During the Republic of China era, I achieved unparalleled success by returning to the past.

Song Beiyou was slightly taken aback. This girl had given him a lightness skill last time, and then disappeared with a "see you in the martial world" message. He didn't expect her to reappear tonight.

The tiger's mouth, painted with vibrant makeup, opened and closed, but its voice was as soft as falling pearls: "You won't be angry that I trespassed, will you?"

Song Beiyou smiled slightly: "Young lady, you always appear in the dead of night, with such a painted face. Aren't you afraid of scaring the children?"

The actress tilted her head and said, "At this time, all the children are asleep. Those who are still awake must be naughty kids."

Song Beiyou nodded: "That's right, it seems I'm a bad kid too."

Her eyes curved into a smile, and she extended her fair hand from her pale sleeve to catch a few drops of rain: "It's late and the rain is cold. Aren't you going to invite me in?"

"Please wait a moment, miss, I'll go down and open the door."

"Just open the window."

Song Beiyou was speechless: "The way the young lady came in was truly special." He pushed open the window in front of him and saw the actress's red embroidered shoes under her smoky skirt lightly touch the top of the banyan tree like a startled swan. With another step, she carried a fragrant breeze into the window.

Song Beiyou raised an eyebrow, wondering when he would acquire such lightness skill, which would allow him to come and go without a trace.

"Please sit down, young lady."

The actor's eyes darted around, and he casually sat down by the coffee table, teasingly saying, "Last time you offered me a small stool, but this time you're being generous."

Song Beiyou sat across from her at the coffee table, not at all embarrassed. Instead, he smiled and said, "After you left last time, I secretly vowed to buy a big house as soon as possible, otherwise you'll still have nowhere to sit next time you come."

The actor, his face painted with makeup, smiled again, his eyebrows curving upwards. "So, you bought this little villa for me?"

Song Beiyou's heart skipped a beat. Was this girl flirting with him? He was a veteran who had fought his way through life and death, but he remained calm and said, "You could say that." His gaze shifted to the actress's hand hidden in her sleeve, and he asked, "What brings you here, Miss Actress? I will do whatever it takes to do it."

The actress turned her snow-white neck to the side, her gaze intense: "I would like to invite you to join us."

"You?" Song Beiyou lowered his eyes slightly. "Does the young lady want me to join the opera troupe?"

The actor's eyes darted around as he opened his mouth and said, "We are an organization that wants to do something for the Dongxia people and fight against the foreigners."

Song Beiyou's pupils contracted slightly, and his fingertips paused from tapping the armrest unconsciously. He pondered for a moment and said, "Dealing with the foreigners who oppress us is certainly a good thing, but my martial arts skills are too weak, so I'm afraid I can't be of much help."

He had no interest in joining any organization and didn't want to be bound by rules and regulations. However, he could help if he needed thugs.

The actor seemed to read his mind and chuckled, "Don't be so quick to refuse. Joining us has many benefits."

Song Beiyou's eyes lit up: "For example?"

The actor's eyes darted around, as if to say, "I knew you were this kind of person."

"For example, we can obtain traditional Chinese martial arts, ancient secret techniques, and even foreign serums."

Song Beiyou was somewhat intrigued, and after thinking for a moment, he said, "Could you answer a few questions for me, young lady?"

"Ask away." The actor nodded slightly.

"May I know your name, young lady?"

"Lian Yunxiao".

Song Beiyou read it aloud, then turned his head to look at her slender, snow-white neck, graceful jawline, and porcelain-white earlobes.

"When I first met Miss Lian, I felt a sense of familiarity. After thinking about it carefully, I realized that her figure and posture were very similar to someone else's."

Lian Yunxiao's long eyelashes trembled, but she did not speak.

Song Beiyou smiled and said, "Every time you talk to me, it's like we're old friends, which makes me suspicious. Once, I even dreamed that you and she were the same person."

He then gave a troubled look: "Alas, you are all my benefactors, yet you are worlds apart from me."

