"Yes, Hall Master!"
Dongfang Xiaoyao immediately obeyed, as always.
"Xiaoyao, don't worry, I'll come to pick you up soon."
Jiang Wuming comforted her once more before hanging up the phone.
Hearing Jiang Wuming's words, a rare smile appeared on Dongfang Xiaoyao's usually cold face.
The smile was fleeting, then she put away her phone and pushed open the car door.
"Dongfang Xiaoyao, you are suspected of..."
As Dongfang Xiaoyao got out of the car, the leading staff member from the Immigration Department's East Sea branch immediately spoke.
"I heard you. I'll go with you and cooperate with your investigation," Dongfang Xiaoyao interrupted coldly.
"Then let's go!"
The staff member from the Immigration Department's East Sea branch felt displeased at being interrupted, but seeing Dongfang Xiaoyao's cooperation, he said nothing more.
"Sister Shiyun, I've already called Brother Wuming. You don't need to worry."
Dongfang Xiaoyao turned to Su Shiyun and told her about calling Jiang Wuming.
As there were outsiders present, she did not address Jiang Wuming as Hall Master, but as Brother Wuming, just like in the past on Longhu Mountain.
"Okay."
Su Shiyun breathed a sigh of relief.
In the past, when Jiang Wuming was young, she had protected him like a mother hen, preventing him from being bullied, and was his reliance.
Now, after so many experiences, she had unconsciously come to see Jiang Wuming as her reliance, believing that nothing in the world could trouble him.
Therefore, when she heard Dongfang Xiaoyao say she had called Jiang Wuming, her worried heart calmed down.
Then, under Su Shiyun's gaze, Dongfang Xiaoyao was taken away.
Meanwhile, after ending the call with Dongfang Xiaoyao, Jiang Wuming immediately dialed his second senior brother, Zhu Yong.
"Little junior brother, why are you calling me today?"
Zhu Yong was a little confused. He had been following Jiang Wuming's movements under the instructions of Heavenly Dragon Daoist.
"Senior brother, someone is targeting me by using Xiaoyao..."
Jiang Wuming did not exchange pleasantries with Zhu Yong and got straight to the point.
"What happened to little junior sister?"
However—
Before Jiang Wuming could finish speaking, Zhu Yong exclaimed and interrupted him.
Although Heavenly Dragon Daoist had never officially taken Dongfang Xiaoyao as a disciple, Zhu Yong had always regarded Dongfang Xiaoyao as his own little junior sister.
Before Dongfang Xiaoyao left Longhu Mountain with Jiang Wuming, Zhu Yong had taken great care of her. Hearing that Dongfang Xiaoyao was in trouble, he immediately became anxious!
"Senior brother, Xiaoyao is not in danger. The situation is like this..."
Jiang Wuming knew what Zhu Yong was worried about. He first reassured Zhu Yong, then explained that Dongfang Xiaoyao had been taken away by the Immigration Department's East Sea branch for investigation. Finally, he asked, "Second senior brother, what is the problem with Xiaoyao's identity?"
"Xiaoyao's identity is indeed fake. Senior brother handled it a long time ago. I didn't expect there to be a problem," Zhu Yong replied.
"How could Xiaoyao's identity be fake?"
Jiang Wuming was stunned for a moment and then asked again.
"Alas... little junior brother, I'll tell you a story. After you hear it, you'll understand."
Zhu Yong sighed, then gathered his thoughts before slowly beginning:
"Xiaoyao was born in a city in South Guang, and her parents were university classmates.
Xiaoyao's father was on the university soccer team. He was handsome and played soccer well. Xiaoyao's mother was a cheerleader for the team.
They fell in love during university and stayed in South Guang to develop their careers after graduation.
Xiaoyao's father joined a securities company, and Xiaoyao's mother joined a bank.
They got married after working for a year.
Because both had good jobs, the couple had a good life at first, until Xiaoyao's father started trading stocks.
As Xiaoyao's father worked in a securities company, he had some understanding of the stock market and some insider information.
Initially, Xiaoyao's father made quite a lot of money from trading stocks.
Then, thinking he had found a way to get rich, Xiaoyao's father leveraged his positions. However, he encountered a stock market crash, was liquidated, and lost all his capital and profits. He even lost their house.
At that time, Xiaoyao was three years old.
Xiaoyao's mother wanted a divorce, but she was advised against it by her family, who thought it would be bad to divorce with a child. They believed Xiaoyao's father would reform.
Xiaoyao's mother listened to her family's advice and did not divorce, giving Xiaoyao's father another chance.
However—
Xiaoyao's father did not reform. Instead, he became worse, borrowing money everywhere to continue trading stocks and losing even more.
Meanwhile, Xiaoyao's mother got involved with another man.
Bank work involves contact with many wealthy people and facing many temptations. Xiaoyao's mother was already deeply disappointed in her husband. When an excellent man pursued her, she naturally couldn't resist the temptation.
Thus, in the following two years, Xiaoyao's father continued to indulge in gambling, from stocks to lotteries, trying everything related to gambling to make up for his losses, but this was unrealistic.
Xiaoyao's mother, on the other hand, was immersed in her new relationship, and her care for her family and Xiaoyao diminished.
During those three years, Xiaoyao felt no family warmth at all. She often went hungry and ate irregular meals. Wearing new clothes for the New Year or going to the park were mere luxuries for her!
When Xiaoyao was six years old, her mother became pregnant with that man's child. She divorced Xiaoyao's father but did not take Xiaoyao with her.
Xiaoyao's father seized the opportunity to extort a sum of money.
That money was the child support from Xiaoyao's mother's new husband.
That money was eventually gambled away by Xiaoyao's father, leaving nothing. Furthermore, Xiaoyao's father incurred high-interest debts.
At this point, Zhu Yong paused, controlled his emotions, and continued: "The loan sharks repeatedly came to the rented house where Xiaoyao and her father lived to demand repayment. Xiaoyao's father had no money to pay, so he used Xiaoyao as collateral!"
"What?!"
Jiang Wuming had been listening to his second senior brother Zhu Yong with a heavy heart, but when he heard this, he couldn't help but curse, "Is he a beast?"
"He was so blinded by gambling that he was worse than a beast!"
Zhu Yong also cursed, then said, "After Xiaoyao was taken away by the loan sharks, they planned to sell her to human traffickers. But before that, they intended to do something even more despicable to the eight-year-old Xiaoyao!!"
Jiang Wuming's heart trembled, but he didn't interrupt Zhu Yong. He held his breath, waiting for Zhu Yong's next words.
"That night, when Xiaoyao was deep in hell, Master saved her. Master had passed by Xiaoyao's city when she was four years old and noticed her good martial arts aptitude. He had been keeping an eye on her through senior brother and only went to take her away that night.
Master brought Xiaoyao back to Longhu Mountain and changed her name, intending for Xiaoyao to forget her past and start a new life."
Zhu Yong continued, "Xiaoyao's original name was Mu Xiaorou. I once asked Master why he named Xiaoyao Dongfang Xiaoyao."
"What did Master say?"
Jiang Wuming couldn't help but ask.
"At birth, man's nature is inherently good, and natures are close; habituation makes them far apart.
Mu Xiaorou, from the age of three, was in hell, on the verge of despair, with demons in her heart.
Dongfang Xiaoyao, from the age of eight, received a new life, came to the human world, saw hope, and vanquished demons!"
Zhu Yong spoke slowly, his voice deep.
Jiang Wuming remained silent, his chest feeling tight.
He recalled the girl's cold face;
He also recalled her lonely eyes;
And that sentence filled with earnest hope.
"I want to be your shadow."
...