Chapter 27

  Lu Xiaofeng stood by the side of the road for a while, inexplicably feeling somewhat melancholy.

  "Miss, the sun is up, let's head back." Xiao He reminded her in a timely manner.

  Lu Xiaofeng nodded and said: "It's time to go back, we've been traveling together for a while, suddenly separating, it's really a bit uncomfortable."

  Xiaohe nodded silently, she also had such a feeling.

  "The girl is back." Zhan Zhong, who had been standing at the door and looking out, couldn't help but show his joy when he saw the master and servant's figures.

  "Is anything the matter with the old steward?" Lu Xiao Feng saw him waiting at the door and thought he was looking for him about something, so he asked.

  Zhan Zhongdao said: "No, the old slave is worried about the young lady." The thing tied around her waist was indeed the jade pendant that Master had kept with him since childhood. Now, the spirit of the late madam can finally rest in peace.

  "Don't worry about me, I'm fine."

  "Yes, yes."

  "The old housekeeper can just mind his own business, I have Xiaohuo taking care of me."

  "Alright." Zhan Zhong responded without much enthusiasm. It was rare for him to serve the future young mistress, but unfortunately, she didn't give him a chance.

  Watching the old steward leave, Lu Xiaofeng couldn't help but whisper to Xiaohe beside him: "Why do I have a feeling that he's been hit hard?"

  Xiaohe suppressed her own smile and said: "Miss is thinking too much."

  "I think I'm just overthinking." Little Phoenix was good at comforting herself.

  Xiaohe almost choked with laughter and thought: Miss, you really need to think twice sometimes.

  "Come on, Xiaohe, let's go take a stroll around the prefecture and see if there are any nice scenic spots." If there aren't any inside the prefecture, we'll prepare to search outside. It's not easy to come to this mountainous place with clear waters and take a walk around.

  "Miss...please be a bit more reserved, okay?"

  Xiao Feng didn't consider herself an outsider, so the people in the Zhang household wouldn't either. In their eyes, she was already the future mistress of the Zhang household, and whatever she wanted to do, they would cater to her needs.

  Yang's mother is also known as Yang Shi, who was also the aunt of Zhan Zhong and a personal maid of the late Mrs. Zhan, and had also been a wet nurse for Zhan Zhao!

  The profession of a wet nurse usually accompanies someone's infant and toddler period, which means that all the foolishness and stupidity committed by someone in their childhood have another witness.

  Xiao Feng was very enthusiastic about digging up someone's embarrassing childhood stories, and the disappointment of not being able to witness Zhao Xiao Mao's personal emotional gossip was greatly compensated at this time.

  As for Miss's somewhat silly behavior, Xiao He, as her personal maid, said: Since she's so happy in the pit dug by others, it can't be considered being pitted, right?

  Doesn't count!

  "This is where our young master used to practice martial arts when he was younger. Later, the young master went out to make a name for himself in the jianghu, and as time passed, he came home less and less often, so this place became somewhat deserted."

  As for the title "Master", Little Phoenix was really easy to jump out of character, fortunately most of the time they called Xian Xiao Mao as "Young Master", so Little Phoenix didn't have to often awkwardly exit the scene.

  "Huh, you have knives, guns, swords and spears." Little Phoenix Maiden pulled out a rifle from the weapon rack to play with.

  "The young master likes to try out different weapons." said Yang Ma.

  "Oh." Lu Xiao Feng made a very cool gun-turning move, raised an eyebrow at Xiao He and asked: "How's that? Cool or not?"

  Xiaohe smiled and nodded, "Very handsome! Miss has a heroic spirit that doesn't allow her eyebrows to be overshadowed."

  "Be careful, girl, don't hurt yourself." Yang's mother was worried on the side, this girl is sometimes too lively.

  "I know, don't worry, Mrs. Yang." Little Phoenix put the gun back in its holster for the sake of the old lady's heart.

  Actually, she really wants to have a carefree play for a while.

  What a pity... It's really troublesome to be a talented and beautiful lady!

