Chapter 1175: What Can Save My Love?

The madam, accompanied by a waiter, and the two men carrying bulging bundles, cautiously emerged from the back room.

The waiter's face turned pale with fright, his eyes fixed on the bloodstains and corpse on the ground, his steps unsteady as if he were walking on cotton.

The madam had a forced smile that looked more like a grimace, cold sweat streaming down her face as she pulled and tugged at Guo Yuyao's arm.

"Yuyao, my good girl!" The madam's voice was shrill and trembling, carrying a fawning tone as she was eager to get rid of her. "Quickly, quickly come with me to live a good life!"

"You've finally made it through and regained your freedom."

"This brothel is a place that devours people without spitting out their bones, what's there to miss?" The madam was eager to send Guo Yuyao and Lin Lang away as if they were plague carriers.

Guo Yuyao swayed, tears streaming down her face like broken beads. She gripped the madam's hand tightly, her knuckles turning white, and shook her head, choking back sobs.

"Mom, it's not that I don't want to leave, but if I leave, where will Lu Lang find me when he comes back?"

The madam stole a glance at Lin Lang, who was leaning back in his armchair. Seeing that he didn't react, she quickly pressed her advantage, saying, "Yu Yao! Don't be silly!"

"Your Lu Lang hasn't been heard from for two whole years. If he cared about you, he would have come back to redeem you long ago. Why would he let you wait until now? Just give up on him!"

Upon hearing this, Guo Yuyao stubbornly cried and said, "I want to stay in Huanhua Pavilion and wait for Lu Lang. He will definitely come back to redeem me, sob sob..."

"How could you be so stupid, you brat!" The madam was so angry that her chest felt tight, but she dared not lash out. She could only suppress her anger and patiently try to persuade her.

“A woman’s prime years are only a few years long. You’ve already wasted two years of your life on that man surnamed Lu. If you keep wasting your time, you won’t look as good as you used to be, and then no one will want you! Listen to your mother’s advice, go with that man. Would such an important person treat you badly?”

The madam was also very clear-headed; she was speaking the absolute truth.

Guo Yuyao opened her mouth, as if to say something, but was silenced by a burst of loud sobs.

She looked at the bloodstains and corpse on the ground, then glanced at Lin Lang with his indifferent expression, and thought of Lu Lang who had disappeared without a trace. All her stubbornness seemed to have been shattered by reality.

Guo Yuyao knew she had no choice. Lin Lang's methods, the Bad Guys' and Young Master Li's awe of Lin Lang all made her realize that resistance was futile.

The tears flowed more and more fiercely, her shoulders heaved violently, and she cried so hard that she could hardly breathe. Each sob was accompanied by a suffocating, stabbing sound, as if her heart was being forcibly pulled down.

Guo Yuyao slowly released her grip on the madam's hand, her head bowed, her long eyelashes glistening with tears. Her voice, barely audible, was filled with endless grievance and resentment: "Mom...I...I'll go with the master..."

Upon hearing this, the madam finally breathed a long sigh of relief, her smile instantly becoming more genuine. She quickly stuffed the bundle into Guo Yuyao's arms and pushed her towards Lin Lang, saying, "That's more like it!"

Guo Yuyao staggered two steps, clutching her bundle, still with her head down, tears falling onto her clothes, spreading a small dark stain, her sobs suppressed and desperate.

Lin Lang wanted to give Guo Yuyao and Lu Zhaolin a surprise, so he didn't tell them the truth.

Upon seeing this, Li Jing hurriedly knelt down and said, "Respectfully seeing off the Imperial Envoy!"

The head constable hurriedly led his men to kneel down and say in unison, "Respectfully seeing off the Imperial Envoy!"

Lin Lang twitched his fingertips, triggering the power of the [Space-Time Global Teleport] skill. A circle of warm golden light suddenly burst forth from his palm. The light was not dazzling, but it carried an indescribable and boundless power.

The light instantly spread out, enveloping him and the sobbing Guo Yuyao.

Guo Yuyao felt a warmth spread through her body, and her crying suddenly stopped. Before she could even look up to see what had happened, she heard a soft "whoosh" sound, and her body seemed to be enveloped by an invisible force, and the light and shadow before her eyes changed abruptly.

