"Uncle Xiao."
The girl called out to Xiao Zhan, seated at the head of the hall.
"Xun'er, you're here."A smile lit up Xiao Zhan's face as he saw her enter.
Xun'er nodded slightly, then turned her gaze to the masked Yun Xiu and the young Nalan Yanran.
Her eyes lingered on Yanran only for a moment—after that, her full attention was on Yun Xiu.
There was something… familiar about his presence.
But she couldn't quite place it.
He wore a mask, revealing only a pair of deep, mesmerizing eyes—beautiful, yes, but not enough for her to be certain.
After all, recognizing someone by just their eyes wasn't something she could confidently claim to do.
While Xun'er was observing Yun Xiu, Yun Xiu's gaze was also fixed on the girl in the purple dress.
From the earlier conversations, Yun Xiu had already realized—this was the girl he had been longing to meet again: Gu Xun'er.
Compared to the tiny, adorable version of her from four years ago, Xun'er had now grown taller and more refined. Yet Yun Xiu could still see traces of her younger self.
The once-chubby little loli had turned into an elegant, beautiful teen, already showing signs of maturing into a graceful woman.
But to Yun Xiu, it didn't matter if she was loli or lady—as long as it was her, that was all that mattered.
Neither of them said anything at first. They simply gazed at each other in silence.
Meanwhile, Nalan Yanran curiously studied Xun'er, even though the other girl had barely spared her a glance.
Still, it didn't stop Yanran from examining her carefully.
After a long while, Nalan Yanran came to a conclusion:
"This girl's beauty is not beneath my own."
Xiao Zhan glanced at the pair—still locked in silent eye contact—and found it odd, but chose not to interrupt.
The atmosphere in the hall grew quiet, even a little awkward.
The silence was so complete that the fall of a leaf could be heard.
Eyes met eyes. Neither blinked.
Finally, Xun'er broke the silence.
"Who are you?"
"Hmm?"
Xiao Zhan flinched inwardly when he heard Xun'er's question.
Wait… they don't know each other?
"Xun'er, it's me."Yun Xiu finally spoke.
But he didn't remove his mask. That was something he would only do for one person—and not in front of others, especially not another girl.
It wasn't meant to offend—he just didn't want to draw others in, nor get drawn in himself.
Xun'er froze the moment she heard his voice.
So familiar… it was him.
Her body trembled ever so slightly.
Now she understood why his presence had felt so familiar.
It was him all along.
Her Hun Xiu-gege.
"Xiu'er-gege… you finally came to find me."
Without hesitation, Xun'er dove into Yun Xiu's arms, clutching him tightly.
As if afraid that if she let go even for a moment, he would disappear again.
"There, there…"Yun Xiu gently stroked her head and said softly,"Your Xiu'er-gege is here now, isn't he?"
"Ah… so they do know each other.""Gave me quite a scare."
Xiao Zhan exhaled in relief as he watched the two embrace.
At first, hearing Xun'er's confusion, he had feared he'd made a grave mistake.
But now he understood—Xun'er simply hadn't recognized Yun Xiu because of the mask.
Seeing how tightly they hugged, it was clear their relationship was far from ordinary.Xiao Zhan now found himself wondering: What does this Yun Xiu actually look like under that mask?
"They're hugging…"Nalan Yanran watched the two embrace, and felt a pang of discomfort in her heart.
"Xiu'er-gege, why did it take you so long to come find me?"Xun'er pulled back slightly but remained seated in Yun Xiu's lap. She looked up at him with curious, slightly teary eyes.
At that moment, she was sure of one thing—her Soul Xiu-gege had really come back for her.
This wasn't a dream. It was real.
She also realized that, being in the Xiao Clan, she couldn't refer to him as "Hun Xiu."Given the tension between the Xiao Clan and the Soul Clan, that would be dangerous.
So she called him "Xiu'er-gege" instead.
Yun Xiu stroked her head.
"There were issues back home. I couldn't leave until now. I came late—but you're not mad at me, are you?"
If he were to remove his mask at this moment, she would see the genuine, warm smile on his face.
Seeing her again filled Yun Xiu's heart with joy. His gaze toward her overflowed with tenderness.
"Of course not. How could I be mad at Xiu'er-gege?"Xun'er shook her head, her face beaming with happiness.
"You're such a good girl."
Yun Xiu pinched her cheek affectionately.
It had been four years.
The once-chubby cheeks were now slender. Not as soft or springy as before.
Still, the sensation was pleasant in its own way.
Xun'er didn't mind him pinching her at all—in fact, she looked overjoyed and completely content.
After all…
It was her Hun Xiu-gege.
He was the only one allowed to touch her face like this. No one else had the right.
For years, she had dreamed of this moment—of him holding her, of pinching her cheek like he used to.
Now, after four long years, that same feeling was back.
"Xiu'er-gege, why are you wearing a mask?"Xun'er blinked and looked up at him with puzzled eyes.
"Well…"
Yun Xiu paused, unsure how to answer.
He couldn't exactly say:
"Xun'er, I'm too handsome. My father made me wear this mask so I wouldn't attract too much attention and make you jealous."
Just imagining saying something like that made him cringe.
Too handsome? That's not a reason. That's narcissism on a whole new level.
Even if it was true—which Yun Xiu honestly believed—it sounded ridiculous.
No one would believe it.
In fact, most people wouldn't believe anyone could be that good-looking… unless they saw it with their own eyes.
And when they did… they'd probably fall for him too, regardless of gender.
So Yun Xiu smiled and deflected:
"Take a guess."
"Guess?"
Still perched on his lap, Xun'er gave it serious thought.
Then, like a lightbulb going off—
"I know!"She clapped her hands and declared in her clearest voice,"You must be super handsome now, and you're afraid all that handsomeness will cause you trouble, so… you wear a mask!"
"Exactly."Yun Xiu smiled.
She had guessed the truth. That made him very happy.
Up at the high seat, Xiao Zhan heard their conversation and silently groaned:
"Seriously? This Yun Xiu guy… what a braggart. At least look in a mirror before boasting like that."
"Father."
Just then, a young boy in black robes entered the hall.