Chapter 955: The Peasant Girl’s Splendid Manor
Chapter 955: A Match Made in Heaven, Abducted (4)
Going to a temple to repay a vow should have been a solemn and humble affair, but Fan Meijiao was desperate to show off. She wanted everyone to know that she was about to marry into the Mu family and wished she could bring along every single servant from the Zhao estate.
The temple they were visiting was Baohua Temple, located fifty miles east of the city. It was the largest temple within the capital’s vicinity and a favorite place for noble ladies and young misses to offer prayers and fulfill vows. Naturally, when they met there, they would secretly compare themselves to one another.
Fearful of being looked down upon, Fan Meijiao had been up before dawn to prepare herself. Now, she was seated in the lavishly decorated carriage at the back, dressed in fine silks and adorned with glittering jewelry. She repeatedly instructed the coachman to slow down, worried that the bumps along the way would ruin her elaborate hairstyle and disturb her many ornaments.
Little did she realize that temples were places of peace and purity, where virtue and character were valued more than material extravagance. Her excessive display was bound to bring her nothing but disappointment. And as fate would have it, she wouldn’t even reach Baohua Temple that day.
The carriages soon left the city. The road outside was far rougher than those within the capital, and despite moving slowly, the carriage still jostled heavily. Delicate and pampered as she was, Fan Meijiao could not tolerate the bumpy ride and kept ordering the coachman to slow down even further.
With no other choice, the coachman complied, reducing the speed until they were barely moving faster than a walking pace.
Meanwhile, Madam Zhao, worried about missing the auspicious hour for their prayers, decided not to wait for her dawdling granddaughter. She had one of the servant women relay a message to Fan Meijiao and then urged her own carriage forward.
As a result, the distance between the two carriages steadily increased until, before long, Madam Zhao’s carriage was completely out of sight.
That day, many noble families were also heading to Baohua Temple for prayers. Like Madam Zhao, they wanted to arrive early to show their sincerity. At first, there were several other carriages traveling alongside Fan Meijiao’s, but as time passed, her slow-moving carriage was left behind. Eventually, hers was the only one remaining on the desolate road.
Fan Meijiao remained oblivious to this, resting against her maid with her eyes closed.
Suddenly, the carriage lurched violently. The three people inside were thrown hard against the walls, causing instant chaos.
“Ah—!”
Fan Meijiao, completely unprepared and without anything to brace herself, suffered the worst of it. Her forehead slammed into the carriage wall, swelling up almost immediately.
Outside, the once-docile horse had gone wild, galloping frantically. The coachman clung desperately to the reins, but the animal’s strength was too much for him. The leather straps cut into his flesh, causing blood to drip from his hands, yet he was powerless to rein the horse in.
The guards had already been left far behind, disappearing from view.
Inside the violently rocking carriage, Fan Meijiao and her maids were being tossed about. Even the coachman nearly got thrown off his seat.
“What’s going on? What the hell is happening?!” Fan Meijiao, flung back and forth, clutched her throbbing forehead in agony. Screaming in pain and fury, she shoved one of the maids toward the front. “Go find out what’s happening with the coachman!”
As if in response, the coachman’s trembling voice rang out from outside. “M-Miss! The horse—it's spooked! I-I can’t stop it! We have to wait until it tires itself out before it’ll stop!”
Hearing this, Fan Meijiao exploded in rage. “Useless dog! You can’t even control a damn horse! What’s the point of keeping you around? When I get back in three days, I’ll have you beaten to death for this!”
The coachman knew his mistress’s temper well. If she said she’d punish him, she wasn’t joking. After serving the Zhao family for decades, he had worked tirelessly, even if he had never received much recognition. But now, being blamed for something beyond his control and facing such cruel threats, his heart turned cold. He no longer cared to try stopping the crazed horse.
And so, the horse continued its mad sprint. Inside the carriage, the screams of Fan Meijiao and her maids echoed through the countryside. Passersby witnessed the terrifying scene, but none dared to intervene. Instead, they quickly stepped aside, unwilling to risk their own safety.
Ahead, a dense forest loomed. The panicked horse, seemingly oblivious to the carriage behind it, charged straight into the trees. The carriage became wedged between two trunks, finally jerking to a stop.
However, the horse’s sheer strength snapped the two thick ropes attaching it to the carriage. Freed at last, it neighed wildly before galloping deeper into the forest, disappearing from sight.
The four passengers were lucky to be alive.
The carriage, now hopelessly deformed, was barely recognizable. With the help of her two maids, Fan Meijiao struggled out of the wreckage.
Her once-elegant attire was now tattered, ripped in several places. Her hair was a complete mess, the intricate ornaments long gone. Her face was bruised and swollen, making her look more like a crazed beggar than the noblewoman she had been just hours ago.
She didn’t even need a mirror to know how wretched she looked. Furious beyond words, she directed all her anger at the coachman. Limping toward him, she raised her hand and slapped him across the face.
“You useless dog! You can’t even handle a carriage properly! What are you standing around for? Go find my horse! If you dare delay my prayers, don’t bother coming back!”
“Yes, yes! Right away!” The coachman’s face burned from the slap, but he swallowed his resentment. Bowing hastily, he turned and ran in the direction the horse had fled.
Fan Meijiao felt slightly appeased, though she was still in a foul mood. She touched her disheveled hair, then snapped at her two maids. “Are you both brain-dead? Get inside and find my grooming box! Now!”
The two maids scrambled into the wrecked carriage, frantically searching through the mess. After much effort, they finally found the box.
But before they could climb out, a sudden, terrified scream pierced the air outside.
Their heads snapped up, eyes wide with alarm. Hastily, they crawled out of the carriage—only to find that Fan Meijiao was nowhere to be seen.
(End of Chapter)
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