"Ah He?"

He Yan stayed where he was, not knowing for a moment what to be shocked about first. Was he shocked that he met Liu Buwang here, or was he shocked that Liu Buwang could recognize him at a glance, even though he was no longer the same as before?

Liu Buwang untied the little girl's acupoints. The little girl coughed a few times, looked at them, and said nothing.

He Yan couldn't help it and asked Liu Buwang, "Master...how do you...recognize me?"

Apart from a few people in the He family, Liu Buwang was the only one who had seen He Yan's face under the mask. In the battle of Mo County, all her comrades died in the battle. If Liu Buwang hadn't picked her up from the dead, He Yan wouldn't know where she is now. Liu Buwang knew her identity as a woman and had seen her face, but her face was no longer the "Grandma Xu" of the past.

He smiled and said, "Your swordsmanship is special, mixed with my swordsmanship, and it can be seen at a glance. What, are you in disguise?"

He Yan couldn't explain it to him for a while, so he just said vaguely: "It's a long story, let's talk about it later. But Master, why are you here?"

"There are suspicious people in Jiyang City. I suspect they are from Wutuo. I tracked them all the way here." He looked at the body of the old woman on the ground. "I heard a fight here and came to take a look. What happened? Do you know this girl?"

He Yan shook his head, "I don't know her. I was passing by here with...my friend and was eating at a noodle shop when I saw this woman with a little girl acting suspiciously. I thought she was a kidnapper, but I didn't expect there were assassins around her. I suspect she's not just a simple criminal."

As they were talking, they heard the sound of horse hooves from behind. They turned around and saw Xiao Jue riding a horse towards them. He stopped the horse a little closer to them, dismounted, walked to He Yan's side, frowned and asked, "Who is it?"

"We are one family." He Yan explained hurriedly, "This is my...master."

"Master?" Xiao Jue asked incredulously, "What master?"

"My skills are already the best in Liangzhou. Didn't I tell you that I have the guidance of an expert? This is my master. We haven't seen each other for many years. I am also surprised to meet here today. If it weren't for her help, this little girl would have died."

Liu Buwang looked at Xiao Jue and smiled, "My name is Liu Buwang, and your name is..."

"Qiao Qingqing." he said.

"Young Master, where are those people?" He Yan asked.

"If you can't win, you run away." Xiao Jue didn't comment: "But you, why did you come here to reminisce?"

"It's not too late to talk about these things later," He Yan changed the subject, "These people made such a fuss just to kidnap a little girl, isn't that a bit strange? Little girl, what's your name, where do you live, who are you from?" She bent down and looked at the child.

The little girl was extremely beautiful. Although she was still young, she was a beauty. She seemed to be frightened. She stared at everyone with vigilance and pursed her lips without saying a word. He Yan asked several times, but she didn't answer. In the end, she simply turned her face away.

"Isn't he really dumb?" He Yan wondered.

"You are dumb!" the little girl replied angrily.

"So you can talk? Then why didn't you answer the question I just asked you?" she asked.

The little girl ignored me again.

"Maybe he just experienced a bad guy and he doesn't trust others. It's okay, it will be fine after some time." Liu Buwang said with a smile.

He Yan sighed, and was at a loss for a moment, so he looked at Xiao Jue: "Young Master, why don't you take this child back first and let Master Cui take her away. If she is really a girl from a wealthy family, Master Cui will definitely know her."

Xiao Jue nodded.

When the little girl heard the three words "Mr. Cui", her eyes moved slightly, but in a flash, she lowered her head to hide the strange look in her eyes.

Liu Buwang smiled and said, "In that case, let's say goodbye here."

He Yan was stunned. Liu Buwang was always like this. Ever since she met him, He Yan felt that he seemed to be carefree and everything went smoothly. She had never seen Liu Buwang have friends, nor had she seen him interact with others. He never seemed to feel lonely, and he didn't feel too sad every time they parted. When He Yan said goodbye to him, she was still reluctant, but Liu Buwang was very open-minded and just said, "All good things must come to an end. Ah He, you have to grow up."

