Quan Xiling rolled her eyes in disdain. Though her brother's face was quite handsome, he wasn't dressed formally enough; he was hardly dressed for meeting Sister Xiu.
Later on, she would have to get a designer to come over and make a few more outfits for her brother. Going out on a trip wearing just one outfit—didn't he find it shameful?
"What... what is it with me now, little ancestor?" Quan Xigjuan laughed ruefully. How was she criticizing his wardrobe again?
Was there something wrong with what he was wearing?
"Nothing much. Let's go home first." Quan Xiling let out a sigh.
*
After Xiu Mumo went downstairs, the car was already waiting below. Bie Yuan was sitting inside. "Boss."
"Mm." Xiu Mumo got into the front passenger seat, leaned back, and said, "Let's move."
"Right." Bie Yuan understood; after all, there were cameras everywhere around here.
He drove for about a kilometer before he couldn't help asking, "Boss, did you know about this long ago?"
"Know what? That he was the one who put me in the hospital for a month?"
Xiu Mumo shot him a chilly glance, a bizarre smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.
Bie Yuan felt a chill run through his entire body: "..."
As expected, the Boss had guessed it beforehand; otherwise, she wouldn't have specifically sent her on a substantive probe.
After a dozen seconds of silence, he asked cautiously, "Then Boss, what do you think of him..."
"I'm interested, of course. How could I not be? He's handsome, has a great figure, he's my mortal enemy, and he put me in the hospital for a month. Right now, I just want to lock him up and bully him thoroughly to vent the hatred in my heart."
Xiu Mumo wore a smile, her eyes mixed with a hint of coldness, and her voice sounded as if it were being squeezed out from her throat.
Bie Yuan: "..."
Alright, he got the message. The Boss couldn't wait to slice this guy into a thousand pieces.
She might have genuinely been interested in him to begin with, but that was more about being interested in him as a man. Now, however, it was probably much more about revenge.
"How about this, Boss... I'll find a way to tie him up and bring him to you?" he asked tentatively.
"No need. The likes of you couldn't possibly capture him. You'd just end up selling me out instead."
Xiu Mumo let out a scoff, giving him a sidelong glance. "You guys stay out of it. Just wait for my orders when the time comes."
"Huh?" Bie Yuan was dumbfounded. "Wait, Boss, are you actually going to tie him up?"
Damn it, that was the leader of Kill Camp! If he were that easy to tie up, someone would have done it long ago.
"Didn't you say it yourself? Detention of under twenty-four hours doesn't count as breaking the law, and a woman overpowering a man isn't illegal either."
Xiu Mumo wore a half-smile.
Bie Yuan: "..."
Curse this big mouth of his! Why did he have to run it?
Seeing Bie Yuan turn cowardly, Xiu Mumo clicked her tongue. "Relax, I'm not going to tie him up right now. Anyway, there's still half a month until the variety show. In a few days, once the hype dies down, I'll snatch him then."
Before going on the variety show, she simply had to vent her anger.
Page 65: Xia Lengying Returns
Bie Yuan: "..."
Good grief, the Boss really lived up to her name—she had a plan for everything.
"By the way, does Young Master Quan know..." Bie Yuan asked again.
"No. Why do you think I talked about my educational background during the livestream?" Xiu Mumo's eyes were deeply enigmatic.
"Huh?" Bie Yuan's pupils constricted.
Was the Boss doing this on purpose?
Claiming to be from the Department of Physics was meant to lead Quan Xigjuan down the wrong path?
As expected of the Boss; every single sentence had a deep meaning!
"Go back to the hotel for a few days first and wait for Old Man's call. We're being watched too closely for now, so we can't go back to Nantian Garden. You aren't allowed to go either, don't expose your identity."
Xiu Mumo looked at Bie Yuan. He had been by her side for a while now; he was smart enough these days to have obtained a pass to Nantian Garden, allowing him to come and go as he pleased.
But too many people were keeping an eye on them right now. Even if they could manage to keep it hidden, a slip of the tongue wouldn't be a good thing. It was better to keep a low profile.
Most importantly, what on earth was the Old Man trying to do?
