"Sister Ah Jiu, do you mean I haven't found the result of that footprint yet?"
Tuoba Yan looked at the maid beside him as he led the horse.
Ah Jiu suddenly stopped. "Xiao Yan, that kind of meat was deliberately introduced by humans. So, if we can catch this person, we might be able to follow the clues and find the source of the disease. This is the only way."
"Sister Ah Jiu, I understand what you're saying, but what Madam Qian said today, I think we should deliberately go to Menghua City to check the situation, especially the Gao family."
"Don't go!" Ah Jiu said decisively. "We're fleeing famine not just because of the drought, but also because Menghua City is at war. Going to such a place of conflict is too risky."
"It's not risky," Ah Jiu's eyes widened as soon as Tuoba Yan finished speaking.
"I received internal news yesterday that Menghua City has fallen, and Prince Qi Ming has been escorted back to the capital. This means we've been defeated."
"Ah?" Ah Jiu searched Tuoba Yan's face for any sign of worry, but found none. This guy's brain... well, it had a hole in it.
"Xiao Yan, you work in officialdom, how can you be so dull? Prince Qi Ming's defeat means that they will soon be attacking Nanming City."
Sometimes Ah Jiu felt she couldn't communicate with him, yet at other times she felt Tuoba Yan understood her perfectly, and communication was effortless.
"Ah, this..." Tuoba Yan also panicked when he heard this analysis. "Then, Sister Ah Jiu, should we move quickly?"
He was doing so well in the official ranks, and the department head was even talking about promoting him. Wouldn't that mean he could help Sister Ah Jiu more in the future?
"Possibly," Ah Jiu mused. So this was what her sister-in-law meant by being prepared for a rainy day; one truly had to think ahead, and it was quite tiring.
"Then... if I get promoted, and I'm qualified to bring you into the city, do you think we wouldn't have to move?"
Tuoba Yan's words reminded Ah Jiu of when she had asked her sister-in-law to help write the transit documents.
If people lived in the city, they would at least have military protection, which would likely be better than being here.
"Mmm."
Ah Jiu continued walking home, then suddenly looked at Tuoba Yan. "Actually, you've helped us a lot, and you..."
"I'm not afraid. In this world, you are the first good person I've met, and I like doing things for you."
Tuoba Yan picked Ah Jiu up around the waist with one arm and easily placed her on the horse.
Ah Jiu suddenly looked down. The horse walked steadily towards home. "You, do you really have no family?"
In Ah Jiu's heart, only family truly cared for each other forever, bound by a blood tie, making it very secure.
Tuoba Yan shook his head. "No, I've never had a mother like Sister Ah Jiu described since I was born. It was just me."
An orphan from birth, Ah Jiu's heart ached.
"So, you mean you consider us your family?"
"Of course. Whenever I chat with my friends, they talk about how their parents are doing, or their wives, or what's happening at home. I didn't understand at first, but then I realized I couldn't connect with them. I listened carefully to their words and understood.
You are all my family. This way, I can brag to them too. When they talk about their families, I say I have a sister who is amazing, smart, capable, and even more beautiful. I can shut them down completely with my words."
Pfft, Ah Jiu covered her mouth and chuckled discreetly. "I'm so dirty, and you still say I'm beautiful."
"Of course. My Sister Ah Jiu is beautiful not just on the outside, but even more so on the inside. Besides, they're not lucky enough to see Sister Jiu clean. I have."
Tuoba Yan said this with his head held high and chest puffed out, full of confidence.
"By the way, Sister Jiu, where did you get that red cinnabar mole under your eye? I asked Uncle, and he said you didn't have it when you were born."
As soon as Tuoba Yan mentioned this, Ah Jiu's smile vanished, and a flash of pain from memory crossed her eyes.