As the commander of the Vermillion Bird Guard, when his aura erupted, it was undoubtedly astonishing.

Luo Sheng’s expression remained unchanged, her lips carrying a hint of a smile as she said, “I know what the Vermillion Bird Token looks like.”

“Miss Luo, although you’re young, some jokes shouldn’t be made carelessly.” Uncle Xing stared at Luo Sheng intently, his tone becoming heavier.

Luo Sheng smiled slightly. “Whether it’s a careless joke or not, Uncle Xing can judge for himself once he hears my description of the Vermillion Bird Token and sees if it’s correct.”

A cold gleam flashed in Uncle Xing’s eyes. “Speak.”

Luo Sheng turned to glance at Zhu Wu. “I just heard Uncle Xing say that only the Vermillion Bird Guard commander can know this. Is it alright to speak in front of Mr. Zhu?”

Zhu Wu froze.

What? Was he going to be the one thrown out instead?

Uncle Xing had always wanted him to inherit the position of Vermillion Bird Guard commander, yet this little girl was causing so much trouble.

Uncle Xing glanced at Zhu Wu and said indifferently, “Wait outside.”

Zhu Wu: “…”

With a dark expression, he walked out, only to see the Shi Yan brothers standing guard outside looking over with curiosity.

Zhu Wu turned around, ignoring the two brothers’ presence.

Inside the room, Luo Sheng spoke softly for a few sentences.

Uncle Xing stared at her in astonishment.

He never would have imagined that this young girl truly knew what the Vermillion Bird Token looked like.

Or rather, she knew what the Vermillion Bird Token looked like after its disguise.

This was shocking enough.

“How did you come to know this?”

Luo Sheng lied without changing expression. “I once encountered someone on the verge of death. Taking pity on him, I helped him. That person tore off an object and handed it to me, saying that thing was called the Vermillion Bird Token, and he earnestly asked me to keep it safe—”

“The Vermillion Bird Token is in your possession?” Uncle Xing asked urgently.

Luo Sheng blinked and shook her head. “It’s not with me.”

At this, annoyance appeared on her face. “After he said that, he fainted. Seeing he hadn’t died yet, I took him to my separate estate. Who knew that once his injuries healed, he would come find me and take back the Vermillion Bird Token!”

“Where is that person?”

“He left. If he didn’t leave, was I supposed to keep him around eating free meals?”

Uncle Xing stared at Luo Sheng, his gaze deep and contemplative.

He found it difficult to determine the truth or falsehood of this young girl’s words, but what she had just described was indeed what the Vermillion Bird Token looked like after disguise.

“Could Miss Luo tell me that person’s age and appearance?”

“Age?” Luo Sheng’s brow furrowed. “Then he was a bit old, probably in his early thirties.”

Uncle Xing suddenly felt breathing was somewhat difficult.

Early thirties, a bit old?

Never mind. Perhaps in the eyes of a teenage girl, that really was old, while he himself could be considered a decrepit old man about to enter the grave.

Luo Sheng seemed completely unaware of the harm her previous words had caused, and lowered her brow recalling, “His appearance was also ordinary. His eyebrows were fairly dark, his nose fairly straight—”

Uncle Xing interrupted. “Miss Luo, I want to ask a question.”

“Go ahead.”

“What does Miss Luo think of Zhu Wu’s appearance?”

These words were spoken at Uncle Xing’s normal volume. Hearing this, Zhu Wu, who was standing guard outside, silently took a step forward.

For them to inexplicably bring up his appearance, it seemed the parts he couldn’t hear were over.

Just as he was about to ask if he could enter, he heard the young woman’s slightly hesitant voice drift out. “The two are about the same age. As for Zhu Wu… he’s a few degrees uglier than that person.”

Zhu Wu: ?

Uncle Xing fell silent.

He now roughly understood Miss Luo’s standards.

When Wu-lang was young, he was considered a handsome youth by ordinary standards. Even now he was still a dignified-looking man. This was called ugly?

It seemed asking about appearance wouldn’t yield any useful information.

“Did that person have any distinguishing features?”

Luo Sheng thought for a moment. “His appearance didn’t have any particular features. He was just an ordinary person… Oh right, he had a plum blossom-shaped scar on his left shoulder. I heard this from the old woman who changed his bandages.”

