My parents arrived at White Crane Plain earlier than us, and my elder brother had already entered the competition area. According to the competition rules, all participants were required to wear uniform attire and head coverings, identifiable only by their identification badges, making it difficult even for us to recognize which one was my brother.
Just before the competition was about to begin, my younger sister, who had been delayed by dressing up at home, rushed in hurriedly, lifting her skirt.
The author has something to say: The two of them were deadlocked for a year due to the knot in An Jin’s heart…
My younger sister’s face was full of grief, her hair slightly askew. “I was so scared… It was hard to shake him off!”
It turned out she had hired a sedan chair near White Crane Plain but discovered a tall man following her, step by step. Panicked, she quickened her pace and took several detours, but the man remained consistently behind her, maintaining the same distance.
She then ran in terror into White Crane Plain, finally finding her group.
I asked curiously, “Besides following you, did he do anything else unusual?”
My sister thought for a moment. “Seemingly not.”
I asked her gently, “How do you know he’s definitely a lewd man?”
My sister raised her head and put her hands on her hips. She said indignantly, “Sneaking behind a young, beautiful, and graceful lady like me, he must have bad intentions!”
“Well—” I took a difficult breath.
An Jin turned away, his mouth twitching, clearly trying hard not to laugh.
I laughed awkwardly, “Perhaps it’s a misunderstanding.”
“He looks like a bad person!”
There’s even a strange bird perched on his shoulder… exactly like the rumored creepy uncle!” My sister was very certain.
An Jin coughed several times. I was speechless. “A bird on the shoulder doesn’t mean anything—a bird? On the shoulder?”
I suddenly startled, instinctively looking at An Jin. An Jin raised an eyebrow and tilted his chin towards my sister’s back, whispering, “Xiao Ya, could the strange man you’re talking about be—him?”
Princess Jiang Yunqiao of Southern Rui was walking towards us with a smile, and one step behind her was General Shen, tall and imposing, with a parrot on his shoulder.
