Reunion

By the time Ye Xinglan arrived outside the Ye Family Estate, it was already completely dark.

The ginkgo forest remains the same.

The leaves of late autumn have fallen to the ground, rustling softly in the wind.

Ye Xinglan slowly approached along the edge of the woods, using the darkness and the shadows of the ginkgo trees to conceal herself.

Half-Sweet Coffee mentioned before, the number of informants around the Ye Family has decreased significantly.

She squatted behind the old ginkgo tree at the intersection and observed for a while. She only saw a figure leaning against the trunk on the east side, far away and not moving.

The moment the man turned around, Ye Xinglan slipped between the two trees and climbed over the west wall.

She braced herself with her hands when she landed, making not much noise.

Inside the wall was a woodshed.

Several bundles of firewood were still piled in their original spot, and the air smelled of old wood and hay.

She crouched in the shadows, slowly calming her breathing.

She had changed out of the light gray cloth dress she was wearing; it was a dark-colored dress she had taken from the back door of the general store in the north of the city.

Her hair was completely covered by a headscarf, leaving only her eyes visible.

She looked nothing like Ye Xinglan, and what she feared was that the people inside wouldn't recognize her either.

She passed through the woodshed and walked along the west corridor.

The corridor was dark, with only a little light coming through from the direction of the main hall.

She walked slowly, remembering every inch of her footsteps.

When she was little, she often sneaked into the kitchen through this corridor, Gu Mei would always stop her before she reached for the snacks.

Gu Mei's voice has not been heard yet.

It was eerily quiet all around, with only the occasional soft rustling of the wind blowing through the eaves.

She walked to the outside of the main hall and stopped.

The lights were still on in the main room.

The door was half-open, and through the crack, you could see Ye Qing'an standing by the window, his back to the door, with a few sheets of paper between his fingers.

Gu Mei sat under the lamp, her head down, sewing a garment.

She started the needle work very slowly, one stroke after another.

Ye Xinglan did not move.

She stood there, unable to think of what to say as her first words, and thought for a long time.

Before returning, she thought about it many times on the way.

The first sentence is either "Dad, Mom," "I'm back," or "You have to come with me."

But at this moment, all those words stuck in his throat.

Finally, she gently pushed the door open.

The door hinge made a very faint sound.

Gu Mei looked up first, under the lamp.

She saw a person in dark clothes, covered in dust, standing outside the door. She was stunned for a moment, and then felt as if something was slowly drawing her in from the inside out.

The needle slipped from her fingers and landed on her clothes on her knee.

She slowly stood up, staring intently at Ye Xinglan, her lips moving but no sound escaping her lips.

Hearing the noise, Ye Qing'an turned around.

The wrinkles on his face were deep under the light, and he didn't recognize him at first. He took half a step forward and squinted.

Then he saw Ye Xinglan's eyes peeking out from under her headscarf.

He froze, the paper in his hand falling to the ground with a "whoosh," scattering everywhere.

"Xing Lan..." His voice was extremely low, almost a whisper.

Ye Xinglan pulled down her headscarf.

Her face was pale from the night wind, her hair was a little messy, and there was a very faint bluish-gray layer under her eyelids.

She stood in the doorway, watching them, her throat feeling like it was being choked. After a long, long time, she finally uttered a soft cry:

"Dad. Mom."

Gu Mei seemed to be awakened by this sound.

She went around the table and practically rushed over.

But when she was almost in front of Ye Xinglan, she stopped. She reached out as if to touch Ye Xinglan, but her fingers froze in mid-air. In the end, she only grabbed her other wrist and gripped it tightly.

She looked at Ye Xinglan, her eyes gradually reddening. She wasn't crying, just very red.

"They didn't even say a word while they were alive."

Gu Mei's voice trembled, but she still tried to hold on, "You... you came back alone?"

Ye Xinglan nodded.

She didn't dare look into Gu Mei's eyes, only at the hand that was gripping her wrist.

This hand used to comb her hair, and it also hit her.

That year, she secretly practiced swordsmanship and was caught by Gu Mei. Gu Mei used this very hand to pull the branch out of her hand and break it in two.

Ye Xinglan thought at that time that her mother might never like her touching a sword.

That hand is trembling now.

Ye Qing'an had already approached. His throat tightened, but his tone remained steady. "It's good that you're back. Come in first, close the door. Are you hungry? I'll go get you something to eat."

Ye Xinglan went inside. "I'm not hungry."

Gu Mei remained standing in the same spot. Gu Mei Ye Qing'an gently tugged at her, prompting her to move to the chair and sit down.

Ye Xinglan stood at the door for a while before slowly saying, "I'm taking you away. We can't stay here any longer; there are people watching the Ye Family outside."

