When he heard this news, the Grand Elder felt bewildered: Since when had the Wu Miao Holy Maiden’s token become so worthless?
Upon seeing the young man requesting an audience, the Grand Elder quickly understood: “So it’s the Prince who has come to visit.”
The one presenting the Holy Maiden’s token was Yu Jin.
Yu Jin had saved A Sang before and had visited Wu Miao several times since. Even when A Sang suffered a backlash from practicing insect control techniques and wished to see Yu Jin one last time on her deathbed, the Grand Elder agreed.
The Holy Maiden’s demise was an enormous matter. Not only could outsiders from Great Zhou not know, but even their tribespeople had to be kept in the dark. Yet at that time, after some consideration, the Grand Elder had agreed to A Sang’s request.
Back then, the Grand Elder didn’t know about Jiang Si’s existence. Looking at the dying A Sang, she could only hope that, as the Supreme Elder’s divination had indicated, perhaps A Sang might be revived after meeting the Seventh Prince of Great Zhou.
Of course, in the end, A Sang still passed away.
But the Grand Elder had never doubted the Supreme Elder’s divination.
The Supreme Elder wasn’t just the Grand Elder’s guide in cultivation; she was also the most skilled diviner among all of Wu Miao’s Holy Maidens, having solved many problems for Wu Miao through her divination skills.
It turned out that divination was being fulfilled now.
Looking at the young man with his cold demeanor, the Grand Elder sighed inwardly, no longer surprised that he possessed the Holy Maiden’s token.
The late A Sang had indeed harbored feelings for this Seventh Prince of Great Zhou. But that child’s fate was bitter; she didn’t have the fortune of the Jiang woman.
At this moment, the Grand Elder wanted to ask Yu Jin about his true feelings for A Sang but ultimately swallowed these words.
The person was already dead; there was no use in asking more. If that fierce Yan Princess Consort found out, and in a fit of anger decided not to cooperate anymore, she wouldn’t even have a place to cry.
The Grand Elder, who held immense power and prestige in Wu Miao, deeply felt the frustration of being constrained by others.
“May I ask what brings the Prince here?” Although she knew Yu Jin’s intentions, the Grand Elder still asked.
Yu Jin glanced lightly at the person standing beside the Grand Elder.
“All of you, withdraw.”
Seeing that the irrelevant people had left, Yu Jin pushed the Holy Maiden’s token forward and smiled, “The Holy Maiden’s token is returned intact. I’m here to take my Princess Consort home.”
The Grand Elder took the token and nodded slightly, “Very well.”
Yu Jin’s calm expression instantly cracked, showing a moment of bewilderment.
Had he misheard?
The Grand Elder found this somewhat amusing and coughed lightly before asking, “Does the Prince wish to leave with the Princess Consort now, or stay for a meal?”
“Hm?” Yu Jin grew even more confused.
What was going on? Was the person before him an impostor pretending to be the Wu Miao Grand Elder?
He had made so many preparations to retrieve his wife from Wu Miao early, even secretly planting explosives, ready to turn hostile if the Wu Miao people didn’t agree. Now the Grand Elder was dismissing him with just a simple “Very well”?
There must be a conspiracy!
Yu Jin suddenly became tense.
“Where is my wife now?”
The Grand Elder frowned slightly, “Currently, all our tribespeople regard the Princess Consort as the Holy Maiden. It wouldn’t be appropriate for the Prince to meet her here.”
Yu Jin’s eyes turned cold, and he inwardly sneered.
There was indeed something fishy!
“How about this: the Prince can follow A Lan to secretly meet the Princess Consort at the Holy Maiden’s residence.”
Yu Jin: “…”
The vigilant Seventh Prince met Jiang Si at the Holy Maiden’s residence.
Seeing the unfamiliar look in the man’s eyes, Jiang Si frowned, “I haven’t been away for long. Have you forgotten your wife already?”
Yu Jin’s eyes lit up, and he blurted out, “A Si, it’s you?”
