Jiang Huailu exclaimed in astonishment, while Xie Qingxuan, never one to shy away from drama, stretched out her hand toward him. “I won, come on, hand over the bet.”
Reluctantly, Jiang Huailu removed the jade thumb ring from his finger and placed it in Xie Qingxuan’s hand.
Xie Ren walked over with a foolish grin, asking, “What were you betting on?”
Xie Qingxuan pocketed the jade thumb ring and turned to Xie Ren with a smile. “I bet that our Brother Ren would definitely be able to bring her out.”
“Of course, just look at who I am,” Xie Ren replied smugly.
Xie Qingxuan patted his shoulder. “When Big Brother arrives later, you can answer him just like that.” After all, it had nothing to do with her.
Xie Ren finally caught on and cried out, “Xie Qingxuan, you betrayed me again! She already saw through me, and I was just about to take her over. You two-faced traitor!”
Hearing this, Xie Qingxuan and Jiang Huailu turned to look at Qiao Yin in perfect unison, displaying remarkable coordination.
If it were anyone else, being stared at like that or left out of their casual conversation might have felt awkward, but not Qiao Yin.
Having been the laughingstock of the city for nearly four years, her skin had grown thick enough to withstand anything.
She waved her hand, pointing at the jade thumb ring in Xie Qingxuan’s hand, and smiled. “Shouldn’t I get half of that bet?”
Xie Qingxuan’s eyes lit up—this future sister-in-law was interesting!
Xie Qingxuan stepped forward, linking arms with Qiao Yin, and asked, “You recognized Xie Ren? How did you figure it out?”
Her voice was sweet, her smile charming, and Qiao Yin couldn’t help but want to pinch her little cheeks.
“Can I say that as soon as he opened his mouth, I knew it wasn’t him?”
“Haha, no wonder you’re the woman who made the iron tree bloom. Truly extraordinary, truly extraordinary.”
After laughing heartily, Xie Qingxuan stretched her hand out toward Jiang Huailu again.
“Quick, quick, hand it over.”
Jiang Huailu pulled the jade pendant from his waist and tossed it to Xie Qingxuan, then turned to scold Xie Ren. “Xie Ren, oh Xie Ren, you’ve made this Crown Prince lose big. You owe me compensation!”
Xie Ren protested loudly, “What does this have to do with me?”
Xie Qingxuan stuffed the jade pendant into Qiao Yin’s hand. “I made two bets with the Crown Prince—one on whether Xie Ren could bring you out, and another on whether you’d see through his disguise. This one’s for you.”
Qiao Yin didn’t refuse. She accepted the jade pendant and curtsied toward Jiang Huailu. “Then I’ll thank Your Highness for the reward.”
“It’s only right, consider it a gift for meeting you.”
Jiang Huailu was easygoing and didn’t put on airs as the Crown Prince. Truly, birds of a feather flock together.
The people around Xie Yu’an were just as easy to get along with as he was.
Seeing them all chatting away, Xie Ren grew anxious and tried to pull Qiao Yin away.
He had driven the carriage quickly; if he took her to the General’s residence now, there would still be time.
“Let’s go, Miss Qiao. I’ll take you to see my big brother.”
Qiao Yin brushed his hand away, her eyes wide with innocence. “Go where? I’m not going.”
Xie Ren was completely dumbfounded: …
“Aren’t you looking for my big brother?”
Qiao Yin didn’t want to leave. She had been worried about finding someone to ask about Xie Yu’an’s past, and she wasn’t about to miss such a perfect opportunity.
“Didn’t Sister Qingxuan say that General Xie would be coming over later?”
Xie Qingxuan looked at Xie Ren’s stiff expression and burst out laughing. “Look at his face—he’s clearly scared. Xie Ren, you’re afraid, aren’t you?”
“Afraid? What am I afraid of? He’s pretended to be me before too.”Xie Ren stiffened his neck and spoke defiantly, but his hands quickly removed the indigo robe he was wearing over his clothes.
Qiao Yin was quite surprised. “Xie Yu’an pretended to be you?”
Xie Ren immediately puffed out his chest like a proud rooster again. “Exactly! Five years ago, Xie Yu’an pretended to be me to join the army.”
Qiao Yin was astonished once more. “Pretended to be you to join the army? I heard it was decided by drawing lots that he would go to the army?”
Seeing Qiao Yin’s keen interest, Xie Qingxuan pulled her to sit on a stone bench in the pavilion and explained slowly:
“That’s all just rumors. My eldest brother is the firstborn of the family. He carries heavy responsibilities, and the elders in the clan are strict with him. They never allowed him to participate in any dangerous activities. Learning martial arts was only for self-defense—how could they ever let him join the army?”
Jiang Huailu continued, “Five years ago, the Western Rong breached Lintai County in the western frontier, burning, killing, and looting, leaving the people there in misery. Meanwhile, the generals in the court were stationed in the northern and southern borders and couldn’t provide support. Seeing the court in crisis, A-Yu couldn’t sit still anymore…”
Xie Ren, fired up with passion, eagerly took over: “That’s when I covered for him! My brother told me to pretend to be him and stay at home. Oh, I nearly suffocated from boredom back then. I had to study, write essays, review piles of account books, and attend all sorts of meetings with the clan’s stewards—big and small. There was so much to do, I was utterly exhausted. I couldn’t even last two days before I was exposed. A few of the old clan elders were so furious their beards practically bristled. Just thinking about it makes me laugh, haha—”
“But thankfully, my brother returned safely a year later, having accomplished great feats. Otherwise…” Xie Ren clicked his tongue, not daring to imagine the alternative.
Qiao Yin listened intently. So Xie Yu’an had such a rebellious side? She had always thought he was naturally this steady and composed.
Come to think of it, they seemed to share quite a bit of fate.
When she first transmigrated, she was in Lintai County. The bandits who captured her were taking advantage of the chaos caused by the war to loot and pillage.
“What was the name of the army General Xie joined? The Black Armor Army?”
“Yes, it was the Black Armor Army. Four years ago, A-Yu led the Black Armor Army straight into the heart of the Western Rong territory and recaptured Lintai County.”
Really?
It was the Black Armor Army that had wiped out those bandits back then.
If the System hadn’t forced her to rush to the capital to pursue Lu Jinzhi, she might have met Xie Yu’an four years ago.
“He’s coming, he’s coming!”
Xie Ren suddenly cried out in panic, jumping around as he searched for a place to hide. But the pavilion was small, with no real cover—anyone outside could see everything inside at a glance.
Qiao Yin looked up and saw Xie Yu’an, dressed in white robes, walking expressionlessly and purposefully toward the pavilion along the path they had just taken. Even from a distance, she could sense his intimidating aura.
Xie Qingxuan egged him on, “If you don’t want to get caught by big brother, your only option is to jump into the water and swim to the other shore.”
Jiang Huailu, for reasons unknown, chimed in, “I’ll cover for you. Go ahead and jump.”
Hearing this, Xie Ren actually lifted his foot, ready to leap into the lake. Qiao Yin quickly spoke up to stop him.
“Is there really a need to panic like this?”
Never mind how wide or deep the lake was—it was late autumn, and the water would be freezing.
“Why don’t I just go and distract him instead?”
Qiao Yin’s words were like a last-minute pardon for a prisoner on the execution block, just as the blade was about to fall. Xie Ren clasped his hands together in gratitude, nearly moved to tears.
“Sister-in-law! From now on, your little brother is counting on you!”