Baili Weisheng left so abruptly that both Ziqing and Meng Duo’er turned back, puzzled — only to find his figure already gone!

Within the barrier, Madam Jinjiao smiled warmly, her weathered face still marked with fresh tear tracks, yet beaming with a gentle, kindly warmth.

That easy, radiant smile bore quite a striking resemblance to Baili Weisheng’s own, in more ways than one.

Ziqing rose and walked over. “Auntie, where did Weisheng go?”

“Off to find food, worried you all might be hungry,” Madam Jinjiao said with a smile.

Ziqing looked at her face, still streaked with dried blood, her fingers stained with it as well, and then at the warmth in her eyes — and felt an inexplicable pang of tenderness.

To have a mother who smiled so easily, so genuinely — what a rare thing that truly was!

“Girl, is your name Han Ziqing?” Madam Jinjiao asked.

Ziqing nodded, introducing herself properly, and introduced Meng Duo’er as well.

“Duo’er — what a lovely name. Girl, you’re the great benefactor of us both, mother and son!” Madam Jinjiao said warmly.

Meng Duo’er waved her hands modestly. “Auntie, please don’t say that, I don’t deserve it. I was only carrying out orders — it was my duty!”

“Not at all! You saved both my son’s life and mine. Girl, whatever you ever need in the future, just tell my son — whatever he’s capable of, he’ll do it for you, without fail!” Madam Jinjiao said this with utter seriousness. Her own abilities were limited, but her son — one glance was all it took to know how formidable he was.

At these words, Meng Duo’er felt a shiver run through her. That foul-mouthed scholar… well, best to keep her distance from him after all!

That man was heartless, showed no respect for his elders, and on top of that, he was petty and held grudges!

She’d already apologized on her father’s behalf, and Ziqing hadn’t said another word about it — yet this man still refused to let it go!

And that incident at the city gate — he’d held a grudge over that too!

A friend like that simply wasn’t worth cultivating!

Meng Duo’er had come here for Ziqing and Jun Beiyue, after all!

Of course, all of this remained locked away in Meng Duo’er’s own thoughts. She forced a modest smile and said it wasn’t necessary.

Who could have known, Madam Jinjiao then asked, “Girl, are your parents both in the Meng Clan?”

Something suddenly felt off to Meng Duo’er, though she couldn’t quite pinpoint what, and without thinking too much about it, she answered, “I lost my mother when I was very young. My father raised me. He’s in the Meng Clan.”

“Girl, are you planning to go back to the Meng Clan?” Madam Jinjiao asked again.

“I…” Meng Duo’er, honest at heart, glanced at Ziqing, then said timidly, “Han Ziqing, can… could I…”

She stammered, unable to get the words out for a long moment.

Ziqing waited curiously for her to continue.

“Could I go along with you all to search for the Lonely Isle?” Meng Duo’er said, and seeing Ziqing’s brow furrow slightly, quickly added, “I’ve already talked it over with Grandfather — the Meng Clan will send people to take Fourth Aunt away. Grandfather agreed to let me go out and gain some experience for a few years. Han Ziqing, my instant sealing technique isn’t fully mastered yet, but I do know some martial arts too — I absolutely won’t hold you all back!”

Seeing her so earnestly promising this, Ziqing couldn’t help but laugh, a flicker of mischief crossing her eyes. “Beiyue and I would be glad to have you. It’s just, we’ll still need to ask Baili Weisheng about it.”

Meng Duo’er’s expression instantly froze — but Madam Jinjiao declared firmly, “No need to ask him at all — he’ll definitely say yes! Girl, you stay. One more person means one more bit of liveliness!”

Meng Duo’er peeked over at Ziqing, and seeing no objection, said timidly, “Then I won’t ask him after all.”

“Of course, this is Auntie’s decision to make for you,” Madam Jinjiao said warmly.

Ziqing secretly held back a laugh, quietly stepping aside as Madam Jinjiao launched into a barrage of questions for Meng Duo’er — her age, her siblings, and so on.

