Elsewhere, in Chengtian Prefecture.
At dusk, a carriage and a fine horse stood in the middle of a crossroads on the official road, more than ten li from the Hua Residence.
Hua Ning and the other guards and maids waited by the roadside, while Luo Ning, Yunli, and Fan Qinghe had already packed their belongings and stood on a small hill in the distance.
After meeting up with Ning'er, Xue Baijin had spurred her horse south at full speed. Now dressed as a guard, she stood beside the carriage, trying to persuade Hua Qingzhi, who refused to leave with them.
Niao Niao crouched behind big sister Ice Lump, also calling toward the carriage window, "Coo, coo, chirp, chirp..." From the look of things, the bird was helping persuade her.
Inside the window, Hua Qingzhi gazed south. With parting imminent, a trace of desolation was evident in her eyes, but she still replied:
"I appreciate your kindness, Miss Xue, but Young Master Ye and I merely met by chance, like drifting duckweed. There is no romantic affection between us. If I left home without a word and followed you to the Southern Dynasty, how could I repay my parents for raising me?"
Xue Baijin had already tried persuading her many times, but Hua Qingzhi kept insisting that she had no relationship with Ye Jingtang and refused to leave with her. After some thought, she could only say:
"Think carefully, Miss Hua. Our two countries are at war now. For three to five years at the shortest, or decades at the longest, there will be no contact between north and south. Ye Jingtang holds high office and great authority. He cannot come to Northern Liang again. If you do not come now, the Southern Dynasty will not agree to let him venture