"Boss, I understand. I won't go back to Nantian Garden." Bie Yuan laughed ruefully.
If someone spotted him returning to Nantian Garden now, wouldn't that be tantamount to telling the whole world that the 'Xiu' in Xiu Mumo was the Xiu family of Nantian Garden?
He wasn't that stupid.
"Mm, let's go." Xiu Mumo closed her eyes to rest. Her phone rang for a few seconds, and seeing the number on the screen, she raised an eyebrow.
"Lengying, how is it that you thought to call me at a time like this? Is the cleanup finished? Can you use your phone now?"
Xiu Mumo's tone was teasing, a smile lurking in the depths of her eyes.
"What nonsense are you talking about? I know you just finished your livestream, hurry up and pick me up at the airport!" Xia Lengying snorted coldly.
"You're back? So fast? Have you already arrived?" Xiu Mumo straightened her back, surprise blossoming across her face.
"Of course. How slow could I possibly be with me taking charge? It's been ages, if we didn't wrap things up soon I was going to starve to death. I've never eaten anything so awful in my life."
Xia Lengying had just stepped off the plane and was walking out along the passageway.
She missed lobsters, she missed hot pot, she missed barbecue, she missed anything that actually tasted good.
During all those days in Silu Continent, what she ate wasn't even as good as what the dogs in the Mo'an Empire ate!
She had simply survived on compressed biscuits.
"My mouth has almost lost all sense of taste, hurry up and pick me up to go eat hot pot! Make it extra spicy!"
Looking at her homeland, Xia Lengying shed a single tear of emotion for the very first time.
"Alright, fine." Xiu Mumo chuckled aloud—her own state hadn't been much different from Xia Lengying's, to be fair. "Bie Yuan, head to Shangjing International Airport."
"Got it. Is that Section Chief Xia coming back?" Bie Yuan smiled. The commander and Section Chief Xia were extremely good friends—you could say they were people who could absolutely entrust their backs to each other on the battlefield.
He didn't know the exact details of how they met, but he seemed to have heard others say that the commander had once saved the section chief's life, and they had subsequently become steadfast confidantes.
In fact, Section Chief Xia had even joined the Combat Division solely because of the commander, just so she could fight side by side with her.
"Mm, things are wrapped up on her end. She told me her mouth has almost lost all sense of taste, and wants us to take her for hot pot."
Whenever Xiu Mumo brought up Xia Lengying, her brows and the corners of her eyes were filled with smiles.
"Alright, we aren't far from the airport, we should be there soon." Bie Yuan changed routes, driving in the opposite direction.
*
As soon as they arrived home, they saw four or five people standing in the living room—men and women alike—looking at Quan Xigjuan with smiles on their faces.
"Who are all these people?" Quan Xigjuan's eye twitched.
"I invited them. They're here to make clothes for you."
Page 66: Is This a Younger Sister? No, This Is an Ancestor
Quan Xiling strode into the room briskly. "Brother, you are not allowed to chase them away. Look at you, you don't even have a single decent outfit—is that appropriate?"
"Aren't the clothes in my walk-in closet actual clothes?" Quan Xigjuan's face stiffened.
In Kill Camp, they always wore whatever was most convenient. They occasionally wore uniforms, but mostly they stuck to unnoticeable casual wear. As for formal attire like suits and leather shoes, he basically never wore them.
In all his years in the military, his physique had changed a lot, and some of his clothes could no longer fit him. Because his room had an extremely high level of privacy, no one was allowed to touch his belongings aside from routine cleaning.
Therefore, his clothes really hadn't been touched much. In the past, people would send the newest styles every year, but later on, when he practically stopped coming home, he canceled it.
Besides, he genuinely had no occasions that required him to wear such clothes.
"Tell me, out of all those clothes of yours, how many can you actually fit into? The suit you wore to the banquet a few days ago was bought on the spot."
Quan Xiling rolled her eyes and curled her lips. "Which young master of a prominent family could be as unconcerned about appearances as you? And you're supposed to be a crown prince, too. Even in ancient times, a crown prince wouldn't dress in such a mismatched way, would he?"
