Duanmu Furong, Miss Duanmu.
Early in the morning, Duanmu Furong pulled out a bundle and tossed it to her maid, Hong Yue. "Hold this, we're going out," Duanmu Furong blurted out.
Hong Yue hugged the bundle, not knowing what to do. The Eldest Miss always acted on a whim, but poor Hong Yue was the one who suffered. Duanmu Furong would have the time of her life, completely carefree, but Hong Yue was bound to face a harsh ordeal upon her return.
This time, it even looked like they were setting off on a long journey.
"Hurry up! We're climbing over the wall!" Duanmu Furong was already urging her.
"Climbing the wall? Eldest Miss Duanmu, are you sure? Usually, you never put in any effort..." Hong Yue rolled her eyes at Duanmu Furong, her expression full of disbelief.
"Hong Yue, you really look down on me. Although I may not be as formidable as my brothers, I have at least practiced martial arts." Duanmu Furong put her hands on her hips and glared at Hong Yue, looking thoroughly wronged.
"Fine, fine, Eldest Miss Duanmu is the greatest, the number one unbeatable martial artist in the world, happy now?" Hong Yue tightened her grip on the bundle with a sigh of resignation, frowning deeply as she looked down at what she was holding.
"What's in the bundle?" Hong Yue turned her head to look at Duanmu Furong.
Duanmu Furong had packed the bundle earlier that morning.
"Oh, everything you could possibly need, well... just everything!" Duanmu Furong tightly gripped one of her hands with the other.
Hong Yue opened the bundle to take a look: clothes, some other items, and a pouch of silver taels.
Hong Yue grew even more puzzled and wanted to ask a few more questions. But Duanmu Furong snatched the bundle from Hong Yue's hands, tied it back up, shoved it back into Hong Yue's arms, gave her a gentle shove, and said, "Hurry up, hurry up, stop dawdling, I've got everything ready."
Ready for what? Hong Yue grew even more confused. And besides, why bring so much silver...
Without waiting for objections, Duanmu Furong dragged Hong Yue out of the room, through the covered walkway, out of the courtyard, across the garden, and right up to the courtyard wall. Finding a relatively secluded spot, Duanmu Furong brought out a ladder she had hidden away in advance and said to Hong Yue, "Quick, quick, it'll be bad if we get caught!" With that, she scrambled up onto the wall. With no other choice, Hong Yue had to follow Duanmu Furong out of Duanmu Manor.
Completely ignoring Hong Yue's miserable expression, Duanmu Furong chattered excitedly, "We'll go out and have a great time for a few days before heading back."
"Miss, this is basically running away from home. How can we do this? If you aren't in your boudoir and slip out of the manor without permission, the Master and Madam are going to panic!" Forget about the Miss getting scolded; Hong Yue would be skinned alive! Hong Yue's face turned red with anxiety.
"Panic? Hmph! They won't do anything of the sort! Ever since that Gu Liuyan arrived, Father and Mother have completely forgotten they even have a daughter like me!" The dissatisfaction on Duanmu Furong's face was practically overflowing.
"Miss, you shouldn't talk about the Second Young Madam like that. You never know who might overhear and start gossiping." Hong Yue knew how many people had nothing better to do than stir up trouble—they simply loved drama.
"Hmph! You guys might be afraid of her, but I'm not!" Duanmu Furong said dismissively.
"The Second Young Madam actually..." Hong Yue tried to persuade her further.
"Actually what? Actually, she doesn't have an ounce of human decency! She's only been married into the family for a few days, and she's already starting to squeeze me out. Hmph! Gu Liuyan! Want to push me, Duanmu Furong, out of the picture? In your dreams!" Duanmu Furong said indignantly.
Hong Yue furrowed her brows as she looked at Duanmu Furong. With how intensely hateful she looked, Hong Yue was completely bewildered. How on earth had the Second Young Madam offended the Eldest Miss?
Duanmu Furong was around seventeen or eighteen years old, with a slightly round face, a light touch of powder, and large, jet-black eyes that radiated a clever, spirited energy.
"Miss, why don't you talk to me about what's going on? Look how angry you are. Just tell Hong Yue, and you won't be mad anymore. Tell Hong Yue, and I can help you come up with a plan, right?" Hong Yue said slowly, keeping her eyes on the road, trying to figure out what had happened while feeling rather anxious inside. As they walked and walked, they were soon nearing the city gates.
"Ahem, ahem," Duanmu Furong gave two dry coughs before continuing, "It's... Gu Liuyan arranged a marriage match for me."
