Chapter 46: This Young Master Leaves The City

“This is no time for quibbling Lady Fen,” Song Yuelin frowned. “I am saying this for your benefit.”

“Your good intentions run counter to my goals, Manager Song,” Lan Fen replied.

Song Yuelin scoffed. “Need I remind you that you are Young Master Chen’s legal wife? Any issue that affects the Chen family affects you in turn.”

A stormy look appeared on Lan Fen’s face. “You overestimate my connection and underestimate my means to avoid detection. I will not be leaving the city.”

“Okay stop!” Chen Haoran stepped between them and held out his hands. He turned to Song Yuelin. “Is leaving the city really our only option?”

“We don’t have the means to properly hide within the city if our identities are exposed,” Song Yuelin said. “Putting as much distance between ourselves and Shen Jianyu is the safest option.”

It was a reasonable plan, and Chen Haoran certainly agreed with it, at least in principle. The issue was that being alone with Song Yuelin in the wilderness for an extended period was the last thing he wanted to do. He couldn’t just convince Lan Fen to leave though, with her sensing and pocket space she was the best equipped to hide and evade attention. It was a waste for her to camp out in the mountains. Not that they could let Song Yuelin know that.

“How about we split up? Lan Fen and I will-”

“Impossible.” Song Yuelin immediately struck the idea down. Chen Haoran clicked his tongue in annoyance. “Don’t accommodate her Young Master Chen, it was the Chen family she married into and it is the Chen family she will obey.”

He frowned, that was taking it too far. “It was only a temporary arrangement that we both agreed on, don’t be a dick.”

“Were you thinking about that when you taught her the Canyon Carving Sword?” Song Yuelin sharply asked.

Chen Haoran was startled. “What does that have to do with this?”

“You gave the technique over to the Chen family, naturally the only ones allowed to use it are those connected to the family.”

“Just for that reason?” Chen Haoran said, dumbfounded. “You saw me write that annulment paper, you stamped your seal on it! Why are you only saying this now?”

“It is my duty,” Song Yuelin grimly answered. “I assisted you because I didn’t believe she would use it.”

“You fucker-”

Lan Fen placed a hand on his shoulder and pulled him back. “Do not mind it,” she said, glaring daggers at Song Yuelin. “I expected this when you originally came to me with the idea.”

“Why didn’t you say anything then?” he demanded. “Why didn’t you say anything…” his words petered out. Pieces clicked in his head. He locked eyes with Lan Fen, burning gold looked back at him. “Is that why you haven’t turned in the annulment papers?” Chen Haoran whispered. Whatever Lan Fen saw in his face must have been something to behold because she looked away first.

Lan Fen never looked away.

“I had some hope,” he said, he could scarcely hear his voice. “Every day you didn’t turn in the letter I had a little more.”

That they had bonded over the circumstances. That there was something shared between them. That their sham of a marriage had a chance to be something other than fake.

“Chen Haoran-”

He held up a hand and rubbed his eyes. “Is there any more I need to do Lan Fen?”

“The Lan family’s destruction is assured now,” she said, her lips set in a thin line. “I will handle the rest.”

“Okay,” he quietly replied. He turned to his other problem. “Song Yuelin, we’re leaving,” he commanded.

Song Yuelin raised an eyebrow. “I have not heard a satisfactory reason to leave Lady Fen here.”

“Here’s your reason,” Chen Haoran said, raising his palm toward Song Yuelin. “I can’t hurt you but I swear if you test me one more time the next thing I do will alert every powerful cultivator in the city.”

“A bluff only works on people who don’t know any better, Young Master Chen.”

“I’m sure you know a whole lot,” Chen Haoran bitterly laughed.

Song Yuelin studied him and for a moment he thought would finally drop his charade. Instead, his loyal servant sighed. “Fine. Do as you wish.”

“Let’s go then.” He brushed past Lan Fen and stepped out of the alley with Song Yuelin in tow.

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“Chen Haoran!” Lan Fen called after him. She clasped her hands and dipped into a low bow. “Thank you. I will never forget what you have done for me.”

“Make sure you turn in those annulment papers,” he tiredly said.

Song Yuelin placed a hand on his shoulder and darkness covered him.

