Chapter 12 Chapter Twelve

Todd was not a drinker, but now he wanted to get drunk to forget all the unpleasantness.Everything that had happened in the past few weeks was his fault.Like Aya, he believed that Mayboken was rushing to Dai's house with a large number of people.Suddenly, the scene of Aya being handcuffed in the Mei family's carriage floated in front of him. Not only Aya is in danger, but Fulan's life and death are also uncertain in the hands of the kidnappers. At this moment, Jieming is searching through Dai's house, trying to find any clues.But so far, still nothing. Aya is in the room, and Jamin asks her to draw a picture of Fran so he can send people around asking if anyone has seen Fran.

Aya drew one after another, each of which was very similar to Fulan, but while Todd was worried about Fulan's safety, he found himself thinking about the freedom that Aya was about to lose.It won't be long before Mayboken will arrive here and send Aya to Bao's house. Thinking of this, Todd couldn't help shivering.Although the Bao family is rich, Todd knows that Bao Quiger is not a complete man after an accident in childhood.As Aya guessed, she will have no children and no normal married life. Todd is well aware of Aya's future.Her father would come here to take her away and force her to marry Boquerque, and Aya would obey because pleasing her father was the most thing in the world she wanted to do.

Just because Todd knew what was waiting for Aya, he couldn't deny Aya the freedom to enjoy these few weeks from being the heir to the May family.He knows what it's like to be stared at as a freak - something he and Aya have in common.He allowed Aya and Fran to switch identities in order to give Aya a brief stint in normal life, and now everything has gone wrong; Fran's life is at stake and Aya is about to be taken away by her father. "I've got to figure it out," Todd said aloud. "After all, both of them should be under my protection." Thinking that he always cared more about Aya and neglected Fulan, Todd was almost overwhelmed by guilt.Mayboken entrusted the two girls to his care, but he abandoned Fulan so much that she was so lonely that she was eager to marry him off.

Todd went into the stables, looking into every pen until he found the boy who had seen Fran taken away—he was rubbing the horse angrily. "Go away," the boy said without looking up. "I don't know anything!" Todd, who is good at reading words and emotions, can see at a glance that jealousy is the main reason for the boy's resentment. "I just want to tell you that you take care of women better than him, and you haven't lost your woman." After finishing speaking, Todd turned around and prepared to leave. "Wait a minute!" said the boy, watching Todd turn back.He tilted his head like a curious bird, wanting to see Todd's face under the hood. "Are you his subordinate?"

"No." Todd said with a smile.There was a torch on the wall outside the stable, and a small beam of light poured into the wall.Todd stepped into the dim light and lowered his hood so that the boy could see the half of his face that had been destroyed—just for a moment, but enough for the boy to see clearly.Todd turned his face away to avoid the boy's distasteful expression and his superior smug smile. "I don't think you can take anyone's woman," said the boy. "Indeed," Todd said cheerfully—he'd learned to hide his injuries a long time ago. "I want to ask you what you saw, but you don't want to tell it, but it must be exciting,"

The boy considered it for a while.To be honest, he was too busy reaching up the girl's skirt to notice what the others were doing.Thinking of that girl made him feel bad.Since this afternoon, she has been counting long and counting short. "No one wants to hear from me," said the boy resentfully. "Nobody wants to know what I saw." "I knew you were a smart guy the first time I saw you," said Todd eagerly. "I thought Meng Jieming should pay more attention to you," Todd leaned forward. "Tell me what you saw." The boy thought for a moment, then showed a surprised expression. "His ears are only half!"

"What did you say?" "The kidnapper's ear was only half broken from here," the boy said gesticulating. "The top half of the ear is missing!" Todd was so happy that he almost kissed the boy.He didn't leave right away, but forced himself to sit and listen to the boy's foaming and stinking for thirty minutes.When at last he was able to leave the stable, his first impulse was to tell Jemin about his latest discovery.But when he got to the courtyard, he changed his mind.If he had told Jamin that Jamin would definitely go immediately with his men and weapons, then Fran might have been injured in the melee.No, Todd thought, he'd better do it alone, because he could go where no one else could, and it was all his fault, wasn't it?

