The Situation Has Changed

The news spread like wildfire, starting from the Imperial Palace of the Great Yue Kingdom and spreading outwards. In the blink of an eye, it had reached the entire world.

Now, everyone in this land knows that the Emperor of the Great Yue Kingdom is dead, and that Xu Bai was the one who killed him.

Whether it's the various factions or the experts in each industry, everyone has different thoughts.

The Capital City of the Great Chu Kingdom, the Prime Minister's Residence.

Since the news reached the Capital City, Prime Minister Wen has requested a long leave from the emperor and has stayed at home, never venturing out of the house.

Besides him, many other Extraordinary Rank 9 masters also took extended leave.

There are only nine people in the world who have attained sainthood. Nine is the ultimate number, and it is impossible to exceed this number.

But now, the Emperor of the Great Yue Kingdom is dead, which means that there is only one person missing from the list of those who can be made saints.

Throughout the entire world, all those who have reached the Extraordinary Rank 9 are now in a long period of seclusion.

Time was extremely tight for them.

They must seize this last moment to compete for this position; whoever steps into the ranks of saints first will be the new saint.

Although I've only just entered the realm and can only reach the first rank of Sainthood, it's already enough.

Once you've secured your position, no one else will dare to step in.

This was a struggle, a race against time, and the emperor's attitude towards it was to let them do as they pleased.

After all, Entering Sainthood Expert within one's own territory is also beneficial.

All the extraordinary masters in the world have this idea, but the ideas of those Entering Sainthood Expert are different.

The chief and deputy chief of the Barbarian Tribe Supreme Tribe felt the pressure increase again.

Now they are like small boats on a vast ocean, and they could capsize if the waves rise.

But none of that is the most important thing. The most important thing, and the one who is most upset, is someone else.

—Bai Zhong, the God of War.

Inside the camp, after hearing the news from the soldiers, Bai Zhong was discussing with his generals what to do next.

But right now, he's not in the mood.

Bai Zhong gripped the sword at his waist with his right hand, his grip so tight that the veins on the back of his hand were clearly visible.

The surrounding generals remained silent; no one uttered a sound, or rather, no one dared to speak.

They also heard the news that the emperor was dead.

As for the generals, they knew it was inappropriate to reveal their thoughts at this moment, so they all kept silent.

To get to this place, brute force alone is far from enough; one must also be courageous and resourceful to sit in one's current position.

These generals all knew that at this point, everything depended on Bai Zhong's decision.

If Bai Zhong is unwilling to return to fight for the throne, they are unwilling to do so either.

If Bai Zhong wants to return and fight for the throne, they are willing to serve him faithfully.

In short, they were to be yes-men, and do whatever Bai Zhong wanted.

Before the emperor died, he naturally listened to the emperor, but after the emperor died, they could only listen to Bai Zhong.

Several generals knew that if they were to return to fight for the throne, there was one person they absolutely could not bypass: Prime Minister Liu Yue.

They seem to have received the news, but Prime Minister Liu Yue, being in a more advantageous position, doesn't know the current situation.

"Call..."

In the quiet tent, only the sound of disordered breathing remained.

Time passed slowly, and in the blink of an eye, the time it takes for an incense stick to burn had gone by. Bai Zhong remained silent, still holding the knife.

Gradually, he removed his hand from the hilt of the knife and placed it on the table.

This action naturally attracted the attention of everyone present.

The generals all turned their gazes toward him, awaiting Bai Zhong's instructions.

Bai Zhong rested his hands on the table, his gaze sweeping around him, his tone slow and solemn.

"There should be two Entering Sainthood Expert in the Imperial Palace, His Majesty is one and Liu Yue is the other, but His Majesty is dead and Liu Yue is still alive."

"This man's actions were disloyal and unjust. Now that His Majesty is dead, we raise the banner of righteousness and will reclaim this shattered land."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Having said that, they had already grasped the true meaning of the matter.

This means that we must go back and fight for it.

Any action taken must be justified, and the pretext that Bai Zhong came up with at this time was indeed reasonable.

What could these generals do at this moment? They could only follow their commander.

Seeing no objections around him, Bai Zhong slowly drew his long sword from his waist, the blade pointing out of the Camp Tent.

"Go back to Beijing!"

"Yes!" the generals replied.

