He wanted to see, but he was too embarrassed to ask Madam Qi to guide him, so he planned to find an opportunity to ask Qi Yuanshan or Qi He.
Before he could find an opportunity, Liu Zi's heart had already grown restless.
Alas, seeing the young man before him beaming with joy, as if he couldn't wait to go back and marry his wife.
Yan Yi sighed. Who hadn't been young before? He too had experienced that burning urgency, that racing heartbeat.
"Let's go, we'll go back and pack our things."
"Ah." If it hadn't been for his elder reminding him, Liu Zi would have forgotten all about it.
He was a little scared now, having forgotten his elder and almost darting back home.
Yan Yi saw the emotions on Liu Zi's face and felt his mood instantly lift.
No matter whose joy it was, it was still a happy occasion.
The following evening, Fu Xinci finally learned that Yan Yi and his group had returned to the capital.
"Finally, that troublemaker is gone." Qi Yuanshan, now relaxed, paced back and forth in his courtyard, happily telling his son, "It's so much better to be home."
"Of course, nowhere is better than home, especially ours."
"Mmm, no place like your own humble abode, even better than a golden or silver nest."
"Dad, you couldn't be more right."
"Hahaha."
Qi Yuanshan's hearty laughter reached the kitchen. Madam Bai whispered to Mama Yang, "My lord seems truly happy today."
"My lord hasn't been home for days, of course he's happy to be back today."
After Mama Yang spoke, she glanced at the young madam's belly and thought to herself, "If the young madam gives birth to a young master or young lady, my lord will be even happier."
Fu Xinci was unaware of Mama Yang's thoughts. Seeing that the food was ready, she personally went to the kitchen door to call out, "Dad, Brother Qi, dinner is served."
"Aye."
"Aye."
Returning home, Qi Yuanshan found everything to his liking. Not only did his home allow him to relax wholeheartedly, but it also gave him a sense of purpose. Especially when he smelled the aroma wafting from the kitchen, all his fatigue seemed to vanish.
His words were also particularly pleasant.
"Ah, the food at home is truly fragrant. Just with this aroma, Dad could eat two big bowls."
Qi He felt the same way. The smiles on father and son were identical.
...
The days that followed were happy and uneventful.
Occasionally, General Liu would personally lead his men to check on Eagle Beak Cliff.
Each time, Qi He would hide like a thief, ensuring he wouldn't be seen.
Every time he told his wife about it, it would make her laugh so hard she'd hold her belly.
General Liu was furious but helpless against him.
Ultimately, there was one reason: he dared not steal.
Qi Yuanshan: He pretended he saw nothing.
General Liu: You're really not much of a friend.
Qi Yuanshan: If I were too good to you, I'd be letting my son down. I can't do anything that would make my son unhappy. As for whether others are unhappy, that's not my concern.
Qi He: Good father.
Fu Xinci: Me too.
General Liu: He wanted to ask Miss Fu for a long spear.
But as an elder of the male gender, he couldn't bring himself to ask.
General Liu was on the verge of depression.
Fu Xinci and Qi He looked to the sky: This has nothing to do with us.
As the harvest season once again arrived below Eagle Beak Cliff, the defense works of Qilin Town were about to welcome a group of unwelcome guests.
Lan Tianyao had already received the information and had personally sent a plea for help to Dragon City.
When the specific fireworks bloomed brilliantly in the autumn sky, not only the people of Dragon City saw them, but many people below Eagle Beak Cliff also witnessed them.
Qi Yuanshan left enough men to guard Eagle Beak Cliff and personally led the team out.
Zheng Changmin shouted, "It's been a long time since I've clashed with Tatars, I actually miss it."
Qi Yuanshan glanced at him, his tone filled with hatred for the Tatars, "If you really miss them, then when you encounter them, beat them to death."
"Heh heh, Commander Qi, you can rest assured. Today, we will surely ensure they have no return."
"I like to hear that. Everyone, speed up."
"Yes."
Under Qi Yuanshan's command, all the soldiers at Eagle Beak Cliff advanced at full speed towards Qilin Town.
Despite their tall horses galloping like the wind, Fu Xinci's speed was many times faster than theirs.
She activated her supernatural ability, her agile form as light as falling flowers and leaves, soaring over a hill.
As Fu Xinci adjusted her direction by stepping on a tree branch, she seemed to hear unusual sounds.
"Ka-cha, ka-cha, hu-chi, hu-chi, wu, wu-wu."
Although these strange sounds were faint and at some distance, Fu Xinci's keen ears still caught them.
Ka-cha, likely the sound of something being cut.
Hu-chi, hu-chi, the sound of heavy human breathing.
Wu-wu, it sounded like someone's mouth was gagged.
Fu Xinci looked around. This was truly a dense, wild mountain.
If she hadn't had her wood element supernatural ability, she would have died trying to reach here.
Then? Thinking of a possibility, Fu Xinci leaped down from the treetops and pursued the direction of the sounds.
Through the thick foliage, she vaguely saw two short, small men walking ahead.
Seeing their backs, the first thought that flashed through Fu Xinci's mind was Japanese pirates.
But why would Japanese pirates be here?
Fu Xinci frowned slightly, slowed her pace, and followed more cautiously.
The man in front was brandishing a cleaver, hacking through the undergrowth, while the man behind him carried a sack on his shoulder.
A sack?
Judging by the shape of the sack and its constant struggling and undulating, it was most likely carrying a child.
A child?
Whose child could it be, to make these two scoundrels cut a path through the roadless deep mountains to steal?
Fu Xinci's eyes widened. Could it be her family's?
Thinking of this possibility, Fu Xinci had no more patience for trailing them. A vine as thick as an adult's thumb directly tightened around the necks of the two ruffians.
The two Japanese pirates, desperately making their way, never dreamed they would be ambushed.
Without any surprise, both figures toppled to the side.
Fearing that they would injure the child in the sack, Fu Xinci used another vine to gently catch the falling sack and drag it to herself.
When she eagerly opened the sack, it was indeed Ning'er, covered in wounds.
"Ning'er." Fu Xinci's heart ached as she saw the injuries on her younger brother, and tears welled up.
"..."
Seeing his elder sister cry, Ning'er also started crying. Fu Xinci removed the rag from Ning'er's mouth and untied the ropes binding his hands.
Ning'er threw himself into his sister's arms and began to sob.
"Wu, sis."
Ning'er was terrified. He thought he would never see his grandfather, parents, sister, and brother again.
"Sis, Ning'er thought he'd never see you all again."
"It's alright, it's alright." Fu Xinci's eyes streamed with tears, while her right hand continued to pat Ning'er's back.