Meeting an old friend for the first time, before they had time to reminisce, they had to say goodbye. He Yan felt a pang in his heart and tugged at Liu Buwang's sleeve: "Master! I... I am living in a friend's house now. His house is very big. Why don't you come back with us? I have a lot of things to ask you!"

Xiao Jue's eyes fell on her fingers that were pulling Liu Buwang's sleeve, and he raised his eyebrows silently.

Liu Buwang smiled and said helplessly: "Ah He, why are you still acting like a child?"

"I haven't seen Master for a long time... I thought I would never see you again..." He Yan refused to let go, "Besides, didn't you just say the Wutuo people? Since it's related to the Wutuo people, we must tell Princess Mengji of Jiyang City. Come back with me. The official I know grew up with the princess and they have a very good relationship. We can also report this matter to her."

Liu Buwang was slightly startled: "Princess?"

He Yan saw his strange attitude and nodded repeatedly: "Yes, Master, you see, the sudden appearance of the Wutuo people in Jiyang is unusual. Jiyang has always been difficult to travel through, let alone the Wutuo people, even the people from the Central Plains of Wei have to go through many twists and turns to come here, but the fact that the Wutuo people can hide in Jiyang City, what does it mean? In short, there are many doubts about this matter, and we should go together."

Liu Buwang was still a little hesitant.

Xiao Jue crossed his arms and looked at the two of them. He curled his lips lazily and said, "Yes, Mr. Liu, why don't you come back with us and discuss it carefully with your good disciple."

After a long silence, Liu Buwang smiled and said, "Okay, I'll go back with you. I just hope I won't cause any trouble for you."

He Yan breathed a sigh of relief. Although he couldn't do anything by leaving Liu Buwang by his side, he was reluctant to part ways with his teacher from his previous life without saying a few words.

After all, there aren't many people who can remember "He Yan".

"Then let's go back to the post station and hire a carriage to go back to Cui's house." He Yan said to Xiao Jue, and then sighed, "I didn't go back last night. I don't know if it made Master Cui and the others anxious."

Liu Buwang's eyes flickered between Xiao Jue and He Yan, as if he was thinking about something.

The little girl who was rescued from the old woman was fed medicine, and her body was limp. She couldn't even walk. She staggered every time she took a step. He Yan thought for a moment, then squatted in front of her and said, "Little girl, come up."

Xiao Jue asked: "What are you doing?"

"She can't walk, so I'll carry her to the post station." He Yan replied, "Otherwise this isn't a solution."

She really didn't know that her period had come. Xiao Jue was silent for a moment and said, "I'll carry it."

"Huh?" He Yan was startled.

The little girl was not satisfied and started to blame him: "I am a woman and you are a man, how can you carry me? I want her to carry me!"

"Little brat," Xiao Jue said indifferently, "If you say one more word, I will leave you here alone."

The arrogant little devil was at a disadvantage when faced with an unkind governor. She didn't dare to say anything more, fearing that Xiao Jue would abandon her. He Yan watched Xiao Jue carry the little girl on his back and walked all the way back to the post station.

When they arrived at the post station, no one was in the mood to continue eating breakfast, so they just hired a carriage and asked the driver to go back to Cui's house.

Sitting in the carriage, the carriage swayed forward, He Yan and Xiao Jue sat on one side, and the little girl and Liu Buwang sat on the other side. Everyone was silent, and Xiao Jue suddenly asked: "Mr. Liu is He Yan's master?"

Liu Buwang smiled and said, "Not bad."

"Then Mr. Liu's skills must be outstanding."

"It doesn't deserve the word 'excellent'."

Xiao Jue smiled softly: "Why did you think of taking He Yan as your apprentice? After all, this guy..." He paused, his tone slightly mocking, "Apart from being short and stupid, he doesn't seem to have any other talents."