Bai Zhong stepped out of the camp, preparing to command his troops and then march back to the capital.

But before he could take two steps, he was stopped by someone.

The one who stopped Bai Zhong was Gu Mu Yin, the deputy leader of the Supreme Tribe.

Bai Zhong's eyes were icy as he looked at the person in front of him who was of equal strength. "Why are you stopping me?"

Gu Mu Yin was a burly man. He was not afraid of Bai Zhong's cold gaze and looked straight at him, saying, "After you go back, you will gain nothing but a useless kingdom."

Bai Zhong remained silent, his gaze still indifferent.

Gu Mu Yin continued, "Of Entering Sainthood Ninth Grade the world, one has already died. Now, the entire balance has been broken."

"The Great Chu Kingdom still has three more, plus Wei Fenghua, and Xu Bai, who for some reason was able to kill the emperor."

"If you really count them, there are a total of five, which is a terrifying number."

"Even if you manage to secure a position after you return, and even if Liu Yue agrees to submit to you, there will only be two of you."

"Why go back?"

With each sentence, Gu Mu Yin emphasized his words.

After he finished speaking, he shut his mouth.

The reason was simple: he saw Bai Zhong draw the precious sword from his waist.

"What do you want to do? I've already told you how serious this is, you should understand." Gu Mu Yin, puzzled.

When he received news of the death of the Emperor of the Great Yue Kingdom, he knew that Bai Zhong would pull this stunt, so he rushed over and stopped Bai Zhong.

This is also beneficial to them. If Bai Zhong leaves, their territory will be continuously eroded by the Great Yue Kingdom.

Now, they are in a completely weak position, so they must keep Bai Zhong here. Although it is still unbalanced, at least it can balance the situation.

Unexpectedly, even though he had spoken so clearly, Bai Zhong still drew the knife from his waist.

As two experts at the Entering Sainthood Ninth Grade, he naturally knew that a battle between them here would be detrimental to both.

But the only thing he couldn't understand was why. "I know what you're trying to say." Bai Zhong's gaze remained cold and indifferent. "The emperor is dead, but why is Liu Yue still alive? He would never let the emperor die, so there must be some benefit in making him let go."

"The reason I said I would go back to fight for the throne was merely to give the world an opinion."

"Do you really think I've gotten to where I am today without knowing anything? Stop struggling, it's useless."

Bai Zhong, carrying his sword, walked directly past Gu Mu Yin and left the Camp Tent.

Soon, the troops of the Great Yue Kingdom set off, heading towards the Great Yue Kingdom.

Gu Mu Yin stood in the empty Camp Tent, clenching her fists, her eyes filled with resentment and venom.

"Ha, the Barbarian Tribe will never surrender to those food offerings. Just wait and see. You think you have a chance of winning, but none of those chances are absolute!"

After muttering these words to himself, he quickly left the empty Camp Tent.

The fighting continues at the Border Pass.

Bai Zhong used the Military Formation Method to its fullest extent, arriving in the Great Yue Kingdom in the shortest possible time.

The troops were all deployed at the Border Pass, but he went to the Imperial Palace alone.

At their level, exchanging military strength remotely is as easy as turning one's hand.

At this moment, Bai Zhong stood in front of the Imperial Palace, looking at the once magnificent palace that had all been reduced to ruins, and his whole demeanor became quite gloomy.

In the ruins, many craftsmen are busy tidying up and cleaning.

There were also many people gesturing and pointing, seemingly trying to rebuild the Imperial Palace.

Discussions gradually emerged.

Several people lowered their eyes and stopped their discussion upon seeing Bai Zhong, not daring to look at him any longer.

Everyone present, no matter how ignorant they were, recognized this legendary figure.

"You, come here!" Bai Zhong pointed at someone and shouted.

The person being pointed at paused slightly, his body trembling, and walked unsteadily to Bai Zhong.

Tell me, what's going on here?

The craftsman, trembling, told everything he knew.

"This humble servant does not know either. The battle that day turned out like this. His Majesty is dead, and even his remains are no more."

"I was merely following the orders of the Prime Minister to rebuild the Imperial Palace."

"By the way, the Prime Minister said that if the General returns, we can go to his residence and he will tell the General everything."

After hearing what the person in front of him had said, Bai Zhong frowned deeply.

He waved his hand, no longer making things difficult for the man, and turned to walk towards the Prime Minister's Residence.

