Chapter 9: What a Coincidence, You're Being Chased Too?

Originally, seeing that Xuan Sibei didn't seem to like reading these books, Song Yue felt somewhat disappointed. She kept a straight face, silently turned away from him, and even considered buying him an orange.

It wasn't until she heard his firm "Stop" that she halted in surprise.

Could it be…?

As soon as she stopped, Xuan Sibei, with a slightly darkened expression, snatched the books from her arms and placed them back on the stone table. He opened his mouth as if to speak but hesitated. Finally, with a flushed face, he said, "Since this is your heartfelt intention… I shall accept them."

A breeze seemed to pass by. The haystacks behind the walls, the surrounding grass, and even the treetops swayed slightly.

Pretending not to notice anything, Song Yue's eyes once again took on the kind and gentle look of a motherly figure. She almost couldn't resist patting his head. "That's good. Take your time reading these books. If there are any difficult or obscure passages, mark them, and I'll teach you how to read them when I return. I've traveled across many countries—though I wouldn't call myself highly knowledgeable, I do know more than the average person."

"Hmm."

Meanwhile, hidden in the shadows—behind walls, in the grass, and atop the trees—various secret guards were crouched in place. They were so shocked by what they had just witnessed that they accidentally let their presence slip. Hastily concealing themselves again, they held their breath, not daring to move, resorting only to exchanging glances.

Qian Jiang was among them. Clutching his rapidly beating heart, he exchanged looks with his comrades. Recalling the events of last night's dinner, he finally pieced things together and gestured to them in sign language: "You were right… The Lord lost his mother at a young age. That may be one of the reasons for his personality…"

"I knew it! Why else would the Young Master suddenly go out yesterday and even have dinner with that woman?"

"A woman picked up from who-knows-where is unreliable. Just to be safe, should we find him a more obedient and well-mannered foster mother?"

"We can try. It might work. Honestly, dealing with things here is already inconvenient. If that woman returns and overhears our discussions about the destruction of Yan… While she alone wouldn't change anything, if she gets terrified and starts panicking all the time, it could ruin the Lord's mood."

"Then it's settled."

"…"

After repeatedly reminding her son to study well, Song Yue gave a few more instructions to Xiao Cui before preparing to set off. "As the saying goes, where you fall, you must rise again. Last time, I stumbled in Yan Kingdom. Now… I'm determined to take it on. I must earn silver and support this family."

With that, she left only a little travel money for herself and handed the rest to Xuan Sibei. "I'll probably be gone for months. Here's some money for food—use it sparingly. Wait for me to come back and take care of you. Stay safe."

Xuan Sibei took the few taels of silver she had somehow produced, then started wondering where she got the money for the books. Her purse had contained only a few broken pieces of silver, not even a full tael. The only valuable thing on her was a gold ring—a style that had been popular in Yan Kingdom years ago. It had been polished carefully, showing how much she treasured it. Most likely, it was left to her by her late husband.

It wasn't until he noticed Song Yue subtly tug at her slightly wrinkled sleeve that he realized—her clothes were different from yesterday.

She had hidden it well; the style was the same, even the flowing cloud-like patterns were identical. But the rough fabric had none of the silk's former luster. At the very least, it was several grades lower in quality.

Had she even pawned her last good outfit? Just to buy books for him, to provide him with food and clothing… No wonder she sneaked out so early—she didn't want him to find out.

How foolish.

Xuan Sibei clenched the silver tightly, watching her disappearing figure. His brow twitched slightly.

---

Dressed in imitation coarse cloth, Song Yue weighed the last few taels of travel money in her hand, feeling utterly miserable.

She had spent almost all the money she brought out this time to buy a house. In the end, she could only pawn the most valuable thing on her—her outer robe—for a little over ten taels of silver. After giving some to Xiao Cui and leaving some for Xuan Sibei, she was left with almost nothing.

"Xuan Sibei didn't even need that money… If I had known, I would've given him a few taels less!" Song Yue bit her lip, racking her brain for the fastest and cheapest way to travel back. "The longer I delay on the road, the more money I'll waste on meals… I can suddenly feel the world's cruelty toward the poor."

[If I weren't inside the ring, would you have pawned it too?]

Song Yue: …Oh, right. I totally forgot about you just now. This little bit of gold… if converted into silver, it should be worth a few taels, right? And with the craftsmanship and collectible value, maybe I could sell it for over ten taels?

[…I'm already bound to this ring. Moving to another object would consume a lot of energy!]

