Free Web NovelChapter 98: Chapter 96: It’s Actually Him
When Mo Xiao and the others arrived at the Tiger Clan market, the streets were still crowded.
A sea of heads bobbed in every direction. Bai Chi frowned. "How are we supposed to find her in this..."
Mo Xiao said calmly, "Don’t worry, General Bai. I’ll make a round. Let’s meet at the entrance to the Bai Clan’s settlement later."
With that, he quickly circled the marketplace.
He soon heard Su Mo’s thoughts and found her easily without much effort.
At that moment, Su Mo was looking at a wooden lantern. She felt it could be made even more exquisitely and would sell for a good price.
Mo Xiao appeared before her in a flash. "Wife."
Su Mo turned instinctively, a smile gracing her lips when she saw him. "You’re here, too?"
In just a few words, Mo Xiao told her that the Tiger Clan’s Steward wanted to see her.
Su Mo was puzzled. "Why would their Steward want to see me?"
"They said they want to thank you in person for saving their general. They’ve prepared a fine feast. It’s an invitation too gracious to refuse. You should go meet them, wife."
Just as he finished speaking, Bai Chi found them as well.
He called out excitedly, "Miss Su! I finally found you!"
He then repeated what Mo Xiao had just said. The invitation was so enthusiastic, and since Su Mo was already in Tiger Clan territory, she really had no reason to refuse again.
So, she nodded in agreement.
Bai Chi immediately led the way, bustling toward the residence of Xuan Shuang and the other young misses and masters.
「At that moment.」
As Xuan Qing and Jin Yan stepped through the main gate, they saw Xuan Shuang and Xuan Wei coming out to greet them.
When Xuan Shuang saw it was them, a flash of disappointment crossed her eyes. "Why is it you two?"
Xuan Qing asked, confused, "Second Sister, who are you waiting for?"
"Miss Su, of course. I’ve already sent Bai Chi to invite her. I didn’t get a chance to tell you. Do you want to make yourself scarce before she arrives?"
Xuan Qing frowned. Why hadn’t he seen Bai Chi on the street just now?
’Never mind,’ he thought. ’Perhaps Bai Chi wanted to show that Miss Su some of the Tiger Clan’s local culture.’
After a few seconds of silence, he said calmly, "There’s no need to."
Hearing this, a trace of surprise flickered across Xuan Wei’s face. She and Xuan Shuang exchanged a look.
A victor’s smile flashed in Xuan Shuang’s eyes.
Xuan Wei smiled. "A bet’s a bet. You can take whatever you fancy from my room."
Xuan Shuang laughed. "Then I won’t be polite!"
Xuan Qing didn’t need to ask to know what they were betting on. It was always something this boring.
He frowned slightly. "They should be here soon. Have the servants prepare tea."
"I’ll go check!" Xuan Wei said before heading to the kitchen.
Xuan Shuang turned to follow her,
When the two returned, they saw Jin Yan walking toward Xuan Shuang.
He said he was ready to receive his punishment of ten lashes.
Xuan Shuang asked for the reason, and as Jin Yan recounted what had happened, she couldn’t help but chuckle.
"Quite a sharp-tongued one, I see. Do you know where she’s from?"
Jin Yan shook his head. "Well, her aura isn’t from the Tiger Clan. No Beastman from our clan would ever marry such a difficult woman."
Xuan Shuang’s eyes narrowed into a smile. "Interesting! Go find Steward Black Tiger yourself later to receive your ten lashes."
"Yes!"
Just as Jin Yan was about to turn, voices could be heard from the entrance.
The loudest, naturally, belonged to their General Bai Chi.
Xuan Shuang’s eyes lit up. She immediately called her sister Xuan Wei to go to the door with her.
Xuan Qing, who was not far away, also walked over. He looked at Jin Yan and said, "Go greet the guests first. You can receive your punishment later."
When Su Mo’s group entered the house, they saw three unfamiliar faces walking toward them.
Xuan Shuang, who was in the lead, spoke first. "You must be Miss Su, I presume?"
Su Mo calmly met her probing gaze and gave a slight curtsy.
Bai Chi made the introduction. "Miss Su, this is our Tiger Clan’s Steward, Lady Xuan Shuang."
Xuan Shuang spoke up. "I’m the second-born in the family. Miss Su, you can call me by my name, or just call me Second Miss."
Su Mo smiled slightly. "Second Miss."
The men behind her also nodded slightly toward Xuan Shuang in greeting.
Jin Yan, standing in the back row, found the woman’s voice a bit familiar. Overcome with curiosity, he peeked.
That one glance nearly made his eyes pop out of his head.
