Zhang Yue woke to silence.
The rain was gone. In its place, a damp chill hung in the air, seeping through her sleeves and brushing her cheeks. There was no shrine around her, just a solemn hush of night. She looked around and found out that she was lying on a rock.
She sat up slowly, her head foggy, limbs aching from the stone. "What the hell…" Her voice was a croak. "Did I actually fall asleep here?Aisshhhh."
She almost cursed and reached instinctively for her bag,nothing. Her phone,gone. Even her watch and boots were missing. "No, no, no. This better not be a joke." A trickle of panic ran down her spine when realisation finally hit her. "That bastard… Did he rob me?"
The man looked so elegant and well behaved, she really didn't even possibly think of him being a robber.
He could have at least left her at the shrine. What's the point of her leaving at a random place?
There was no shrine, just a huge rock untouched. No signs of anyone. Only the faint scent of osmanthus lingered in the air, as if the encounter had been a dream or some strange vision. Her memory blurred at the edges.
She pushed herself up, brushing dust off her clothes, and carefully stepping off the rock. The sky was clearing, moonlight spilling through shredded clouds. Something was weird.
The forest around the shrine… it wasn't supposed to be this dense. The path she came from was no longer there,just thick brush and unmarked woods.
"Brilliant," Zhang Yue muttered. "I drink half a glass and end up in some cursed forest."
She began walking, her bare footsteps squelching over the wet leaves. But she no longer cared.
If she manages to reach the mansion, she could beg Zhang Yan for help. Maybe borrow a phone, or cry dramatically- both were valid plans. But what about the interview?
She somehow managed to land an interview at the cafeteria of major corporation, courtesy of her best friend, Li Ruhan. It was a decent offer. It was stable, respectable and just enough pay to sustain her life as for now.
But that chance is gone now. No way she could reach Xi city by tomorrow morning.
No phone, no vehicle and obviously no documents for travel or shoes.
Unless Ruhan could pull off some miracle and stall the interview, she is doomed. But even for that she has to reach the damn mansion first.
She kept walking.
And walking.
And still walking.
She didn't know how long she had walked, but one thing was certain. She was not getting anywhere. It felt like Zhang family mansion was playing hide and seek with her.
Then she saw it, light. A warm, flickering amber glow in the distance. A lantern.
Hope stirred in her chest.
"Hey! Hey, wait!"
Zhang Yue jogged toward the figure ahead,tall, broad, the lantern swinging at his side.
He was dressed in traditional clothes, which immediately set her mind into a suspicious mode.
"Don't tell me it's that robber again." She slowed for a bit. She was practically in the same weird forest.
But as she got closer, she realised that her assumptions were wrong.
This man was different. He looked elegant and poised. He moved calmly, but with precision and alert. Definitely not a thief.
"Excuse me!" Zhang Yue called again. "I'm trying to find my way back to Zhang Mansion. Can you help?"
No answer. The man kept walking, unhurried.
She caught up, breathless.
Even though she was beside him, that person didn't even look at her or pay any attention as if she was invisible.
"Oh great. What if he's deaf? Or just ignoring me?" Zhang Yue spoke to herself and tried to pace herself with the stranger.
"Hey. Zhang mansion." She almost touched his hand, but in a swish, he dodged her touch, leaving her in utter disbelief.
"Okay, not deaf then." She quipped.
Without turning, the man spoke. "I'm going that way."
His voice was deep, unbothered, like wind through the trees.
"Oh. Okay. Thank you," she said, falling into step beside him. "Guess I'll tag along."
He didn't respond. His silence wasn't rude,just natural, like he wasn't used to company, or didn't care much for it.
"So… Do you live around here?" she asked, glancing sideways. It was definitely a forest path and by the way the stranger walked forward clearly said that he was well aware of the route.
"Sort of."
"That's helpful." She chuckled to herself. "Well, I used to visit this place every year. But now? Everything looks like it's been rearranged while I was away."
He gave a small hum, acknowledging her words without adding to them.
She tilted her head, trying to get a glimpse of his face, but it was half-shadowed by the lantern's sway. His features were sharp, dignified, but oddly detached,like he belonged to another time.
"I'm Zhang Yue, by the way," she offered, holding out her hand.
He glanced at it but didn't take it. "Zhang Yue?"
"Yeah. The infamous Zhang Yue. You know, the family disgrace who opened a café and makes twisted buns for a living. The good for nothing young miss of the Zhang family."
A moment of silence lingered between them. Even the rustling forest went silent at her reply, just like him.
"I have quite a bad reputation within the family, so it's normal that you have never heard of the young miss whom they disowned."
"Did they abandon you too?" he asked, voice flat but not cruel.
Her smile faltered. "Too? You know someone else they cast aside?"
"It's better if children like you don't ask such questions." As if he was not ready to answer directly.
She laughed, more from disbelief than amusement. "Children? Excuse me, mister. I'm a grown woman who pays her bills, runs a business, and occasionally gets drunk in family shrines."
He didn't react. Just kept walking.
She sighed dramatically. "I assume that you don't enjoy comedy."
Still no reaction.
"Anyway, the café flopped," she said. "Well, was made to flop. Long story. So I'm job hunting now. Got an offer, actually. Things are looking up."
He made a vague sound again. The kind that could mean anything,or nothing at all.
She didn't mind. Somehow, it was easy to talk with him, even if he wasn't talking back. Maybe it was because he wasn't judging her.
"I mean, it was fine till evening."
He gently tilted his head as if he was asking what happened.
"I was supposed to reach the capital by tomorrow morning for the interview. I don't think I will make it there, even if I fly. Also, I don't have documents or money to fly."
He slightly slowed his tracks, as if he was rethinking whether to continue walking with her.
"Hey, don't worry. I'm not going to ask for money from you. I just need to reach Zhang mansion and find my uncle."
"This path leads to Zhang Mansion," he said finally, nodding ahead.
"Oh. That's great, thank you."
She hesitated. "You didn't tell me your name."
A pause. The lantern flickered in a passing breeze.
"It's better if you don't know it."
And just like that, he stepped behind a curve in the trail and disappeared into the dark.
She blinked. "Wait,what?"
She rushed forward, but there was no trace of him. Only the lantern light, fading into the trees.