Seeing him grinning foolishly, Cui Yulu said to him, "I can't sleep right now, and I want to go to that valley to see the fireflies. Can you come with me?"

The little mute nodded, naturally willing. He loved watching Cui Yulu catch fireflies, and he wanted to catch a whole bag of fireflies for her too.

The two walked towards the valley. The night was quiet, and only the sound of their footsteps could be heard.

The little mute had prepared a torch and held it in his hand. The light fell at Cui Yulu's feet, making it easier for her to see the road.

He himself was completely engulfed in darkness.

Soon they saw a few fireflies flying by, so the two found an open space to sit down.

The little mute boy also lit a small fire, which could both drive away wild animals and allow him to see the scenery in the distance.

In the firelight, Cui Yulu's profile still had a bit of baby fat, making her look very cute and round.

Her fair skin glowed red in the firelight, her cherry-like lips were slightly pouting, and her almond-shaped eyes were fixed on the valley not far away.

The surroundings were filled with blooming flowers, and the air was filled with various fragrances, which was refreshing and could make people forget all their troubles.

"Are you unhappy?"

The little mute boy watched as she stared blankly into the distance, showing no excitement whatsoever at the sight of fireflies.

So he gestured in front of her.

Cui Yulu looked at the serious-looking man in front of her. His face did not have the weathered look of Tuoba Xuan, nor the superior and detached look of Fu Xiaoyu, nor the gentle and ambitious look of Han Yu'an. His face only showed Cui Yulu's expression. He was happy when she was happy and disappointed when she was unhappy.

In short, Cui Yulu's facial expressions could affect everything he did.

"I just miss home and want to go back and see the people there."

Half a year has passed in the blink of an eye, and I wonder if Han Bao has managed to marry Lin Qiaoyue as he wished.

"Let's go home. I'll go back with you. How about we leave tomorrow?"

The little mute boy gestured excitedly, wanting to stay with her no matter where they went.

"Hehe, why are you more anxious than me? I'm just afraid of how I'll face them when I get there. I was once a bride who was arranged to marry a mentally challenged man to bring him good luck. His family treated me very well, but then some things happened, and we couldn't get over the hurdle in our hearts, so we separated. Later, I fell off a cliff and got together with Fu Xiaoyu. All these things have really annoyed me. I don't know how to face his family."

"Since you've already separated, you have nothing to do with each other anymore. You can start a new life. You can't keep looking forward forever. You are your own person, and you have any choice."

Cui Yulu was moved by his words.

"I didn't expect you to be so good at comforting people."

"Do you want to go back?"

Looking at the little mute boy who had been waiting for his reply, Cui Yulu said playfully, "If you can catch a hundred fireflies, I'll decide to take you back with me, okay?"

The little mute boy chuckled sheepishly, quickly picked up the bag of moonlight gauze, and went to catch fireflies.

Cui Yulu sat there watching everything unfold before her, thinking how wonderful it would be if life could be this peaceful.

He quickly brought the bag of fireflies to Cui Yulu.

"A hundred already?"

He nodded emphatically: "I'm really good at catching fireflies."

At this moment, his face was full of smugness, a confidence I had never seen before.

"What do you plan to do if I go back to my hometown and never come back here?"

Cui Yulu held the fireflies, and saw them darting around inside, very active.

It was this gauze bag that restricted their freedom.

He looked at Cui Yulu with a serious expression and gestured earnestly, saying, "I can stay with you in our hometown, as long as you don't mind."

After he finished speaking, his face flushed slightly, and he lowered his head in embarrassment.

"Alright then, let's go to Jingyuan Town tomorrow and open a clinic there. I'll be the boss and you can be the employee."

He chuckled again, "Of course, no problem. Dr. Cui, your medical skills are the best in the world."

Cui Yulu was amused by his appearance, and she released a bag full of fireflies.

He stopped her, puzzled: "Don't you like fireflies? Why did you release them?"

"Freedom is their life. We should be content to appreciate their beauty for a while, so we should give them back their freedom."

He stopped stopping her; if she wanted, he could catch even more and better fireflies for her.

Not just fireflies, he would find anything else for her.

As long as she doesn't cry and is happy every day, that's fine.

The next morning, the two of them only told Xia Lan'er their whereabouts before embarking on their journey back to Jingyuan Town.

It took nearly three days of travel to finally return to Jingyuan Town.

However, Cui Yulu first returned to Linshui Village to offer incense to her grandmother, and then added soil to her parents' cenotaphs before preparing to leave.

At this moment, a lame old woman suddenly rushed out; it was none other than Granny Han.

"You're Cui Yulu, how dare you come back? You've ruined our family so badly."

At this time, Granny Han had lost the ability to make a living. Her husband and son had both died of illness, and her daughter-in-law had been exiled thousands of miles away. No one knew whether she was alive or dead. She relied on begging for food every day and lived a very miserable life.

"Old Lady Han, can you blame anyone else for this? You brought this on yourselves. You should just beg properly. If you keep acting up, you won't even be able to get food."

As he spoke, he grabbed the little mute boy and prepared to leave the village.

Suddenly she realized that this was no longer her hometown, that she had no ties to the place, and no roots to rely on. As for that heartless aunt, she didn't want to see her.

That's enough. We've done all the necessary rites. It's time to go back to Jingyuan Town and visit her clinic.

"Cui Yulu, you are so heartless. You are so cruel to your own village. You will die a horrible death."

Hearing her vicious words, Cui Yulu quickened her pace.

Is this your hometown?

"Yes, I grew up here. The first grave I saw was that of Han Yu'an's grandmother, the family I married to for good luck. These two are my parents. It's funny, I can't even remember what they look like anymore."

At this point, even the little mute boy couldn't help but feel sad.

"I don't remember what my parents look like. I was only five years old when they passed away, and now I'm seventeen."

Cui Yulu felt sorry for him from the bottom of her heart, but at this moment she didn't know how to comfort him. She just felt that the distance between the two of them seemed to have shortened a lot.

"Let's go. From now on, we'll be good siblings, family. I'll never let anyone bully you again."

The little mute boy was deeply moved, feeling the warmth of family for the first time. He couldn't help but take her hand and say, "I'm your brother, I want to protect you, and our family will always be together."