Chapter 353 - Follow Me
Chapter 353: Follow Me
After Qi Qingyao was assured that Si Jin would never die because he was a grand master, she could finally relax after a few nights of fretting and worrying. She slept well that night.
The next morning… she woke up on her own, or rather, someone else woke her up.
Steward Zhang’s messenger came forward to report to her, saying that a plump lady named Gu Shanshan and two other men had come looking for her. He asked her whether he should invite them in or to chase them away.
Qi Qingyao raised her brows, “Gu Shanshan?
She had them invited inside the house.
Qi Qingyao washed up, changed her clothes, and walked into the living room. The guests had already been seated and the servant girls were already serving them tea.
The look in Gu Shanshan’s eyes lit up when she saw Qi Qingyao.
She ate the cakes and pastries while asking which shop she had gotten them from.
Before Qi Qingyao could answer, Gu Shanshan cut her off.
“I came here a couple times over the last few days looking for you, but the steward always said you were not around.”
Qi Qingyao grinned and replied, “I went back to the village for a relative’s funeral.”
She then took a glance at Xiao Wuji and Gu Cheng, who had also come along.
Gu Shanshan stuffed the entire cake into her mouth and said, “I wanted to ask you if you’re coming with me to Eastern Ling.”
“Ah.”
Qi Qingyao could not catch up with her train of thought at all.
Gu Shanshan smiled and replied, “You don’t have friends in Qingzhou City, right? Well, I’m your friend now! Besides, I took a drawing of yours, so I’m officially inviting you to come to Eastern Ling with us. I have a house you can stay in, so you don’t have to worry about that. We can walk around town together, sit on a boat, and look for some good food!”
“…” Qi Qingyao stared at the passionate girl in astonishment.
Gu Shanshan was worried Qi Qingyao might think of her as insincere, so she patted her chest firmly and said, “I’m very serious and sincere.”
Qi Qingyao’s lips twitched as she reminded her, “Little Gu, we’ve only met once.” She had disguised herself at Zhuixian Restaurant, so that did not count.
“We could have met twice, but I overslept while you were competing with Jiang Siliu…” Gu Shanshan continued with an embarrassed tone in her voice, “That was my fault.”
Qi Qingyao sighed and said, “It doesn’t matter whose fault it was. I can’t leave Qingzhou City.”
Gu Shanshan was confused, “You don’t have any friends here, and there are many people waiting to assassinate you. So why do you want to stay here? If you follow me to Eastern Ling, my brother and Brother Xiao will protect you. You’ll be protected by us, the Gu family, so no one will dare touch you.”
Qi Qingyao, “…”
Gu Shanshan gritted her teeth and pulled Qi Qingyao to a corner. They squatted, and Gu Shanshan whispered to her, “I’ll be honest with you. Just follow me away from here, you and I.”
Xiao Wuji and Gu Cheng glanced at the sneaky Gu Shanshan but remained silent.
Qi Qingyao asked, “Why must I go with you?”
“I like you quite a lot. You look a lot like a brother I know in Capital City. So, I don’t want you to die,” Gu Shanshan said to Qi Qingyao carefully. However, when she saw the dumbfounded look on Qi Qingyao’s face still there, she gritted her teeth and said helplessly, “I’m telling you, a war is about to start.”
“…” A war?
Gu Shanshan had a solemn look in her eyes as she continued, “Eastern Ling and Southern Ming are about to attack Northern Liang, and this time, they’re sending grand masters over. People might think they’re looking for that mysterious grand master, but they’re actually doing a background check on Northern Liang. The grand master from Eastern Ling and Southern Ming will destroy your Qingzhou grand master. After all, he might have just attained the title of grand master, so there is no chance he can fight two grand masters on his own.
“After he’s dead…
“There will only be one more grand master left in Northern Liang, and that grand master will have to stay in Capital City to protect the emperor!
“At that point, Northern Liang will have no way to handle an attack from two countries. Besides, those grand masters might be overseeing the battle while your grand master can’t even leave the city. Even if he could, he could only handle one of them. The other one would take the chance to hurt him, and then… he’ll be surrounded.
“Northern Liang will have two more years at most before it’s completely invaded!”
…
…
Gu Shanshan blabbered on, not even giving Qi Qingyao the chance to interrupt her. The only thing she could do was stare at her dumbfoundedly.
Gu Cheng decided to interrupt at that perfect moment. “Shanshan, you’re talking too much.”
