Chapter 81: The Benevolent Mother and the Filial Daughter

“Miss, the eldest master has come to fetch us!”

After following the Yangyang Marquis on a forced march for half a month, Guan Zhong received good news from Song Changqing.

“Though not stated outright, from the eldest master’s arrangements, I’m certain the master has now escaped danger and been fully restored to life.” His eyes welled with tears of excitement.

“Heaven bless us—my adoptive father is finally safe.” After performing a brief act of possession, Xiao Yu personally poured Guan Zhong a cup of hot tea and asked, “What are the eldest master’s plans?”

The sun had set behind the western hills, and they had spent another day riding hard on horseback.

The Fire Crow Army entered the garrison prepped by the prefecture government, while they took rooms at a nearby inn—a suite with a small courtyard.

Guan Zhong had just returned from gathering outside intelligence.

Besides Song Changqing sharing minor official bulletins received by the Fire Crow Army, Guan Zhong also visited the Guan family’s herbal shop in the prefecture or directly questioned local officials to learn the situation in Luodu and Yingxiang Prefecture.

Xiao Yu rarely went out—first because she was exhausted from the day’s ride, and second because as a “noble lady,” it was improper for her to show herself publicly.

The Western Shu Kingdom had no rigid Confucian taboos like those of Ming and Qing dynasties; women and noble ladies often went out.

But traveling for leisure or visiting friends was different from venturing out with household servants to gather intelligence.

“The eldest master received the royal decree, left Luodu for Liulin Ferry to welcome the Yangyang Marquis and the Fire Crow Army, and will accompany the marquis to Tianmen Town in Yingxiang Prefecture to await the imperial envoy from the superior realm,” Guan Zhong said happily, cradling his teacup.

“Is this official correspondence from the Great Shu court, or did the eldest master send us a private message? Any other notes?” Xiao Yu asked again.

Guan Zhong shook his head. “The eldest master didn’t send us any private message. What Song Changqing told me was the court bulletin—every prefect and county magistrate in the area received orders to assist the eldest master and receive the Fire Crow Army.”

Xiao Yu feigned disappointment. “So it seems we still have no definite news from my adoptive father.”

Guan Zhong smiled. “Miss, if the master had truly perished, the eldest master would never have taken this mission. I dare say he actively petitioned the king for this assignment.”

Think about it—if the master hadn’t been revived, our Guan family wouldn’t claim deep enmity with the Yangyang Marquis, but we certainly wouldn’t go fawning at his feet.”

If the master were truly dead, the Yangyang Marquis wouldn’t mistake the eldest master’s flattery as goodwill.”

“That makes sense.”

Though she said “that makes sense,” Xiao Yu still harbored some doubt.

Even if Guan Huichen hadn’t died, the relationship between the Guan family and the Yangyang Marquis remained awkward.

At such a time, staying far away and pretending to be invisible was the wisest choice.

Of course, it was also possible the Guan family feared the Yangyang Marquis’s resentment and hurriedly sent Guan the Elder to grovel without limits, signaling that the Guan family held no grudge—pleading, “Your Grace, please forgive this ‘victim.’”

The next morning, the Fire Crow Army officially entered Hexi Prefecture.

The capital of Hexi Prefecture was Yingxiang Prefecture.

In the afternoon, the Fire Crow Army passed through a grove of fluttering willow catkins and arrived at Liulin Ferry on the Heilong River, where a party of men awaited them.

“Your humble servant, Guan Wenlong, Imperial Censor of Western Shu, humbly welcomes the Yangyang Marquis!”

Guan Wenlong wore a black high mountain cap, a deep green official robe, a ceremonial knife and jade ring at his waist, and held a court tablet—dressed with utmost formality.

His robe had wide sleeves embroidered with exquisite cloud patterns, dignified, solemn, and meticulously detailed.

His bowing ritual was extraordinarily grand—almost a plus version of the ceremony due to the Shu king himself—not only did he prostrate fully, but he pressed his forehead to the ground for a long time.

He did so, and so did the civil and military officials behind him.

Compared to the Iron Cavalry of the Lu Ye Guard, the Shu soldiers present here wore especially ornate attire.

Their armor, though the same type, gleamed brightly, shimmering under the sun.

The plumes atop their helmets were vividly colored, like brilliant red flowers.

Their capes were made of the most expensive brocade, making the nearby green willows seem dull in comparison.

“Step aside and clear the path!” said Cai Sima coolly.

The Yangyang Marquis didn’t even show his face or speak a word.

“Your Majesty, report to the Marquis and Cai Sima: Tianmen Town has received confirmed news that the imperial envoy from the Central Realm, Lord Dongfang, encountered minor delays in the Dongsha region and will take at least two more months before crossing westward.”

“Thus, Your Majesty and the generals need not rush.”

“Moreover, from Liulin Ferry here, you may sail directly to Yingxiang Prefecture and Tianmen Town.”

“I have prepared three grand river vessels and several dragon boats.”

