“So it’s Chu Chuyan’s little brother!” Zheng Dan no longer felt as nervous as before. They were all from Brightmoon City, and Chu Chuyan had been her classmate. She viewed Chu Youzhao just like her own little brother, so she wasn’t anywhere near as nervous as when she had met the Sang clan.
However, Zu An shivered and quickly tugged on Zheng Dan’s clothes. Zheng Dan’s face immediately went red as she exclaimed, “What are you doing? Chu Youzhao is about to come in!”
Her meaning was apparent. I wouldn’t mind at all if you tried to take off my clothes at a different time, but your little brother-in-law is about to come in! This is completely inappropriate!
Zu An knew that she had misunderstood him when he saw her strange expression. He quickly exclaimed, “Your clothes!”
She looked like Chu Chuyan in the eyes of others right now. It was enough to fool the Sang clan, but there was no way her own little sister wouldn’t be able to tell. Chu Youzhao was always in contact with her older sister too, and obviously knew that she wasn’t in the capital right now.
Zheng Dan also reacted to what was happening. She didn’t know why her appearance had changed and just thought that others might question things if she wore Chu Chuyan’s clothes.
She said with a charming smile, “Let’s do this again next time when no one is watching.” She then darted behind the screen to change into her own clothes.
Zu An felt his heart pound. Zheng Dan really knew how to turn him on! She really knew what men wanted. But he wasn’t in the mood to think about such things right now. He quickly moved over to the entrance to buy Zheng Dan time.
“Big sis…” Chu Youzhao had been running too quickly and rammed right into Zu An. She blushed and quickly took a step back, exclaiming, “Stupid brother-in-law, did you do that on purpose?!”
Zu An rubbed her head and said, “It’s your fault for being so impatient.” Then, he nodded toward the bright, tanned-skinned young lady next to her. “It looks like Qinghe came as well.”
That was actually already a no-brainer, because the two of them always stuck together. It would be stranger if she hadn’t come with Chu Youzhao.
“Greetings, big bro Zu.” Murong Qinghe smiled bashfully. She was actually a tough little girl in the military, but she couldn’t help but become a bit reserved when she was in front of her big brother Chu’s family.
“Huh? Where is my big sis?” Chu Youzhao got on her tiptoes and looked over Zu An’s shoulders.
Zu An asked, sounding confused, “What do you mean?”
Chu Youzhao tried to squeeze through beneath his armpits. “I saw the Sang clan’s people outside. They said big sis was here!”
Murong Qinghe had been about to subconsciously follow her, but she was too embarrassed to go past another man’s body. She stood in place with a distressed expression.
Fortunately, Zu An quickly opened the door. “What big sister, little brother? How could your big sister possibly be here?”
“I guess you’re right.” Chu Youzhao had actually also been confused. After all, she knew that her big sister should still be in Brightmoon City, hard-pressed from all the work. Why would she be here? But Sang Hong wasn’t so easily fooled.
Her eyes suddenly moved toward the screen next to her. There was a light blue dress there. She asked with a smile. “Big sis, is it really you?” However, when she ran over and saw who it was, she jumped in alarm. “Why are you here?” she asked.
Zheng Dan walked out with a smile, replying, “Who else did young master Chu think it was?” She snuck Zu An a look. Hmph, you didn’t even think to stop him? What if I didn’t finish changing yet and was seen by another man? Aren’t you the one who would be suffering a loss then?
Chu Youzhao’s crossdressing was the Chu clan’s greatest secret. Zheng Dan obviously didn’t know about it.
Chu Youzhao was puzzled. Then, she suddenly realized something. She turned around and looked at the two of them with suspicion, asking, “Why are you here? And why were you hiding all secretly behind the screen like that?”
Zheng Dan said calmly, “I accidentally spilled some tea on my clothes, which made them wet. That’s why I went behind the screen to sort it out.”
Chu Youzhao’s eyes moved across her body. Her clothes don’t seem to be wet at all… But maybe she already wiped it dry…
She snickered and said, “Miss Zheng… Ah, I mean Madam Sang, you’re already a married woman, but you’re sorting out your clothes in another man’s room. Won’t that create rumors?”
Zheng Dan’s eyes twitched when she heard the words ‘Madam Sang’. This little brother was just as sharp-tongued as a girl! He really knew how to prick one where it hurt.
She replied without batting an eyelid, “Who said I was alone? I… came with my father-in-law and sister-in-law. It was only because I had to clean this up that I stayed for a bit longer. As for those other things, your big sis and I were fellow students, and your brother-in-law was my teacher, a well-known upright gentleman. Why would I have to worry about such things?”
Chu Youzhao’s breathing briefly stopped. She had actually been happy when she heard Zheng Dan praise her brother-in-law, but then she had called him an upright gentleman… This girl is quite pretty, but it seems she might be a bit blind.
Zu An coughed and said, “Enough already. Miss Zheng is an old acquaintance from Brightmoon City after all, but you’re coming at her like she’s some criminal. Isn’t that a bit rude?”
