Chapter 178: Visiting the Door

Chapter 178: Visiting the Door

There was nothing else to say on the journey here.

The only thing worth mentioning was that Zhaodi had woken up.

Zhaodi was a name—the name of the child.

For most of the journey, she had mostly been in a dazed state, and it was only after Su Mo continuously channeled his energy to treat her that her heart meridian injury gradually healed.

After that, she was awake more often than she was asleep.

During a rest stop, Yang Xiaoyun asked for her name.

Her family name was Yu—Zhaodi Yu.

This was a very common name during this era.

Zhaodi was a homophone for "inviting a younger brother" (zhao di).

Indeed, she had a younger brother, three years younger, who had also been killed by the Guan Chuan Five Ghosts.

Though she was mostly in a dazed state during the journey, she was not completely unaware of her surroundings.

Knowing that Su Mo and the others had avenged her family, she became very obedient and docile after waking up.

However, after such a significant trauma, she occasionally showed signs of wariness and fear, and often woke up in panic during her sleep.

She needed someone to care for her properly.

Su Mo and Yang Xiaoyun also discussed what to do with the child.

Everyone in the village had been killed, and Su Mo had no experience with children.

They considered finding a good family to raise her.

But seeing the child’s frequent startled reactions and how she would often wake up in panic, they felt hesitant.

"What if we keep her at the escort agency for now?"

Yang Xiaoyun said, "She's an orphaned child, and it would be hard to trust anyone with her. Adding another mouth to feed at the Ziyang Escort Agency wouldn’t be a big deal."

"Alright."

Su Mo nodded. "Then let her stay at the agency for a while. Uncle Fu has been urging us to marry, and Uncle Yang has been pressing us to start a family.

"This can be considered as getting used to life with a child in advance."

Yang Xiaoyun’s face immediately turned red, she gave Su Mo a sideways glance, turned her head away, but couldn’t help but smile again.

"I don’t really like the name Zhaodi. We should give her a new name later."

Yang Xiaoyun nodded. "I'll leave it to you."

After this small episode, it wasn’t long before they arrived at Sunset City.

Before even entering the gate, Su Mo looked at the Guan Chuan Five Ghosts, whose lower body was already a skeleton from being dragged behind the horse.

The person had already been dead for quite some time.

Having been dragged all the way from the village to Sunset City, his martial arts had long been wasted. It would be unreasonable for him to still be alive.

Upon reaching the city gate, Su Mo reined in his horse and had Liu Mo drag the body over.

Su Mo, with a light tap of his foot, leapt into the air, ascending swiftly before tying the rope to the grand banner of the Fallen Phoenix Alliance. Only then did he descend back to the ground.

The guards were momentarily taken aback, looking up and then at Su Mo, whom they recognized.

Surprised, they quickly asked, “Chief Escort Su, what are you doing…?”

“Have someone inform Alliance Leader Wei. This man was one of the Five Ghosts of Guanchuan. The other four have already descended into the underworld, and this last one was dragged from Zhongfu City to Sunset City.”

“These Five Ghosts committed countless atrocities, including murder and village massacres. Their crimes were heinous, and they were extremely wicked.

“Write a notice and hang it on this man’s body to warn the public and alert the surrounding regions!”

The guard nodded repeatedly, saying, “Yes, yes, I understand. I’ll have someone report it immediately. Thank you for your efforts, Chief Escort Su, in removing a major threat from our territory.”

Su Mo waved his hand and led his group into the city.

It was noon, and though the weather was cold, the streets were still bustling with activity.

Su Mo and the others dismounted, leaving Zhaodi on the horse, her small hands gripping the saddle tightly, afraid of falling.

She looked up at the lively Sunset City with a mixture of fear and childlike curiosity.

Without delay, they made their way straight back to the escort agency.

As soon as they appeared at the street corner, the guards at the entrance saw them clearly and immediately went to report.

“Chief Escort is back! Deputy Chief Escort is back!”

Before Su Mo and the others reached the door, it was suddenly flung wide open.

Uncle Fu, Xiao Chuan, and a group of young men and women from the agency all came out to welcome them.

“Young Master is back!”

“Chief Escort, Deputy Chief Escort!”

“Isn’t this Leader Liu?”

