Lin Fan Shows Up Unexpectedly

Ji Ruxue didn't have many thoughts about the Xuan Niao Guard establishment that was given to her. It was just a trade of benefits, after all.

Even if the Wei State Duke filled the Xuan Niao Guard ranks to capacity, would these people be loyal to her just because of the Xuan Niao Guard's name?

That was a joke!

Therefore, she had never placed any hope in the thousand Xuan Niao Guards under the Wei State Duke's command.

However, the Wei State Duke's deliberate act of hiding his strength clearly indicated that the Wei State Duke Mansion was no longer the loyal subject it once was.

And she herself had initiated this change. Whether she regretted the outcome or was truly dissatisfied with the Wei State Duke's attitude.

In any case, Mo Yunxuan had run into her, the Empress, when she was in a bad mood!

But seeing Qing Li, who was usually calm and even a bit cold, show such a flustered expression for the first time.

In the blink of an eye, she cast aside her slight dissatisfaction and was filled with the desire to tease her.

The two exchanged a glance, and Ji Ruxue gave Hong Yu a look. Hong Yu secretly rolled her eyes.

This Empress, if she wanted to gossip, she should just say it herself. Why did she keep ordering her around?

Unfortunately, Ji Ruxue was the Empress, and she was just a small Xuan Niao Guard Commander. She had no choice but to obey orders.

She let out a silent sigh, suppressed the helplessness on her face, and put on a playful smile, teasing in a flippant tone:

"Yo~ Little Qing Li, you were about to call the Wei State Duke 'Yunxuan' just now, weren't you? Why did you suddenly change your words?"

"No."

Qing Li replied very calmly. Her decisive manner was indeed somewhat believable.

However, seeing the blush on her face and her small hands secretly fiddling with the hem of her clothes made her seem somewhat lacking in confidence.

Ji Ruxue saw that after Hong Yu spoke, she just stared straight at Qing Li and didn't get to the point.

So, she decided to step in herself, using a slightly deep but incredibly magnetic tone:

"Qing Li, you're not perhaps taken with the Wei State Duke, are you? If you have feelings for him, just say it, and I won't forbid it~"

Upon hearing Ji Ruxue's words, Qing Li's small face clearly became conflicted.

On one hand, she wasn't sure if she liked Mo Yunxuan. She just felt that when she was with him, she wasn't like herself anymore.

Moreover, whenever Mo Yunxuan was mentioned, her attention would involuntarily shift to him, and she couldn't control it at all.

On the other hand, she and Mo Yunxuan had known each other for too short a time. Apart from occasionally seeing him from afar in the past, this was their first formal meeting.

If she were to say she liked him, wouldn't that make her seem too casual?

Ji Ruxue looked at Qing Li, who had changed significantly compared to before, and her mouth twitched slightly.

She thought to herself speechlessly: 'What the heck? My personal sword attendant is being snatched away just like that?'

'What's so charming about that stinky man, Mo Yunxuan, that he could hook my Little Qing Li like this?'

'And isn't being single great? Look at Qing Li now, she's practically a different person.'

'If this were to happen to me,'

'Yikes~

'It's simply unimaginable!'

Ji Ruxue shivered and lost the interest to continue asking.

She waved her hand casually and said, "Qing Li, you can go down and rest first."

Upon hearing Ji Ruxue's words, Qing Li felt as if she had been granted a great pardon and hastily bowed and took her leave.

But just as she was about to leave the Imperial Study, Hong Yu's charming voice came from behind her.

"Little Qing Li, His Majesty's word is his bond. You should consider it carefully when you go back~"

Qing Li's footsteps paused upon hearing this, and then she fled the place even faster.

Ji Ruxue looked at the smiling Hong Yu and pointed a finger at her, saying helplessly:

"You!"

Time flew by, and a week passed.

Empress Ji Ruxue, as usual, managed the Great Gan.

Qing Li had also finally returned to her usual calm demeanor two days ago.

However, if one looked closely, they would notice that she often gazed towards the Palace Gate, lost in thought.

It was as if she was waiting for something. Once someone passed by, it would always catch her attention.

This behavior further solidified Empress Ji Ruxue's belief that "men only affect my sword drawing."

Meanwhile, in the Left Wei Guard Barracks, the White Horse Volunteers, newly formed by Jun Tianxiao and Zhao Yun, had all seen their strength increase from the mid-stage to the late stage of Golden Core.

As for loyalty, at least on the surface, these soldiers had never wavered in their execution of Zhao Yun's orders.

Moreover, with the final safeguard in place, Jun Tianxiao was not worried that these White Horse Volunteers would abandon their cultivation and betray him for the sake of so-called loyalty.

Mo Yunxuan had not left the Wei State Duke Mansion since then, spending his days doting on Meng Zhirou within the mansion.

However, midway, a soldier from the You Wei Guard delivered a letter from Meng Qianxue, inquiring about the arrangements of the Commander of Left Wei Guard.

But both Mo Yunxuan and Meng Zhirou knew clearly that Meng Qianxue's intentions were likely not as simple as they seemed.

After all, Mo Yunxuan was thinking of his fiancée, and had no intention of keeping it a secret.

Meng Zhirou, on the other hand, was even more eager for Meng Qianxue to know that she had gotten ahead of Sister Qianxue, and would certainly not stop the news from spreading.

She had learned from Mo Yunxuan that he was planning to transfer Meng Qianxue out of the You Wei Guard.

Therefore, she understood Meng Qianxue's intentions perfectly.

Wasn't she using the inquiry about the Commander of Left Wei Guard as a way to indirectly ask when Mo Yunxuan would send someone to replace her, so that she could return to the Duke of Wei Mansion!

Meng Zhirou thought to herself, "Hmph, hmph, I've already taken all of Husband's firsts, Sister Qianxue, you can't compete with me."

In addition, Mo Yunxuan would also specifically set aside time each day to absorb the corpses of fierce beasts brought back by the Imperial Guard and the Elite Vanguard, extracting their Blood Essence.

However, overall, this week had been outwardly calm and uneventful.

Yet, on this particular day, an unexpected person appeared at the entrance of the Duke of Wei Mansion.

"Zhirou! Are you in the Duke of Wei Mansion? Zhirou! Zhirou!"

The man's voice echoed throughout the area, and even the Anle Marquis Manor on the other side of the street could hear his shouting.

Mo Yunxuan frowned upon hearing the voice, his expression turning displeased. He had only inherited the title of Duke of Wei for less than ten days.

Yet, no one dared to be so provocative at his doorstep. Even Qing Li, the Empress's envoy, had submitted a visiting card and waited obediently in the main hall.

This Lin Fan, however, was acting like a complete hotshot and directly provoked him at his home.

After soothing the girl, who was tired and drowsy, he put on his clothes and went to the mansion's entrance.

Looking towards the source of the commotion, he exclaimed, "Good heavens! Isn't that Lin Fan!"

The surrounding Duke of Wei Mansion Guards, without receiving any orders, simply surrounded him.

They dared not directly take his life in full view of the public.

This scene, however, gave Lin Fan a surge of confidence, and he appeared spirited and full of vigor.

He was completely unlike his disheveled state when he was unceremoniously kicked out of the Anle Marquis Manor.