The Prime Minister's Residence's residence was very close from here. Bai Zhong arrived at the gate in just a short while, and the people outside did not dare to stop him.

As he stepped into the courtyard, he saw Liu Yue standing with his hands behind his back, waiting for him in front of a room directly opposite the courtyard.

"Please!" Liu Yue, dressed in white and looking like a scholar, turned around and gestured for him to enter.

"Hmph!" Bai Zhong snorted coldly and stepped into the room.

There was no fight as expected, no conflict, and not even a quarrel.

Everything was quiet, just like usual.

After Bai Zhong entered the room, Liu Yue closed the door behind him.

As soon as the door closed, he heard the sound of weapons clanging. Turning around, he saw Bai Zhong draw his precious sword from his waist and point it at him.

Liu Yue laughed and said, "If you want to fight, you don't need to come to me, General Bai. Please sit down and listen to me. If you still want to fight, I can accompany you."

Bai Zhong did not sheath his sword. Instead, he found a place to sit down and happened to see a letter on the table.

The letter was covered with dense text. After he picked it up and read through it, he suddenly looked up, his eyes filled with shock.

"Instead of explaining a lot, I'd rather you read everything about the Great Chu Kingdom, and then you'll understand," Liu Yue said.

The paper explained why he didn't help the emperor, which was also the opportunity to Exiting Sainthood.

"Just because of a chance to Exiting Sainthood, you're handing over the emperor who fought alongside us to someone else?" Bai Zhong gripped the letter tightly in his hand.

"That shouldn't be the case. Although you are afraid of death, you would not be so untrustworthy. Otherwise, His Majesty would not have made you Prime Minister in the first place."

He had read the entire contents of the letter. To be honest, what was written in the letter was somewhat tempting to him, but not enough to justify such an action.

Indeed, the opportunity to Exiting Sainthood is extremely important for any Entering Sainthood Expert.

If such an opportunity were offered to the Supreme Tribe of the Barbarian Tribe, the people of the Supreme Tribe would not agree.

Why did Liu Yue agree again?

Liu Yue sighed and said, "If it were you, you would agree too. We are different from the other two forces."

"What's the difference?" Bai Zhong asked.

Liu Yue shook his head. "Bai Zhong, Bai Zhong, even in this situation, you still refuse to recognize yourself? Actually, you already saw it a long time ago."

Bai Zhong remained silent, but the veins on his hand gripping the letter were bulging, indicating that he was in a very unstable mood at the moment.

Liu Yue smiled wryly and said, "I have to say that our wisdom is still quite different from that of Chief Mu of the Great Chu Kingdom. His advantage is that he can control people's hearts. It's a very simple skill, but he uses it in a very skillful way to control our hearts."

"I have a question for you: since His Majesty took the throne, do you think everything he has done has been right?"

Bai Zhong opened his mouth as if to answer, but in the end he shook his head.

Liu Yue walked slowly, saying a sentence with each step.

"Before he took office, everyone fought bloody battles and had deep affection for each other, but after he took office, his personality changed drastically."

"It is understandable that the Dark Shadow Building monitors the world, but the excessive power granted to them has allowed them to enrich themselves and even harm the people."

"When I first proposed this to His Majesty, he refused, saying that only by giving them enough benefits could they be willing to serve."

Liu Yue's face showed anger whenever the matter was mentioned.

When Xu Bai killed the emperor, the residual force would have harmed the people of the entire capital, but Liu Yue ran out and blocked the residual force.

He feared death, but he was also a scholar.

To reach the ninth rank of the rank of a scholar, possessing Righteous Qi, is not just empty talk.

"Furthermore, allowing Evil Book Evil Book to circulate is simply to let them flow into the Great Chu Kingdom, harming more scholars, hurting both others and oneself, and is intolerable to Heaven and Earth."

Liu Yue continued.

"Finally, there's the matter of your army. He allowed your soldiers to commit cruel acts against the people of the Great Chu Kingdom."

"You stood up that day and disagreed with the matter, but he rejected it in one fell swoop, saying that the soldiers of the Great Chu Kingdom should relax."

Every word was like a knife, etched into Bai Zhong.

"Alright!" Bai Zhong suddenly stood up and interrupted, "Just say what you want to tell me!"

