Li Yunan rushed into his family's inn. Without stopping to catch up with Uncle Nong, he headed straight for the bamboo courtyard where Qian Wanyu and the others were staying.
Bang.
With a tremendous crash, he kicked the door open.
Qian Wanyu, Bai Rou, and the others were sitting in a circle, discussing something. Seeing Li Yunan arrive in such a panic, they all straightened. "Senior Brother Li, what happened?"
"Wan Yu, I might know where Minghui is." Li Yunan had just overheard members of the Li family discussing the Thousand Family. When he compared their descriptions of Qian Ziyan and an unfamiliar young woman, he found several similarities to Wood, who had taken Minghui. He had even paid a hefty sum to have someone who had been close to them at the time draw their portraits. As soon as he confirmed their identities, he had hurried over.
In his haste, he accidentally glanced at what lay on the table. Then he looked at Bai Rou and the others, who remained perfectly calm at this welcome news, as though they already knew.
"This is-" Li Yunan walked over to the table suspiciously. A map of the entire Purple Jade Empire lay spread across it, with the Thousand Family's location prominently circled. His eyes widened in disbelief. "You already knew Minghui was with the Thousand Family?"
"Senior Brother Li, we only just found out ourselves."
Qian Wanyu had been keeping a close eye on rumors circulating through Dream Capital. After a full month of searching, she had become increasingly attentive to every detail, unwilling to miss Ninth Sister again. Fortunately, hard work did not fail a determined heart. On her latest outing, she had retraced Ninth Sister's steps and unexpectedly discovered another mark Ninth Sister had left at the same spot: