286. Convergence

Qin Fengsong looked again at the white weasel that was still squatting in the same spot, tried to clasp his hands in a fist salute, lowered his voice, and spoke with unprecedented politeness: "A celestial... celestial beast? Please... give me some more clarification?"

The weasel seemed to understand; it approached and sniffed Qin Fengsong, but its animal instincts prevented it from sensing any danger.

So it turned its head and trotted a few steps in one direction, then stopped and looked back at Qin Fengsong.

Qin Fengsong felt much more at ease and immediately waved his hand: "Follow it!"

The weasel led them forward to the outside of the courtyard. Then, with a "whoosh," it darted into the courtyard gate, which was half-hidden by vines.

Qin Fengsong's heart pounded. Suppressing his excitement, he gestured for his team members to spread out and maintain vigilance, while he, along with his two deputies, cautiously approached.

The first thing that catches the eye is a little dumpling squatting in the yard, carefully bandaging the injured hind leg of a wild rabbit.

As she gently wrapped the bandage, she softly instructed, "Little bunny, you need to rest well so your injury can heal quickly."

Beside her, the little princess, wanting to apologize to Lin Fuman, asked her for a stone spear.

At this moment, she stood with her hands on her hips, making demands of the bewildered Lin Fu: "Here! Here, tie a big bow! Yes! A big one, and dye the vines pink!"

"But... hanging a big bow on a stone spear is impractical and impractical..."

"That's not important. Whether it works well or not is temporary, but looking good is forever!"

"Oh, okay..."

"Your Highness! Princess Fukang!" Qin Fengsong could hardly believe his eyes.

One of the young guards behind him exclaimed in disbelief, "It really is Her Highness the Princess and Princess Fukang!"

This exclamation startled everyone.

The little dumpling was startled and dropped the strip of cloth in its hand.

She looked up and, upon seeing the familiar figure at the door, her large, dark eyes immediately lit up: "Uncle Qin! It's Uncle Qin!"

Qu Zijin ran out of the house, and Xie Wenling also quickly walked out.

The little princess was taken aback at first, but when she saw that the person was Qin Fengsong, she immediately straightened her little body, raised her little chin, and proudly exclaimed, "Commander Qin! You've finally arrived!"

The little dumpling happily ran to the little princess's side, tilted its little face up, and softly added, "Uncle Qin, we are all safe! Little Cloud is very brave, Sister Fufu can make a lot of useful things, and we have made a lot of animal friends!"

As she spoke, she pointed to the little wild rabbit grazing nearby and the little squirrel peering curiously from the tree.

Looking at his two lively and adorable little masters, especially the little dumpling's innocent smile, even this tough man couldn't help but tear up.

He strode forward, knelt on one knee, and said in a loud voice, "Your subject Qin Fengsong greets Your Highness the Princess, Princess Fukang, and Your Excellencies! We are relieved to see that you are all safe and sound!"

The guards behind him also knelt down in unison.

"Commander Qin, please rise!" Qu Zijin stepped forward excitedly and quickly helped Qin Fengsong up. "Commander Qin, you've worked so hard, please rise. If you hadn't found us in time, we might have... Anyway, it's wonderful that you found us here!"

The little princess shook her head proudly: "Commander Qin, let me tell you, we're so clever! It was Little Moon who sent the little weasel to deliver the message to you!"

The little dumpling was a bit embarrassed by the praise, her face flushed slightly, and she whispered, "It was a solution we all came up with together..."

Qin Fengsong then remembered the crucial piece of fox fur, quickly took it out of his pocket, presented it with both hands, and sincerely praised, "Princess Fukang's method is truly miraculous! If it weren't for this spirit beast leading the way, we would probably have been wandering around in the mountains for a long time!"

“Yes,” Ah Zhong and Ah Cheng also said, “the county magistrate found us herbs and food, which allowed us to get through the most difficult time.”

The little princess puffed out her chest proudly: "Of course! Little Moon is the best!"

Qu Zijin breathed a long sigh of relief, feeling as if the anxiety that had been hanging over him for days had finally subsided.

Lin Fuman and the little dumpling hugged each other happily, jumping and laughing: "We're saved! We can go home now!"

