Duan Qingyan shook his head decisively. "Our barracks are all men, so it's inappropriate to bring you along, especially since you don't have any women at home. You can hire a bodyguard to escort you, or you can find a refugee group and join us as we head south. This money should be enough if you're frugal."
Seeing that she couldn't convince him, Mrs. Li looked up at her daughter.
When Sun Ziyan received the look from her mother, she cried even harder.
She grabbed Duan Yunchi's sleeve and said tenderly, "Brother Yunchi, since I've liked you for so many years, can't you help us just once? We're far behind the army, okay?"
Duan Yunchi pulled back his sleeves, feeling annoyed and puzzled. "Why not ask the escort agency? We didn't leave so quickly, and..."
Duan Qingyan quickly interrupted his silly nephew, "How can we casually reveal military movements?"
"No, we haven't decided when we'll be back yet. Even if we did, it wouldn't be appropriate for you to follow us. You're just a bunch of scoundrels. Don't ruin your reputation."
Li was rejected repeatedly, tears streaming down her face. "If only Yuanyuan were still alive, she would never stand by and watch someone die. Woo woo..."
Seeing this, Mother Gu felt even more disgusted. If Big Brother hadn't found her, and Li had been using her as an excuse, wouldn't that be stabbing Big Brother in the heart? She was truly not a good person.
When I was young, I had very poor taste and the girlfriends I chose were not very good.
Duan Qingyan was furious. "Don't bring up Yuanyuan. You were there when Yuanyuan got into trouble, but you didn't offer any help. She's just going south to her parents' home, not to be executed. What does death have to do with her? If you want the silver, take it. If you don't want it, forget it."
The uncle and nephew stood up and left, instructing the housekeeper to see them off.
The Li family mother and daughter looked at each other in bewilderment. Why did it suddenly become like this? Why didn't they play by the rules?
Li was even more depressed. Duan Qingyuan had been dead for eighteen years, and it was useless to use him to make a boat, which capsized.
The two men had no choice but to take the silver and leave Duan's house in anger with resentment on their faces.
A few people pushed open the carved wooden door, and the uncle and nephew came back.
Gu Xinran gave Duan Qingyan a thumbs up, "Uncle, this mother and daughter are not good people, you have to treat them like this, swallow your pride and drive them away directly.
I always feel that they have ulterior motives. Sun Ziyan has deep feelings for the Third Prince, and I strongly suspect that they were together before the city was broken. They may have stayed behind on purpose, intending to infiltrate your side and gather military intelligence.
Duan Yunchi said, "How do you know they have a good relationship? They have been chasing after me before."
Gu Xinran chuckled, "I met them on the road fleeing famine. They were very arrogant and domineering. At that time, they insisted on going to the capital to live a good life with their third cousin.
Maybe I'm chasing you for fun, or maybe I have other purposes. Otherwise, I should happily go back to my grandparents' home in Yunzhou, where it would be more convenient to chase you.
Also, when they entered Jinzhou, Wang Kui was still the governor. He was the same kind as Prefect Sun and the others, so the city gates would have been opened for them. If they hadn't taken the detour through Yunhua Mountain, they would have entered Jinzhou Prefecture long ago. And they're still here now. Isn't that suspicious?"
Duan Qingyan applauded, "Ranran is amazing and thoughtful! Don't have the intention to harm others, but be on guard against them. Yunchi, learn from your sister."
At first, Mother Gu only disliked Li, but after hearing what Ran Ran said, she even disliked her daughter. "Brother, I don't think of anything, but I don't like them."
Duan Qingyan smiled at Mother Gu and said, "Well, she doesn't like normality. She was a scheming person back then."
This was the end of the banquet. Duan Yunchi hurriedly invited everyone to go to the dining hall to continue the dinner.
Gu Xinran walked and thought, now the time is right, the place is right, and the people are right, it's time to announce the truth about Gu's father's death.
The few of them returned to the dining hall. Gu Xinran stopped the servants who were about to serve the dishes and signaled Duan Yunchi to let them leave, as she had something to say.
Seeing her solemn expression, Duan Yunchi did not dare to treat her lightly. He looked at his uncle, asked the servants to leave, and closed the doors and windows.
Gu Xinran sat down, looked at everyone's faces, and let out a long sigh.
He silently took out the purse containing the note from the space and handed it to Mother Gu solemnly.
Mother Gu didn't know what was inside, but seeing her daughter's sad face, her heart sank. She carefully opened the purse, took out the slightly yellowed note, and slowly unfolded it. The familiar handwriting appeared before her eyes.
"The prefect's son was jealous of my talent. He won the first prize in the poetry competition. He used his talent to block me and harm me."
Gu's mother's hand holding the note slowly began to tremble, and tears fell like pearls from a broken string.
The family members hurriedly gathered together. After seeing the note, everyone had different expressions, but they all looked at Gu Xinran.
She sat up straight and spoke in a slow tone, recounting in detail her conversation with Mr. Fan and the revenge incident in Dengzhou Prefecture.
After hearing this, Grandpa Gu and Grandma Gu cried and beat their chests, Mother Gu shed tears silently, and Tingting started crying when she saw the adults crying.
Brother Gu and Xuanxuan had red eyes, clenched fists, and looked extremely sad and angry.
Gu Xinran, who had been sad for a long time, also felt her eyes were extremely sore.
Duan Qingyan and Duan Yunchi were extremely angry and cursed these people as worse than beasts.
Everyone secretly vowed to be irreconcilable with the remaining enemy, the Third Prince, and secretly hated the people related to the Third Prince, with Li's mother and daughter being the first to bear the brunt.
A quarter of an hour later, everyone slowly calmed down. After coming to their senses, they criticized Gu Xinran for being so reckless. He dared to bring Xiao Ba and the other two to do such a big thing. What if something unexpected happened? Just thinking about it made them terrified.
Duan Qingyan was even more impressed by his niece. She was brave, resourceful, and decisive in killing. If she were a man, she would definitely be given the title of general.
Everyone cheered up and put the reunion dinner back on the table after it was heated up.
There was plenty of fine wine and delicious food, but everyone lost interest after learning the cause of Gu's father's death.
The first half-reunion dinner couldn't be ruined. Knowing that both the uncle and nephew were craving her medicinal wine, Gu Xinran presented a jar of Ganoderma lucidum and tiger bone wine to everyone to cheer them up.
After drinking some good wine, the atmosphere gradually improved and everyone ate until their stomachs were full.
Just after the banquet, Xiao Mingzhan and Doctor Ling arrived, followed by a dozen people carrying luggage.
After everyone exchanged greetings, Doctor Ling spoke to the general with a shy look, "Mingzhan's injuries still require careful nursing. I'll be staying at your residence temporarily. Please excuse any inconvenience this may cause."
The general readily agreed. He also knew that the King of Qi's attack of the poison this time was entirely due to Gu Xinran's control and treatment, so he didn't think of anything else.
Duan Yunchi knew that curing his good brother's illness was secondary, and giving him cabbage was the main thing.
Alas, I was both happy and sad. Seeing Gu Xinran smiling and personally pouring tea and serving snacks to Xiao Mingzhan, I felt that she was too old to be kept.
Helplessly, he ordered his servant Lai Fu to lead a dozen people carrying luggage to decorate the main house in the front yard for Xiao Mingzhan and Doctor Ling to use.
Xiao Mingzhan kept one of the big boxes and whispered something in Gu Xinran's ear. It turned out that this was a gift for the Gu family, and he wanted to take the opportunity to make their relationship public.
This was something the two of them had discussed, but they didn't expect him to be so quick. Seeing his sincerity, they were naturally happy.
Xiao Mingzhan straightened his clothes and came before the three elders of the Gu family and bowed.
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