Quan Xigjuan was hit right in the heart again: "..."
Was this a younger sister?
No, she wasn't.
This was an ancestor.
"Just listen to your sister. We don't know your current measurements right now, and if we had people send clothes over, we wouldn't even know what kind to send you. It's just right that the designer came over to take your measurements so you can have several more sets made."
Hearing the commotion, Quan Mama walked out just in time to catch her daughter Quan Xiling's words, and she lectured Quan Xigjuan a couple of times.
"Mom, do I even have any status in this family?" Quan Xigjuan laughed ruefully.
"None at all. You're at the very bottom." Quan Mama curled her lip. "You still want status? Keep dreaming. Do you think your dad would dare say something like that?"
Quan Xigjuan: "..."
If they were really talking about status, his dad's status probably wasn't as high as his.
"Go get measured quickly. Follow your sister's instructions in everything."
Quan Mama patted his shoulder, then looked over at Quan Xiling. "Darling, I'll leave the project of remodeling your brother in your hands. It would be best if you could trick a daughter-in-law back for me."
"Don't you worry, Mom, mission guaranteed!" Quan Xiling snapped her heels together, gave a salute toward Quan Mama, and let out a chuckle.
"Comrade Quan Xiling has quite a high ideological awareness!" Elder Quan walked through the door just in time to see this scene, chuckling heartily.
"Of course, we can't let the broad masses of the people down, can we?"
Quan Xiling straightened her back and walked up to him with a smile. "Grandpa's back so early, did the other grandpas refuse to play with you?"
"They all wanted to play golf, but I thought it was boring so I came back. Fishing is much better."
Elder Quan sat down on the sofa and tapped the floor with his cane.
"Really? Probably because they don't understand the joy of fishing, unlike you, Grandpa, who used to be on the battlefield."
Quan Xiling hugged her grandfather's arm with a smile, while shooting a sideways glance at Quan Xigjuan. "Brother, what are you standing there like a post for? Hurry up and get measured!"
Quan Xigjuan had no choice but to walk over and let the designers take his measurements.
They finished quickly and asked about his general preferences.
Quan Xiling chimed in from the side: "All types! Hoodies, trench coats, sportswear, suits—including inner wear. My brother isn't going to grow any taller now, so make a few extra sets. Have them dry-cleaned before sending them over. The color palette can be casual, both light and dark shades. Don't people always say light colors make you look younger?"
"Alright, Miss Quan." The designers couldn't help smiling, seemingly surprised that the crown prince of the Beijing circle had even less status at home than his own sister.
Page 67: Sister Xiu Wouldn't deign to Look at the Xue Family!
Once the people had left, Quan Xigjuan sat on the sofa with a blank expression. "Xiling wants to drag me along to join a livestreamed travel variety show. She says Xiu Mumo is going too, so she's dragging me in with her."
"Hm? A travel variety show?" Elder Quan paused.
"Right." Quan Xigjuan nodded.
"Your sister has always had a sense of propriety. Since she said she's dragging you along, she must have confirmed it's a program where you can show your face."
Elder Quan said thoughtfully, "I haven't met that child Xiu Mumo myself, but rumors spread far too fast in this circle of ours. The Xue family bringing her back is purely for the sake of an alliance through marriage; the Tan family only changed family heads not long ago, and now the Xue family is stirring up this kind of nonsense."
"Ain't that the truth? They didn't raise her for a few years, and they never looked for her afterwards either. Now that they need a marriage alliance, they bring her back and throw around 'Xue family bloodline' at every turn. I spit on that! Truly shameless! Sister Xiu wouldn't deign to look at the Xue family!"
Whenever Quan Xiling brought up the Xue family, her face was full of disgust. If they had truly loved their daughter, how could they have found a substitute and given her the name Xue Anyan?
Just thinking about it made her skin crawl with annoyance.
"That old fogey in the Xue family can only see benefits. That girl raised by the Xue family isn't of Xue blood after all, and even if she marries out, her heart might not necessarily lean toward the Xue family. He's afraid that girl's heart will grow wild."
Mentioning Elder Xue, Elder Quan's eyes were full of disapproval.
