Brother Ye!
At this moment, everyone in the hall was truly shocked!
How many people in the imperial capital could be addressed as "brother" by An Lanxiu? Perhaps there were a few, but they were as rare as phoenix feathers.
Someone of An Lanxiu's stature—for her to treat someone as an equal, could that person possibly be ordinary?
Everyone turned their gaze to Ye Xuan. At this moment, their eyes were filled with curiosity!
Even Mo Suiqing's eyes held a trace of surprise.
She knew a bit about An Lanxiu. To be valued by An Lanxiu was a rare thing, perhaps fewer than a handful in the entire capital.
What was so special about this young man before her?
Beside them, the Grand Prince Jiang Niansheng's expression grew extremely sour.
At this moment, he realized that he had probably made the wrong bet!
Facing An Lanxiu, Ye Xuan smiled slightly, "Alright!"
Just then, a young man suddenly stepped forward and bowed deeply to An Lanxiu, "National Scholar An, this person insulted Miss Mo earlier and even assaulted people here. He must be severely punished! I ask you, National Scholar, to uphold justice!"
An Lanxiu glanced at the young man, "Who are you?"
The man's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly cupped his hands, "I am Li Feng of the Li family. Greetings, National Scholar!"
An Lanxiu turned to Ye Xuan, who remained silent. Ye Ling, feeling anxious, quickly spoke up, "Sister An, they were bullying us..."
She hurriedly recounted what had happened earlier.
After a moment, An Lanxiu turned to Mo Suiqing, whose expression changed slightly. The Mo family was indeed powerful, but the person before her—even Cangmu Academy and Drunken Immortal Inn wouldn't dare offend her!
An Lanxiu withdrew her gaze, "Miss Mo, the Mo family is a great clan. As a representative of the younger generation of the Mo family, your words and actions represent the entire Mo family. Such childish behavior is best avoided in the future, wouldn't you agree?"
Mo Suiqing's face turned rather ugly, and she didn't respond.
An Lanxiu stared directly at Mo Suiqing, "Not answering means you bear resentment, that you are unconvinced."
As her words fell, a powerful aura suddenly erupted from An Lanxiu, and in an instant, Mo Suiqing, far away, seemed crushed by a great mountain. Her body bent forward, and her knees slowly began to buckle under the weight.
Seeing this, the expressions of everyone in the hall changed drastically!
She was truly angry!
At this moment, no one dared to speak on Mo Suiqing's behalf!
Under everyone's watchful eyes, Mo Suiqing eventually knelt to the ground, her fists clenched tightly, her face twisted in fury.
She, too, was a favored child of the heavens. When had she ever been treated like this?
Just then, an old man suddenly appeared nearby, bowing deeply to An Lanxiu, "National Scholar, my young lady is young and reckless. If she has offended you, I beg your forgiveness on behalf of the old master of the Mo family. Many thanks!"
An Lanxiu retracted her aura, and Mo Suiqing collapsed to the ground.
An Lanxiu glanced at her and said coldly, "Go back and tell the head of the Mo family that Brother Ye is my friend. If the Mo family has any dissatisfaction with my actions today, they are welcome to come find me. And if I hear of the Mo family taking revenge against Brother Ye and his sister because of this, I will personally visit the Mo family to seek justice for them!"
The old man nodded quickly and helped Mo Suiqing leave.
An Lanxiu turned to the Grand Prince. His expression changed slightly, and An Lanxiu said coldly, "Grand Prince, do you know how difficult it is for Jiang Kingdom to produce a talent? Today, for your own selfish reasons, you suppressed a talent of our kingdom. Such behavior is shortsighted and incredibly foolish!"
Jiang Niansheng's face grew even darker, but he did not dare respond!
The person before him—even his father had to treat her with utmost respect.
Others might not understand An Lanxiu's importance to Jiang Kingdom, but as a member of the royal family, he understood very well. It could be said that the Jiang royal family and countless noble clans would rather sacrifice him than offend An Lanxiu in the slightest!
In the current Jiang Kingdom, only An Lanxiu could deter the geniuses and prodigies of neighboring nations. Because of her, those nations feared Jiang Kingdom and did not dare to invade easily.
An Lanxiu slowly closed her eyes, "Resign from your position of greeting new students. You are barred from holding this post for the next five years."
The Grand Prince bowed deeply, then turned to leave. But as he left, he glanced at Ye Xuan.
An Lanxiu looked at Ye Xuan, "Brother Ye, shall we?"
Ye Xuan held Ye Ling's hand, "May I bring my sister?"
An Lanxiu smiled, "Of course!"
Under everyone's gaze, An Lanxiu left with Ye Xuan and Ye Ling.
In the hall, everyone remained silent for a long time.
It was already night. On the quiet street, the three of them walked side by side.
An Lanxiu said softly, "I didn't expect that since we last met, Brother Ye's sword heart would have become so clear, and that you would have comprehended battle intent. Brother Ye, you could be called a quasi-martial grandmaster now."
Ye Xuan spoke seriously, "How is it that you can see through me so clearly?"
This was a question he had wanted to ask since their time in Qingcheng.
An Lanxiu chuckled, "My eyes are somewhat special; they can see the essence of things."
