Chapter 141

In the morning, the family took Grandma into the mountains.

Father had said he wanted to take everyone for a picnic today.

Jiang Mianmian was excited; children always love new experiences.

The weather was hot, and the group walked for quite a while.

The last time the whole family had gone into the mountains together was when they were fleeing as refugees.

This time, Father led the way, bringing everyone to a small waterfall.

The cool mist instantly dispelled the summer heat.

Jiang Changtian thought this place was wonderful, feeling the urge to compose poetry like a scholar, though his poetic skills were only average.

On this summer day, the waterfall turned into a white mist as it fell into the deep pool below, which was dark and constantly pounded by the falling water.

The scenery was both beautiful and serene.

Jiang Mianmian also loved this place, opening her mouth as if she could catch the waterfall in it.

However, Mianmian noticed that Mom's expression seemed a bit unnatural.

Grandma spread out a blanket for everyone and laid out an array of delicious snacks.

Father and Elder Brother were setting up a clay stove nearby.

Mom said, "I'm going to take a walk around."

Elder Sister also said, "I'll go for a walk too."

Suddenly, the cry of a wild beast echoed through the mountains.

Jiang Mianmian was startled.

Aunt Yin quickly hugged the little girl, comforting her, "It's alright, it's alright. Grandma's here."

As she soothed the child, she looked around. The dense forest surrounding them was indeed a bit frightening.

The deep pool before them was also unsettling, so deep that its bottom couldn't be seen. If bodies were dumped here, many could be hidden without anyone discovering them.

Suddenly, there was movement in the thick forest.

Someone was coming.

A moment later, they saw Mom return with a wild boar with black tusks.

The boar had already been knocked unconscious.

But its skin was still warm to the touch, and its blood was still hot.

Jiang Mianmian wondered if the pitiful cry they had heard earlier had come from this wild boar.

Aunt Yin had obviously thought the same thing.

When Aunt Yin saw Qin effortlessly butcher the wild boar by the deep pool, skillfully cutting, dividing, and arranging the meat, she looked at the little girl in her arms who was giving her an innocent smile, then back at Qin. Suddenly, she understood why the little girl was often found dissecting small rabbits: she must have taken after Qin.

She silently recalled if she had ever acted improperly in front of Qin.

In her impression, Qin had always been a rather intelligent woman. Although her experiences were limited, her conduct was impeccable, and she learned everything quickly.

But she never imagined that this was her true talent.

Aunt Yin admitted to herself that she had misjudged Qin.

Perhaps she had been out of the palace for too long, and her vigilance had waned.

This had led to her judgment of people becoming less accurate.

With Qin's skills, why bother teaching her etiquette?

What she should teach is etiquette to others, to prevent them from disrespecting Qin.

Aunt Yin reflected silently, suddenly understanding why Mr. Jiang always acted like a weak imperial concubine vying for favor in front of Qin. So that was the way to survive.

As Qin Luoxia finished dividing the meat, Aunt Yin quickly ran over to help.

Looking at the uniformly sized pieces of meat, Aunt Yin's heart clenched, feeling as if her own heart had been cut to the same size. Her face, however, showed an even more benevolent smile as she said, "You've worked hard, madam."

Qin wiped away non-existent sweat from her forehead, saying it was no trouble at all, just a piece of cake.

However, she inexplicably felt that Aunt Yin seemed to be more respectful and deferential towards her.

Although Aunt Yin had always treated her very well before, there seemed to be a subtle difference now.

Jiang Feng and Father had built the stove, and were originally planning to show off their skills in the mountains. On the way here, they had even heard the sounds of birds and beasts fleeing.

But Mom had beaten them to it.

Seeing Mom's effortless and relaxed demeanor, Jiang Feng quietly put away his sword.

He went to wash the vegetables instead.

Watching his dear wife's skillful movements, Jiang Changtian obediently went to bring her some tea.

Jiang Yu had run off and disappeared. By the time the meat was in the pot, she returned with a large bundle of fresh mushrooms, which surprisingly contained six bird eggs.

Jiang Mianmian couldn't help with anything, so she sat obediently on the coarse cloth mat, watching the mountain ants. She was surprised to find she could play with them, having thought only the ants at home were playable.

She hadn't expected the mountain ants to listen to the little trees as well.

The aroma of freshly roasted wild boar meat wafted up, smelling irresistible.

Jiang Mianmian's mouth watered, but she couldn't eat it.

She drank a bowl of mushroom and meat soup instead.

Jiang Yu proudly taught Grandma how to identify mushrooms.

"This one is sweet. This kind is extremely poisonous. If you cook it and eat just one bite, a wild pheasant would drop dead immediately."

Aunt Yin: ... How did she know it was sweet?

"What are you keeping the poisonous ones for? Throw them away! What if you accidentally put them in the pot? You'd kill the whole family," Qin Luoxia shouted.

Jiang Yu grumbled, "I was just showing Grandma. She doesn't know about these things. What if Grandma accidentally ate them?"

Aunt Yin: ...

Then Aunt Yin seemed to discover one of the elder daughter's strengths: she appeared to be unafraid of poison. She watched as the girl broke off a small piece of the mushroom she had just called extremely poisonous and tasted it.

