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He shook his head and laughed drily—the feeling came for no reason.

Unbeknownst to him, however, the moment he left, Ji’er, who had been holding back her tears all this time, began crying her heart out in the room.

She hid behind the door and sobbed quietly as she watched Chu Qi walk further and further away.

To stop Chu Qi from coming after her, she called Tong’er over and told her that she was feeling exhausted. Ji’er told Tong’er that she planned to sleep and instructed her not to allow anyone to disturb her without her orders.

That was why Tong’er had assumed Ji’er was sleeping in the room. She had no idea that Ji’er had carried a simple cloth bundle and exited through the window the moment she close the room door.

When Chu Qi returned, he went straight toward Ji’er’s room but was told by Tong’er that Ji’er was feeling tired and was still sleeping.

The memory of him exhausting Ji’er for the entire night gave him an idea of how spent she was. He did not enter the room and disturb her sleep. Instead, he turned back and returned to his study to continue his work.

It was only by the afternoon when he saw that she still had not emerged from her room that Chu Qi began to sense that something was wrong.

This time, he pushed the room door open without hesitation and went in.

The room was just as tidy as when he left this morning, but it was cold and empty. All that was left was the lingering, cold scent of the girl.

He maintained a glimmer of hope as he looked at the bed netting that was drawn down and could not help softening his footsteps.

However, when he saw the empty bed when he pulled apart the netting, his heart sank to the bottom of his stomach.

Tong’er, who had followed behind him, widened her eyes in shock when she saw the sight.

Where was the princess?

It took a while for the reality to sink in for Chu Qi as he picked up a letter left on the floor.

There were only a few short sentences written on it. “Lil Qi, I’m leaving. There’s no need to look for me. Take good care of yourself!”

The end of the letter was signed “Long Ji’er”.

A dark cloud gloomed over Chu Qi’s face when he read the letter. How could he have been so careless not to realize Ji’er was acting strange the last few days?

He had suspected she was feeling bitter over what His Majesty had done all those years ago, but he did not expect that she would choose to leave him and everyone else behind.

It looked like she had already planned to leave when she suddenly begged him to stay that night and would not let him refuse.

Chu Qi clenched the letter in his hand. He was shocked and furious, but at the same time, his heart pained tremendously with a pang of great regret.

That silly girl…

He did not waste any time being drowned in sadness as he immediately got his men together and split up to search for her.

However, Ji’er was determined to leave and had even made detailed plans to delay his search so that she could slip away.

Chu Qi and his men searched for three days and three nights, but they found no sign of where Ji’er had gone. As for the other parties who searched in different directions, they also came back with the same news. There was no trace of the princess.

It was like Ji’er had vanished into thin air.

…

Long Yin and the others arrived at West Water Frontier on this day.

Yaoyao was overjoyed at being able to see Ji’er, whom she had been separated from for a long time. She jumped off the horse-drawn carriage before even waiting for it to stop and ran straight toward the General Mansion.

She wanted to give Ji’er a surprise.

That girl always maintained a solemn front, but they were very close since they were sisters.

Ji’er must surely also miss her after she was away for so long.

If she saw Yaoyao had returned, she would be overjoyed.

Yaoyao could not wait to see the surprise on Ji’er’s face.

A smile appeared on Yaoyao’s face at this thought. She was determined to give that girl a great surprise.

However, Yaoyao realized something was wrong when she stepped into the General Mansion.

The entire mansion looked dead and silent. The servants were on their toes and cautious with every action. All of them looked gloomy and worried.

Yaoyao was taken aback. She paused in her steps. She wanted to ask one of the servants what had happened when she spotted a maid crying on the stone steps and wiping away tears.