Uncle Fu and the others greeted them, with some recognizing Liu Mo, and naturally exchanged pleasantries.

However, Su Mo’s expression was grave, and Yang Xiaoyun didn’t seem to cheer up either.

Seeing this, Uncle Fu knew something was troubling him and dismissed most of the crowd before asking in a low voice:

“Did you meet with Yang Yizhi?”

Su Mo had rushed to Haoran Academy to meet Yang Yizhi and hand over the Marriage Register.

Now that he had returned with a somber expression, it was clear that something had gone wrong.

Su Mo let out a sigh, “I met him, but it ended in another unhappy parting.”

“This…”

Uncle Fu glanced at Yang Xiaoyun. "Could it be that you've suffered another grievance?"

Yang Xiaoyun forced a smile. "It's okay, Uncle Fu. At least I still have the Ziyang Escort Agency. I won't end up on the streets."

"Why would you say such a thing?"

Uncle Fu quickly replied, "Young Miss Xiaoyun, the Ziyang Escort Agency is your home. Even if Young Master is as unreasonable as he used to be... there's no way I'd let you suffer, even if it meant going without food myself. My old bones wouldn't allow it!"

"What an ungrateful Yang Yizhi!"

"Back then, what did Master say to him?"

"He also came out of our Ziyang Escort Agency!"

"How can he act like this?"

"This is truly outrageous! Outrageous indeed!"

Uncle Fu was so angry that he stomped his feet repeatedly and urgently asked, "Is he back? Where is he now? I'll go find him and reason with him! Let's see if his Iron Blood Dragon Spear is harder than my old spine!"

He was about to rush out the door.

Su Mo and Yang Xiaoyun quickly stopped him. Yang Xiaoyun helplessly said,

"Uncle Fu, please do calm down. He should currently still be at the Haoran Academy. If you go to the Iron Blood Escort Agency now, you still won't find him."

"Still not back?"

Uncle Fu nodded. "So... what exactly happened?"

Yang Xiaoyun could only explain what had happened, detailing the day they went to the Haoran Academy and how they parted ways with Yang Yizhi on bad terms.

Naturally, she didn’t elaborate on Yang Yizhi’s schemes and various tricks after they returned.

After hearing this, Uncle Fu was so furious that he loudly cursed Yang Yizhi in the courtyard, disregarding Yang Xiaoyun's presence.

Fortunately, Su Mo calmed him down and asked him to prepare hot water for everyone to wash their faces.

Only then did Uncle Fu remember to ask about the origins of the people behind him.

Su Mo introduced them one by one, and after a while, the hot water was brought in.

Su Mo then led everyone to wash their faces, washing away the dust, fatigue, and troubling matters of the journey.

He also asked Uncle Fu to arrange rooms for Liu Mo and the others to rest.

It was the first time for Liu Mo, Fu Hanyuan, and Zhen Xiaoxiao at the escort agency, and everything seemed new to them. The agency staff were also curious about them.

They recognized Liu Mo but were unfamiliar with Fu Hanyuan.

As for Zhen Xiaoxiao... they couldn’t even determine their gender.

It wasn’t until Su Mo asked Uncle Fu to arrange Zhen Xiaoxiao’s room in Miss Yang’s courtyard that Uncle Fu objected.

He said, "If any arrangement is to be made, it should be Su Mo’s room that is placed in Miss Yang’s courtyard."

Yang Xiaoyun’s room should have been arranged in Su Mo’s courtyard.

Su Mo explained with a wry smile that Zhen Xiaoxiao was a girl.

Uncle Fu was taken aback and then sent someone to prepare the room.

Yet, no matter how he looked, she didn’t seem like a typical girl.

After a long journey, it was only fitting to prepare a grand feast in the evening.

Liu Mo, seeing it was still early, greeted Su Mo and said he needed to go out to attend to some business.

Fu Hanyuan also wanted to explore the bustling city of Sunset City.

Naturally, Su Mo did not refuse and allowed them to go together.

Meanwhile, Zhen Xiaoxiao curiously explored the courtyard before following a few maids to her room.

A short while later, the maids approached Su Mo with puzzled expressions.

“Young Master, the sturdy lady who came with you... she doesn’t sleep on the bed.”

“Then where does she sleep?”

