At the city gate, watching the carriage disappear into the distance, Ye Ren'an, along with his wife and children, greeted Prince Mu and his companion before boarding their own carriage and returning home.

The Ye Ren'an couple inside the carriage showed no signs of sadness, grief, or worry. Since their son refused to bring a servant, they did not insist further.

It would be a valuable experience for my son to continue traveling with that young lady, which would be far more meaningful than sending him to an academy.

"Your Highness, Your Highness, you should learn from Tianxuan. You're not even as good as a child, are you?" Fan Wu said, looking at Murong Jing, who was still standing in the same spot, gazing into the distance like a statue waiting for its husband.

Tianxuan must have put in a lot of effort to persuade her parents and elders to agree to let her continue following Xiaoduo.

But this also shows that Prefect Ye and his colleagues trust Xiao Duo. Otherwise, how could they bear to let their child, whom they had finally waited for to return, go far away again?

"If you don't hurry up, by the time we meet again, my little sister Xiaoduo might already be married. No matter how high your status is or how much money you have, you won't be able to buy back your regrets then," Fan Wu said to the young master beside him, with a hint of exasperation.

Murong Jing seemed not to hear him and did not respond.

He recalled what Fan Wu had told him before: "Gather ye rosebuds while ye may, for they will soon be gone and the branches will be bare." He remembered that when Xiao Duo went to the capital, Lord Wei had also said the same thing to him.

Then I thought of my mother, who felt I was a failure. Both she and Lord Wei could tell that I liked Xiaoduo, but I wasn't sure of my own feelings back then!

That's really stupid. This is what they call "the bystander sees more of the game"!

...

On the way southwest, everyone's food standards improved dramatically because of Tianxuan's return.

According to the information found about Tianquan's family, it is possible that his father, Gong Wei, is stationed in Xizhou on the southwestern border year-round, and the child was lost in his hometown of Fengdong City.

According to the route on the map, starting from Jiaozhou City, the route goes to Huazhou and Fengdong City. Although Fengdong City, Gong Wei's hometown, is closer, Hong Xiaoduo plans to go directly to Huazhou, where Gong Wei is located.

For paternity testing, it's best to have the child's father and mother do it directly. If it is true, then it's definitely more reassuring to hand the child over to his biological parents in person.

Then, we can also make a detour to the Northwest to visit Brother Dong.

If the journey to Huazhou goes smoothly, it will take about forty days. Old Luo still hasn't deciphered the characters on the other bamboo plaques, and he's still unclear about the purpose of the mission his grandfather set up.

Whether it was because of Tianxuan's decision or something else, Hong Xiaoduo took a good nap in the carriage on the day of departure. After waking up, she suddenly became completely open-minded.

Who cares what the task is, who cares how long it will take to find the other children, who cares if there's a conflict between the two things? Just let things take their natural course, won't you?

As for whether she would return to the modern world, whether she could go back, and when she would go back, she didn't want to worry about those questions anymore. She just wanted to enjoy each day as it was.

As a result, Quan Jinghuai and the others felt that she had become more capricious than before. Even when the weather was good and she encountered a scenic spot, she would still set up camp, fish by the water, and hunt by the mountains.

Then, she would lean back in her recliner, sipping tea and snacking, with a small pot of something like peach blossom wine or pear blossom wine in her hand, watching the children play, practice martial arts, write calligraphy, and fish, while Yuheng Yaoguang Feiyan played the zither beside her.

The Pavilion Master looked at her with extreme envy, saying that this was the life of an immortal. Look, even the wild little sparrows want to stay with her and follow her around.

Upon hearing this, Jin Gui and Guard Liu thought to themselves, "Well, now our master will be even more reluctant to leave!"

The further northwest they went, the more dangerous the road became. When they encountered petty thieves, if Guard Liu wanted to show off, Hong Xiaoduo would say that such opportunities should be left for Tian Shu and the others to practice.

When encountering those fierce, brutal, and powerful mountain bandits, it is only when the other side has a large number of people that Liu Huwei and Lan Gezhu's men can barely find a place to use their skills. Why do I say barely?

Because Hong Xiaoduo took care of and eliminated the opponent's strongest member herself.

After experiencing several such situations, the phrase "a close call" that Lan Pavilion Master and his companions used to frequently use stopped appearing.

The aftermath of each incident was always very simple. The petty thief, after being severely punished by a few young guys, was handed over to the nearest government office by the Lan Pavilion Master's secret guards.

Those who are ruthless and have harmed others are sent directly to the King of Hell.

For this reason alone, Guard Liu no longer wanted Master Quan to go back quickly. This kind of life was so enjoyable. He could go out, eat, and play as he pleased, and he could also rid the people of evil. It was much more interesting than when he was at Duobao Pavilion.

That morning, when they stopped to rest by the roadside, Lan Zechen had just sat down next to Hong Xiaoduo when Tianxuan came running excitedly from the field ridge by the roadside: "Mom, I found a lot of shepherd's purse over there. Why don't we rest here for the day?"

Lan Zechen habitually looked around, but didn't see anything special about the scenery. What was so special about shepherd's purse?

“Okay, let’s set up camp here and dig for shepherd’s purse.” Hong Xiaoduo immediately agreed.

After Tianxuan excitedly finished telling Tianshu and the others, they dispersed with clear division of labor: some set up tents, some found water sources, and some carried small bamboo baskets, scissors, and shovels, following Tianxuan towards the edge of the field.

"Xiaoduo, what kind of vegetable is shepherd's purse? Or is it a medicinal herb that's hard to find?" Pavilion Master Lan asked curiously to Hong Xiaoduo, who was rolling up her sleeves and preparing to follow Tianxuan.

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