Liu Yue said, "What I want to say is very simple. Such an emperor should have died long ago. I am not a heartless person, nor would I murder a wise ruler for the sake of the chance of being born, but he is not a wise ruler."

Bai Zhong remained silent.

Seeing Bai Zhong's expression, Liu Yue stopped talking.

An absolute silence fell between the two of them, and time seemed to slow down inexplicably in the room.

After an unknown amount of time, Bai Zhong finally spoke.

"Well..."

A sigh.

But with that sigh, Bai Zhong seemed to have aged more than ten years.

He knew himself well; after a lifetime of military service, he had ended up in this state.

Ultimately, it was His Majesty who was too indulgent.

Sometimes, due to His Majesty's indulgence, he wanted to execute the soldiers who harmed the people on the spot on several occasions.

But he knew in his heart that doing so would be going against the emperor.

He also knew that from the moment the emperor took that position, he had begun to be wary of the two of them.

The Evil Book and the delegation of power by the Dark Shadow Building were intended to weaken the Prime Minister.

All matters in the military serve as reminders to oneself.

Now, it's all in the past.

He suddenly realized that his first half of life had been like a dream, and now that dream had shattered.

Liu Yue patted Bai Zhong on the shoulder. "This is the best way for the people."

Bai Zhong nodded. "What does the Great Chu Kingdom want us to do?"

"Rebuild the Great Yue Kingdom and declare it a vassal state of the Great Chu," Liu Yue said. "We have no other choice."

Bai Zhong sighed again, clearly having tacitly agreed.

"In addition, this is the intelligence I've gathered, as well as intelligence from the Great Chu Kingdom." Liu Yue took out another book, which was filled with densely packed names.

This book is very thick, about an inch thick.

"The people who released the Evil Book, the remnants of the Dark Shadow Building, and those soldiers who ravaged the people." Liu Yue's tone turned icy.

"Not a single one can be spared."

"As for the rest, the Great Chu Kingdom says it doesn't matter."

"They said that in war between two countries, killings in the army and elsewhere are inevitable, and they only want the lives of those who have harmed their people."

Bai Zhong took it in his hands, but he didn't look at it; there were just too many of them.

We can continue implementing this later; now is not the time to look back.

"It seems that with us here, they can now directly subdue the Barbarian Tribe," Bai Zhong said.

The world changes so fast; Bai Zhong still hasn't recovered.

Now, as long as the Great Yue Kingdom becomes a vassal state of the Great Chu Kingdom, it will be an absolute crushing defeat for the Barbarian Tribe.

The Great Chu Kingdom could completely subdue the Barbarian Tribe without shedding a drop of blood.

"No." Liu Yue shook his head. "They only know how to use force to crush the entire Barbarian Tribe."

"The Barbarian Tribe are different from us. We are only a part of them, and this is due to His Majesty's negligence."

"As for the Manchus, even an ordinary person would feed people from other countries as food. They said there was no need to keep such people."

Bai Zhong asked in astonishment, "Does that mean that Rising Dusk King's iron hooves will trample across the entire Barbarian Tribe?"

He understood what would happen next since things had already gone this far.

"Of course." Liu Yue changed the subject. "But these are not issues we should be considering. We should be thinking about what to do next."

The two stopped chatting on this topic and began to have a more in-depth discussion about the restoration of the Great Yue Kingdom.

The Capital City the Great Chu Kingdom.

At that moment, two people were walking on the bustling street.

Xu Bai and Eunuch Wei stood side by side, chatting and laughing.

Both the current situation and the extraordinary experts in various fields are extremely tense and racing against time.

These two people, however, seemed unusually harmonious.

"After you get back, you'll have to hurry." Eunuch Wei smiled kindly. "All the extraordinary masters in the world are now trying to become saints. Although you are still far from becoming a saint, you should still do your best and see if you can make a breakthrough."

With one person dying and attaining sainthood, naturally a bunch of people are vying for that position.

Xu Bai said, "Even if someone enters the Saint realm, they are only at the first rank. Eunuch Wei can go and kill them for me."

This was a joke. As long as the target hasn't reached the Entering Sainthood Ninth Grade, Eunuch Wei wouldn't need to trade one for one to take it down.

Xu Bai felt that at this moment, it would be just right to make a joke.

Of course, he had to make the most of his time. Once he got back, the most important thing he should do was to dive right into the Imperial Treasury and see everything inside.

