As the few of them spoke, Gu Yuan, seated in the place of honor, noticed the scene and smiled faintly.
He looked at Liu Bai and slowly spoke.
"Hall Master Liu, that is my daughter, Xun Er. She will also be taking part in the coming-of-age ceremony this time. Please excuse her."
Liu Bai smiled at his words.
"So she is Clan Leader Gu Yuan's daughter. She truly possesses beauty that could topple a kingdom and an ethereal temperament. Clan Leader Gu Yuan is indeed fortunate."
Gu Yuan waved his hand, though a trace of a father's pride flashed through his eyes.
"Hall Master Liu flatters her. My daughter merely has a little beauty. Compared with the ladies by Hall Master Liu's side, she may not necessarily be any better."
His words were quite skillful. He praised Xun Er while also complimenting Xiao Yi Xian and the others beside Liu Bai.
Liu Bai smiled.
Gu Yuan's gaze shifted once more toward the black-robed figure in the distance, and a meaningful glint flashed through his eyes.
"Hall Master Liu knows that young man?"
Naturally, he meant Xiao Yan.
Liu Bai nodded.
"I do know him. And we could be considered friends."
Gu Yuan raised his brows slightly.
"Oh? How did Hall Master Liu come to know him?"
Liu Bai lifted his teacup, took a light sip, and slowly said,
"We had dealings back when we were in the Jia Ma Empire. We were both still young then, and he had just emerged from that..."
He paused, then smiled.
"From that low point in his life."
Surprise flashed through Gu Yuan's eyes.
The Jia Ma Empire?
That small nation on the northwestern frontier?
He had not expected Liu Bai to have emerged from such a place.
"I did not expect Hall Master