The next second, she disappeared from the spot along with Lin Lang, leaving only the air in the main hall of Huanhua Pavilion suddenly frozen.

Before the madam could even wipe the fawning smile off her face, her pupils suddenly dilated, and her mouth opened wide enough to fit an egg.

She stared blankly at the empty space for a long time before she came to her senses. Her legs went weak, and she staggered back two steps before collapsing onto the cold ground with a thud.

The madam's hands trembled as she clutched the handkerchief, gently stroking her heaving chest. Her voice trembled with sobs as she murmured in shock and fear, "Heavens... what kind of celestial being is this? They just vanished like that!"

Cold sweat trickled down her temples, soaking her hair and making it stick to her face. Her earlier scheming to get rid of the situation had long since vanished in terror at the sight of this ghostly method.

The thugs in the lobby were even more so; they seemed to be frozen in place, oblivious to the clatter of their scabbards falling to the ground. Their eyes were fixed on the spot where Lin Lang and Guo Yuyao had disappeared, their faces filled with the terror of seeing a ghost.

Someone's throat moved, trying to speak but unable to make a sound, only managing a few dry, breathy sounds.

Some people instinctively shrank back, their legs went weak, and they almost fell over if they hadn't been supported by their companions.

Upon seeing this scene, Li Jing couldn't help but gasp. His back was already soaked with cold sweat, and his clothes clung stickily to his body, making him shiver.

He raised his hand to wipe the cold sweat that kept pouring from his forehead. His heart was pounding so hard it felt like it was going to burst out of his chest, and he couldn't help but mutter curses under his breath.

"This is fucking weird... Is this guy human or a demon? It's terrifying!"

Li Jing stared wide-eyed, stunned, at the empty armchair.

Lin Lang and Guo Yuyao vanished into thin air, and Li Jing felt a chill run from the soles of his feet straight to the top of his head.

He forced himself to remain calm and looked at the Bad Commander, saying, "What happened today must not be made public. If word gets out and damages my reputation, I will not let it go lightly."

"Yes, I will obey Young Master Li's orders." The Bad Commander hurriedly stood up from his kneeling position, cold sweat dripping down his face, and said, "These guards caused trouble after drinking, and they beat each other to death. No one else is to blame."

The madam hurriedly chimed in, "Yes, yes, please rest assured, Young Master Li, all the girls in our Huanhua Pavilion can testify to this."

At the same time, Lin Lang had already brought Guo Yuyao to the courtyard of a humble abode in Chang'an City.

Guo Yuyao, still clutching her bundle, was not yet recovered from the dizziness when she first smelled a refreshing scent of pine soot ink, which dispelled the heavy smell of perfume and alcohol in the brothel.

The moment she slowly opened her eyes, she saw a familiar figure, painting on a worn-out table.

The figure she had been longing for day and night suddenly appeared before Guo Yuyao's eyes like a thunderbolt—the old gray robe was washed until it was white, but his back was still straight, and the hand holding the pen had distinct knuckles. It was none other than Lu Lang, whom she had been thinking about day and night and had been waiting for for two years!

Tears welled up again instantly, but this time they were not tears of grievance and despair, but rather hot tears mixed with ecstasy and disbelief.

Guo Yuyao bit her lip tightly, afraid that if she opened her mouth, everything in front of her would shatter like a bubble. The sobs stuck in her throat made her shoulders tremble slightly again.

Lu Zhaolin's eyes were dim, with a slight redness at the corners, as he focused intently on sketching on the Xuan paper.

He twisted his wrist lightly, the pen tip gliding across the paper with a rustling sound. The ink lines, following his force, slowly blurred into a pair of affectionate eyes, her eyebrows carrying a gentle grace she herself was unaware of, and a small apricot blossom, dotted with light ink, adorned her temple.

Indeed, the woman Lu Zhaolin was painting was none other than the smiling face of Guo Yuyao when he first met her, playing the pipa and singing.

