Who in the world does not know you?

Chapter 38 How to say it

Seeing what was happening before her, Ye Zi felt both curious and amused.

What she found curious was why Yun Luobai knew so much about the purchase price of this silver bracelet.

What amused her was that Yun Luobai had always acted as if he were a superior person to her, but now he was haggling like an ordinary person.

The deal was done. Yun Luobai took out three taels of silver from his purse and placed it on the stall. Then he picked up the silver bracelet and waved it in front of Ye Zi.

His expression was very natural; he didn't seem particularly pleased, nor did he seem to expect Ye Zi to show any joy when she received the gift he gave her.

Ye Zi did not show the slightest excitement or joy.

"Got it."

"Um."

"It's yours."

Yun Luobai handed the silver bracelet to Ye Zi, but the latter did not open her palm to take it. Instead, she pulled up her sleeve to reveal her slender, fair wrist.

Under Yun Luobai's surprised gaze, Ye Zi slightly raised her snow-white chin in a gesture of greeting.

"Put it on me."

This is not the attitude a maid should have towards her young master.

Her behavior can only be described as pushing her luck in the eyes of anyone.

Yun Luobai couldn't help but chuckle, but still followed Ye Zi's idea and carefully put the not-so-exquisite silver bracelet on Ye Zi's wrist.

When his fingertips lightly touched the delicate skin of Ye Zi's wrist, his movements paused slightly, but his expression remained calm, showing no sign of emotional fluctuation.

"Young Master Yun, does this count as physical intimacy?"

"This is considered a staged accident."

After a brief exchange, the two smiled knowingly at the same time.

As they walked side by side through the bustling city, Ye Zi never looked at the silver bracelet on her wrist again, which made Yun Luobai feel somewhat awkward.

"I thought you liked it, which is why you couldn't bear to leave it and kept looking back."

"I was just wondering why it was worth twenty taels, when it would only cost twenty taels to redeem me from my servitude."

"There's nothing strange about that."

"How so?"

"With so many people in the world, human life is the least valuable thing."

"What about the saying that human life is of paramount importance?"

"That applies to certain people. For most people, the saying 'human life is as worthless as grass' is the most accurate description."

Ye Zi didn't understand why Yun Luobai always gave her a strange feeling.

This strange feeling was specifically manifested in the fact that when she was alone with Yun Luobai, Yun Luobai's behavior was always slightly different from when he was with others.

Ye Zi had seen Yun Luobai in front of Yun Ping, and she had also seen Yun Luobai in front of Ning Qi and Qing Chuan.

She felt that he wouldn't say such things as human life is worthless in front of others.

At least she believed that in other people's eyes, he shouldn't be someone who would disregard human life to this extent.

Why does he behave so differently in front of others and in front of himself?

Was he doing it on purpose, or was he simply revealing his true colors, and that's just who he is?

Ye Zi didn't understand, and couldn't figure it out.

But that doesn't matter, just as it doesn't matter that she didn't show the undisguised joy of a lowly maid receiving jewelry as a gift.

Ye Zi raised her wrist and carefully examined the silver cloud bracelet on her slender, fair wrist.

It sparkled in the warm sunlight.

Yun Luobai caught this scene in his sight, and for a moment he couldn't tell whether it was Ye Zi's bright eyes that were shining, or the cheap bracelet he had given her that was radiating light.

"Now I'm starting to like it."

Ye Zi suddenly spoke softly, her tone carrying a touch of girlish liveliness and playfulness.

"How so?"

Yun Luobai asked, mimicking Ye Zi's previous tone.

However, he quickly regretted asking the question after hearing Ye Zi's answer.

"Because whenever I see it, I always think of you buying it for me as a gift to please me."

"..."

The clouds fell silently, offering no response.

He rarely gets angry or frustrated, but rarely doesn't mean he never does.

Now his emotions were running high, so much so that he reached out to take back the gift he had given to his beloved, in order to make up for what he considered a wrong decision.

Faced with Ye Zi's raised, delicate wrist, his hand froze in mid-air, unsure of what to do.

Before taking action, speak first; the way of the gentleman is never wrong.

"Give it back to me, I'm not seeing you off."

"What, you have other women to deliver to?"

"That's none of your business."

"Since you put it on me, you can take it off for me now."

Ye Zi extended her silver-linked wrist toward Yun Luobai. Her demeanor was calm and composed, unlike the eagerness she had shown before when her thoughts were always a step behind Yun Luobai's.

Yun Luobai's outstretched hand curled up, and finally fell down unwillingly before he turned and left.

Ye Zi followed him slowly, her limp barely concealed by the warm sunlight that enveloped her less-than-perfect body, yet she felt exceptionally relaxed and at ease.

She finally won.

Behind Yun Luobai came Ye Zi's undisguised giggles.

It was less a coquettish laugh and more a mocking laugh.

He could only pretend not to hear it.

As they walked, the two of them, one in front of the other, moved away from the bustling city. When Yun Luobai's footsteps stopped on the smooth road, Ye Zi turned her head and found that she had been led to the outside of the yamen by Yun Luobai without her noticing.

What I saw before me was not the main gate of the government office, but its gray exterior wall.

"Why did you bring me here?"

"Look."

Yun Luobai pointed to the inside of the wall, where rows of small windows under the roof stood out neatly and orderly.

"That's the prison in the government office, a place specifically for detaining criminals."

"I know, anyone can see that."

"We are currently located to the south. If the prisoner in the south-facing cell digs a tunnel out of his cell, even if it's not very deep, he could at least reach the passageway between the outer wall and the cell. If this escaped prisoner knows some martial arts or is skilled enough, he could climb over the outer wall of the government office and escape to safety."

"Are you saying that the female thief escaped by digging a tunnel? But didn't you say before that there was no trace of a tunnel being dug in the cell where she was held?"

"So she didn't escape by digging a tunnel. Many things in this world are actually very simple, but people often overcomplicate things. If she didn't escape by digging a tunnel, then there are only two possibilities for her disappearing from the cell. Either she escaped through the small window in the cell used for ventilation, or she escaped through the cell door."

Ye Zi listened quietly, her palm gently stroking the silver cloud bracelet that Yun Luobai had recently put on her other wrist.

Yun Luobai stood with his hands behind his back, smiling as he looked at Ye Zi beside him.

"How do you think she disappeared from that cell?"