Taking her into his tent, he incurred the wrath of a powerful and mad minister, from which he could

Not only did he send letters, but he also had twelve zodiac animals that he carved himself from peach wood.

Wood carving was one of Xie Huaiyu's hobbies. He was very skilled and often gave Ji Mingyi small trinkets that he carved on the spot.

Last year, she said she wanted to collect all twelve zodiac animals, and Xie Huaiyu agreed. He would carve them for her in his spare time, and he has collected quite a few by now.

This time they delivered sheep; only the rabbit is missing.

Ji Mingyi was born in the Year of the Rabbit, and he wanted to stay until the end.

Mingyi examined the wooden carving for a while, a smile appearing in her eyes, before opening the letter.

As he looked at it, his furrowed brows gradually relaxed, and a relieved smile appeared on his lips.

Xie Huaiyu brought the good news she wanted to hear.

Everything went smoothly, and he would be back in five or six days at most. It didn't matter whether she wanted to stay in the Zong family mansion or in the capital.

The Emperor appointed him as the magistrate of Qingzhou. Once he returned to the capital to report on his duties, he was able to bring his siblings to settle in Qingzhou.

Although Qingzhou is not as prosperous and wealthy as the capital, it is still a place of outstanding people and beautiful scenery. The only question is whether she is willing to go with me.

Mingyi is certainly willing.

She didn't want to stay in the capital, a place of power struggles, and wished she could be as far away from it as possible.

She had previously thought that even if Xie Huaiyu agreed to leave the Zong family, he would probably still stay in the capital as an official. In that case, their ties with the Zong family would still be unbreakable, and if the Zong family were to face a major disaster in the future, they might be implicated.

Now everything is fine, going to Qingzhou will solve all the problems!

Mingyi's mood brightened from cloudy to sunny; she saw hope, and her eyes and brows were full of smiles.

It's a pity that just as her business with Baixianglou was starting to pick up, she had to start all over again after going to Qingzhou.

However, it's not a big problem; getting away from Zong Xian is the most important thing right now.

Mingyi immediately wrote back to Xie Huaiyu, telling him that she was willing to go to Qingzhou with him and that she would wait for him to return at the Zongfu residence.

Then he instructed Yuegui to take the letter out of the mansion and have someone deliver it to him.

Yuegui was also happy. She originally thought it was quite good to live in the Zong family mansion, after all, it's good to have a big tree to lean on.

But after the assassination attempt on Suzaku Street that day, Yuegui no longer thought that way and happily went out to deliver the message.

"Is there some good news? Sister looks very happy." Ji Mingzhe came in to find her.

Mingyi smiled and said, "It's because your brother-in-law is coming back."

The trip to Qingzhou hasn't been completely finalized yet, so I won't tell him yet.

Upon hearing this, Ji Mingzhe responded with a blank "Oh."

Mingyi asked in confusion, "What's wrong? Doesn't A-Zhe want him to come back?"

"No, not at all." It's just that whenever Xie Huaiyu is around, Mingyi's thoughts and attention are all on him.

Ji Mingzhe felt a slight displeasure, but he changed the subject, looking up and asking, "When is brother-in-law coming back?"

"It'll be soon, we should be able to get back before the Mid-Autumn Festival."

Ji Mingzhe didn't say anything more and obediently replied, "Sister, I'm going to study."

"Okay, go ahead, but don't overwork yourself. Remember to balance work and rest."

"Understood, sister."

"Wait a minute." Mingyi called out to him, and Ji Mingzhe obediently stopped.

Mingyi found the mended clothes, folded them neatly, and handed them to him. "The clothes are mended. Wear them for now. I'll buy you new ones when we leave the manor next time."

Ji Mingzhe took the money and hugged it to his arms, saying very sensibly, "I have enough clothes to wear, I don't need to buy new ones, sister, keep the money for yourself."

Mingyi patted his head, noticing he had grown taller, and said softly, "Go study."

Mingyi watched his departing figure, her brows furrowing slightly. She thought to herself: Yuegui wasn't just making things up; even she, as his older sister, couldn't quite see through him.

Mingyi shrugged slightly, not really caring.

...

Even in the most ordinary side courtyard of the Zong Mansion, there were three main rooms and two side rooms. Ji Mingyi and Ji Mingzhe each occupied one main room, while Yuegui lived in one of the side rooms. The remaining main room was empty and uninhabited.

