Hidden Shadow – CH 084

Chapter Eighty-Four: Going with the Lou Clan

“Yes!” The shadow guard stepped aside.

An Jiu put on her outer robe and covered her face with a veil, but did not rush to leave. “What happened to the Lou Clan?”

Seeing her composed demeanor and lack of coyness, Chu Dingjiang admired her even more and replied, “Someone has cast a plague on the Lou Clan. In just five days, the entire Lou mansion was infected. Only those who went to the Mei Clan for help received the antidote from Elder Qi.”

“That’s terrifying!” Mei Jiu said fearfully.

An Jiu also found this plague truly terrifying. This was even under the condition that the toxicity was low in winter; if it were summer, it could probably wipe out the entire city overnight.

An Jiu nodded. “Goodbye.”

Goodbye? Chu Dingjiang’s lips curled into a smile. That was an interesting way to put it. “Goodbye.”

An Jiu left the courtyard with the shadow guard.

Horses were already waiting by the side gate. An Jiu mounted her horse and rode away gracefully through the snow, seemingly leaving a trail of dust in her wake.

After traveling for about half a day, they reached the mouth of a valley, where the crisp fragrance of plum blossoms filled the air from horseback.

The two were still some distance apart when a rider galloped towards them from the valley. From a hundred paces away, An Jiu recognized the rider as Mu Qianshan and slowed her pace.

“My Young Lady!” Mu Qianshan dismounted, knelt on one knee, exhaled puffs of mist, and clasped his hands, saying, “This subordinate is incompetent.”

As a shadow guard, he had watched his person be abducted right before his eyes, and his failure to stop it with his life was a dereliction of duty.

“Now that the person has been delivered, I shall take my leave,” said a shadow guard from the Konghe Army.

“Thank you, please go ahead,” An Jiu replied.

The rider turned his horse and rode away.

An Jiu glanced at Mu Qianshan from horseback, not wanting to acknowledge him.

Mu Qianshan untied the bundle from his back and presented it with both hands. “My Young Lady, Elder Zhi has a message: please leave with the members of the Lou family. This is something Elder Zhi gave you.”

“You abandoned Elder Zhi just to come back and inform me?” An Jiu asked coldly.

Mu Qianshan lowered his head and said, “Before leaving for Bianjing, the elder instructed me that if we encountered a powerful enemy I could not defeat, my priority should be to return and report back. When I arrived, the commanders of the Imperial Guard and the Divine Strategy Team personally came to escort Elder Zhi back to the capital. Elder Zhi left a letter saying there was something in the ancestral hall. I retrieved it and immediately left the mansion to find you, My Young Lady.”

An Jiu dismounted and took the bundle from his hands. “Elder Zhi already knew I would not be in mortal danger?”

“I believe so!” Mu Qianshan knew Elder Zhi possessed foresight.

An Jiu untied the bundle. Seeing a sandalwood box peeking out from inside, she casually opened it. Inside was a book with the character “Zen” written on its beige cover. Turning the pages, she found it taught how to utilize spiritual power.

An Jiu closed the book, tossed aside the box, and unceremoniously stuffed the book into her robes. “Why leave with the Lou family?” she asked.

Mu Qianshan replied, “I heard from the elders that these people, wanting to eliminate the Konghe Army, will first target the four major families. The Mei family is already unsafe, and the Lou family has only two members left, almost wiped out.”

This mysterious force wanted to deal with the entire Konghe Army. Their swift action shows their impatience; they likely had no time to attend to a few survivors.

“Alright, I will go with them,” An Jiu quickly decided. This time, she did not ask Mei Jiu’s opinion. Mei Jiu was a cowardly ostrich; if she had a choice, she would definitely stay at Mei Mansion without hesitation.

“Get up.” An Jiu stared directly into his eyes. “Are you coming with me?”

Mu Qianshan had never seen a woman with such a gaze—cold and focused, as if she could see into one’s heart. And she had not asked, “Are you coming with me to the Lou family?” but rather, “Are you coming with me?” She had never considered herself someone to be cared for, nor had she ever relied on his protection.

An Jiu did not deliberately release her spiritual power, but her probing gaze carried a certain pressure.

Mu Qianshan finally lowered his head, avoiding her gaze. “This subordinate will not go.”

The cold wind howled, and Mu Qianshan’s mind raced, desperately trying to find the words to explain. He had not even noticed the movement beside him. When he looked up again, he found An Jiu had already ridden away.

He immediately spurred his horse to catch up. “My Young Lady, I must wait for Elder Zhi to return to Mei Mansion. The clan elder has already discussed it with Lady Lou, and she’s willing to help.”

“There’s no need to explain these things to me,” An Jiu said, turning to look at him. “You have nothing to do with me. Just focus on completing Elder Zhi’s orders.”

Mu Qianshan thought she was speaking out of spite, but looking at her profile, her eyes, reflecting the white snow, appeared calm yet cold, making it impossible to discern her thoughts.

While he was pondering, this was actually the first time An Jiu had truly looked at Mu Qianshan.

Wise people were often suspicious and did not easily trust others. Elder Zhi’s trust in Mu Qianshan demonstrated his loyalty, so his obedience to Elder Zhi’s orders was perfectly reasonable. An Jiu would not hold a grudge against him for this. However, An Jiu also felt that this person was completely irrelevant to her.

Back at Mei Mansion, Yao-Ye was already waiting in Yuwei Residence, helping An Jiu quickly change her clothes. “This servant cannot accompany you, young lady. Please take care.”

“Mm,” An Jiu replied faintly.

Mei Jiu had already begun to sob softly. Knowing Yao-Ye could not hear her, she still muttered, “Yao-Ye, you must take good care of yourself, too. If there’s a chance, you should quickly return to Bianjing and marry your childhood sweetheart…” Her incessant chatter made An Jiu’s head throb. “Alright, use that useless pig brain of yours to think about something you should be thinking about!”

Mei Jiu was always worrying about this and that, but never about anything she should be worried about, which annoyed An Jiu—what kind of mentality did this person have! Mei Jiu, seemingly resigned, said, “I just cannot understand those things.”

An Jiu coldly replied, “You do not need to explain. I know you are an idiot. I thought you’d improved a bit lately!”

Mei Jiu did not answer for a long time. Only when Mu Qianshan urged her to go to the guest courtyard to meet with the Lou family did Mei Jiu ask, feeling wronged, “Can I go say goodbye to my sister?”

“No.” An Jiu admired Mei Ruyan’s strength, but that did not mean she was willing to interact with her.

“I only have one sister,” Mei Jiu whispered.

An Jiu gave a cold laugh, treating her words like a gentle breeze, not taking them to heart at all.

Smoke curled from the stove, and outside the window, plum blossoms bloomed in the snow, creating a serene atmosphere.

But the equally tranquil Lou mansion seemed lifeless.

In a boudoir with a heated stove, Mo Sigui was administering acupuncture to a half-naked woman.

Sweat beaded on his fair forehead. Lou Xiaowu nervously gripped the bed curtains, afraid to make the slightest noise to disturb him.

Lou Mingyue was already terminally ill, and there was almost no hope of saving her.

Mo Sigui was using his inner energy to inject into the silver needles to guide the medicine soaked on them into her meridians and blood vessels. This was the first time he had forcibly divided his inner energy into more than ten streams, making the process extremely strenuous.