When Eunuch Wei heard Xu Bai say this, he actually believed it. He rested his chin on his hand, fell into thought, and muttered to himself, "If the Barbarian Tribe arrive first, we might really be able to go and kill them."

Xu Bai: "..."

His constant talk about killing those who had attained sainthood was something only Eunuch Wei could say.

Of course, he had no idea that his name had now spread throughout the entire world.

Previously, those younger generations had even dared to try and compete with Xu Bai.

But now, everyone has completely given up, which can be summed up in two words.

—Let it go.

In this situation, what else can we do but give up? Others have already managed to Entering Sainthood Ninth Grade, why should we get involved? Of course, giving up is one thing, but in reality, all the younger generation has simply excluded Xu Bai from their ranks.

"We've arrived." Eunuch Wei stopped. "His Majesty must be worried about this trip. Come with me to see His Majesty."

The Imperial Palace was right in front of them, but the guards did not stop them.

The two walked along the road as if they knew the way well, and arrived at the emperor's Imperial Study.

Before I could even knock, the door was opened.

The emperor rushed out from outside and then did something that showed absolutely no regard for his reputation.

"Smack!"

The emperor hugged Xu Bai Xu Bai tightly, patting his back forcefully, extremely excited.

"Xu Bai, you are truly my lucky star!"

Xu Bai: "(_)"

To be honest, he would have been quite happy if it had been a great beauty, but it turned out to be an emperor.

Of course, he didn't show it.

"Your Majesty, I am still injured."

"Oh, really?" The emperor immediately released his grip. "Someone, fetch the imperial physician!"

Seeing a spy suddenly emerge from a corner not far away, Xu Bai quickly refused.

"It's such a minor injury, a little adjustment will do the trick, there's no need for that."

He just said it offhand, never expecting that they would actually find him a royal physician, which was of course unnecessary.

"Ahem." Eunuch Wei coughed slightly. "Your Majesty, please be mindful of your manners."

As someone who understands rules and regulations, Eunuch Wei naturally had to offer a reminder at this time.

"Very well, then come inside with me and we'll talk." The Chu Emperor's face immediately hardened, and he turned around and walked into the Imperial Study first.

Xu Bai and Eunuch Wei followed behind. After entering the room, Eunuch Wei closed the door behind him. They had said what needed to be said and expressed their gratitude. Now, they were going to talk about business.

"Xu Bai, you can go to the Imperial Treasury anytime. I have already made arrangements. Even if you want to live there for the rest of your life, I will not interfere," the Chu Emperor said first.

Xu Bai was taken aback for a moment, then realized what he meant, and couldn't help but smile.

This is exactly what he needs. This time, he's not going to care about anything else; he'll dive right in and finish all the progress bars. That will definitely lead to a huge improvement.

Thinking of this benefit, he couldn't contain his joy.

Of course, there was more than just this one thing, so Xu Bai wasn't in a hurry to leave.

"The fighting is still going on at the Border Pass, but the outcome is already decided," the Chu Emperor continued. "So the most important thing is what will happen next, and I have discussed this matter with others."

"Unfortunately, no one can give me an answer. Prime Minister Wen, who could have given me an answer, is currently in seclusion trying to become a saint. So I want to hear your opinions."

As he spoke, the Chu Emperor took out a map and placed it on the table, inviting the two men to come and take a look.

Xu Bai and Eunuch Wei stepped forward, and after seeing what was on it, they both understood what was going on.

This is a map, and the map is Barbarian Tribe map.

"Your Majesty, what does this mean?" Eunuch Wei asked, puzzled.

Although Xu Bai didn't say anything, his meaning was quite clear, but he still couldn't understand it.

The Chu Emperor began to explain, "Now, the entire world is in my hands, but the territory of the Great Yue Kingdom cannot be touched. I have already said that the place belongs to a vassal state, so it will be handed over to them to govern."

"Only here are the Barbarian Tribe. We are going to conquer them all. After we conquer them, someone will have to go and govern them properly."

"On this point, we cannot allow outsiders to participate; we must choose from the remaining members of the royal family. I need to hear your opinions on how to choose."

After hearing the explanation, Xu Bai finally understood what it meant.

So this means they're going to select people to govern in the future.

He looked at Eunuch Wei, wanting to hear what Eunuch Wei had to say.

