Chapter Thirty-One: The Disappearance of Zhu Yingtai

Ma Wencai curled his lips, rose, flicked his sleeves, and departed.

Only five of us remained in the classroom: myself, Wang Lantian, Xun Jubo, and the pair of Liang and Zhu. Wang Lantian stood up and said, "Brother Zhu, Magistrate Liu is not an unreasonable man; he is merely acting according to the law. If you truly wish for Shanbo to remain, you should quickly send word to Shangyu. Perhaps then there might be a glimmer of hope."

Zhu Yingtai lowered her head, silent. I knew her heart must be in complete turmoil at this moment; how could she possibly bring herself to make such a request to the Zhu family?

Yinxin and Sijiu hurried over. "Young Master," Yinxin cried, "I warned you when you first took your oath of brotherhood, but you wouldn't listen. What are we to do now?"

"Yinxin, enough," Zhu Yingtai snapped.

"I will go find Master Ma. He must have a way," Yinxin said, rising in a panic. Zhu Yingtai grabbed her arm. "Don't go. He will not help us."

"Good heavens, Yingtai, just write a letter home to inform your elders about the situation between you and Shanbo. If they send a reply, won't that solve everything?" Xun Jubo suggested from the side.

"What do you know?" Yinxin retorted angrily. "If the Mistress finds out that the Young Master has sworn brotherhood with a commoner, she will be furious. Not only will Brother Liang be unable to stay, but our Young Master will also be implicated."

"If you were so afraid of being implicated, why bother with the oath in the first place?" Sijiu was also incensed. He stepped forward and pointed at Zhu Yingtai. "Young Master Zhu, are you going to write this letter or not?"

Zhu Yingtai hesitated.

Sijiu nodded and turned to Liang Shanbo. "Young Master, do you see now? This is your 'good brother'—fond of acting impulsively when things are fine, but hiding away like a coward the moment trouble arises."

"Sijiu, that is enough!" Yinxin shouted.

"Enough, both of you. Stop bickering!" The noise was giving me a migraine. I slammed a pen and paper down in front of Zhu Yingtai. "Zhu Yingtai, think clearly. Do you want to make one last effort for Shanbo, or are you waiting for my older brother to drive you, Shanbo, and Master Chen all off this mountain?"

Zhu Yingtai glared at me with indignation. "Is there really no other way? Magistrate Liu is your own brother. If you truly wanted to help Shanbo, why haven't you begged him?"

"Good grief, Zhu Yingtai! Which eye of yours saw me not begging him? Does it matter? He wants ironclad proof, not emotional pleas." I stood up in a fury, grabbed Wang Lantian by the sleeve, and pulled him away. "Brother Lantian, let’s go."

"Hey, Yiqing, Brother Lantian..." I ignored Liang Shanbo’s calls entirely.

I stormed back to my room in the pouring rain and kicked the door open. Ma Wencai happened to be pouring a cup of tea. I strode over, snatched the cup from his hand, and downed it, but it did nothing to extinguish my rage. I slammed the cup onto the table. "Pour me another."

"Oh," Ma Wencai handed me another cup. I finished it in one gulp, then turned to glare at him. "Ma Wencai, is that Zhu Yingtai of yours insane?"

"Yingtai?" Ma Wencai smiled indifferently. "How has she offended you now?"

"Hmph!" I sat down, thumping the table. "She had better watch herself. If she provokes me again, I’ll make her regret it."

Oh no, I’d let it slip, and I hadn't even realized it. Ma Wencai was looking at me with a strange expression, though I didn't notice it at the time. Heavens, Brother Wencai, I must keep my composure.

Just as Ma Wencai was about to speak, Yinxin and Matong came racing through the rain toward the door. I frowned. "When did Matong get back? He’s been gone for ages."

"Let me speak first..."

"No, I’ll speak first..."

The two began to argue at the doorway. Ma Wencai slapped the table, and they immediately fell silent. "Yinxin, you go first. What do you want?"

Yinxin glanced at me before saying, "Master Ma, please help my Young Master. She and Brother Liang were arguing in the classroom, and now she says she’s packing her bags to leave the mountain."

Ma Wencai did not seem perturbed. "Yinxin, you should know that your Young Master should have left the mountain and returned home long ago."

"Exactly," Matong chimed in.

"But Master Ma, the rain is far too heavy to travel. Please, go and talk some sense into her," Yinxin pleaded, kneeling at his feet.

"Yinxin, what happened between Zhu Yingtai and Shanbo? Weren't they fine just a moment ago?" I asked. I had only just returned; how could things have escalated so quickly? It was bizarre.

"They argued, then it got worse, and then my Young Master said she was leaving," Yinxin sobbed.

Ma Wencai sighed and stood up. "Then why aren't you looking after her? Why are you here crying?"

Yinxin stood up in a panic. "Right, I must go look after the Young Master." With that, she ran off.

"I’ll go check on Shanbo as well." I quickly stripped off my soaked outer robe, threw it on the floor, and bolted out.

"Liu Yiqing, get back here!" Ma Wencai chased after me, holding an umbrella. "Are you crazy, running out dressed like that?"

As if wearing wet clothes was the only way to prove I wasn't crazy. I ignored him. "Oh, stop it, I need to see what’s happening." I pushed past Ma Wencai and ran toward the room shared by Liang and Zhu.

Before I even reached the door, I saw Shanbo and Jubo rushing out in a panic. I met them immediately. "Shanbo, Jubo, where are you going? Where is Yinxin?"

"Yiqing, Yingtai has run down the mountain by herself. In this heavy rain, I am so worried about her," Shanbo said, standing anxiously in the downpour.

I was shocked; I hadn't realized Zhu Yingtai was so impulsive. "Then let’s split up to find her."

Shanbo nodded. He and Xun Jubo headed left, while I went right with Ma Wencai.

"Yingtai..."

"Zhu Yingtai..."

"Where are you? Zhu Yingtai..."

News of Zhu Yingtai leaving the academy without permission had alarmed everyone. The Headmaster sent students out to search, but by nightfall, there was no sign of her, and Yinxin had vanished as well.

Night had fallen, and Ma Wencai and I had been searching the back mountain all afternoon. The rain continued to pour, and, soaked through to the bone, I was freezing and famished.

"Yiqing, you are drenched. Let’s go back," Ma Wencai said, pulling on my sleeve. He was just as soaked as I was.

I shook him off in frustration. "Where could that dead girl have gone? If I find her, I’ll give her a piece of my mind." I was beginning to realize how much I truly disliked that woman.

"Everyone is looking for Yingtai; it won't make a difference if you aren't there. Come, I’m taking you back." Ma Wencai gripped my shoulder firmly and began dragging me up the mountain.

I pushed him away with all my might. The rain hitting my face made my vision blurry. "Ma Wencai, how exactly do you discipline Zhu Yingtai? Do you just let her act so recklessly?"

"I... why is it my job to discipline her? You should ask the people of the Zhu estate how they raised her." Ma Wencai threw his umbrella aside in a rage. We stood there in the torrential rain, glaring at each other.

"Brother Yiqing, Brother Wencai..." Liang Shanbo and Xun Jubo called out, running toward us in a panic.