“Sis, my brother-in-law didn’t mean it that way—don’t misunderstand,” Feng Jiu’er’s voice carried through the valley.

Even knowing they’d have to take a much longer, roundabout route, everyone was in good spirits now that they’d shaken off the Fortress Master.

“Who’s your sister? This young lady looks younger than you, you know?” Qiaomu didn’t even turn her head, moving quickly ahead.

“Looks it… does she?” Feng Jiu’er replied with a smile.

“What brother-in-law? What nonsense is that?” Qiaomu’s voice still carried back.

“Right, how could I forget you’re my sister-in-law? Slipped my mind for a moment, my apologies!” Feng Jiu’er quickly caught up to her.

Qiaomu only glanced sideways at her once, then ignored her after that.

Jian Yi followed behind the two of them, occasionally glancing elsewhere, but most of the time his gaze stayed on Feng Jiu’er.

Before long, the three of them arrived at the foot of the mountain and stopped, gazing up at the towering peak.

“Once we’re up this mountain, we’ll be able to see a good number of ranges—no need to search one mountain at a time.” Feng Jiu’er tossed out the remark and got down off her horse.

“That’s true enough, but climbing over this mountain won’t be easy either.” Qiaomu dismounted and stretched.

Since yesterday, none of them had gotten a proper rest. Being busy, they hadn’t really noticed it—but people couldn’t be compared to machines; exhaustion was bound to catch up eventually.

Feng Jiu’er glanced at the woman beside her, then lifted her gaze to the sun overhead.

“It’s not far from noon now. Once we’re up the mountain, we’ll have something good to eat.”

“Sounds good!” Qiaomu turned her head to meet Feng Jiu’er’s eyes. “As long as I don’t have to do the cooking myself!”

Raising an eyebrow, Qiaomu strode forward.

“Come on, I’m no pampered young lady. Having something to do beats sitting around idle.”

Feng Jiu’er gave her horse’s back a gentle pat and let go of the reins.

“Zhuiyue, don’t go wandering off. Wait for me to come back.”

The horse nodded its head, as if it truly understood her.

There was more than one peak left to conquer, so Feng Jiu’er didn’t linger any longer, turning to follow after Qiaomu.

Jian Yi was always so quiet that, much of the time, one could almost forget he was even there.

And yet, he was always somehow right there beside Feng Jiu’er, never once absent.

This wild, untraveled mountain was considerably harder to climb than one regularly used by people, but the three of them still made it to the summit in under an hour.

It was a bit cold at the top, but fortunately the sun was strong, and in its light, the cold wasn’t too bad.

The three of them reached a relatively flat spot, and Feng Jiu’er turned to look at Jian Yi.

“I’ll go find something to eat nearby. Don’t wander off.” Jian Yi met Feng Jiu’er’s gaze and said softly.

“All right, we won’t go far.” Feng Jiu’er pulled a spyglass from inside her robe and turned to go find Qiaomu.

The spyglasses of this era didn’t have much magnification, but they served well enough. Before setting out, Feng Jiu’er had specifically had several more made and brought along.

“Jiu’er, from here you can see quite a number of mountain ranges.” Qiaomu, standing on the cliff edge, began scanning the distance the moment she arrived.

At a glance, there was nothing but mountain range after mountain range—and of all things, a mountain range was exactly what they were looking for.

“Yeah. If we imagine that somewhere out there a mountain is glowing with gold, would that make us feel any better?”

Feng Jiu’er curved her lips slightly and planted her feet firmly a short distance from Qiaomu.

Holding her spyglass, she began sweeping her gaze across the dense cluster of peaks near and far.

“Jiu’er, looking like this, even if it really is out there, would you be able to recognize it?” Qiaomu sat down on a relatively smooth rock nearby.

“I think we’ll just have to walk around more. Besides, every mountain looks different depending on the angle.”

“We’ve long since prepared ourselves for a treasure hunt like this. Did you take it to heart that I sighed before climbing the mountain?”

“Don’t be so sentimental!” Feng Jiu’er, spyglass still in hand, replied softly. “That image has long since been etched into my mind. The moment I see it, I’ll recognize it for certain.”

“Don’t worry, there are far more than one or two mountains for us to climb. I intend to look at every angle there is.”

Feng Jiu’er glanced back at Qiaomu, the corner of her mouth curving slightly.

“If you’re tired, go ahead and lie down for a bit. We’re not puppets—resting is definitely necessary.”

“When Jian Yi gets back, I’ll wake you up. Don’t worry, if there’s something good to eat, I won’t forget you.”

Qiaomu looked at Feng Jiu’er, raising an eyebrow slightly.

“All right then, I’ll rest first. You go ahead and search at your own pace.”

No sooner had she spoken than Qiaomu turned, found a spot, and lay down.

Feng Jiu’er pretended not to mind, gazing out at the mountains for a while before turning back.

Watching Qiaomu close her eyes, she let out a soft sigh.

Feng Jiu’er knew exactly why Qiaomu was tired—she’d stood watch outside all night without sleep, all while worrying over how things were going for them inside. How could she not be exhausted?

Still, she found some comfort in it—at least this girl was willing to tell her anything that was on her mind.

Rest when tired—no one should force themselves to push through. That was what living was supposed to be.

Sadly, after looking for two or three quarter-hours, Feng Jiu’er’s eyes had already begun to blur, and she still hadn’t spotted a single mountain that looked even remotely familiar.

Even though she’d expected as much from the start, she still felt a measure of disappointment.

Drawing her gaze back from a distant peak, she sensed someone approaching.

“Well?” Jian Yi asked as he approached, two roasted chickens and several sweet potatoes in hand.

“That fast?” At the sight of the plump roasted chickens, Feng Jiu’er’s small bout of disappointment had already vanished into thin air.

“What else would it be? Found nothing. We’ll search in other directions after we eat. Let’s fill our stomachs first.”

“Mm.” Jian Yi nodded, freeing up one hand and extending it toward Feng Jiu’er.

Feng Jiu’er glanced down, reached out, took his hand, and with a leap, landed back on flat ground.

“Let’s save her two chicken legs. We’re not heading down yet anyway, so let her sleep a little longer.”

Feng Jiu’er glanced at Qiaomu before turning back and sitting down with Jian Yi.

“All right.” Jian Yi let go of her small hand, then naturally tore off a chicken leg and held it out to her.

Feng Jiu’er took the chicken leg and bit into it eagerly.

“My stomach’s been growling forever—this is so good!”

Jian Yi glanced at the woman beside him before setting the food in his hands down on a clean leaf he’d brought back for this purpose.

He picked up one of the chickens, pulled off the legs and wings, and laid them on the leaf, then began tearing into the remaining meat on the body himself.

Before long, Feng Jiu’er had finished one chicken leg and picked up the second.

When she lifted her eyes, she saw Jian Yi eating the bland chicken breast meat, and the corner of her mouth lifted without her meaning it to.

“Here.” Feng Jiu’er held out the chicken leg in her hand to Jian Yi.

She suddenly realized that Jian Yi was rather pitiable too—it almost seemed as if his entire existence was just so he could be picked on by her.

Feng Jiu’er didn’t know how Jian Yi and Feng Qingyin had gotten along in the past.

But at least Feng Qingyin had had a father who doted on her at home, and after entering the palace she’d even become a Noble Consort—staying by her side, he could at least have eaten well and grown plump.

Following her, though, it seemed Jian Yi hadn’t had many easy days at all.