Xie Huaiyu and Mingyi are not yet married, so they cannot live together.

Ji Mingzhe's room is right across from Mingyi's; she can see him as soon as she opens her door in the morning.

Ji Mingzhe closed the door as soon as he returned to his room.

He carried the clothes that Mingyi had mended towards the inner room, then suddenly stopped and said coldly to the air:

"I told you, don't follow me, I won't go with you!"

In the shadows of the roof beams overhead, there seemed to be dark shadows moving about.

Ji Mingzhe stared at that spot and said, "You've mistaken me for someone else. I'm not the person you're looking for. My surname is Ji, not Tang!"

Seeing that the other party was unmoved, Ji Mingzhe pulled out a pair of scissors from under his pillow and immediately pointed them at his wrist.

On his left wrist was a clearly visible black birthmark with indistinct borders, shaped like a crescent moon.

Ji Mingzhe's voice was childish, yet it carried a resolute ruthlessness: "You only recognize this birthmark, right? If you don't leave, I'll cut this piece of skin off!"

The person in the shadows remained unmoved, seemingly not believing he had the courage to harm himself.

Ji Mingzhe said no more and cut his skin with the sharp blade without saying a word.

"No! We'll go, we'll go, please... don't be impulsive, don't hurt yourself."

A deep, hoarse voice came through, sounding urgent.

Ji Mingzhe stopped what he was doing, his eyes red, and growled, "Then get out!"

With a rustling sound, everyone in the shadows vanished.

Ji Mingzhe relaxed completely, plopped down on the bed, and wiped the cold sweat from his forehead with his sleeve.

I carefully wiped the blood off the scissors, stuffed them back into the pillow, and finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Seeing the thin wound on his wrist, Ji Mingzhe frowned and pulled his sleeve down a little.

He thought to himself, "I absolutely cannot let my sister know that a stranger has been looking for me, I absolutely cannot..."

I hope those people won't come again.

-

Bailu Academy has been renovated, and the original three-day holiday has been extended to a few more days, but I should go back tomorrow anyway.

After Ji Mingzhe returned to the academy to study, Cui's mother came to visit him once.

They sent expensive tonics, inquired about Mingyi's recovery, and mentioned that the old lady was very concerned about her.

Mingyi didn't believe it; he must be because Madam Zong's headache had flared up again, and she missed her medicinal meals.

The Ji family originally ran a medicinal herb business. When Mingyi transmigrated into the world, she inherited some of the original owner's memories, understood some pharmacology, and knew how to use different medicinal herbs to make medicinal cuisine and nourishing soups.

When he was with the Xie family, Master Xie was plagued by illness, and it was only thanks to Ji Mingyi's medicinal meals that his lifespan was extended.

Later, when he arrived at the Zong family mansion, Ji Mingyi prescribed the right medicine for the old lady Zong. The medicinal meals he made for her greatly alleviated her long-standing ailment and also made her gradually become dependent on him.

Madam Zong would get headaches whenever it rained, and sometimes she couldn't sleep all night.

Mingyi said that he had been ill for the past few days, and there had been two heavy rains, so he must have been feeling very unwell.

It seems that she finally couldn't stand it anymore and only sent her mother to visit today.

Mrs. Cui came here to offer the old lady a way out.

Considering that Zong Xian had saved her life before, she decided not to stoop to the old woman's level.

"I'm almost fully recovered. I was planning to visit the old lady today. I wonder how she's doing?"

Then, Cui's mother took the opportunity to tell about the old lady's old illness flaring up. "The imperial physician has come and prescribed medicine, but it only works temporarily. She gets so much pain when she's exposed to wind that she can't eat anything and has lost a lot of weight these past few days."

Mingyi asked worriedly, "Even the imperial physician's prescription isn't working?"

"That's right, we've consulted countless doctors, but the result is still the same."

Madam Cui genuinely cared for the old lady, so she earnestly asked, "Miss, are you feeling better? Could you please prepare the medicinal meals we had before and send them to Yongshou Hall?"

Mingyi naturally agreed.

Madam Cui said happily, "What medicine do you need, Miss? Just tell me. You've just recovered from your illness, so you shouldn't overexert yourself. I'll have the servants help you."

Mingyi smiled slightly. "Alright."

With the help of servants, Mingyi was much more relaxed, although she did not rely on others to prepare the recipe.

After the medicinal meal was prepared, Mingyi took it to Yongshou Hall, where Zongxian was unexpectedly also present.