The little princess was a bit disappointed; she wanted to play outside a little longer.

After the initial excitement subsided, Qin Fengsong glanced at the sky and suggested, "Your Highness, gentlemen, it is getting late, the mountain roads are difficult to traverse, and many of you are injured. Why don't we rest here for the night, while we remain on guard, and set off back to the capital early tomorrow morning? What do you think?"

The proposal was unanimously agreed upon.

After a nerve-wracking escape, finally having reliable protection brought a long-lost sense of security to everyone.

Ah Zhong, Ah Cheng, and the guards prepared a relatively sumptuous dinner, and the courtyard even had a rare moment of relaxation.

-

That night.

It was late at night.

Xie Wenling, however, was wide awake.

The discomfort caused by his injury, along with concerns about potential dangers on his journey back to Beijing, left him feeling unsettled.

The more of them there are, the greater the chance of them being discovered.

In the south, however, it was ultimately the domain of the Prince of Zhennan.

He could foresee that their journey back would be anything but peaceful.

It's even quite possible that they'll confront each other head-on.

He sat alone on the stone steps in the courtyard, wearing an outer robe, gazing at the starry sky, a look of worry on his brow.

Suddenly, a small outer robe, still warm from his body, was gently draped over his knees.

Xie Wenling was slightly taken aback. He turned his head and saw that the little dumpling had come to his side at some point and was standing on tiptoe, trying to pull his robe up for him.

The night was colder, and her little nose was a bit red from the cold night wind.

"Princess? Why are you up? It's cold outside." Xie Wenling instinctively wanted to open his outer robe and wrap her up inside.

The little dumpling squeezed onto the stone steps next to him and sat down, hugging her knees with her little hands. She looked up at him, her round eyes like two clear springs in the moonlight: "Moon, I saw Brother Xie sitting here alone, and he seems unhappy. Is his wound hurting?"

Looking into her eyes filled with pure concern, Xie Wenling felt a little less gloomy.

He shook his head gently: "It doesn't hurt anymore. I was just thinking about some things."

"Are you worried about encountering bad people on the way back?" The little dumpling blinked, revealing his concern. "Commander Qin and the others are amazing! And they also have Yue'er, Sister Fufu, and Little Cloud! We're amazing too!"

She waved her little fist, trying her best to appear reliable.

Xie Wenling was amused by her childlike yet earnest appearance, and just as he was about to say something, he was interrupted by a sudden noise.

"Clang! Clang!"

A strange noise came from the direction of the dilapidated shed in the corner of the yard where miscellaneous items were piled up.

Xie Wenling's expression hardened, and he instinctively shielded the little dumpling behind him, his gaze sharp as he looked towards the source of the sound.

The little dumpling also curiously peeked its head out from behind him.

In the blurry darkness, a familiar small figure could be roughly discerned.

Xie Wenling frowned, took her little hand, and walked towards the shed.

The closer you get, the clearer the sound becomes.

It was also mixed with frustrated mutterings.

Xie Wenling gently parted the tattered straw mat that was covering the area, revealing a lit candle inside.

Lin Fuman was sitting cross-legged on a pile of hay, her face covered in wood shavings, with a pile of tools spread out in front of her.

The knife, rope, several wooden sticks shaped in various ways, and all sorts of strange things were probably things she had picked up.

She was holding a strangely shaped crossbow, trying to put a wooden stick into the firing slot and pull the trigger to fire it.

But it clearly failed.

With a flick of her wrist, the wooden stick slid down and fell to the ground.

"Oh dear, it's not working again. This trajectory... ugh, this launch slot is too big, it can't hold the arrow at all!" Lin Fu was full of worries as she looked at the newly made crossbow.

The little dumpling stared in disbelief, exclaiming softly, "Sister Fufu? You...you're inventing something again? What is it this time?"

Lin Fuman was startled by the sudden sound and turned around sharply. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Xie Wenling and Xiao Tuanzi.

Then, somewhat embarrassed, she hid her failed attempt behind her back: "I... I just couldn't sleep, so I wanted to try making a repeating crossbow... but it seems I failed again..."

Her head drooped as she looked at the pile of parts on the ground, feeling very frustrated.