If the child in Xia Zi’s belly was Lu Feifan’s, then who was the man Xia Zi had met last night?

Jiu’er glanced once more at the calm river surface before turning and heading back toward the camp.

Lu Feifan hadn’t gone far at all — he had been watching her the whole time.

When she got back within range of the camp and saw he was still nearby, she thought about approaching him, but he turned and walked off again.

This time, he really did walk far away.

Jiu’er thought about it for a moment, then suddenly realized — he had been worried it wasn’t safe for her to be alone by the river.

Now that she was back and safe, he left.

This guy… whether as Mu Mu or as Lu Feifan, wasn’t a bad person, but he and Ninth Lord didn’t seem to be on the same side.

Yet he still cared about Ninth Lord…

…That night, Lu Beicheng’s tent was pitch dark; it seemed he was still over at the Northern Emperor’s Tomb and hadn’t come back yet.

Lu Feifan had also gone to the Northern Emperor’s Tomb, and before leaving, he had A’Ke stay and watch over Jiu’er.

Jiu’er, feeling rather bored, kept A’Ke busy for a long while, having him make quite a lot of delicious food.

She suddenly looked at A’Ke and asked, “How long have you been with Ninth Lord?”

A’Ke calculated precisely and said, “Eight years, seven months, and twenty-three days.”

“That long? Doesn’t your chip get updated or replaced?” For a piece of tech, eight years was really a long time.

Technology had advanced so rapidly by now.

“I’ve been swapped out several times, but A’Ke is still A’Ke. A’Ke has never been replaced.”

A’Ke winked at her and smiled.

Jiu’er tilted her head and studied him.

Did that mean A’Ke had always had memories that belonged uniquely to him, ever since eight years ago?

“A’Ke, you’ve been with Ninth Lord for so long — so tell me, what kind of person is he?”

“I can’t talk about Ninth Lord behind his back!” A’Ke was absolutely, unwaveringly loyal to Lu Beicheng.

Jiu’er glanced at him, thoroughly bored, yawned, and stood up to leave.

A’Ke thought she was going back to the tent to sleep, but unexpectedly, Jiu’er walked right past the tent and kept going.

“Jiu’er, where are you going? Ninth Lord said you’re not allowed to wander off.”

She was already injured — if she wandered around further, there was no telling what danger she might run into.

These past two days, Ninth Lord had Qin Fei leading people in a continuous search through Ying’an City.

But Ying’an City was simply too vast, and the surrounding structures had lain abandoned for a thousand years, overgrown with weeds everywhere.

If someone wanted to hide, with only such a small number of people searching, it was truly hard to find them.

In the end, Ninth Lord’s decision was to strengthen the camp’s defenses, using defense as the strategy.

So Zhen Jiu’er absolutely could not go wandering around anymore — it was dangerous out there.

“Jiu’er…”

“I want to go take a look at the Northern Emperor’s Tomb.” Jiu’er turned back and glanced at A’Ke. “A’Ke, if you’re worried, just come along with me.”

“Besides, staying cooped up in this camp all the time — doesn’t it bore you? Aren’t you even curious about what’s going on over at the Northern Emperor’s Tomb?”

A’Ke said nothing, just quickened his pace and followed behind Jiu’er.

“Jiu’er, I’m doing this to protect you, not to go have fun. I’m not that kind of person.”

“I know, I know, you’re not the least bit fun-loving, you’re very proper. A’Ke, walk faster!”

A’Ke hurried to catch up.

The girl and the robot walked on together, until finally A’Ke, thinking Jiu’er was walking too slowly, bent down and scooped her up, letting her sit on his arm.

Seen like this, it looked just like a Transformer carrying a little girl.

A’Ke had now become Jiu’er’s own personal nanny.

Lu Beicheng, who had just come out of the Northern Emperor’s Tomb, narrowed his eyes, his gaze landing on the girl in A’Ke’s arms.

So intimate…

“Old Ji, how feasible would it be to swap A’Ke’s chip for a woman’s?”