CHAPTER 1196: CHAPTER 1196: REUNION (9)

"Life-and-death friendship? Why don’t I know when this little girl shared a life-and-death moment with Young Master Bai? Oh~ right, didn’t she break your arm before? Guess that counts as life-and-death."

Beside him, Duan Tang chuckled gracefully, his white attire accentuating his refined demeanor. Yet Bai Yiming could only see him as a man hiding a pitch-black heart beneath that polished exterior.

Grinding his teeth hard, Bai Yiming turned to An Yiqing and spoke in a tone that resembled the Big Bad Wolf luring Little Red Riding Hood: "Little girl, don’t pay attention to him. He’s your enemy—get out of his way whenever you come across him."

An Yiqing’s lips twitched, a wave of speechlessness washing over her as she listened to the back-and-forth barbs peppered with sarcasm from the two men in front of her. Suddenly, she couldn’t help but chuckle softly.

Bai Yiming and Duan Tang froze, staring at her in surprise.

Although An Yiqing couldn’t see, she could feel two perceptibly piercing gazes fixed on her.

The smile at the corner of her mouth grew brighter, and her unfocused gaze remained as radiant and dazzling as ever.

"Thank you both. Although I can’t remember, it’s still nice to see everyone."

An Yiqing’s smile left Bai Yiming and Duan Tang momentarily dumbstruck. Feeling the icy cold glare emanating from Gu Yelin beside them, the two quickly snapped back to reality and cast him a provocative glance.

"Little girl, don’t be scared. Xuandu City is our turf—in this little patch of land, you can do whatever you like. If you can’t remember anything, just explore Xuandu anew. If Gu Laosan doesn’t have time, I can take you—full coverage from pickup to meals to lodging. Hey, Gu Laosan! Why are you so narrow-minded?"

Before Bai Yiming could finish his sentence, Gu Yelin hurled an ashtray straight at his forehead.

Bai Yiming quickly caught the ashtray and placed it back on the table, glaring fiercely at Gu Yelin. Damn! Good thing his reflexes were swift—otherwise, with an ashtray that big landing on him, he might have ended up with memory loss too!

Bai Yiming and Duan Tang stayed at the An Family’s home for over an hour, reluctantly leaving under the intimidating pressure of Gu Yelin, the "human air-conditioning unit." Just before leaving, Bai Yiming once again made the annoying suggestion of traveling around Xuandu with An Yiqing, only to be physically tossed out the door by Gu Yelin.

In the hours following, several more visitors came in succession—all familiar faces An Yiqing had once helped, like Qiao Chengchun and Qiu Yiping, along with Shen Long and Shen Feng, who had close ties with her.

When everyone had finally left, the last group of visitors nearly broke out crying in front of An Yiqing.

"Miss, you’ve finally returned! How could you be so foolish, rushing to Country Bai all by yourself to save someone? Thank goodness you came back—otherwise, what would us brothers do?"

"Exactly, Miss, you have no idea how we’ve been surviving these days. Brother Zhang was even considering leaving to join you."

Indeed, the visitors were none other than An Yiqing’s most trusted helpers: Zhang Yuksheng, Xing Bin, and Liao Jinglin.

"Um... sorry, I can’t remember what happened before, so..."

"No problem, no problem! Miss, whatever you want to know, we’ll tell you. Your health isn’t good yet, so don’t worry about company matters for now. With us here, you can focus on recovering. Just be carefree as always and let us handle things. Once you’re healed, we’ll discuss everything in detail," Zhang Yuksheng quickly comforted her.

An Yiqing felt a warm sensation in her heart and nodded.

Over the next few days, many people who had close relations with An Yiqing came to visit her in earnest. Without exception, each one left with their emotions running high and tear-filled eyes.

At this time, news of the An Family’s daughter safely returning to Xuandu after a month-long disappearance spread like a tornado throughout the city circles.

Crash—smash—clang—

"How could this happen? That bitch still isn’t dead?!"

At the Guh Family Mansion, Guh Siyi swept everything off the table in a fit of rage, screeching furiously. She had waited patiently for a month, convinced An Yiqing had perished and that Gu Yelin would soon give up on her. At that point, she’d seize the chance to get close to him and break down Gu Yelin’s defenses in one swoop.

Who would have thought her foolproof plans would come undone? Without An Yiqing, life in Xuandu had become even more idyllic for her. Yet just as she hadn’t had her fill of peace, that vexing woman returned to stir trouble!

Her indignation was palpable! She refused to accept this!

Shi Xiaowen carefully swept up the shattered porcelain off the ground, cautiously saying, "Senior Sister, please don’t get worked up. Even though An Yiqing’s back, I heard she’s lost her memory and can’t see anymore. She’s no match for you in her current state—you can rest easy."

Whether intentional or not, Shi Xiaowen’s words genuinely calmed Guh Siyi down.

Of course! An Yiqing was blind! And she’d lost her memory! She was now useless—what right did she have to compete with her?

A smug grin spread across Guh Siyi’s face, her eyes filled with confident determination.

"Xiao Wen, fetch me a white dress. We’re stepping out!"

Shi Xiaowen blinked in surprise: "Where to?"

"To the An Family for a visit! As the only young lady of the Guh Family, it’s only polite and proper to pay my respects! Get moving, bring some nutrient-rich brain supplements and eye-healing tonics. Let’s go!"

Watching Guh Siyi’s retreating figure, Shi Xiaowen’s expression turned cloudy. She swiftly took out her phone, her fingers tapping furiously across the screen before hitting send.