When Lu Xunguang rushed back in a hurry, Li Ying was leaning against a ginkgo tree in the courtyard. Several fallen leaves, like butterfly wings, landed on her shoulders and hair. She was so serene that she seemed like a fairy stepping out of an opera.
In a tipsy state, Li Ying heard his footsteps. She stood up and gave him a charming smile.
"Brother Lu?"
She shook off the yellow leaves on her body. Her skirt fluttered, giving an ethereal feeling. Lu Xunguang caught his breath. He felt as if an invisible hand had fiercely wrung his heart.
He was a meticulous person. Moreover, her abnormality was so obvious at the moment.
Lu Xunguang frowned tightly. He took big strides and rushed forward to hold her arm. He asked tenderly, "A Ying, what's wrong? Do you have something on your mind?"
Although Li Ying's speech was slurred, her mind was still clear. She naturally knew that her "homesickness" must never be spoken out. Otherwise, she might be regarded as some kind of strange and evil being.
She gave a sweet smile and just handed him another wine pot in her hand.
"We are quite free today. Brother Lu, come quickly and drink with me."
Lu Xunguang was silent but finally nodded. He sat beside her and let her lean comfortably on his left shoulder.
The moon was just rising. Li Ying emptied the wine in the pot and murmured to herself.
"May we all be blessed with longevity. Though miles apart, we'll share the beauty of this graceful moon."
Lu Xunguang rarely saw her in this state. His heart tightened, and he subconsciously held the person in his arms more tightly.
"A Ying, don't leave."
His sudden words made Li Ying subconsciously stunned for a moment. Then she came to her senses and smiled helplessly.
In front of this man, indeed, all the careful concealment of emotions was meaningless.
He knew her too well. Without any effort, he could see through all her disguises.
Li Ying took a deep breath and shook her head. It seemed that she wanted to get rid of all the restless emotions trapped in her heart. The coolness of the night breeze finally gave her a moment of clarity.
She composed herself, held Lu Xunguang's hand back, and said softly, "Brother Lu, you are here, and Granny Sun and Mianmian are here too. Where else can I go?"
Lu Xunguang heard the faint bitterness in her words. He hesitated for a moment and finally asked tentatively, "A Ying, you never seem to mention your hometown."
Li Ying smiled helplessly. It had been almost a year since she traveled through time.
When she first came here, she might still have some thoughts of finding a way to go back. Now, she already knew that it was absolutely impossible, so she simply gave up. Since she was here, she would settle down and live every day steadfastly, living up to this life.
She didn't want to think about it anymore. She gently patted Lu Xunguang's hand and said casually, "What's the use of talking about my hometown? I can't go back anyway. Why bring it up and just add to my troubles?"
Lu Xunguang was also speechless. The two looked into each other's eyes. After a long time, he sighed softly and comforted her gently.
"A Ying, don't be afraid. I am your home and your destination."
Li Ying nodded and gave a gentle smile. Then neither of them spoke again.
The next morning, she had already left behind the faint melancholy of last night. She let the air out of the two jars of pickled Chinese cabbages, prepared all kinds of ingredients for barbecuing, harnessed Wu Zhui, and was about to deliver goods to Zizai Fang.
The fish sauce was neatly packed in small jars. But just after she walked for a while, a group of people suddenly rushed out from the side. They looked menacing and blocked her way.
"Boss Li, we really underestimated your ability. No wonder you were not worried when our Yunlai Xuan launched the cold - spiced chicken claws. It turns out you had a backup plan."
As soon as these words were said, Li Ying immediately understood the intention of these hooligans in front of her.
It seemed that the message from the horse caravan had been delivered. After losing the supply of hot - pot base, Yunlai Xuan finally realized that the small chili peppers were unique to her, so they rushed here in a hurry to stop and surround her.
"Boss Li, you are a smart person. You should know that in this imperial city, under the feet of the Son of Heaven, as a rural woman, if you oppose our Yunlai Xuan, in the end, you won't end up well. Be sensible and come with us. If you can do business with Zizai Fang, there's no reason our Yunlai Xuan can't. Right?"
The eyes of these hooligans stared straight at Li Ying. Although they were talking about "cooperation", their menacing looks clearly showed that they were going to use force against her.
Li Ying frowned. According to the plan, she was going to deliver the fish sauce to Zizai Fang today. She didn't want to attract attention, so she had deliberately chosen a small path.
At this moment, there were few people around, and she was alone. She was definitely no match for them.
Seeing her standing still, the hooligans thought she was scared out of her wits. They walked up to her proudly and were about to push her.
Li Ying gritted her teeth. For a businessperson, the most important thing was "integrity". This batch of fish sauce had already been scheduled for delivery. If there was a fight and the fish sauce was smashed, it would take at least another year to brew it again. She couldn't afford to wait!
Thinking of this, Li Ying simply made up her mind. She rushed to the cart pulled by Wu Zhui, picked up the small jars of fish sauce without hesitation, and stuffed them into the space!
The hooligans watched in astonishment as the jars on the cart disappeared right in front of their eyes.
After a long time, two of them finally came to their senses. Their faces changed greatly, and they shouted in terror, "There's a ghost! This woman is extremely eerie!"
Previously, they thought the chicken offal dishes this woman made were so unhygienic. At that time, they just thought she was a country bumpkin with no future, stuffing all kinds of dirty things into her mouth. But now, seeing Li Ying easily put a whole cart of fish sauce back into the space, they finally woke up like from a dream.
This woman clearly had some kind of magic!
No matter how aggressive these hooligans were, they were just ordinary people after all. How dare they arrest Li Ying? They staggered and turned around to run. Soon, they disappeared.
Li Ying let out a sigh of relief. Seeing that there was no one around and that besides the lackeys of Yunlai Xuan, no one else had seen her "startling" act, she composed herself and secretly made up her mind.
What magic? As long as she firmly denied it, who could find the space on her?
Li Ying calmly rearranged the small jars of fish sauce, drove Wu Zhui, and headed straight for Zizai Fang. The shopkeeper was already waiting at the door. Seeing her arrive on time, he immediately beamed with joy.
He quickly called the shop assistants to transport all the fish sauce to the warehouse and keep it well. Many customers saw this commotion and curiously came over to take a look.
The shopkeeper of Zizai Fang smiled and praised the fresh taste of the "fish sauce". He also said that in a few days, Zizai Fang would launch several new dishes, which immediately whetted the customers' appetites.
"Shopkeeper, every word we said is true. We saw it with our own eyes. This woman is really evil!"
Just as Li Ying and the people in Zizai Fang were chatting and laughing, a commotion suddenly came from the crowd.
She looked up and saw that it was the hooligans who had been scared away just now. At this moment, they were chattering and swarming around Li Yun, shouting as they came.