They all became female demons after being reborn.

Chapter 41 Future Empress

Wu Cheng, without changing his expression, asked in return, "Do you know me? But I have no recollection of you."

You know his name? Looks like they came here because of him.

"You shouldn't have appeared in Luoyang City in the first place." The girl in men's clothing shook her head and sighed slightly, then raised her eyes and smiled faintly, "But you're both right and wrong. We didn't know each other before, but it's not too late to get to know each other now."

Wu Cheng tentatively said, "But it would be a bit unfair if only our distinguished guest knew my name."

The girl glanced at him sideways but wasn't fooled. "Tell me first, what brings you to Luoyang?"

"Looking for someone," Wu Cheng answered crisply.

"Have you found it?"

"We found him, but he was already dead when we found him."

"Oh?" The girl was taken aback. "What was that person's name?"

"Sun Xiaohu," Wu Cheng replied.

"Sun Xiaohu..." The girl frowned and pondered for a moment before asking, "So what are you planning to do next?"

Wu Cheng picked up his wine glass and took another sip. "What advice do you have for me, esteemed guest?"

The boy revealed a smile that seemed to indicate he'd taken the bait. She placed her hands on the table and leaned forward slightly. "I'll come find you tonight at 5 PM, and I'll take you to a few places then."

"Where?"

"Weren't you investigating clues about Sun Xiaohu's death?" The girl's clear black and white eyes shone with an astonishing brightness. "I know some things, but we need to talk about them somewhere else."

Wu Cheng looked at her for a moment, then smiled.

He put down his wine cup, stood up, cupped his hands, and said, "Then let's meet at the inn's entrance at dusk. I'm sure you can find me there."

The girl did not get up, but nodded slightly, but her eyes followed his back until he lifted the bamboo curtain and left the private room.

After a moment of silence in the private room, one of the two silent guards stepped forward and lowered his voice, speaking in a heavily accented Central Plains dialect: "Second Young Master, this man is extremely cunning and has been constantly testing us. He may not be easy to deal with."

The girl picked up the wine glass that Wu Cheng had used on the table and looked at it.

A faint watermark remained on the rim of the glass, a lip print left by Wu Cheng when he sipped the wine.

She brought the glass to her lips, tilted her head back, and finished the last of the wine in the glass.

"I know." The girl's slender fingers gently traced the rim of the cup, "but that's what makes it so interesting."

Besides... who could possibly deal with you?

Right, Wu Cheng?

In a daze, the image of that figure in a blue robe waving goodbye and leaving gracefully reappeared before her eyes.

This time... I won't let you escape again...

-----------------

Seeing Wu Cheng return safely, Qing Que loosened her grip on the umbrella handle, stood up, and sat down to greet Wu Cheng.

Xue Jianren looked at him curiously, "Junior Brother Wu, who was that person looking for you?"

"I don't know, but she should be from the north. I just don't know if it's Beisheng or Beijing." Wu Cheng smiled. "But she will come to see me again around 5 pm, saying that she has clues about Sun Xiaohu. We'll find out then. Let's find an inn to settle down first."

At the beginning of the hour, before the sun had completely set, the shops on Zhuque Street had already begun to close up shop one after another.

Wu Cheng, with a wooden sword and a fine iron sword at his waist, leaned against the hitching post at the entrance of the inn. Qing Que stood beside him, holding an umbrella. Her indifferent gaze made passersby who were amazed by her subconsciously take a detour.

Wu Cheng felt helpless but didn't say anything.

He had asked the three of them to stay at the inn and wait for his news, but Qingque, though silent, insisted on staying by his side no matter what he did to persuade her. She just pursed her lips and looked at him stubbornly.

Wu Cheng had no choice but to agree.

Not long after, the girl appeared right on time.

She had changed out of the white brocade robe she wore at noon and into a more practical indigo-colored Hu-style dress. Her long black hair was tied up in a free-flowing wolf tail with a rhinoceros horn hairpin, making her appear even more heroic and androgynous.

