Ahui waited outside the courtyard gate but did not come in. When she saw Prince Cheng come out, she went up to help him. Prince Cheng naturally put his hand on hers and slowly left.

"Sigh, I hope he'll be a good person in the future and won't use his status to harm others again," Old Zhou muttered to himself.

"Probably not. Actually, he's not inherently evil. After all he's been through, his temperament has become more peaceful. Although he's lame and has irreparable injuries to his head and face, this Prince Cheng is more like a normal person," Zhou Erfu commented.

After all, they had spent several months together on the island, so Erfu believed he knew the island quite well.

Sifu also expressed his opinion: "I also feel that Prince Cheng has become more humane. Although he is still recovering from his injuries, his state of mind is much better than before."

Boss Zhou: Who cares what kind of relationship he becomes, as long as he stops causing trouble for us.

“Ah Hui occasionally comes to Miss Zhang’s courtyard to talk to us. According to Ah Hui, Consort Duan is still unaware of what happened to Prince Cheng. The Emperor was also kept in the dark until Prince Cheng returned and wrote a memorial to report it.” Old Zhou suddenly remembered this.

"I never expected Prince Cheng to be such a filial son. I used to think he was a selfish person because of his fiery temper. It seems he has really changed a lot. He is keeping it from Consort Duan because he is afraid she will worry. I guess he plans to wait until his injuries have healed before telling her," Zhou Sanfu analyzed calmly.

After chatting about Prince Cheng for a while, everyone stopped talking about that topic and started talking about their experiences at sea.

"We searched every island we came across after leaving the dock, but unfortunately we just couldn't find my sister," Dafu said dejectedly.

“We stayed at sea for three months, and we encountered rain and hurricanes, but they didn’t have a big impact on our voyage. Later, it got colder and colder, and we ran out of food, so we had to turn back,” Sanfu added.

The eldest son, Zhou, grew increasingly heavy-hearted as he listened. After a long silence, he finally instructed his sons, "Sigh, don't mention Xingxing in front of your mother these next few days, or she'll faint again."

Two days later, it was New Year's Eve. The Zhou family stayed in Anyang Prefecture to celebrate the New Year. The Prince's Mansion didn't need to worry about the New Year's Eve dinner for them. Each courtyard had a small kitchen, and they had been taking care of their own meals every day.

Prince Cheng didn't mind and let them do as they pleased. On New Year's Eve this year, he had Ah Hui by his side. Ah Hui was very good and took good care of him. She used to be quiet in front of him, but over time she became a bit talkative.

However, Prince Cheng was pleased by this nagging, since Ah Hui genuinely cared about him. Her daily nagging was simply to remind him to eat and take his medicine on time, to wear more clothes when it got cold, and not to always need others to remind him.

“You’re not a child anymore. Even though you’re a prince, princes are still human. It’s always safer to take care of yourself. If you rely on servants for everything, you’ll seem passive and won’t get any credit.” Ah Hui practically said that if she were to fall on hard times again and be kidnapped by someone, her situation would be even more difficult without the ability to take care of herself.

If someone had dared to speak to Prince Cheng like that in the past, he would have been furious and would have been beaten to death to vent his anger. But things are different now, and his state of mind is quite different from before.

This feeling of being cared for and talked about was something he couldn't understand before. Although his mother often gave him many instructions when he was in the palace, he didn't listen to them back then. He would lose patience after a few words and either look annoyed or talk back directly. Now that he thinks about it, he really didn't know what was good for him.

The Zhou family's New Year's Eve dinner was prepared by Fu Ge and his friends. These past two days, Zhao Guihua had been lying in bed crying her eyes out, and she had no heart to do any work. Zhou Laoda was also feeling bad, so he leaned over the bedside to keep Zhao Guihua company. The couple would talk for a while and then cry for a while. The scene was truly pitiful, and Fu Ge and his friends dared not look at it for too long.

On New Year's Eve, Zhu Qiuyu and her five friends had New Year's Eve dinner with the Zhou family. Before the meal, they shared some heartwarming news: a letter from Zhu Chumo, in which he mentioned that he had performed divination for the princess and his junior brother.

"The divination indicates good fortune. Although there will be setbacks along the way, we can be certain that Junior Brother and the Princess are still alive. We just cannot predict their location for the time being. We will set sail again after the New Year, with better preparations, and sail further afield. We will definitely be able to find them," Zhu Qiuyu said confidently.

Zhao Guihua paused in her sobs, then said in a hoarse voice, "Really? You can definitely find it?"

"Definitely," Zhu Qiuyu assured her again.

Perhaps it was his overly firm tone that reassured the Zhou couple, making them feel more at ease enough to eat.

Next door lived the Zhao Mingyue family. Zhao Shui and Song Zhaodi had received a letter earlier informing them that their daughter-in-law had given birth, so they rushed to Anyang Prefecture. They arrived yesterday, the 29th of the twelfth lunar month, covered in dust from their journey.

It is said that they set off three months ago, originally intending to arrive before Zhang Xiantao gave birth. However, they encountered heavy snow blocking the road halfway, which delayed them for a month before they were able to resume their journey. Otherwise, they would not have arrived only yesterday and almost missed their New Year's Eve dinner.

Zhang Xiantao and Zhao Mingyue were in a bad mood because of the princess's matter, and they didn't enjoy their New Year's Eve dinner. Only Zhao Shui and Song Zhaodi were the happiest at the dinner table. Being able to spend the New Year with their son and daughter-in-law and hold their little grandson, what could be happier than a family reunion?

After finishing her New Year's Eve dinner, listening to the firecrackers outside, Zhao Guihua returned to her room and couldn't stop crying. "My poor daughter, how come she can't even come home for the New Year? I wonder if you're eating well on the island. It's so cold, do you have any warm clothes to keep warm?"

Xingxing had no idea how worried her parents were about her, because she didn't even know it was New Year's Day. However, she wasn't starving or freezing, since she had plenty of food and clothing in her space.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!