"So fragrant! Mother, you must be hungry, right? Big Yellow caught two pheasants this morning. We've made soup with them. It'll be just right to nourish you."
Jiang Mian said cheerfully as she held Jiang Zhiqing's arm. She waved to the yellow dog. "Big Yellow, come here quickly! Mother hasn't had a good look at you yet!"
Xiao Jingcheng turned his head away and gave a soft snort in his heart.
Did she really think he was a dog? He wasn't going to be so pathetic as to come and go at her beck and call.
But the next moment, the fluffy yellow dog immediately wagged its tail, stuck out its tongue, and excitedly ran towards Jiang Mian.
[Stupid dog, what are you doing!] He roared at the yellow light ball in his body.
The yellow dog circled around Jiang Mian and Jiang Zhiqing. Its wet nose nudged into Jiang Zhiqing's palm. Jiang Zhiqing bent down and gently rubbed the yellow dog's head. "Big Yellow is such a good boy."
The yellow light ball jumped up and down happily.
[Mother's mother smells so nice. Big Yellow likes it~]
Xiao Jingcheng gritted his teeth in anger, but under Jiang Zhiqing's gentle touch, he couldn't help but squint his eyes in enjoyment.
Well...
Why did Mother Jiang's hands feel so comfortable?
"Big Yellow was a stray I picked up on the road. It was only this small back then. I spent a lot of effort to save its life. Since then, I've kept it by my side," Jiang Mian introduced with a smile to Jiang Zhiqing. "Big Yellow is both spiritual and smart. It can not only understand my words but also scout the way and help us avoid dangers. I've always regarded it as a family member."
Jiang Zhiqing said, "Dogs that grow up in the countryside are the most understanding of human nature. Since it's so important to you, we'll naturally treat it as a family member from now on."
The yellow dog's tail wagged even more happily. Jiang Mian pulled Jiang Zhiqing forward. "There are two other people here. I must introduce them to you, Mother."
Seeing Jiang Mian and Jiang Zhiqing walking towards them, Mo Zhizhang inexplicably felt a bit nervous. He couldn't help but stand up and first bowed to Jiang Zhiqing. "I'm Mo Zhizhang. Greetings, Madam Jiang."
On the other side, Xiao Jingcheng, who had been immersed in the pleasure of Jiang Zhiqing rubbing his head, suddenly came to his senses. He stared blankly at Mo Zhizhang, who looked polite and quite imposing.
Jiang Mian said, "Mother, this is my uncle. He's good at using poisons. It was him who saved you from the brink of death back then."
Jiang Zhiqing said seriously, "Thank you, Doctor Mo, for saving me that day. It's because of you that our mother - daughter reunion was possible. I'll always remember your kindness to our family and will surely repay you in the future."
"Madam Jiang, there's no need for this. Treating the sick and saving the dying is the duty of us doctors. We don't do it for repayment," Mo Zhizhang replied.
Looking at the gentle and appropriate smile on Mo Zhizhang's face, Xiao Jingcheng ground his back teeth hard.
Such a hypocrite, always good at pretending. This Mo guy and Xiao Yixuan are just the same kind of people!
"Anyway, we must thank Doctor Mo. If there's anything we can do for you in the future, just let us know," Jiang Zhiqing said.
Jiang Mian then pointed to the Taoist priest Yuan Zheng. "Mother, this is Taoist Priest Yuan Zheng. It was all thanks to him that we were able to retrieve your lost soul last night."
Jiang Zhiqing thanked Taoist Priest Yuan Zheng again. The Taoist priest stroked his goatee with a smile. "Madam Jiang and Little Doctor Jiang are both blessed people. I'm just getting lucky by being with you all."
"There's still one more person..." Jiang Mian paused, and her face became much more solemn. "You also need to know about him."
Jiang Mian led Jiang Zhiqing towards a carriage not far away.
Xiao Jingcheng gave a start and controlled the yellow dog's body to follow their footsteps.
When the carriage curtain was lifted, a still body lying quietly in the carriage came into Jiang Zhiqing's view. She was first stunned, then leaned forward and asked, "Mujin, who is this?"
Xiao Jingcheng squatted beside the carriage, subconsciously straightening his body. His beady eyes stared at Jiang Mian, and he inexplicably felt nervous.
He wondered how Jiang Mian would introduce him to her mother.
"This is the Crown Prince of the Sheng Kingdom, Xiao Jingcheng," Jiang Mian said.
Jiang Zhiqing was startled and looked at the lying man again.
This was the Crown Prince of the Sheng Kingdom?
With the surname Xiao, could he be the child of Xiao Tianye and Shen Lingyun?
The marriage between the Xiao and Shen families had always been a topic of conversation among onlookers after dinner. Since Jiang Zhiqing was in the Li Mansion, she had also heard about Shen Lingyun's remarriage to Xiao Tianye. At that time, she and Li Zhao had sighed that even the marriage of the daughter of the Shen family was not up to herself. Just because she had fallen into the water and was rescued by Xiao Tianye, she had to marry him. It was really a pity.
Li Zhao had just gently stroked her back then without saying a word. Thinking about it, he must have been planning how to welcome a concubine into the mansion as his main wife from that time on.
Jiang Mian didn't know what was going on in Jiang Zhiqing's mind. She said, "Actually, the reason I was abandoned by the Ye family and forced to marry into Xuanzhou back then was all because of him. He's the Crown Prince of the Sheng Kingdom, while I'm just a country girl. I dared to write love letters to him, trying to climb up to him, and became a laughingstock in the whole capital."
Xiao Jingcheng anxiously circled around Jiang Mian twice and bit her sleeve to tug at it.
Hadn't they already let go of the past and stopped blaming each other? Why was she bringing this up now?
Jiang Zhiqing frowned and said, "There must be some misunderstanding in this."
Xiao Jingcheng was stunned for a moment and looked at Jiang Zhiqing in disbelief.
Huh?
Madam Jiang actually saw the key point right away?
Jiang Mian said, "That's right. Both he and I have become pawns in other people's hands."
She briefly told Jiang Zhiqing about the incident when Xiao Jingcheng was ambushed and went missing during his "southern inspection". "By coincidence, Qi Wen and I saved him. Only then did we know that he was also a victim, and we finally cleared up the past events."
Jiang Mian clenched her fingers and said in a low voice, "Actually, his nature isn't bad. It's just that he has an arrogant temper and is not willing to give in in words. The day Mother was in trouble, he had already planned to leave Dongli Town and return to the capital, but he turned back and came to the town in time to stop those two people from continuing to feed Mother arsenic."
"After that, there were continuous heavy rains in Dongli Town, and the water level of the Sang River rose. It was also him who transferred the villagers in time and saved countless lives. But he..."
Jiang Mian continued, "But he was hit on the head by a floating log and has been in a coma ever since."
Xiao Jingcheng finally let out a sigh of relief and even felt a bit happy in his heart.
She would take the initiative to speak well of him. Did this mean that she was starting to have feelings for him?
Jiang Zhiqing let out a soft sigh and said, "He's such a poor child. He clearly did a good deed, so why did he have to suffer like this?"
Jiang Mian said, "Now, the area north of the West River is under the control of Emperor Yuan - that is, Xiao Jingcheng's uncle. And the area south of the West River, especially Tianyuan County, has become the territory of Xiao Jingcheng's biological father. The two are divided by the West River and are competing for the world."
"But if we want Xiao Jingcheng to wake up, we must return to the capital."
Jiang Zhiqing thought for a while and said, "So, this is our next goal, which is to escort him back to the capital?"