As Huangfu Yue and her group returned, they saw Xu Yuqing resting on a rock. Jiang Shangyun stood before her, and the two were eating wild fruits, chatting and laughing, appearing quite intimate.
Huangfu Yue's gaze flickered towards Zheng Taifei beside her, only to see her looking serene, devoid of any expression, let alone emotion.
A hint of confusion crossed Huangfu Yue's eyes. Her grandmother, so wise and shrewd, should have noticed the unusual connection between Xu Yuqing and Jiang Shangyun, the subtle ambiguity in their demeanor.
Previously, upon realizing the unusual closeness and ambiguous atmosphere between Jiang Shangyun and Xu Yuqing, she had signaled her grandmother to look. Her grandmother had given her a reassuring glance, as if to say she knew what was happening. Did she not want to intervene? To stop it?
This seemed rather out of the ordinary…
Or did her grandmother have some ulterior motive?
"Mother!" Seeing Xu Yuqing, Huangfu Ying immediately broke into a radiant smile and hurried over, throwing herself into Xu Yuqing's arms.
"Ying'er, you're back!" Xu Yuqing smiled happily upon seeing her daughter. She reached out to stroke her daughter's head and asked, "Did you gain anything from following your aunt? Why are your hands empty?"
Xu Yuqing noticed her daughter's empty hands and assumed she hadn't found anything.
"We did gain something!" Huangfu Ying nodded, her smile growing brighter. Excitedly, she exclaimed, "Mother, let me tell you how amazing I was. I caught a pheasant…
That pheasant was very heavy, and Aunt was afraid I couldn't carry it, so she helped me put it into the Qiankun Bag…" She turned and pointed at Huangfu Yue.
"Oh, right, Brother Xuan, Sister Jing, and Sister Ling all caught a pheasant under Aunt's guidance…
Aunt is so amazing. She's a great teacher. She just taught us a couple of things, and we could easily take down a pheasant." Huangfu Ying looked at Huangfu Yue with an expression of immense admiration and reverence.
"Yue'er, thank you for your hard work, taking these little ones out hunting," Xu Yuqing said, feigning deep gratitude and smiling at Huangfu Yue as she stood up.
Her feet no longer hurt, and she could move freely.
Jiang Shangyun offered a wild fruit to Huangfu Ying. "Miss Ying, this is a wild fruit I found earlier. It tastes good; please try it."
"Thank you, Uncle Jiang," Huangfu Ying accepted the fruit, her voice sweet and polite.
Jiang Shangyun glanced at the remaining fruits in his hand. He walked towards Huangfu Yue and Zheng Taifei.
"Old Madam, Young Miss, I found a few fruits earlier. Please accept them. I hope you won't mind."
Jiang Shangyun bowed respectfully to Zheng Taifei and Huangfu Yue before offering them the fruits.
"Keep them for yourselves to eat. I picked a lot of mulberries earlier, and we've already eaten quite a bit. We can't eat anymore."
Zheng Taifei spoke first, casting a glance at Xu Yuqing and her daughter as she spoke. Before looking away, her gaze briefly lingered on the wild fruits in their hands.
"Hasn't my sister-in-law returned yet?" Huangfu Yue directly changed the subject.
Even if her grandmother accepted these wild fruits, she wouldn't.
"Not yet," Jiang Shangyun gently shook his head, withdrawing the fruits. He pondered the meaning behind Zheng Taifei's refusal and Huangfu Yue's abrupt change of subject. Did it signify their disapproval of him, their reservations about him?
But their expressions suggested otherwise; they seemed quite amicable.
Huangfu Yue scanned their surroundings. Not only had Zhu Jiayi and her family not returned, but Zhong Liangshu and her family were also absent. She wondered where they had gone.
In the vicinity, there were only people from the kitchen, two young servants, and Feng Ruoyuan's men.
Huangfu Yue looked at Jiang Shangyun and Feng Maoyuan's other subordinates and said, "Go and find everyone. Especially my sister-in-law and my third sister-in-law. Tell them I intend to continue towards the mountaintop and to return quickly."
"Yes." Feng Maoyuan, along with his subordinates including Jiang Shangyun, immediately accepted the orders and swiftly dispersed to search for the missing people.
"Master, I'll help find them too," Xiao Hei said in Huangfu Yue's mind.
"Good," Huangfu Yue replied. "Focus on finding my sister-in-law and third sister-in-law. Once you find them, make gestures to let them know I'm calling them back. I'll wait for them here," she instructed.
Since Xiao Hei couldn't speak in front of others, it could only communicate through gestures.
"Yes," Xiao Hei immediately flew away.
"Grandmother, please sit down and rest for a while. Once sister-in-law and the others return, we'll set off and continue our ascent to the mountaintop." Huangfu Yue offered to help Zheng Taifei to the rock Xu Yuqing had been sitting on.
Seeing this, Xu Yuqing quickly stepped forward with a filial expression and also reached out to help Zheng Taifei.
Zheng Taifei did not refuse. Supported by her granddaughter and second granddaughter-in-law, she walked to the rock and sat down.
"You all sit down too," she beckoned to her granddaughter, second granddaughter-in-law, and great-grandchildren.
The rock was large enough that with a bit of squeezing, everyone could sit.
Huangfu Yue and Xu Yuqing did not refuse. The children were already tired and certainly wouldn't refuse, immediately scrambling onto the rock to sit.
The large group sitting on the rock made it a bit crowded, but apart from Xu Yuqing, who seemed slightly bothered, no one else minded.
After Huangfu Yue and the others had been resting for about half an incense stick's time, they saw Feng Maoyuan and his subordinates returning with everyone. Zhu Jiayi and Zhong Liangshu were all present, with Xiao Hei flying above them.
Xiao Hei reported in Huangfu Yue's mind, "Master, with my assistance, Feng Maoyuan and his men have found everyone. Not a single person is missing."
"Well done," Huangfu Yue praised inwardly with a smile.
"You've been searching for so long, what have you all found? Have you been quite successful?" Huangfu Yue stood up and walked towards Zhu Jiayi and the others, asking with a smile.
Zhu Jiayi and the others immediately reported their findings to Huangfu Yue. After listening, Huangfu Yue curved her lips.
Everyone had found something. Surprisingly, Zhong Liangshu had found the most and the best items, including mushrooms, wild fungi, and a Ganoderma lucidum.
Hearing that Zhong Liangshu had found a Ganoderma lucidum, many people showed envious glances and praised her good luck.
Xu Yuqing watched and listened from the side with disdain.
It was just a Ganoderma lucidum; what was so impressive about it? A Ganoderma lucidum was still less precious and valuable than the Black Ganoderma she had found earlier! Hmph—
She subtly pursed her lips. Seeing Zhong Liangshu take out a high-quality Ganoderma lucidum from her cloth bag, she felt a pang of covetousness.
This Ganoderma lucidum looked excellent, a superior specimen among Ganoderma, truly rare…
The disdain in her eyes turned into jealousy.
This Zhong Liangshu was truly lucky to have found such a good Ganoderma lucidum.