Song Yue: Never mind then. Save up your energy—I'll think of another way to get travel money. Actually… besides placing you next to explosives, I've thought of another way to quickly make a fortune—no, I mean, increase your energy level.

[Are you seriously treating my energy like money? Just how obsessed are you with forming a golden core? I feel insulted… Wait, what idea did you come up with?]

Song Yue grinned slyly. "I heard that Dragon Subduing Palm Nie Sheng is traveling across the land, searching for a worthy opponent…"

[Stop right there! Don't get yourself killed!] Even if it could absorb inner strength, Song Yue still needed fast reflexes. It was one thing to deal with small fries, but if she really fought a martial arts master and failed to block a strike, she could die instantly—and it would perish along with her.

"Tsk, I knew you'd chicken out." Song Yue muttered to herself, adjusting her bundle. "Fine, making money isn't urgent. What's most important now is Xuan Sibei. Do you have… anything like parenting books? Something like How to Raise a Good Son, Teaching Your Son Proper Values, Boys Must Be Raised Strictly…?

[No. Next.]

"What kind of joke is this? Didn't your database claim to be the most comprehensive in the world? And you can't even find a decent parenting book?"

[I'm an energy storage system, not a consultant for raising your son!]

Song Yue: "…"

Her house was located at the western end of Jiulong Bay, a rather remote area. The terrain of Jiulong Bay was quite unique, separated by a crescent-shaped river and nestled within the mountains. If one didn't want to take a detour of over ten miles by climbing through the mountains, they had to use the only remaining exit—a single arched bridge over the river.

This exit had no cover in any direction. Anyone walking on the bridge could be seen from afar by someone watching from the tree line on the shore.

So, as this "frail widow" stepped onto the bridge, wobbling slightly under the weight of her luggage, cushioned shoes sinking slightly with each step, a few burly men had already blocked her path.

"I heard there's a businesswoman widow living at the western end of the bay, supposedly so pretty it's unreal… Seeing you now, you really do look fresh and tender enough to drip water. Are you really over thirty?" A one-eyed man reached out, intending to pull her into his arms. "I heard you're in business? Didn't you lose everything? Where did you get the money to buy a house?"

Song Yue immediately understood. Back at the Fengqi Inn, she had openly declared in front of many people that her business had failed. That news must have spread… Jiulong Bay wasn't a big place, and it was full of fearless thugs. She had walked all the way back home hand in hand with Xuan Sibei—she must have caught someone's eye.

These men were as predictable as ever, always choosing easy prey. Bullying a defenseless widow?

"My affairs are personal. I don't believe I'm required to disclose them to outsiders," she said softly, lowering her gaze slightly. Her long lashes trembled like a butterfly's wings, and her hands clasped together tightly, her fingertips pale as if from nervousness. But in reality… she was simply twisting the gold ring on her finger.

Perfect. She had definitely come to the right place.

"Once you enter my household, you're my woman. What private affairs? Everything will be family business then!" The one-eyed man licked his lips, clearly pleased with this profitable transaction. He signaled to the men behind him, grinning. "The shopkeeper was too blinded by money. What's the point of just robbing her silver? Once we have her, her house will be ours too! Then all of you will get a nice share of the wealth!"

Though Song Yue looked terrified on the surface, inside, she was silently urging them to hurry up. Her eyes narrowed slightly in anticipation.

Just as she was about to make her move, the system suddenly issued a warning:

[Host, watch your back.]

She turned around abruptly. From her position, she could see a patch of forest on the riverbank. A dark figure seemed to flicker through the trees, vanishing into the underbrush.

It looked like… someone was there?

As she remained puzzled, the hidden guards sent by Xuan Sibei silently prayed not to be discovered. After the widow had left, their master had unexpectedly ordered them to stay in the shadows and protect her. However… Jiulong Bay's bridge was surrounded by water on all sides, with no cover whatsoever!

Just as they were fretting over this predicament, they suddenly saw a figure dressed in white slowly making its way along the path.

"The Lord?!"

It seemed their intervention wouldn't be necessary after all.

Xuan Sibei himself wasn't sure why he had followed her. Before he knew it, he had already arrived. Jiulong Bay was unlike other places—her traveling alone was simply too dangerous.

Unconsciously, he stood behind a tree, naturally concealing himself. His calm and unwavering gaze was locked onto the men blocking her path. Suddenly, he plucked a leaf from a nearby branch, rolling it between his fingers. Just as he extended his hand, preparing to flick the leaf toward the one-eyed man, Song Yue suddenly turned her head.

