Three days later, in the garden pavilion, Leng Ruoli was teaching Chu Mingxuan how to stitch a rabbit's wound, a rabbit that Chu Mingxuan himself had rescued from the golden eagle's beak.
At this moment, the golden eagle perched on a plum blossom branch was looking forlornly at the two people happily chatting inside the pavilion.
"Wuwuwu..."
No wonder its master had been so kind this morning, allowing it to fly outside the city to play? And even permitting it to catch wild game to eat. It had been excited about this for a good half-day.
But just as it had caught a rabbit to prepare for its lunch, it was robbed by two bandits inside the pavilion.
It felt so wronged.
Just as the golden eagle was feeling indignant, the butler hurried over from outside.
"Reporting to the Consort, there are several people at the manor gates who wish to see you and the King," the butler said with clasped hands.
"What kind of people?" Leng Ruoli asked casually, but she didn't stop her work.
"Your servant, judging by their accent, they do not seem to be from our Tianwu, but rather resemble those from Nanzhao," the butler said after a moment of thought.
"Nanzhao accents? I'll go see," Leng Ruoli said.
It had been many days since she and Jun Mohan had received Prince Ji's secret letter, and Prince Ji and his consort should be arriving in the capital soon.
When Leng Ruoli, led by the butler, hurried to the entrance of the Cold King's manor, the gate guards opened the grand doors to see Prince Ji and Princess Ji, accompanied by several people dressed in ordinary clothing, standing outside the manor gates.
"Prince Ji, Princess Ji, it really is you."
Leng Ruoli spoke, her face blooming into a bright, flower-like smile that quickly spread across her features. As it reached the corners of her eyes, the smile gradually softened, and her delicate red lips curved into an elegant arc. Her smile made Prince Ji and his consort feel immensely at ease.
"Consort Leng, it's been a while, and you've become even more beautiful."
Princess Ji looked at Leng Ruoli's radiant smile, feeling a warmth spread through her heart.
"Haha, Princess Ji, you too. Please, come in quickly!" Leng Ruoli replied with a smile.
"Alright."
Then, Prince Ji and Princess Ji turned and glanced at those behind them before immediately following Leng Ruoli into the Cold King's manor.
After entering the manor, Prince Ji and his consort anxiously asked, "Consort Leng, where is our eldest son? Where is he now?"
"Prince Ji and Princess Ji, please don't be anxious. I will take you to see him now," Leng Ruoli said with another smile.
Afterward, she led the Prince Ji couple to the courtyard where Xiao Liu Zi resided.
As the group stepped through the moon gate of Xiao Liu Zi's courtyard, they saw him sitting on a stone bench in the small courtyard, engrossed in a book on military strategy. This book was borrowed from Jun Mohan, and he was reading it with great concentration.
"Xu'er~"
Prince Ji and Princess Ji, tears streaming down their faces, softly called out his name as they looked at Xiao Liu Zi.
Upon hearing two familiar voices, Xiao Liu Zi quickly turned his head towards the source of the sound. Looking up, he saw Prince Ji and Princess Ji. Immediately, his nose tingled, his eyes turned red, and two teardrops slowly trickled from the corners of his eyes. The book in his hands trembled slightly and fell to the ground.
"Father! Mother~"
"Xu'er, it really is you."
Prince Ji and Princess Ji rushed to Xiao Liu Zi, their hands reaching out to embrace him.
"My Xu'er, after all these years, we... we finally found you," Princess Ji said, sobbing uncontrollably.
"Father, Mother, Xu'er misses you both so much!"
When he was secretly abducted by wicked people, he was only eight years old. Later, he fortunately escaped from the clutches of the villains and was pursued all the way, unable to return home. Afterward, he had no choice but to disguise himself as a beggar and follow a Nanzhao merchant caravan, begging his way to the Tianwu Kingdom. Then, he unknowingly arrived in the capital, but wicked people quickly discovered his whereabouts. During his escape, those villains injured his leg, but thankfully, the owner of the Old Guo Cloth Shop saved him.
"We have missed you so much it's driven us mad. Where have you been all these years? Your father and mother have been worried sick about you," Prince Ji and Princess Ji said, weeping.
"Father, Mother, Xu'er will never carelessly leave you again."
Xiao Liu Zi held Prince Ji and his consort tightly, tears flowing down like a torrent.
Seeing this touching scene, Leng Ruoli turned and left Xiao Liu Zi's courtyard, giving the family of three space.
Then, she returned to the garden to check on Chu Mingxuan's stitching practice. He was currently examining the wound Leng Ruoli had personally stitched on the rabbit and hadn't noticed her approach.
"Reading it a hundred times is not as good as practicing it yourself. Even the best stitching techniques are honed through practice," Leng Ruoli said suddenly from behind Chu Mingxuan.
Chu Mingxuan, startled by Leng Ruoli's words, exclaimed, "Consort, when did you come up behind me?"
"A little while ago. Seeing how diligently you were studying, I didn't want to disturb you," Leng Ruoli said with a faint smile.
"Consort, you've come at the perfect time. Tell me, should I practice stitching on live rabbits or on the pelts of dead animals?" Chu Mingxuan asked hesitantly.
"You should stop harming living beings. Just practice with those dead animal pelts. Otherwise, the Cold King's manor won't need to buy meat for months," Leng Ruoli said straightforwardly.
"Alright then! Consort, I'll listen to you," Chu Mingxuan replied with a shallow smile.
Immediately, he went to find the Cold King's manor butler and asked him to buy more slaughtered rabbits, chickens, and ducks for him to practice his stitching techniques.
Meanwhile, Leng Ruoli also left the manor garden and returned to her own courtyard to check on how her two maids were doing with clearing the weeds from the two empty plots in the corner of her courtyard.
As a result, when she returned to her Hance Courtyard, Xing'er and Ling'er, along with a few others, had already cleared all the weeds in her courtyard.
"Consort, we've cleared two large empty plots in our courtyard. Are you planning to grow medicinal herbs?" Xing'er asked with great curiosity.
"No, I want to see if I can cultivate some sweet potato vines, corn seedlings, and potatoes," Leng Ruoli replied truthfully.
"Sweet potato vines, corn seedlings, and potatoes? We haven't heard of them before. Are they also medicinal herbs?"
Xing'er asked doubtfully again.
"They are not medicinal herbs. They are a type of agricultural crop. The fruits produced can fill people's stomachs, much like white rice that can be eaten," Leng Ruoli explained simply.
Xing'er and Ling'er were stunned upon hearing this.
"Consort, we've never heard of these agricultural crops before. How do you know that these crops can fill people's stomachs?" the two young maids asked curiously.
At this moment, Jun Mohan's voice came from behind the three servants. He answered the maids' questions for Leng Ruoli.
"Your Consort is a fairy sent from heaven to save the mortal world, so she knows many things that we do not. This is not surprising," Jun Mohan said resolutely.