Chapter 120
Mu Qingxuan didn't know what Huo Changfeng was busy with these past two days. He was always nowhere to be seen and acted mysteriously.
She asked, but Huo Changfeng was evasive and did not respond.
Mu Qingxuan couldn't help but sulk.
She didn't want to keep asking, so she simply went out to pick herbs while the sun was shining.
Yao Jinglan's back pain needs to continue to be treated with medication, and Mu Qingxuan also wants to pick some herbs that are good for the body and make Chinese herbal tea, which she can drink regularly to nourish her body.
After the morning mist cleared, the mountain behind looked as clear as if washed by water. The sunlight shone through the red leaves of the maple trees, casting coin-sized spots of light on the pile of rotten leaves.
Mu Qingxuan tied the bamboo backpack tightly around her waist.
She specifically borrowed an old dress from Yao Jinglan. The hem of her coarse cloth swept across the dew-covered ferns, leaving a trail of wet marks.
She crouched under a large tree, her fingertips brushing over the weeds with jagged leaves.
"Grandma's back pain needs some herb."
She muttered to herself, and cut into the soil with her herb hoe accurately, digging out the rhizome covered with red rust intact.
The perilla leaves and plantain in the backpack are stacked layer by layer, giving off a unique aroma that is a mixture of medicinal fragrance and mountain scent.
The mountain breeze swept through the pine forest, bringing the sound of a gurgling stream in the distance, occasionally mixed with the cries of a few tits, adding a bit of vitality to the silent forest.
The sun was setting unnoticed, and the clouds in the sky gradually turned honey-colored.
Mu Qingxuan straightened up, patted her sore back, glanced at the basket full of herbs, and nodded with satisfaction.
When she turned around to go down the mountain, the tip of her shoe suddenly kicked a round piece of gravel, which rolled into the bushes beside her.
Then, a rustling sound came from deeper in the woods.
Mu Qingxuan subconsciously thought it was a wild beast, her heart suddenly rose to her throat, and the herb-picking hoe fell across her chest with a clang.
She took a half step back, leaning her back against the rough tree trunk, her eyes fixed on the swaying branches.
If it was a wild beast, she couldn't run away immediately, otherwise she would be regarded as prey.
She held her breath, watching the dead leaves rustle, and cold sweat slid down her spine into her collar.
Just when my nerves were stretched to the limit, the bushes were suddenly pulled apart with great force.
A tall figure rushed out of the woods.
The man's military boots crushed the dead branches with a crisp "crunch" sound.
Mu Qingxuan's hand holding the hoe suddenly tightened, and her knuckles turned white.
It was not until he saw the man's strong jawline and familiar thick eyebrows that his tense shoulders suddenly relaxed.
"Officer Lu...Officer Lu?"
Her voice was filled with lingering panic, and the last syllable was still trembling.
Lu Jingfeng leaned against the tree trunk beside him and breathed heavily, the strands of hair on his forehead stuck to his skin due to sweat.
He raised his head, and his dark pupils suddenly contracted, as if he couldn't believe what he saw.
Lu Jingfeng's shoulders were covered with cockleburs and grass debris, and he looked very disheveled. When he met Mu Qingxuan's gaze, he was also very surprised.
"Comrade Mu?!"
Mu Qingxuan's hand holding the herb hoe was still shaking slightly. She stared at the panting Lu Jingfeng in front of her, and her voice was filled with surprise that could not be concealed: "Officer Lu, why are you here?"
The mountain breeze swept through the gap between the two people, swirling a few maple leaves and landing next to Lu Jingfeng's muddy military boots.
Lu Jingfeng raised his hand and wiped the sweat from his forehead.
He opened his mouth, his Adam's apple rolled up and down, his tone full of surprise and joy: "I took advantage of the National Day holiday and came all the way from the city just to thank an old Chinese doctor."
"Eight years ago, I accidentally left the team during a military training exercise. I was seriously injured and fainted in this mountain."
"If that old Chinese doctor hadn't saved me, I would have died."
His voice gradually became lower and his eyes looked towards the mountains in the distance.
"It's been almost ten years now, and the topography of the mountains has changed a lot. I got lost and wandered in the woods for a long time."
"I heard footsteps over here just now, so I followed the sound and came here, thinking I would try my luck, but I didn't expect it to be you!"
Mu Qingxuan's heart skipped a beat and her fingers unconsciously stroked the wooden handle of the herb-picking hoe.
"Old Chinese doctor? Favor?"
She murmured and repeated, suddenly describing Mu Hongguo's appearance, and then asked: "Were you fainted in the mountains that year, and then rescued to a dilapidated stone brick house?"
Lu Jingfeng's eyes widened, full of shock and disbelief: "You...how did you know?"
He took a half step forward: "Could it be that..."
Mu Qingxuan took a deep breath and said, "If nothing unexpected happens, the one who saved you back then was my grandfather, Mu Hongguo."
Hearing this familiar name, Lu Jingfeng frowned and repeated it several times subconsciously.
After a while, he suddenly raised his head, with a look of surprise in his eyes.
"Yes, I vaguely remember someone calling him mu something, but I don't know what word it was..."
He stared at Mu Qingxuan in a daze, feeling an indescribable surprise in his heart: "I didn't expect that the benefactor back then would be your grandfather, Comrade Mu!"
When Lu Jingfeng thought about the fate between them, his heart couldn't help but beat faster.
An inexplicable joy arose in my heart.
He stared at Mu Qingxuan intently, not wanting to miss any expression on her face.
The dusk in the mountains grew darker, and the last rays of sunset cast a golden edge on the figures of the two.
Mu Qingxuan looked at Lu Jingfeng, who had not yet recovered from his shock, and sighed softly, her eyes full of emotion: "I never thought that the person I saved back then would be you."
She touched her nose unconsciously, and her tone was tinged with regret: "But Officer Lu, my grandfather has passed away for many years. I'm afraid you have made a wasted trip this time."
These words were like a heavy hammer, causing Lu Jingfeng's body to suddenly freeze.
He opened his eyes wide, with deep disappointment and disbelief in them.
He opened his mouth, his Adam's apple rolling up and down, but he couldn't utter a word for a long time. He just stared blankly at Mu Qingxuan.
"Comrade Mu, I'm sorry, please accept my condolences..."
Mu Qingxuan also felt a pang of pain in her heart.
She took a deep breath, trying to calm her surging emotions, and said with a trembling voice: "But if Officer Lu needs it, I can also take you to pay respects to your grandfather's grave and let him know that the people I saved back then always remember this kindness."
Lu Jingfeng's eyelashes trembled violently a few times, and he lowered his eyes to stare at his muddy military boots, as if he was thinking about something.
After a while, he raised his head, his eyes firm and he nodded solemnly: "Then I'll trouble Comrade Mu."
"No trouble."
Mu Qingxuan said softly, turned around and walked towards home.
The straps of the bamboo basket pressed against her shoulders and she bent down slightly, trying to avoid the overly dense dead branches above her head.
Seeing this, Lu Jingfeng almost subconsciously walked in front of her, stretched out his hand to push away the weeds and branches that were growing on the path, and reminded her: "Watch your step."
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