  "Our young master started practicing martial arts at the age of three, and when he first held a knife, he almost fell to the ground with a thud." Yang's mother inadvertently exposed someone's embarrassing childhood incident.

  Little Phoenix's eyes sparkled instantly, and a cartoon of a small cat holding a big knife and pouncing on the ground automatically appeared in her mind, causing her to burst out laughing inwardly.

  Wow, so cool!

  "Yang Ma, I like it here. Look at the lake and the water nearby, the scenery is great and it's cool." Lu Xiao Feng started to have other ideas.

  "If you like it, just move in and that's it. There are also some books and albums collected by the young master in this house, which can be used to relieve your boredom."

  "Yang Ma you're so nice!" Little Phoenix's coquettish and cute act was always quite lethal.

  Yang Ma was immediately beaming with joy.

  What kind of books will Xiao Mao collect?

  Little Phoenix Maiden carried a paparazzi's gossiping heart and went to find the answer personally.

  Is there a must-read popular book for male creatures like "Jing Ping Mei" or "Dream of the Red Chamber"?

  Xiao Feng said: She is very interested in the answer!

  A certain imperial cat in Kaifeng Prefecture sneezed several times in a row on a hot summer noon.

  It turned out that Zhan Zhao was an honest and good young man.

  Little Phoenix Maiden rummaged through all the visible books in this place called "Lingshui Xuan" where Xiao Mao used to study and practice martial arts, only to find that Xiao Mao was indeed a good student who didn't like extracurricular reading.

  "Miss, what are you looking for?" Xiao He asked while helping to clean up the goods.

  "Do you believe me when I say I'm looking for a treasure map?"

  Xiaohe said without hesitation: "I don't believe it."

  "Don't isolate me from gold and silver treasures so thoroughly, okay? In this society, having no money is absolutely unacceptable. So, I, your family's young lady, still retain the original coppery smell." Principle issues, Little Phoenix Maiden was very insistent on.

  Xiaohe: "......" Miss, why are you always ruining your own image like this?

  "Miss, what are you looking for?" She decided to steer the question back on its original course.

  "Looking for something that should have appeared normally but hasn't been found yet."

  Xiaohe felt that this remark was a bit tongue-in-cheek, "Fortunately, Master Zhan can't see it. If he saw you turn his place into this state... I don't know if he would jump with anger."

  Lu Xiaofeng hummed and muttered a sentence: "Who's looking for who to settle accounts is not certain yet." Did they think she was an idiot?

  There are no eternal secrets in this world, and under the recent subtle attacks, she finally figured out what was wrong with her all along and found the root of the problem - Xian Xiaoming's jade pendant!

  As a cat fan, Xiao He didn't bother to hold her accountable for her mistakes. After all, fans are a group that can be very understanding, and sometimes they don't make any sense at all.

  You said you're a cat fan and want to stay at the little cat's house to experience the growth environment of your idol up close, this feeling is understandable. But dragging my innocent passerby into it is slightly not very kind.

  Although I personally also got some pleasure from it. But overall, there's still a little bit of discomfort.

  The white mouse is even more unnecessary to mention, and it must have played an indispensable misleading role in this, which belongs to the old debt that has not been cleared and new debts are added, looking for opportunities to clean up.

  As for the unclear truth of the Zhans, in order to make everyone get along harmoniously during her stay at the Zhans', Little Phoenix didn't deliberately explain or clarify.

  The truth will come out eventually!

  Anyway, she also dug up a lot of embarrassing stories about Xiao Mao from Yang Ma, so it wasn't a loss.

  This is called holding a small cat in the palm of one's hand, and it's so beautiful, so incredibly beautiful... and if you're not careful, Teacher Zhao Lirong's Tangshan accent will come out.

  An expression of disappointment!

  "Miss, what did you say?" Xiao He couldn't hear clearly what the miss was saying and couldn't help but ask a sentence, fearing that some instructions had been missed.

  Lu Xiaofeng immediately turned around and smiled at her, his expression calm as he said, "Nothing's wrong."

  "Miss, it's late today, let's continue tomorrow."

  "You go to sleep first, I'll flip through this book in my hand."

