Jie Chen no longer moved, just standing at the shore staring.
Xiang Xiuxiu, wiping away her tears, seemed to have been frightened.
Tao Xue and Xiang Yuanshuo, along with Xiang Yuanlang and the others, surrounded the little one to comfort her.
Even the physically impaired Crown Prince Xiang Li, opened his arms.
"Xiuxiu, don't cry. Come to uncle."
Xiang Xiuxiu threw herself into Xiang Li's embrace, her crying sounded pitiful.
"Uncle, they were wrong, mother would never abandon us and run away."
Xiang Li remained silent, simply gently stroking Xiang Xiuxiu's hair with his large palm.
As for whether Xiang Ying would run away, he did not know.
If it were based on her past character, she might have really left.
But having spent the past few days with her, he felt that Xiang Ying had changed a lot; even her personality was different.
She had her principles when she acted, but if she truly left, Xiang Li wouldn't blame her.
Listening to Xiang Xiuxiu's cries, Jie Chen frowned subtly without making a sound.
Scar face still held a grudge against Jie Chen for his scolding earlier.
Seeing that the two soldiers did not return for a long time, he asked, "Military Supervisor, if this woman Xiang Ying really did escape, should we kill her family members or not?"
Jie Chen glanced sideways, seeing Xiang Yuanshuo and the other two little ones looking at him with their dark eyes.
The slender palm resting on the sword hilt clenched slightly, knuckles turning white.
Scar face bowed again and asked for instruction, "Please, Military Supervisor, issue your command."
Jie Chen looked toward the lake, his tone cold, "Follow the military regulations."
Scar face felt a sense of triumph and immediately responded, "Yes!"
Now everyone gathered at the shore, staring at the occasionally rippling surface of the lake.
How could Xiang Ying not come up for breath after so long?
Had she really escaped?
Suddenly!
A pale hand emerged from the water, gripping the edge of the shore and clinging to a handful of lotus leaves, blossoms, and seeds.
Consort Yang, right in front, let out a startled cry, retreating repeatedly.
Xiang Xiuxiu, cowering in Xiang Li's arms, turned her head and immediately burst with joy, "Mother! Mother, you've finally come back!"
Xiang Ying climbed up drenched, and at the same time, she lifted two soldiers choked and passed out from the water with her left hand.
"These two fools, caught by the seaweed, if I didn't save them, I could have gotten up even faster," Xiang Ying gasped, then noticed the complex look in everyone's eyes as they watched her.
Xiang Ying narrowed her eyes, "What's wrong?"
She looked at the children and Tao Xue, seeing them all with a lingering fear.
There was also Xiang Li, who was surrounded and protected by the Lin family, seeming to have also sighed in relief.
Xiang Xiuxiu sobbed in her embrace.
Xiang Yuanshuo pointed at scar face, "He insisted you had run away, even wanted to kill us. Just now he caused uncle to fall from the handcart and scared Xiuxiu into crying!"
Xiang Ying's phoenix eyes instantly darkened.
She stood up, her wet hair and dress dripping, her graceful figure faintly outlined.
She should have been a stunningly beautiful peony rising from the water, but her expression was as dark as a fierce female deity.
"You want to kill my family?"
Scar face, shaken by her questioning momentum, twitched at the brow.
He also displayed a formidable expression, "You acted on your own accord, jumping into the water without permission, you deserve punishment!"
"I deserve your dad!" Xiang Ying, angered, promptly kicked the two soldiers she had just rescued back into the water.
Scar face glared furiously, "Criminal Xiang Ying! You've got some nerve!"
The next second, Xiang Ying reached out and grabbed his collar, throwing him over her shoulder and into the water.
The surrounding soldiers and criminals watched, dumbfounded, as Jie Chen slightly raised his eyebrows, yet did not speak to stop her.
Xiang Yuanshuo covered her little mouth and laughed heartily, "A drowned rat, serves you right, for bullying us!"
Scar face clambered out of the water in a sorry state, shaking off the water from his body.
"You're asking for it!" He charged over, ready to strike.
Xiang Ying wasn't afraid of him, about to dislocate his arm when Jie Chen scolded coldly, "Enough!"
Scar face barely stopped in time.
Jie Chen glanced at Xiang Ying and instructed scar face, "Get your soldiers out of the water, we head out now, don't hold up the main force."
After speaking, he warned Xiang Ying symbolically, "Don't do it again."
Jie Chen walked away, and the soldiers returned to their ranks.
Scar face, cursing and swearing, but because Jie Chen had spoken up, didn't dare to continue to trouble Xiang Ying.
He left a final warning, "You better watch yourself; if you break the rules, I'll be the first to take you down."
