Lan Yue said nothing. This girl could not persuade him, so she was trying to redirect him — to keep him away from Emperor Qiwen, to prevent the slightest spark from setting everything ablaze. At the heart of it, she was still afraid he would recklessly attempt an assassination.

But he had gone to such great lengths to take on a new identity in order to return here. Now that he could still walk openly through the capital under that identity — how could he possibly let go of this chance to strike at Emperor Qiwen?

“Uncle, I know Jiu’er’s life may not be worth much — but Uncle, you did not come to see Jiu’er even once in all these years. That was your fault.”

Lan Yue still said nothing. But Lan Yue knew — it truly was his fault.

“Uncle, you owe Jiu’er that much, don’t you? Shouldn’t you be protecting Jiu’er properly?”

Feng Jiu’er held his arm and gave it a small shake.

Lan Yue frowned, eyeing her with a glint of helplessness. “Are you really Jiu’er? Jiu’er’s mother was never such a shameless little pest!”

“Just think of it as a mutation in the bloodline!” If being shameless could keep Uncle and Grandfather safe, then what did it matter?

Lan Yue pressed his lips together, but still said: “I cannot leave the capital.”

Getting to remain here had cost him so much effort.

“Grandfather’s spirits have been a little better lately. If he continues to rest quietly, he will recover.”

“I’ll arrange somewhere for him…”

“If you are no longer around in the future, those people will bully Grandfather over time.”

“Even if I’m not there, aren’t you still here?” As her grandfather’s granddaughter, did she not know to care for her own grandfather?

“But I may not come back from the Feng Clan’s territory.”

“Enough!” Why did she keep saying such inauspicious things?

“I only want to come back alive, Uncle. But right now I don’t have an ounce of martial arts — I’m frightened too.”

Feng Jiu’er clutched his arm tightly and shook it. Then shook it again.

“I do have many enemies. I may not even make it out of Bei Mu before… all right, I won’t say it. But what I said isn’t entirely impossible.”

If she kept cursing herself like this, Uncle was truly going to lose his temper.

Lan Yue let out a grunt, clearly a little displeased. “Has the Ninth Prince not sent people to protect you?”

“Are you really this comfortable just handing Jiu’er off to someone else? I’ve heard the Feng Clan’s territory is full of powerful experts — who knows whether Ninth Imperial Uncle’s people will be reliable enough.”

“And you still have the nerve to say others aren’t reliable!” Spending every single day tangled up with people of the imperial house — she had some gall to say that!

Feng Jiu’er was well aware: Uncle did not care for anyone connected to the imperial family.

Ninth Imperial Uncle’s current identity was, after all, a prince of the Zhan imperial house. It was perfectly understandable that Uncle had always kept him at arm’s length.

“So, Uncle — after settling everything, why not go to the border of the Feng Clan’s territory and wait to receive me? What do you say?”

She took hold of his arm and hugged it close, her brows and eyes curved with a smile so lovely it could stop a person’s breath.

“Jiu’er and Uncle have only just found each other — Jiu’er still hopes that one day she can face Grandfather with her true appearance. Perhaps when Grandfather sees what Jiu’er truly looks like, his illness will even get better.”

“Your true appearance…” Lan Yue’s gaze fell on her face.

This insufferable girl had deceived him for so long — and even now, he had still not seen her real face.

Before this, he had only heard descriptions — at most, he had seen a portrait. But a portrait was only in black and white; it could never compare to seeing the real person.

He truly wanted to see — whether she truly looked exactly like his sister.

“Does Uncle really want to see?” Jiu’er narrowed her eyes.

Lan Yue said nothing. He understood that Jiu’er had been staying here in a man’s guise, and it was certainly inconvenient for her to reveal her true face.

He had no wish to make things difficult for her.

“All right then. Since I’m leaving tonight anyway, I probably won’t be going out today. I might as well wash all of this off.”

……

In Jiu’er’s room.

When Feng Jiu’er had thoroughly washed away every trace of the medicinal solution from her face, and at last removed the masculine disguise she had worn over herself — changing into women’s clothing before Lan Yue — those fine, handsome eyes of his were instantly flooded with a stinging ache.

She did not look exactly like Sister. At least in her features, there were clear and distinct differences. But in her bearing, in the feeling she gave — one could see at a single glance that she was Sister’s child.

She was Sister’s daughter.

Lan Yue’s large hands trembled. Even though he had prepared himself, when he truly saw her in person, the emotion was still beyond words.

Jiu’er understood — after more than ten years of separation, she now appeared before Uncle carrying Long Feiyan’s presence about her. One could only imagine what he must be feeling inside.

If only things could have been different — they should have met long ago.

But she had not known. Uncle had not been able. And Grandfather — Grandfather knew nothing at all. Even now, he had still not managed to emerge from the shadow of Long Feiyan’s death.

That kind of illness of the heart was, in truth, nothing more than a man deceiving and lying to himself over and over, until at last even he himself could no longer tell: was he lucid, or was he still imprisoned within his affliction?

Grandfather refused to face reality. And he still did so even now.

If he had been willing to confront it, he would have come around long ago.

The grief that losing his beloved daughter had inflicted on Grandfather all those years ago — how deep must it have been, to break a general of iron will and bring him to such an illness of the heart?

She could feel how deeply Grandfather loved his daughter. She could feel how deeply Uncle loved his sister.

Long Feiyan was truly a legend — a singular, living myth. Everyone around her had loved her utterly and completely.

Lan Yue turned his face aside, and at last brought his emotions under control.

When he looked back at Feng Jiu’er, the turbulence in him had settled.

“Uncle…”

“Beautiful. Every bit as beautiful as your mother.” His voice carried a faint roughness. The tips of his fingers still trembled ever so slightly.

“Uncle is very handsome too — only Uncle won’t listen to Jiu’er and take his medicine properly and use his treatments properly.”

He said nothing. Outward appearance meant little to him. And besides, there was nothing wrong with the way he looked now. Even if others saw him, no one would recognize who he was.

If he restored his true face, it might very well bring trouble upon himself.

Though more than ten years had passed, and the youth of those days had become a man past thirty — his features might still carry some resemblance.

Perhaps it had been so long since he had looked at his own face that even Lan Yue himself had forgotten what he truly looked like.

“Uncle, I want to see your true face with my own eyes. Otherwise, Jiu’er will never know what Uncle truly looks like.”

She drew a small vial of medicine from her chest and pressed it into Lan Yue’s hand. “If Uncle truly cares for Jiu’er, then take the medicine properly — so that when Jiu’er returns, she can see Uncle’s real face.”

The toxins in his body had been nearly cleared — only the last faint traces remained.

As long as he took his medicine on time, everything would come right.

“Jiu’er also hopes that the first person she sees upon returning will be Uncle. Uncle — promise Jiu’er that even if you won’t stand guard at the Feng Clan’s border, you will at least let Jiu’er come home to find you safe and whole. All right?”

She clasped his hand tightly, holding his gaze with eyes full of sincerity. “Uncle — promise me, will you?”