58. Tao's former subordinates

The "other way" Xie Wenling had been waiting for has arrived—

Second brother Jin Lizhi ran over, looking aggrieved, and said, "I've been waiting for you for ages, and all you do is talk to this cold-hearted person!"

Jin Lanyue blinked: "Second brother, Yue'er is keeping Xie brother company."

"What's there to keep him company with!" The second brother glared angrily at Xie Wenling. "He's so quiet! He's nowhere near as witty, humorous, and a martial arts master as me, the greatest swordsman in the world!"

Xie Wenling looked down at the little boy who was having a fit of chuunibyou (middle school syndrome), then silently turned his head away.

I really don't want to bother with it.

"Lizhi! Yue'er!" Jiang Xiyue's voice came from inside the mansion. She walked quickly to the door, glanced at Xie Wenling first, then bent down and picked up the little dumpling, saying softly, "Why did you run here? Your mother has been looking for you for a long time."

The little dumpling hugged Jiang Xiyue's neck and said softly, "Yue'er is chatting with Brother Xie!"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Xiyue couldn't help but glance at Xie Wenling again. Seeing that he still looked aloof and indifferent, she felt a little displeased.

She gently pinched her daughter's cheek and said, "He's busy, don't bother him."

"But..."

"Come on, Mommy will take you to have some snacks." Jiang Xiyue interrupted her directly, picked up the little dumpling and turned to walk back. Before leaving, she did not forget to call out to Jin Lizhi, "Lizhi, you come too."

The second brother immediately made a smug face at Xie Wenling and followed Jiang Xiyue with a smug look on his face.

The little dumpling nestled on Jiang Xiyue's shoulder, gazing longingly at Xie Wenling, who was still standing in the same spot, with a hint of reluctance.

Xie Wenling didn't react much; he simply looked away and walked out of the Marquis's residence on his own.

-

Back in the inner courtyard, Jiang Xiyue placed the little dumpling on the soft couch and had a maid bring some snacks. Then she sighed and said, "Yue'er, don't go looking for Brother Xie... Uncle Xie all the time. He doesn't like children."

The little dumpling tilted its head, looking puzzled: "But Brother Xie and Yue'er seemed to be having a great time chatting!"

Jiang Xiyue didn't understand.

The second older brother chimed in, "What's so happy about him? He didn't even smile!"

The little dumpling said earnestly, "But he answered Yue'er's question! And he even accepted Yue'er's snacks!"

She nodded, confirming her own belief: "He was chatting with Yue'er, so he's Yue'er's friend!"

Jiang Xiyue sighed, momentarily at a loss for words to refute her daughter's naive logic.

She could only try a different approach: "He's aloof. If you keep bothering him, he'll get annoyed."

The little dumpling pouted: "No way! If Brother Xie were annoyed with Yue'er, he would have chased her away long ago!"

Jiang Xiyue: "..."

Is it possible that he rushed you, but you didn't understand?

But if I say it directly, I'm afraid it will hurt this silly child's feelings.

So she hesitated and looked back... to the point that she suddenly felt that she couldn't even argue with a three-year-old child.

Seeing that he couldn't persuade his younger sister in front of him, the second brother immediately came over, tugged at her sleeve and shook it: "Little sister, come play with me! I'll teach you the 'Invincible Whirlwind Slash'!"

The little girl looked at her older brother, then thought about Brother Xie for a moment, and finally her face fell. She said with a pitiful expression, "But...but I want to play with Brother Xie..."

The second brother was struck dumb, clutching his chest and taking two steps back, wailing dramatically, "Little sister! You actually abandoned your own brother for that cold-hearted Brother Xie!"

Jiang Xiyue was both amused and exasperated, and rubbed her son's head: "Alright, stop acting."

Jin Lanyue climbed down from the soft couch, toddled over to her second brother, stood on tiptoe, patted his shoulder, and said earnestly, "Second brother, Yue'er still likes you the most! But Brother Xie is so lonely, Yue'er wants to keep him company..."

The second brother was taken aback, then pouted and said, "How is he lonely? He clearly just doesn't want to talk to anyone!"

The little dumpling shook its head, its face full of determination: "He talks to Yue'er! He even talked to Yue'er today!"

Jiang Xiyue and Jin Lizhi exchanged a glance and sighed at the same time.

Just then, the Marquis of Beiding returned.

"Father!" the two children called out in unison.

Jiang Xiyue stood up and asked him, "Has the letter been mailed?"

Marquis Beiding bent down to pick up the little dumpling and nodded: "It's been sent out. We should hear back in a few days."

As he spoke, his brows furrowed slightly involuntarily: "I just wonder how Old Tao's health is these days..."

Seeing this, Jiang Xiyue gently patted his shoulder: "Don't worry too much. Since you were able to ask your brother-in-law to pass on a message to you, the situation must be relatively stable."

The little dumpling also came over and nodded seriously: "That's right! Daddy is so amazing, Daddy's people must be super amazing too, nothing will happen!"

Marquis Beiding was amused by her appearance and rubbed her head: "Yue'er is right."

The little dumpling hugged the neck of the Marquis of Beiding and couldn't help but whisper, "Daddy, where did Brother Xie go? Why couldn't he take Yue'er with him?"

Marquis Beiding pinched her cheek and said gently, "He has important business to attend to. He's on duty and it's inconvenient for him to bring you along."

"Oh..." The little dumpling lowered its head in disappointment, but quickly perked up again, "When will Brother Xie come back?"

"Well..." Marquis Beiding looked up at the sky, "I'll be back when it gets dark."

-

After the family finished their dinner, the little dumpling moved a small stool to the gate of the mansion and sat there, gazing longingly at the end of the alley.

Her second brother squatted down next to her and asked sourly, "You're really that eager to wait for that Brother Xie?"

The little dumpling nodded: "Mmm!"

"What's so good about him..." the second brother scoffed, "He doesn't like to talk."

The little dumpling tilted its head and thought for a moment, then suddenly smiled: "But Brother Xie is handsome!"

Second brother: "..."

He stood up angrily, about to retort, when he saw a figure slowly walking towards him from the end of the alley.

Her robes swayed gently in the wind, making her look like a fairy in a painting.

"Thank you, brother!" The little dumpling's eyes lit up, and he immediately jumped off the stool and ran over with his short legs.

Xie Wenling paused, looked down at the little dumpling who had rushed to him, and after a moment of silence, said, "...What are you doing here?"

"Wait for Brother Xie!" The little dumpling looked up, her eyes crinkling with laughter.

Xie Wenling silently took out an exquisite wooden box and handed it to her.

The little dumpling curiously took the box, opened it, and immediately exclaimed "Wow!" in surprise. Inside were five or six neatly arranged candied hawthorn skewers, some with hawthorn, some with apple, some with orange, and some coated with sesame seeds. The crystal-clear sugar coating gleamed temptingly in the moonlight.