Even though everything did make sense, Chu Youzhao just felt that something was off. She suddenly pointed at the dress behind the screen, asking, “Then why is my big sis’ dress there?”
Zheng Dan’s expression changed. She really had no explanation for that.
But fortunately, Zu An’s mind moved quickly. He quickly said seriously, “Your big sis and I have been apart for too long. It was so hard in the dungeon too, and the only thing that kept me going was your older sister. When I came back out, I could only bring out some of her old clothes to reminisce, so it would feel as if she were still at my side.”
“Brother-in-law…” Chu Youzhao’s eyes turned red. She thought to herself, So brother-in-law actually loved big sis so deeply… I even suspected him, what’s wrong with me?
Murong Qinghe had a strange look on her face. She had grown up among soldiers, so she often heard about things they did. She knew that such men were often full of energy, and when they were forced to hold it in for too long, they would have no choice but to settle it themselves. They especially loved to use women’s clothing…
Is that what big brother Zu was doing? Her tanned skin began to turn a bit red when she thought of that.
When Zu An saw the two little girls blush, one from envy, the other from embarrassment, he felt grateful that his reactions were fast enough.
You have successfully trolled Zheng Dan for +55 +55 +55…
However, those Rage points woke Zu An up. His devotion toward Chu Chuyan had ended up offending another woman. He immediately explained quietly, “I only did that to get us out of this sticky situation; I missed you a lot when I was in the dungeon too!”
But Zheng Dan wasn’t so easily fooled. She replied through ki transmission, “Hah, what did you miss about me?”
“Um…” Zu An immediately replied, “I missed your passionate lips, your soft hands, and…”
“Stop, stop, stop!” Zheng Dan finally couldn’t take it anymore. Even though she was passionate in private, she still couldn’t help but feel embarrassed when she was in front of others. “Since there’s nothing else, then I’ll leave first. I won’t get in the way of your reunion.”
Zheng Dan quickly left, but she was so awkward it looked as if she were running away.
Chu Youzhao couldn’t help but mumble when she left, “The Sang clan’s people are all so ridiculous. They not only brought their daughter over, they even left their widowed daughter-in-law here! What the heck are they trying to do?” She was clearly still brooding over Sang Hong fooling her.
Zu An said with a cough, “Talking about others behind their backs isn’t too fitting for a noble.”
Chu Youzhao harrumphed. “What, are you worried about those vixens just because I said a few things?” She felt as if once her big sis had left, the pretty girls had all suddenly come out to dance around Zu An. She had a mission to be the gatekeeper in her big sis’ place.
Zu An’s breathing momentarily stopped. He knew that it was useless to reason with her at that point, so he could only use ignorance to defeat ignorance. He cried, “Oh my, it’s been so long! Did you miss your brother-in-law to death? Come and give me a hug; let’s see if you’ve grown a bit chubbier since the last time we met!”
Chu Youzhao screamed. Sure enough, her attention was diverted and she hid behind Murong Qinghe, exclaiming. “Bad brother-in-law!”
Zu An had been about to hug her, but he quickly pulled his arms back when he saw Murong Qinghe. He chuckled in embarrassment and remarked, “We’re all men anyway; what’s the big deal with just a hug?”
Murong Qinghe also found it strange, but what she was more worried about was that her big brother Chu had actually put her on the spot! What if his brother-in-law ended up hugging me? Whose fault would that be?
Chu Youzhao’s expression was a bit strange. Stupid brother-in-law already knows I’m… But she obviously couldn’t say anything in front of Murong Qinghe. She quickly changed the topic. “Brother-in-law, hurry and tell me about what happened in the dungeon!”
Even Murong Qinghe was now staring at him with interest. After all, only the few survivors knew what had really happened in the dungeon! Maybe the clan leaders might have picked up some rumors, but juniors like them had absolutely no idea.
“Ah, about that, it’s a really long story…” Zu An pulled over a seat and sat down. He slowly told them about his encounters since the trial.
Of course, he left out the crucial details about King Qi Manor’s deathsworn soldiers and the emperor’s split soul. But the more it became that way, the more twists and turns appeared in the story, the more thrilling it became. The two young ladies were excited and shocked.
“Brother-in-law, I didn’t expect you to have encountered so much danger!”
“The Shi clan are really despicable.”
“Those two Gu clan brothers are even more hateful.”
…
Murong Qinghe’s expression was a bit more conflicted. To a certain extent, they were under King Qi’s faction. That was why, whether it was the Shi clan or the Gu clan, what those clans had done was actually beneficial to them. If not for Zu An, King Qi might have already risen to the throne.
Her big brother Chu had really forgotten about everything now that her brother-in-law was here! Sigh, forget it, I’m going to follow big brother Chu wherever he goes.
Then, Chu Youzhao grabbed Zu An’s arm and pulled him toward the door. “Brother-in-law, let’s go! I’m going to treat you to a feast at the Moon Restaurant to congratulate you on your safe return!”