Chapter 37 Father's "Safe" Return

"No one is allowed to make the young princess shed tears, or they will be punished."

The emperor's edict was firmly placed on the heads of all the princes, nobles, and even palace servants in the capital overnight.

As a result, the Anguo Princess's mansion, which was once the most bustling and prestigious place in the entire capital, suddenly became somewhat deserted.

No more high-ranking youngsters dared to come and play with Mu Yu.

Just kidding. What if it's just casual play, and the little darling accidentally bumps or knocks over something, causing her to shed a tear? That would be a disaster!

Qin Zheng had come once, but she only dared to keep a distance of three zhang (approximately 10 meters) and cautiously watch Mu Yu, not daring to even breathe loudly.

"Little Yu'er, the weather is so nice today, hehe." She smiled dryly.

"Sister Qin Zheng, let's go climb that big locust tree in the backyard! I haven't climbed it in ages!" Mu Yu waved excitedly.

Qin Zheng's face turned pale instantly, and she shook her head like a rattle drum: "No, no! Absolutely not! Xiao Yu'er, you mustn't even think about that! That tree is so tall, what if you accidentally slip and fall, scrape your skin, and cry in pain... I... I!"

After saying that, she shuddered in fright, made an excuse, and fled in panic.

Xiao Beichen still came every day, but he no longer dared to carry Mu Yu around like crazy, nor did he dare to take her to the horse farm to ride that unruly little pony.

He would simply sit quietly beside her, telling her stories of the military camp, or carving a smooth wooden bird.

When he handed it to her, it was as if he were holding a priceless piece of porcelain. He nervously instructed her, "Little Yu'er, be careful when you play with it. Don't prick your hand with the splinters. If you don't like it, tell your brother, and he'll carve you something else. Please don't be upset..."

Even the meals served in the mansion became a series of checkpoints.

The medicinal meals sent by Xie Zhiwei required repeated checks from ingredient selection to cooking to ensure the perfect temperature for consumption and to guarantee that there was absolutely no bitterness, astringency, or even the slight strange taste of the herbs themselves.

Mu Yu became bored.

Her little world was surrounded by an invisible wall.

Outside the wall, everyone was cautious and fearful; inside, she was alone and lost.

Most of the time, she could only sit by her favorite koi pond in the backyard, poking at the water with a small twig, staring blankly at the equally bored red koi fish swishing their tails in the water.

"Xiao Hong, Xiao Jin, do you think I'm annoying?"

She rested her chubby little chin on her hand and let out a long, soft sigh, like a little adult.

"Now, no one plays with me anymore."

"Sister Qin Zheng said she was afraid that if I fell from the tree and cried, her whole family would be punished."

"The stories that Brother Xiao Beichen tells me are just a few over and over again, and I can recite them by heart. Now he looks at me like he's looking at a porcelain doll that will break at the slightest touch."

"Grandpa Emperor is such a big idiot!" She grew angrier the more she thought about it. She picked up a small pebble and threw it into the pond, startling a school of carp that scattered in all directions. "I only cried because my eyes were stung by an onion! I'm not a real porcelain doll that breaks at the slightest touch! Now everyone's afraid of me, avoiding me like the plague. Being a precious child isn't fun at all!"

Several bolder red carp came back and blew strings of bubbles in front of her, as if to express their approval.

Looking at them, Mu Yu felt even more worried. The small pond in her sea of ​​consciousness, representing her "blessing value," had recently been rising at an extremely slow pace. When the country was peaceful and prosperous, and the nation's fortunes were stable, the pond would automatically and slowly increase, but the real key was still accumulating blessings through her "good deeds." But now she was trapped in the mansion, unable to find anyone who needed help, let alone accumulate blessings.

Just as she was getting bored and about to sprout mushrooms, an unusual commotion suddenly came from outside the mansion gate, followed by hurried footsteps that sounded like someone about to fall.

A guard on duty practically tumbled and crawled into the backyard. He was running so fast that his helmet was askew, but his face was flushed with an almost ecstatic excitement.

"Princess! Princess! Huge news!" His voice trembled. "The Great General is back! The Duke of Protectorate's army has... has entered Suzaku Avenue!"

Father?

She froze, remaining in the position of resting her chin on her hand for a full two seconds.

Immediately, like a small cannonball with a lit fuse, she sprang up from the stone bench. All the boredom, loneliness, and unhappiness vanished in that instant, like melting snow!

Father is back!

Her father drove away the bad guys and returned safely from a very, very far place!

She lifted her skirt, took two short strides, and ran as fast as she could since birth towards the gate of the mansion.

She rushed out of the high threshold of the princess's mansion and immediately saw the scene at the end of the long street.

The once wide Zhuque Avenue was now completely packed with people. Countless citizens of the capital spontaneously poured into the streets, forming a sea of ​​people, waving their arms, cheering, and jumping for joy. Countless flowers, handkerchiefs, and even sachets of various colors were thrown down like raindrops from the restaurants and windows on both sides of the street.

Amidst the clamor of voices and a shower of petals, a massive column of dark armored vehicles slowly approached with steady and resolute steps.

Those are Father's Xuanjia Army!

At the very front of the procession, a large banner embroidered with a huge character "沐" (mu) stood tall amidst the bloodshed and turmoil of the southwest, fluttering in the wind.

