Lou Chong was exhausted. His boss didn't care about the things that happened, so he had to clean up the mess.
"Take these children back first, then notify their families to come and take them back. The Taoist priests will then escort them back slowly. This matter is of great importance and must be reported to Your Highness."
Lou Chong waved his hand, watching the carriage carrying the children leave, while he personally escorted the Taoist priests back.
Fortunately, the guards all had horses, so they weren't tired. It was just that dragging these Taoists back would be a bit slow, and by the time they got back to the city, it would probably be dawn.
Lou Chong was filled with worry, hoping that his boss wouldn't lose his mind and offend Doctor He's family!
Meanwhile, He Jiuniang returned to the city with her dog and found that Sun Qi was following closely behind. She became increasingly unhappy. Was this man some kind of leech?
If it weren't for Qin Jian's sake, and considering that he had said he was going on a mission and had sacrificed his own injuries to ensure peace on the Northern Yan border for several years, she would have really hit him.
When they arrived at the city gate, it was already locked and guarded by soldiers. The only way to enter the city was to go early the next morning.
Just as He Jiuniang was trying to sneak in, Lu Baichuan, who had caught up from behind, took out a token and handed it to her. The soldiers guarding the city immediately clasped their hands in salute: "So it's Lord Sun. I'm sorry for my rudeness. Men, come to the city gate!"
Lu Baichuan put away the token and said to the soldier, "All the children who went missing during this period have been found. On the way back to the city, send some people to meet them. Also, notify the families of the missing children to come and take their children home with their child's identification tag."
"yes!"
The soldier obeyed and left, but He Jiuniang had already entered the city the moment the gates opened; she didn't want to spend another moment with this lecherous rogue.
It is now late at night. I wonder if Boss Lu has taken Old Man Lu and Madam Sun back to the inn, or if Madam Sun has fainted from anxiety and is still in the clinic.
After thinking it over, He Jiuniang decided to go to the clinic first. Yuyuantang was quite large and even had a medical ward that provided accommodation for seriously ill patients, just like a postmodern inpatient department, so it was open 24 hours a day.
Upon hearing the sound of horses' hooves, a young waiter came out to greet them. Seeing He Jiuniang and the dog in her arms, he excitedly said, "Doctor He is finally back! Master Lu and Madam Lu have been so worried that they haven't eaten or drunk anything all day!"
"I'll go check it out right now!"
He Jiuniang was about to go inside with the dog in her arms when she saw Lu Baichuan catching up. She asked coldly, "What exactly does Lord Sun want to do?"
Lu Baichuan said, "Qin Jian told me to take good care of you before he left. I heard that you two were frightened, so I went to visit you."
"No need, I appreciate your kind offer, Lord Sun, please go and attend to your other matters."
He Jiuniang walked inside in a huff, but that scoundrel shamelessly followed her.
She took a deep breath. Fine, then let him see it.
The young man led them to the clinic where the Lu family lived. Candlelight could still be seen from the outside, indicating that the people inside were not yet asleep.
He Jiuniang quickened her pace, while Lu Baichuan slowed down.
At that moment, he couldn't believe it was real, or perhaps he was mentally deranged and had mistaken the people inside for his parents.
The fist clenched and unclenched repeatedly, and by then He Jiuniang had already gone inside.
Because the dog was asleep, the people didn't have the heart to wake him, so they spoke very softly.
Even so, Lu Baichuan still recognized his parents' and older brother's voices.
Even after many years of separation, their voices still sound so warm and familiar.
He was absolutely certain that he had found his family.
Inside the house, Mrs. Sun kept shedding tears. She was a person who usually pretended to be strong, but she forced herself to hold on no matter what happened.
But today, Gou'er's disappearance was like the last string supporting Sun Shi snapping. She was completely devastated and could no longer maintain her usual strength, fainting several times from crying.
She's incredibly fragile right now, clinging to her sleeping dog and refusing to let go, her eyes swollen to the size of walnuts.
He Jiuniang gently persuaded, "Ms. Sun, please don't cry. What if you wake the dog up again? He was frightened today, and it was only with great difficulty that we managed to get him to sleep. If he wakes up and starts crying, you'll have to soothe him yourself!"
Sun: ...
Sun glared at her without saying anything, but at least she stopped crying.
Old Lu comforted him, saying, "Alright, alright, it's good that the child has been found. You haven't eaten all day, so I'll have my eldest son heat up some food so we can eat together."
Before, not knowing the child's whereabouts, none of them had much of an appetite. Now that the child has been found, their hearts have settled back, and they suddenly feel very hungry.
Boss Lu said, "Okay, I'll go and borrow the kitchen in the clinic right away."
Just as he was about to leave, he bumped into Lu Baichuan, who had finally mustered up the courage to come in.
"I'm so sorry, I was in such a hurry to get out that I didn't notice..."
Boss Lu apologized to him, and he helped Boss Lu up, his voice barely audible: "It's alright."
His voice was very soft, and Boss Lu couldn't hear it very clearly, but he still stared blankly at the masked man in front of him.
He seems familiar, but I don't feel like I know him.
He never regarded him as his third brother, because the man in front of him was not as robust as his third brother, and even looked somewhat hunched.
Old Man Lu and Mrs. Sun were so focused on watching their sleeping grandson that they didn't notice the person who came in, nor did they see the person wearing a mask. Even through the mask, their eyes were already red with tears.
His limbs were trembling uncontrollably. Before He Jiuniang could introduce him to the old couple, he knelt down directly in front of them.
"Oh dear, sir, why are you kneeling all of a sudden? Get up..."
Old Man Lu was startled and tried to help him up, but the man had already kowtowed three times heavily under the shocked gazes of the crowd, and said in a trembling voice, "Father, Mother, your unfilial son Baichuan is late!"
Everyone was stunned and fell silent for a moment.
"You...you're the third brother?"
Old Lu raised his hand, but hesitated and did not extend it.
"Yes. Years ago, my son was assassinated while escorting goods, and none of his companions survived. He was in grave danger and dared not contact his family, fearing he would implicate them. When a severe drought struck our hometown of Changzhou, my son was in Nantai. When he rushed back, he found no one home. He saw the writing his father had left on a pillar, saying that his father had gone to Anzhou. So his son sent people to Anzhou to look for him..."
His voice trembled, but his words were clear and concise as he recounted his journey to find his family, omitting many of the hardships he had endured.
Sun didn't dare to speak, fearing that the man would jump up and say he was just joking.
But that really is her son's voice!
The tears that I had finally managed to stop burst forth again in an instant.
"Then...why are you wearing a mask? What happened to your face?"
Sun asked a question with a sob in her voice, then wiped away her tears, moved her body, and tried to get out of bed. He Jiu Niang reacted quickly, took two steps forward and carried her son to the next room, and took the opportunity to calm herself down.
Magical, so magical...
In this room, Lu Baichuan replied, "I was injured during a mission in Nantai..."
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