Chapter 48 Encounter

The young man sensed Ming Huashang's gaze, raised his eyes and looked at her, then smiled at her. He stopped, stepped aside, and nodded, saying, "Please come in, both of you."

His gesture of making way was upright and natural, neither humble nor overbearing, but his hands were still protecting the girl, and his body was quietly blocking in front of the girl. The girl behind looked over her brother's shoulder and looked at Ming Huashang and Ming Huazhang in surprise, but she didn't say anything.

Ming Huashang saw the real daughter returning to the Duke of Zhen's mansion to recognize her relatives in her dream, so she recognized the girl as soon as she saw her. Combining the fact that the boy called Su Yuji sister and the information Ren Yao got from Taiyuan Prefecture, it is not difficult to infer that the boy is Su Xingzhi.

Ming Huashang never expected that not long ago she was still worrying about where to find Nanny Su's relatives, but in the blink of an eye she saw the real person.

The impact of dreams and reality are completely different. If Ming Huashang had previously regarded the dream at the beginning of the year as a prediction and was taking the risk of death by believing it was real, then this moment was a wake-up call for her.

She realized very clearly that she was a fake. Her father who doted on her without principles, her cold, excellent but responsible brother, and her happy and peaceful life in the mansion were all fake.

These do not belong to her.

The real daughter has appeared, and she looks exactly like the one in the dream. In the dream, she was driven out of the mansion by her father and died alone. Is that far away?

Su Xingzhi took the initiative to make way, but Ming Huashang still stared at them without moving. Su Yuji frowned slightly, and there was already dissatisfaction in her eyes when she looked at Ming Huashang.

Ming Huazhang also noticed Ming Huachang's abnormality. Although Ming Huachang was still young, she was different from other young girls in that she never cared about men and women, but was only concerned about finding food. This was the first time she looked at a man so long and seriously.

Ming Huazhang couldn't help but look at the two men in front of him. The boy looked to be about seventeen or eighteen, with a straight back, a pair of red eyes, thin eyelids, and a faint fan-shaped wrinkle at the end of his eyes. His eyes were bright, and at this moment, he stared at Ming Huazhang, unable to conceal his vigilance and sharpness.

Ming Huazhang sensed the boy's hostility and turned to another person. The girl behind him was also very outstanding, with almond eyes, peach cheeks, a narrow nose and a small mouth. She had a very beautiful appearance, but because she always pursed her lips and had a cold face, the beauty of her facial features was diluted, bringing out a sense of strength.

The people in Xuanxiaowei are diverse, but the combination of such outstanding men and women is still unique enough. Ming Huazhang almost guessed their identities at first sight.

In addition to him and Xie Jichuan, there is another pair of partners who are just starting to work together - Su Xingzhi and Su Yuji.

As Ming Huazhang's eyes stayed on the girl, the boy's shoulders tensed up, and his hands were quietly ready to attack. Ming Huazhang didn't care about the boy's defense. He had read the mission records of the siblings and knew they had some abilities, but that was all. Su Xingzhi was no match for him.

The evidence is that Ming Huazhang, Xie Jichuan, Su Xingzhi and Su Yuji all entered the sect at about the same time. Now Ming Huazhang has become a high-ranking official with direct access to the imperial court, while the Su brothers and sisters are just ordinary taskmasters and do not know Ming Huazhang's true identity and name.

Ming Huashang just looked at them, what was she looking at?

Su Xingzhi's body tensed up more and more. Just when he was about to violate the rules of Xuanxiaowei and attack, Ming Huazhang spoke first: "I didn't know there was anyone here. Sorry for the offense. You two go first. Please come in."

Ming Huashang finally came to his senses, lowered his eyes, and retreated behind Ming Huazhang. Su Xingzhi scanned the couple. Su Xingzhi had heard many people praise his appearance, and he had long been numb to it, but when he saw Ming Huazhang, he was still amazed and his eyes lit up.

It was not just because of the other person's appearance, but also because of his temperament. Especially those eyes, which were bright and clear, like the sun and the moon in the sky, noble and bright, and inviolable.

The woman behind Ming Huazhang was even stranger. Even though he was used to seeing Su Yuji, Su Xingzhi had to admit that the woman was pretty and lovely, but the way she looked at him was strange, as if she knew him.

Su Xingzhi didn't remember any contact between him and any other girl besides Su Yuji. Su Xingzhi didn't leave immediately with this suspicion, but said: "We were rash. My lord and my lady are both noble and admirable. May I ask your names?"

