He Shi collided headfirst into Li Guangwen.

Li Guangwen reached out to steady her, scolding: “What are you doing? So flustered and panicked!” Why couldn’t his wife be a bit more ladylike?

“Master, please go and persuade Zhaozhao. I can’t control her…”

“Persuade her about what?” Li Guangwen looked dismissive. “Zhaozhao has always been sensible in her actions. Don’t drag her down.”

Ignorant woman, only knowing how to cause trouble for his daughter!

He Shi’s beautiful eyes widened: “Master doesn’t know yet—Zhaozhao is going south to gather medicine for the Ninth Princess.”

After He Shi finished tearfully explaining the situation, the refined and handsome Master Li was stunned.

“Master, I know Zhaozhao is sensible in her actions, but I just can’t help worrying—”

Li Guangwen’s lips trembled.

He took back his earlier words. What sensibility did that girl have? This was pure recklessness!

Li Guangwen looked up to see Qiao Zhao standing by the door.

“Father.” Qiao Zhao obediently greeted him.

“Mm.” Li Guangwen responded coolly.

“Perhaps you could persuade Mother? You’re more knowledgeable, and Mother will listen to you.” Qiao Zhao first placed a flattering hat on Li Guangwen’s head, then smiled brightly at He Shi: “Mother, I’ll go prepare some sweet soup for you both to drink.”

Once their daughter had escaped, the couple was left staring at each other.

After a long while, He Shi asked: “Master, when Zhaozhao said you were more knowledgeable, what was she referring to?”

Li Guangwen silently gazed at the sky.

How would he know! Just now, when his daughter praised him, he was so pleased he forgot to ask!

Qiao Zhao dove into the small kitchen and prepared a sweet soup with “special ingredients” to send to Li Guangwen and He Shi.

With the sweet soup as an offering, Qiao Zhao managed through much coaxing and persuasion to finally win over her parents, before breathing a long sigh of relief and returning to the West Side Courtyard.

Under the eaves, a myna bird was dozing on a horizontal perch. Hearing movement, it spread its wings and flew over, landing in Qiao Zhao’s palm and tilting its head to call out: “All wishes fulfilled.”

Qiao Zhao curved her lips in a smile.

After she had corrected this myna countless times, it finally stopped calling out randomly.

Just as she thought this, she heard the myna chirp crisply: “Wife!”

Qiao Zhao held her forehead.

Binglu scratched her head nearby: “How strange—why does Er Bing call the young miss ‘wife’?”

Qiao Zhao let out a dry laugh. She’d like to know why, too!

Binglu clapped her hands: “This servant knows!”

“Hmm?”

“General Shao must have taught it!”

Qiao Zhao: “…”

Seeing that Qiao Zhao remained silent, Binglu winked at A’Zhu: “A’Zhu, what do you think?”

During their time at Dafu Temple, she had seen that General Shao took very good care of their young miss. If the young miss could marry General Shao, it would be wonderful. Ahem, in that case, Chen Guang would continue to serve as the young miss’s driver.

The little maid remembered what Chen Guang had told her at Dafu Temple—that he would eventually return to the Marquis Guanjun’s residence.

Thinking about Chen Guang returning to the Marquis Guanjun’s residence and no longer being at the Li Residence, Binglu began to feel sad.

How could that be? Without Chen Guang at the Li Residence, who would teach her martial arts in the future, and whom would she bully?

“I don’t know.” A’Zhu shook her head honestly, then her eyes brightened: “Young miss, look—”

A white dove gracefully swept across the blue sky, flying low and circling Qiao Zhao.

Qiao Zhao extended her other hand, and the white dove landed in her palm.

Er Bing tilted its head to examine the unexpected visitor, then spread its wings and flew from one of Qiao Zhao’s palms to the other, pushing the white dove aside and calling out triumphantly.

Qiao Zhao raised her hand to stroke the myna’s feathers, warning: “Don’t make trouble.”

Er Bing’s eyes rolled as if understanding its master’s words. It indeed stopped calling, then, then it charged at the white dove, and the two birds began fighting.

The master and two servants all forgot to speak for a moment.

One myna and one white dove fought as if no one else existed, until it ended with Er Bing’s overwhelming victory.

“Binglu, take Er Bing to drink some water.”

“Yes.” Binglu carried away the proud and strutting Er Bing.

Only then did Qiao Zhao bend down to pick up the white dove, soothing it and smoothing its feathers, before taking out the paper strip from the copper tube tied to the pigeon’s leg.

The message on the paper was simple: Meet next door.

Shao Mingyuan wanted to see her?

Qiao Zhao didn’t reply, directly releasing the white dove.

In the neighboring residence, Shao Mingyuan was already waiting in the courtyard.

There was a grape arbor in the courtyard. At this season, the grapes had already ripened, looking like piled agate beads with their enticing luster.

Shao Mingyuan selected two clusters of grapes to pick, taking them to the well to wash. A personal guard said: “General, let this subordinate do it.”

“No need.” Shao Mingyuan didn’t look up, washing them very carefully.

The white dove landed at his feet, calling out pitifully twice.

Shao Mingyuan looked at the white dove and couldn’t help frowning.

How did this carrier pigeon look like it had been beaten up? If it were a long journey, the carrier pigeon might encounter danger along the way, but this was just next door?

The young general finished washing the grapes and handed them to his guard to arrange on a plate, then stood up to gaze in the direction of the Li Residence, completely puzzled.

He opened the copper tube to find the paper strip was gone, and gently stroked the carrier pigeon’s head: “You’ve worked hard. Go on.”

The grapes were arranged in a white jade plate and placed on the stone table. Shao Mingyuan didn’t touch a single one, holding a military manual in one hand and reading silently.

After waiting about two quarters of an hour, a personal guard approached and whispered, “General, Miss Li has arrived.”

Shao Mingyuan casually placed the military manual on the stone table and rose to greet her.

“General Shao.”

“Please follow me, Miss Li.”

Shao Mingyuan led Qiao Zhao to sit by the stone table, extending his slender fingers to push the white jade plate toward Qiao Zhao: “I discovered that the grapes here are no worse than those in the back courtyard of Chunfeng Tavern. Please try them, Miss Li.”

Qiao Zhao ate a grape and praised: “The taste is very good. I thought I would taste the grapes from Chunfeng Tavern first.”

She said this casually, and Shao Mingyuan replied: “I’ll have someone send some to Miss Li later.”

“That’s not necessary. What did General Shao call me here for?”

“I heard from my brother-in-law that Miss Li is going south.”

Qiao Zhao nodded: “Yes. Rest assured, General Shao, I’ll wait until you no longer need acupuncture before departing.”

“No need.”

Qiao Zhao was startled.

The person across from her had an open expression: “I will go with you.”

Qiao Zhao thought for a moment and asked: “Is this my elder brother’s intention?”

“Yes.” The man across from her answered without hesitation, though the sense of something being amiss in his heart grew stronger.

Whether it was brother-in-law or Miss Li, when they mentioned each other, their tone was no different from that of true siblings. He actually couldn’t imagine such a feeling.

He had no sister, and couldn’t imagine treating an unrelated girl as a real sister, even with Wanwan, it was only out of responsibility toward his deceased wife.

Moreover, Miss Li and her brother-in-law had spent very little time together.

“With General Shao’s status, going south privately might be rather inconvenient.”

Shao Mingyuan smiled: “I’ll handle these matters. Miss Li needn’t worry about this.”

“Then what exactly did General Shao call me here for?”