When Song Yuelin released him from his shadow they were well into the Clearsprings Mountains. Thankfully Chen Haoran managed to keep both his feet and his stomach this time. Song Yuelin silently observed him get his bearings. Chen Haoran silently ignored him. They silently stood there until Song Yuelin turned around and shot off deeper into the mountains. Chen Haoran cycled qi to his legs and followed him.

Song Yuelin set a brutal pace through the trees. Much like he did on the way to the Palace Exams he scared away any monster in the way with short bursts of qi. Those too slow in getting out of the way were slapped away without him breaking stride. The scenery around him twigged Chen Haoran as familiar, it wasn’t until they broke into an unnaturally circular clearing dominated by a single large tree and the skeleton of an even larger snake that he realized why. He slowed for just a moment in recognition of his first real victory.

“Don’t fall behind,” Song Yuelin called over his shoulder.

Chen Haoran gritted his teeth and doubled his efforts, coming just up to Song Yuelin’s side. “Where are we even going?”

Song Yuelin didn’t look at him, he was intently staring at a rectangular block of green jade in his hand. Golden words much like those he could see through the Gifting power flashed and disappeared across it too fast for him to see. “The port, we can monitor the situation from there and, if need be, quickly leave the territory.”

Port? He rocked his memories, let alone ports there weren’t even any other cities beyond Clearsprings City, they were going in the wrong direction for that. Did Song Yuelin plan to double back? It took two days of traveling for Chen Haoran to admit he was wrong. Song Yuelin really wanted them to go through the mountains. He knew that the ocean was on the other side but there was no port in Clearsprings City’s territory.

That he knew of. What about one he didn’t? A port where the maps said there were no ports, where they could keep tabs on the city and safely escape. A port that Song Yuelin knew about. A Chen family port. Was that their deal with the City Lord? The coastline was also technically his territory, did they come to him to establish a secret port? It sounded illegal at least but it didn’t explain why Song Yuelin was so panicked seeing Shen Jianyu. He couldn’t even guess, he knew too little about the Chen family to come up with anything reasonable.

It was sunset on the third day that Song Yuelin slowed down from blisteringly fast to somewhat speedy. “Young Master Chen, I know you’re not in the best of moods but not speaking to me for two whole days is a bit much.”

“Whose fault,” he gasped, “is that?”

Song Yuelin abruptly slowed down into a walk and Chen Haoran dug his heels into the earth and skidded to a stop in front of him. “What now?”

“I simply wish to talk,” Song Yuelin said, walking past him.

“Is there anything to say?”

“I understand you and Lady Fen were close but that’s no excuse for your behavior, Young Master Chen.”

“I don’t need to justify myself to you.”

“I know that it’s been years since you’ve returned but I advise you to not bring that attitude back to the family.”

Chen Haoran snorted. Of course, going to the Chen family was exactly what he wanted to do. He would rather take his chances in Clearsprings City if that were the case. He had no illusions about his odds of escaping Song Yuelin however if the Chen family wanted him returned then it was only a matter of which knot Song Yuelin tied him with.

“Has the family ordered you to bring me back then?” he asked, sneering.

“Not quite yet, although I expect it to come soon. The City Lord drawing a prince’s attention doesn’t bode well for our future operations in the region.”

Chen Haoran watched the sun dip under the horizon. It felt remarkably appropriate right now. “Tell it to me straight,” he said, avoiding looking at Song Yuelin. “Will I be going as the Young Master or will I be going in chains.”

“What are you saying?”

Chen Haoran clenched his fist and whirled around. Song Yuelin was frowning. Chen Haoran felt annoyance well up in him. “You can at least tell me this, or are you the same as Lan Fen? Did whatever bond we have only go so far?”

“Young Master Chen I’m not sure what you mean, of course you wouldn’t return to the family in chains. Why would you think that?”

“Are you really asking that?” Chen Haoran laughed, the sheer gall of the man overwhelming him. “You,” he spat. “My father sends an assassin to investigate me and you ask why I think going back will end poorly for me.”

Song Yuelin held out his hands placatingly. “There seems to be a misunderstanding, Young Master Chen.”

“And what would that be?” He ground out. “The fact that the Chen family has been investigating me is obvious.”

“Your family isn’t investigating you, for starters.”

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