Beneath the banner, a general clad in heavy black armor, his imposing figure like a mountain, rode a magnificent black warhorse.

He looked much thinner, his face weathered and etched with the marks of time, his cheekbones slightly prominent. His heavy black armor was covered in cuts and scratches, some even dented, and the dulled blade of his sword, still damp with dark blood, remained. A stubble of bluish beard covered his chin, his lips were chapped, and his eyes held a weariness that seemed to have seeped into his very bones, as if he had traversed mountains of corpses and seas of blood.

But his upright spine, his calloused hands holding the reins, and his domineering aura were exactly the same as when he left.

It's her father! It's her father!

"Father—!!!"

Mu Yu used all her strength to let out a loud and clear shout that pierced through all the noisy cheers.

The figure on horseback, as steady as a mountain, suddenly trembled.

Mu Fang looked in the direction of the sound, passing through the crowd of people and over the fluttering petals, and immediately saw the small red figure running towards him.

In that instant, all the weariness, all the fighting, all the pain, all the gloom seemed to be completely dispelled by that clear "Father," melting into the softest part of his heart.

He nimbly dismounted, the heavy armor creaking softly. He strode forward, opening his arms amidst countless gazes of awe and envy.

Like a fledgling swallow that had been away from its nest for a long time and finally found its way home, Mu Yu plunged headfirst into his broad and solid embrace.

A familiar scent, faintly smelling of sweat, rust, and a hint of gunpowder dust, enveloped her. It was her father's scent, the scent of a hero returning from the battlefield, a scent that brought her immense peace of mind.

"Father!"

She buried her face in her father's cold, hard armor, rubbing it vigorously, as if trying to wipe away all the longing, worry, and grievances she had felt over the past few days.

"My little Yu'er, my good daughter, Daddy is back."

Mu Fang tightened his arms, holding his daughter's small, soft body tightly in his embrace, with such force that he wished he could meld her into his very bones and never be separated again. He buried his face in his daughter's soft, fragrant hair and took a deep, greedy breath.

It feels so good to be back alive.

This deeply moving scene brought tears to the eyes of the Xuanjia Army soldiers who had followed him out of the pile of corpses. These tough, iron-willed men, who would shed blood but not tears, quietly turned their heads away.

However, in a corner unnoticed by anyone, amidst the immense joy of this reunion...

Mu Yu, who was being held tightly in her father's arms, stiffened almost imperceptibly.

As her little face pressed tightly against her father's cold breastplate, and as that intense, uniquely her father's aura completely enveloped her, the "Koi and Auspicious Clouds Record" silently unfolded in her sea of ​​consciousness, and her Eye of Fortune instinctively activated.

She saw it.

Above his father's head, the bright white and fiery red orb that represented good fortune and great luck still burned as brightly as a small sun.

This shows that Father is in good health, his foundation is intact, and his fortune remains great and prosperous.

But……

Outside that bright light, at the most imperceptible edge where light and shadow meet, like the most cunning venomous snake, a rooted dark vine, it silently coiled around a strand of... black thread.

The thread was so fine and so hidden that it almost blended into the shadow cast by the light. If her Eye of Fortune had not become more acute over this period of time, it would have been almost impossible to detect.

But Mu Yu would never admit her mistake!

That cold, eerie, corrosive, and deathly aura, filled with resentment and ominous malice, was exactly the same as that "bad thing" that struggled to escape from the ashes of her burned drawings that day!

The wicked thing she had unintentionally trapped on the drawing paper with her blessing power didn't disappear after the Tenth Prince's fire. After escaping, it actually... actually chased her all the way to the distant southwestern border and got involved with her father!

It followed its father, evading thousands of troops and crossing thousands of mountains and rivers, all the way from the southwestern battlefield back to this prosperous capital!

Mu Yu's heart sank for a moment, as if it had fallen into an ice cave.

Slowly, with a tremor she herself was unaware of, she stepped back slightly from her father's embrace, tilted her tear-streaked face up, and looked at him with utmost seriousness.

Mu Fang was smiling, his deep eyes filled with tenderness. He raised his large, calloused hand, which had once commanded thousands of troops, and gently wiped away his daughter's tears with a tenderness completely out of character for this hand.

That smile was familiar to her; it was a smile full of doting affection that only bloomed for her, no matter when or where.

But in the blink of an eye, Mu Yu saw something she had never seen before in the deepest part of those eyes.

It was a fleeting, utterly cold void.

In that fleeting moment of distraction, it was as if his soul had been instantly ripped from his body, leaving only a perfect shell called "Mu Fang." The depths of those profound eyes were no longer the gentle galaxy she knew, always reflecting her small image, but rather a...dead, endless, bottomless abyss covered in thick ice.

Although the emptiness only appeared for a moment before being covered by a deep fatherly love, Mu Yu still managed to catch it.

"What's wrong, Xiao Yu'er?" Mu Fang's voice was as gentle and mellow as ever, with a hint of amusement. "Is it because Father's armor is too hard and is it hurting our little princess?"

"I have thought about it." Mu Yu avoided his question, simply nodding slightly in response to his earlier words. Her small hands, however, unconsciously gripped her father's cold armor, her knuckles turning slightly white from the force.

Something's not right.

Father, something's wrong.