Lost and Found

Chapter 18: Lost and Found

The moment Pan Yun opened her eyes, she was met with Tao Ji's inquisitive face.

Seeing her awake, Tao Ji's eyes lit up. To avoid disturbing Xuan Miao, he deliberately lowered his voice and said, "Come here. Where did you pick up this child?"

Since she had already decided to go with them, Pan Yun naturally wouldn't hide anything about this matter. She replied, "I found him at the entrance of She County."

"You really went to She County," Tao Ji said with a complex expression. "Are those two human traffickers, gnawed by wild beasts in the woods near Jiaozhangkou, your doing?"

"You found them?" Pan Yun nodded. "It was me. What kind of beasts bit them? Are they dead?"

She frowned. "It's not good if they're dead. I was hoping they'd be caught by the yamen and reveal everyone they've trafficked."

Tao Ji replied, "They're not dead, but they're close."

Tao Ji and Xuan Miao headed towards Datong. Xuan Miao couldn't use her divination arts all the time, so as they traveled, they would calculate Pan Yun's location whenever they couldn't find her. Each calculation revealed she was to the south.

The two then turned back to search for her. They continued this cycle of trial, error, searching, and more trial and error.

When they reached the vicinity of Zhangde Prefecture, they heard about a strange incident that occurred between Anyang and She County.

Two human traffickers had met their retribution. They were tied up in the wilderness and attacked by wild beasts at night. After barely escaping with their lives, they ran headfirst into a troop of soldiers escorting prisoners back.

These soldiers were low-ranking and hadn't had many opportunities to earn merit. They never expected to stumble upon such a meritorious deed before even returning to Anyang.

Recently, Runan Prefecture, Zhangde Prefecture, Kaifeng, and Daming Prefecture had been jointly cracking down on trafficking. At such a time, even a piece of information about human traffickers was considered meritorious, let alone capturing them. Thus, upon seeing the writing on the backs of the two men's clothes, the soldiers pounced on them like wolves, subduing them.

The opportunity for merit fell from the sky. Coupled with their encounter with wild beasts—one of the men had an arm torn off and half his face gnawed—the incident became incredibly legendary, spreading like wildfire in the Anyang area.

Tao Ji and Xuan Miao, passing by, overheard the story. Feeling suspicious, they went to the county yamen to inquire.

Neither of the human traffickers could identify who had knocked them unconscious, but they both suspected it was a little girl they had trafficked, a girl who had a black cat with her.

Unfortunately, the county yamen didn't believe them.

The magistrate and the yamen runners believed they had encountered robbers, and the little girl had likely fallen into the bandits' hands, her fate probably dire.

The county yamen had recently been searching for someone in that area, which had made the local bandits too scared to show themselves.

The county yamen didn't believe it, but Tao Ji and Xuan Miao did.

The two exchanged glances, having finally found a trace of Pan Yun.

It was like a thread; no matter how tangled, once you found the end, you could straighten it out.

They had now grasped the thread and followed Pan Yun's trail all the way here.

Tao Ji proudly finished explaining how they had caught up to Pan Yun, then warned her, "Even we could find your trail, let alone the Imperial Guards. So, you'd best not run around and let them catch you."

The inexplicable disappearance of an Imperial Guard in the capital was a matter that could be either minor or serious. Not only Pan Yun, but Sanqing Temple also needed to be cautious.

Back then, Wang Yong had chased Pan Yun on horseback down the street. So many people had seen it, and yamen runners and officials had helped in the search. How could there be no trace left behind?

Fortunately, Tao Ji and Xuan Miao had quietly brought her away from the capital, temporarily cutting off her trail within the city.

Pan Yun hadn't considered these things before, but now that they pointed them out, she began to think more deeply. "What was the name of the temple we left?"

Tao Ji replied, "Tianning Temple."

"Wouldn't the Imperial Guards investigate you from Tianning Temple?" Pan Yun asked. "When we left, we saw an Imperial Guard enter the plum grove, and you happened to leave Tianning Temple."

Tao Ji said, "They are monks. Monks do not get involved in worldly affairs."

Pan Yun looked at him quietly.

Tao Ji looked back at her quietly.

"Oh," Pan Yun said, knowing that Tianning Temple would likely not betray them. She changed the subject, gesturing to the child with her chin. "Since you're so good at divination, can you figure out his parents and send him back?"

If he returns to his parents, perhaps the omen of early death can be broken?

Tao Ji couldn't discern any further information and had to wait for Xuan Miao to wake up.

When Xuan Miao woke up, her complexion had improved considerably. She looked down and carefully examined the child. Her eyes met his moist, large ones. After a moment, she said, "He is of royal blood. Let's go back to Kaifeng."

Tao Ji then picked up the child.

Pan Yun picked up her black cat and asked with a frown, "Which royal family member in Kaifeng lost a child?"

Xuan Miao replied, "Kaifeng has Prince Zhou."

Seeing her confused expression, Tao Ji knew she was unfamiliar with the situation as a child and explained, "Prince Zhou is the son of the Founding Emperor's fifth son. The late Prince Zhou and Emperor Taizong were both legitimate sons. He is the current imperial uncle. Because they are from the same lineage, he is considered a very close member of the imperial family."

In simpler terms, he's a grandson of Zhu Yuanzhang.

Pan Yun mentally translated it into the simplest relationship.

Pan Yun asked, "Did their family lose a child?"

Xuan Miao said, "Since the end of last year, Runan Prefecture, Kaifeng, Zhangde Prefecture, and Daming Prefecture have been jointly cracking down on trafficking. After spring, the soldiers pursuing human traffickers have only increased. Although there is no definitive news, it is likely that Prince Zhou's Mansion in Kaifeng lost a child."