At this moment, He Yan didn't care about Xiao Jue saying that he was short and stupid. He was afraid that Liu Buwang would let the cat out of the bag, so he started to talk nonsense first: "Who said that! When I was in Shuojing, I was just traveling by chance. Who knew that I would meet my master who was accepting disciples? It was fate. Among thousands of people, my master saw at a glance that I was talented and intelligent, and I would definitely do something in the future, so he accepted me as his disciple and taught me martial arts. But my master is a leisurely and wild person. He has long been out of the world. He taught me for three years and then traveled around the world. This is the first time I have met him since we parted!"

She felt that she had explained the whole story clearly, and she just hoped that Xiao Jue would not delve into it any further.

Xiao Jue looked at Liu Buwang and asked, "Really?"

Liu Buwang glanced at He Yan and said, "Yes."

"That's it." The young man nodded and said nothing else.

He Yan felt relieved. At this moment, she heard Liu Buwang looking at her and asking doubtfully, "Ah He, what is your relationship with Mr. Qiao?"

Oh, this question is very difficult to answer. Now she is "Wen Yuyan" and Xiao Jue is "Qiao Qingqing". If we talk about their relationship, they are naturally husband and wife. But... Liu Buwang knows her real identity. At this time, there is also a little girl with an unknown identity. If this little girl knows Cui Yuezhi, she can't let it slip.

Looking at Xiao Jue on the other side, he was leaning against the carriage seat, looking at her with a smile, waiting to hear her answer.

"Master Qiao... is my husband." He Yan was helpless and had to bite the bullet and utter the words with difficulty.

Liu Buwang was a little surprised: "Ah He, I haven't seen you for a few years, and you're already married?"

"Yes, yes." He Yan forced a smile.

"That's fine," Liu Buwang nodded slightly, "Now that someone is with you, I can rest assured."

He Yan: “…”

After telling so many lies, He Yan finally understood what it meant to shoot oneself in the foot.

Right now.

…

When they returned to Cui's house, only a few concubines were there. When concubine Wei saw that they had returned safely, she breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Last night, Master Qing sent someone to tell him that he would be back this morning. The small kitchen had prepared breakfast, but I haven't seen him yet. I was a little worried that something had happened. Now I can finally rest assured." She looked at the little girl and Liu Buwang behind her and asked puzzledly, "Who are these two..."

"This is an old friend of mine. I didn't expect you to come to Jiyang." He Yan smiled and asked, "Where is your uncle?"

"My Lord has gone to the palace early in the morning. The princess has summoned him. I don't know when he will be back."

He Yan and Xiao Jue looked at each other and found that Cui Yuezhi was not there. Now, they had no choice but to settle the little girl down first.

"Miss Yuyan and Master Qingqing, have you had enough breakfast? Shall I ask the kitchen to heat it up again?"

"My husband and I have already eaten," He Yan said with a smile, "but this little sister and her husband haven't eaten yet. Please bring them to my room when they are ready. Also, get some hot water. The little sister needs to take a bath and dress herself up."

Aunt Wei quickly agreed.

He Yan brought the little girl back to his room, handed her over to Cui Jiao and Hong Qiao, and told them to bathe the little girl.

Just as he finished giving the order, Lin Shuanghe's voice came from the other end, "It's been a whole night, and you haven't returned all night. Finally you're back! How was it? Were the fireflies beautiful? I should have gone with you last night. Now I feel a little regretful. It's a pity that I missed such a beautiful view." He stepped into the inner room and saw Liu Buwang standing in the room. He was stunned for a moment and asked puzzledly, "This..."

"He's my master." He Yan said, "his surname is Liu, and his name is Buwang."

"Hello, Master Liu." Lin Shuanghe saluted hurriedly, then asked curiously, "Why is Master Liu here? Did you tell this gentleman in advance before you came to Jiyang?"

This was a heart-wrenching statement. Those who didn't know would think that she was colluding with the outsiders. He Yan hurriedly said, "No, no, absolutely not!"

"My lord, you misunderstood me," Liu Buwang said with a smile, "I am originally from Jiyang. I met you in the Central Plains before. We haven't seen each other for many years. I never thought that I would meet you when I came to Jiyang this time."

