Luo about this.
“If it’s inconvenient for you, I can go ask her instead.”
But Yu Shanhai had forgotten one thing—Yu Zhengqing and Yu Luo’s relationship was far from friendly.
Yu Zhengqing’s face darkened.
“We just came from Yu Luo’s house.
“Then we went to Zhang Yuan’s blacksmith shop.
“Yu Luo already told us—she released Lady Lan.
“Where she went afterward, she doesn’t know.”
Yu Zhengqing knew Yu Luo wouldn’t lie about something like this.
If she intended to harm Lady Lan, she wouldn’t bother hiding it.
That much, he was sure of.
With no other option, Yu Zhengqing, the Zhang brothers, and Yu Shanhai all headed to the City Lord’s Manor.
When Yu Haojie saw them arrive, his brows furrowed in confusion.
“What’s going on?
“You still haven’t found Lady Lan?”
Both father and daughter exchanged a look, sensing that something was off.
If Lady Lan had actually gone to the Second House Teahouse, then the very next day, she would have been escorted back to Stone Mountain.
But now, so many days had passed, and Yu Zhengqing was only now coming to find her.
Clearly, something had gone wrong.
“Yu Luo, my second brother sent Lady Lan to the teahouse entrance that night.
“But he didn’t actually escort her inside.
“Now, Yu Shanhai’s family is saying they never saw her.
“Could you check with the guards who were on gate duty that night?
“If she didn’t leave the city, then she must still be here in Luo City.”
There were many residents in Luo City now.
If Lady Lan had been kidnapped or imprisoned, it was possible that she was still inside the city.
Yu Zhengqing’s eyes betrayed his desperation.
Even though Zhang Yuan had stopped short of saying outright that Lady Lan might have been abducted, Yu Luo caught the implication immediately.
“Summon the guards who were on duty that night.”
If this were Chen Shi, Yu Luo wouldn’t have cared.
In fact, she might have even laughed about it.
Lady Lan, however, was merely Chen Shi’s pawn—a woman who had been struggling to secure a place in the Yu household.
Since Yu Zhengqing had come personally to ask, and all she had to do was question the guards, Yu Luo didn’t refuse.
Before long, Zhang Hu had gathered the guards who had been on duty that night.
After they paid their respects, Yu Luo got straight to the point.
“Tell me exactly what happened that night.”
“Lady Luo, that night, there was an incident in the city.
“Because of that, we closed the gates early.
“I can say with absolute certainty—not a single woman left the city that night.
“In fact, no one left at all.”
One of the guards recalled carefully before responding.
The others nodded in agreement, reaffirming that they had let no one out.
“That’s right!
“It was the first major incident in Luo City, so we were especially vigilant that night.
“We remember everything very clearly.
“There’s no way we made a mistake.”
Hearing their certainty, Yu Zhengqing’s heart sank further into despair.
“Enough.”
Yu Luo turned to Chen Yu.
“Spread the word—search every residential district in the city.
“Be discreet.
“If Lady Lan was abducted and is still within the city, we have to find her.
“If we don’t, that means she was taken outside.”
Chen Yu bowed.
“Understood, Lady Luo.”
He immediately set off with a team to begin the search.
Yu Zhengqing, too anxious to wait, insisted on joining the search himself.
The Zhang brothers, whether out of guilt or some other reason, also tagged along.
By the afternoon, they had searched hundreds of homes—but still found no trace of Lady Lan.
“If someone took her, they must have smuggled her out the next morning.
“At this point, our only hope is to hire people from the martial world to investigate.”
Yu Zhengqing, exhausted, let out a deep sigh.
Yu Luo, however, had nothing left to say.
She had already done enough for Yu Zhengqing—this was as far as she was willing to go.
Yu Zhengqing and his son left the manor, leaving only Yu Luo and her father in the hall.
“Well… I didn’t see this coming,” Yu Haojie muttered.
Yu Luo shrugged, her expression unreadable.
“I already spared her life, didn’t I?
“Maybe this was just her fate.
“I was planning to go visit Chen Shi today to watch her suffer, but I guess I’ll have to wait a few more days.”
Ten days passed.
The harsh winter continued, burying the wilderness under half a meter of snow.
Temperatures had dropped to dangerous lows, making it difficult for people to even leave their homes.
But in Luo City, the greenhouses that Yu Luo had established had begun yielding their first winter crops.
That afternoon, Ye Lü arrived unannounced.
“Yu Luo, the Sixth Prince of Ximo is arriving today.
“I received his letter and came straight here.
“If all goes as planned, he should arrive by sundown.”
Ye Lü had been away from Luo City for some time.
Now, the moment he returned, he rushed to the City Lord’s Manor to inform Yu Luo.
“He’s coming in this weather?”
Yu Luo raised a brow.
“Isn’t he afraid of freezing to death?”
She gestured for Ye Lü to sit, then ordered the servants to bring tea and snacks.
As soon as Ye Lü bit into a warm chestnut pastry, his eyes widened in delight.
He devoured it in seconds, then grabbed another without hesitation.
“Why is the food in your house so damn good?”
Yu Luo laughed.
“My father’s been experimenting with new recipes.
“He has nothing else to do in this cold weather, and since my mother is pregnant, he’s been spoiling her with different treats.”
“You’re lucky,” Ye Lü sighed, taking another sip of milk tea.
“If we sold these in the Eastern Capital, the nobles would throw piles of silver at us.
“Yu Luo, think about it—I’ll provide the store, and you provide the pastries.
“How about it?”
Yu Luo, amused by Ye Lü’s growing obsession with money, smirked.
“Not a bad idea.
“The pastries can last weeks in winter, so we can transport them.
“But first—what about the vegetables I promised you?
“They’re ready for harvest.
“Did you secure a market for them?”
(End of Chapter 430)
