Chapter 151: Marquis Xiao Arrives

**Chapter 151 The Valiant Marquis Arrives**

The two rode at full speed to the Zhou residence. Zhou Yan had not yet returned from the government office, and the servants in the household were confused when they heard that the Valiant Marquis had come to visit.

They were recently hired servants of the Zhou family who didn’t even know who the Valiant Marquis was, and besides, Zhou Yan wasn’t home.

“Fetch your household’s lady!”

Chang Yuan pulled the steward aside and said quietly. The steward scratched his head.

“The mistress…”

Their master had not yet married and only had a concubine in the women’s quarters. But since the noble guest had spoken, they dared not refuse and could only send the message to Yue Niang.

Xiao Ce stood in the main hall of the Zhou residence looking terribly uncomfortable.

Chang Yuan understood his feelings and said nothing.

The two waited for under fifteen minutes before the light footsteps of a woman came from outside the door.

It was Yue Niang’s first time receiving guests. As a concubine, she wasn’t supposed to receive a noble guest—it would be disrespectful. But since the distinguished visitor had specifically asked to see her, she came in nervously.

“My lord Marquis.”

Yue Niang entered with her maidservant, her head lowered, her manner even more nervous than Xiao Ce’s.

“…Raise your head.”

Xiao Ce clenched his fists tightly at his sides. If one listened carefully, they could hear the tremor in his voice.

He couldn’t yet see the young woman’s face, but just seeing her figure made his heart ache.

Before Yue Niang could react, her maidservant stepped forward, planting her hands on her hips. “What sort of scoundrel dares to cause trouble in the Zhou residence? Don’t you know my mistress is Zhou Yan’s concubine? How dare you be so rude!”

“Concubine?”

Xiao Ce choked out the word, his face deathly pale.

Zhou Yan actually had the gall to make his daughter a concubine!

The maidservant, thinking he was afraid, became bolder. “It’s too late to be scared now! When the master returns, he’ll have you thrown in jail!”

“Ahem!”

Chang Yuan couldn’t hold back a light cough. “Girl, you should hold your tongue. If you truly offend Marquis Xiao, even your master won’t be able to protect you.”

The maidservant paled, finally realizing the man before them was a noble guest.

Yue Niang pulled her behind her, then slowly raised her head, steeling herself as she looked at Xiao Ce.

“Might I ask what brings the Marquis to the Zhou residence? My master has not yet returned. He should be back shortly.”

There was no call to see her.

Though Yue Niang didn’t say the last part aloud, the unspoken meaning was clear to all.

“Alike… so alike!” Xiao Ce burst out excitedly.

Chang Yuan, having seen Madam Xiao before, now looked at Yue Niang and immediately grasped why Xiao Ce was so moved.

Yue Niang was the spitting image of Madam Xiao, and with the red mole between her brows, there was no mistaking who she was.

She was none other than the lost daughter of the Valiant Marquis’s household—Xiao Dan Yang!

“Marquis…”

Xiao Ce’s eyes welled with tears. The mighty Valiant Marquis was now sobbing like a child.

Yue Niang flinched and backed away.

“Don’t be scared, child. I’m your father.”

“Father?”

Yue Niang halted her retreat, echoing his words.

Her mind reeled.

She had no memories before the age of three and didn’t know who her parents were. She never would’ve guessed Xiao Ce was her father.

Seeing her doubt, Xiao Ce pressed urgently, “If you don’t trust me, come home and meet your mother. You look just like her!”

“Where does the Marquis think he’s taking her?” Zhou Yan had just entered and overheard Xiao Ce’s words. His heart tightened as he stepped forward to shield Yue Niang behind him.

“Your person?”

At the sight of Zhou Yan, Xiao Ce’s expression darkened. “You insolent whelp! How dare you take my daughter as a concubine? The nerve!”

“The Marquis claims Yue Niang is your daughter—do you have proof?” Zhou Yan balled his fists, standing his ground against Xiao Ce’s rage.

Even Chang Yuan had to give him credit. Even his own master wouldn’t dare to be this bold in front of General Xie.

Who could tell if Zhou Yan was reckless from ignorance or truly disbelieved Marquis Xiao’s words?

“Hmph! Dan—Yue Niang is the mirror image of my wife. The red mole between her brows has been there since birth. I named her Dan Yang because of it. Go ahead—check the records at my estate.

Besides, Dan Yang disappeared at the age of three, and Yue Niang appeared in Junzhou at the same age.”

Xiao Ce listed their similarities one by one. Zhou Yan stayed quiet, his expression stony, but inwardly, he was already convinced.

The Valiant Marquis kept to Shu, keeping his distance from the capital’s nobility—there was no scheme here.

And Yue Niang was merely a concubine offered by a minor noble from Junzhou—not worth the Marquis’s dishonesty. Yue Niang had to be his daughter.

“My lady…” Yue Niang sensed Zhou Yan’s emotions and grew nervous.

Her pleading gaze melted Zhou Yan’s heart. He squeezed her fingers reassuringly and turned to Xiao Ce. “I will investigate Yue Niang’s identity myself. But until then, she remains under my protection.”

He wasn’t backing down.

Xiao Ce’s patience frayed. “Yue Niang, won’t you come home with your father?”

Yue Niang shrank behind Zhou Yan, her face wary.

Compared to Xiao Ce appearing out of nowhere, she naturally trusted Zhou Yan more.

In all her life, Zhou Yan was the only person who had ever been kind to her. If not for him bringing her back to the capital, she might be dead by now.

Yue Niang didn’t want to leave Zhou Yan. And what if this man claiming to be her father was like the Guo family—nice on the surface but cruel underneath, secretly using needles to hurt her?

The girl shook her head. Xiao Ce’s face turned pale. “Dan Yang, your mother misses you terribly. Ever since you disappeared, she’s suffered from a broken spirit. She cried her eyes out searching for you. Even if it’s just for your mother’s sake, won’t you come back with me and see her?”

He hadn’t dared tell Madam Xiao about this trip to the capital, fearing another false hope.

Two years ago, though the miraculous doctor had cured Madam Xiao’s broken spirit, her health continued to decline because of her longing for her daughter. Xiao Ce, heartbroken for his wife, tried everything to nurse her back to health, but nothing worked.

The physician said it was heartache—only finding their daughter could cure it.

Now that they had found their daughter, yet she refused to go with him, how could Xiao Ce help but panic?

Yue Niang’s hands inside her sleeves were clenched so tightly they left marks, barely stopping herself from agreeing.

Seeing them at an impasse, Chang Yuan couldn’t help but speak up. “Marquis Xiao, perhaps you should leave for now and let Miss Xiao think it over?”

Unlike A Yuan, Zhou Yan had never harmed Yue Niang. She still had a baby bird attachment to him. The more urgently the marquis pressed, the more she resisted.

Xiao Ce had no choice but to nod. “Then I’ll come again tomorrow.”

As he left the Zhou residence, his shoulders slumped slightly.

Worried he might give up and disrupt their master’s plan, Chang Yuan hurriedly encouraged him. “Don’t worry, Marquis Xiao. It’s normal for Miss Xiao to resist you since she doesn’t remember the past. In time, she’ll surely feel your fatherly love.”

Xiao Ce understood, but he didn’t have that kind of time.

His wife was still waiting at home, and staying in the capital too long made him worry about leaving her alone.

If their daughter resisted him, maybe she would respond better to her mother.

Xiao Ce lowered his gaze, a plan taking shape in his mind.