“She laid the bedding on the floor and slept there, saying she was too heavy and feared she might break the bed...”

The maids found this unprecedented.

Su Mo waved his hand. “Let her be.”

Zhen Xiaoxiao was unusually heavy. While she could manage to sleep on the bed, there was a real risk she might break it if she rolled over in her sleep.

The maids left looking perplexed.

As for Zhaodi...

After learning about her experiences, Uncle Fu felt compassion, consoled her for a while, and personally arranged a room for her to rest.

After handling these miscellaneous matters upon their return to the escort agency, only Su Mo and Yang Xiaoyun remained in the main hall.

They exchanged glances and smiled simultaneously.

Su Mo clapped his hands, “Alright, that’s it for now. You’ve worked hard on this journey, Xiaoyun. Go rest.”

Just as Yang Xiaoyun was about to speak, she heard hurried footsteps approaching.

In an instant, a servant arrived at the door and bowed with fists clasped.

“Chief Escort, Deputy Chief Escort, there is someone requesting an audience at the door.”

“Who is it?”

“The visitor claims to be Huang Yuan.”

“Huang Yuan...”

Yang Xiaoyun instinctively glanced at Su Mo, who had a faint smile on his lips.

“Please invite him in at once.”

"Yes."

He responded and turned to leave.

Yang Xiaoyun then spoke, "Steward Huang arrived quite promptly."

"I had barely stepped in when he arrived. He’s probably been waiting for us for some time."

Su Mo shook his head and smiled. "It’s still the territory of the Fallen Phoenix Alliance after all. Information spreads much faster here."

The two exchanged a few more pleasantries before Su Mo stood up and led Yang Xiaoyun outside to greet him.

After just a few steps, they saw Huang Yuan, the steward of the city lord’s mansion, whom they had briefly met that night. He was following the young servant while taking in his surroundings at the escort agency as he ambled over.

From a distance, Su Mo clasped his fists in greeting. "It is a great honor that Chief Huang has come in person. I apologize for not welcoming you sooner."

"Not at all, not at all."

Huang Yuan quickly took a couple of small steps forward, a smile spreading across his face as he reached Su Mo. "Chief Su just returned today, and we shouldn’t be troubling you so soon.

"However, the matter of the Five Ghosts of Guanchuan being hanged at the city gate and Zhou Qingchuan being executed by Chief Su as a warning…

"Our master was very pleased with these two matters.

"That’s why he disregarded your journey’s fatigue and asked me to visit as soon as possible.

"I should be the one to apologize for the intrusion."

"Chief Huang, you're too kind."

Huang Yuan nodded immediately and exchanged greetings with Yang Xiaoyun before following Su Mo inside.

As they walked, Huang Yuan smiled and said, "The Ziyang Escort Agency has always been remarkable. Even during its decline, it managed to rise once more. Chief Su, though young, now enjoys great prestige and has grown the agency considerably. It’s truly praiseworthy."

"It is all thanks to the support of my friends in the jianghu. I am merely a junior with shallow roots in the jianghu. What I have today is simply due to good fortune."

Huang Yuan laughed heartily. "Chief Su is too modest. Our young miss speaks highly of you, and even our master holds your reputation in high regard.

"Ordinary matters might be attributed to ‘luck,’ but a reputation in the jianghu cannot be faked."

As they spoke, they arrived inside the main hall.

After seating themselves according to their respective ranks, Su Mo had a servant offer tea to Huang Yuan.

Huang Yuan took a small sip and said, "I hope I’m not imposing, but I’m here today to deliver two letters."

"Two letters?"

"Exactly."

Huang Yuan smiled and took out two letters from his sleeve. "One is from our master. He already knows about the matter in Zhongfu City, so this letter was prepared some time ago. As for the other… it’s even older.

"It is from our young miss in Heavenly Feather City, addressed to you, Chief Su."

"Chief Escort Su, you only made a brief stop in Sunset City before setting off again.

We had no means to deliver the letter and could only keep it temporarily.

Now we have finally found an opportunity to deliver this letter to you.

After reading it, we would appreciate it if you could write a reply, which I can take back and have delivered to the young miss.

Su Mo nodded in understanding, saying, 'Thank you, Manager Huang.'

As he spoke, a servant approached Huang Yuan, took the letter, and handed it to Su Mo.