"Ridiculous! He's afraid a girl raised in his own home won't favor the Xue family, but he thinks someone who was never raised by them, just because she shares Xue blood, will favor the Xue family? I truly have no idea what's going on inside that brain of his!"
Quan Mama let out a scoff and rolled her eyes.
"Exactly. But those people in the Xue family can only see the immediate benefits right in front of their noses. If you say a couple extra words, they'll just accuse you of meddling. Still, you shouldn't get involved in the Xue family's business. That Xue girl isn't bad, though—she's got her head screwed on straight."
Elder Quan praised with a smile, "She's young, but she thinks things through, and she isn't blinded by the Xue family's wealth. She's a good one, didn't turn out like the rest of the Xue family."
"Grandpa, stop saying 'the Xue family' at every turn. Her name is Xiu Mumo. From now on, you should just call her 'lass Xiu'. Hearing 'Xue lass' makes my whole body uncomfortable."
Quan Xiling felt uncomfortable just hearing the character 'Xue', and that included the Ming family as well. In her eyes, these two families weren't any different.
It was merely that the Ming family was currently in the limelight while the Xue family was on a downward trajectory.
"Alright, I'll call her lass Xiu from now on." Elder Quan ruffled Quan Xiling's hair. This girl.
Quan Xigjuan realized that everything he had just said might as well have gone unsaid. "..."
He chose to completely give up. Forget it!
*
The road wasn't congested, and in about an hour, the car arrived at the airport.
Xiu Mumo made a call to Xia Lengying.
"You guys arrived? I'm coming right out. I drank a cup of milk tea and I feel like I'm about to be restored to full health."
Xia Lengying finished her milk tea in one go and walked outside carrying her luggage.
Once outside, she saw a car. Xiu Mumo was standing by the car door, waving at her. "Over here."
Xia Lengying put her luggage in the trunk, and the two of them got into the back seat together.
"Mumo, I missed you to death." Her arm hooked around Xiu Mumo's shoulder, a smile on her face.
"Judging by that, you must have missed domestic food, right?" Xiu Mumo slapped her paw away. "Get your paw down."
"Still disgusted that I haven't taken a shower, huh? You're a clean freak—you're honestly just like that nephew of yours, top-tier clean freak."
Xia Lengying rolled her eyes. She had met Jing Xiuyun a few times before, and that kid was clean to a hair-raising degree.
She had wondered at the time if he'd caught it from Mumo.
Page 68: And Spoil Him Along the Way
After all, that cub had basically been raised by Mumo.
"Then you should say he's exactly like me. I was actually planning to meet his boyfriend, but I can't do that now. Not only did the Old Man make me go back to the Xue family, but right now I can't even go to Nantian Garden. Everyone in the Beijing circle is staring at me."
Xiu Mumo really wanted to go back and cross-examine the Old Man about what on earth he was trying to pull.
"Can't you just sneak back? How can a family meeting happen without you there?"
Xia Lengying laughed ruefully. "This shouldn't be all that difficult for you, right?"
"It's true that it isn't difficult, but I didn't hide my surname to begin with. I have no idea what specific plans the Old Man has in mind. If I mess up the medicine in the Old Man's gourd, he's definitely going to throw a fit at me."
Xiu Mumo shook her head. "In this Beijing circle, everyone is sharp as a tack. I can vanish right under their noses, but if they discover Nantian Garden later on, it would be practically the same as carving 'The Xiu in Xiu Mumo is from Nantian Garden' right across my forehead."
"That is true."
Xia Lengying thought about how this place was the epicenter of power for the entire Empire; the so-called Beijing circle wasn't just a circle, it was a circle of power and wealth.
Anyone who could climb to a high position in this circle was no pushover. Right now, Mumo staying under their noses wasn't an issue.
If she were to suddenly vanish, however, that would definitely spell trouble.
"Forget it, I'll get to see them sooner or later anyway. I actually wanted to find you to handle a major event!"
Xiu Mumo turned her head to look at Xia Lengying, smiling with a hint of bizarreness.
