"Senior Brother, my family affairs are none of your business."
Nalan Yanran frowned, a trace of impatience appearing on her face.
Throughout the journey, her heart had filled with regret-regret that she had brought this young man along.
She had only agreed to let him accompany them because he had some talent and a connection to Uncle-Master Ge Ye.
Yet she had never expected him to constantly lean on the fact that he had joined a year earlier, using his position as her senior brother to criticize her every move and repeatedly get in her way. It had left her deeply displeased.
"I!"
The young man's face flushed red. He had not realized at all that his behavior had already earned Nalan Yanran's profound disgust.
He merely turned his jealousy-filled eyes on Xiao Qian, as though he wanted to burn two holes through him.
In his eyes, Xiao Qian was an uninvited guest who had suddenly intruded between them and stolen Nalan Yanran's attention.
Yet Xiao Qian had never taken him seriously from the start, treating him as nothing but air. His gaze kept wandering over their surroundings, and he paid no attention whatsoever to this man who harbored such unprovoked hostility toward him.
"I want to see your Great Elder as soon as possible. I'm not interested in visiting your Nalan Family."
Xiao Qian spoke lightly, his tone as calm as still water. He showed not the slightest sign of feeling honored by Nalan Yanran's invitation.
Nalan Yanran had already anticipated this attitude from Xiao Qian. Without wasting words, she answered directly, "I'm fulfilling my earlier promise. The three fourth-order magical beast skeletons are only available at my family's estate. I can't go back to the sect and then haul them over to you."
Xiao Qian considered it briefly, then gave a slight nod. "All right. Make it quick."
His expression remained indifferent. Naturally, the way he seemed to attach no importance at all to this trip once again wounded the fragile heart of a certain "toad" beside them.
To the young man, Xiao Qian's behavior was an insult to him, and even more, a desecration of Nalan Yanran.
He must pay! He must!
The young man roared madly in his heart, clenching his fists so tightly that his nails nearly dug into the flesh of his palms.
His face was full of resentment, but he could do nothing. With his heart brimming with anger and jealousy, he could only follow Ge Ye away.
Nalan Yanran, meanwhile, led Xiao Qian through the bustling streets of the Imperial Capital.
People streamed back and forth along the lively streets, lined with a dazzling array of exquisite shops.
They continued onward, finally arriving at the Nalan Family Grounds near the very center of the Imperial Capital.
The Nalan Family Grounds were imposing and magnificent. The towering gateway proclaimed the family's dignity, while the tight security surrounding it seemed to speak of the family's exceptional standing in the Imperial Capital.
"Halt... uh... y-young miss!"
The guards at the entrance instinctively reached out to stop the two people who appeared to be barging in, raising their weapons slightly.
Yet in the next instant, their eyes went wide.
"It's the young miss! Notify the family head at once!" one quick-witted guard immediately shouted. Someone promptly dashed into the grounds like an arrow loosed from a bow.
Those hurried footsteps shattered the previous calm. For a moment, the entire entrance to the Nalan Family Grounds seemed to boil over, with chickens flying and dogs leaping in the commotion.
"Young miss!"
The remaining guards immediately dropped to one knee in perfect unison, their movements crisp and efficient. Arranged in two rows, they called out together.
Their voices rang out like thunder, drawing the gazes of passersby on the street.
Nalan Yanran paid it no heed, as though all of this were only natural.
She merely dipped her snow-white chin and said calmly, "Yes. He is a guest I invited. Send someone to inform Father. I'll take him to the Family Storage Vault first."
With that, she led Xiao Qian through the guards without looking back.
They stepped over the high threshold, which stood like a dividing line separating the clamor outside from the solemnity within the grounds.
Then they skirted the main reception hall and headed straight for the restricted rear courtyard.
Along the way, the family servants bowed whenever they saw Nalan Yanran, their eyes filled with reverence.
Meanwhile, the people inside and outside the gates exchanged bewildered looks before erupting into a bubbling uproar of discussion.
"Isn't that Nalan Yanran, the one who recently made a laughingstock of herself? I heard she took it upon herself to break off her engagement, only to be beaten by a boy from the other family until she lost every shred of face. And she still has the nerve to come back?" a lavishly dressed man muttered, his eyes full of disdain.
"Keep your voice down. Apparently, the younger generation of the Misty Cloud Sect considers this a monstrous humiliation. They intend to teach that boy named Xiao Qian a proper lesson." An old man beside him hastily tugged at his sleeve and lowered his voice in warning.
"Your news is terribly out of date. I happen to know that the Nalan Family's young miss thinks very highly of Xiao Qian. She even invited him to join the Misty Cloud Sect!" a young woman said excitedly, as though she had uncovered an earth-shattering secret.
"What! She broke off an engagement with one boy, then invited another?! Is she changing her betrothal partner? Can she really be so casual about it? Old Master Nalan will lose every last scrap of face!" A merchant-looking man gaped in astonishment, disbelief written all over his face.
"Wait, that boy she just brought inside... could he be Xiao Qian?" a sharp-eyed youth suddenly asked.
The moment that deduction was voiced, the endlessly chattering crowd fell silent. Then they exchanged looks, their eyes betraying their eagerness to watch the spectacle.
Hahaha, how interesting! She went to break off her engagement, then brought someone else home. How would the Misty Cloud Sect react to a move like that?
Everyone speculated inwardly, as though a grand drama were about to unfold within the Nalan Family, and they could hardly wait to see what happened next.
"What did you say? That rebellious daughter! She still dares to come back!"
Nalan Su, the head of the Nalan Family, had been sitting leisurely in the hall with a cup of fragrant tea in his hand. Upon hearing the gate guard's report, his face instantly turned livid.
He slammed his palm onto the tea table.
Under his powerful blow, the exquisite tea table let out a tremendous crash.
Tea splashed from the cup, scattering droplets through the air.
But immediately afterward, as though he had suddenly realized the gravity of the problem, his expression tightened. He hastily lowered his voice and instructed the guard, "The old master must not find out under any circumstances!"
"Y-yes." Startled by Nalan Su's abrupt change, the guard trembled slightly and hastily nodded.
"Where is she?" Nalan Su's brows were tightly knitted, and lowering his voice had done nothing to lessen the fury in his eyes.
"The young miss brought a boy with her. She said she would visit the Family Storage Vault first," the guard hurriedly replied with utmost respect, not daring to show the slightest negligence.
"She brought a boy? And went straight to the storage vault?"
At that answer, Nalan Su's brows drew together even more deeply, like two bottomless ravines carved into his forehead.
Certain unsavory rumors instantly flooded his mind, crashing against his thoughts in wave after surging wave.
His face abruptly flushed red, as though anger had set him completely ablaze.
Boom!
He slammed his palm onto the tea table again.
This time, the table could no longer withstand such tremendous force. With a booming crash, it shattered into countless fragments that scattered across the floor.
As the tea table broke apart, Nalan Su let out a furious roar that resounded above the Nalan Family Grounds, startling the birds roosting in the nearby trees into panicked flight.
"That unfilial daughter-"
His roar brimmed with anger and disappointment. He had never imagined that Nalan Yanran would do such a thing.
The spectators outside froze at the roar before letting out long, lingering sighs. Excitement gleamed in their eyes, their appetite for gossip thoroughly satisfied.
They whispered to one another, speculating about what had happened within the Nalan Family. Each imagined all manner of possible plots, as though they were watching a spectacular drama.
And naturally, that thunderous roar also reached the old master's room...
Before you continue