Ming Huazhang pulled Ming Huashang behind him and said calmly, "Don't bother talking about her. If you want to know anything, just ask me. I am a humble person, codenamed Nandou."

Su Xingzhi and Su Yuji's eyes widened and they looked at each other. This is actually the famous Nan Dou? And the person next to him is Wei Yue? I haven't heard that Wei Yue is a woman.

Xie Jichuan, Jiang Ling and Ren Yao came over. When they saw Ming Huazhang and Ming Huashang stopped here, they asked curiously, "What's wrong?"

Ming Huazhang retracted his gaze and said, "Nothing much. I just happened to meet two talented people here. What are your names?"

The other side had five people, while they only had two. The disparity in strength made Su Xingzhi very uncomfortable. Especially the man in green, his pair of peach blossom eyes looked at him with a smile, giving Su Xingzhi the illusion that he was being stared at by a fox.

Su Xingzhi didn't like the feeling of being looked down upon, and said in a cold voice: "I don't deserve it. My name is Qianshan, and this is my sister Ruoshui. If there is nothing else, we will leave first."

This was their code name, and Su Xingzhi would certainly not tell them his real name. Xie Jichuan smiled and said, "Goodbye, I won't see you off."

Su Xingzhi nodded and walked back with Su Yuji. When they passed by, Ming Huashang raised her eyes and met Su Yuji's eyes.

The two of them didn't exchange a single word, yet at this moment it seemed as if they had spoken thousands of words.

After the two walked away, Xie Jichuan asked, "Sister Shangshang, what are you looking at?"

Ming Huashang shook her head and said absentmindedly, "Nothing."

Jiang Ling and Ren Yao had walked a long way. They looked back and saw that the leader had not caught up yet. They waved and said, "Hurry up, what are you dawdling for?"

"I'm here." Ming Huashang responded, forcing a smile and saying, "Second brother, if we delay any longer, the room will be picked by Jiang Ling. Let's hurry up."

Ming Huazhang seemed not to notice Ming Huachang's overly deliberate words, and nodded gently: "Okay."

The training base is located in the hinterland of Zhongnan Mountain. It has no other conditions except that the place is sufficient. Each trainee has an independent courtyard. Ming Huazhang used his authority to select a small courtyard for Ming Huashang, which is close to the mountain and the water. When you open the window, you can see Changlin Creek, the beautiful scenery in the mountains, and it is quiet and safe. In addition, Ming Huazhang's courtyard is not far away.

Ming Huazhang first sent Ming Huashang away, and then took the other two to find a place to live, while Ming Huashang stayed behind to pack her things.

Compared to the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion, this small house seemed very simple, with only the most basic bedding, tables and chairs in the house, but Ming Huashang didn't care, instead she liked the natural wildness here. Now that there was no maid, Ming Huashang had to do everything herself. She rolled up her sleeves and was cleaning the house when suddenly there were three gentle and orderly knocks on the door.

Without asking, Ming Huashang already knew who he was. She didn't even bother to put down her sleeves and hurried over to open the door: "Second brother, why are you here?"

Ming Huazhang scanned Ming Huachang's porcelain-white arm, turned away his eyes, and said, "Xie Jichuan also recognized me. I asked him to lead the way. How are you? Are you used to it?"

"Of course, no problem." Ming Huashang invited Ming Huazhang in, quickly took the clothes off the table and stuffed them into the cupboard, saying, "The room is a bit messy, second brother, please find a place to sit first, I'll finish cleaning up soon."

Ming Huazhang looked at her clumsy movements, pursed his lips and said, "You are the daughter of the Ming family, you shouldn't have to do these things."

Ming Huashang didn't take it seriously and said, "No one is born to be a slave, and Zhao Cai Jin Bao and the others were not born to serve me. I have hands and feet, so why can't I do what they can do? Second brother, don't worry, I'll be fine."

Ming Huazhang sighed slightly and helped her tidy up the house. Many of the hard work was quietly taken away by Ming Huazhang. Although they were both children of the Duke of Zhenguo, Ming Huazhang was much better at doing things with his hands than she was. Ming Huashang had been folding the messy clothes for a long time, but he folded them neatly in just a few seconds.

Ming Huashang stood by the closet, watching Ming Huazhang sorting her clothes into categories. Everything was so orderly that she couldn't even help. She was a little surprised: "This is my job, but I still need my second brother's help."

