In villages like Wumiao, the saying “work at sunrise, rest at sunset” seemed especially true.
By now, few people were moving about in the village. Wisps of cooking smoke rose from every household as dinnertime approached. On the rare occasion they encountered someone, Elder Hua hurriedly brushed them off.
Jiang Si followed silently beside Elder Hua, her eyes scanning the surroundings.
It felt somewhat familiar, yet somewhat strange.
She gradually realized where Elder Hua was taking her.
If she wasn’t mistaken, Elder Hua was likely leading her directly to see the Grand Elder.
Jiang Si slowed her pace.
Elder Hua immediately noticed and asked in a low voice, “What’s wrong?”
Jiang Si met Elder Hua’s eyes, “I want to see my brother first.”
Elder Hua frowned, her expression turning unpleasant.
Jiang Si simply stopped, her tone resolute, “I’ll see my brother first, then we can discuss other matters.”
Wanting her to help without letting her see her second brother first? Did they think they could get something for nothing?
“A Hua—” Elder Hua seemed unwilling to cause more complications, looking reluctant.
Jiang Si’s expression grew even more determined.
She had doubts about whether her second brother was truly still alive and in Wumiao. However, her second brother was one of the most important people to her. Even if there was just a sliver of possibility, she was willing to make this journey.
Now that she was here, she could no longer maintain the restraint she had shown on the way. She had to confirm her second brother’s fate before anything else.
Jiang Si adopted an unyielding stance. As Elder Hua was about to try persuading her again, a voice called out, “A Hua, you’re back?”
A girl about A Hua’s age approached, her voice like an oriole’s, “I went looking for you. Then I heard Hua Wa came back and took you out to play…”
As the girl drew near, she bowed to Elder Hua, addressing her as “Elder Hua,” but her eyes curiously darted to the items in Elder Hua’s hands and she winked at Jiang Si.
The girl was very close to A Hua.
Jiang Si had heard Elder Hua talk about A Hua’s few close friends during their journey and had memorized their names. She could guess which one this girl was but didn’t dare speak carelessly.
Although she was disguised as A Hua, and even close friends would have difficulty noticing any discrepancies in the dim light, their voices were different.
Disguise could only change one’s appearance; voices couldn’t be fooled.
This was also something Jiang Si found strange. In her previous life, when she came to Wumiao impersonating the holy maiden A Sang, she rarely interacted with tribe members under the pretext of secluded cultivation. But still, none of the first or second-generation elders who had watched A Sang grow up noticed anything unusual.
Living under A Sang’s identity, she was always worried about being exposed and left with nowhere to go, so she chose to speak and ask as little as possible.
The doubt weighed on her mind, eventually becoming an unsolvable mystery.
At this moment, Jiang Si somewhat regrets her past cowardice.
“A Hua, why aren’t you talking?” the girl asked, puzzled.
Jiang Si pointed at her throat, making her voice sound hoarse and unclear, “Feeling a bit unwell…”
Elder Hua took over, “I took A Hua for a bowl of noodles, but there were some seasonings that made her throat swell. A Hong, you should go back for dinner. A Hua will come find you to play when she’s better.”
The girl covered her mouth and laughed, the silver bracelets on her wrist jingling pleasantly.
“A Hua, so you were greedy again. Did you eat too many good things in the capital of Da Zhou and now you don’t like our food here anymore?”
As Jiang Si was carefully considering what to say, the girl waved her hand, “Alright, I know your throat hurts. I’ll come find you when you’re better.”
Seeing the girl walk away, Elder Hua let out a small sigh of relief and urged Jiang Si in a low voice, “Let’s go. If we delay any longer, we’ll run into more people.”
Jiang Si raised an eyebrow and smiled, her voice returning to normal, “That should be Hua Wa’s concern, shouldn’t it?”
Elder Hua was stunned, looking at the face that was at least ninety percent similar to her granddaughter’s but with a vastly different aura. She had no choice but to compromise.
The Prince Yan’s wife was indeed a difficult and clever woman.
Coming to a completely unfamiliar place like Wumiao, not only did she not follow along anxiously, but she even turned the tables and threatened her.
Was there any justice left in the world?
Elder Hua silently looked to the sky, sighing inwardly. Her voice betrayed her exhaustion, “Fine, follow me.”
It seemed impossible to prevent Prince Yan’s wife from seeing her brother.
Seeing Elder Hua change direction, Jiang Si’s lips curved slightly upward.
Some things could be compromised, but others had to be insisted upon, even at great risk.
The two passed through a small path and arrived in front of a residence.
Elder Hua stopped and instructed in a low voice, “You can see your brother, but before you agree to our request, you cannot reveal your identity to him. If you agree, I’ll take you in to see him.”
Jiang Si naturally nodded.
As she had just said, what needed to be compromised should be compromised. There was no need to quibble over too much.
Seeing Jiang Si agree, Elder Hua finally led her to knock on the courtyard gate.
The door opened, revealing a girl in a blue dress with a pretty face.
Seeing it was Elder Hua, the girl bowed in greeting.
“Is he awake?” Elder Hua asked.
The girl walked in with Elder Hua, replying, “He’s asleep.”
Jiang Si stared at the blue-dressed girl’s back, her gaze deepening.
If there were people Jiang Si was most familiar with in Wumiao in her previous life, one would be the Grand Elder and the other would be the girl before her.
The girl’s name was A Lan, and she was the holy maiden A Sang’s maid.
Jiang Si held no fondness for A Lan.
At that time, only the Grand Elder and A Lan knew her true identity, and because of this, A Lan often spoke to her with contempt.
Perhaps in A Lan’s heart, she was a shameless person who had usurped the holy maiden’s position.
If her second brother was indeed here recovering, why was A Lan the one taking care of him?
Jiang Si suppressed the doubts in her heart and quickened her pace.
Arriving at the door of the room, Elder Hua stopped and said to A Lan, “You stay outside. We’ll go in first.”
A Lan gave Jiang Si a meaningful look, then nodded and stepped aside.
Jiang Si imperceptibly furrowed her brow.
From A Lan’s current attitude towards her, it was likely that she knew Jiang Si wasn’t A Hua.
Entering the room, Elder Hua seemed to sense Jiang Si’s confusion and said in a low voice, “That’s A Lan. She knows you’re not A Hua. Later, when you appear as the holy maiden, we’ll need her cooperation…”
If possible, they wouldn’t want a young girl like A Lan to know too much, but A Lan was the holy maiden’s maid and one of the few who knew the holy maiden was no longer alive.
The holy maiden’s death could be concealed from the vast majority of the tribe members, but how could it be hidden from her maid?
Jiang Si followed Elder Hua through the main room, stopping in front of a doorway hung with a colorful cotton curtain.
“Go in. He’s inside.”
Jiang Si took a deep breath and stepped in.
Inside the room, against the wall, was a bamboo bed. The bedding was spread over a person lying on it.
The person was lying on their side facing outward. Under the light of an oil lamp, the face was visible.
It was Jiang Zhan.