Gao Dazhuang didn’t chase after them. He opened the oil paper package to find a small bunch of wildflowers inside, which made him tremble with rage.

Meanwhile, the three scurried back to their quarters. Sui Yunzhu finally had a chance to ask, “What did you give him?”

“A bunch of small white flowers,” An Jiu thought to herself that she should have picked those wild vegetables instead – at least they were edible.

“Who gives people white flowers? Were you trying to anger him to death?” Sui Yunzhu sighed.

An Jiu disagreed silently. She had picked the white flowers because they looked pretty. There were many yellow and red ones too, but she hadn’t picked those.

Among the three, Li Qingzhi had the most conscience. He furrowed his brow and asked anxiously, “The master won’t go hungry, right? The palace has an imperial kitchen, so he should be able to get something to eat, shouldn’t he?”

Sui Yunzhu shook her head. “Every part of the palace is guarded by secret guards. The imperial kitchen probably has many people too. Besides, haven’t you figured out the master’s character yet?”

Li Qingzhi widened his eyes, his face showing complete bewilderment.

“The master sometimes acts out of line, but always just enough. He never leaves any openings for others to exploit. This time, the Emperor ordered him to pose as a eunuch. In my opinion, he won’t secretly leave Gushe Palace,” Sui Yunzhu explained.

An Jiu didn’t have a clear sense of right and wrong. Hearing Sui Yunzhu’s words, she gradually felt guilty. For people like them, going hungry for a day or even three to five days wouldn’t stop them from rising to kill. However, An Jiu had promised to bring him food and then broke her word. She knew she was in the wrong.

But what’s done was done. Thinking more about it was useless. After some deep introspection, An Jiu quickly put it out of her mind because she sensed that someone had returned to the neighboring courtyard…

An Jiu stood for a while, then turned and left the courtyard.

Li Qingzhi and Sui Yunzhu exchanged glances before returning to their rooms.

Although An Jiu wasn’t fully prepared to face Mei Yanran, the Konghejun people weren’t openly present. Since they were rarely this close, it was best to establish contact first.

Having made up her mind, she hesitated no longer. She went over and lightly knocked on the door ring.

There was no response from inside. An Jiu pushed the door open. Not wanting to conflict with the people in the courtyard, she first announced her identity and stated her purpose: “Dragon Guard Mei Fourteen, here to seek the Mei clan member.”

As soon as she finished speaking, a slender shadow emerged from one of the rooms.

“Who are you?” The person’s voice trembled, full of disbelief.

An Jiu hesitated for a moment, then said softly, “Mother.”

Just as she uttered “Mother,” Mei Yanran appeared before her. She removed her face veil, revealing a thin face.

In An Jiu’s memory, Mei Yanran was a gentle and calm woman. The hardships of those years outside hadn’t left any traces on her. But after joining Konghejun for just a short time, a fierce aura had already appeared between her brows. This aura slowly dissipated at the sight of An Jiu.

An Jiu took off her hood and called out again, “Mother.”

This time, her voice was much more certain.

Mei Jiu’s body had undergone some changes, and An Jiu’s demeanor was vastly different. This made Mei Yanran feel very unfamiliar at first glance. But after all, this was the flesh of her flesh. Their blood connection remained unbroken. She was stunned for a moment, then reached out to hug An Jiu. “Jiu’er, how much you must have suffered!”

She assumed her gentle and kind daughter had been forced into this state in Konghejun. Although it was hard to imagine, it seemed the only explanation.

“Mother, let’s talk in my room,” An Jiu said, feeling relatively at ease with her group members.

Mei Yanran nodded and held her hand as they left.

As their hands clasped, An Jiu’s whole body tensed uncomfortably. But seeing Mei Yanran’s profile from the corner of her eye, she gradually relaxed.

Entering the courtyard, Sui Yunzhu was the first to poke her head out. “Who is it?”

As assassins, they were extremely wary of strangers.

“My mother,” An Jiu introduced briefly.

Surprisingly, Sui Yunzhu came out and bowed like a scholar from the outside world. “I didn’t realize it was Madam Mei. Please forgive my rudeness.”

He knew that Mei clan daughters didn’t marry outside the clan, so he addressed Mei Yanran as Madam Mei.

Mei Yanran was a bit surprised. While Sui Yunzhu’s manners would be normal etiquette outside, it felt out of place here. At least during her time in Konghejun, she had never seen such behavior.

“No need for formalities,” Mei Yanran said calmly, despite her surprise.

Sui Yunzhu bowed again and returned to his room.

An Jiu led Mei Yanran into her room. After they sat down, she suddenly didn’t know where to begin.

Mei Yanran held her hand, examining her closely.

An Jiu, being an imposter, felt uneasy under such direct scrutiny and could only lower her gaze in silence.

Her appearance looked frail, and this demeanor made her seem as if she had suffered grievances she wouldn’t speak of. This pained Mei Yanran’s heart. She pulled An Jiu into an embrace, choking up as she said, “My child!”

An Jiu leaned against her chest, pondering what topic to use as an entry point.

After much thought, she still had no idea. When Mei Yanran calmed down, she initiated the conversation, “I heard the Mei clan met with disaster. How did you escape? And how did you end up here?”

This was not a good topic to start with!

An Jiu was self-aware enough to know that her meager ability to deceive might work on someone as naive as Mei Jiu, but it wouldn’t fool Mei Yanran.

Somehow, at this moment, a person naturally came to An Jiu’s mind. “Cousin Mo saved me.”

Such a far-fetched reason would eventually be exposed! But there was no choice. She couldn’t just tell Mei Yanran upon their first meeting, “Your daughter is already dead, then came back to life through possession, and I happened to borrow her body.” That would be too much information at once. An Jiu wasn’t sure if Mei Yanran would draw her sword and strike her down in shock and anger. She had to muddle through for now and deal with it later.

“I wanted to join Konghejun to find you, so I went to Konghe Academy first. I didn’t expect to get close to the Dragon Guard so quickly. It was because of my meritorious service in assisting the Song army at the border that I caught the Emperor’s attention.” An Jiu tried to gloss over the details, barely managing to round out the story. “There’s also a master in Konghejun who has been helping me all along.”

Mei Yanran stroked her hair. “My child, your kindness has been rewarded.”

The conversation between mother and daughter was inevitably overheard by others in the courtyard. Everyone felt a bit emotional. Mei Fourteen, kind-hearted? Truly, a mother sees only the best in her child!

Since she mentioned Chu Dingjiang, An Jiu took out paper and brush to write about leaving Konghejun. She also mentioned Chu Dingjiang’s assistance, as it would be difficult for her to completely leave the organization on her own.

After reading it, Mei Yanran was very suspicious. Why would that matter in Konghejun help them without being related? It was impossible to bestow kindness without expecting anything in return! She worried that her daughter had been deceived, so she wrote back: Let’s discuss this matter slowly.

Then she crumpled the paper and stuffed it into a teacup, pouring water over it. “Have you seen Elder Zhi?” she asked.

An Jiu was slightly startled. “Is he in the palace?”