Xiang Ying's phoenix eyes gave him a cold glance.
It's yet to be seen who will take down whom.
Xiang Ying walked back to the children, checking each of them, Tao Xue, and Xiang Li for injuries.
Xiang Li spoke in a gentle voice, "We are all fine, Ayin, why were you gone for so long?"
"I saw some lotus seeds under the water, so I picked some extra and got delayed," Xiang Ying said as she prised out two lotus seeds and stuffed them into Xiang Li's mouth.
Seeing Xiang Li frown at the bitterness, Xiang Ying laughed, "Bitter is good, it's healthy for the body."
Her black hair clung to her delicate cheeks, her eyes gentle and kind, a stark contrast to her fierce demeanor just moments ago.
Xiang Ying placed the lotus seeds and lotus flowers she had picked on Xiang Li's wooden cart.
The two soldiers pulling Xiang Li's cart, to their surprise, did not complain anymore but obediently slung the ropes over their shoulders.
They even dared not look back into Xiang Ying's eyes.
After the Exile Team set off again, Xiang Ying sewed lotus leaves into sun hats as they walked.
The three children, Tao Xue, and herself, each wore one.
Xiang Xiuxiu's lotus leaf hat even had a pink lotus flower stitched onto it.
With the hats, the three little ones happily hopped and skipped.
"No more sunburn!"
"The lotus flower smells nice~"
Xiang Ying casually used four large lotus leaves to sew a bigger one for Xiang Li.
When she draped the lotus leaf over him, Xiang Li wanted to decline.
"I am a man, I don't need it."
"You do, sun exposure can dehydrate the wound, affecting recovery."
Xiang Ying firmly tied the lotus leaf cape around his body.
The three children saw this and couldn't help but giggle.
Xiang Ying gave the remaining lotus leaves to Lin Lingxiang, the Seventh Princess, and Yu Pin, and also handed them some extra lotus seeds.
With the hats for shade, and the occasional provision of cool water and sweet fruits from Xiang Ying,
the three children and Tao Xue never complained about the heat again.
Their family chatted and laughed, and Xiang Qianqian, watching them, felt as though they were on an outing with the children.
Who could manage to make exile so enjoyable?
At dusk.
Since they had not reached the next post station, the Military Supervisors decided to stop and rest around an abandoned tea shed.
Xiang Qianqian again took several women to cook for scar face and others.
Xiang Ying slipped into the nearby forest.
Taking advantage of the solitude, she took out the food she had prepared during the day using the machine.
Boneless marinated chicken feet, thrice-wrapped crispy cumin pork belly in lettuce, and a bowl of lotus seed, red date, and silver fungus soup—a rich feast indeed.
After eating her fill, she began to prepare food for the children.
Seaweed, pepper, and green onions were spread at the bottom of the bowl, then doused with bone broth from the space, finally adding the cooked fresh meat dumplings.
The children's meal might be simple, but hers was lavish!
Xiang Ying called the three little ones and Tao Xue behind a tree, having them hold their bowls to eat.
Xiang Yuanlang looked at her puzzled, "Why do we have dumplings? I just heard they are roasting pig bones for the Military Supervisors today."
Xiang Ying coughed lightly, just as she was about to explain, Xiang Yuanshuo slapped his head.
"Second brother, you're so silly. Such good things like roasted pig bones, how could she get that, it's good enough that we have dumplings."
Xiang Yuanlang nodded, "That makes sense."
Xiang Ying suddenly found these three children so adorable, they could convince themselves of anything.
But she couldn't go on like this forever; once Xiang Li's wounds better healed, he would need meat.
She could deceive the children and Tao Xue, but sooner or later she would be exposed to Xiang Li.
After the children finished eating, Xiang Ying kept Xiang Yuanlang behind.
"What is it?" Xiang Yuanlang's young face, usually aloof.
He really did resemble Jie Chen.
Xiang Ying bent down, her phoenix eyes crinkling into a smile, "Let's practice your ability, today I want a rabbit."
Xiang Yuanlang: ...
"I might not be able to call one, what if it's like last time..."
"Give it a try, your ability won't improve without practice."
Xiang Yuanlang compromised, "Alright then."
He bent down to pick a leaf and blew it, creating a melody.
Moments later,
Xiang Ying emerged from the forest carrying three wild chickens, together with Xiang Yuanlang.
Her phoenix eyes sparkled with mirth, "It's a surprise, wild chickens are even better!"
Xiang Qianqian, who had just returned from cooking, held a bowl of pig bone dregs in her arms. Her originally proud expression faded upon seeing the wild chickens in Xiang Ying's hands. She could no longer smile.
Why did she get wild chickens!?