149. How are you?
The little dumpling's face fell for a moment, but she quickly cheered up again.
It's good to have an older brother with me, anyway, Sister Fufu didn't say I couldn't bring people!
She nodded again: "Okay, okay!"
-
Meanwhile, at the Duke of Anguo's residence.
Lin Fuman was carefully wrapping several freshly baked, oddly shaped cookies in parchment paper.
These are cookies she tried to replicate; hopefully they'll make time travelers feel a sense of familiarity.
Next, Lin Fuman, who knew nothing about the capital's terrain, went to her mother, Li Yuniang, and asked, "Mother, where in our capital are there bridges, water, and trees?"
Li Yuniang thought for a moment and said, "If we're talking about that, the lotus pond nearby is the best. There's a white jade bridge over the pond, and willows sway along the banks. It's the most beautiful scenery. Why are you asking about that?"
Lin Fu understood.
So that's what the little moon picture was all about!
She responded obediently, "My daughter recently read some poems and came across some lines that made her want to go and see them."
Afterwards, Lin Fuman made an excuse to go to study, secretly put the bag of cookies in her pocket, avoided the maids and servants, and slipped out of the Anguo Duke's Mansion alone through the side gate, her heart pounding as she walked towards the lotus pond.
-
Lotus pond.
The little boy, led by his older brother, chattered away until they soon saw the white marble bridge.
The lotus flowers in the pond have faded, and the willow leaves are turning slightly yellow; autumn is in full swing.
"Is Sister Fufu here?" The little dumpling stood on tiptoe and looked around.
Meanwhile, Lin Fuman cautiously approached the lotus pond. From afar, she first saw Jin Qizhi and his servant standing by the bridge, and her heart skipped a beat.
Why are there outsiders here?
Hasn't the little dumpling arrived yet?
Her gaze searched eagerly and soon landed on the little dumpling dressed in gold and glittering clothes, being led by Jin Qizhi.
She breathed a sigh of relief, but soon she caught her breath again.
She came, but not alone.
Did she bring people with her because she was afraid?
Or has her identity as a time traveler been discovered by the people of the Marquis of Beiding's mansion, and she is being monitored?
At the same time, an even more terrifying thought, which she had always forcibly suppressed and kept quiet, now forced its way into Lin Fu's mind—
Is this little dumpling in front of me really the same little dumpling I knew?
If she is a time traveler, then where did the original little dumpling go?
Did he... die like Lin Fuman?
Or did they swap bodies with a time traveler and go to the modern era?
A three-year-old child went alone to a modern society that she could not understand at all... She simply couldn't imagine it.
Lin Fuman became increasingly alarmed as she thought about it, and almost dared not go forward.
But now that things have come to this, there is no turning back.
She took a deep breath, forced herself to calm down, and forced a natural smile onto her face as she walked towards the bridge.
"Big Brother Jin, Little Moon," she tried to make her voice sound normal, "You've arrived?"
When Jin Qizhi saw her, he nodded to her and said, "Second Sister Lin? My sister wanted to come here to play, and I was worried about her, so I came with her."
As soon as the little dumpling saw Lin Fuman, she happily rushed over, raised her little hand adorned with a gold bracelet, shook her head, and spun around: "Sister Fufu, look! Yue'er is wearing something so shiny and beautiful!"
"It's beautiful." Lin Fu smiled, but her gaze carefully examined the little dumpling, trying to find any clues that did not belong to a three-year-old child.
The little dumpling didn't notice anything amiss and nodded vigorously: "Moon thinks it's beautiful too!"
Her attention was quickly drawn to the small oil paper package that Lin Fuman had brought: "Sister Fufu, what kind of duck is this? Is it delicious again?"
“It’s…some new snacks I tried making,” Lin Fuman opened the oil paper package, revealing a few irregularly shaped cookies. “Would Little Moon like to try some?”
She kept a close eye on the little dumpling's reaction.
If the little dumpling were a time traveler, it might show a familiar or surprised expression at this slightly Western-style dessert.