"Don't look at me like that, damn it, it's creepy." Xia Lengying rubbed her arms, goosebumps rising all over. "Alright, spit it out. What is it?"
She knew Mumo's temperament all too well; a smile like that never meant anything good.
"The Boss wants you to help her tie up the leader of Kill Camp." Bie Yuan chimed in out of nowhere.
"Huh?" Xia Lengying was dumbfounded. "What did you say?"
Tie up the leader of Kill Camp?
Was she being serious?
"It's like this: the Boss fell in love with the leader of Kill Camp at first sight, only to discover later that he was the leader of Kill Camp. Now she wants to teach him a lesson, and spoil him along the way."
Bie Yuan spoke with absolute seriousness, acting as the spokesperson for the Boss the whole way through.
"Ahem, what do you mean 'spoil him'? Don't misuse vocabulary." Xiu Mumo's eye twitched, and she gave Bie Yuan a smack on the head.
Xia Lengying's jaw practically dropped to the floor, her eyes filled with shock.
What the heck?
Fell in love with a man at first sight?
And then found out that man was the leader of Kill Camp?
What kind of operation was this?
A mutual slaughter of love and hate?
She hadn't forgotten that just a few months ago, someone was saying at a hospital bedside that she'd beat the guy up if she ever saw him!
Now, beating him up had turned into fighting in bed?
They were really playing wild.
"Yingzi? Yingzi?" Seeing her freeze up, Xiu Mumo patted her shoulder.
"I heard it." Xia Lengying turned her head mechanically. "Now you tell me, who on earth is this leader of Kill Camp? What kind of man could actually make you fall in love at first sight?"
"Quan Xigjuan, the young master of the Quan family among the Four Nobles of Shangjing. He also holds some title like the crown prince of the Beijing circle."
Xiu Mumo didn't deny falling in love at first sight. After all, falling in love with a face and a figure at first sight could count as love at first sight, right?
"Quan Xigjuan? Wait a minute, why does that sound so familiar?"
Xia Lengying pondered for a few seconds before realization dawned on her: "I remember now, I think I saw him once at a charity auction before, and I heard someone nearby call him Young Master Quan."
"Oho, the fact that he left an impression on you means my taste is pretty good—especially that face of his."
Page 69: Will You Help Me? It's Not Entirely Out of the Question
Xiu Mumo raised an eyebrow and cast a sidelong glance at her.
"Spare me, I have no interest in the man you've taken a fancy to, I won't fight you for him. He doesn't look like my type either, especially since he's the leader of Kill Camp. You two have such deep karma, go kill each other yourselves."
Xia Lengying hurriedly raised her hands to make her stance clear. There was no way she was going to fight her best friend over a man, and besides, he wasn't her type anyway.
"Pfft, who cares about that?" Xiu Mumo pinched her cheek. "I'm saying my taste is good, and he looks pretty good too. Well? What do you say, want to help me tie him up?"
"Baby, that's illegal." Xia Lengying's mouth twitched. "Isn't it a bit inappropriate for people from our Combat Division to knowingly break the law?"
"It's fine, the Combat Division and Kill Camp are mortal enemies to begin with. He made me spend a month in the hospital eating chaff and vegetable mash; otherwise, I would have returned to the country long ago, there's no way it would have been delayed until now."
The moment Xiu Mumo remembered that Quan Xigjuan's identity was the leader of Kill Camp, her visual filter for his looks vanished instantly.
"Besides, Bie Yuan is right. Detention under twenty-four hours isn't illegal, and as for a woman overpowering a man not being illegal, I know about that too—though I'm not crazy enough to go that far."
Xia Lengying: "..."
Truly unbelievable. Neither Mumo nor her guard had a single normal person between them!
What normal person would go around saying that detention under twenty-four hours didn't count as breaking the law?
"Will you help or not? I'm just asking you to assist; I'll definitely tie the person up myself." Xiu Mumo tossed out another answer.
"It's not entirely out of the question." Xia Lengying felt that Mumo being angry was quite normal, and wanting to tie up Quan Xigjuan was also understandable.
After all, that month in the hospital hadn't been spent for nothing.
"Alright, it's settled then. Let's go eat hot pot right now."