  "I'll stay with you then." You're so unpredictable, I never know what you'll do next.

  He said he wanted to accompany him, but Xiaohe still couldn't resist Zhou Gong's frequent calls and fell asleep on the table.

  Lu Xiaofeng was engrossed in a knife manual he held in his hand.

  This sword manual is not a peerless martial arts secret book, but it's also a rare find, and it has been very enlightening for Lu Xiaofeng, who occasionally still practices the knife techniques in mid-air.

  Unconsciously, one night has passed.

  Xiao He rubbed his eyes open, and saw the young lady still holding that book, reading. He couldn't help but furrow his brow, with a hint of heartache and blame, saying: "Miss, what book is so good to read? Worth your while to stay up all night?"

  Lu Xiaofeng came back to his senses from the book and said: "Very interesting, Xianxiaoming's collection of books still has good stuff."

  Xiaohe gave up arguing with the young lady about staying up late and changed the subject, "You've read for a whole night, I'll help you wash up and go to sleep now."

  Lu Xiaofeng reluctantly closed the book in his hand, nodded, "Okay, I'll listen to Xiaohe and go to sleep." Anyway, there was plenty of time, and he estimated that even if she took the book away now, no one would object.

  But unfortunately, plans never catch up with changes.

  Lu Xiaofeng had just removed his hairpins and washed his face under Xiaohe's service, and hadn't even had time to change into clean clothes when Yang Ma arrived.

  "What? Bai Yutang is here again?" How dare he come again?!

  "Miss——" Xiao He reminded her on one side.

  Lu Xiaofeng suppressed the anger in his heart and put on a smile. "Yang Ma, you go tell him that I don't want to see him."

  "Mr. Bai said there's a case and he wants to ask for the young lady's help." Yang Ma is now full of question marks, can this young lady really handle cases?

  If he dares to offend Lü Xiaofeng, he will definitely be given a severe lesson.

  However, regarding the case, Lu Xiaofeng found it inconvenient to lose his temper and could only say to Yiniang: "Change into men's clothing and go out."

  "Yes."

  Yang's mother looked at Lu Xiao Feng in amazement, unable to speak as he changed into men's clothing and his demeanor also changed.

  When Lu Xiaofeng arrived at the living room, there were two more people inside besides Bai Yutang: an old woman and a young man.

  "Bai Yutang, you're really good at getting me into trouble." Lu Xiaofeng said with a double meaning.

  Bai Yutang smiled and pointed at the mother and son, introducing them to her: "This is Liu Dama and her child, with whom our family has business dealings."

  Lu Xiaofeng simply nodded and said: "Good day to both of you."

  "Please, sir, avenge my brother's injustice..." The young man suddenly knelt down on the ground and kowtowed to Lu Xiaofeng with a loud thud.

  Xiao Feng was startled.

  Xiaohe immediately pulled his own young lady back a few steps.

  Bai Yutang hastily stepped forward and helped the young man up, saying: "Brother Liu, don't be like this, sit down and talk, you'll scare her like this."

  "Yes, sit down and talk slowly." Lu Xiaofeng hastily agreed.

  The young man with the surname Liu finally sat down and slowly told the whole story from beginning to end.

  Lu Xiaofeng listened attentively, then fell silent.

  Isn't this the plot of Double Puncture? How did it end up here with her? And there are quite a few characters entering and exiting... Could it be that this butterfly, who crossed over from another world, triggered a corresponding butterfly effect?

  What is the positive energy of historical revisionism?

  "The coroner has examined the body multiple times but yielded nothing, yet my brother's death remains unexplained. Now our family's property is also being occupied by that wicked woman..." The young man continued to speak.

  Lu Xiaofeng suddenly opened the folding fan in his hand, raised it to stop him from continuing to speak, and said: "Let the executioner shave off your brother's hair on top of his head and inspect it. There should be seven inches of steel nails entering the brain. The criminal must have first used anesthetics to make the victim unconscious, and then used a hammer to nail the steel nails into the top of the head, killing him."

  As soon as these words came out, everyone in the hall was shocked.