Judging from the contents of the note tied to the arrow, the kidnappers seem to think that Jemin knows who took Fu Lan, so maybe the people around Jemin will know too.Of course Todd wouldn't ask Jemin to tell him, but maybe Les didn't like having people check on him. "I'm here to amuse you," Todd said, standing outside Rice's door, a bottle of hard liquor under his arm. "Welcome," Rice said, sitting up in bed, but then flinched in pain. "Any news about Fu Lan?" "Not yet, but that's not why I'm here, alas, you've got to put that behind you or your legs will never get better. I'll tell you a funny story."

Two hours later, Todd left Rice's room smiling.It was not difficult to induce Rice to talk about the strange people and strange things he had seen. "No one could be dumber than O'Henry," Lesru said after an hour of small talk. "When Jemin's brother Ed hit him on the head with a sword, he accidentally cut off the top half of his ear. O'Henry cried and said he would become deaf. Until now, he still believes that he is missing the half one ear is affecting his hearing." "What kind of man is this O'Henry?" Todd asked, trying to keep his voice steady. "Is it dangerous?"

"Henry? No, he's not dangerous at all, he's just incredibly stupid. He loves Jieming's sister Pei Ling, and has been trying to force the Meng family to marry Pei Ling to him for many years," "Forcing?" Todd was glad that Les was drunk, otherwise Les might have heard the rising anxiety in his words. "He'd been trying to get Pei Ling from Ed for years. Ed was going to sell her, but Jemin's father looked up from the pile of books and said he wouldn't agree," Rice said with a laugh. "I think his decision was influenced by Pei Ling, because Pei Ling said that she would rather jump off the building than marry O'Henry. After Jemin's father and brother died, Henry suggested to Jemin to use some land—those The land is flooded every spring—a few broken huts and a few old horses are the conditions for marrying Pei Ling," Les took a big sip of his wine. "One time he even wanted to kidnap Pei Ling."

