Lu Feifan?

The moment she heard that voice, Zhen Jiu’er froze.

It really was Lu Feifan!

Xia Zi watched the man walking over from the other side of the high wall, a flicker of surprise crossing her eyes as well.

But she quickly composed herself and hurried to Lu Feifan’s side. “Feifan, she… insists on dragging me to see Master Nine.”

“Why would you take her to see my young uncle? Just because I arranged to meet her here?” Lu Feifan’s gaze landed on Jiu’er, and he sneered.

“Do we need to report to you for whatever we do? Zhen Jiu’er, don’t you think you’re taking yourself a little too seriously? Just because you’re my young uncle’s girlfriend, does that mean you get to control everything?”

Jiu’er stared coldly back at him.

The man who had been meeting Xia Zi just now had not been Lu Feifan.

She hadn’t seen the man’s face, but his silhouette alone hadn’t matched Lu Feifan’s.

Lu Feifan’s bearing was identical to Mu Mu’s—she knew it far too well to ever mistake it.

But why would Lu Feifan be helping Xia Zi?

“Go back first,” Lu Feifan said, glancing down at Xia Zi.

Xia Zi nodded and turned to leave, seeming to trust Lu Feifan completely.

Zhen Jiu’er’s brow furrowed, and she made to go after her, but Lu Feifan stepped forward and blocked her path.

Xia Zi seized the chance to quicken her pace, and soon she had vanished from sight.

“The person who was with her just now wasn’t you.”

Jiu’er clenched her fists and glared up at Lu Feifan. “People have died here. Assassins have shown up more than once—they’ve even tried to kill Master Nine. Do you really think this can just be brushed aside so easily?”

“None of that has anything to do with her. You can investigate all you want, but there’s no need to go digging into her.”

Lu Feifan showed no intention of stepping aside. “Even if you go find my young uncle right now, the person she met tonight was still me. There’s nothing more to say.”

“Why are you covering for her? Are you two in this together?”

But he was Mu Mu! How could Mu Mu possibly be in league with bad people?

Even now, Jiu’er still couldn’t fully separate Lu Feifan from Mu Mu.

Every gesture, every furrow of the brow, every smile—it all carried Mu Mu’s flavor. How could she tell them apart? How could she treat them differently?

A pang of disappointment settled in Jiu’er’s chest. “Lu Feifan, this matters a great deal. If you’re not even certain about Xia Zi—”

“I’m certain. The professor wasn’t killed by her, and those assassins have nothing to do with her either.”

Lu Feifan’s eyes were cold as he looked at her. “In any case, if you tell my young uncle, I’ll simply say the person Xia Zi met tonight was me. So whether you say anything or not is up to you.”

He glanced at her once more, then turned and walked away as well.

Jiu’er was left standing alone, slowly calming herself in the wind.

There was nothing else to do but calm down—what other choice did she have?

He had clearly decided to protect Xia Zi. She just didn’t understand what connection existed between Lu Feifan and Xia Zi.

And that retching just now… she wasn’t sure if she was overthinking it.

Maybe she really was reading too much into it.

Once Lu Feifan was far away, Zhen Jiu’er finally stepped out from beside the high wall.

It had gotten rather late. She didn’t know if Lu Beicheng had made it back to camp yet.

She hadn’t expected that trailing after Xia Zi would take her this far without her even noticing.

There was quite a distance between here and the camp.

She glanced up at the night sky and started back, her mind heavy with thought.

But she had only gone a short way, not yet fully clear of the high wall, when her face suddenly changed. She stopped dead in her tracks and even took several steps back.

She had been too absorbed in her thoughts, and her alertness had slipped!

She hadn’t even noticed that someone had already drawn this close to her!