Chen Yunyun woke up with a start. She hugged the little boy next to her tightly, and her wildly beating heart finally calmed down.
She kept calling out to the system in her mind, "System, are you there?"
"system!"
"Has something happened to Rong Yan?"
After a long while, a faint voice echoed in Chen Yunyun's mind: "Don't worry, host, what you saw happened a thousand years ago. He's fine. However, host, if you don't obtain the Heart-Protecting Scale soon, I won't have the energy to activate it."
[By then, some unknown problems may arise in the small world, and host, you will never be able to go back.]
Chen Yunyun unconsciously gripped the blanket in her hands. She responded to the system, but her mind was in a jumbled mess.
"Mother, what's wrong? Did you have a nightmare?"
The little girl's clear and sweet voice awakened Chen Yunyun's rationality.
"Mother is fine. Are you hungry? Shall we go out and get something to eat?"
Xu Jingrun was perceptive and realized that Chen Yunyun was hiding some things from them.
He and Xu Jingtian exchanged a glance, and the two siblings decided to hold back for now and observe Chen Yunyun's condition more closely.
Chen Yunyun led them to a restaurant outside the hotel. It was still a state-run restaurant, but since it was in the capital, the food and taste of the state-run restaurants were much better than those in the county town.
Seeing that Chen Yunyun had finished two bowls of rice, Xu Jingrun and Xu Jingtian, the two little devils, finally felt relieved and focused on eating.
In fact, Chen Yunyun was suppressing her wild thoughts; she had important business to attend to in the capital.
After dinner, the family of four returned to the hotel, where the owner thoughtfully brought them a pot of hot water.
There weren't many activities in the evening, so the group washed up and went to bed early.
The next morning, Chen Yunyun had something on her mind and didn't stay in bed.
The family left early and went to the same state-run restaurant as yesterday for breakfast.
"Give me a bowl of spicy soup, two bowls of noodles, and an empty bowl."
The spicy soup was what Chen Yunyun wanted to eat, while the noodles were for the two children.
Xu Jingtian couldn't finish all the noodles, so she picked some out and put them in an empty bowl, placing it in front of Xu Jingsheng.
Xu Jingsheng was a glutton. He had already drunk corn noodles before leaving home, but when he arrived at the restaurant, he still drooled when he saw the noodles.
"Thank you, Gigi!"
Amused by the child's sweet, childlike voice, Chen Yunyun's mood finally improved.
The hot and sour soup in front of me contains wood ear fungus, tofu, shiitake mushrooms, daylily buds, and egg. The tofu is soft and tender, melting in your mouth. The soup is thick and flavorful, with a tangy and spicy taste.
"It's delicious, you should try some too."
The children each scooped a spoonful, and Chen Yunyun unceremoniously took noodles from their bowls. The family shared the food, and everyone had a smile on their face.
The people eating at the next table were all infected by the atmosphere of the family of four and took the initiative to talk to Chen Yunyun.
"Your child is so well raised, you are truly blessed."
The man spoke fluent Mandarin with a strong Beijing accent; he wasn't a local, so it was quite difficult to understand him.
Chen Yunyun replied to her in Mandarin, her accent even more authentic than the other person's.
"Oh, you say you're from Nanxian? I don't believe you. Your accent is clearly that of a native of the capital."
Chen Yunyun smiled faintly but didn't reply. Before transmigrating into the book, she had lived in Beijing for five years, surrounded by genuine old Beijingers, which naturally affected her Mandarin.
After breakfast, Chen Yunyun asked for directions and quickly found the address given by Mr. Xie.
Chen Yunyun stood with her child in front of the soldier on duty, speechless.
"Comrade, who are you looking for?"
Perhaps seeing that it wasn't good for Chen Yunyun, a woman with three children, to be out in the sun, the soldier took the initiative to ask her questions.
"Comrade, hello, I'm looking for Xue Changren."
"Are you looking for Director Xue? Do you have a letter of introduction?"
"Yes, I do." Chen Yunyun handed over the letter of introduction given to her by Elder Xie.
"Wait here for a moment, I'll go and inform them."
After waiting for about four or five minutes, a young man came out with the young soldier.
The man had a scholarly air about him and wore black-rimmed glasses. When he saw Chen Yunyun, his eyes lit up. "You must be Comrade Chen Yunyun, right?"
Chen Yunyun nodded.
"My name is Liu Jiyuan, and I am a student of Professor Xue."
"Old Xue's legs aren't very mobile, let's go inside and talk."
Liu Jiyuan is a direct disciple of Professor Xue and also the deputy director of the research institute.
His respectful and courteous manner towards a woman made the young soldier on duty at the gate unable to resist taking a second look at Chen Yunyun.
The research institute is an important unit, and it is guarded by dedicated personnel. Everyone must register before entering or leaving.
After guiding Chen Yunyun through a series of procedures, Liu Jiyuan led her to a room at the end of the corridor on the first floor. "Old Master Xue is inside."
He knocked on the door, and an old voice answered from inside, "Come in."
Xu Jingtian and Xu Jingrun obediently followed Chen Yunyun into the office with Liu Jiyuan.
It's called an office, but it would be more accurate to describe it as a small botanical garden.
Mr. Xue's office was filled with all kinds of plants from top to bottom and left to right. Even his desk was covered with green plants, so he could only squeeze into a small corner of the desk to do his note-taking work.
Old Xue looked a few years older than Old Xie. He was old and had difficulty walking, so he always used a cane. When he saw Chen Yunyun come in, a smile appeared on his face, which made him look particularly kind.
"Oh, Comrade Chen Yunyun, we've been waiting for you so long, and now you're finally here!"
"Xiao Xie wrote to me saying that the secret recipe in the ancient book has not been lost, and that you are willing to make this long journey. I was so happy that I couldn't sleep for days and nights."
"This time we're in the capital, so we'll stay for a few more days. I'll have Jiyuan arrange for someone to show you around the capital."
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