Since coming back last time, Bryson had started a routine of hunting every single day.
He didn't let Missy do anything at all.
Before leaving the house, he would always carefully arrange everything in perfect order.
Then he would seriously lock the courtyard gate.
Right around mealtime, he always came back on time.
These days, Missy had been reading books to understand more about the Yu Kingdom.
The founding emperor of Yu, the one who united the entire Yuyang continent,
not only named the country after his own family name but also gave the whole continent his name,
which showed how great his achievements and status were.
When Yuyang was first unified,
his ministers came from all over with different languages and writing systems,
and that gave him a huge headache.
But instead of backing down, he faced the problem directly,
determined to unify the written language by choosing one language from one of the nations as the official language for the entire continent.
He created phonetic symbols to mark pronunciation for all words
and printed books using these symbols, distributing them to his ministers.
He asked them to learn the phonetics and the Yu language within a set time,
and later ordered that all court communications, whether in writing or spoken, must be in the Yu language.
At first, it was only taught to officials in the capital,
but over time it spread to local officials too.
Among the noble circles in different regions, knowing the Yu language became a trend,
and people took pride in being able to speak it fluently.
Those who mastered it well had better chances to enter government service
and earn higher status and power.
Later, this language and writing system were introduced in schools
and became a required subject for students.
Now, a thousand years have passed, and although Yuyang has vanished in the tides of history,
the Huaxia dynasty it established still lives on.
The language and script have also been widely used all across the continent,
becoming the official language of Yuyang.
Even though local dialects are still spoken,
educated people can all use the official language fluently to communicate.
Girls from noble or wealthy families especially focus on learning it,
hiring skilled tutors to teach them,
making sure they can communicate well in this diverse society.
The official language has truly become a part of everyday life in this land.
Missy learned all about Yuyang from the books,
and it felt like both she and Bryson came from that familiar land of Huaxia.
Even though they didn't come from the same time and space,
at the end of the book, Yuyang was mentioned in English, saying he had found a way to return to his homeland.
The book didn't explain exactly how,
but it gave Missy a spark of hope.
She began to wish that maybe someday,
she too could find the path back to her own world.
But when Missy dug deeper into the Yu Kingdom's legal system,
she discovered something shocking — private ownership of women.
Ever since Yuyang united the continent,
he had noticed a sharp drop in the birth rate of baby girls.
To stop this from getting worse and to protect women's dignity and rights,
he came up with the identity card system.
Back then, the identity card not only showed a woman's social status
but also meant she was under special protection.
But after more than a thousand years of change,
the gender imbalance in Yu became more extreme,
reaching a terrifying level of one girl for every hundred boys.
That meant for every hundred newborn babies,
only one would be a girl.
This serious imbalance led to a twisted system of private ownership of women.
In this warped society,
women were no longer seen as precious and worth protecting.
They became items that could be bought and sold freely.
The identity card, which was supposed to protect them,
turned into a shameful tag showing a woman's "owner."
In this world where women were so rare,
it was no wonder Missy rarely saw them on the streets or in public places.
The identity tag was no longer like the ID card she once understood.
It was more like a brand burned into the skin of a slave,
symbolizing a fate where she could be bought and sold at will.
She wanted to leave this place.
That was what Missy had in mind.
The next morning,
Bryson, as usual, completed all his daily chores, took his hunting tools,
locked the door, and headed into the back mountain.
After a long while, when Missy was sure he had gone far
and wouldn't return anytime soon,
she quietly returned to the room and began preparing herself carefully.
She changed into a set of men's clothes and tied her long hair into a high ponytail.
Then, she applied a special liquid made by Bryson to her face.
Carefully, she took a sharp dagger from the kitchen,
wrapping it skillfully in a piece of leather to avoid drawing attention.
She carried a bundle she had already packed and went to the corner of the wall.
She had thought it through thoroughly and planned everything carefully.
From a hidden spot in the corner, she pulled out a rope.
One end of the rope was cleverly tied to a heavy stone.
She carefully swung the rope,
making sure the stone would land securely on the thick branch of a tree outside.
After testing it several times, she finally confirmed the rope was firm and stable.
Taking a deep breath, she first gently threw her bundle and the dagger over the wall,
then tightly gripped the rope and began to climb.
She knew clearly that there was no one outside at this moment, making it the best chance to escape.
Slowly, she climbed to the top of the wall, her heartbeat speeding up.
Finally, she carefully slid down the rope to the other side of the wall.
"What are you doing?"
Just as she landed and hadn't yet felt the joy of success,
a voice suddenly came from behind her.
Her heart raced as she nervously turned around,
only to see Wren standing there,
holding the bundle and the dagger she had just thrown.
He looked straight at her.
Seeing Wren, her nervousness eased slightly.
She walked directly to him,
quickly took her belongings back from his hands, and smiled a little,
"Thanks, this is mine."
Wren frowned slightly and looked at her closely.
"Are you trying to run away?"
Missy let out a soft laugh,
her voice like the morning breeze, with a touch of mischief.
"Isn't it obvious?"
Wren suddenly stepped forward and blocked her path.
"Did Master… did he hit you?"
His voice trembled slightly, filled with deep concern.
Clearly, he cared about her.
Missy was momentarily stunned.
She quickly understood that Wren was referring to the time Bryson got angry after seeing them holding hands.
She gently shook her head, trying to reassure him.
Then she walked past Wren and continued forward.
Wren immediately moved again,
grabbing Missy's hand tightly to stop her from going further.
His eyes were full of confusion and questions as he asked,
"Then why are you running away?"
His mind was filled with doubt. He didn't understand why Missy would choose to leave.
He thought for a moment and spoke again, urgently:
"Is Master treating you badly? If he is, then come with me! I'll treat you well!"
There was a youthful and sincere emotion in his voice.
After speaking, Wren's cheeks turned slightly red,
and he shyly lowered his head, not daring to look directly into Missy's eyes.
His heart was filled with nervousness and hope,
wishing Missy would give him a clear answer.