Chapter 82: The Imperial Master Needs Calming Soup
The door of the study was cautiously pushed open a crack, and a little head poked in furtively.
It was Ajiu who had just been sent back to sleep.
She rubbed her eyes and looked at the two men in the room sleepily.
"Sir...Brother Xiongxiong..."
Xiao Yu's expression softened a bit, and he waved at Jiu: "Why are you awake?"
Jiu ran in with his bare feet clacking.
She first moved closer to Xiao Yu, stood on tiptoe, and looked at the top of his head very seriously.
"Um...Brother Xiongxiong, the little flower on your head is entangled in the gray web. There are many little bugs crawling on the web. It's so pitiful."
Xiao Yu: “…”
He has become accustomed to being described as a flower.
Ajiu ran to Chu Xuanyi again, looked up at him with his little face, then wrinkled his nose and took two steps back with a look of disgust.
"Sir, why is your hair so messy? It looks like a ball of black wool that a cat has played with. It's got so many knots in it that I can't untie it."
"puff--"
Even though he was extremely confused, Xiao Yu was almost amused by these words.
Chu Xuanyi's face turned completely black. He pointed at his nose and said angrily, "What a ball of wool! This is... this is the light of wisdom! What do you know?"
"Oh." Ah Jiu nodded, not quite understanding, then touched his flat stomach and looked at the two of them pitifully, "I'm hungry. I dreamed that Aunt Zhang in the kitchen made osmanthus cake, but when I went to look for it, she said she didn't have any."
She sniffed, and her big eyes quickly filled with tears, as if she was about to cry.
"Just now... I thought I heard you guys talking about something delicious?" She tilted her head, trying to recall. "It's called... something like 'braised grass in oil'?"
"It's Nether Grass!" Chu Xuanyi corrected subconsciously, and wanted to slap himself after he said it.
What is there to explain to this little girl!
"Stir-fried with oil?" Jiu's eyes lit up instantly, as bright as two black grapes. "Is it delicious? Is it stir-fried? Did you put any meat in it?"
She counted on her fingers, a look of longing on her face. "Do you fry the grass in oil until it's fragrant, then add diced meat, bamboo shoots, and mushrooms? That sounds delicious!"
Chu Xuanyi: "..."
He covered his face, feeling like he was about to die from exhaustion.
They were discussing the "ghostly air" that could corrode everything and the "ghostly grass" that could save the world, but this little girl was thinking about how to make "stir-fried dishes" delicious!
How did this brain circuit develop?
Xiao Yu looked at Ajiu, who was almost drooling with greed, and then looked at Chu Xuanyi, who was beside him and felt like he had lost all hope in life. The heaviness and tension in his heart caused by the truth were strangely diluted a little.
He reached out and rubbed Ah Jiu's head, his voice gentler than he had even noticed: "It's not braised in oil, it's a herbal medicine."
"Herbs?" Jiu's face immediately fell, and his disappointment was evident in his words. "Herbs don't taste good, they taste bitter."
"But," Xiao Yu changed the subject, "this herb can cure the 'gray web' on my head, and it can also untie the 'ball of yarn' on your head."
Ajiu's eyes lit up again.
Chu Xuanyi was stunned and instantly understood Xiao Yu's intention.
"Yes, yes, yes!" He immediately perked up, squatted down, and said to Jiu in an extremely exaggerated tone, "Jiu, do you want to help Xiong Xiong brother drive away those nasty little bugs?"
Ah Jiu nodded vigorously: "I want to!"
"Would you like to help me straighten out the ball of yarn on my head so it can become... uh, a light of wisdom again?"
Ah Jiu hesitated for a moment, looked at his messy hair, and nodded reluctantly: "I want to."
"Then we have to go find that 'Netherworld Grass'!" Chu Xuanyi coaxed.
"But... where can I find it?" Jiu blinked his big eyes.
"Let's go to a very far and interesting place," Xiao Yu continued. "There are many beautiful flowers and singing birds there, and the 'Netherworld Grass' grows under the most beautiful flower."
"Wow!" Ajiu exclaimed, and his mind began to imagine the beautiful picture.
"Then when are we going?" Jiu couldn't wait any longer.
"Two days later." Xiao Yu made the final decision.
"Great!" The little girl jumped up happily. "Then I'll take some sweet-scented osmanthus cake, and the meat floss pancakes made by Aunt Zhang, and..."
While counting on her fingers the snacks to bring, she ran out of the study, humming a tuneless song, obviously to prepare her "hiking" bag.
Watching her happily leave, the atmosphere in the study became solemn again.
"Xiao Yu, you..." Chu Xuanyi opened his mouth, "Have you really decided? Are you going to... lie to her like this?"
"What else?" Xiao Yu asked, "Tell her that her entire family was slaughtered in an attempt to break an ancient seal, and that she is our only hope and the enemy's biggest target. She risked her life to save the land beneath our feet?"
Chu Xuanyi was silent.
How can a child with a mind as blank as a sheet of paper bear these truths that are heavy enough to crush an adult?
"Ignorance is the best protection for her right now." Xiao Yu stood up, walked to the window, and looked at the fish belly white rising in the sky.
"Pass the order down," he ordered the secret guards outside the door, "Prepare the carriage and set off in two days to Yuquan Mountain outside the capital."
According to historical records, the Lin Mansion, which was burned down ten years ago, was located at the foot of Yuquan Mountain.
"Also," he paused and added, "go to Fu Man Lou and buy one of every dim sum they have."
The secret guard outside the door was stunned for a moment, but still responded respectfully: "Yes."
Chu Xuanyi looked at Xiao Yu, sighed deeply, and rubbed his aching temple.
He felt that he might need to ask the imperial physician to prescribe a tranquilizing soup first.
Otherwise, he doubted whether he could survive and accompany these two people on this journey.
A scheming and decisive regent, a "demolition lucky star" with a strange mind who can make people angry to death, plus a group of evil enemies from foreign lands who are eyeing the situation covetously...
At this time, the housekeeper's respectful voice came from outside the door: "Your Highness, someone has come from the palace. The Queen Mother invites Miss Jiu to enter the palace."
Chu Xuanyi's expression instantly fell again.
Xiao Yu's brows knitted slightly, and he said in a deep voice, "I understand."
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