Qin Xuan looked up at the sound, and the moment he saw the old man in the black jacket, his whole body trembled.
"Second... Second Grandfather!"
The person before Qin Xuan was Qin Xuan's second grandfather! Qin Mufeng.
"Xiao Xuan, we finally meet again." Qin Mufeng smiled kindly.
Qin Xuan looked at Qin Mufeng in disbelief, as if what he was seeing was not real.
As Qin Mufeng's words fell, the white-clothed man and the dozen or so people beside him all tore off their masks, revealing their true faces.
Qin Xuan's eyes widened as he looked at everyone.
"Qin Zheng, Xiao Zhuzi, Er Gou, Fugui, Xiao Run..."
Qin Xuan called out everyone's names as he looked at familiar faces.
Qin Zheng was Qin Mufeng's grandson and had grown up with Qin Xuan. The dozen or so people were all servants of the Qin family!
In an instant, dozens of leaves lost their grip and fell to the ground.
"Xuanzi, if your leaf had been any faster, I'm afraid I would have gone to see Great Uncle." Qin Zheng looked at the leaves on the ground and forced a smile.
The dozen or so Qin family servants also smiled wryly.
"Young Master..."
Qin Xuan's eyes were filled with shock. These people, whom he had believed to be dead for three years, suddenly appeared before him, more dreamlike than a dream.
Qin Mufeng said to Ling'er, who was clinging to Qin Xuan,
"Girl, aren't you going to get down from your Xuan brother?"
Ling'er heard this and jumped off Qin Xuan, running to Qin Mufeng's side.
"Second Grandfather," Ling'er called out obediently.
Qin Mufeng rubbed her head and smiled,
"See, I told you. Your Xuan brother, although you've only known each other for a few days, would never abandon you. This... is one of our Qin family!"
Ling'er grinned,
"Hehe, after spending these few days with Xuan brother, I already knew Xuan brother was a good person, except he's a bit aloof."
Qin Xuan looked at Qin Mufeng, full of confusion,
"Second Grandfather... she..."
Qin Mufeng smiled,
"This girl, she's from your mother's side of the family. Her name is Su Ling'er, remember? When you were young and visited your mother's family, you accidentally saw her bathing, and your mother chased you for several blocks."
Lu Chen seemed to remember upon hearing this, but looking at Su Ling'er's appearance, he couldn't quite recall.
She looked nothing like she did as a child, and it had only been seven or eight years. Surely there would be some resemblance.
Qin Mufeng smiled,
"Ling'er, with your Xuan brother here, what is there to hide?"
Su Ling'er nodded and then removed half of the human-skin mask from her face, revealing her true appearance.
One half of her face was fair and flawless, with a babyish roundness. The other side, however, was difficult to look at, covered in scars that looked like they were from a fire.
Ling'er walked up to Qin Xuan with small steps,
"Brother, you promised to be my brother. You won't dislike me for being ugly, will you?" Ling'er tugged at Qin Xuan's arm and said softly.
Qin Xuan was stunned, then slowly raised his hand and touched Su Ling'er's disfigured half-face.
Feeling the uneven surface beneath his palm, Qin Xuan felt a dull ache in his heart.
"Brother, during the fire back then, fortunately, Ling'er hid in the cellar and escaped. But her face was still hit by falling wooden blocks, so..."
Qin Xuan looked into her bright eyes and spoke with a slight choke,
"It... hurt a lot..."
Su Ling'er giggled,
"It hurt a lot then, but it doesn't hurt now."
Qin Mufeng also stepped forward and said,
"Let's go. Someone is waiting for you inside. We'll talk indoors."