“Is his surname Yang?” Zhu Wu lifted the curtain and entered, asking urgently.

Luo Sheng said calmly, “He said his surname was Yue.”

Surname Yue?

Zhu Wu’s first reaction was that it was impossible.

About the same age as him, with a plum blossom-shaped scar on his left shoulder—this was clearly Brother Yang!

“Miss Luo, I need to speak with Uncle Xing for a moment. Could you give us some privacy?”

Luo Sheng stood up and leisurely walked outside.

Seeing her exit, Zhu Wu lowered his voice. “Uncle Xing, the person Miss Luo described is Yang Zhun!”

The Vermillion Bird Guard had no contact with the other府兵 (manor guards) of the prince’s manor, but Uncle Xing had heard Zhu Wu mention Yang Zhun many times.

Yang Zhun was the most outstanding young man among the manor guards, highly valued by the prince, and was also the fiancé of Xiu Yue, one of the four head maidservants of Princess Qingyang.

The reason Zhu Wu was able to contact the Vermillion Bird Guard after the fall of Prince Zhennan’s manor was simple: Uncle Xing was actually his uncle.

When Zhu Wu was young, he was supposed to enter the Vermillion Bird Guard, but Uncle Xing couldn’t bear for his nephew to live forever under an assumed name, so he let him stay at the manor as an ordinary guard.

Who could have known the manor would suddenly suffer such catastrophe, and his nephew’s final destination would still be the Vermillion Bird Guard.

“Are you certain?”

“Of course I’m certain. About the same age as me, with a plum blossom-shaped scar on his left shoulder, and with the Vermillion Bird Token in hand—if it’s not Yang Zhun, how could there be such a coincidence?”

“You’re saying the prince gave the Vermillion Bird Token to Yang Zhun?”

“That night was too chaotic. I wasn’t able to stay with Brother Yang…” Zhu Wu recalled the horror of that night, his expression grave. “Brother Yang was already the most outstanding among us. In that moment of crisis, for the prince to entrust the Vermillion Bird Token to him isn’t strange.”

Uncle Xing nodded slightly.

If it weren’t for this, there would be no way to explain how Miss Luo could describe what the other half of the Vermillion Bird Token looked like.

One must know that the other half of the Vermillion Bird Token looked nothing like the half token in his possession. Those unaware would never realize it was half a token even if they saw it.

“Miss Luo said his surname was Yue—”

“Xiu Yue! Brother Yang’s fiancée is Princess Qingyang’s maidservant Xiu Yue. Brother Yang and Xiu Yue are deeply in love. Using a character from her name as an alias is completely reasonable.” Zhu Wu couldn’t hide his excitement, revealing a smile. “This is wonderful—Brother Yang is still alive!”

Although Uncle Xing wasn’t as outwardly expressive as Zhu Wu, there was also a smile in his eyes.

The Yang Zhun he had heard about from Wu-lang was a capable young man. For him to have survived that great disaster was certainly a good thing.

“Uncle Xing, did Miss Luo say where Brother Yang is now?”

Uncle Xing regained his composure. “Go invite Miss Luo back in.”

Zhu Wu quickly went to fetch her.

Luo Sheng walked in unhurriedly and smiled. “Have you two finished talking?”

Zhu Wu stared at her intently.

“Miss Luo, after that person left, have you seen him again?” Uncle Xing asked.

“I haven’t seen him since. However, before he left, he learned that I was Miss Luo and said he would repay me in the future.” Luo Sheng smiled dismissively. “A person who gives something away then takes it back—I’d be a fool to believe him. But I don’t care about that bit of money anyway. Seeing that at his advanced age he was so down on his luck, when he left I gave him a bag of gold leaves. I imagine he won’t starve to death.”

Advanced age?

Zhu Wu forcibly suppressed his discomfort and asked the crucial question. “Does this mean he might very well come back to find Miss Luo in the future?”

Luo Sheng looked at Zhu Wu and smiled charmingly. “I don’t know. He was just someone I saved casually. What does it matter to me whether he comes back or not? Perhaps even if he returns, it won’t be to repay me, but because the gold leaves ran out.”