However, the little dumpling didn't. She curiously picked up a piece, took a small bite, and her eyes lit up: "Delicious! Sweet! It's different from the cakes Mommy makes!"
Her reaction was purely a sign of her liking for the new flavor of the dessert, and there was nothing unusual about it.
Lin Fu, unwilling to give up, stared at her silently, then suddenly spoke up: "Hi."
This is a very common and simple English phrase; Lin Fuman believes that people all over the world know it.
She stopped and looked at the little dumpling expectantly.
If the soul inside her is a transmigrated soul, there will definitely be a reaction.
The little dumpling blinked its big eyes: "Sister Fufu, are you unhappy? Why are you sighing?"
Lin Fuman: "...It's not a sigh."
She persisted: "How are you?"
She was hoping for those words, "I'm fine, thank you, and you?"
The little dumpling was stunned: "Oh, oil? Who's oil? Yue'er's name is Jinlan Yue... Sister Fufu, what are you talking about?"
Lin Fuman realized a problem—the little dumpling kept speaking Chinese.
She thought for a moment and decided to make one last attempt: "Imperial Jade Liquor?"
"Yue'er doesn't drink alcohol." The little dumpling shook its head, its reply even rhyming.
"How much do you think Imperial Jade Liquor should cost?"
"I don't know..." The little dumpling put on a serious face, "Sister Fufu, we are children, children can't drink alcohol, drinking alcohol makes you a bad child!"
"Haha..." Lin Fuman stuffed a cookie into her hand, "Eat a cookie, eat a cookie."
The little dumpling was happy again.
Lin Fuman looked at her, somewhat puzzled.
All her probing attempts yielded answers from the little dumpling that perfectly aligned with the thinking patterns of a three-year-old.
There were no flaws in his language, no hint of precocious knowledge, and his eyes were crystal clear.
...and really knows nothing about modern memes or English.
As Lin Fuman watched the little dumpling happily eating cookies, her tense nerves gradually relaxed.
Immediately, a sense of confusion and absurdity welled up inside me.
Could it be... that she guessed wrong?
Is all of this really just one coincidence upon another?
The little dumpling is not a time traveler at all?
How then should we explain the coded letter and the reply in a foreign language?
Is she really overthinking things?
She looked around sadly, her gaze suddenly landing on Jin Qizhi, who was admiring the autumn scenery not far away.
He quietly accompanied the little girl and even made a special effort to create space for the two of them to interact and play.
His profile was calm and gentle, and the occasional glances he gave the little boy were full of brotherly love. He didn't look like he was monitoring a dangerous person at all.
Lin Fuman was completely bewildered.
Seeing the two girls whispering and eating snacks for a while, Jin Qizhi walked over slowly and asked with a gentle smile, "What are you talking about so happily?"
Lin Fu was filled with confusion when she saw Jin Qizhi approaching. An even more outrageous but equally suspicious thought suddenly popped into her head—if the little dumpling wasn't a time traveler, then could it be... someone beside her?
For example, this seemingly gentle and refined young master Jin?
Thinking about it this way, it seems rather inexplicable that Jin Qizhi would be here today.
Did he discover her identity and then contact her through the little dumpling's hand in that way?
This idea made Lin Fuman's heart race again.
She decided to take the risk and test it out.
However, it would be better to send the little dumpling away beforehand, to prevent this fellow countryman from being afraid to reveal his identity because of the presence of others.
"Hey, Little Moon, could you help me find a stone?" Lin Fuman casually made up an excuse.
The little dumpling, who was diligently munching on a cookie, looked up in bewilderment and nodded obediently: "Okay, what kind of duck does Sister Fufu want?"
"Um, I'll go with the round ones, really round. I see some nice pebbles by the roadside, could you help me pick out a few of the prettiest ones?"
"Okay, Moon is going to find round stones." The little dumpling, unsuspecting, happily got up after finishing her cookie.
Jin Qizhi didn't think much of it, treating it as a game between the two of them, and only let the servant she brought follow the little dumpling.
Now, only Jin Qizhi and Lin Fuman are left facing each other.
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