A husband found in the village? I bought a regent for a penny!

He Jinglan also saw the figure and exclaimed in surprise, "There is..."

Gu Xixi quickly reached out and covered her mouth, silencing He Jinglan for the word "person" that she hadn't yet uttered.

She silently shook her head and waved her hand, signaling to keep quiet.

At this time, there were clouds moving in the sky, the moonlight was hazy, and the surrounding light was dim.

The two crouched down, trying to curl their bodies into the shadows.

The figure ran very fast and soon crossed the fields to the open space in front of the house.

This person was very tall. He was obviously not familiar with the terrain. He walked to the left and then to the right, and then hesitated and stopped.

Gu Xixi and He Jinglan were both taken aback when they saw where he had stopped.

That's the location of the last poison-based mechanism.

How come he seems to know?

The two exchanged a glance. Could they be on the same side?

The sounds of fighting were still coming from the direction of the front and back doors, quite far away.

This shows that Lao Li and his group were not at a disadvantage.

Perhaps the person in front of us isn't a killer who slipped through the net...

Gu Xixi was hesitating whether to show herself when the figure began to shout:

"Happy!"

The man's voice was familiar, and it was choked with sobs, "Xixi! Where are you! Did something happen to you? It's all my fault. I should have thought of you for a reason. I said I would follow you and protect you for the rest of my life, but I failed. I'm such an idiot..."

"That's enough, that's enough." He Jinglan said, stepping out from her hiding place first.

"An Qinghe! Can't you wish us something good for once?!"

Just then, the bright moon broke through the clouds, its silvery light scattering across the ground.

An Qing stared blankly at the two people who appeared. His mouth was open, and his handsome face was covered with snot and tears, making him look somewhat comical.

Gu Xixi tried to ease the awkwardness, "We're both fine, why did you come?"

An Qinghe said, "I am here to guide General Liu's deputy."

He quickly added, "Don't worry, Shi Tou, Aunt Zhang, and Old Jiang at home don't know anything. I made up an excuse to visit a friend and only came out to meet up with Deputy General Zhang in the evening."

He Jinglan was overjoyed, patting her chest to calm herself down, "Great, I'm saved!"

She then turned to An Qinghe, her eyebrows furrowed, "We've been friends for so long, yet you're only concerned with finding Xixi. You don't care at all whether I live or die!"

Anqing scratched his head and said, "Your driver's surname is Li. He told me that you two are working together."

"So it doesn't matter whose name I call. Miss Jinglan is very generous, so please don't make such a fuss."

He Jinglan pouted, "Whether I hold it against you or not depends on your sincerity in the future."

An Qinghe repeatedly bowed and promised to treat He Jinglan to ten meals as an apology.

He Jinglan wasn't really angry, so she asked An Qing what had happened.

An Qinghe said, "The day before yesterday afternoon, the day you left, General Liu sent someone to our house to look for Xixi as promised."

"I just found out that Xixi left a letter and asked Aunt Zhang to pass it on to General Liu."

“My aunt can’t read, but I saw the urgent word in red on the envelope.”

“I was already uneasy when I saw Xixi leave, so I pestered the young man who was picking up the letter to open the envelope.”

"Since it wasn't a secret and the letter wasn't sealed, the young man couldn't refuse me and agreed to take a look."

"Inside the farming plan that Xixi prepared for the Northwest Army this season, there was indeed a note asking for help!"

He Jinglan listened anxiously and urged, "And then what? And then what?"

An Qinghe continued, "Then the young man's expression immediately turned serious."

"I was worried he would make excuses, and if he keeps dragging it out, what will happen to your lives?"

"To my surprise, he immediately mounted his horse and said that he would report back to General Liu and be able to mobilize troops immediately. He told me to wait for them on the official road near the village entrance this evening."

"To be honest with you two, I was waiting outside just now, and I even wondered if that young man was lying to me. I didn't expect him to actually bring a troop of cavalry."

He Jinglan's comparison was not surprising, "There are some things you may not be very clear about."

"Xixi worked for the Northwest Army, and the general promised to be her protector in the Northwest."

"Therefore, Xixi is a partner that the Northwest Army will never abandon, and she is also a benefactor. If she is in trouble, the Northwest Army, from top to bottom, will definitely do its best to protect her."

An Qinghe suddenly realized, and his gaze towards Gu Xixi became even more admiring. "So that's how it is."

As she relaxed, He Jinglan smiled. "With the army protecting us, no matter how many of those rabble come tonight, it won't make a difference!"

"That's not all," An Qinghe said with a smile, wiping his sweat. "I was able to get here because both the front and back doors are safe."

"More than that?" Gu Xixi and He Jinglan exclaimed in surprise in unison.

"Who else?"

An Qinghe was also puzzled, "Weren't they invited by Xixi?"

He frowned as he recalled, "When Deputy General Zhang and I arrived, some people had already arrived, all dressed as ordinary people."

"The leader showed some kind of sign to the people in the courtyard, and they opened the gate and joined them in fighting the enemy."

Gu Xixi and He Jinglan exchanged glances, thinking that if showing the token could gain the trust of the He family's secret guards, these people could only be Mu Nanzhao's secret guards.

An Qinghe continued his description, "Then, another group of county government soldiers arrived."

"With enough guards, Deputy General Zhang personally led his cavalry to pursue the fleeing villains, saying that he would take advantage of the night to eliminate them completely and prevent future troubles."

County government troops?

Gu Xixi shook her head, "I didn't have time to ask the county government for help."

“They were already following us when we left the village. If we had forced our way into the county town, they might have resorted to desperate measures and killed us. So we could only hide in the farm and try to hold out for as long as we could.”

An Qinghe said with lingering fear, "Xixi, you did the right thing! You can't fight desperate criminals head-on!"

Gu Xixi frowned slightly, "I just don't know how the county government found out about the situation here."

"I'd like to go take a look ahead."

Gu Xixi and He Jinglan left without warning.

An Qinghe chased after them, earnestly advising, "They might not have finished killing everyone up ahead yet. You two young ladies shouldn't witness that kind of scene."

Gu Xixi said, "When the county government officials come, it would be against the rules for me, as the owner of the estate, to hide and not show up."

As we approached the front gate, the sounds of fighting had ceased.

From afar, we first saw a group of soldiers carrying torches.

The man leading the group rode a chestnut horse and wore not official robes, but a dark blue silk robe.

The man was handsome and gentle, directing his guards to bind and escort the wounded bandits.

He Jinglan was busy inquiring about the situation of her own guards. Gu Xixi looked up at the person on horseback and felt that the profile looked familiar.

When the person turned around, their eyes met, and both of them were startled.

"Jiang Mingyuan?"

"XiXi, little sister?"

Jiang Mingyuan dismounted and ran to Gu Xixi in a few steps.

Without asking why, he first looked him over to make sure he was alright, and asked with concern:

"How are you? Are you alright?"