When the carriage arrived at Dong'an City, the sky was already gray, accompanied by bursts of rain, which fell like the tide.

The raindrops hit the carriage with a pattering sound.

The rain wet Xiao Yunyu's jet-black hair, which was tightly bound by his silver crown, and gathered into water droplets that slid down his cheeks. The road gradually became muddy, and the carriage was no longer moving as smoothly as before, shaking and making a slight tremor.

Inside the carriage, the two best friends were made drowsy by the slow movement of the carriage. Now they each found the most comfortable position and were sleeping soundly.

At the city gate, the officer in charge of inspection had moved the long table to the gate under the thick city wall. When he saw a carriage coming, he immediately perked up and stared at it with sharp eyes.

Xiao Yunyu didn't hear any sound from the people in the carriage for half of the journey, and guessed that the two of them were probably sleeping soundly at this time.

So he took out the token he carried with him and showed it to the officer.

The two officers were shocked when they saw the token and quickly stood up and prepared to salute.

Xiao Yunyu quickly gestured for silence, put away the token and continued driving the carriage towards Li's house.

As the carriage left, two officers at the city gate began to whisper to each other, "Who do you think was in that carriage? It's surprising that General Xiao was so cautious, afraid of disturbing them."

Another officer lowered his voice and said, "I heard from General Qi's people that General Xiao is obsessed with his deceased wife. The person in this carriage is probably a person of noble status, definitely not a woman."

The officer asked in confusion, "General Xiao is the heir of a marquisate. What kind of nobleman could he serve so carefully?"

The two officers exchanged a look of surprise, "Could it be that someone from the royal family has come down?"

The continuous rain was getting heavier and heavier. The already dark city of Dong'an seemed to be plunged into a dark night, with the dark mist covering the whole world.

The carriage stopped at the door of Li's house.

Seeing Xiao Yunyu soaked to the skin, Xiaobai exclaimed, "Master, why are you so wet?"

Li Nian was awakened by Xiaobai's exclamation. Rubbing her sleepy eyes, she murmured softly, "Are we there yet?"

Xiao Yunyu heard her voice, jumped off the carriage, and responded: "We're here. It's raining outside. Wait a moment, I'll ask the servants to get an umbrella."

Li Sisi woke up, yawned, stretched, and muttered, "It's almost here! I haven't gotten enough sleep yet."

As Xiao Yunyu walked into the house, he ordered, "Xiaobai, go get two umbrellas and protect your husband... Nian Nian, go back to your room."

"Yes!" Xiaobai responded and went to get an umbrella.

Xiao Yunyu came to the side room next to the master bedroom, looked around and quickly found the wardrobe in the corner.

He opened the wardrobe, took out a clean robe and put it on, then took a dry towel and sat on the stool next to the small round table in the room, wiping his hair silently.

After a while, Xiaobai came in.

He frowned and said, "Master, why didn't you find a place to take shelter on the way? It's been raining for a long time. You didn't rush back from Bei'an City in the rain, did you?"

Xiao Yunyu just wiped his hair quietly and took off the priceless jade-inlaid hair crown. His hair was now completely wet and hung down. After wiping it for a while, no water was dripping from it, but it was still wet.

Seeing that he remained silent, Xiaobai continued, "Master, how about I ask Yu Niang to make you some ginger tea? This is such a horrible weather in the northwest. Once it rains, it's like early summer has turned into winter. You've been soaked all the way. It would be troublesome if you caught a cold."

After hearing this, Xiao Yunyu finally glanced at him and said, "Well, make some ginger tea for Nian Nian."

Xiaobai: ...Master, why don’t you take a look at yourself first, looking like a drowned dog?

"Yes." Xiaobai responded and left.

It was already evening when they rushed back to Dong'an City. This was why Xiao Yunyu did not stop to take shelter from the rain. If he had, he would have had to spend the night outside.

The nights in the northwest are not only windy but also extremely cold.

Spending the night away from home definitely won’t give you as good a sleep as going home.

At this time, the sky became even darker after the rain at night, and the rain outside the house fell along the eaves, gradually becoming a downpour.

Xiaobai brought dinner and a bowl of ginger tea into the room. Xiao Yunyu had already picked up the official business he had not finished and continued to read it.

"Master, it's time for dinner."

Xiao Yunyu replied softly, "Put it on the table."

Xiaobai approached with dinner in hand. Seeing the small table now covered with several piles of documents, which almost filled it, he said with a slightly dissatisfied tone, "Master, this side room you live in is a bit too small. It's not even half the size of Miss Sisi's second bedroom."

Xiao Yunyu suddenly looked up when he heard this and asked in surprise, "You said that Li Sisi lives in the second bedroom?"

"That's right." Xiaobai said angrily, "Why don't you discuss it with your wife? There's clearly a vacant west wing, you can move in there."

Xiao Yunyu had no time to worry about where he would live. A glimmer of light rose in his eyes as he asked, "Nian Nian lives in the master bedroom, and Li Sisi lives in the second bedroom. They don't live together?"

Xiaobai was stunned by his question: "No."

He suddenly understood something, remembering some of the information he had gathered over the past few days. He answered while holding his dinner, "Since my wife and the second wife came here, they have been telling others that they are sisters. Furthermore, the second wife seems to have a complicated relationship with the two brothers of the Pei family."

When Xiao Yunyu learned that Li Nian and Li Sisi did not live together, and heard that Li Sisi was entangled with another man, he immediately felt a little hungry.

While taking the documents from the small round table and piling them on the stool next to him, he asked, "Tell me about it in detail."

Xiaobai handed the ginger tea to Xiao Yunyu first: "Master, please drink some ginger tea to drive away the cold."

Xiao Yunyu took the ginger tea and drank it all.

Xiaobai placed the dinner on the small round table and spoke to Xiao Yunyu in a low voice about what he had recently heard.

Xiao Yunyu's deep peach blossom eyes were gradually filled with star-like light.

Her tone became more cheerful: "You mean, Li Sisi has two suitors? Nian Nian doesn't mind at all?"

"Yes." Xiaobai said, and then thought of another thing, and hesitated for a moment whether to say it.

Seeing that he was hesitant to speak, Xiao Yunyu raised his eyebrows with a hint of smile and asked, "Is there anything else?"

Xiaobai's eyes flashed, and he answered truthfully: "It seems that the lady also has a suitor, the one named Shen Qianye. I heard that he is the one who chops the firewood for the Li residence most of the time."

"Chen Qianye..." Xiao Yunyu's eyes turned cold instantly, and a dangerous light flashed in his eyes.

He ordered in a deep voice: “Go and check Shen Qianye, the more detailed the better.”

"Yes!" Xiaobai responded and left the house with the empty bowl.