When Feng Jiu’er returned, Yanu had indeed already brought the chicken soup over.

Seeing Yanu still tidying her bedding, Jiu’er said, “Yanu, we don’t have much food. Please don’t waste it on me going forward — I actually don’t have much of an appetite.”

“I caught this along the road today. And these mushrooms and wild vegetables were also picked along the way,” he said.

Yanu was, in truth, well aware that their food stores were running low. But he couldn’t bear to see Jiu’er eating and living so roughly, and so he had been paying close attention to everything along the road.

“But…”

“Just taste it — isn’t it fragrant?” Yanu paid no heed to her words at all, picked up the bowl of chicken soup, and placed it directly in front of her.

Feng Jiu’er nearly went mad with hunger from the aroma alone!

Before, she had never thought there was anything particularly wonderful about chicken soup. But now, in days where even a bite of fresh meat had become a luxury, this chicken soup was simply the most exquisite delicacy in all the world.

Seeing her greedy expression, a faint smile flickered through Yanu’s eyes as he pressed the bowl of soup into her hands.

Since the meat was already right there in front of her, not eating it would be a waste. And Yanu simply would not give up until he had watched her eat.

So — she might as well eat.

After Jiu’er found herself a perfectly good excuse to eat, she immediately picked up her chopsticks and began.

The wild pheasant was not large — a small, compact bird — and it hadn’t been simmered for long, yet the meat was tender and fresh, truly delicious.

“What seasonings did you use? It smells so wonderful!” In this day and age, seasonings were genuinely scarce — just salt and sugar, along with some pungent spices.

Yet this bowl of soup carried a clean, sweet fragrance — distinctly unlike anything she had tasted before.

“On the way here, I spotted some wild mint seeds and picked a little to add into the soup.”

Wild mint seeds were not the same as ordinary mint — the flavor was entirely different.

Jiu’er had no idea what the plant actually was, but Yanu’s skill in the kitchen was truly extraordinary.

“Hmm, what is this?” Just as she finished the last of the soup, Feng Jiu’er suddenly noticed the rope Yanu had used to lash together the tree branches.

It was neither rope nor bark — thin, delicate strands. What could it possibly be?

She set down the bowl and walked over, gently tugging at it. To her surprise, the slender strands were remarkably sturdy.

She pulled harder — still, they would not break.

“It’s a type of grass. I can’t say what it’s called exactly, but it looked strong enough, so I cut some to use.”

“Where did you find it?” Something lit up in Jiu’er’s eyes, and she immediately grew excited. “This stuff — it could be very useful!”

“Just a short way from here.”

“Take me there. I want to gather a whole bundle of it.” Feng Jiu’er stood up.

Yanu had no idea what she intended to do with it, but he could only accompany her as they stepped out of the tent.

Unexpectedly, the moment they emerged, they saw Xue Gu and Qiao Mu approaching — and behind them, Mu Mu and Jiu Qing as well.

Knowing they must have something important to discuss with Feng Jiu’er, Yanu said, “I’ll go and fetch it back for you.”

“Take a few of the brothers with you, and get as much as you can.” Since even Mu Mu and Jiu Qing had come, Jiu’er naturally understood that this must be something significant.

Yanu nodded and turned to leave.

Qiao Mu wanted to run after him and help, but the matter at hand was pressing, and she had no choice but to set aside her personal feelings for now.

“A shortcut?”

The group entered the tent Yanu had erected — just enough room for them all to sit together, if snugly.

Noticing the terrain map that Mu Mu had spread out, Feng Jiu’er looked thoroughly surprised. “Where did this come from?”

“The master of Tianxia First Villa — Lanyue — had someone deliver it. It just arrived.”

Her maternal uncle!

But there were too many people around with too many ears, and so Feng Jiu’er said nothing.

In truth, her uncle did know something of the Feng Clan, and Feng Jiu’er could feel it. Yet he seemed to harbor a particularly deep hatred toward the Feng Clan — almost a vendetta-like resentment.

And so, when it came to matters of the Feng Clan, Feng Jiu’er had never pressed him for too much.

This terrain map…

“Passing through this mountain range will bring us to a place called Black Pool. Cross Black Pool by boat, and we arrive at the Feng Clan.”

Mu Mu had already analyzed the map thoroughly, and had not expected there to be a route to the Feng Clan so swift as this.

But passing through this mountain range was no simple matter in itself.

The mountains were riddled with bandits — countless, beyond any hope of counting.

Furthermore, though they had the terrain map, the interior of the mountains was entirely unfamiliar to them.

If it came to open battle, they would hold no advantage.

Yet the route shown on this terrain map was, without question, far more expedient than the path they had originally planned.

Barring any unforeseen complications, they could arrive within half a month — perhaps even within ten days.

Whereas by the original plan, arriving within a full month would already be considered favorable.

And that was accounting for the fact that after passing along the mountain range’s edge, they would still need to travel through the Southern Barbarian Territories.

In truth, the Southern Barbarian Territories were also an extraordinarily dangerous place — perhaps no less perilous than what lay before them here.

Feng Jiu’er was in favor of taking the shortcut.

She quietly looked up and glanced at Jiu Qing.

Jiu Qing simply sat quietly to one side, apparently absorbed in studying the terrain map, paying no heed to her gaze.

If Jiu Qing truly was the Ninth Imperial Uncle, then the longer he remained away from Bei Mu, the more imperiled his half of the kingdom would become.

Therefore, anything that could shorten the journey was, to Feng Jiu’er, an unqualified benefit.

In a situation where the level of danger between the two options was not greatly different, she had to prioritize the Ninth Imperial Uncle’s interests above all else.

Mu Mu was still studying the terrain map. After a long while, he looked toward Jiu Qing. “Can you guarantee her safety?”

Jiu Qing did not so much as lift an eyebrow. “Not necessarily.”

Mu Mu’s brow furrowed. If even he could not guarantee that girl’s safety, then the path ahead was truly unpredictable.

“Deep in the mountains, the terrain is complex. No one can guarantee anything.”

Xue Gu glanced at Jiu Qing, then turned to Mu Mu. “The most critical issue is that Lanyue gave us no detailed route map for the place called Black Pool.”

Even a waterway required a route map — without one, the water route was in many ways more dangerous than overland travel.

“The messenger said that the Villa Master has no route map for Black Pool, but the local hill folk there should know how to navigate it.”

“But what if they refuse to tell us?” Qiao Mu looked rather troubled.

The local hill folk — weren’t those simply the mountain bandits?

“Lanyue analyzed both routes and concluded that the Southern Barbarian Territories may not be any easier to traverse.”

The Southern Barbarians — a place renowned for their Gu poison arts — seemed, by all accounts, the more dangerous of the two.

Feng Jiu’er had herself been tormented by Gu poison for so long that she had already developed an instinctive dread of anything involving Gu.

Noticing the shift in her expression, Jiu Qing was silent for a moment, then said, “Then we pass through the mountain range. We do not go through the Southern Barbarian Territories.”

And just like that, the matter seemed to be decided.

Mu Mu continued leading people on patrol, and Jiu Qing likewise vanished without trace in the blink of an eye.

Xue Gu returned to her own resting place, leaving Qiao Mu following behind Feng Jiu’er, her stomach still full of unspoken questions.

She suddenly grabbed Feng Jiu’er’s sleeve. “Have you noticed — Mu Mu and Xue Gu both seem to listen to whatever Jiu Qing says. What’s going on?”