Peaceful Jianghu - Chapter 92
[Destiny]
After the banquet, everyone was arranged to rest in different rooms.
Just as they entered the room to discuss their plans for the night, Xiao Dao saw a dark figure lunge at her. Startled, she dodged, and Hao Jinfeng grabbed her by the pillar behind her, exclaiming, "Little sister!"
Xiao Dao scratched his head.
With tears in his eyes, Hao Jinfeng released the pillar, turned around, and tugged at Xiao Dao's sleeve, "How could you lie to your elder brother!"
Xiao Dao also felt that recognizing a brother and sister under these circumstances was a strange feeling. He put his hands behind his back, looking a little awkward, with a smile that seemed mixed with shyness, and called out softly, "Big Brother."
Hao Jinfeng gasped and opened his mouth wide...
Xue Beifan reacted quickly, covering Hao Jinfeng's mouth to prevent him from bursting into tears and wailing. Sure enough, the simpleton became emotional and grabbed Xiao Dao, about to cry.
Xiao Dao reached out and patted his back to comfort him. Everyone watched with smiles. The siblings had finally recognized each other. They wondered when the family would be reunited. Judging from their personalities, their parents' personalities would be quite lively when they got together.
Hao Jinfeng had no time to think about anything else; he kept asking Xiaodao how his mother was doing, where she lived, and why she hadn't come home. Xiaodao didn't go into details about what happened back then, so as not to upset Hao Jinfeng, only saying that her mother was in Jiangnan and doing well. The two agreed that in a while, Xiaodao would take Hao Jinfeng to see his mother first, then his father, and finally coax his parents to meet.
The siblings should have had a good talk, but there's plenty of time in the future, and there are many important things to do tonight.
Xiao Dao suggested that later, the main event would be to change the queen. Xue Beifan and Chonghua would take Youyou alone to capture the chief steward and put him under house arrest. Youyou would then put on a veil and resume her queenly attire, secretly reclaiming the throne without anyone noticing.
"Aren't you going?" Xue Beifan looked at Xiaodao curiously.
Xiao Dao blinked, "I'd rather keep an eye on Xue Xing and the others."
"Do you think they'll make a move tonight?" Xue Beifan frowned. "Xue Xing's skills are not bad; are you going alone?"
"I'll go with Xiaodao." Xiaoyue stood next to Xiaodao, and this time it was Chonghua's turn to worry, "Just the two of you?"
Xue Beifan felt a little more at ease. In terms of martial arts, Xiaoyue was no worse than Xue Xing, and in terms of cunning, she had Xiaodao. The two of them should be safe.
"I'm going too!" Hao Jinfeng naturally cherished Xiaodao even more after learning that she was his own sister.
Everyone looked at him, knowing he was worried, but being a spy really wasn't suitable for Hao Jinfeng—he didn't know any light-body skills.
Hao Jinfeng roughly understood what everyone meant and was also anxious. "I... I'll wait outside the wall. If things get too bad, just call me and I'll come in to save you!"
Seeing Hao Jinfeng's worried expression, Xiao Dao felt a surge of joy—it really made a difference to have a blood brother; there was a sense of being genuinely cared for. Thinking this, Xiao Dao inexplicably glanced at Xue Beifan.
Xue Beifan was startled by what she saw. Xiao Dao was holding Hao Jinfeng's arm. "Brother, what if someone bullies me in the future?"
"I killed him." Hao Jinfeng blurted out without thinking.
Xue Beifan subconsciously touched his neck, then held his teacup and drank water, pretending not to hear.
"What if... someone takes advantage of me?" Xiao Dao then asked.
"What?!" Hao Jinfeng slammed his fist on the table. "Which lecherous bastard dared to do this? I'll castrate him!"
"Cough cough..." Xue Beifan pounded his chest, while Chonghua laughed gleefully beside him.
Xiao Dao was overjoyed. Now that someone was standing up for him, he'd see if Xue Er would ever behave himself again!
As soon as it got dark, everyone split up and turned off the lights early, pretending to be resting. They split into two groups: Xiaodao, Xiaoyue, and Hao Jinfeng went west, while Chonghua, Xue Beifan, and Youyou went to the Queen's palace.
Before leaving, Xue Beifan gently grabbed the knife and whispered, "Be careful, Xue Xing is a dirty-minded person. Also... if Wang Bibo is here, don't listen to him."
Xiao Dao didn't think it was a problem. "Wang Bibo's lightness skill isn't as good as mine. We have Xiao Yue here, and my older brother too!"
Xue Beifan looked up at the sky. Ever since this girl recognized her brother, she'd become so arrogant. "Just be careful."
"Alright." Xiao Dao waved his hand and left with Xiao Yue and Hao Jinfeng.
Xue Beifan turned around, and Chonghua looked at him with a smile, "Are you really so comfortable letting her go? Aren't you afraid she'll hear something she shouldn't?"
Xue Beifan smiled faintly, "This girl is very cunning. She probably went to listen to that. Stopping her will only make her suspicious."
Chonghua stared at Xue Beifan for a while, then suddenly lowered his voice and asked, "I'm asking you something."
Xue Beifan looked up—what was it?
"You... do you actually have feelings for Yan Xiaodao?" Chonghua frowned. "Don't tell me you've been just playing around from the beginning?"
Xue Beifan remained silent for a long while, opening his mouth as if he wanted to say something but hesitated. Just as Chonghua thought he was about to answer, the door to the room was pushed open, and Youyou rushed out hurriedly. She had spent some time changing into her night clothes.
"Alright, sorry to keep you waiting." Youyou was a little embarrassed, but then she looked around and saw that Xue Beifan had turned his face away and Chonghua was frowning. The two seemed to be talking about something unpleasant, and the atmosphere was a little awkward.
Youyou seems nervous. Did you two have a fight?
"Ahem." Xue Beifan coughed and beckoned to Youyou, "Hurry up."
"Hmm!" Youyou didn't care about anything else anymore; business was more important.
Xue Beifan and Chonghua, along with Youyou, used their lightness skills to sneak into the inner courtyard of the palace. Youyou had lived there since childhood and was very familiar with the terrain, so she guided Xue Beifan and Chonghua to take a shortcut, encountering almost no guards.
Once she unleashed her light-footed skills, Youyou realized just how good Xue Beifan and Chonghua's kung fu was! Sure enough, her mother was absolutely right; the Central Plains martial arts world was teeming with talent.
Upon arriving near the palace, Youyou gestured for the two to be patient, saying, "The lights are on, and there should be guards and maids at the entrance."
Chonghua and Xue Beifan exchanged a glance, then, with Youyou in tow, leaped onto the roof. They didn't act rashly at first, but instead lay on the roof listening to the sounds below.
With a loud crash, the head steward's angry voice rang out, "Get out of here, all of you!" Xue Beifan looked at Youyou in confusion.
Youyou shook her head, wondering when the head steward had become so irritable.
The three listened carefully and it sounded like the head steward was cursing. They couldn't quite make out what he was saying, but the sound of things being smashed was very loud.