After the person outside finished speaking, Lou Guyu hadn't reacted yet, but the First Elder stood up abruptly, his expression showing some surprise and uncertainty.

He believed that his trip was extremely secretive, and that no one outside of his close confidants would know about it.

But now, he had only just met Lou Guyu, and the people of Jiangbei City already knew he was here, which made it hard for him not to overthink things.

He glanced at his men, focusing on the two who had just returned from the barbarian army. He suspected there was a traitor among his men, but he couldn't show it in front of Lou Guyu.

Lou Guyu could tell what the Grand Elder was thinking from his expression, but he didn't offer any explanation. (Mainly because he didn't know how Yan Xiao's information had arrived so quickly.)

He coughed lightly before speaking:

"Elder, although the barbarian army has been defeated, our cooperation can still continue. My sister has invited you to be her guest, which must be for the same reason. I hope you will do me the honor of accepting my invitation?"

The Grand Elder looked somewhat troubled and conflicted upon hearing this, and then Lou Guyu continued:

"I'm sure the Grand Elder has heard that my sister has a rather eccentric temper. If the Grand Elder truly wants to cooperate, please don't disrespect her. Otherwise, it's a small matter if the cooperation fails, but the real issue is whether you can return unscathed."

This was a blatant threat, yet the Grand Elder dared not speak out against it.

It's just that he didn't expect the barbarian king to be defeated so easily, which completely disrupted all his previous plans.

Now that the barbarian army has been defeated, and the Miao king is a suspicious man, his actions this time have left him with many incriminating clues. It won't be long before the Miao king becomes suspicious of him.

Given the Miao king's personality of preferring to kill the innocent rather than let the guilty go free, he'll be lucky to escape with his life.

If he can't cooperate with Jiangbei now, he will have truly lost both his wife and his army.

As he was thinking this, the person outside came in, and one look at the person who came in made it clear that he was no ordinary person.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, glanced at those people a few times, and then he had a good idea of ​​what was going on.

Judging from this situation, I have no choice but to go to Jiangbei City, whether I want to or not. Since that's the case, I might as well take the initiative and let the other party know my sincerity.

Having made up his mind, the Grand Elder smiled and looked at Lou Guyu, saying:

"Holy Son, although my men were of little help this time, they can be of great help when we deal with the Miao King later. I hope you can put in a good word for me when you return."

"When things are settled and the Holy Son returns to the Miao people, I will certainly follow your lead."

Lou Guyu sneered inwardly upon hearing this, but outwardly smiled and appeared quite cooperative.

When the Grand Elder arrived in Jiangbei with Lou Guyu, he didn't even see Yanxiao. Instead, he was taken to a separate courtyard to stay temporarily.

The explanation given was that the general's wife was a woman and it was inconvenient for her to meet with a man alone, and that she was currently too busy to handle post-war matters, so he should wait for Shen Muzhi to return before meeting her.

The excuse was so flimsy that even a fool wouldn't realize it was a pretext. When the Grand Elder heard this, he was furious, but he had no choice but to swallow his anger if he didn't want to ruin things.

But the most infuriating thing was yet to come. Yan Xiao made him live in a separate courtyard, which was practically imprisonment. He was not allowed to leave the main gate except for his own room, and his eating, drinking, and relieving himself were all taken care of by special people.

The elder was furious and naturally wanted to protest, but the guards respectfully turned him away, leaving him with no choice but to give up.

As for Yan Xiao, she had no intention of cooperating with the Grand Elder at all; she only wanted to keep the Grand Elder around to avenge Uncle Jing.

However, since there is a cause for grievance and a debtor to settle, and Uncle Jing still has a son, it's best to leave the matter of taking action to Situ Nanzhao.

Although she wasn't the original owner, she was using this identity now, so it wasn't a bad thing to help settle some karmic debts along the way.

After all, there really are gods in this world, and it wouldn't be good if I left behind some karma that would affect my future fortune.

She has already sent a letter to Situ Nanzhao, and now she is just waiting for Situ Nanzhao to finish his work and come back to handle it.

As things stand, the Grand Elder is essentially under house arrest. Treating him with courtesy is merely a precaution to prevent unnecessary trouble and to appease that old codger for now.

Lou Guyu was unaware of Yan Xiao's thoughts. Upon meeting Yan Xiao, his first thought was to discuss cooperation with the Grand Elder.

But when he saw Yan Xiao's appearance clearly, the words that were on the tip of his tongue got stuck in his throat, and he stood there stunned, unable to come back to his senses for a long time.

The last time Lou Guyu saw Yanxiao, Yanxiao was dressed as Si Hong, but now she was in her original appearance. Strictly speaking, this was the first time Lou Guyu had seen her like this.

Lou Guyu, who has been beautiful since childhood, has a certain immunity to beauty and will not be stunned by Yan Xiao's current stunning appearance.

The reason he was stunned was that Yan Xiao not only resembled him somewhat, but her eyes were exactly the same as his mother's.

Although he had never met his mother, he treasured her portrait and had memorized her appearance since childhood, so he would never mistake her for someone else.

"Who...who are you?"

Lou Guyu heard his own voice tremble slightly, having long forgotten where he was and what his purpose was in coming here.

Yan Xiao made no attempt to conceal his appearance, indicating he was prepared to be recognized by Lou Guyu and felt the time was right to accept this adopted younger brother.

Just as she was about to speak, a voice announced from outside the door:

"Madam, the general has returned."

"Huh? So fast?"

Yan Xiao was surprised for a moment. She had learned from the guardian deity earlier that Shen Muzhi should still be a day away from arriving, but she did not expect him to arrive so soon.

Then the guardian spirit said, "After your man defeated the barbarian king, he left behind trusted men to escort him and rode back overnight at top speed. I really don't know what he was in such a hurry for; his wife isn't going to run away."

"What do you know? This is my charm."

"Uh..." The guardian felt a chill and fell silent.

Lou Guyu recognized Yan Xiao by the voice. His bright eyes widened, and his voice stammered:

"Sister? You, you're my Sister Yan? What happened to you?"

Lou Guyu maintained a semblance of composure on the surface, but his heart was in turmoil.

Whether someone is beautiful or ugly doesn't really affect him, except for the fact that he used to find it a bit jarring. So, he'd only be slightly surprised if he became more beautiful.

But now, how come he looks so much like someone in his family? Is this just a coincidence?

"Yes, I am your sister."

His words, spoken with a double meaning, were followed by a meaningful glance at Lou Guyu:

"This is a long story. Let's go meet your brother-in-law first and let him explain it to you. That way, I can save myself some trouble."

Lou Guyu, looking completely bewildered: ? ? ? ? ? ?

So you were so excited to answer the phone not because you missed your husband, but because you found talking to me troublesome?

Shen Muzhi is such a pitiful guy~

No, I seem to be in a worse situation than Shen Muzhi.