For three consecutive days, there had been no news about Chu Li from the outside world.

Even Huaying, who had left with Huang Yan, seemed to have vanished into thin air without a trace.

Mu Yunjin stayed in Phoenix Feather Pavilion, growing more restless the longer she waited. Several times she wanted to go out and search for herself, but was always stopped by Qiqi.

Recalling how she had caused trouble for Chu Li on previous occasions, Mu Yunjin could only grit her teeth and wait patiently at the pavilion.

……

In the morning, Qiqi came to Mu Yunjin’s residence carrying a plate of fresh fruit. She sat in the courtyard to keep Mu Yunjin company.

“Miss, I just heard that Qin Munan’s troops have reached the city gates outside Linyin.” Qiqi looked at Mu Yunjin, sharing the intelligence she had just received.

Mu Yunjin nodded slightly, showing no interest in whether there would be a war outside.

With the Lantern Festival coming tomorrow, she wondered if Chu Li would return…

…

…

With these thoughts, Mu Yunjin felt deeply melancholic.

Seeing Mu Yunjin’s low spirits, Qiqi knew she was thinking about Chu Li again whenever she had nothing to do. So Qiqi’s eyes rolled as she thought for a moment, “Tomorrow is the Lantern Festival. Why don’t we go see Third Madam and her daughter today?”

Qiqi propped up her head, thinking that going out for a change of scenery might help.

At the mention of Luo Ningyu and Mu Xiarou, Mu Yunjin was slightly startled. She realized that since settling them here, she hadn’t visited them since their last parting.

After considering for a moment, she nodded and looked at Qiqi, “Let’s go out for a walk then.”

……

Although the Lantern Festival was approaching, because war was imminent, most civilians were in a state of fear. The festive atmosphere on the streets had diminished significantly.

Walking for a while, Mu Yunjin noticed many civilians carrying luggage, looking travel-worn—refugees seeking shelter in Zhangzhou City.

“Chu Qing and Qiuye are full of schemes. In this battle, General Qin will likely face dire circumstances,” Qiqi observed, looking at the refugees around them.

Mu Yunjin lowered her eyes, unsure what to say. From the bottom of her heart, she naturally hoped Qin Munan would win the war, but against opponents like Chu Qing, Qiuye, and Black Robe, victory would be extremely difficult for him.

After some thought, Mu Yunjin sighed softly.

When they arrived at the black market, it was still as bustling as ever. Various gambling houses were packed with people, with occasional bursts of cheers.

Mu Yunjin came to the inn where Luo Ningyu and her daughter were staying. She climbed to the second floor, approached their door, and knocked gently.

Mu Xiarou opened the door. Seeing Mu Yunjin, her eyes brightened, “Third Sister, you’ve finally come.”

After a pause, she smiled at Qiqi and greeted her, “Sister Qiqi.”

“Come in quickly, my mother is making tangyuan!” Mu Xiarou said with a smile.

Mu Yunjin entered and indeed saw Luo Ningyu with flour-covered hands making tangyuan. Half of a large table was already filled with completed ones.

Seeing this, Mu Yunjin finally felt some of the festival atmosphere.

“Cloud Jin and Miss Qiqi are here! Please sit. Xiarou, hurry and pour some water!” Luo Ningyu smiled at Mu Yunjin, putting down her work to wipe her hands with a damp cloth.

Mu Yunjin sat down, curling her lips into a smile, “Third Aunt, don’t mind us. We just came to check on you. Have you gotten used to living here?”

“Yes, everything is fine!” Luo Ningyu replied with a beaming smile.

After a pause, Luo Ningyu continued, “Stay for lunch. I’ll prepare some of my specialty dishes for you. Prince Ning has already arranged everything with this inn, so I can use the kitchen freely.”

“That sounds good,” Mu Yunjin agreed.

“Then I want braised fish!” Qiqi immediately requested a dish.

Luo Ningyu tugged at the corner of her mouth, “Alright, I’ll go prepare now. You chat among yourselves first.”

With that, Luo Ningyu left.

Seeing Luo Ningyu leave, Mu Xiarou ran to Mu Yunjin’s side and pulled her arm, “Third Sister, after the New Year, I’ll be fifteen, and next year I can marry… I wonder if Third Sister has found a good match for me?”

“Isn’t there still a year to go?” Mu Yunjin asked in return.

Mu Xiarou paused slightly, then nodded gently and didn’t continue the topic.

When she was living in Linyin, she had always hoped that two years later, Mu Yunjin would take her back and find her a good match. This would have freed her from continuing to live in the remote area of Linyin.

Unexpectedly, such major changes had occurred. Prince Ning and Third Sister could no longer remain in Xiyuan Kingdom nor establish themselves in Nanting Kingdom—this was truly something she hadn’t anticipated.

Thinking of this, Mu Xiarou felt somewhat depressed.

But then she thought of the deceased Minister Mu and Mu Lingzhu, and suddenly realized that compared to them, her current situation was much better.

She should be content and not continue to be willful. With this thought, she felt much better.

At noon, Luo Ningyu prepared a large table of dishes and had already cooked several tangyuan for Mu Yunjin. During the meal, she frequently helped Mu Yunjin and Qiqi by picking up food for them.

“Third Madam’s cooking is excellent,” Qiqi said with a satisfied expression as she ate the braised fish.

