Shen Residence.
Uncle Lin stood before Shen Mo with a group of servants, none of them daring to breathe too loudly. In front of Shen Mo lay a pile of rags—the very "rope" Lixi had used to escape.
Shen Mo’s face was dark. "What is the meaning of this?"
Uncle Lin spoke with trembling caution, "Young Master, the Young Mistress... she climbed out the window using these strips of cloth and fled. By the time we discovered it, she was already gone."
Shen Mo grabbed a cup from the side and hurled it at Uncle Lin, roaring, "A bunch of useless trash! You couldn't even keep an eye on one person. What do I pay you for?"
Uncle Lin was struck and staggered, unable to stand steady, yet no one dared to step forward to help him.
Once Shen Mo had vented some of his anger, he sat back down on the sofa, his mind racing through all the places Lixi might have gone. In Kyoto, she had no friends, no connections, and no money. With her family gone, where could she possibly go?
Just then, Shen Mo’s executive assistant, Jiang Tao, hurried into the room. He walked quickly to Shen Mo’s side, leaned down, and whispered a few words into his ear.
Shen Mo’s eyes sharpened instantly. He said coldly, "Bring him in."
A short while later, Xiao Liu was brought in. Seeing Shen Mo’s grim expression, his palms broke out in a cold sweat.
Shen Mo scrutinized Xiao Liu, his voice laced with chill. "Where is the woman you saw last night?"
Xiao Liu swallowed hard and stammered, "I... I don’t know. She said she had been kicked out, and I assumed she didn't live in the Eastern District anymore, so I helped her get out."
Shen Mo’s expression darkened further. He asked, "Did she say where she was going?"
Sensing that Shen Mo still cared about the woman, Xiao Liu wondered if he was unaware that she had been abused. He answered honestly, "No. But she seemed to be in terrible shape. She said she hadn't eaten in two days, so she couldn't have gone very far. Judging by the direction she headed, she was going toward the city center."
Shen Mo waved his hand to have Xiao Liu taken away, then gave a cold command: "Tell the patrol team I don’t want to see this man again."
Xiao Liu stiffened upon hearing this, but he quickly turned toward the door. *Do you think I want to see a pervert like you? Locking someone in the house for two days without food—is that something a human being does?* If he had known, he would have kept his mouth shut; he was going to lose his job anyway.
Once Xiao Liu was gone, Shen Mo turned to Uncle Lin and demanded sharply, "What is going on? I only told you to watch her; I never said you shouldn't feed her!"
"Uncle Lin, if you don't want this job anymore, take everyone in your family and get out of the Shen Residence!"
Terrified, Uncle Lin’s legs gave way. He fell to his knees, weeping, "Young Master, this... this was the Young Master’s idea. The Young Master said the Young Mistress wasn't allowed to eat unless she apologized for hitting him. I... I was afraid of offending the Young Master, so I..."
Upon hearing this, Shen Mo stood up in a rage and kicked Uncle Lin, bellowing, "You fool! You listen to a five-year-old child? I am the master of the Shen family!"
"If anything happens to the Young Mistress, I will not spare you!"
Uncle Lin clutched his stomach, his face twisted in pain, yet he dared not make a sound, only begging for mercy: "Young Master, I was wrong. I know I was wrong. It will never happen again."
The other servants trembled in fear. They had never seen the Young Master care so much about the Young Mistress; he was absolutely furious this time. Even Uncle Lin, who had raised him, was not spared from his wrath. It seemed the Young Master was truly incensed.
Shen Mo might not like Lixi, but she was still the mistress of the Shen house—his woman. He would not permit others to treat her with such contempt. The only person allowed to bully Lixi was him.
Shen Mo took a deep breath, struggling to suppress his rage. He looked at Jiang Tao and ordered, "Go. Mobilize everyone we have. We must find the Young Mistress."
As he spoke, he recalled the few people he had seen on the road that morning; they had also seemed to be searching for something. A thought occurred to him. "And bring a few men to thoroughly search the roadside. Look for any clues."
"The guard was right. Lixi couldn't have gone far. She’s likely hiding in the grass by the road. Look carefully."
Jiang Tao quickly replied, "Yes, Young Master. I’m on it."
With that, he hurried away.
Shen Mo sat back down on the sofa, rubbing his temples, feeling a sense of agitation. What was wrong with Lixi? A simple apology would have solved everything, yet she refused to bow her head. But the more she acted this way, the more Shen Mo wanted to force her to admit her mistake. He would make her understand that staying by his side was her best option.
...
At the Southern District Hospital in Kyoto.
Thanks to Chi Mu, Lixi had undergone a full physical examination. The results showed no major issues—only mild hypoglycemia. She just needed regular meals and rest to recover.
However, Lixi was concerned about Chi Mu’s condition. She wore her hospital gown and looked at the nurse who was checking her blood sugar. "Excuse me, Nurse, how is the Marshal who arrived with me?"
Strictly speaking, the condition of the Marshal was classified information, as this was a military district. But the nurse had been specifically instructed by He Chuan to take good care of Lixi and satisfy her requests. The gravity of He Chuan’s demeanor had made it clear to the entire hospital that Lixi’s identity was significant. Furthermore, Lixi was kind and gentle to everyone, and the staff had grown fond of her.
Therefore, the nurse told her what she knew, "Miss Li, please don't worry. The Marshal was shot in the abdomen, but thanks to your timely first aid, the bullet didn't hit any vital organs. After the doctor’s treatment, he is out of danger and resting in his ward. He is just quite weak and needs a period of careful recovery."
Lixi fell into deep thought upon hearing this. If Chi Mu hadn't sustained a life-threatening injury, perhaps the accident that left him severely wounded in her previous life was not this one? She failed to realize that if she hadn't fled, Shen Mo would never have driven along that road searching for her. As Chi Mu had said earlier, if they had waited for He Chuan to find him, he would have been done for.
Unaware of this, Lixi decided to stay near Chi Mu. She asked for his room number, intending to thank him in person. She also planned to ask if he knew of any work she could do while she studied for her exams.
She arrived at Chi Mu’s ward to find two guards standing tall at the door. Seeing her approach, they did not stop her but stepped aside to let her pass.
Lixi nodded in gratitude and gently pushed the door open. The ward was filled with a faint scent of disinfectant, and sunlight streamed through the window, reminding her of her past life. Back then, she had spent her final days in a cramped, dark room where the sun never reached, waiting alone to die.
This time, she would not let that happen.
Lixi took a breath to steady her emotions and looked toward the bed. Chi Mu was lying there quietly, apparently asleep. She didn't want to wake him, so she left on tiptoes, planning to return in a few days.
On her way back to her room, her mind was elsewhere, and she accidentally bumped into two children.
They were a boy and a girl, and for a split second, she thought they were Shen Rui and his sibling. But as she looked closer, she realized their faces were merely familiar. Furthermore, the children were significantly thinner than the plump, well-fed Shen children; they looked somewhat malnourished.