He continued to hold the little girl with his right arm while his left hand fished out his phone. He turned off airplane mode and called Miss Wang, thinking she should still be on her way to Lin'an and her phone likely hadn't been confiscated by her family yet.
Sure enough, the call connected after just one ring:
"Hello?"
"Wanrou, I picked up a little girl on the battlefield who claims to be from the Fufeng Xie clan."
"Get to the point."
"I need to confirm her identity." Cheng Jinyang said helplessly. "Listen to what she says."
He held the phone to Xie Lingjiang's ear, "Little sister, can you say it again?"
"Xi Cheng Shen Bo, yuan chu Luo Yi." Xie Lingjiang said reluctantly.
"In the time of King Xuan of Zhou, the fiefdom was granted to Shen Bo in Xie, later becoming the family surname." Wang Wanrou translated. "She's identifying her family name, Xie."
"Not inferior to Donghai, how could one recognize Yan Hui?" Xie Lingjiang continued, somewhat surprised.
"Xie Anshi's grace and elegance are not inferior to those of Donghai; Xie Renzu could stand with Confucius, how could one recognize Yan Hui?" Wang Wanrou responded. "Anshi and Renzu are both from the lineage of Xie Deping. She's acknowledging her lineage, so you are the daughter of Xie Wuyi?"
"Sister, you're correct. He is my father." Xie Lingjiang said softly.
"Jinyang, she is indeed from the Fufeng Xie clan," Wang Wanrou confirmed.
"Alright then," Cheng Jinyang sighed, thinking to himself how these aristocratic families could be so abnormal, "I'll send her back to the Xie family estate."
"Oh, there's one more thing," Wang Wanrou suddenly said. "Cui Jinqi ran away."
"What?"
"This afternoon, before the Qinghe Cui clan evacuated, she left the estate on her own. No one knows where she went," Wang Wanrou said calmly. "The Cui clan urgently contacted me, but I have no idea either."
"Check to see if she went to your Shendu Cheng clan estate."
Cheng Jinyang reluctantly agreed, feeling utterly defeated.
Good grief, was it really necessary to abandon your family and come to Jiankang just because I didn't answer your call?
After hanging up, he quickly called back to the estate.
Moments later, the response from the estate shocked him.
Just a few hours ago, Cui Jinqi had arrived at the Shendu Cheng clan estate. Upon hearing that he had taken his Tianluo troops to Jiangning District to suppress the rebellion, she left without a word!
Could this fool really be heading to the battlefield to find me?!
Fortunately, the estate recognized her importance. Knowing he was unreachable due to the battle, they assigned a clansman to follow her discreetly to ensure her safety.
He quickly contacted the clansman and was even more astonished to learn her location.
She had already reached the outskirts of Jiangning District! Did she know how chaotic it was there? Did she know that the Hongnong Yang clan had completely abandoned their estate and evacuated the entire city in advance?
Instructing the main troops to take Xie Lingjiang ahead, Cheng Jinyang swiftly changed direction and contacted the clansman again.
Rushing to the location, he saw from a distance the clansman trying to stop Cui Jinqi from proceeding, while she impatiently tried to bypass her.
"Miss Cui, you really can't go any further! The front is the battlefield, and if anything happens to you, the clan leader won't be able to answer to the Qinghe Cui clan!"
"Then get your clan leader to come see me!" Cui Jinqi angrily retorted.
"Alright." Cheng Jinyang descended gracefully. "Yayun, you did well. I'll take it from here; you can return to the estate."
The clansman nodded in relief and quickly departed.
Cui Jinqi glared at him, trying her best to look fierce.
However, her overly pretty and cute appearance, combined with her red-rimmed eyes, made her attempt at ferocity more endearing, like a "cute dragon roaring."
"Cheng Jinyang!" She walked over quickly, her footsteps heavy. "Look at what you've done!"
"What did I do?" As soon as Cheng Jinyang heard her tone, aggressive yet with a hint of nervousness, he realized that Cui Xiaoniang was trying to trick him. Otherwise, why would she use such vague words like "look at what you've done"?
"You know very well what you did!" Cui Jinqi said angrily.
Cheng Jinyang was silent for a moment, thinking that she must have sensed something, though he wasn't sure where he might have slipped up.
"Since I was discharged, I indeed haven't contacted you promptly," he hesitated, pretending not to understand her meaning. "But that's because I've been very busy lately..."
"I'm not talking about that." Cui Jinqi grabbed his collar, trying to pull him towards her—but she couldn't move him at all, so she had to lean her face in close. Staring straight into his eyes, she seemed to be trying to discern if he was lying:
"Did you spy on something you shouldn't have?"
"We should talk while walking. It's not the front line here, but it's still not very safe." Cheng Jinyang grabbed the hand that was holding his collar and squeezed it hard, making Cui Xiaoniang release her grip in pain.
"Let go of me!" Cui Jinqi struggled desperately as he dragged her forward.
"You really shouldn't stay in Jiankang City." Ignoring her resistance, Cheng Jinyang continued dragging her forward, patiently explaining, "The Qinghe Cui family left a few hours ago. Why did you stay behind? Do you know your family is going crazy looking for you? They've even called Miss Wang."
"It's all because of you, you bastard!" Unable to break free, Cui Xiaoniang resorted to hitting him hard.
"For me?" Cheng Jinyang brushed off her hand, impatiently saying, "Don't flatter yourself, Cui Jinqi!"
"Do you think I'm interested in your trivial matters?" He grabbed Cui Jinqi's collar and pulled her towards him, shouting, "War is not a game! Do you realize how foolish it is to leave your family and stay here on your own?"
"When we get back to Lin'an, I'll take you directly to the Qinghe Cui family estate and have your parents ground you!"
At first, Cui Xiaoniang was stunned by his shouting, then her eyes reddened, and she began to cry:
"I'm not... If not because of you spying on my memories... and not answering my calls... (sniffling) Those are things I don't want others to know about. Why did you spy on me..."
She clung to Cheng Jinyang's wrist, sobbing weakly like an innocent girl being bullied by a thug. Cheng Jinyang exhaled a long breath, saying:
"Shut up and get on."
"Get on what?" Cui Xiaoniang asked, tearfully.
"I'll carry you." Cheng Jinyang, realizing that scolding her wouldn't change the current situation, suppressed his frustration and said, "I'll take you back to my family estate for now."
"Okay." Cui Xiaoniang wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned against him.
Supporting her with his hands, Cheng Jinyang prepared to use his powers to take off. Just as his boots left the ground, he suddenly halted.
In front of them, a middle-aged scholar with an unfamiliar face emerged from around the corner, blocking their way.
"Where is Xie Lingjiang?" the man asked calmly, his tone indifferent.
However, the intensity of the aura emanating from him made both Cheng Jinyang and Cui Jinqi's expressions change immediately.
This intensity... at least fifth-grade. No, fourth-grade!
"May I ask who you are?" Cheng Jinyang inquired cautiously.
"Xie Yongye," the middle-aged scholar replied blandly. "Where have you taken my niece?"
"He's from the Duke of Wuchang's side!" Cui Jinqi whispered fearfully into Cheng Jinyang's ear.
Cheng Jinyang took a deep breath, and before he could respond, another voice came from behind:
"Old Xie, the Duke wants to know why you..."
Cheng Jinyang turned sharply, meeting the gaze of the approaching Shen Shiju, who frowned immediately:
"Why is Xie Guyan's son here?"
"The Duke mentioned him just yesterday." Xie Yongye said coldly. "Are you taking him and the Cui family girl back?"
"No need," Shen Shiju sighed. "The Duke has personally come with his men."
"They're right behind us."