"I see." Lin Shuanghe also smiled: "It's obvious that the master is not an ordinary person. Only he can teach such an outstanding disciple."

Liu Buwang just smiled and said nothing.

He Yan felt inexplicably embarrassed, so he said, "Young Master, Brother Lin, can you please go to the next room first? My master and I haven't seen each other for many years, and I have a lot to say."

"Let's listen to what you have to say together," Lin Shuanghe said with a smile, "I also want to know what Sister He was like in the past."

Xiao Jue glanced at him, walked out by himself, and said, "Let's go."

"Don't you want to listen?" Lin Shuanghe was still a little unwilling.

"Listen to yourself."

Seeing that Xiao Jue had already left, Lin Shuanghe could only put away the fan with great regret and said to He Yan: "Then sister, I will leave first. You should have a good chat with Master Liu."

Having said that, he followed him out and closed the door.

Only He Yan and Liu Buwang were left in the room.

He Yan hurried forward and helped take the zither off Liu Buwang's back and put it on the table beside him. He then brought a chair and said, "Master, please sit down first." He then poured Liu Buwang a cup of tea.

Liu Buwang just smiled and watched her do all this. Finally, he sat down at the table and stopped He Yan from making any more arrangements. He said, "That's enough, Ah He, sit down."

The familiar word "Ah He" almost made He Yan's eyes red.

She then sat down at the table and said, "Master." For a moment, it was as if she had returned to the days many years ago when she and Liu Buwang lived in the mountains.

During the battle of Mo County, He Yan was buried in a pile of dead bodies. The desert was extremely dry and she was going to die, but it rained at night and she survived that night. The next day, a passerby passed by and saw the corpses all over the ground. He dug a long pit nearby and buried the bodies of the dead soldiers one by one.

They also found He Yan, who was hiding among the dead bodies and was only breathing his last breath.

A passerby took He Yan back and treated her wounds. After she woke up, she found that the mask on her face was gone. She got up from the bed and found that she was living in a thatched house. When she walked out of the door, she saw someone sweeping the yard.

He was a middle-aged man with a noble temperament, wearing white clothes and a white belt. He had a thin figure and fluttering sleeves, making him look like a man from another world.

The young boy He Yan was a little wary and asked, "Who are you?"

The man in white stopped what he was doing, turned around and saw her, smiled, and did not answer her. Instead, he asked, "Girl, since you are a girl, why did you join the army?"

He Yan was startled and suddenly realized that his identity had been exposed.

Later she found out that the man in white who saved her was called Liu Buwang, a wandering Buddhist who would visit a new place every once in a while. He now lived on a barren mountain near Mo County, making a living by selling medicinal herbs he grew.

He Yan asked him at that time: "Sir, when you rescued me, didn't you meet the Western Qiang people on the way?" There were scattered Western Qiang soldiers wandering around Mo County. If someone was found to have rescued the soldiers of the Great Wei, that person would surely suffer as well.

Liu Buwang pointed to the sword at his waist and said, "I have a sword, so I have nothing to fear."

At first, she thought Liu Buwang was talking nonsense, until later, when she saw with her own eyes a Western Qiang man die under Liu Buwang's sword, she realized that what Liu Buwang said was true.

Liu Buwang is a true hermit.

He Yan had never seen such an omnipotent person before. He used swords, knives, long whips, spears and halberds, and was also good at Qi Men Dun Jia and Fu Chi Gua.

In her stupid previous life, she finally did one smart thing, which was to take advantage of the situation and ask Liu Buwang to be her teacher.

Liu Buwang refused.

But Liu Buwang had not expected that He Yan was such a persistent person. Whenever she had free time, except for eating, she would spend most of her time asking Liu Buwang to accept her as his apprentice.

Perhaps Liu had not forgotten his immortal spirit and had never met such a shameless person before. In the end, he was completely helpless and could only ask her: "What's the point of you becoming my disciple and learning all this?"

