Chapter 18
Seeing this, Bai Zhi nearly fainted from panic.
But, completely contrary to her expectations, Li Weiyang dragged Li Minde ashore after only a short while. Though he was young, he was still a boy, and Li Weiyang could barely hold him. Her arms gave out, and she almost dropped him back into the water. Bai Zhi hurried over to help, and together they hauled Li Minde onto the bank.
Li Weiyang bent down and felt his chest. “He’s still warm.” Then she used all the rescue methods she had once seen fishermen use in Xinshou Village on Li Minde. First, she thumped him twice on the chest, then turned him over and pressed her knee against his soft abdomen. After some effort, she realized he had only choked on water and passed out. Li Weiyang’s pounding brought him around. He coughed twice, hacked up a mouthful of water, and woke.
At last, he was alive again. Li Weiyang let out a sigh of relief...
Li Minde turned his head sharply. His eyes were dark and bright, as brilliant as stars, and his fine lashes still trembled lightly, dotted with droplets like shards of jade. Li Weiyang’s heart skipped a beat. It was as if a mirror catching the sunlight had flashed before her eyes.
Good heavens, he was impossibly beautiful.
The child had a pair of captivating eyes, full of feeling even when he wasn’t smiling, and skin so fair it seemed almost translucent in the sunlight. If he were a girl, he might rival even the stunningly beautiful Li Changle. And he was only ten years old.
Li Minde’s crystal-clear eyes flickered. Just as he was about to speak, Li Weiyang clapped a hand over his mouth. “Don’t make a sound! Or I’ll throw you back in!”
Bai Zhi shivered. Why did that sound like a highway robber?
Li Weiyang saw that Li Minde was staring at her in a daze, so she reached out and touched his fair cheek. Hmm, it was soft and tender, like watery tofu.
“I’m your Third Sister, Li Weiyang.” As she spoke, she gestured for Bai Zhi to take off her outermost dry garment. Then she removed Li Minde’s wet jacket. A half-moon-shaped jade pendant slipped out from his collar, hanging from a red cord. Li Weiyang didn’t examine it closely; she simply tucked it back in, then carefully wrapped him up. Li Minde sat still, watching her with bright, sparkling eyes.
Li Weiyang looked at his face, finding him more and more handsome the longer she stared. She grabbed him by the collar. “Go back and tell your mother that the First Madam tried to kill you, and your Third Sister saved you. Understand?”
This really did sound like an interrogation. Bai Zhi stared, dumbfounded.
Li Weiyang gave Li Minde another look and was about to leave him behind. He had only just escaped death and was terrified of being abandoned. He suddenly grabbed her sleeve and threw himself against her. “Third Sister!”
The warmth of him pressed against her, and his soft, tender voice left Li Weiyang at a loss. After a long moment, she finally put her arms around him.
What a good child. Li Weiyang suddenly thought of Yu Li, her son. He had once been just as gentle and well-behaved, rushing into her arms whenever he saw her. Her heart ached. She couldn’t help pinching Li Minde’s cheek, then pinched it again and again. Though Li Minde was still young, he was very obedient, sitting quietly and letting this strange older sister pinch him as she pleased. His little face was as soft as watery tofu.
Bai Zhi’s brows twitched. She couldn’t help wondering if Miss had forgotten that the child was already ten—only three years younger than she was. At that thought, she gave a light cough, and Li Weiyang came to her senses. She let go of Li Minde and warned him:
“You’re safe now! Remember, don’t show yourself to anyone for an hour. Let them think you’re dead! Don’t tell anyone about what happened today—not a soul except your mother!”
Her nails dug deep into the young boy’s shoulder, and her eyes blazed with a frightening light. Under that fierce gaze, the boy stared at her, utterly transfixed, then nodded without thinking.
Li Minde walked away, looking back every few steps. His long maidservant’s clothes dragged behind him, but he still knew to stick to places where few people were around. Li Weiyang watched him and nodded. At the most critical moment, he had even pretended to be dead, tricking those two nannies into thinking he had died. What a clever child.
Bai Zhi took a step, then looked down and cried out in alarm.
Li Weiyang looked over and saw a dead white crane in the grass. White cranes were considered auspicious in Great Li and were exceedingly rare; the Li residence had none. Yet one had suddenly appeared here, already dead. A cold smile touched Li Weiyang’s face. She found a spot, dug a hole, and buried the crane deep in the ground.
When everything was done, Bai Zhi shivered in the cold wind. “Miss, what should we do?”
Li Weiyang thought for a moment, then said, “Go back and get one of my everyday outfits. Be discreet, and don’t alert anyone.”
Bai Zhi nodded. Li Weiyang watched her leave, then slipped into a nearby artificial rockery.
Once the net was laid, it was only natural to haul in the catch. She knew those people would be here soon.
Just then, the First Madam arrived with Li Xiaoran. She had even brought Fifth Miss Li Changxi along. Their large entourage was making its way toward the South Courtyard.
“Master, a white crane suddenly flew into the residence. It’s by Bibo Lake, behind the South Courtyard. You’ll see it in a moment,” the First Madam said with a smile.
Li Xiaoran nodded. This was an auspicious sign.
Li Changxi was smiling, too, especially happily. The thought of Li Weiyang falling into terrible trouble before long made her feel utterly pleased.
They had only just reached the halfway point when Huamei hurried out from the side. Li Changxi scolded her, “Aren’t you Third Sister’s maid? What are you doing here?”
Anxiousness showed on Huamei’s face. She wanted to tell the First Madam that Third Miss was missing and seemed to have gone to the South Courtyard ahead of them. But with the Master there, she could only stammer and fall silent.
Li Changxi impatiently pressed her. “Where’s Third Sister? Why aren’t you by her side?”
Huamei had gone back earlier to report to the First Madam, and when she returned, Li Weiyang was gone. Already frightened, she blurted out, “Third Miss heard that Seventh Concubine was gravely ill and insisted on visiting her. This servant... this servant...”
Li Xiaoran’s expression darkened. He turned to the First Madam. “Why is this child so ill-mannered? If she wanted to visit, why didn’t she tell you first?”
The First Madam smiled with the benevolence of a bodhisattva. “Sigh, she’s spent her whole life growing up in the countryside. It’s only natural that she doesn’t know the rules.”
Li Xiaoran gave a cold snort, his dislike of Li Weiyang growing. She was already a girl born in the second lunar month, yet she still didn’t know to watch her words and actions. She was going to visit a concubine and didn’t even know to inform her adoptive mother first. How utterly thoughtless!
By then, the moon had peeked out, watching the group below from among the clouds.
After that little interruption, Li Xiaoran had lost a third of his enthusiasm for seeing the auspicious white crane. He slowly walked up to Bibo Lake. Under the moonlight, the rippling lake was lined only with reeds half a person tall; there was no beautiful white crane in sight. His expression immediately darkened. “Didn’t you say there was a white crane?”
The First Madam was clearly surprised, too. She had specifically had someone put a dead white crane in an obvious spot. How had it suddenly disappeared? But her expression remained unchanged as she smiled. “Perhaps it’s dark and the crane has settled among the reeds.”
Li Xiaoran was even more disappointed. His brows drew together as he was about to turn back, when a nanny with an anxious expression suddenly rushed out from the side. Three or four people followed behind her, each carrying a lantern. “Third Young Master! Third Young Master! Where are you?”
The First Madam’s expression eased. She suppressed the delight in her eyes and said, “Aren’t you Minde’s wet nurse? What is it? Is Minde missing?”
The dead white crane had only been a sign; if it was gone, so be it. Li Minde was the main event!