...
So Miss Duanmu was running away from an arranged marriage.
But could she run away for a moment and escape for a lifetime?
Hong Yue suddenly felt a bit dizzy.
Hong Yue looked back over her shoulder. No one was chasing after them. Deep down, Hong Yue desperately wished someone would chase them.
Since they had snuck out, Duanmu Furong wasn't worried about anyone following them.
Hong Yue now had a headache the size of a watermelon.
"Then... what kind of family is it?" Hong Yue continued to pry into the gossip.
"Who cares what kind of family it is! I simply refuse!" Duanmu Furong said stubbornly.
Hong Yue raised her sleeve to wipe the sweat from her forehead, feeling a profound sense of helplessness.
Could this... could this problem even be solved?
"Well... what if it's an exceptionally good family?" Hong Yue probed cautiously.
"No matter how good they are, I don't care for them!" Duanmu Furong knitted her brows together. Clearly, she did not like this topic.
There was no way to continue this conversation. Feeling helpless, Hong Yue silently followed alongside Duanmu Furong.
After who knows how long, Duanmu Furong and Hong Yue passed through the city gates, and the signs of human habitation grew increasingly sparse.
"Miss, look!" Hong Yue cried out in surprise.
"What are you making a fuss about?" Duanmu Furong didn't even lift an eyelid.
"The Second Young Master! It's the Second Young Master!" Hong Yue said excitedly.
What?! Second Brother! Duanmu Furong raised her head in panic. Sure enough, a group of men on horseback was clattering toward them, and Duanmu Furong clearly spotted her second brother, Duanmu Shiqing. If Duanmu Shiqing caught her, he would drag her back without a second word.
"Stop shouting!" Duanmu Furong yelled, hastily grabbing Hong Yue and pulling her to hide in the nearby woods. Duanmu Furong kept her eyes fixed on the approaching horsemen, praying silently that they wouldn't be discovered.
Hong Yue wanted to call out to the Second Young Master so he could take the Miss back home, but although Duanmu Furong was usually easygoing, Hong Yue was still somewhat afraid of her—especially since her mouth was currently covered by Duanmu Furong's hand...
For reasons unknown, however, as if suddenly remembering something, the group of horsemen turned around and rode back the way they came.
Duanmu Furong steadied her nerves and then said to Hong Yue, "We can't just leave like this." Her second brother would most likely return in a little while... With that, Duanmu Furong pulled Hong Yue deeper into the woods.
Hong Yue, however, objected, "What if there are wolves out here in the wilderness?" Hong Yue wasn't trying to scare Duanmu Furong; she was genuinely thinking of the Miss's safety, as well as her own.
"You're here, aren't you?" Duanmu Furong pulled Hong Yue along as she walked.
"Me?! Miss, do you really think I can beat a wolf? Can you honestly expect me to fight off a pack of wolves?" Hong Yue frowned angrily, raising her voice a few decibels as her emotions flared up.
"I'm here too, aren't I?" Duanmu Furong remained unconcerned, as if everything Hong Yue mentioned was completely negligible.
"Depending on you, Miss? I might as well depend on a pig." Hong Yue knew Duanmu Furong all too well. She had some martial arts skills, but she was too playful and lazy to practice, practically returning everything she had learned back to her master. She truly wasn't even as skilled as Hong Yue.
"Hong Yue, you're getting bolder by the day, aren't you?" Being compared to a pig—and rated *worse* than a pig—even with Duanmu Furong's good temper, she couldn't help glaring angrily at Hong Yue.
Hong Yue shrank back a little, muttering under her breath, "It's the truth, anyway. You shouldn't get mad just because someone speaks the truth."
"What did you say?!" Duanmu Furong glared at Hong Yue, her eyes filled with resentment.
Duanmu Furong detested people who gossiped behind her back more than anything else.
"I said, it's just getting married, why is the Miss acting like she's dodging the plague?" Hong Yue raised her voice.
"You get married if you want to," Duanmu Furong snapped back unreasonably.
...
Was that the same thing? You're the Eldest Miss, and Hong Yue is just a maid. Could marriage just happen on a whim for anyone?
"Then what does the Miss plan to do? What do the Master and Madam have to say about this?"
"Father and Mother haven't said what they want yet," Duanmu Furong said, frowning as she pondered for a moment.
What?! Hong Yue's jaw practically hit the ground. She was starting to suspect that the Miss had simply made up an excuse to run away.