The more Mo Sigui thought about it, the more uncomfortable he felt. “A medicine man! It might take decades to find another one!”

An Jiu let out a cold laugh.

“You’re not allowed to make a sound!” Mo Sigui turned and said.

An Jiu couldn’t be bothered to respond. Listening to the clear tinkling of bells outside, she involuntarily recalled the image of that figure dissolving into dust with the wind. She pushed away the vision and carefully considered Mo Sigui’s earlier words, wondering whether to search for Mei Jiu after her body was reconstructed since Mei Yanran was her mother.

In the warm spring sun, the snow melted and the weather grew warmer.

Half a month later, An Jiu finally completed her second reconstruction.

This time, her body and spiritual power were even more closely aligned. Her running speed was no less than that of qinggong, and her movements were silent. The damage to her body caused by her spiritual power had been treated by Mo Sigui’s medicine and was about 70-80% healed. Using her spiritual power would still cause some impact, but less than before.

Mo Sigui finally confirmed that An Jiu’s spiritual power was too strong for her body to handle. If she were to fight using the fierce power of the Severed Meridian Palm, it could cause her body to explode. Thus, learning the Mei Fist technique became urgent.

An Jiu didn’t rush to leave but stayed in the Crane Control Army, trying every means to find news of Mei Yanran, but to no avail.

Seven or eight days passed, and An Jiu still refused to give up.

“You should take on a mission now,” He Cai suddenly appeared to remind her. The Crane Control Army had a rule that idle periods couldn’t exceed one month.

An Jiu put down the scroll of “Shenmu Military Records” she was reading and asked, “You’ve been here for a long time. Do you know anything about the Divine Strategy Army?”

“I know a bit,” He Cai said, landing lightly ten paces away from An Jiu.

“I’m looking for someone,” An Jiu thought for a moment, deciding it wasn’t odd to reveal she was searching for her mother. “My mother. I heard she’s in the Divine Strategy Army.”

He Cai replied, “Lord Chu has assigned this task to the Tian group. They collaborate with the Divine Strategy Army most often and should be able to gather some information.”

Since she had no leads herself and Chu Dingjiang was helping, An Jiu had to put the matter aside for now.

An Jiu went to the Lantern Tower again to receive a mission. Passing by the Crane Control Rankings, she instinctively looked up.

Gu Jinghong’s name was still there, but with a red line drawn through it, distinguishing him from the other living shadows.

She suddenly understood why Gu Jinghong hadn’t given up on recruiting her even when her meridians were destroyed. Because she was from the Mei family and suited for external cultivation, she was the best candidate for practicing the Severed Meridian Palm.

It turned out Gu Jinghong had known all along that practicing the Mei Fist could solve the drawback of the Severed Meridian Palm hurting oneself as much as the enemy.

Leaving the Lantern Tower, An Jiu inquired about Gu Jinghong’s residence and rushed there.

The front was pitch black, with no lanterns left, only a solitary soul bell.

With no one to maintain the soul bell, it would one day fall into the dust like the one in her courtyard.

An Jiu climbed onto the porch, took down Gu Jinghong’s soul bell, put it in her pocket, and quickly left the Crane Control Army.

She handed the mission to He Cai. Without disguising herself, she just wore a veil and went to the Hua mansion to find Mei Jiu.

The Hua family’s eldest son had just gotten married, and red silk still hung at the entrance, adding a festive air.

An Jiu knocked on the door.

The side door opened, and the doorkeeper came out. Looking around, he saw only a woman.

The doorkeeper found it strange. This woman wasn’t wearing a married woman’s hairstyle, but she didn’t look like she was from a poor family. Yet she had no carriage, servants, or even a personal maid! A young lady from a good family couldn’t be so unrestrained. Could it be that the second young master had gotten involved with a girl from a brothel again? The second young master had just returned a few days ago, and this young lady had come looking for him already. She must be someone he greatly favored…

With this thought, the doorkeeper looked into the courtyard to make sure no one was there, then turned back to An Jiu and whispered, “Please follow me.”

An Jiu was puzzled. She hadn’t even said who she was looking for, yet this person seemed to know already.

“I’m looking for…”

“Shh!” The doorkeeper cut her off, lowering his voice, “Please don’t speak. If the eldest young master finds out, I’ll surely be beaten again.”

An Jiu thought, could it be that Mei Jiu knew she would come looking for her and had arranged for the doorkeeper to wait? That seemed unlikely! Not to mention that Mei Jiu was the person the Hua family was most wary of due to the arranged marriage. How could a newly married daughter-in-law have such authority?

An Jiu followed behind the doorkeeper.

After turning several corridors, they reached a small door. The doorkeeper opened it for her to pass through. “I can only take you this far. It wouldn’t be proper for me to go further where there’s no one watching.” He paused, then smiled, “My name is Liu San. If it’s convenient, please put in a good word for me.”

An Jiu was completely confused. “I’m here to visit…”

Just then, footsteps sounded from inside the door. Liu San heard them and quickly hurried away.

“Who are you?” asked a clear voice.

An Jiu turned to see a girl of about thirteen or fourteen standing gracefully by the door, looking puzzled. She hesitated for a moment, about to curtsy, but then noticed An Jiu’s hair wasn’t in a married woman’s style. She sighed in relief, “Oh, you’re not the new madam. Please follow me, miss.”

Her manner suggested she was used to receiving unfamiliar young ladies.

“Miss, I’m here to visit the new madam,” An Jiu finally managed to say a complete sentence.

The maid stopped in her tracks. “You’re not here for the second young master?”

An Jiu was about to answer when she noticed a young man in blue robes lazily leaning against a railing in the courtyard, teasing a bird in a cage with a long blade of grass.

As if sensing An Jiu’s gaze, he stopped and looked back at her.

Hua Rongjian still had that face as beautiful as the moon, but he had grown thinner and more mature. Compared to before, he seemed more melancholic, with a habitual faint smile in his eyes that made him appear even more unrestrained. “Here to visit my sister-in-law? Could you be a Mei family sister? Let me have a look. If you marry this young master, you and your elder sister would be sisters-in-law, and we could see each other every day.”

Still so shameless!

Although An Jiu thought this, she could sense that he wasn’t as enthusiastic as before, as if his teasing carried a hint of world-weariness.

Hua Rongjian stared at the veiled young lady playfully, expecting her to leave in angry embarrassment. To his surprise, she lifted her skirt, stepped over the threshold, and walked towards him with poise.

“Oh?” As she came closer, Hua Rongjian recognized An Jiu’s features and laughed, “I thought no one else would have such boldness. So it’s Mei Fourteen! Want to seriously consider becoming sisters-in-law with your sister?”

An Jiu sat on a stone bench, looking at him. “It hasn’t been long, but Hua Rongjian is still a useless lump of mud that can’t even stick to a wall.”

Hua Rongjian rested his chin on his hand, silently gazing at her for a long time. Suddenly, he said, “Mei Fourteen, let’s fight.”

“No,” An Jiu replied.

Hua Rongjian smiled, “Then why are you here? Don’t tell me you’ve changed your mind and want to marry me?”

“I never considered it, so how could I change my mind?” An Jiu said, her eyes emotionless. “I’m here to watch the show.”