"Kidnapped?" Todd could barely breathe. Les couldn't help laughing. "Probably because of O'Henry's poor eyesight, he actually caught Jemin's other sister and threw Xiao Qiu into a sack. You haven't seen Xiao Qiu, but believe me, no man dares to mess with her. I'd rather open my clothes A sack full of bobcats, and a sack full of air-fried furs." "Like Aya." Todd said softly. Les had a dreamy smile on his face. "No, they're different. Aya only makes one person's life difficult, and Xiao Qiu makes everyone's life difficult—except Jemin and Pei Ling. I'll tell you how she used to fuck her brother Ed." So Les began to talk about another completely different story. Todd had already found out what he wanted to know, so it was not difficult to find this man named Owen now-he must have brought Fran go home.No wonder Jamin couldn't understand Henry's message: "You stole my woman, so I stole yours." In Jemin's eyes, his sister was never (and never will be) O. Henry's woman, but Henry Obviously had other ideas. Now, Todd leaves Rice's room smiling.He has found many leads but what should he do with it?tell jaminBut Todd knew what Jamin would do: he would leave Aya behind to save Fran, but it was Aya who really needed protection.If Jemin knew the truth of the matter, he would definitely protect Aya with his life. What could he do to make Jamin take Aya out of the house without his knowledge?What should he do to get Jamin to protect Aya and leave Fran to him? Jemin crumpled the note angrily—he wasn't going to show it to anyone!With each passing minute, he felt more and more stupid and useless.Who caught Fu Lan?Judging from the message on the first note, the other party seems to think he should know, but the fact is that he doesn't know! He hasn't slept or shaved in two days, but he won't rest until he finds any clues.He had just told Tom to bring the stable boy to him again, for he had received a second note telling him to go west to his uncle's and wait there for further notice. What bothered Jemin, however, was an unwritten line in the letter: "Better take good care of your woman." He used the plural - Women.Perhaps this was a clerical error; only Fulan should be in danger, and no one else. Another thing that bothered him was that the note was on his bed - suggesting that someone in Dai's family had placed it. But Jie Mingtou had time to think about it, and he would go to his uncle's house to wait for further instructions.Meanwhile, to keep Aya safe, he'll send Todd and Tom to take her away, because they're the only people Jamin can trust, and thirty minutes later, Jemin is cursing non-stop because Tom and Todd Diarrhea and collapsed.Tom hugged his belly and rushed to the toilet with a painful expression on his face. As for Todd, he was too weak to hold his head up. "Don't let the kidnappers take Aya," he said, grabbing Jemin's arm. "You have to protect her. I'm afraid she won't be safe here. The man took Fu Lan in broad daylight, and he might do it again." Todd's words fit into Jemin's concerns.Aya had told him that everyone here knew that Fu Lan was the heir to the Mei family, and maybe the kidnappers would think it would be useful to capture Aya. Since Jemin hadn't slept for two days, he had no sense of time. When he rushed to Aya's room, he didn't know it was midnight.He frowned, and found that there was no maid in Aya's room - no one was protecting her! When he shook Aya's shoulders, Aya got under the covers and Jemin had to pull her out. "Aya," he said softly. "Get up, I want you to come with me." "Sleep..." Aya murmured with her eyes closed. "No, not sleeping, you have to get up. Where is the maid who helps you dress?" "Jamie helped me get dressed." Although Jemin was very tired, that sentence still made him smile.He tried shaking Aya awake. "We are going to my uncle's house. My aunt is very nice. Her name is Mary. She will take care of you." Aya yawned, gradually waking up. "What are you doing in my room? Why are you always in my room?" "I'm a soldier, remember? Where there's danger, I'm there." That made Aya laugh. "Have you found Fu Lan?" "No, but I got a second note. I have to leave here at once to my uncle's house, which is about a day's ride on horseback, and you must come with me." "why?" "Because Tom and Todd are sick, no one can take care of you, you have to follow me." Jemin didn't expect that Aya would suddenly throw off the quilt and jump up from the bed.A corner of the quilt hit his eyes. When he pushed the quilt away and touched his eyes, he was not surprised to find blood on his fingers. He pressed his eyes with one hand, and grabbed Aya back from the door with the other. "Todd!" Aya resisted vigorously. "If he's sick, I have to see him," "Aya, I'm tired and worried, don't make my life harder. Come here now and see if you've blinded me." Aya turned and saw a little blood coming from the corner of Jemin's eye, and that didn't bother her, but as Jemin sat down in the chair by the bed with his shoulders slumped, it made her see the burden he was carrying. "Your darling Todd is all right," murmured Jemin. "It's just diarrhea." She brought a basin of water, dampened the cloth, and stood between his knees