"So, Lian Yunxiao, are you her?"

A soft, dim light shone down from above, bathing the two of them in it, and the atmosphere suddenly became quiet.

Lian Yunxiao raised her head, about to speak.

Knock knock! There was a knock on the door. Before the two could respond, the door creaked open, and Su Xiaowan, dressed in an embroidered cheongsam, walked in smiling, carrying a tea tray.

"Ah You, how can you be so rude as to not even offer tea to guests?" she complained as she walked slowly to Lian Yunxiao's side, picked up a cup of tea, and said with a smile, "Please, Miss."

Song Beiyou was startled. In his eyes, Su Xiaowan's shoulders and arms were tense, which was a sign that she was about to make a move.

A quick glance revealed a glint of cold light at the bottom of the plate.

He knew things were going to get bad, not because of Lian Yunxiao, but because of Su Xiaowan.

Suddenly, Song Beiyou keenly sensed a rapid change in the aura surrounding the three of them. An invisible force was being manipulated and gathered on Lian Yunxiao's outstretched right hand, which was reaching out to receive the tea. If it were to strike, the impact would be earth-shattering, and Su Xiaowan would be severely injured.

The water droplets in the teacup were trembling. Su Xiaowan was the last to notice something was wrong, but it was too late; she couldn't even pull her hand away.

In the nick of time, Song Beiyou reached out and, under the illumination of the candlelight, inserted his hand with exquisite precision into the space between the teacup and Lian Yunxiao's fingers where their energy converged, flicking and turning his fingertips.

Bang! A sudden gust of wind arose between the three, their sleeves billowing and their black hair flying.

Su Xiaowan's expression changed, and she staggered backward.

Song Beiyou, however, changed his finger to palm, holding the tea tray by its edge and spinning it around, barely dispelling the hidden danger. Without changing his expression, he placed one of the cups of tea on Lian Yunxiao's table.

"How could you be so careless? Miss Lian, please have some tea."

Lian Yunxiao, her eyes painted with red, lifted in surprise, her astonishment barely concealed. She smiled gently and said, "Thank you."

The storm dissipated in the blink of an eye.

Su Xiaowan's chest heaved, her face flushed, and she forced a smile, saying, "I'm sorry, it was my fault just now."

Lian Yunxiao waved his hand, turned his gaze, and asked, "This young lady looks familiar. Is she yours?"

Song Beiyou coughed lightly and quickly covered up by introducing, "This is my cousin, Achun. She came from the north to stay with me."

Su Xiaowan stood beside Song Beiyou and said demurely, "Ayou is a grown man, and he does things in a careless way. If he has slighted you, I will apologize to you on his behalf."

Lian Yunxiao's face was painted with graffiti, making his expression unreadable. He shook his head and said, "How could that be? When he lived in the fortress, I went to his house, and he even asked me to sit on his bed."

She stood up and looked at Song Beiyou: "It seems you have other things to do tonight, so I won't bother you any longer. I'll come find you another day."

Song Beiyou stood up and said, "Miss Lian, please wait a moment." He walked to the cabinet in the corner, took out a warm oil-paper umbrella, turned around and said with a smile, "Miss, you forgot about this when you came last time. It will come in handy this time."

Lian Yunxiao reached out and took it: "Thank you, that's kind of you. Farewell." Before she finished speaking, she was seen to disappear like a shooting star out of the window, opening her paper umbrella and disappearing into the dark night rain, leaving only a slender figure behind.

Song Beiyou withdrew his gaze, turned to look at Su Xiaowan, and said helplessly, "Why are you dressed so nicely in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?"

Su Xiaowan's delicate lips drooped: "This woman is secretive and her martial arts are unfathomable. I was just worried you'd get hurt. Humph, I didn't expect you two to be old acquaintances."

Song Beiyou cupped his hands and smiled, "Thank you, Miss Su. She is my savior, not my enemy; we are friends."