“Miss Ling, are you hurt?” Zheng Shu Cheng asked with concern. “Father and Mother have been worrying about you. Xiao Xing’s been asking about you since early this morning.”

“I’m fine.” Ling’ai felt a warmth spread through her, touched by their concern. It was such a simple, genuine care.

Zheng Shu Cheng looked over at his younger brother with something like relief in his eyes. “But with Shu Shi here, we could at least put half our worries to rest.”

“This time I really do owe a great deal to Zheng Yun for finding me — and for driving the wolf away,” Ling’ai said, glancing at Zheng Yun with gratitude.

“A wolf?” Zheng Shu Cheng looked startled. “Probably a lone wolf that strayed from somewhere. You wouldn’t normally expect wolves at that altitude. What bad luck, Miss Ling — but thank goodness Shu Shi found you in time. With Shu Shi around, one wolf is nothing.”

“Alright, Big Brother,” Zheng Yun broke in. “Don’t you feel a little embarrassed, praising your own brother like that? Let’s go home — Ling’ai has an empty stomach.”

“Right, right — look at me, just standing here talking. Come on, let’s go home first.” He turned and pulled Dr. Sun along with him. “Dr. Sun, come join us for a meal.”

Dr. Sun didn’t need a second invitation — it was clear he was already well acquainted with the Zheng family. And so the whole cheerful group made their way back to the Zheng household.

“Thank goodness you’re back.” Zheng’s mother heard the commotion and was the first to come out to meet them. When she saw Ling’ai was safe and sound, she let out a long breath and clasped Ling’ai’s hands in both of hers, eyes brimming with tears. “You poor dear. You gave us such a fright.”

“Auntie, I’m alright. I just wandered into the Misty Valley,” Ling’ai said quickly, pulling out a handkerchief to dab at Zheng’s mother’s eyes. “Look — I’m perfectly well.”

Zheng’s mother smiled at that. “Our Shu Shi just turned up out of the blue from the city — gave us quite a start. Turns out you two know each other. Why didn’t you say so earlier?”

When Ling’ai had come to Taohua Village, she had never intended to tell anyone about her connection to Zheng Yun. She didn’t want to cause him any unnecessary trouble.

But now, everyone knew that Zheng Yun was an old acquaintance of hers, and that Zheng Yun had come back specifically because of her.

The Zheng family were all perceptive people. They didn’t need to think too hard to understand the nature of the relationship.

A young woman appearing out of nowhere from a big city, coming to a remote mountain village — and a man traveling a great distance to follow her. Anyone who called them ordinary friends would be hard pressed to make that claim with a straight face.

“Mother, she’s exhausted and starving. Let’s not keep her standing out here in the wind.” Zheng Yun saw that Ling’ai was looking a little uncomfortable and quickly stepped in. “We need to eat.”

“Of course, of course — your sister-in-law just finished making breakfast. It was all ready and waiting for you.” Zheng’s mother laughed. “Come on, come inside.”

The family sat together for a lively, warm meal. After some hot food and soup, everyone felt much better.

Yet sitting there amid the cheerful scene, Ling’ai felt somewhat dazed.

She had already told the Zheng family the truth about herself — that she had been married before. And yet right now they seemed to have forgotten it entirely.

His eldest and second sisters-in-law in particular had been glancing between the two of them with barely concealed knowing smiles.

Ling’ai had assumed the Zheng family would surely take issue with the fact that she had been married before. Their reaction left her utterly surprised and baffled.

“Look at our Shu Shi — all those vegetables he keeps piling onto Miss Ling’s plate,” the eldest sister-in-law said with a bright laugh, unable to help herself.

“Indeed, Little Third.” Dr. Sun, who had drunk a little wine and was looking quite flushed, said: “How could you let a young lady travel all that way back by herself? The journey must have been exhausting. This is just so… so… what’s the word…”

The second brother helpfully supplied it from the side: “Ungentlemanly.”