"After learning this, when I join the army again, if I encounter the Western Qiang people again like before, my entire army will not be wiped out. Even if there is one more person, I can protect him, just like you protected me."

"You still want to join the army?" Liu Buwang was slightly surprised.

He Yan was puzzled: "Of course."

"You know, you are a woman, and your identity is special. Now that your team has been wiped out, you can take this opportunity to return home without anyone knowing your identity. The original He Rufei is already dead."

He Yan was silent for a while, then raised his head and said, "I have never thought of being a deserter."

This sentence probably touched Liu Buwang. Later, Liu Buwang drank He Yan's apprenticeship tea and really began to teach her step by step. But He Yan was a girl after all, and some things were not suitable for her, so Liu Buwang tried his best to teach her some things that were suitable for her. But even if she only learned a little bit from Liu Buwang, it was enough for He Yan to gain a lot.

What Liu Buwang taught He Yan the most was Qimen Dunjia. The combination of Qimen Dunjia and the Art of War was enough to make a female general who could use troops like a god and deploy troops skillfully. So what if those brave generals had extraordinary powers, and so what if the Western Qiang had unlimited manpower, ferociousness and bravery. Fighting a war was never just about strength.

"I didn't expect that even though I'm no longer my original appearance, Master could still recognize me at a glance." He Yan lowered his head and smiled, "How did he recognize me?"

"Your swordsmanship," Liu Buwang laughed, "is unique in the world."

When He Yan first became Liu Buwang's apprentice, she wanted to tell Liu Buwang about her past. After seeing this, Liu Buwang was silent for a long time. He probably thought that since a woman had the confidence to join the army, she must be very skilled. But after seeing He Yan's sword, archery and horsemanship, Liu Buwang began to doubt whether his decision was wrong.

I really don't know where He Yan's confidence comes from?

But the tea had already been drunk, and he had to teach the disciple he had accepted. Liu Buwang was also helpless, he never accepted a disciple, but when he did, he accepted the one with the worst qualifications, which was really a blessing from heaven.

Fortunately, He Yan was not completely without merits. This girl was not good at anything else except swordsmanship, where she had a very good foundation, so good that it was a bit surprising.

Liu Buwang asked He Yan at that time: "Who taught you this sword technique? It's pretty good."

He Yan heard this and said with some pride: "There is a master helping me secretly. I don't know who he is, but I guess it's a teacher from our school. He thought I had good qualifications, so he taught me after class."

This was true. When He Yan entered school as a teenager, her martial arts scores were terrible. Even though she practiced swordplay every night in the backyard, she still made little progress. When she was about to give up, one day, she suddenly found a piece of paper on the table in her room.

There was a little man drawn on the paper, which showed her weaknesses and mistakes in swordsmanship during class and after-school sword practice. It also showed how to overcome these problems, with very detailed instructions.

He Yan tried to practice for a few days and was pleasantly surprised to see some success. Then she discovered that every ten days, there would be an extra piece of paper on her desk, with instructions adjusted as she progressed.

She didn't know who the other person was, and guessed that it should be a kind-hearted teacher in the academy, whose swordsmanship was better than hers, and who could see her shortcomings at a glance and give her guidance, but He Yan didn't know which teacher it was. She once tried to hide in the house and wait for the man to deliver the letter, but the man didn't show up that day, so He Yan knew that the master was unwilling to show up.

But out of curiosity and gratitude, he wrote a note on the plaque of the school and put it on the table before returning home, saying: I will return to the school in three days and meet you in the bamboo forest in the backyard at midnight to thank you in person. Please be sure to keep the appointment.

"Then what?" Liu Buwang asked, "Did you see who that person was?"

He Yan was silent for a moment and shook his head gently.

As soon as she returned home, she had a big quarrel with the two brothers He Yuansheng and was punished to kneel in the ancestral hall. Less than three days later, she left the mansion at night and joined the army alone, embarking on a completely different path.

"I broke my promise."

She didn't see the man.