“With favorable winds and currents at full speed, the Fire Crow Army can reach Tianmen Town in two days—no slower than riding horses,” said Guan Wenlong.

Cai Sima frowned in hesitation, conferred briefly with the Yangyang Marquis, then ordered Guan Wenlong to lay gangplanks for the Fire Crow Army to board.

At Guan Wenlong’s command, the civil and military officials sprang into energetic action.

Wenlong scanned the Fire Crow Army ranks, then approached Cai Sima alone. “General Cai, is the Marquis planning to bring all Western soldiers back to the Central Realm?”

“Why do you ask? If you wish to recall the Shu cavalry, you may take them back anytime,” Cai Sima replied coolly.

“No, no, no!” Wenlong waved his hands urgently, respectfully. “General, you misunderstand. Serving the Great Qin is the greatest blessing any soldier could ever hope for.”

“Our Shu king and all Western nations would only rejoice at this—how could we refuse?”

“In fact, our Shu king heard the Fire Crow Army suffered heavy losses at Feixian Ferry—once numbering three thousand, now reduced to three hundred—and feared the Marquis lacked troops.”

“In short, should the Marquis require any reinforcements, our Shu Kingdom is ready to fill every gap.”

As he spoke, he pointed to the elaborately armored soldiers. “General, look—there is Li Shunjun, the ‘Fire Rain Spear,’ ranked ninth on the Shu East War God List, a royal descendant, only nineteen, already at the peak of true qi cultivation. And there is Li Wanchen, the ‘Divine Bow,’ also of royal blood, second son of the Prince of Qinghe, who has mastered the sixth transformation of the ‘Nine Changes of the Heavenly River’—a renowned young talent of the West. And that one over there...”

Wenlong rambled on, describing every talent as rare beyond heaven and earth, a once-in-a-century marvel.

The more Cai Sima listened, the tighter his brow furrowed.

Though a few of these young talents were indeed gifted and, with a few years of training, could qualify as elite in the Fire Crow Army,

Guan Wenlong—or rather, the Shu king—was clearly placing noble Shu descendants to infiltrate through back entrances.

Hoping to follow the Yangyang Marquis into the Great Qin and achieve the grand vision of “shedding barbarism to enter Huaxia.”

Damn it! When we fought a million troops and marched against thirty-six nations, these bastards vanished. Now that the war is over and the Marquis returns to court for rewards, they all pop up, pretending they’re “fulfilling the Marquis’s needs by filling the Fire Crow Army’s gaps.”

Pah! Even our own Central Realm’s finest struggle for a place in the Fire Crow Army—what are these Western barbarians dreaming of?

“The Marquis will select at most a dozen Western soldiers with outstanding merit to return with the Fire Crow Army to the Central Realm.”

Cai Sima shook his head, politely declining. “To cross the Three Thousand Weak Waters of the Liusha River, you need a Biaoche Yulun.”

Not even mentioning the most expensive ‘Xikunlun Biaoche.’

Just consider the relatively ordinary Feiche of Zhou Rao—how much does one ticket cost?

It’s not that your Western soldiers lack valor—it’s simply that Biaoche seats are limited and cannot accommodate many.”

Otherwise, during the Thirty-Six Nations rebellion, more than a hundred Fire Crow heroes wouldn’t have entered Tianmen Town.”

“The Fire Crow Army’s full strength is three thousand Flame Cavalry and twenty thousand auxiliaries—we’d gladly bring them all west, but the distance is too great, the cost too high.”

This speech held some truth—at least the Yangyang Marquis had no objection to bringing three thousand Fire Crow soldiers west.

The journey was simply too long, the cost too high.

To completely crush the Shu king’s hopes, before the Fire Crow Army boarded, Cai Sima specifically singled out all seventy-six Shu cavalrymen.

“Return to Luodu. The Lu Ye Guard has only you left as its last bloodline—you bear heavy responsibility. The future restoration of the Lu Ye Imperial Guard depends entirely on you.”

As Cai Sima spoke, his sincerity carried at least a third of genuine conviction.

The Lu Ye Guard mattered greatly to Shu—and to the Great Qin as well.

Western Shu was the wooden stake driven into the Western Sands, and the Lu Ye Guard was the dog tied to it!

Only when the Lu Ye Guard regained strength could Western Shu stabilize; only when Western Shu was stable could the Western nations avoid major chaos.

“Miss, we must leave too—Madam and the young lady are waiting for us up ahead,” Guan Zhong returned to the green willow grove, smiling happily.

Xiao Yu was startled. “Which madam and young lady? Why aren’t they boarding with the eldest master?”

“It’s the second madam and Miss Tianfeng—they’ve come from Luodu to fetch you home!” Guan Zhong grinned.

Hearing this, Xiao Yu grew even more suspicious.

Was the second madam bringing her daughter all the way here just to collect her, an adopted daughter?

Even if the second madam was virtuous and Tianfeng gentle and kind, why would they travel so far just for her?

