Feng Jin sighed helplessly, indulging Er Bao's continued play. She only managed to coax Da Bao to sleep before Er Bao started fussing about sleeping.
Dragging her tired body up, Feng Jin hugged Er Bao and gently lulled him to sleep.
After both little troublemakers were finally asleep, Feng Jin was so tired she could barely stand. She suppressed her drowsiness and got up for a drink of water.
She had just closed her eyes for a moment when she heard a soft knock. Feng Jin, in a light sleep, instantly opened her eyes and cautiously got up to open the door.
Upon opening the door, she saw Chu Qing standing outside. "What is it?"
Her greatest fear was someone finding her late at night, and her heart immediately tensed, afraid of hearing bad news.
"Madam... it's..." Chu Qing panted, paused for a moment, and then steadied her breath. "It's... it's the Young General who sent someone to fetch us to the capital."
"Why now..."
The two children had just fallen asleep, and now the people sent by Ling Mo Han had arrived. What impeccable timing.
"Madam, are we leaving now?"
After a long pause, Feng Jin finally spoke, "We're not leaving. We'll depart for the capital tomorrow morning after Da Bao and Er Bao wake up. You can arrange for them to stay at the estate for now, and we'll leave tomorrow."
What time was it? Adults could endure anything, but the children were so young. Feng Jin couldn't bear to subject them to more hardship. So, she decided to leave the next morning.
In broad daylight, under the emperor's watchful eye, she didn't believe Chu Yanxi would dare to make a move against them.
"But the Young General told us before..."
"Now Madam is in charge, and you'll listen to me. You should go back and rest quickly, and we'll depart tomorrow morning."
Feng Jin urged Cai Qing back to rest, as she had been through so much turmoil these past few days without a moment's peace.
What time was it? Da Bao and Er Bao were sleeping so soundly, a rare occurrence. She couldn't bear to disturb the children again and have them travel in the middle of the night.
She would simply leave tomorrow morning. If Ling Mo Han blamed her for this, she would take all the responsibility.
Ling Mo Han wouldn't do anything to her over this matter.
Having made her decision, Feng Jin was exhausted. As soon as she touched the bed, her eyelids felt heavy, and she soon fell into a deep sleep, hugging the two children.
The next day, she woke up and hurriedly boarded the carriage, heading back to the capital.
Fortunately, with the escort of the Black Armored Army, no accidents occurred, and they safely arrived in the capital.
Feng Jin looked at the capital, which she hadn't seen in a long time, and felt a sense of unfamiliarity. It had only been a month, but returning this time felt different.
The carriage did not linger and drove directly back to the Ling Mansion.
As soon as they arrived at the Ling Mansion, Ling Wan rushed to the entrance to greet Feng Jin.
"Sister-in-law, you're finally back! We received news that you would be arriving in the capital soon, and only Elder Brother returned yesterday. Today, we've finally welcomed you back."
Ling Wan held Feng Jin's hand and said affectionately. She hadn't seen her sister-in-law for almost a month and missed her dearly. She tightly held Feng Jin's hand and led her towards the East Courtyard, chattering non-stop along the way.
She wished she could pour out all the words she had saved for a month to Feng Jin...
"Sister-in-law, I knew you were returning several days ago, so I had the servants clean the East Courtyard thoroughly. These roses were planted when you left. Perhaps they knew you were coming back and bloomed early. I picked some and put them in vases so you could see them as soon as you returned."
"And this canopy, it's Moon Shadow Silk from this year's tribute from Nanyue. I've just replaced it. I wonder if you like it, Sister-in-law..."
Feng Jin's gaze swept over the room. It was as spotlessly clean as when she had been there before. The room was also scented with incense, showing that Ling Wan had put in a lot of effort.
"You are thoughtful, and what you prepare is naturally the best. I trust you."
Ling Wan had always been dependable, so Feng Jin had nothing to worry about. Even the tea was hot, indicating it had just been prepared.
"As long as Sister-in-law is satisfied, then my efforts these past few days weren't in vain."
At first, she had worried that Sister-in-law might not be satisfied with her preparations, but now she was relieved.
Ling Wan looked around the room but didn't see Cai Qing. Instead, she saw a strange young woman.
"Sister-in-law, where is Cai Qing? Why isn't she serving by your side? Has this girl gone off to slack off somewhere again? And who is this young lady?"
Ling Wan looked at Chu Qing with confusion. The only one serving by her sister-in-law's side was Cai Qing. Where did this new girl come from?
"This is Chu Qing, a maid I took in on the road. Chu Qing, this is the Second Miss. Hurry and pay your respects to the Second Miss."
Without revealing Chu Qing's true identity, Feng Jin simply made up a plausible reason.
"Your servant Chu Qing greets the Second Miss."
"You may rise," Ling Wan said, reaching out to help Chu Qing up. She took a hairpin from her hair and placed it on Chu Qing's head. "This hairpin is a welcome gift for our first meeting."
This was something Sister-in-law had taught her. It was always good to be polite to people on the first meeting.
"This... Second Miss, it's too valuable, I cannot accept it."
Saying that, Chu Qing tried to remove the hairpin from her head and return it to Ling Wan.
"I've already told you it's for you, so wear it well. You are not allowed to take it off."
Ling Wan pressed down on Chu Qing's hand as she tried to remove the hairpin. Once something was given, there was no taking it back.
"Then... alright, your servant will accept it."
"That's more like it," Ling Wan said with a satisfied smile. She then turned her gaze to Feng Jin. "Right, Sister-in-law, why isn't Cai Qing back with you this time? Did something happen?"
Cai Qing always followed her sister-in-law closely, never leaving her side. Ling Wan was full of questions as to why she wasn't with her now.
"It's nothing much. It's just that when we were nearing the capital, Lu Shi was injured. It was inconvenient for her to travel with us, so Cai Qing stayed behind to look after him. They'll return together once Lu Shi has recovered."
Ling Wan's face was full of surprise, her mouth agape.
"Cai Qing stayed behind to look after Lu Shi..."
Feng Jin nodded in confirmation. "Yes."
"Sister-in-law, how could you agree to that? If word gets out, Cai Qing's reputation as an unmarried girl will be ruined. How will she ever get married in the future?"