Chapter 491 - Chapter 491: Chapter 498: Its Too Late (2/2)
The more Qi Yun thought like this, the more urgent he felt, wishing he could instantly reach the bottom of the cliff. However, no matter how hurriedly he urged his men to move, and despite traveling all night without rest, they only arrived at the foot of the cliff on the second day.
But with the cliff being so high, and with Qi Yun having taken a detour, they couldn’t pin down where Su Wenyue had plunged from. The team spread out to search.
“Captain, look! There’s a lake over there. Could the madam have fallen into it?” said a secret guard.
Qi Yun rushed over and saw the deep lake, his face brightening at the sight. Acting on instinct and deduction, he felt the lady must have fallen nearby. From such a height, if she had fallen to the ground and there were no branches to break her fall, the lady would surely be dead without question. But if she fell into the lake, the impact of the lake water could mean that the lady was merely injured, not fatally.
“This is great, Captain! With such a vast lake below, and considering the location, the madam must have jumped from here. Maybe she’s still alive.”
After scouring the surroundings and finding no trace of the madam, the most probable scenario was that she had fallen into the lake. The thought that the lady could still be alive brought a gleam of joy to everyone’s faces.
“But the lake water is so deep, can the madam swim?” one secret guard asked after the initial excitement, immediately raising a practical concern, which left the rest of the group speechless. The smiles that had appeared due to their discovery of the lake froze on their faces.
“That…none of us knows. Normally, young ladies from noble families don’t learn to swim. Although our lady comes from a merchant background, the Su Family is a spin-off from the Marquis Beian Mansion, and she grew up pampered. Master Su and Madam Su would never allow the lady to learn such a thing. If it were a common village woman, there might be a chance to pick it up. But if the lady can’t swim, even if she wasn’t killed by the fall, she would drown!”
Listening to this cast a heavy pall over everyone, and Qi Yun’s expression grew somber.
“Stop that, can’t you say something optimistic? All you do is spout such ill-omened talk. The lady is blessed with good fortune; perhaps she really can swim,” someone rebuked.
No one argued against that. Everyone harbored that hope, but they all knew in their hearts how slim that chance was. Moreover, nearly sixteen hours had passed since Su Wenyue had jumped. If she genuinely couldn’t swim, any rescue attempt would be too late by now.
“Master, what should we do now?”
“We continue the search, of course. Regardless of the outcome, we must find the lady. If she fell into the lake, considering the flow of the water, she might have been carried to the shore. Let’s search around the lake once more, thoroughly,” Qi Yun spoke in a commanding tone. The secret guards split up and began their search around the lake.
“Master, look, could this be the lady’s shoe?” A secret guard excitedly called out, running over with an embroidered shoe in hand. It had been found by the lakeside, perhaps washed ashore by the lake water.