“Ah, the second madam is an elder—why should she trouble herself for Xiao Yu?”

Guan Zhong glanced around, then whispered, “I suspect it’s because your name has become famous across the kingdom. The second madam values you and wants to send someone to protect you.”

“Famous across the kingdom...”

Thinking of the flattery and adulation she’d received across Shu these past days, Xiao Yu couldn’t help but smile bitterly.

“Let’s go—where is the second madam? I must pay my respects to her at once.”

“The second madam’s surname is Wen—she doesn’t look old...”

Guan Zhong mounted his horse and, as they rode slowly, gave Xiao Yu a brief overview of Madam Wen and Miss Tianfeng.

As evening approached, the sky blazed with crimson clouds.

Fifteen li southwest of the green willow grove, at the street entrance of the “Yue Lai Inn” in Longtou Town.

“Xiao Yu pays her respects to the second madam!”

Madam Wen indeed didn’t look old.

She appeared to be only twenty-seven or twenty-eight, like a ripe watermelon peach ripened from early spring to early summer.

She might not be called peerlessly elegant, but she was undeniably dazzling and alluring.

Her delicate face glowed against the crimson clouds, her vermilion lips evenly painted. Her arched brows curved like a crescent moon, her layered hair like newly piled clouds.

Dressed in a long, wide-sleeved emerald palace gown, she wore a long sword at her waist. Her figure stood tall, limbs long and powerful, adding a striking martial aura to her feminine charm.

“Xiao Yu, no need for such formalities!”

Madam Wen’s smile was sweeter and brighter than the spring flowers outside.

She rose from her seat, stepped forward two paces, and lifted Xiao Yu before she could kneel, examining her with admiration. “Truly, a jade-like beauty of refined grace!”

“Though Huichen’s northern journey brought disaster, gaining such an extraordinary daughter for our Guan family makes it all worthwhile.”

“Madam, you flatter me too much.”

Inside, Xiao Yu sounded an internal alarm: What is Guan Huichen’s wife up to? What could possibly make her fixate on me?

Yet her face naturally slipped into dramatic mode, a blush rising on her cheeks and a hint of shyness in her eyes.

“Ah, child, why do you keep calling me ‘Madam’?” Lady Wen feigned annoyance. “We’re family now—must you still be so formal with me?”

——You asked for this. Don’t blame me if something goes wrong!

Xiao Yu cautiously opened her mouth and whispered, “Mother?”

“Ah, that’s my good daughter!” Lady Wen laughed happily.

A flicker of strangeness appeared in Xiao Yu’s eyes, then vanished instantly.

“Great Annihilation Father” was indeed triggered—the method to annihilate Wen Danxia began to unfold...

Huh? The Purple Mansion failed to complete the annihilation method in an instant.

“Danxia Immortal” is no mere pretender!

“I, Yu’er, am a barbarian girl from the Northern Wastes. To be taken in by my adoptive father is already more fortune than I deserve.

The other day, my adoptive father suffered misfortune; thinking of the future, I felt only confusion and dread.

Now that Mother is so kind and affectionate, treating Yu’er as if I were your own, I am deeply moved and overwhelmed with gratitude...”

With tear-filled eyes, Xiao Yu stepped back several paces and bowed firmly again. “Mother, please accept Yu’er’s deepest bow!”

“Yu’er...”

Even though Lady Wen’s heart was full of malicious schemes, she was slightly moved.

——This barbarian girl is easy to get along with—genuine, straightforward. Unlike those cousin and niece ladies in the mansion, who pretend to be obedient and humble while hiding endless scheming in their hearts. Too bad...

“Yu’er, we have a true mother-daughter bond. Seeing you, I am truly delighted.”

As Lady Wen spoke, smiling, her right hand unconsciously unfastened the “Phoenix Shadow Sword” from her waist and offered it to Xiao Yu. “I can’t let you bow to me without a gift—this Phoenix Shadow Sword is elegant and light, perfect for a woman to wield—”

“Madam!”

Guan Zhong, who had been crouched in the corner, watching the tender scene with a satisfied expression, could no longer stay silent. “That’s your ancestral treasure sword! How can you give it away?”

Lady Wen froze, looking down at the Phoenix Shadow Sword now in Xiao Yu’s hands. She felt a momentary confusion: Why did I lose my head and start acting as if it were real? But it doesn’t matter...

“Nonsense! How can Yu’er be called ‘someone else’?”

Lady Wen turned and scolded Guan Zhong, then took Xiao Yu’s right hand. “Before night falls, I’ll teach you a sword technique to match the Phoenix Shadow Sword.”

——Let me see just how fierce your innate sword bone truly is. Don’t disappoint me, Yu’er~~

A smile flashed and vanished in Xiao Yu’s eyes: Dear Mother, the Purple Mansion has been operating at peak intensity this long—and still hasn’t unraveled your annihilation method. How impressive! Your sword technique must hold many surprises indeed!