to wipe his eyes. "Any news?" she asked softly. "No, I have to wait." When he looked up, Aya saw his eyes darkened from lack of sleep.If she disappeared, would Jemin try so hard to find her? She knows the answer.Yes, he will. Fighting the urge to wrap her arms around his neck, Aya steps away and stands by the bed, her back to Jemin. "You want me to go with you?" She hated the hope she kept building up inside her as she waited for his answer. "I can't keep you here. Tom will come to us as soon as his health allows." "What about Todd?" "He stays here and Keren will take care of him." Aya turned to face Jemin. "Can't Karen take care of me?" "No, the note implies that more than one woman is in danger. It may refer to you and Fu Lan." "Then, you ask Keren to take me somewhere," Aya looked at Jemin with pleading eyes. "Oh, Jemin, please, don't you forget he asked me to marry him?" "He's joking!" Jemin retorted. "You make a fool of yourself in front of everyone, he just doesn't want to embarrass you!" "Oh? Really? Then he's such a nice guy, he must be a good fit for me. If you can convince him to take me somewhere else, maybe he'll propose to me again, and it won't be a joke this time!" Jemin just frowned at her and didn't answer. Aya stepped forward and stood between his knees again. "Please, Jamin, you know I don't have any money, so I have to find someone as good as you, and Dekron will be very, very good for me," she said close to Jamin. "please." Too tired to think about what he was doing, Jemin pulled Aya into his arms and kissed hard—hard at first, at least, then soft and sweet enough that he realized they were the only ones in the room , and Aya was only wearing thin pajamas. He jerked Aya away. "Are you so eager to marry yourself that it doesn't matter who you marry?" "Oh, yes," Aya said happily. "You can marry anyone, but you can't. You will never let me forget that I am a poor relative, and I caused you to lose the heir of the Mei family." Jemin jumped aside and threw up his hands. "You know Fulan's father won't agree, the biggest trouble now is—" He stopped and stared at Aya. "Why should I waste my words? Anyway, I don't allow you to stay in Dai's house to make yourself a fool of yourself. You are under my protection, and I must do my duty, understand?" "Understood, and I believe that half of the Dai family also understood." "Get dressed, we're leaving early in the morning." Jemin left the room without even closing the door. Aya closed the door, smiled with her back against it, and walked around the room happily humming a tune. Jemin is tired, and his temper is worse than his dark circles.How did he decide to take Aya with him?It was clear to him that Cron—and Les and Tom—would protect Aya with their lives; she would be safe, and they would protect her from her kidnappers or from Fran's father. But even so, he couldn't leave her.It made no sense, but he knew he had to take Aya with him.Maybe he'd leave Aya at his uncle's house in a few days, but frankly, he wasn't sure he'd be able to do it then. It was dawn now, and the still sleepy servant started to work. He was ready to go, but he hadn't seen Aya yet.She was not in the room and no one saw her.For a few seconds, his heart raced to his throat with terror, but then he calmed down.There is no doubt that Aya must be with her beloved Todd. A wave of jealousy swept over.It didn't occur to him that it was natural for Aya to want to say goodbye to her childhood friend; he just knew that he didn't want Aya to be alone with other men. "I'll be alone," Aya said to Todd, who was lying on the horse blanket. "Your Jemin will be with you." "He doesn't belong to me. If anyone wants to say he belongs to him, then he belongs to Fu Lan." Todd laughed. "You won't even believe that. Fulan wants him because only he can choose, and he wants Fulan to support his family. You can't blame him." Todd said softly, "Aya, Jie Ming is a good man, and I think he loves you very much." "Me? Love me? You must be seriously ill. Meng Jieming can't wait to get rid of me." "Oh? Then why did he take you to his uncle's house?" Aya couldn't help but smile smugly. "Keep me away from Declan." "That's right, if he doesn't care about you, why did he keep you away from Declan? Since he thinks you don't have a dowry, then he should know that you and Declen will be a very suitable pair." "It's a match made in heaven," Aya said with a smile. "I asked Jaymin to let me be with Declan and his lovely sons." "You mean the devil in hell, those kids think it's fun to put cones in other people's sheets." "And tadpoles and other crawling things," Aya said with a grimace. "You can't believe what they gave the housekeeper to drink!" "Well, I can imagine. I've been hiding as much as possible these days so as not to be a prey to them." Those words made Aya's eyes widen. "You've got to come with us, you're not that sick, I'll tell—" Todd grabbed Aya's arm as she was about to stand up. "I'm not really sick," he said softly. "I'm going to ride a horse to stop your father." "My—oh, Todd, he's going to kill us! Why is Fran always so stupid! If she came to me directly and told me that Jemin wanted my father's permission, I