“Who else would it be?” Jiang Si glanced at Yu Jin sideways. Thinking about how this man had saved A Sang’s life, knew so many of Wu Miao’s secrets, and even had the Holy Maiden’s token, she couldn’t help but feel angry.
Of course, she could still keep her composure here. She’d settle accounts with scissors when they got back.
“I thought—” Yu Jin keenly sensed some danger and forced a laugh, “A Si, did the Wu Miao people give you any trouble?”
“No.”
“They’re letting you go?”
Jiang Si thought for a moment and said, “I originally didn’t want to leave, but since we’ve agreed, it’s better to return early for the New Year.”
Yu Jin was stunned, “What do you mean you didn’t want to leave?”
Jiang Si smiled, “I saw that the Grand Elder had thoughts of keeping me here to impersonate the Holy Maiden, so I turned the tables on them. I made them understand that a Holy Maiden with nothing to lose is more terrifying than having no Holy Maiden at all. It’s easy to invite a god, but hard to send one away.”
Yu Jin suddenly fell silent.
“What’s wrong?” Jiang Si smiled and nudged him.
Yu Jin raised his hand to wipe his face and sighed, “A Si, you’ve done everything already. It makes me feel like I’ve been busy for nothing.”
What happened to the grand plan of rescuing his wife from danger in a fit of righteous anger?
Things had gone so smoothly that he felt like he was punching cotton, unable to even feel joy.
Jiang Si gave him a meaningful look, “Who says you’ve been busy for nothing? Didn’t you return the Holy Maiden’s token?”
Yu Jin felt a chill run down his spine and laughed dryly, not daring to speak.
“By the way, have you seen my second brother?”
“Yes, he’s with Long Dan and the others.”
Jiang Si expressed her confusion, “We had originally agreed to use fireworks as a signal, but Long Dan snuck in and rescued my second brother without contacting me—”
Since when did Long Dan become so capable?
Yu Jin was surprised, “Jiang Zhan wasn’t rescued by Long Dan.”
Jiang Si was taken aback.
“Long Dan and Old Qin were waiting outside, looking for a chance to sneak in, but they found that Jiang Zhan had walked out by himself. Later, Jiang Zhan said that a young man had led him out.”
Jiang Si was greatly surprised, “A young man rescued my second brother? What exactly happened?”
Yu Jin smiled helplessly, “Jiang Zhan himself isn’t clear about it. You can ask him in detail when you see him.”
With this doubt in mind, Jiang Si had no desire to linger and quickly bid farewell to the Grand Elder.
The Grand Elder was prepared for this and said carefully, “It wouldn’t be appropriate for the Prince to take the Holy Maiden away in front of everyone. Why doesn’t the Prince leave first, and the Princess Consort can disguise herself as A Hua to leave quietly? This way, it won’t attract attention.”
Jiang Si had no objection to this and nodded slightly.
Yu Jin hesitated for a moment.
Earlier, he had felt that taking A Si away was too smooth. Could it be that the Grand Elder wanted to send him away first and then trouble A Si?
The Grand Elder seemed to guess Yu Jin’s thoughts and suddenly gave Jiang Si a deep look, smiling, “The Prince need not worry. This old woman won’t forcibly keep the Princess Consort here. After all, the Princess Consort has said that if things don’t go her way, she’ll publicly express her admiration for the Xue Miao Clan Leader.”
Yu Jin’s face showed no change, but his eyes became incredibly deep, “Uh, there’s such a thing?”
Jiang Si felt utterly helpless.
She hadn’t expected that the Grand Elder, at her age, would still have such a strong desire for revenge.
After a moment of silence, Yu Jin asked, “The Xue Miao Clan Leader hasn’t changed, right? Is it still that middle-aged man with a toad-like mouth and bean-sized eyes?”
The Grand Elder’s mouth twitched violently, and it took a while for her expression to return to normal, “It’s still the same Xue Miao Clan Leader that the Prince has met before.”
In the eyes of countless people, the Xue Miao Clan Leader was considered a graceful and handsome man. Was the Yan Prince not feeling guilty about describing him like that?