Meng Xi naturally covered her face, not looking at Fei Xiao's twitching expression, her lips only curling slightly upward.
"Ah!"
Fei Xiao let out a sigh and suggested, "We've been delayed for too long. Let's head back first!"
After speaking, Fei Xiao asked the system for directions; after all, the surrounding terrain had completely changed, so it would be strange if she still recognized the way.
She carried Meloetta and walked in front, taking the lead.
"Let's go." Meng Xi helped rub Lin Siyu's smoking little head.
"Oh." Lin Siyu pouted, as if she had suffered a huge grievance, but she still followed along.
At the same time, the two women exchanged glances, reaching a tacit understanding.
They were actually hiding something. When Fei Xiao fell to the ground in pain, they clearly saw black energy flowing out of her body, and it was increasing.
It only disappeared after Fei Xiao fainted.
The two were not stupid. The other party was clearly avoiding the question just now. She had no reason to hurt them, so she probably had some unspeakable secret.
They nodded to each other in confirmation; since Fei Xiao seemed unwilling to talk about it, they would not bring it up for now.
The three slowly left the area.
A black shadow watched everything that happened from a distance, flames flowing from the corners of its eyes.
...
Meanwhile, in an office on the other side.
The office interior was very simple. Sitting in front of the desk was a serious and dignified old man; he looked majestic but could give people a gentle feeling. His deep eyes revealed the calmness and wisdom accumulated over the years, and his slightly furrowed brows were currently wondering what he was thinking about.
Knock, knock.
"Please come in," the old man said in a calm voice.
The door was easily pushed open, several figures walked in slowly, and a familiar voice rang out.
"Grandpa Ye, what are you worrying about again?"
Upon hearing this, the old man's serious expression faded, replaced by a loving smile. "You girl actually have time to come see me? If Elder Jiao found out, he'd probably be furious, hahaha."
The voice belonged to Jiao Xiaoyan, and Yang Lingfeng was with her.
"Hmph, you'll be disappointed then, because I followed her here."
Another old man entered from the door, similar in age to the old man in the office, and he was Jiao Xiaoyan's own grandfather, Jiao Wuhen.
Hearing this, the smile on the Ye-surnamed old man's face vanished directly, not giving the other party any face at all.
Jiao Wuhen didn't care; given their relationship, there was no need for such superficialities.
"What wind blew you here, Jiao Wuhen? Don't you know how busy I am?"
"Hey, what business do you have? And can't I come to see you if I have nothing to do?"
"Alright, Grandpa Ye, aren't I here to check on you?" Jiao Xiaoyan said helplessly. The two clearly had a good relationship, yet every time they met, they acted like enemies.
...
When the gods fight, the mortals suffer.
Yang Lingfeng finally understood, cold sweat dripping down his head. He couldn't afford to offend either of these two, and now he was afraid of hearing things he shouldn't.
If he hadn't been afraid that Jiao Xiaoyan wouldn't be able to explain things clearly, he wouldn't have come. But thanks to her connection, he was able to talk to this old man surnamed Ye.
This old man's name was Ye Jinnian. He was a member of the Seeking Common Ground faction and had a great deal of influence; it could be said that he was the core of the entire faction.
However, before this, he really didn't know that Jiao Xiaoyan's background was so intimidating. He surely hadn't offended her, right?
"Fine, I know you, girl. You never offer courtesy without a reason. What trouble do you need me to help you solve again?" Although the old man said this, a smile still appeared on his face when facing Jiao Xiaoyan.
"It's not that, Grandpa Ye..."
"Hmph, you'll be disappointed this time. This child was eager for me to help her find you for the first time, saying she had some good news to tell you, but no matter how I asked, she wouldn't tell me."
Jiao Wuhen was clearly a bit dissatisfied when he said this, but he couldn't lose his temper at his granddaughter.
"Oh?" Ye Jinnian was clearly a bit surprised.
"Um... yes, Elder Ye, we do have something important." Yang Lingfeng finally found an entry point to join the conversation.
Both old men looked at Yang Lingfeng at the same time, their sharp gazes making the latter feel a sudden tightening in his heart.
Elder Ye noticed the young man's embarrassment and smiled, "Alright, young man, no need to be so reserved."
Jiao Wuhen also spoke up, "That's right. I heard you performed very well in this operation, and thanks to you for taking care of Jiao Xiaoyan. So just talk normally."
Hearing this, Yang Lingfeng felt much less nervous.
"Good granddaughter, I've helped you, now you can tell me, right?"
"That's right, Xiao Yan. I've been swamped lately, and I'm curious what good news you have."
The two old men also became slightly more serious. Their identities were not simple; it must be a major matter if they were looking for them, otherwise, they wouldn't have bypassed Elder Jiao to find Elder Ye first.
Of course, this was Jiao Xiaoyan misunderstanding the captain's intentions, ending up hiding it even from her own family.
"Ahem, I'll explain it in detail."
The tool man is online. No choice, his purpose for coming was just this simple.
Yang Lingfeng began to recount the previous events in detail, one by one.
...
...
After a long while, the originally lively office fell into an unprecedented silence.
At first, the two didn't think much of it, but as Fei Xiao's original words were repeated, their original composure was gone.
They did not interrupt during the process, and even after the explanation was finished, they still did not speak, only their expressions kept changing.
Just like that, time in the office seemed to have stopped.
Jiao Xiaoyan and the other did not disturb them, only observing their expressions.
"Xiao Yan... where is that woman named Fei Xiao?" Jiao Wuhen broke the silence, looking at his granddaughter.
"I tried to invite her, but she refused. She should still be in the forest."
Jiao Wuhen nodded upon hearing this. He did not ask his granddaughter about its authenticity; their thoughts must be the same, so there was no need to ask.
Then he quietly looked at his old friend and said no more. After all, this matter had to be decided by the other party; although he had supported him before, that was out of consideration for his old friend.
Elder Ye pondered for a moment and said in a low voice, "Xiao Yan, do you have evidence for this?"
That's right, he didn't doubt it either, but that was based on their relationship; she had no reason to joke with them, plus the current world could barely accept it.
The question was whether there was evidence. If it existed, it would indeed be huge good news, but if not, he could not gamble with the country's future, even if she was his old friend's granddaughter.
The two old men stared at the two with burning gazes.
Jiao Xiaoyan felt the serious gazes and glanced at the captain.
Captain Yang???
Is this how you use the captain? Being a tool man to the end, right?
"There is evidence. There was audio and video recording of the entire process at the time."
That's right, being fully prepared for squad operations is always right.
As he spoke, Captain Yang took a USB drive out of his pocket.
Elder Ye didn't talk nonsense and directly handed the computer on the desk to the other party to operate.
Just as Captain Yang plugged in the USB drive, a ringtone rang out.
"Uh, sorry."
It turned out to be Elder Jiao's phone. Originally, he didn't know they would discuss such an important topic, so his phone wasn't on silent either.
"Hello, what's wrong?"
...
"What? Are you sure?"
Jiao Wuhen said sternly.
Even the others were startled, not knowing what had happened to make a figure like Elder Jiao lose his composure like this.
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