“If you like it, eat more,” Luo Ningyu said smilingly, looking at Qiqi.

Mu Yunjin watched from the side, leisurely eating a tangyuan. Just as she took a bite, she suddenly noticed a flash of blue light to the side…

“Ah—”

“Aah—”

Startled screams came from Luo Ningyu and Mu Xiarou.

Mu Yunjin’s hand holding the spoon trembled. When she turned to look, she saw Ink Qilin had appeared in the inn room.

Upon seeing Ink Qilin, Mu Yunjin’s pupils contracted.

At this moment, Ink Qilin approached Mu Yunjin, took the hem of her clothes in its mouth, and gently dragged her outward…

“Ink Qilin, what’s wrong?” Mu Yunjin stood up, steadying her steps.

Ink Qilin stopped, released Mu Yunjin’s clothes, and let out a low roar. It looked up at Mu Yunjin, its large ice-blue eyes brimming with tears.

“Has something happened to Chu Li?” Mu Yunjin thought of this possibility and bent down to look at Ink Qilin.

Ink Qilin nodded.

“Quickly take me to Chu Li!” Mu Yunjin’s heart sank as she decided without hesitation.

“Aowu…” Ink Qilin carried Mu Yunjin on its back and quickly transformed into a beam of light, disappearing.

Qiqi stood dumbfounded for a moment, then, without even saying goodbye to Luo Ningyu and her daughter, activated the formless space and initiated a tracking spell, pursuing Mu Yunjin and Ink Qilin…

……

Ink Qilin moved swiftly, quickly bringing Mu Yunjin to the border of Linyin, to a desolate cliff edge.

When Ink Qilin materialized, Ding Xian immediately ran over. Seeing Mu Yunjin, his eyes tightened, “Princess!”

Then, looking at Ink Qilin, he spoke helplessly, “You disappeared for so long, so you went to find the Princess. If His Highness knows you brought the Princess here, see how he’ll deal with you!”

“Aowu…” Ink Qilin shrank its neck in dejection, walked to the edge of the cliff, looked down, and then turned to Mu Yunjin, seemingly waiting for her to come over.

Mu Yunjin approached Ink Qilin and looked down the cliff. At the bottom of the cliff were sharp, thorny brambles, so numerous they almost filled the entire base of the cliff.

“Ding Xian, where is Chu Li?” Mu Yunjin looked at Ding Xian.

Ding Xian frowned and sighed, “His Highness originally went to Pingfeng Cliff to ask Elder Murong about the antidote. Later, Elder Murong indeed found signs of gu poison in the Princess’s blood and told His Highness to come to this Thorny Ridge to find an herb called Danshu.”

“His Highness came here without delay, but Qiuye and Black Robe had already prepared an ambush. During the fight, all three jumped into the thorny ravine below!”

Hearing this, Mu Yunjin felt like she was going insane. Not to mention the height of the cliff, just the sheer number of thorny vines down there was deadly enough!

And with the addition of two supreme masters like Qiuye and Black Robe…

Mu Yunjin dared not imagine further. She walked to the edge of the cliff, preparing to jump down.

Ding Xian was terrified and immediately stepped forward to stop her. “When Huang Yan and Huaying arrived, His Highness had already jumped down the cliff. Now they’re taking another route to look for him at the bottom of the cliff. Princess, please don’t be rash…”

After speaking, he glared at Ink Qilin.

Mu Yunjin gazed at the pitch-black bottom of the cliff, her face as pale as paper, her eyes dark and unreadable. She breathed lightly a few times, her gaze gradually becoming misty.

Before her eyes, the scene of Si Qing lying bloodied in Fu Huan’s arms reappeared. At this moment, Mu Yunjin’s heart ached.

Familiar voices also echoed in her ears—

“Si Qing, let me tell you, in this life you can’t get rid of me. If you live, I live; if you die, I die. As long as we’re together, it doesn’t matter what others say!”

“You silly girl, what am I going to do with you?”

“Hmph, that’s for you to figure out!”

Listening to these voices, Mu Yunjin’s head began to ache. The scenes in these words felt like they had happened not long ago.

When she came back to her senses and her gaze once again fell upon the unfathomable thorny ravine, she hesitated no more and leaped down…

“Aowu…” Ink Qilin roared and jumped down after Mu Yunjin!

Ding Xian’s legs went weak as he watched the disappearing figures, thinking to himself, this is bad, this is bad…

……

“Ah…”

Just as Mu Yunjin was about to hit the ground, Ink Qilin rushed ahead to protect her. She landed on Ink Qilin’s back, but the strong impact still made her cry out in pain.

When she sat up, she felt painful stings all over her body. Raising her hands, she discovered that the exposed parts of her hands had been injured by thorns, and her clothes had been torn by the thorns as well.

Even her face had a slight stinging sensation.

Mu Yunjin sat up, her heart tightening. She instinctively touched her lower abdomen. Just as her hand reached her belly, she suddenly felt a ball of spiritual energy enveloping it.

Where did this spiritual energy come from?

Mu Yunjin was astonished. She then loosened her muscles and looked around.

This was a place similar to a cave, covered with thorny vines in all directions. One slight carelessness would result in being covered in injuries from the thorns.

Additionally, everywhere around was dark and vast, with only a bit of light where she was, due to the cliff entrance above.

Mu Yunjin bit her lip, suddenly worried about Chu Li’s eyes.