Tao Ji nodded repeatedly, but then paused halfway, his own eyes becoming confused. "Doesn't Prince Zhou have no sons? Where did a child come from in Prince Zhou's Mansion?"

Xuan Miao glanced at him. "When we were in the capital, didn't you hear that Prince Zhou was gravely ill? Recalling the father-son affection he once had with his adopted son, he petitioned the Emperor to return Zhu Youxian, son of a commoner, to him as an adopted son. Because his plea was sincere, the Emperor allowed Zhu Zijin, who was confined in the capital, to return to Kaifeng to visit Prince Zhou last year."

Tao Ji suddenly understood. He had heard this gossip before but hadn't taken it to heart.

He looked down at the child in his arms, his eyes full of sympathy. "Life in noble households isn't easy either."

Xuan Miao nodded.

Pan Yun nodded in deep agreement.

She and the child had walked with difficulty when they went north, but it was much easier to go south to Kaifeng.

Xuan Miao and Tao Ji finally became more generous, no longer insisting on walking on two legs. They first took her to a small pier and went downstream by boat.

Then they settled in a county town with not very strict management at the city gate.

Xuan Miao turned and looked at Pan Yun for a while before saying, "To enter Kaifeng, you need household registration and a travel permit."

Pan Yun looked at her silently.

Xuan Miao then took her to a pawnshop.

Tao Ji stepped forward and spoke with the shop assistant. The assistant then led them to a small room and soon brought a stack of papers for them to choose from. "Here, these are all suitable household registrations, for children between six and ten years old, both boys and girls."

Pan Yun's mouth widened.

Xuan Miao carefully selected one and asked, "What about the owner of this one?"

The assistant glanced at it and took out a ledger to search. Soon, he found the origin. "Zhang Xiaomei, from Xiangfu County, Kaifeng. Born in the ninth year of Xuande, sold herself as a slave in the fifth year of Zhengtong, and died of illness in the winter of the sixth year."

Xuan Miao said, "I'll take hers. And help me get a travel permit for her."

Xuan Miao placed a silver ingot on the table.

The assistant glanced at it and closed the ledger. "Please wait a moment."

He took everything out and soon came back with three papers. Not only were there Zhang Xiaomei's household registration page and travel permit, but also her deed of sale.

Xuan Miao was very satisfied. This way, Pan Yun could be whoever she wanted to be.

Pan Yun silently walked out of the pawnshop with them.

Xuan Miao said, "Many things can be pawned at a pawnshop, and naturally, many things can also be bought from a pawnshop."

Pan Yun pondered, "From birth to death?"

Xuan Miao nodded, "From birth to death."

Xuan Miao handed her the three papers. "Let's go. Before we return to Mount Sanqing, you are her."

Pan Yun reached out and took them.

With these documents, traveling would be even more convenient. They decided to rent a carriage directly to Kaifeng.

When renting the carriage, Tao Ji and Xuan Miao were there, so Pan Yun didn't need to use these documents. However, the closer they got to Kaifeng, the more patrols there were on the road. Sometimes they would stop to check, not only for the adults' household registration and travel permits but also for the children's.

It was at this time that Pan Yun's household registration page came in handy.

Oh, the child sitting next to her didn't need it because he was too young. Ancient Chinese society had a strange custom of registering children's household registration with a delay.

Many families would wait until their children were five, six, or even seven or eight years old before registering them.

Pan Yun said, "So, if a three or four-year-old child is lost, but they are checking for children seven or eight years old and above, they let the person who should be most suspected go. What's the point of this grand search?"

The other two who understood, along with the cat, fell silent, then lowered their heads to look at the child, feeling even more sympathetic towards him.

The group of four people and one cat headed straight for Prince Zhou's Mansion as soon as they entered the city.

Pan Yun stood in front of Prince Zhou's Mansion, uncharacteristically nervous. "Are you sure this child really belongs to Prince Zhou's Mansion?"

What if he didn't? Being beaten out would be a minor issue, but being arrested and exposing their identities would be disastrous.

Xuan Miao glanced at her and then looked at Tao Ji.

Tao Ji puffed out his chest and walked towards the gate of Prince Zhou's Mansion.

The area in front of Prince Zhou's Mansion was deserted; there wasn't even a gatekeeper.

Tao Ji stepped forward and knocked on the door.

After knocking for a long time, someone finally came to open the door.

The gatekeeper who opened the door frowned upon seeing a Taoist priest. "Who are you, and what do you want?"

Tao Ji said, "This humble Taoist is Tao Ji, a Taoist from Mount Sanqing, here to deliver good news to His Highness Prince Zhou."

Perhaps because Tao Ji was a Taoist priest, the gatekeeper patiently asked, "What good news?"

Tao Ji stepped aside and pointed to the child standing beside Pan Yun. "The joy of finding what was lost."

The gatekeeper didn't react at first. After staring at the child for a while, his eyes widened. "This, this, this is our mansion's young master?"

Tao Ji said, "Whether it is or not, please ask your mansion's young prince to come out and see for himself?"

The gatekeeper was not familiar with the young master. After all, he had only been in Kaifeng for a short time before he got lost. The gatekeeper had only seen him from a distance twice. Half a year had passed, and the person had changed somewhat...

But no matter how much he had changed, there were still some resemblances.

The gatekeeper stopped closing the door and stumbled inside. "The young master is back, the young master is back--"

The ten lucky numbers for this chapter are those ending in 6. The screenshot is proof, and the screenshot time is until the next chapter is released.