’The woman the Second Miss is hosting a banquet for is actually this difficult woman?!’
Bai Chi continued the introductions. "This is the Eldest Miss, Xuan Wei."
Su Mo nodded politely. "Eldest Miss."
Xuan Wei looked at Su Mo and couldn’t help but frown secretly. From her perspective as a healer, this Miss Su’s complexion didn’t look quite normal.
"And this is the Third Young Master, Xuan Qing."
Su Mo followed his gaze, and when her eyes fell upon the man in white behind Xuan Wei, a flash of astonishment crossed her face.
Xuan Qing was no longer wearing his veiled hat. His transcendentally beautiful face was on full display—eyebrows like distant, snow-capped mountains, eyes like a Cold Pond reflecting the moon. With his full head of silver hair, one couldn’t tell at first glance if he was human or demon. His entire being radiated an aloof, unworldly coldness.
’It’s him?’
’But I didn’t really say much earlier. We didn’t make an enemy of him, did we???’
Hearing this, Yue Ying and the others behind her were all startled.
Yue Ying thought for a moment and understood. Their wife must have met this Third Young Master earlier when she got into a verbal spat, right as he was talking with people from the Tiger Clan’s black market.
Cang Lan’s gaze toward Xuan Qing was not friendly. His wife had just looked at this Young Master Xuan Qing three times!
’What an eyesore.’
Yue Ying felt a pang of regret. He should have helped his wife find an excuse to get out of this meeting.
After all, their dear wife loved nothing more than a pretty face...
Although he considered his own face to be quite handsome, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of vigilance.
Fei Yan, however, had already regained his composure. Although his wife always talked about how much she liked handsome men, she was actually very principled about certain things.
Otherwise, the few of them wouldn’t have had to expend so much effort just to be by her side like this.
"Third Young Master."
Su Mo greeted him politely.
"Miss Su."
Xuan Qing’s voice was as cool and distant as ever.
Xuan Shuang had noticed the fleeting surprise in Su Mo’s eyes. Without letting on, she said:
"Everyone, please, come in!"
Su Mo and her group followed her toward the main hall.
Once inside, Xuan Shuang brought up Bai Chi’s injury and politely expressed her gratitude.
Su Mo replied, "You’re too kind, Second Miss. As for the matter with Jin Tong, we should be the ones thanking you properly. We’ve prepared some humble gifts for you today; I hope you won’t find them lacking. When you visit the North Wing another day, we will be sure to offer you our finest hospitality."
Xuan Shuang laughed heartily. "All this thanking back and forth, we might as well not thank each other at all!"
Su Mo smiled slightly. "That’s exactly what I was thinking."
Hearing this, Xuan Shuang on the opposite side laughed out loud again. She could tell that Su Mo disliked such formalities.
Perfect. She didn’t like them either!
With this understanding, the atmosphere of the conversation became much more relaxed.
Before long, Tian Huan also arrived.
He knew most of Su Mo’s fiancés and greeted them politely.
When his gaze fell on Su Mo, a hint of wariness inevitably appeared in his eyes.
’This woman is full of tricks. She was able to poison all of Jin Tong’s subordinates by herself and even personally shot down his right-hand man. Her methods are clearly ruthless enough.’
’I don’t know what the Second Miss was thinking, insisting on inviting her into our home.’
After they finished talking, Xuan Shuang led Su Mo and her group to their seats for the meal.
As they were being seated, Xuan Wei took the opportunity to check Su Mo’s pulse under the guise of helping her into her seat.
Mo Xiao, Fei Yan, and Yue Ying were all preoccupied with thoughts of the medicinal herb, making them seem somewhat absent-minded.
After all, finding the herb was their main purpose for coming here today.
During the meal, Mo Xiao excused himself to step out, and Fei Yan followed suit shortly after.
But they both came back empty-handed.
Such a rare herb, they reasoned, wouldn’t be left in an obvious place for anyone to pick.
At an occasion like this, it was inevitable that Su Mo would have a few drinks.
Her tolerance for alcohol was truly poor, and she was starting to feel a bit dizzy.
The meal was almost over. Xuan Shuang spoke up, "We’ve prepared guest rooms for you. You gentlemen may take Miss Su to rest for a while."
Fei Yan and the other two exchanged a look. With the search for the herb on their minds, they agreed.
If they couldn’t find any clues on this personal trip, they feared the next opportunity would be a long, long time coming.
After Su Mo and her group left, Xuan Wei called Xuan Shuang and Xuan Qing into the study.
She knitted her brows and said, "That Miss Su..."
Before Xuan Wei could finish her sentence, Tian Huan’s voice cried out from outside, "Eldest Miss, something’s wrong!"
