After parting ways in the Yin-Yang and Five Elements Field last time, Yu Sui had run into Xue Mushi a few times and exchanged a few brief greetings with him.
Xue Mushi didn't like to draw attention to himself, and he didn't seem like much of a talker either. The first two times, if Yu Sui hadn't called out to him, he would have walked right past her with his head down.
Yu Sui had looked into Xue Mushi afterward.
The Xue Family was a prominent and powerful lineage in Taiyuan Country's imperial capital. It was a sprawling family whose ancestors had held high office for generations, the highest reaching the rank of chancellor. His mother's family had also produced several consorts who were favored for a time.
The elders had each followed their own path, with no restrictions. The highest had reached the Thirteenth Realm, while even the lowest were in the Tenth Realm.
Xue Mushi's marriage to the Yin-Yang School Saintess of Taiyuan Country had been arranged when they were children.
By then, the Xue Family had already withdrawn from politics and held no official posts. But his aunt was a favored consort and was on good terms with the Yin-Yang School's High Priest. The two children had been born into the world on the same day, and people had taken it as a sign of a special bond.
But not long after the marriage had been arranged, the Imperial Concubine was murdered. The Taiyuan Emperor felt deeply guilty toward the Xue Family because of it and often thought of her. He refused to dissolve the marriage that the Imperial Concubine herself had arranged, waiting for the children to grow up so he could hold the wedding and fulfill the regret she had left behind.
Over the years,