Song Yue had been wary of her surroundings, suspecting that someone was lurking nearby—most likely someone sent by Xuan Sibei. Because of this, she didn't dare to fight freely and instead focused on evading while discreetly scanning her surroundings. Earlier, though she had only caught a glimpse of a white garment's hem, based on the hiding angle, she could almost be certain—Xuan Sibei himself was here.

"Ah—" Song Yue wanted to cry. To maintain her persona, she had no choice but to turn and flee. Her eyes were filled with panic and terror, making it seem as if she was genuinely frightened.

Ever since the incident with Master Kui, she felt she had grasped the trick to collecting energy points. So, she had deliberately leaked her widow status around Jiulong Bay, hoping to attract the attention of these bandits, just waiting for them to rob and assault her—this was supposed to be a big score!

Xuan Sibei must have grown suspicious of her identity, which was why he had followed her! That meant she absolutely couldn't make a move now!

Xuan Sibei's heart sank—he knew Song Yue had noticed him. But to say he was here out of concern… he couldn't bring himself to admit it.

After a brief hesitation, he suddenly heard footsteps behind him. In an instant, the darkness in his eyes dissipated, and he stepped onto the road.

Song Yue was surprised to see him openly blocking her path. "Sibei, why are you—"

At that moment, not only were there pursuers rushing down from the bridge behind her, but even on the once-empty road ahead, several figures had appeared. Judging by their demeanor, they were likely bandits.

"Stop!"

The pristine white-clothed youth before her looked startled upon hearing the approaching footsteps. A flicker of panic crossed his clear, innocent eyes as he suddenly rushed forward, grabbing the hem of her sleeve. His delicate features showed a hint of distress.

"I just wanted to step out for a bit, but they started chasing me… so I ran all the way here. I didn't expect to run into you… What a coincidence."

"Huh? You…"

Seeing him clutching her sleeve and gazing at her with those pitiful eyes, Song Yue couldn't help but picture a fluffy, docile white rabbit. But then, recalling his true nature as a ruthless final boss, the illusion instantly shattered.

The corner of her mouth twitched as she slowly lifted her gaze. In front of them stood bandits, behind them were thugs—an entire group was closing in from all sides, clearly up to no good.

They must all be working together. By dividing into two groups, they had completely cut off all of her escape routes.

[Host, why do you seem so familiar with this...?]

Song Yue: Ever seen street thugs in action? This is exactly how they surround someone-splitting into two groups. Xuan Sibei must be suspicious of my identity, so he's secretly observing me. After I noticed him, he simply switched to openly watching. On the surface, he's playing the role of a frightened little boy, but in reality... he's standing this close just to make it easier to stab me if things go wrong. So this time, I absolutely cannot expose a single flaw.

[I think you're overthinking it. Also, he's putting on a completely harmless act in front of you, which means he doesn't plan to intervene. But you're still playing the frail widow-so what's your plan for dealing with all these bandits?]

Song Yue lowered her head slightly and saw Xuan Sibei subtly shifting behind her, his timid expression flawlessly executed. If she didn't know what he would do to her ten years later, she might have actually believed it.

Clearly, a traitor capable of hiding so deeply under Ji Wuchao's nose was now biding his time, waiting for the right moment to rise again. There was no way he would risk revealing himself for her sake.

She could only rely on herself.

Stretching out an arm protectively, as if shielding a helpless child, she boldly shouted, "Come at me if you have a problem! Don't make things difficult for the kid!"

At the same time, she threw a fierce-looking straight punch at the one-eyed man leading the group.

Of course, she didn't use even a trace of inner strength and deliberately positioned her fist incorrectly.

"Pa."

The one-eyed man easily caught her punch, gripping her wrist and twisting it with a sneer. "With that little strength... you think you can put on a show in front of me? Second Brother, just carry her to the sedan and take her to my estate on the northern island!"

At that moment, Xuan Sibei's dark, unreadable eyes remained locked onto them, never blinking.

A shadowy storm swirled in his gaze, as if it was on the verge of overflowing.

When that man seized her wrist, her brows furrowed slightly in pain. That subtle reaction stirred something within him.

For the first time, he felt the urge to do something for someone entirely unrelated to him.

For the first time, he felt the urge to do something for someone entirely unrelated to him.

In a trance, he slowly extended a finger toward the empty air, his inner energy unconsciously gathering at his fingertips.

If-if he killed all these people and then turned to reveal his true identity to her...

What kind of reaction would she have?