Seeing that An Lanxiu didn't elaborate, Ye Xuan didn't press further.
An Lanxiu stopped and stood facing Ye Xuan, "At the Two Worlds City, was it you who charged at the Tang Nation's black-armored cavalry, blocking thousands by yourself?"
Ye Xuan was a little surprised, "How do you know that?"
An Lanxiu smiled, "The Ninth Princess is a close friend of mine. She told me about that day—a young man in a green robe with his little sister. I was sure it must be you!"
Beside Ye Xuan, Ye Ling smiled sweetly, holding onto his arm tightly.
An Lanxiu walked forward slowly, "Brother Ye, the imperial capital is full of selfish people, and how many truly care about matters of the nation? Today in the hall, not one person would have stood up like you did at the Two Worlds City."
Ye Xuan said softly, "Miss An cares about Jiang Kingdom very much?"
An Lanxiu smiled, "Without a country, there is no home, and without a home, there is no individual. What I care about is not the Jiang royal family, but this country itself—do you understand?"
Hearing this, Ye Xuan nodded, "I understand."
In fact, this was something he shared with An Lanxiu.
Ye Xuan was a selfish person, but if his country was in danger, he would also step forward. Like An Lanxiu, his loyalty was to Jiang Kingdom, not to its royal family.
An Lanxiu walked slowly ahead, and Ye Xuan followed with his sister.
In the moonlight, An Lanxiu's white attire made her look like a goddess descended to earth.
What a beautiful woman!
An Lanxiu spoke again, "Brother Ye, the imperial capital is full of schemes. You are a swordsman, straightforward by nature. It would be wise to be cautious in all matters here."
Ye Xuan glanced at her, "Thank you."
He paused briefly, then added, "May we fight one day?"
Fight!
What he desired most now was a fight, a fight with a strong opponent, as the shadow in the Boundary Prison Tower was no longer a match for him. He was unsure about the extent of his own strength.
Hearing his words, An Lanxiu turned to look at him and smiled.
This smile made the world seem to lose its color, and even Ye Xuan was briefly dazed, though he quickly regained his composure.
Beside him, Ye Ling whispered, "Sister, you're so beautiful!"
An Lanxiu gently touched Ye Ling's head, "Beauty is only skin-deep. True strength and beauty come from the heart."
She looked at Ye Xuan and smiled, "Once you reach the Spirit Mastery stage, we shall fight. How about that?"
Spirit Mastery!
Ye Xuan thought for a moment, then nodded, "Alright!"
An Lanxiu stopped, "Brother Ye, this is where we part ways."
Ye Xuan cupped his hands, "Miss An, until we meet again!"
With that, he turned and left with Ye Ling.
Ye Ling playfully waved at An Lanxiu, clearly very fond of her.
Watching Ye Xuan and his sister disappear at the end of the street, An Lanxiu retracted her gaze and continued forward. Beside her, an old man had appeared at some point.
The old man spoke seriously, "Miss, the closer you get to him, the more trouble it may bring him!"
An Lanxiu replied softly, "Old Ling, go tell them—if anyone dares trouble him and his sister because of me, I will not forgive them!"
Old Ling smiled wryly, "Miss, wouldn't it be better if you just didn't get close to him?"
An Lanxiu replied, "Do you think he is unworthy of my friendship?"
Old Ling shook his head, "He is young and has comprehended battle intent, with a clear sword heart—his talent and opportunity are rare indeed. If Miss is just ordinary friends with him, he barely qualifies. But if you were to..."
He stopped, realizing that his young lady seemed to have a particular interest in this young man, which was not a good thing!
An Lanxiu smiled, "Old Ling, you're worried I might fall for him, aren't you?"
Old Ling smiled wryly. His young lady was too straightforward!
Could she not be a bit more subtle?
An Lanxiu glanced at where Ye Xuan and his sister had disappeared, "When I met him in Qingcheng, his love for his sister greatly impressed me. And after what happened at the Two Worlds City, I no longer just admired him."
She withdrew her gaze and smiled softly, "A true man should be like this!"
Hearing this, Old Ling's face darkened.
But An Lanxiu had already walked away.
Standing in place, Old Ling sighed softly, "Young man, you'd better not have any wrong ideas... Otherwise, life will be tough for you, maybe even tragic."
No one knew better than he how terrifying his young lady could be. To be with her, one needed status, strength, talent, and background—all indispensable!
And Ye Xuan, whom he had investigated... was merely an abandoned child of a small world!
Just by status alone, they were worlds apart.
A moment later, Old Ling sighed and followed her.
At the end of the street, Ye Xuan carried Ye Ling on his back, walking slowly away.
"Brother, Sister An is so beautiful..."
"Mm!"
"Brother, do you like Sister An?"
"..."
"Brother, why don't you marry Sister An? I think she suits you well..."
"Your brother has nothing. Would you have her drink northwest wind with me?"
"But do you like her?"
"Brother just wants you to be safe forever!"
"Brother... I want to stay with you forever!"
"Silly, you still need to get married!"
"No, I won't."
"Why?"
"Because... I will never meet anyone who treats me better than you..."
"..."