Seeing Li Han leave, Yan Mo then approached Huo Qizhou and said, "Why did he come to tell you this so late?"
"It's really ridiculous." Yan Mo sneered at this.
"Doesn't he think you'll accept him?"
"I remember this guy used to work under that old bastard. Now that he's been hurt, is he planning to switch sides and find a new backer?"
Yan Mo rambled on for several sentences before pausing to wait for Huo Qizhou's answer.
"One thing is one thing," Huo Qizhou said coldly.
"Tch, he really thinks others would care about him."
"Or do you think they'd care about you, Young Master Yan?" Huo Qizhou casually retorted.
Yan Mo immediately flew into a rage. "Huo Qizhou, you're at it again! What do you mean?"
Huo Qizhou ignored him and simply walked away.
"But do you really believe him? I think something's off," Yan Mo said. When he turned around, Huo Qizhou had already gone far.
"Huo Qizhou!" Yan Mo angrily chased after him, while Huo Qizhou just let him shout behind.
The next afternoon, Li Han sat restlessly in the teahouse, sweating profusely. He kept rubbing his hands together, fearing that he wouldn't wait for Huo Qizhou.
From time to time, he would run to the window and look downstairs. As soon as he saw Huo Qizhou's figure, his heart immediately settled down. He took out a handkerchief, tidied himself up, and then returned to his seat at the table.
Before long, Huo Qizhou pushed open the door and came in.
"Your Excellency the National Advisor, you've come," Li Han said.
"Lord Li," Huo Qizhou nodded slightly and sat down opposite Li Han.
"Your Excellency the National Advisor, please have some tea."
"Lord Li, there's no need to be so polite. Just tell me what you know," Huo Qizhou said.
"Ah, yes," Li Han was stunned for a moment and then quickly recovered.
"Actually, I'm not sure if it was him. I just had a vague feeling. That day, my daughter went missing. It was already dark, but she still didn't come back. I was about to go out with my men to look for her when a man suddenly stood at the gate of my mansion and blocked our way. He said he knew where my daughter was.
So I invited him into the mansion to talk. He only told me that if I didn't want all my children to disappear, my official hat to be taken away, and my family to be ruined, he'd give me a good scare. He told me to just act as if I didn't have this daughter, and maybe I could even be promoted to a higher rank."
"So you agreed?"
"Of course I wouldn't agree. She's my daughter! But I also have other children in the family, so I had to endure it," Li Han said, looking rather sad.
"Thinking about it later, only the Duke would have the ability to do this. Moreover, the Duke had been hinting at me from time to time during those days."
"Wasn't Lord Li always by the Duke's side?"
"Although I was said to be by his side, I was just a errand boy. Thanks to Your Excellency the National Advisor this time, my daughter was able to come back. It's just a pity that she'll have to endure a lot of hardships in the future," Li Han let out a fatherly sigh.
"Lord Li, don't worry too much. Thank you for telling me about this today. I'll take my leave now," Huo Qizhou said.
"Your Excellency the National Advisor, please wait," Li Han quickly called out to him.
"Is there anything else, Lord Li?"
"Your Excellency the National Advisor, after this incident, I definitely won't be able to stay by the Duke's side anymore."
"In that case, Lord Li should find a new way out quickly. I'll take my leave," Huo Qizhou didn't give Li Han any chance.
Li Han also knew in his heart that Huo Qizhou never formed cliques for personal gain. He originally thought that since Huo Qizhou had taken care of this matter, he might have had some intentions. He came here today just hoping for a slim chance. If it didn't succeed, it wasn't strange. If it did, it would be great.
This matter came to an end for the time being.
...
At Shi Muyuan's persistent request, Xiao Xiao would wake her up every day to train with her.
Xiao Xiao originally thought that Shi Muyuan wouldn't be able to hold on for long and would give up. But unexpectedly, she actually managed to learn all the moves taught by Shi Er, although there were still some flaws. In her own words, it was like doing a set of listless radio gymnastics.
The days passed comfortably until spring. Most of the thick clothes were stuffed into the bottom of the box by Xiao Xiao, and only a few were left in case of a cold snap.
Shi Muyuan seemed to like the window in the bedroom very much. She often lay on it. Xiao Xiao noticed this and put a lot of things in front of the window, such as warm hand covers, cloaks, woolen blankets, and snacks. Everything was well-prepared.
Just like when Shi Muyuan was at home, there must be a place in the house where she could go besides lying in bed.
One day, Shi Muyuan was lying in front of the window being lazy again. Looking at the sporadic pure white on a row of trees in the distance, she suddenly remembered the white flowers she had seen in the imperial garden last year.
She immediately stood up and called Xiao Xiao over.
"Plant trees?"
"Yes. By then, this whole area will be planted with pear trees. When the wind blows, the white petals will flutter like snow. It must be very beautiful," Shi Muyuan said.
Yao Kun was sitting beside her. It seemed that he also imagined this scene and nodded happily.
"And those little white flowers. From afar, it's like the pear trees are covered with jade-like flowers. It's another beautiful view," Shi Muyuan added.
She had wanted to do this for a long time. But before, the cold had come so suddenly that she hadn't even had time to react. Then Xiao Xiao had wrapped her in winter clothes, and she had watched the first snowfall.
"Also, plant some of those white flowers from the imperial garden in the Shoukang Palace," Shi Muyuan said.
"Your Majesty the Empress Dowager, you don't like to fiddle with these flowers and plants, do you?"
"Oh, things are different now. You just do as I say," Shi Muyuan pouted.
Xiao Xiao had no choice but to follow her order.
At this time, Ze Ze walked in with a letter. He said it was from the Shi family. Shi Muyuan remembered the incident of her second grandfather last time and couldn't help being more cautious.
"Who gave this?"
"Your Majesty the Empress Dowager, please rest assured. This was personally handed to this servant by General Shi," Ze Ze understood what was on her mind.
"Ah, where's Big Brother? Why didn't he come in?"
"General Shi had other important matters to attend to. After giving the letter to this servant, he left. He only said that you must read this letter," Ze Ze replied.
"Oh, I see," Shi Muyuan said.
Shi Muyuan opened the letter and read it carefully.
The letter said that her third brother, Shi En, would be returning to the capital city in a few days. It was said that he had brought a lot of things for Shi Muyuan.
It had always been like this before. Every time Shi En went on a long journey, he never came back empty-handed. He always brought back a carriage full of things, and most of them were gifts for Shi Muyuan.
This made Shi An and Shi Li both angry and jealous.
After all, neither of them could travel as far as Shi En. Now, the houses built by Shi En's subordinates could be found in every country.
Shi Muyuan was also very happy. She had never heard from this third brother for so long, and she had never seen him before. She was always curious about him. She once asked Shi An about Shi En, but he only said that when Shi En did send a message, it was just a casual "hmm". He was even more laconic than Huo Qizhou.
Shi Muyuan didn't dare to ask too much, for fear of revealing that she wasn't the original Shi Muyuan. So she could only piece together the rest from the few words she heard.