Gu Shanshan turned around and replied, “Brother, she looks a lot like Mo Yang, they’re surely related. They might even be relatives, so I can’t watch her die just like this.”
Qi Qingyao, “…” Mo Yang?
Was that person the look-alike they were speaking of?
How alike could they be, anyway?
One of them was a guy, and the other, a woman.
Gu Shanshan looked back at her and asked curiously, “Are you your family’s biological child? I asked quite a few people today, and all of them said that your other family members all look quite average, but you… You’re beautiful, so different from the rest of them, and you look just like Brother Mo Yang! You just might be one of us, from Eastern Ling! That’s the reason why saving you is something I have to do.”
Qi Qingyao was still trying to figure out who this Mo Yang person was.
Steward Zhang suddenly shouted from outside the yard, “Miss, you have another visitor.”
Qi Qingyao breathed out a sigh of relief. She felt like this visitor was coming to save her from the awkwardness that Gu Shanshan started. She stood up and urged Steward Zhang to invite them inside.
After that, she turned to Gu Shanshan and the others to ask if they minded another person joining them.
Gu Shanshan said she did not mind.
Gu Cheng and Xiao Wuji, on the other hand, looked in the direction of the yard with curiosity.
After all, her guest…
Was indeed quite special.
As Heir Pei walked into the hall, he glanced at the other people in the room, feeling a little dumbstruck. He had never seen them before. Who were these people?
He had been resting in Qingzhou City for the past couple of years, but he had spent most of his time either in his residence or laying on his bed half dead.
Gu Cheng and Xiao Wuji stared at this guy’s clothing and assumed he was a wealthy person.
They were waiting for Qi Qingyao to introduce them to this person.
Gu Shanshan’s eyes lit up as she stared at Pei Fengtang saying, “Mr. Handsome…”
Heir Pei turned around when he heard her voice. Only then did he notice the plump little girl. He asked Qi Qingyao, “Who’s this fatty?”
Qi Qingyao, “…” Could you be more tactful?
Gu Shanshan was not angry, however. Instead, her round little face was all smiles, the dimple on her left cheek making her look quite cute. She went along with his appraisal of her and said, “This fatty is Gu Shanshan.”
Qi Qingyao cleared her throat and emphasized, “She’s my friend.”
“Oh, hello.” Heir Pei did not smile as he greeted her politely.
He did not acknowledge Xiao Wuji and Gu Cheng either. Instead, he said to Qi Qingyao directly, “I have something to tell you.”
Qi Qingyao smiled as she gestured to Gu Shanshan and the others.
After that, she followed Heir Pei into an empty room outside in the yard.
They closed the doors.
Heir Pei asked her, “Where is Si Jin?” He wanted certain questions to be answered first.
Qi QIngyao shrugged indifferently and replied, “Just say what’s on your mind. You don’t have to ask about Si Jin.”
She did not want to talk, but that was alright. Heir Pei grinned as he stated, “The Demon Physician Jiang Xun is here in Qingzhou City.”
Qi Qingyao said nothing.
She simply smiled back at Heir Pei.
He continued, “He came to see me. He said that he paid the State Preceptor and the Head Grand Secretariat a visit. And… I got some information from him. I’m hazarding a guess that Si Jin might be a grand master.”
The news had reached him very quickly. Well, he was Heir Pei after all.
Qi Qingyao replied, “If you’re trying to get any information from me, I’m afraid I’ll have to disappoint you. I don’t know any more than you do.”
“It’s not like that.”
Heir Pei denied her assumptions, “I’m just telling you that you shouldn’t go away if his identity is exposed. You should wait for him to come back.”
Was he afraid she might be murdered? “What if he never comes back? Do I never leave the house, then?”
Heir Pei was eager to explain to her what to do when someone suddenly knocked on the door.
“Knock knock.”
Heir Pei responded with an ashen expression on his face, “Who is it?”
“It’s me.” Lu Yan’s serene voice rang in the air.
…
…
In the hall.
Gu Shanshan paced back and forth nervously and asked Gu Cheng, “Brother, who was that handsome man?”
“I don’t know,” replied Gu Cheng as he calmly sipped on his cup of tea.
“You’re good for nothing.” Gu Shanshan pouted as she huffed back at him.
Gu Cheng, “…”
“You don’t even know the name of a handsome guy!” Gu Shanshan looked at him with a look of disdain on her face and said, “I’ll ask Qi Qingyao, she’ll tell me for sure.”
Gu Cheng wanted to grab her and choke her after being insulted like that, but he gave it some thought and decided to be patient for now. He would get his chance next time!