Eunuch Wei coughed and said, "Your Majesty, this is not something I should be concerned with, so I don't know the answer to your question."

"Our family is only responsible for the internal affairs of the Imperial Palace. There are other matters involving fighting and killing, which are not our concern."

The meaning is simple and clear: he doesn't want to get involved in this matter; it's your family affair and you should handle it.

Chu Emperor: "..."

Although he had long understood Eunuch Wei's personality, he was still speechless when he heard Eunuch Wei say this.

However, there is still one person here.

The Chu Emperor then turned his gaze to Xu Bai.

Xu Bai pondered for a moment and said, "How about letting the Ninth Princess manage it?"

To be honest, Xu Bai hadn't had much contact with any of the princes and princesses, but the Ninth Princess left a particularly deep impression on him.

When he was born into humble circumstances, the Ninth Princess never targeted him.

So at this moment, the first person he thought of was the Ninth Princess.

Of course, this is just my suggestion; whether or not it is adopted depends entirely on the emperor's decision.

As the emperor just said, they were invited to offer their opinions.

After listening to Xu Bai's words, the Chu Emperor said, "Ninth Brother is indeed a talent. He surpasses ordinary people in both personality and learning."

"Right now, I'm thinking about my eldest son and my ninth son. My eldest son is still fighting on the Border Pass, and my ninth son would be fine, but unfortunately, he's a woman."

In ancient times, it was normal to favor sons over daughters.

Xu Bai cupped his hands and said, "Then it depends on how Your Majesty decides to handle this. I have also offered my opinion."

This statement is straightforward, but it means that I have said what I needed to say, and whether or not it is adopted is entirely up to you.

"Your Majesty, I have also suffered quite serious injuries on this trip, so I will take my leave now." Xu Bai had already raised his concerns, as he was still thinking about working on the books in the Imperial Treasury, so he did not want to stay here any longer.

Seeing this, the Chu Emperor knew he couldn't get any more information, so he could only wave his hand and let Xu Bai leave.

Eunuch Wei did not leave; he still had things to discuss with the emperor.

After receiving the emperor's permission, Xu Bai left the house, breathed in the fresh air, and headed towards the Imperial Treasury.

His steps were unusually light. As a composed person, he always believed that he could hide his emotions deep inside.

But things are different now. Just thinking about that entire Imperial Treasury of books makes him want to laugh.

The Imperial Treasury was not far from the Imperial Study, and Xu Bai was fast enough to arrive soon.

But at that moment, someone blocked his way.

Looking at the familiar woman in green in front of him, Xu Bai scratched his head in frustration.

"The Ninth Princess really knows me. She knows to send you here. I will go because of our past relationship."

Qing Xue stood gracefully in front, biting her lip tightly. "I don't want you to feel that I'm using our past relationship to coerce you."

Her eyes revealed a deep sense of melancholy.

Today, after learning that Xu Bai had returned to the capital, the Ninth Princess sent her here to wait.

"You don't have to go."

This was the first time Qing Xue had gone against the Ninth Princess's wishes, telling Xu Bai not to go.

She felt that no matter how famous or renowned this man was now, it didn't matter.

Even if this man is still just an insignificant nobody like before, she doesn't want to use their past relationship to coerce him.

Therefore, she had Xu Bai refuse.

Xu Bai smiled, walked to Qing Xue's side, and stared intently at Qing Xue's fair face, scrutinizing her back and forth.

That direct gaze made Qing Xue feel extremely uncomfortable.

After a long while, Qing Xue finally bit her lower lip, raised her head, and looked directly at Xu Bai.

"If you look again, I'll gouge your eyes out."

She didn't know why, but she started acting like her old, willful self again.

Only after she said those words did she realize that if others heard them, they would become grounds for insulting the Prince.

"Hey-hey."

Xu Bai smiled and patted Qing Xue's shoulder, just like before.

"That's more like it. If it were an outsider, I would use my Prince airs to make things difficult for them, but you're not an outsider, so of course I won't make things difficult for you."

Qing Xue stood there, stunned.

"Let's go." Xu Bai turned around and walked directly towards the Ninth Princess's location without Qing Xue leading the way.

Qing Xue stared at Xu Bai's retreating figure, standing there for a long time before she finally reacted, letting out a cry of surprise, and hurriedly followed.