“That’s it — so ungentlemanly.”

Everyone laughed at that.

Zheng Yun merely pressed his lips together with a faint smile and kept piling food onto Ling’ai’s plate without the slightest attempt to conceal his feelings toward her. Ling’ai, on the other hand, was rather red in the face and spent the entire meal in acute discomfort.

After the meal, Xiao Xing dragged Ling’ai off to see the dog he was raising, and Ling’ai — desperately in need of fresh air — went with him without hesitation.

The moment Ling’ai was out the door, the eldest sister-in-law hauled Zheng Yun aside, bursting with impatience. “Shu Shi, what’s going on between you two? Tell me everything — I’m absolutely dying of curiosity.”

“Yes, Shu Shi — what exactly is the situation with you and Miss Ling?” the eldest brother pressed as well, anxious for answers. “Father and Mother are both here — tell us clearly.”

Zheng Yun went and sat beside his mother. Zheng’s mother hadn’t seen her son in a long time, and now that she had him before her, she looked upon him with nothing but boundless maternal love.

“You’ve all noticed already — I came back this time specifically chasing after her.”

“Obviously. Anyone with eyes can see that,” the eldest brother said, looking at him with exasperation. “But what exactly is your relationship with Miss Ling?”

“We care for each other.”

The eldest sister-in-law pressed urgently: “But Miss Ling said she’s been married. What’s that about?”

“She has indeed been married. She was wed to the Marshal’s second son, Shi Guang.”

A murmur of surprise went around the room. A woman who had been married to the Marshal’s son must be no ordinary woman.

“She’s from Di Guo. Her father was the Di Guo envoy to Xin Guo.”

“Miss Ling is from Di Guo? You’d never know it from looking at her.”

Zheng Yun said, “She came to Xin Guo with her father when she was very young and essentially grew up here. If you didn’t know she was from Di Guo, it would be nearly impossible to tell.”

“Shu Shi — you’ve gone and found yourself a foreign girlfriend,” the eldest sister-in-law teased.

Zheng’s mother shot her a look, and the eldest sister-in-law bit back her smile.

Zheng’s mother turned to him and asked, “Then why did she stop being the Marshal’s daughter-in-law?”

“Her marriage to Shi Guang was also made under duress — for her father’s sake.” Zheng Yun went on to explain how a Di Guo prince and someone named Changse had coerced Ling’ai into the match. “Under the circumstances at the time, she had no choice. To save her father, she had to marry someone she didn’t love.”

“The poor child — so devoted to her father.”

“She and her father are deeply devoted to one another. The Hui Village elder would give his life for his daughter, and she in turn would marry a man she didn’t love to save her father.” Zheng Yun said, “At the time we were forced apart, I understood her choice. If she hadn’t been that kind of person — one with such loyalty and love — then she wouldn’t have been the Ling’ai I fell for.”

Everyone sighed quietly at that.

“Now Shi Guang is finished and she has already broken free of the Shi family. She came to Taohua Village because I once mentioned that the scenery here was beautiful. She intended to take a look at Taohua Village and then leave to study abroad.”

“If she’s already free of the Shi family, then why is she still leaving?” the second brother, who had been quiet until now, asked curiously.

“Second Brother, are you dense?” the eldest sister-in-law shot him a look. “Miss Ling is doing this so she doesn’t drag Shu Shi down with her. She’s afraid that being with Shu Shi would damage his reputation.”

“A grown man — what reputation?” the second brother said bluntly. “You’re a man. If you stand upright and walk straight, your reputation is something you earn for yourself — not something other people give you. Those people who only know how to point fingers and gossip — what do they know?”

“That’s well said, Second Brother,” the eldest brother agreed. “Since you both care for each other, there’s no need to worry about any of that. As for me — I give my approval.”

“I approve too,” the eldest and second sisters-in-law said in unison.

With that, all eyes turned to Zheng’s mother.