"Hmm..." Xu Yixing nodded slightly. It wasn't that she didn't value her mother's bloodline and surname, but her father had been so kind to her, and her mother had died young, so it was hard for her to have any feelings for her. She had always considered herself the eldest daughter of the Xu family and hadn't thought much about the Bai family.

Nanny Bai could naturally see what she was thinking, but she didn't point it out. She just gently stroked her blushing face with her hand. "Miss, in fact, what your mother left you is far more than the dowry in the backyard."

Xu Yixing's eyes lit up. Half of the dowry she brought was bought by her father, and the other half was brought by her mother from the Bai family.

After all, the current mistress of the Xu family is Gu, and my father can't just empty the house and give it to me, so many things were stuffed in under the name of being left to me by my mother.

"Is it some secret martial arts manual or elixir? Tell me quickly, dear Madam!"

Xu Yixing didn't care about gold and silver, as she had plenty of it. However, she was very interested in the martial arts secrets told at the storytelling stalls. She hoped that one day she would meet a master who would give her a scroll of this shabby book, so that she could practice some magical skills and rule the martial arts world.

"Miss, don't let your imagination run wild. Those things are all lies. Even if they really exist, why did we pick them up?"

"Yes, yes, yes! I just said it casually. Mammy, tell me, what did my mother leave for me?"

"Shadow Guard."

"Shadow Guards? Yes, are they those masters who follow the emperor and the princes, coming and going without a trace? How could there be such people in our family?"

Xu Yixing clutched his sleeves tightly. It was not uncommon for large clans to train death squads, but Shadow Guards... Shadow Guards were the highest level of guards, and as their name suggested, they could follow their masters like a shadow.

The shadow guards only obey the orders of their master, and will stop at nothing to achieve their goals, and will not stop until the root of the problem is eradicated.

Only the royal family has always had the energy and financial resources to train shadow guards. Even those ordinary big families can only raise secret guards at most, let alone shadow guards.

"These shadow guards were originally trained by the master for your mother, and they learned martial arts since childhood. Unfortunately, your mother died early, and these people never played a role. Now that they are given to you, young lady, it is only right and proper."

"Wait, wait, wait, my grandfather trained my mother as a shadow guard. Doesn't that mean he's been supporting this person for twenty or thirty years? How much does that cost..."

Xu Yixing's monthly allowance of fifty taels was enough for her to live comfortably, but training a shadow guard would cost more than fifty taels a month? With so much money, the shadow guards should have been supported by Nanny Bai after my grandfather's death. She had been supporting them under her nose for so many years without my father finding out. How amazing!

"Don't worry about the money. The master has already made plans and has never been short of money over the years. The shadow guards are selected from childhood. Those who are a little older and whose martial arts skills can no longer keep up have been eliminated. There are now nine shadow guards left for the young lady."

"Nine!" Xu Yixing stood up suddenly, his wide sleeves spilling the tea on the table. He'd thought he'd only raised one, but it turned out to be nine! And nine were left over! He couldn't imagine how many people his grandfather had raised!

"No, no, Mammy, this is inappropriate. Only a prince can use a few shadow guards. I am just the daughter of a small official. I can't use so many people! Otherwise... why don't we give them money and disband them..."

Xu Yixing was really panicked. Her father had taught her since she was a child to respect the royal family, stay away from party disputes, and not to be enemies with the court and the emperor. Now, if she used a shadow guard of this caliber, wouldn't that be tantamount to treason?

Although she prided herself on her heroic spirit, she was just a girl after all, and she was still very frightened when she heard about such a thing.

"Miss, these are the people the master has painstakingly trained. How can you give up so easily? With these people around, you don't have to worry about being threatened by anyone. Why can't you understand this?"

"But no one is threatening my life right now!"

Nanny Bai choked upon hearing this. She knew so much, but she couldn't tell the young lady. "Just because it's not happening now doesn't mean it won't happen in the future. If it does, how will you protect yourself, young lady?"

Xu Yixing tilted his head, feeling that Nanny Bai seemed to have a hidden meaning in her words.

"Mammy, are you hiding something from me? I'm Daddy's daughter, and now the eldest grandson and daughter-in-law of the Duke of Huguo's mansion. Daddy has always been valued by the Emperor, and the Sun family is a pillar of the country. Is there anyone who can threaten me?"

Nanny Bai didn't answer directly, but instead said, "What you've said, young lady, is all about the support you get from your status. If one day all this support is gone, what will you do then?"

"What do you mean by reliance on my identity? I am who I am. As long as I live, these things won't change."

"If one day the Xu family falls into decline and the Duke's Mansion also suffers, the identity you rely on will become your shackles. At that time, only the real power that belongs to you will be your capital!" Nanny Bai suddenly had tears in her eyes and her voice choked.

Seeing Nanny Bai crying, Xu Yixing felt sad. She was saying it was all for his own good, but she was being a bit too pessimistic. The two governments would fall? How could that be possible?

"Mammy, tell me, what do you want me to do?"

Nanny Bai took out a jade pendant full of impurities from her bosom. The thing looked very old and of poor quality. It was obvious that it was not something used by rich people.

"This is a token for dispatching shadow guards. Before the shadow guards recognize their master, they will only obey the orders of this jade pendant. After they recognize their master, this thing will be useless." After saying this, she handed it directly to Xu Yixing. Judging from her expression, if it wasn't really inconvenient for them to recognize their master now, Nanny Bai would probably let them rush directly to the Duke's Mansion to find her.

Xu Yixing didn't answer, but just glanced at it and said hesitantly: "Mammy, where are all these shadow guards? They won't be following me all the time, will they?"

"Of course not. They are all kept in Jingxi Temple, thirty miles outside the north gate, and have never been seen."

Jingxi Temple... Isn't that the temple that Gu visits every month? Jingxi Temple is extremely popular, and no one knows where those people are hiding, and no one has discovered them.

"If you need to dispatch them, just wear this jade pendant and go to Jingxi Temple. Someone will come to see you that night."

"So that's how it is... Mammy, I dare not refuse the things my mother and grandfather left me, but, Mammy, can you let me wait a few days before dealing with this matter?

I've just gotten married, and things haven't been sorted out yet. There are guards outside the courtyard that my father gave me. They're with me too, and they can protect me just as well."