The moment she saw the painting clearly and the person in it, it was as if countless fireworks exploded in Guo Yuyao's chest, burning her eyes even more.

The bundle Guo Yuyao was holding fell to the ground, and she covered her mouth, tears blurring her vision.

Lu Zhaolin seemed to sense the commotion in the courtyard. He paused, holding his pen, and slowly turned around.

His handsome features showed signs of post-illness weariness, and a few strands of silver hair had appeared at his temples, but his eyes were still the same gentle and clear ones that Guo Yuyao remembered.

"Master Dong, what brings you here?" Lu Zhaolin's first sight was Lin Lang.

"Shengzhi, look who I brought back from Yizhou for you?" Lin Lang stepped aside, allowing Lu Zhaolin to see Guo Yuyao standing behind him.

Lu Zhaolin's courtesy name was Shengzhi, so Lin Lang addressed him as Shengzhi.

Guo Yuyao gazed at the man before her, whose face was haggard but whose eyes held a familiar look. Her lips trembled for a long time before tears rolled down her cheeks first: "Lu Lang!"

The voice that called out "Lu Lang" was not loud, but it was full of sincerity.

"Yu Yao?" Lu Zhaolin was stunned at first, then his eyes lit up with disbelief, and the brush in his hand fell to the Xuan paper with a "plop", spreading a stain of ink.

He staggered toward Guo Yuyao, his steps unsteady as he approached her, his voice trembling uncontrollably, "Yuyao, how did you get to Chang'an?!"

Guo Yuyao could no longer hold back. She rushed towards Lu Zhaolin, hugged his waist tightly, buried her face in his clothes, and burst into tears.

Her cries were filled with grievance, longing, and the joy of regaining what she had lost. Each sob carried the weight of two years' worth of pent-up emotions: "Lu Lang... it was the master who redeemed me and brought me to see you."

Lu Zhaolin was deeply moved upon hearing this. He hugged Guo Yuyao tightly, his voice hoarse and almost incoherent: "That's wonderful, Yuyao, we can finally be together."

"My love, I thought I would never see you again, sob sob..."

Guo Yuyao cried so hard that her whole body trembled, and her tears soaked Lu Zhaolin's robes, venting all the fear, helplessness, and resentment of being forced to compromise she had been feeling these past few days.

Lu Zhaolin raised his hand to wipe away Guo Yuyao's tears, his eyes filled with unyielding guilt and deep affection. "It is I who have wronged you, making you wait for so many years."

"Two years ago, I was unjustly imprisoned and contracted a stroke while in prison. After my release, my career was interrupted, and I wandered to Chang'an in rags. I was afraid of ruining your life, so I had no face to return to Yizhou to find you."

"If it weren't for the wise old man who gave me money and took me into the Shanghai Imperial Palace as a retainer, giving me a chance to be reborn, I'm afraid I would have carried this regret with my wife until the end of my life."

Guo Yuyao felt very sorry for Lu Zhaolin after hearing this. She took out a small silver box from her bosom and opened it. The seven red beans were still bright in color.

“My love, I never imagined you would betray me. I wipe the red beans you gave me every day, hoping to meet you today.”

Lu Zhaolin was deeply moved upon hearing this, and tears streamed down his face.

Lin Lang stood in the courtyard, watching the star-crossed lovers embrace and weep, a gentle smile appearing in his eyes.

Immediately afterwards, Lu Zhaolin took Guo Yuyao's hand and knelt down facing Lin Lang. While kowtowing and bowing, he said with tears of gratitude, "Thank you so much, Master! I can never repay your great kindness. I will go through fire and water for you, even at the cost of my life!"

"Get up. From now on, you and Yuyao should live a good life together. If you have another big, healthy son, your life will be complete." Lin Lang nodded, looking at the rekindled light in Lu Zhaolin's eyes with great satisfaction.

Guo Yuyao helped Lu Zhaolin to his feet and saw that his health had deteriorated significantly since he fell ill, and her eyes were filled with heartache.

With tears in his eyes and a smile on his face, Lu Zhaolin bowed deeply in gratitude and said, "Your Excellency is so kind and righteous, I admire you greatly! I have never been so happy in my entire life."