Su Qinglan watched the bickering pair with a tilted head. She had always known An Mo was Duo Duo's uncle, but the way he and Xuan Long acted was different. Like they knew each other beforehand.
She reached out, grabbed Xuan Long's arm, and pulled him a few steps away from the noisy group.
"Xuan Long, wait," she whispered, her green eyes searching his. "Do you actually know him? I mean, really know him?"
Xuan Long stayed still for a moment, his gaze drifting toward An Mo, who was currently making silly faces at the baby snake. He took a calm, deep breath before leaning down to whisper in her ear.
"Yeah," he admitted softly. "He and I... we grew up together."
Su Qinglan's eyes widened. "What? You were childhood friends?"
Xuan Long looked a bit distant as he explained.
"From childhood, I never really knew my father or my mother. I was raised by the clan elders, but they didn't really care about me."
