Mu Wanting raised her hand and lightly tapped Song Xie on the head.
"That's rude. I'm a year older than you. You should call me 'older sister'."
Song Xie turned his head away, his face full of arrogance.
Mu Wanting smiled, feeling excited at the thought of taking the young general as her younger brother.
"How about this, since we're going to have a competition, there has to be a prize. If I win, you'll call me 'older sister' from now on."
"What if you lose?" the boy asked in a hoarse voice.
"Then you can call me brother, big brother," Song Ying said in a childish voice.
Song Xie's ears turned red, while Shen Xinglan's face darkened.
Mu Wanting smiled.
"OK."
No sooner had he finished speaking than Song Xie attacked. This time, he used all his strength, and it must be said that he had made great progress.
However, Mu Wanting was good at using minimal force to achieve maximum effect, and soon Song Xie was in a somewhat disheveled state. Finally, Mu Wanting raised her hand and pointed a tree branch directly at Song Xie's throat.
Song Xie's Adam's apple bobbed, and his voice was hoarse.
"I lost."
Mu Wanting tossed the branch aside, crossed her arms, and slightly raised her chin, revealing a touch of coquettishness.
"Go ahead and call out."
Song Xie blushed.
"Sister...elder sister."
Mu Wanting smiled.
"Good little brother."
Fang Chunliu teased him with a smile, "Call me 'sister' too."
Song Xie's face was cold and menacing.
"On what grounds?"
Fang Chunliu was so frightened by that look that she took a step back and patted her chest to complain to Mu Wanting.
"Wow, Madam Mu, your younger brother is so fierce."
Mu Wanting was feeling quite pleased with herself.
"I'm warning you, Chunliu, don't you dare bully Song Xie."
Fang Chunliu smiled and walked away.
Besides Song Xie's strong martial arts talent, Mu Wanting also discovered the strengths of the six women. Except for Fang Chunliu, the other women were all good at needlework.
Fang Chunliu and Song Ying both have a talent for medicine, so they are always taken along when seeing patients or treating injuries.
Putting aside everything else, they can identify wound dressings and simple herbal remedies.
Forty days after they were separated from the exiles, they finally saw them again from afar.
Song Xie and his sister, along with the other women, were only allowed to follow at a distance by Mu Wanting.
The closer Mu Wanting got to the exile procession, the more unusual things became.
First of all, several members of the third branch of the family have been removed. Now, on the surface, only Shen Xingyi, Shen Yujiao, Shen's mother, and the members of Aunt Qin's branch are holding on.
The women from Aunt Liu's household, who were never involved in any affairs, are now all stepping forward.
They were all extremely thin. It could be said that all the weight Mu Wanting had gained had been lost during this period, leaving them as skin and bones.
The second wife is the most arrogant now; the first and third wives are all at the mercy of the second wife.
With Mu Wanting and Shen Xinglan gone, only Zhang Caiyun remained as a cook. Without Mu Wanting to cause her trouble, and having devised ways to help the officials make money, she naturally gained their favor.
The third wife, having lost two pillars of support, and being oppressed by Zhang Caiyun, was having a very difficult time.
"Hey, why aren't you memorizing properly? Are you just showing off?"
"Now, I'd like to see who in your family dares to show their face."
Seeing that Mother Shen had been whipped, Mu Wanting was furious.
The group was resting when the carriage approached, and the officers drew their swords.
"Who is it? Stop!"
Mu Wanting and Shen Xinglan peeked out, Mu Wanting with a faint smile.
"It's us."
At that moment, the officials' eyes widened in disbelief.
Su Yu sheathed his sword, walked to Mu Wanting's side, and touched her shoulder, finding it warm.
He paused for a moment, then awkwardly gave a nonchalant smile.
"We all thought you were dead. You're really lucky to be alive."
The third branch of the family also watched Mu Wanting and Shen Xinglan with longing eyes.
"You're back, you're finally back."
Mu Wanting noticed that they were all terribly thin, with sickly, sallow complexions, and several members of the third branch of the family were missing.
Looking at Shen Xinglan, Shen's mother's eyes reddened. She took a few steps toward Shen Xinglan as if she couldn't believe it.
"Xinglan, your leg."
A gentle smile appeared on Shen Xinglan's face.
"It was Wan Ting who found her mother's medical book and cured my right leg. Now my left leg has also been operated on and is much more flexible than before."
Tears streamed down Shen's mother's face as she nodded repeatedly and looked gratefully at Mu Wanting.
"Wan Ting, thanks to you, otherwise Xing Lan..."
At this point, Chen's mother choked up and couldn't speak.
Shen Yujiao lunged directly at Shen Xinglan, but Shen Xinglan dodged her in disgust. Instead, she threw herself into Mu Wanting's arms.
"Sister-in-law, sob sob sob, we all thought you were doomed, thank goodness, you're still alive. Sob sob sob, I promise I'll treat you well from now on, I'll never be naughty again."
Mu Wanting touched Shen Yujiao's tangled hair.
"Don't cry, we're back safely."
Shen Yujiao cried and wouldn't let go: "Sister-in-law, you not only saved Second Brother's life, but also healed his leg. Sister-in-law, how can our third branch of the family live without you?"
Mu Wanting: "..."
This sounds like they're mourning her death.
Shen Xingyi smiled as he looked at her and Shen Xinglan, his eyes reddening and his expression gentle.
"Second Brother, Wan Ting, I'm so glad you're alright. If I hadn't just pinched myself, I would have thought I was dreaming."
He couldn't hide his excitement: "Now that my second brother's leg is healed, no one will dare to bully our second branch of the family anymore."
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