Ziqing sat off to the side, catching every word, nearly unable to hold back her laughter!

Baili Weisheng, oh Baili Weisheng — this group of theirs was certainly going to get lively from here on out!

At this thought, Ziqing glanced over at Meng Wanyue — who sat there like an empty husk, spirit entirely gone, staring blankly into space.

Ziqing watched in silence, the curve of her lips gradually fading. They’d only just been apart for a short while, and already, suddenly, she found herself missing Beiyue and Xiong Bao.

Beiyue had probably already arrived at Liuxian Island by now.

Just then, the sound of splashing water broke through Ziqing’s thoughts — Baili Weisheng had returned, dragging a string of fish behind him.

In the sea, food meant nothing but fish, all sorts of fish.

The moment he entered the barrier, he found Madam Jinjiao and Meng Duo’er deep in animated conversation. Baili Weisheng felt a chill sweep straight through him, cold from head to toe.

He immediately averted his gaze, shooting a glance at Ziqing, who was quietly stifling a laugh, and said coldly, “Xiao Qingqing, come with me.”

“The kitchen’s at the end of the right-hand corridor, with clean water too,” Madam Jinjiao said quickly, then turned back to Meng Duo’er. “Girl, do you like your fish pan-fried, deep-fried, steamed, or in a soup?”

Meng Duo’er hadn’t even recovered from that yet when Madam Jinjiao added, “Son, let’s stew it. Stew that sea bass — it’ll help nourish Duo’er’s body.”

Merfolk loved fish above all else! And there was no shortage of any kind here!

Ziqing struggled to hold back her laughter — she was completely certain now that Madam Jinjiao had already decided Meng Duo’er was her future daughter-in-law. A hundred percent certain, without a doubt!

As for Baili Weisheng, he acted as though he’d heard nothing at all, his face darker and gloomier than the deep sea itself!

Meng Duo’er stood frozen in place, finally realizing something was very wrong, her mouth twitching repeatedly as she instinctively stepped back.

Suddenly, she blurted out sharply, “Baili Weisheng!”

Ziqing and Baili Weisheng both stopped in their tracks at once. Baili Weisheng was just about to speak when Meng Duo’er said loudly, “No need to cook it — I’m fully recovered!”

That fish — could she really eat it?

Eating it would mean accepting Madam Jinjiao’s “good intentions,” after all!

With that, she gritted her teeth, summoned every last ounce of her strength, focused her concentration, and clasped her hands together in front of her chest.

Meng Duo’er was struggling to hold on, but she threw all caution to the wind, shouting a sharp “Break!” — instantly, purple light erupted brilliantly from her fingertips, blazing so bright it lit up the entire massive stone pillar!

So dazzling that Ziqing and Baili Weisheng couldn’t even make out Meng Duo’er or Madam Jinjiao at all!

Neither of them had expected Meng Duo’er to move so quickly, and they immediately rushed forward.

But by the time they arrived, the purple light had already faded!

The entire great stone pillar had vanished completely. Madam Jinjiao stood there, her face full of shock, while Meng Duo’er, unable to even turn to look at them, felt everything go black before her eyes, and immediately fainted!

Ziqing rushed forward to catch her, while Baili Weisheng stood frozen, staring at the very real, very present figure of his mother standing before him — momentarily stunned.

Though he had already prepared himself mentally for this, now that his mother truly, genuinely stood right in front of him, he still needed a moment to recover.

Madam Jinjiao was too overcome to speak at all, rushing forward and pulling Baili Weisheng tightly into her embrace. “Son! Mother has finally waited long enough to have you! Mother has finally come out! Son!”

Held tightly in Madam Jinjiao’s arms, an unfamiliar sensation surged through Baili Weisheng’s heart — bittersweet, joyful, nervous, overwhelmed, a jumble of emotions all at once, impossible to put into words.

He slowly closed his eyes. In that instant, he felt something inside him break open completely, and the wildly pounding heart within his chest felt entirely, utterly different!

His eyes grew moist — he actually had tears, it seemed…