Jiang Mian came up to the two of them and crouched down, making herself look much shorter. She softly called out to Jiang Zhiqing, "Mother."
Jiang Zhiqing only showed about a third of her face. Her gaze fell on Jiang Mian's face, and she still looked a bit nervous.
Li Zhao placed his palm on Jiang Mian's head and gently ruffled her hair. He smiled at Jiang Zhiqing and said, "Yingniang, weren't you just looking for our child? This is our child."
"Child?" Jiang Zhiqing tilted her head. "She, our child?"
"Yes," Li Zhao said in a gentle voice. "You and I had a child. The child looks very much like both of us. Look, doesn't she have the same eyes as you?"
Following Li Zhao's words, Jiang Mian leaned her face forward a bit.
Jiang Zhiqing showed half more of her face and carefully sized up the girl in front of her. Then she looked at Li Zhao beside her and opened her eyes in surprise. "She does, my lord."
"Yes, she takes after me."
Li Zhao gently took her hand and guided it to touch Jiang Mian's cheek.
"Children grow up very fast. Our child has already grown up."
When her fingers actually touched the soft and warm skin, Jiang Zhiqing gradually gained more courage. She stepped out from behind Li Zhao, crouched down to be on the same level as Jiang Mian, and held Jiang Mian's face with both hands, pinching it left and right. Then she leaned forward and sniffed Jiang Mian like a puppy.
At first, a look of confusion flashed across her eyes. Then, with a bit of uncertainty, she said, "Meow, meow meow?"
Actually, Jiang Zhiqing didn't recognize people. When Jiang Mian first met her, she couldn't even get close to her.
So, when the two people from the Jiang family were out, Jiang Mian would climb over the wall and run to the small courtyard to accompany Jiang Zhiqing.
Sometimes she would bring delicious food for Jiang Zhiqing, sometimes she would play with her for a whole day, and sometimes she would even help treat the wounds on her body. Over time, Jiang Zhiqing remembered Jiang Mian's voice and smell and accepted this special "playmate".
Previously, Jiang Mian had tried to get close to Jiang Zhiqing through the impressions she had left in the past. But Jiang Zhiqing had nearly been harmed by someone, and she had reverted to her initial state.
Now, because of Li Zhao, Jiang Zhiqing had retrieved her memory of Jiang Mian.
Jiang Zhiqing pinched Jiang Mian's face hard and murmured, "Meow? Is this our child, mine and my lord's?"
Afraid of scaring her, Jiang Mian softly called out, "Mother."
Jiang Zhiqing looked at Li Zhao, and Li Zhao nodded at her. Gradually, there was a sparkle in her eyes. "Meow, is this our child?"
Jiang Mian held her hand and pressed her face into her palm, gently rubbing it. She smiled and said, "Mother, I'm your child. I've grown up."
Seeing her smiling face, Jiang Zhiqing also smiled. The mother and daughter faced each other and smiled stupidly.
Suddenly remembering something, Jiang Zhiqing hooked Jiang Mian's hand, pulled her up, and led her in front of Li Zhao. She leaned into Li Zhao's arms and said, "Child, this is your father. Call him."
Jiang Mian also leaned in. First, she called out "Father", and then she called out "Mother". Jiang Zhiqing happily hugged Li Zhao tightly.
"My lord, our child has grown up."
Li Zhao gently stroked her long hair and replied, "Yes, our child has grown up."
Jiang Zhiqing could quickly accept Jiang Mian because she was already very familiar with her. If it were someone else standing in front of her at this moment, even with Li Zhao there, it might not be so easy for her to accept everything so quickly.
Since the family was finally reunited, they should have prepared a good meal to celebrate. But it was raining outside, and everything was wet. The firewood was damp too. It was even a problem to go out in such weather.
For dinner, Jiang Mian cooked a pot of noodles and served them with a few eggs. They could only make do for the time being. In the future, when they had their own house and truly lived together as a family, they would cook a more sumptuous meal.
Jiang Zhiqing was still wearing the dirty clothes from yesterday. After being locked up and tortured by the Jiang family for so many years, she was even thinner than Jiang Mian. So Jiang Mian found her old clothes. After dinner, she gave the clothes to Li Zhao.
Li Zhao first tentatively touched Jiang Zhiqing's belt. After making sure that she wouldn't resist or struggle, he slowly took off her clothes.
In the bright candlelight, the emaciated body that was nothing but bones stabbed Li Zhao's eyes. What made him even angrier was that the woman's body was covered with scars of various sizes.
According to Jiang Mian, the two people from the Jiang family regarded Jiang Zhiqing as a burden. Whenever they were in a bad mood, they would beat and scold her. And after that, they would just ignore her and not even give her any medicine.
If it weren't for Jiang Mian secretly applying medicine to her, those wounds would have festered and suppurated.
Li Zhao was extremely angry in his heart. But he remembered Mo Zhizhang's instructions and didn't dare to let his emotions fluctuate too much. He tried his best to control himself and gently put clean clothes on Jiang Zhiqing.
The two of them hadn't seen each other for many years. But for Jiang Zhiqing, whose intelligence was damaged, it seemed as if they had never been separated. She still liked to burrow into Li Zhao's arms like before, step on his feet with her own, and wrap her arms around his waist to keep warm with his body heat.
"My lord, Yingniang wants to hear a story," she said, looking up at him eagerly.
This familiar habit touched Li Zhao deeply. He gently held the woman in his arms. "Then today, I'll tell Yingniang a story about... fishing."
The man was knowledgeable. His voice was deep and gentle, with a soothing power. Soon, Jiang Zhiqing fell asleep peacefully in his arms.
After Jiang Zhiqing was fast asleep, Li Zhao carefully let go of her and then walked out of the room.
After he left, Jiang Mian pushed open the door and entered the room. After changing her clothes, she lay down beside Jiang Zhiqing.
During the night, Jiang Zhiqing opened her eyes. Jiang Mian gently patted her shoulder and softly called out, "Mother, it's me. I'm here with you."
Jiang Zhiqing rubbed her face against Jiang Mian's palm, closed her eyes, and fell asleep again.
The mother and daughter slept with their feet touching, warming each other on the slightly cool summer night.
There were limited rooms in Huichun Hall. After Li Zhao fainted last night, he stayed in Mo Zhizhang's room. Today, he should go back to his own room.
But he didn't leave in a hurry. Instead, he stood under the eaves and looked up at the rain curtain in the night.
Footsteps sounded behind him. Xiao Jingcheng stood beside him and said, "It's raining outside, Uncle Li. Your body hasn't fully recovered yet. You'd better go back and rest earlier."
Li Zhao frowned deeply. He said, "This rain has been falling for so long and shows no sign of stopping. It's not right."
This was the second time Xiao Jingcheng had heard him say this. He also frowned and asked, "Uncle Li means..."
Li Zhao said, "Boy, pick up the lantern and take a careful look at every corner with the light. Then tell me what you find."