The two letters were noticeably different; one was quite thick, while the other was very thin.

The thinner one was from Wei Ruhan.

Su Mo casually opened it and, after a quick scan, finished reading it.

He nodded slightly in agreement.

The letter did not mention the Zhongfu City incident, containing only a few words of encouragement. The main point was an invitation for Su Mo to visit the City Lord’s mansion for tea at a convenient time.

Essentially, it was an invitation.

Wei Ruhan wished to meet Su Mo.

However, sending a formal invitation seemed too formal.

Given Wei Ruhan's high status, a simple message would usually suffice.

But for Su Mo, a simple message felt too casual.

Thus, he specially wrote a letter, showing proper respect without being overly formal.

Su Mo nodded, passed the letter to Yang Xiaoyun to read, and then opened the one from Wei Ziyi.

This letter contained far more content.

It first expressed her frustration about Su Mo and Yang Xiaoyun not stopping by last time.

This referred to the trip back from Wufangji, when they crossed the Hui River and encountered Xu Lu, discovering that someone harbored ill intentions toward the Marriage Register.

As a result, even though they passed through Heavenly Feather City, they didn’t have time to stop and had to leave directly.

This had clearly left the young miss of the Fallen Phoenix Alliance somewhat disgruntled.

The rest of the letter was filled with trivial matters, with not a single word about the affairs within the Fallen Phoenix Alliance.

It was evident that she still remembered the previous agreements with Su Mo.

Su Mo smiled knowingly and passed this letter to Yang Xiaoyun to read as well. He then called for a servant to bring writing materials.

While the servant was preparing the materials, Su Mo asked Huang Yuan,

'How is the Grand Master of the Alliance's health now?'

'Alas... he is still relatively well,' Huang Yuan replied with a sigh, glanced at Su Mo, and smiled."

"Since Chief Escort Su is not an outsider, I will speak frankly with you.

"As long as the situation within the Fallen Phoenix Alliance hasn't been completely settled, the Grand Master of the Alliance won't be able to rest."

Su Mo nodded slightly and, after a moment's thought, said,

"The Grand Master of the Alliance has invited me through his letter. Please inform Chief Steward Huang that I will visit in a few days."

"Very well."

Huang Yuan heartily laughed upon hearing this. "One of the things that has made the Grand Master happiest in recent years is the emergence of a talented young hero like you in Sunset City. With your words, he will surely be delighted."

By this time, the attendant had brought the ink and brush. Su Mo chatted casually with Huang Yuan while writing with the brush.

With just a few swift strokes, Su Mo put down his brush.

Huang Yuan looked puzzled, wondering why the reply was so brief.

Su Mo handed the letter to Yang Xiaoyun, who immediately chuckled upon reading it.

"Aren't you worried she might come back to settle scores?"

"She is no ordinary person now; she is one of the leaders of the Fallen Phoenix Alliance and also the deputy mayor of Heavenly Feather City.

"It's not that simple to return."

Su Mo smiled and, after drying the ink, asked Huang Yuan, "Chief Steward Huang, would you like to have a look?"

"I cannot do that."

Huang Yuan waved his hands repeatedly. "If I read the private letter between you and the young miss, how could she let me off?"

"Very well."

Su Mo nodded, put the letter into the envelope, sealed it, and handed it to Huang Yuan.

"Then I must trouble you, Chief Steward Huang."

"Not at all. I will take my leave and await Chief Escort Su's arrival."

Su Mo and Yang Xiaoyun personally saw Huang Yuan off.

"Xiao Mo, what do you think Wei Ruhan wants to talk to you about?"

Yang Xiaoyun asked in a low voice.

"Probably to convey a stance."

Su Mo smiled. "We'll know when the time comes. Xiao Yun, come with me when we go."

"Alright."

Yang Xiaoyun agreed and suddenly pulled Su Mo along. Confused, Su Mo found himself at Yang Xiaoyun's room door, where she promptly pushed him inside.

Yang Xiaoyun looked around to make sure no one was there before entering herself. She even peeked outside again to ensure no one was around before closing and locking the door.

Turning around, she saw Su Mo staring at her in shock, his hand on his chest, eyes wide with tension.

"Xiao Yun... in broad daylight, are you... planning to... take advantage of me!?"