could make some arrangements." "What arrangements are you going to make? Write the letter yourself? Allow Fleur to marry your dear Jemin?" "My what?" Aya gasped in surprise. "You know I hate people who only care about their appearance." "Jamie is not that kind of person, you know that, you just like to torture him." Aya looked down at her hands. "But he's of no use to me." "He's going crazy wanting you! I think he might have cried when you gave Les that pillow." "Really? You think he likes me? No! Don't answer! He thinks I'm a nuisance." "Yeah, that's why he took you." As soon as he heard a voice outside, Todd said, "He will come here to find you soon, and you have to leave," Todd lowered his volume. "Aya, you know that I... I..." She knew exactly what Todd wanted to say, what he wanted to say that they never said but didn't have to say.She had loved Todd ever since her father gave her the pain-stricken Todd.It took her years to get Todd to trust her, to get Todd to overcome his fear of outsiders, to get Todd to stop resentment.Together they learn to trust each other, and the two eccentrics build their lives in the beautiful prison. Aya grabbed Todd's neck. "I love you! I love you! My pet name forever! How would I live without you?" Todd hugged Aya, but then pushed her away. "Go before I make a fool of myself! Don't hurt Jemin, I don't want him to end up like me." Although he had a smile on his face, his eyes were serious. Aya fought back her tears and couldn't think of anything nice to say in rebuttal, she didn't want Todd to see that she was afraid of losing him. Todd cupped her chin. "Also, don't worry too much about Fulan." Guilt gnawed at him, because he couldn't tell Aya that he was sure Fulan was safe. "Oh, Todd, Fulan can't even wear clothes. What if she tells the kidnappers that she's not the heir and is left in the middle of nowhere? Who will take care of her? Fulan doesn't know how to save herself even if she had the chance !" "You are wrong on that point. Fu Lan is very cunning. Didn't she take advantage of her distant relationship with the Mei family to stay away from her poor family? If it wasn't because of her cunning, she would have been a washerwoman who gave birth to two children by now. gone." Thinking of the appearance of the delicate Fulan doing rough work, Aya thought it was ridiculous and laughed. "That's much better, go, he's waiting for you." "You won't let my father hurt you, will you?" Aya said. "Remember, no matter what he says he will do to you, I will take care of you. If I have a penny, I will give you half" Todd took her hand and kissed it. "Aya, if you have a penny, you will find a way to turn it into a hundred cents." "Then I'll give you half!" Aya said with a smile, then quickly stood up and ran out of the room, only to bump into Jemin standing outside the door. "You're spying on me!" "I've got a lot more fun to do than spy on you! Go on and on, it's almost a day!" Jemin grabbed her by the arm and led her to the yard, where two horses were saddled and Horses loaded with luggage. "What's this?" Aya asked, staring at a beautiful filly. "That's a horse," said Jemin without looking up. "Have you never seen a horse?" Aya was almost as tired as Jemin, and she didn't want to put up with his bad temper. "I know what it is, but who's going to ride it?" Her face lit up. "Todd is coming with us!" "Aya, I don't have time to argue with you, we still have to hurry. Get on the horse quickly, I'm leaving. There may be news of Fulan at my uncle's house." As Aya stood still, Jemin stopped tying things and looked at her. "What's wrong?" Aya smiled weakly at him. "I've never ridden alone." "Never..." Jemin shook his head, "Pretend you're going to sell it and the buyer wants to see if it's listening, so you have to show him the ride." Aya was not amused, she nodded, turned to the horse, then to Jemin. "What's the matter now?" "Todd," Aya said softly. "I never left Todd, he—he took care of me. Can't he come with us?" An emotion he hadn't felt before was churning through Jemin's body, and he told himself that because he was tired and stressed, he would feel differently than usual—he didn't want to think about it, just put Aya hugged the saddle, then handed her the reins. "Cross your legs and follow me." Jemin didn't let her sit on the women's side saddle because he knew that Aya might not be good at riding a horse, so it might be easier to keep her balance on the men's saddle. Aya, who was sitting on the horse, opened her eyes wide and looked at Jemin, her eyes seemed to say: "Don't leave me!" Even though Jemin was tired, he liked the way Aya looked in his eyes and liked that Aya would be alone with him and depend on him along the way. "I'll take care of you, Aya, I swear." Jemin grinned while her face was still full of doubts. "Seize the day," he said. "And today you have to ride." For a moment, Aya looked panic-stricken, but then she raised her chin. "If you can ride a horse, so can I. Have you bagged my paint?" "No," said Jemin, smiling as he mounted his horse. "No brushes or inks or paints or Todds, just you and me and the stars." With that, he spurred his horse forward, and Aya followed him.