But she wasn't alone; the two guards who had stood silently by the window at noon had also come over.

She was quite surprised to see Qingque next to Wu Cheng, and subconsciously took another look.

When Qingque saw her face, her pupils suddenly contracted sharply!

Li Anchan?!

How could it be her?!

That's right! Qingque recognizes this face! Although she is still a little young at the moment, Qingque would never mistake it!

This person is none other than Li Anchan, the future emperor of the Sheng Kingdom who murdered his father and brother, unified the northern border, and finally conquered the Southern Dynasty and unified the world!

Qingque instinctively gripped the umbrella handle tightly.

Li Anchan was also looking at her, her eyes filled with an unfathomable darkness.

But a moment later, she subtly shifted her gaze to Wu Cheng, her carefree and noble smile returning. "Young Master Wu, I've been looking for you for ages."

Wu Cheng laughed and said, "Well, our esteemed guest found it after all. He truly has extraordinary abilities."

"You're so conspicuous, it's hard not to find you." The girl gestured with her delicate chin towards Wu Cheng, her tone casual as if she were an old friend. "Let's go."

Wu Cheng asked curiously, "Where are we going?"

"Come with me for a stroll first." The girl walked ahead with her hands behind her back, her steps light and quick, her indigo-blue dress fluttering in the evening breeze. "Isn't Luoyang City known as the center of the world? I want to see what good things it has to offer."

Wu Chengchong nodded to Qingque and then followed.

Qingque gently bit her lower lip with her pearly teeth, tightened her grip on the umbrella handle, and then quickly followed.

This stroll took an hour.

The girl seemed to be full of curiosity about everything in Luoyang. She would stop and look at the dough figurines and snacks sold on the roadside, or the Shu brocade hanging in the cloth shop for a long time, but she didn't buy anything.

Qingque followed beside Wu Cheng and whispered in a voice only the two of them could hear, "Your Highness, she's memorizing the route."

"I know." Wu Cheng also lowered his voice. "It seems they are from Beisheng. Beijing, which is currently being suffocated by Beisheng, doesn't have the leisure to covet Luoyang."

"But these are not things we should worry about." Wu Cheng's gaze fell on the wolf tail braid that the girl dressed as a boy was swinging in front of him. "Since she is willing to give us clues, let's get them first."

As I said before, Wu's taking advantage of others shouldn't be ignored!

Qingque pursed her lips slightly. She always felt that His Highness didn't seem to have any feelings for Dayu, but she didn't know why.

But His Highness is always right; she just needs to protect him.

At this moment, the girl stopped in front of a candied hawthorn stall. Her clear, bright eyes stared at the strings of glistening red berries for a long time before she murmured to herself, "So this candied hawthorn stall already exists..."

She pointed at the candied hawthorn stall, turned to Wu Cheng, and said matter-of-factly, "Buy me some."

Wu Cheng chuckled, then turned to look at Qing Que.

Qingque reluctantly took out a piece of broken silver and placed it in his outstretched palm.

Wu Cheng bought two skewers of candied hawthorn, then handed one to the girl dressed as a boy, a smile on his face, "Here you go, these candied hawthorns are much tastier than the food at noon."

The girl froze, her clear black and white eyes reflecting the boy's mischievous smile.

It was like that back then...

When she was abducted by him on her way to marry a prince from the Southern Dynasty and brought to Luoyang, she couldn't stomach the simple food there. He bought her a string of candied hawthorns from this very stall and said the same thing.

She took the candied hawthorn and gently bit off one.

The sourness of the hawthorn and the sweetness of the sugar coating exploded on the tip of my tongue, just like that summer three years later.

"Wu Cheng." Her eyes lowered slightly, her fine eyelashes concealing the misty light in them. "My name is Li Anchan, remember it well."

In this life, I will never let go again.