"I know someone is there," Ye Qing'an said.

He bent down to pick up the paper from the ground, folded it twice, and placed it on the table. "In the past two weeks, there have been some shady characters around here, so I've told my family to stay home as much as possible."

"They are not ordinary petty thieves."

Ye Xinglan said, "It's people from the Federation Trade Route Inspection Office, and also from the Holy Spirit Cult. They didn't notice me coming in tonight, but they might search the place."

Ye Qing'an listened, his brows slowly furrowed.

Gu Mei looked up at Ye Xinglan, her gaze finally returning from her daze.

"Where can we go?" Gu Mei asked.

"Get out of the city first, someone will come to meet you."

Ye Xinglan said, "We need to hurry. We must leave before dawn."

Ye Qing'an remained silent for a moment.

He turned to look at Gu Mei.

Gu Mei neither said it was good nor bad.

She simply looked at Ye Xinglan, her voice as soft as if it came from a great distance. "How is your cultivation level?"

Ye Xinglan froze for a moment.

Gu Mei looked at her, not asking any questions, just looking, her gaze filled with many things, mixed together, a mess.

Ye Xinglan didn't speak. After a few moments, Gu Mei slowly looked away and said, "It's fine."

"I'll go pack my things," she said, already standing up and walking towards the inner room.

He walked to the curtain, paused, and said with his back to Ye Xinglan, "There's porridge in the kitchen, it's still hot. Have some."

Ye Xinglan stood in the center of the main room, and the lamp wick flickered.

She stared at Gu Mei's retreating figure until the old curtain fell, then slowly walked to the table and sat down.

Ye Qing'an poured her a glass of water, which was warm.

Ye Xinglan took it but didn't drink it.

She lowered her head, looking at the tiny swaying light in the glass, and whispered, "Dad, have I worried you all these years?"

Ye Qing'an did not answer.

He pulled out a chair and sat down next to her, his large hands resting on his knees.

After a long pause, he said in a hoarse voice, "Your life is more important than anything else."

"You take a rest, I'll go wake up the others."

Ye Xinglan didn't speak, only staring at the surface of the water in the cup.

She heard Ye Qing'an get up and leave, leaving her alone in the main room.

The lamp wick flickered again, casting her shadow on the wall, swaying gently.

"Miss Ye, Ye Xingmo has sent a message."

cousin?

What did he say?

Ye Xingmo said, "I'm here to pick you up, I'll be there soon."

Ye Xinglan frowned slightly.

Ye Xingmo is currently one of the few people from the Outer Court who are outside, and he is also a disciple of the Tang Sect.

Half-Sweet Coffee added, "Five minutes ago, his coordinates were near the Ye Family's territory, in the northwest. He didn't take the main road; he crept in through the woods."

"Knew."

Ye Xinglan stood up, walked to the entrance of the main hall, and glanced towards the inner room.

Gu Mei was still tidying up inside; Ye Qing'an hadn't returned yet.

She closed the door halfway, walked to the porch, and listened to the sound of ginkgo leaves rustling against each other in the night wind.

Not long after, a very faint noise came from the direction of the west wall.

Ye Xinglan pressed herself against the wall and walked a few steps to the corner of the west corridor.

A figure leaped over the low wall next to the woodshed, landing very lightly.

The newcomer was dressed in black, with a gray cloth covering his face, revealing only a pair of narrow eyes.

He saw Ye Xinglan, paused for a moment, and then tore off the gray cloth.

He had lost a lot of weight, his cheekbones were higher, and his skin was darker, but he still had that quiet demeanor when he looked at people.

"Where is he?" Ye Xingmo asked, her voice extremely low.

"My mom is inside, and my dad went to call the family. Come with me," Ye Xinglan said.

Ye Xingmo nodded.

He didn't ask any further questions, but simply gestured behind him.

Ye Xinglan then noticed that there was another person outside the wall who hadn't climbed over but was squatting by the woodpile outside, seemingly keeping watch.

Without any introduction from Ye Xingmo, the two quickly walked back to the main hall along the west corridor.

After entering, Ye Xingmo glanced around, quickly confirming the location of the main room and the front door. Then, she walked to the table, took off a long black bag from her back, and placed it on a chair.

He glanced at Ye Xinglan and said, "The Tang Sect's pick-up vehicle is three miles north of the Ye Family's residence; we'll have to walk there."

"Um."

"Once everyone at home has finished cleaning up, Yun Jingheng will make his move, and the two of us will rush out and take out those two people lying in wait."

"Um?"

Ye Xingmo looked at her, "Didn't he tell you?"

Tell me what?

"He's going to cause trouble."

"Why?"

"How would I know? Sister, I'm just an outer disciple."