Aunt Yin wanted to stop her, but it was too late.

She quickly confiscated the rest.

Even extremely poisonous things had their uses, important uses.

At the same time, she felt oddly relieved. With the elder daughter's habit of putting everything in her mouth and wanting to taste everything, Aunt Yin had worried that if she were to marry into a complex family in the future, someone might casually offer her something inconspicuous to eat. It might seem harmless at first, but could result in infertility or premature death: there were too many possibilities.

The family ate their fill in the wild, listening to the babbling mountain spring, chirping birds, buzzing insects, and croaking frogs, feeling the gentle mountain breeze that carried away the summer heat. It was very comfortable.

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Jiang Mianmian even called the little ants to feed them the leftover food scraps.

The family chatted and laughed together.

Aunt Yin had actually been quite nervous at first.

Because she had heard that Heir Apparent Han had arrived, she couldn't help but worry that something might change in this family.

Although each of these masters seemed to have their own quirks, they were all very kind to her. Qin had said she was her aunt, so the children really called her Grandma and treated her like an elder.

Qin and Mr. Jiang were also very respectful towards her.

At first, she thought there might be some hidden agenda, but later she realized that Qin simply regretted not having elders in the family and wanted an elder to preside over the household. She also trusted her completely.

Aunt Yin had spent most of her life relying on her wits to survive.

She particularly cherished this feeling of trust.

Her husband's children didn't trust her, always thinking that as a stepmother, she must be hiding something.

The family before her, though not related by blood, trusted her completely and hid nothing from her.

Aunt Yin felt she was close to knowing every little secret of each family member. It was only because of her broad-mindedness that she could handle it; someone else might not be able to bear it. free𝑤ebnovel.com

As the afternoon sun tilted westward, the family began to pack up and head back.

The envoy for pacification had arrived, and a crowd was gathering around him.

Jiang Changtian, however, took his wife and children into hiding, spending a leisurely day in the mountains.

Walking home in the golden sunset, slightly tired but happy.

Jiang Mianmian had fallen asleep on Father's shoulder.

When she woke up, she found herself on Mom's back.

They had already arrived home.

There was a faint scent of medicine in the air, which felt comfortable.

Aunt Yin also liked this smell in the house.

Having come from the imperial palace, she actually didn't adapt well to places that smelled unpleasant.

Although the Jiang family lived in a village, it felt clean and tidy from the moment they arrived, with no bad odors.

Unexpectedly, when they returned home, someone was already waiting for them.

Under two trees stood a young man with a square face.

The young man looked more weathered.

He had matured quite a bit.

Jiang Yu, with her sharp eyes, spotted him first and excitedly called out, "It's Elder Brother Meng, he's still alive!"

Jiang Feng also jogged forward, intending to give Meng Shaoxia a cupped-hand salute, but changed his mind and reached out to embrace him instead.

The two kindred spirits hugged each other tightly.

"Brother Meng, why have you come? Where is He Elder Brother?" Jiang Feng asked excitedly.

After their last parting, many things had happened, but he still remembered the unique feeling of meeting Brother Meng and He Elder Brother, which had subtly changed his life from that moment on.

"Brother Meng, the sword manual you gave me is excellent. I've been practicing it diligently, never stopping for summer or winter. The sword you gave me is also superb. I cherish it greatly and have never used it to kill those who shouldn't be killed."

Jiang Feng stood before Meng Shaoxia, cupping his hands again in gratitude.

Meng Shaoxia had experienced even more during this time.

First, he was thrown into the army by his family to be beaten and suffer, then he ran away to endure hardships with the soldiers. He had suffered greatly along the way, witnessed much life and death, and seen much suffering. The once vigorous young man had matured and become more steady.

He greeted everyone, and when introduced to Grandma, he addressed her as such.

Even Mianmian had her cheek pinched. Finally, Meng Shaoxia greeted Jiang Yu.

"Little Yu has become prettier, even more beautiful now," he said with a smile.

He had actually been waiting under the trees for a very long time.

When he arrived, he could barely recognize the place.

If it weren't for the two trees still standing.

The former thatched cottages were now arranged in an orderly manner. Even from the outer walls, it looked different, like the residence of a famous recluse living deep in the mountains.

It was larger and more spacious, yet still blended seamlessly with the mountain behind it, appearing very harmonious.

From a distance, only the outer buildings could be seen, seemingly not much different.

But upon approaching, one discovered a hidden paradise, with the interior appearing much more expansive.

However, no one was home when he arrived this time.

He felt very anxious.

Worried that things might have changed.

That their reunion would be different from before.

Even after waiting for two hours, he suddenly took a step, deciding to leave.

He was afraid, afraid that little Yu was no longer little Yu, but just his dream.

At that moment, he heard a horse neighing from the courtyard.

Unexpectedly, his horse still recognized him.

It actually jumped out of the courtyard and trotted over to him.

Biting his sleeve, keeping him there.

Meng Shaoxia saw Jiang Yu again.

The girl who once wore worn-out shoes and walked with a limp was now graceful and poised, with a round face, fair skin, big eyes, and apricot-shaped lips. When she smiled, she radiated brilliance.

It was wonderful.

Despite the passage of time, she was still here.

It was truly wonderful.

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