  Lu Xiaofeng said to Bai Yutang, "I've already told you how to verify the method, do I need to go with you in person again?"

  Bai Yutang put away his surprise and cupped his fists in respect: "I dare not trouble you further, Miss. The rest will be handled by Bai himself."

  "I advise you to set off as soon as possible and return, in case the thief destroys the evidence." Better safe than sorry.

  "Bai sent the book ahead of time, guessing it wouldn't arrive on schedule and would cause unnecessary trouble."

  "That's for the best."

  "It was an emergency, so we took our leave first."

  "Be careful all the way."

  Bai Yutang walked two steps out and suddenly turned back to ask: "Miss, when will you return to the capital?"

  Lu Xiaofeng laughed and shook his fan, jokingly saying: "Could it be that Bai Wuchang intends to act as a bodyguard again and send me off once more?"

  "Bai Mouyi cannot decline."

  "Alright, I don't need your services, White Five. Besides, I'm heading to Yangzhou first, and my return to the capital is still uncertain."

  "Bai Mou excused himself first."

  Lu Xiaofeng returned the courtesy with a bow and a fist bump.

  Watching them come and go in a hurry, Xiao He couldn't help but take a few steps forward and ask, "Miss, what does 'Bai Daxia' mean?"

  "I want to repay the kindness, as the saying goes 'a drop of water in return for a gushing spring'. Once this case is settled, he will owe me a favor. Letting Jinmao Shu bear the burden of others' kindness without repaying it would make him a man with thorns all over his body."

  "Why didn't the young lady respond?"

  "Is my favor so easily repaid? Moreover —" She still had an unsettled debt from before, no rush!

  Xiaohe really wanted to say that his own young lady's eyes were not fierce, but that would be too conscience-stricken.

  What did Bai Daxia do to offend Miss again?

  What? Really?

  Xiaohe suddenly broke out in a cold sweat.

  "Xiaohe, what's wrong with you? You're still shivering in this weather?" Lu Xiaofeng looked puzzled, could it be a heat stroke?

  "Miss..." Xiaohuo immediately knelt down on the ground, "I was wrong, please punish me, Miss." Although Miss is such a clever person, even if she reacts a bit slower in some aspects, after careful consideration, she will definitely get to the truth.

  Miss can't be pointed out, but she can't deny her mistake.

  Deceiving one's lord is a great sin!

  Lü Xiao Feng's hand, which was holding the fan, paused in mid-air. Then he burst out laughing and shook his head, saying: "Get up! You're not the first to make a mistake for personal reasons, nor will you be the last. Anyway, I didn't suffer any losses, so there's no need to punish you."

  Xiaohe looked up at her in a daze, was it for personal feelings that she made a mistake? Was there no loss?

  Miss, have you gone to some strange place?

  "Get up, some things can be handled by just the two of us behind closed doors, no need to make a big show in front of everyone."

  Xiaohe got up from the ground and quietly followed the young lady back to their residence.

  As soon as they returned to Linshui Xuan, Xiaohe automatically and involuntarily knelt down on the ground again.

  Lu Xiaofeng sat in the chair, looking at her and sighed softly, saying: "As for me, I know you admire Xian Zhao, so naturally you will be curious about the place where he grew up. Moreover, Jin Maoshu's tireless misleading of the Xian family, you at most played a role of pushing the boat with the current, default accomplice. In terms of fault, you can only be considered an accessory to the crime, I really don't need to be angry with you."

  "But," said Xiaohuo hesitantly, "I've tarnished Miss's reputation."

  "This doesn't matter to me." Anyway, I won't be getting married either.

  "How could it be?" Xiao He couldn't help but argue back.

  "This thing is hard to explain to you, anyway, just know that I'm not mad at you because of this."

  Although Xiaohe felt that her mistress had misunderstood the direction again, she also couldn't bear to say out loud what was on her mind, so she could only acknowledge the reason given by her mistress.

  The path of a grown man chasing his wife seems uncertain, and Xiao He couldn't help but secretly sympathize with the certain noble cat in Kaifeng.