Ouyang Ye's suspicion was something everyone had witnessed, and as Mu Anxiao walked back, she replayed every word of her recent conversation with him. Her heart sank, and she muttered, "He hasn't found me out, has he?" With lingering fear, she stopped and turned to look at the path leading to the maids' courtyard, saying, "Strange, why would he go to those maids' courtyards?" Just as she was about to ponder this further, Feng Qishi's voice reached her ears.
"Mischievous Mu, where are you? Why aren't you back yet?"
Hearing Feng Qishi's voice, Mu Anxiao snapped back to attention. She replied mentally, "I'm almost back," and then turned and ran.
Soon after.
Mu Anxiao returned to the door. Just as she was about to knock, she suddenly remembered Ouyang Ye. She turned to face the courtyard and scanned her surroundings.
Inside the room.
Feng Qishi and the others sat at the table, their eyes fixed on the door. Jia asked with a puzzled expression, "What's wrong with Mu Anxiao?"
Hearing this, Feng Qishi glanced at Jia, then stood up and walked to the door. As he opened it, he looked at Mu Anxiao's furtive retreating figure and asked, "What are you doing?"
"Nothing," Mu Anxiao replied casually, turning to face Feng Qishi.
Feng Qishi looked down at Mu Anxiao's deliberately calm expression and asked, "Did you meet someone?"
Hearing Feng Qishi's question, Mu Anxiao gave a dry laugh.
Feng Qishi frowned, "What do you mean by that laugh?"
"I met Ouyang Ye," Mu Anxiao said, deciding there was no need to lie and telling Feng Qishi directly.
Feng Qishi was taken aback. "How unlucky."
"Isn't that the truth? Let's go inside and talk," Mu Anxiao said, sidestepping Feng Qishi and going in first.
Feng Qishi followed Mu Anxiao in, closing the door as he turned to look at her. "Where did you meet him?" he asked, stepping forward.
Mu Anxiao stopped at the table, hesitated, then turned to face Feng Qishi. "The first time, by the rock garden. The second time..." She trailed off, suddenly remembering the silver needle. "Oh, right, here." She held the silver needle out to Feng Qishi.
Feng Qishi ignored the needle for the moment and said, "And the second time?"
"You're so curious," Mu Anxiao said with a sigh. "The second time, it was when I found the silver needle."
"It must have been hard to find," Feng Qishi said, suddenly staring at the corner of Mu Anxiao's mouth. "There's a stain of oil on your lip."
"When I got there, I happened to run into Liu Ye, and then..."
"It was that maid," Feng Qishi realized.
Mu Anxiao nodded. "Yes, her name is Liu Ye."
"She actually cooked for you."
"It was quite a coincidence. As soon as I arrived, she came back too. She thought I had been waiting for her the whole time, and she was so touched. Seeing her sincerity, I just ate the meal," Mu Anxiao said, glancing at the silver needle. "And you know, that maid is quite good at finding things. I searched for a long time without success, but she found it with just a little effort."
"Really? Was the food she made tasty?" Feng Qishi asked curiously.
Mu Anxiao thought for a moment and said, "It's hard to say."
"So it wasn't good then."
"The texture was inconsistent," Mu Anxiao added.
Hearing Mu Anxiao's assessment, Feng Qishi couldn't help but smile. "You have quite the way with words. If that's the case, I'll have her cook for you from now on." He then reached out and took the silver needle.
Mu Anxiao exclaimed excitedly, "If you dare, I'll have your hide!"
Feng Qishi smiled faintly.
Lou Yi became curious. "Was it that bad?" he asked, looking up at Mu Anxiao.
Mu Anxiao turned to Lou Yi and said, "You try it."
"No need," Lou Yi said, quickly refusing, knowing Mu Anxiao would do as she said.
Seeing Lou Yi looking as if he were terrified, Mu Anxiao laughed. "You're such a coward!" she said, then turned back to Feng Qishi, who was still standing motionless before her. "What are you doing? Aren't you going to treat her?"
Feng Qishi said calmly, "She's not in any serious danger." His expression turned serious. "Did Ouyang Ye discover you?"
Mu Anxiao smiled.
Feng Qishi frowned. "What are you smiling about? Did he find you?" He really wanted to know the answer.
Mu Anxiao sighed softly and said, "Look how anxious you are. With my intelligence and resourcefulness, I dispelled his suspicions in no time. He..."
"He still recognized you," Feng Qishi interrupted.
Mu Anxiao chuckled. "No, but I feel like he might have found me familiar. However, I've eliminated all his thoughts."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, I have a new identity from now on."
"What identity?" Feng Qishi asked, puzzled.
Mu Anxiao's lips curled. "From now on, my name is Cao Gen, the young master of a traditional Chinese medicine family. I'm here for some tempering. That's what you'll call me from now on." Mu Anxiao had originally intended to tell Feng Qishi about this later, but seeing how curious he was about everything, she decided to strike while the iron was hot.
After all, whether she told him sooner or later, she had to tell him.
Feng Qishi repeated, "Cao Gen." He suddenly couldn't understand why Mu Anxiao had chosen such a name.
Hearing Feng Qishi's response, which was the same as Ouyang Ye's at the time, Mu Anxiao's face turned cold. She corrected him, "I'm Cao Gen, notCao Gen (grass roots)."
"Your surname is Cao, and your given name is Gen," Feng Qishi said, then laughed. "That's quite a casual name you've picked."
"It's none of your business," Mu Anxiao said, glaring at Feng Qishi. She then looked down at Xiaoyue, who was lying on the blanket, and asked, "Why did you want me to find the silver needle?"
"There's demonic energy within her. I need to see if it's her own demonic energy, or..." Feng Qishi glanced at the silver needle, "...from this needle."
"If it's her own, then it's troublesome, isn't it?" Mu Anxiao stated directly.
Feng Qishi nodded.
Seeing Feng Qishi nod and thinking about Xiaoyue's condition, Mu Anxiao said firmly, "She must have been infected by demonic energy."
"Possibly," Feng Qishi said, not entirely certain, and turned towards Xiaoyue.
Mu Anxiao watched him, thought for a moment, and then said, "Right, after you cure her, don't let her wake up too soon. I have something to say."
"Got it," Feng Qishi said, glancing at Mu Anxiao before turning back to Xiaoyue and crouching down beside her.
Mu Anxiao watched Feng Qishi's back and sighed, then returned to the table and sat down.
At this point, Jia stared at Mu Anxiao for a few seconds and then asked, "Why did that Ouyang Ye go to those maids' courtyards?" he was curious.
Mu Anxiao picked up a teacup and said, "Who knows?" She took a sip of water.
Jia: "Aren't you curious about his whereabouts?"
"I get annoyed when I see him, so I can't be bothered..." Mu Anxiao stopped mid-sentence, suddenly remembering Ouyang Ye's retreating figure as he entered the courtyard. She paused and then said, "Yes, why would he go to the women's courtyards?" She looked at Jia.
Jia shrugged.
Hearing this, Lou Yi immediately shifted his gaze to Mu Anxiao's face.