Xu Xie knew his senior sister was a woman of strong will and determination. Given Lord Shen's temperament, the two would probably hit it off. Still, Xu Xie had never imagined that Senior Sister Ning would truly leave and never return! Ning Yan and the other two were the only ones missing when the convoy returned.
Xu Xie asked the trusted subordinate who had returned to report.
Clutching the armrests of his chair, he raised his voice in disbelief. "What? You're saying Senior Sister Ning and the others stayed in Longwu?"
The subordinate nodded firmly.
He presented a handwritten letter from Ning Yan with both hands.
Xu Xie's fingers trembled as he took the letter—he hadn't forgotten the prerequisite for Ning Yan staying in Longwu Commandery. Could that Lord Shen truly be a woman? It took him some effort to break open the wax seal. He pulled out the letter and unfolded it, scanning ten lines at a glance.
After reading it, he let out a long breath.
He murmured, "I knew Lord Shen couldn't possibly be a woman... That brat Wen Shi really misled me. What a false alarm."
Ning Yan had clearly stated the true reason she was remaining in Longwu Commandery. Her late husband, Yan Xingning's Literary Qi Incarnation [Wuyou], had perished at Yonggu Pass. She had lost Yan An and could not even collect his bones for burial, so she planned to stay in Longwu Commandery for several years. For one thing, she could raise her daughter Nannan in peace; for another, Nannan could grow up in the place nearest to her father, allowing time to soothe the pain of losing both husband and father.
Longwu Commandery was recovering from ruin under Lord Shen's rule, and the security around the seat of government was fairly good.