"It's okay." Ming Huazhang said, "I don't like people to get close to me. I've been doing this since I was a child."

Ming Huachang was getting more and more miserable. She wanted to thank him, but she looked around and didn't see even a cup of tea. She held the teapot and said, "Wait a moment, second brother. I'll go make some tea."

"No need." Ming Huazhang stopped her and motioned her to sit down. He asked, "You seem to be very concerned about the brother and sister today. What's the matter? Do you know them?"

Ming Huashang clenched her fingers, smiled and shook her head: "No, I just felt that there was a connection between us, and I couldn't help but look at her a few more times."

Ming Huazhang raised an eyebrow, feeling a little strange. The person Ming Huachang looked at the most was the young man named Su Xingzhi. Did she feel attracted to him?

This is not a good sign for a young girl.

Ming Huazhang remained calm and asked, "What is the connection?"

Ming Huashang choked. Could she say that she was curious about who her brother was? Ming Huashang could only pretend that she didn't care and said, "Nothing. I just felt that he looked very kind and was a good person. Second brother, do you know who they are and why they entered Xuanxiaowei?"

Amiable.

This is an answer that becomes more unpleasant the more you ask it.

Ming Huazhang said calmly, "I saw them by chance. Their surname is Su. Their elder brother is Su Xingzhi and their younger sister is Su Yuji. They were originally from Taiyuan Prefecture. Later, their elder passed away and they thought someone was following them, so they moved away from their hometown. By chance, they met Xuan Xiaowei and were absorbed into the group."

Ming Huashang's eyes widened. She knew Su Xingzhi's name, but she didn't know that they left Taiyuan Prefecture because someone was following them! She was so nervous that she asked hurriedly, "Who is following them?"

Ming Huazhang looked at her quietly: "Do you care about him?"

Although this was a question, it was very firm, and he didn't wait for Ming Huashang to answer. Ming Huashang also realized that his behavior was too strange, and laughed, "Just curious. Second brother, what are we going to do next?"

She was in a hurry to change the subject and did not notice that Ming Huazhang was asking about "him". To Ming Huazhang, this was tantamount to tacit agreement.

Ming Huazhang had an indescribable feeling. He always thought that love at first sight was ridiculous. It was nothing more than lust at first sight, but he had to disguise it as love. But now, his sister might have fallen in love at first sight with a poor boy.

Ming Huazhang couldn't explain where the slight unhappiness in his heart came from. He reminded Ming Huashang, "Second Mother, you said that you didn't want to discuss marriage in the past two years, so I arranged the Moral Academy for you. If you are tempted by worldly desires and want to return to secular life, the Duke's Mansion will not be able to accept it."

In fact, this statement is completely irrational. If Ming Huachang regrets her decision and decides to return to the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion to marry, Old Lady Ming and the Duke of Zhenguo will only be happy to see it. Retreating from the battlefield is a bit troublesome in the Xuanxiao Guard, but it is not unsolvable.

This was exactly the scene that Ming Huazhang wanted to see in the beginning, so why is he dissatisfied now?

Ming Huazhang couldn't figure out his thoughts. Ming Huashang hugged Ming Huazhang's arm, looked at him with sparkling eyes, and smiled: "I know. Jiang Ling and Ren Yao's reasons are very simple. Only I have such troubles, but it's just that the second brother favors me. The second brother wants to protect my reputation and satisfy my wishes, and he doesn't hesitate to go through so much trouble. In the world, no one else will treat me so seriously except the second brother. I will remember all the kindness you have shown me. In the future, I will be truly filial to the second brother and will never let you down."

Ming Huachang's words were passionate and sincere, but Ming Huazhang felt indescribable discomfort after hearing them.

Filial piety?

"That's not necessary." Ming Huazhang said, "You are still young, take good care of yourself and don't have any random thoughts. You are tired today, take a rest first, I will have someone send meals to your room later. There will be a lot of training tomorrow, you should sleep well, conserve your energy, and don't think too much, understand?"

Ming Huashang nodded vigorously, thinking that she had always eaten well and slept well, so why would Ming Huazhang have such worries?

Ming Huazhang knew from the look on her face that she didn't understand what he really meant, but he was her brother and he couldn't say such things explicitly. He could only comfort himself that Ming Huashang was just curious, and over time, she would naturally lose interest in Su Xingzhi.

Thinking of this, Ming Huazhang's heart strangely calmed down. He stood up, rubbed Ming Huachang's furry hair, and said, "Rest assured, I'll call you tomorrow."