These days, everyone is looking for her...
"I never expected to see you here." Xiao Ji clapped her hands with laughter. "That little fox has probably passed by this door countless times! Just thinking about it makes him furious!"
Xia Lan, who was listening nearby, also laughed.
"No matter what, it's wrong to make our young lady run away!" Although we don't know the details, aren't all the little squabbles between husband and wife the same old routine? "It's no wonder you can't find her. If we hadn't run into each other by chance this time, we wouldn't have met even after the child was born! The young lady is already pregnant, and you still made her angry. What kind of husband and father are you? Young lady, don't be soft-hearted."
Xiao Ji smiled, pursing her lips. "That's true. But Xiao Yuan, you really put the little fox through a lot this time. I'm worried he won't make it to the day he finds you."
Xiao Yuan felt a pang of sadness, but her lips pursed slightly. "He was the one who abandoned me first, how is it that I'm the one causing him trouble?"
"Don't you know his temper?" Xiao Ji stopped smiling and looked into her eyes. "He was angry with you and ran down the mountain on his own. Before it even got dark, he started to get restless and acted fiercely towards everyone. Your Uncle Lan also understood that he wanted to go find you but couldn't bring himself to do it, so he took Xiao Wu up the mountain to look for you, and then you disappeared without a trace."
Xiao Ji sighed and shook her head. "At first, he pretended to be calm, but he just ordered all the people around him to search for you. They searched for four or five days without finding you. You didn't see how he acted then..."
Xiao Yuan's nose also felt sore.
"Later, when he really couldn't find you, he resorted to such a clumsy method. Wherever someone said they had seen you, he went there himself. You ate and slept well for those four months, look how thin he's become!"
Xiao Yuan tried to pretend to be indifferent, but tears welled up in her eyes and streamed down her face uncontrollably.
Xiao Ji looked at her with some reproach, "Oh, oh, you know how to feel sorry for someone? It's only because of him. If it were me, I would have given you a good beating as soon as I found you!" She said it with a righteous air, completely forgetting who was laughing so gloatingly just now.
Xia Lan wiped her eyes with a handkerchief and said somewhat indignantly, "Our young lady isn't having an easy time either... Who said she can eat and sleep well? Doesn't she also have worries and anxieties?"
Xiao Yuan was taken aback. How did Xia Lan know? Was her intention... that obvious?
"If you ask me, the little fox has every right to be angry!" Xiao Ji glared. "He's incredibly cunning. He tested you, and didn't you panic when he did? Even if you're both equally at fault, don't you think about how anxious he's been these past few days? His wife and children just disappeared like that, and he's been running around, worrying and stressed... In these four months, has he had a single peaceful meal or a single peaceful night's sleep? If you truly love him, how could you be so heartless as to hide for over four months! It's only because God took pity on him and found him. If he hadn't found him, wouldn't you have wanted him dead? Such a heartless wife deserves to be taught a lesson!" She spoke with righteous indignation.
This time, Xia Lan didn't say anything, but sighed.
Xiaoyuan couldn't help but sob softly, feeling wronged and resentful; she had become the sinner. "He left so decisively, said such cruel things, how was I supposed to know he still cared about me, still looked for me?! Maybe... he was just worried about the child!"
"Xiao Yuan!" Xiao Ji looked at her seriously. "If this is just something said in anger, then so be it. But if you really think that way, I'm really going to be angry with you! I'm really going to stand up for Yi Chunjun and never talk to you again! If you think about him the way he thinks about you, can't you understand how anxious he's been these past few days?"
Large tears rolled down her cheeks; she... understood.
"Treating him properly is a matter for later. You should first coax him, at least stop him from sleeping in Ruilan Pavilion in a huff! You should also let him settle down and get some rest. Do you think he can sleep well over there? If you keep tormenting him like this, do you really want him to die?"
Xiao Yuan kept his head down and remained silent.
Xia Guoan respectfully led Zhu Liancheng and his group into the backyard.
Xiao Ji glanced at Yi Chunjun, who was walking at the back with a cold face, secretly pinched Xiao Yuan, and winked at her. Xiao Yuan pursed her lips and nodded unwillingly.
Lan Yanfeng glared at Xiao Ji, who was sitting primly in the chair, and then turned to glare at Xiao Yuan, who had already stood up with his head down.
"Li Yuan'er!" He spoke in a calm, elder's tone for the first time, "Do you know how worried everyone has been about you these past few months!"
Xiao Yuan lowered his head even further and nodded.
Lan Yanfeng grew angrier as he spoke, took a few steps forward, and poked Xiao Yuan's drooping forehead with his finger. "Although you are still young, you are already someone's wife and about to become a mother. How can you still act so recklessly!"
Large tears streamed down Xiaoyuan's face. Was she being unreasonable?
Zhu Liancheng felt a little reluctant, but also felt that she really should say it, "Xiaoyuan, don't do it again next time! Are you... alright?"
When he asked her with concern, Xiao Yuan cried even harder, her shoulders trembling slightly.
"Alright, that's enough! Don't make her cry!" Xiao Ji rolled her eyes, leaning back in her chair. "Yi Chunjun, your wife is crying!"
Yi Chunjun was still standing at the very back, coldly snorting.
Xiao Yuan rolled her eyes at him secretly while crying. He still had the nerve to talk back! If anyone was going to cause trouble, it was him who started it, right?
Pei Junwu pulled him up to her, who was still annoyed. "Xiaoyuan, you scared us all." Pei Junwu sighed, ignoring his own troubled thoughts. Yi Chunjun's unusual behavior these past few days had surprised and moved him at the same time.
These past few days, Yi Chunjun has been in a state of utter panic. His love for her made him willingly admit defeat and withdraw from the relationship.
Lan Yanfeng tugged at Xiao Ji's arm, "I'll leave you here. Don't be careless. If this little rascal gets away again, the little fox will kill you."
Yi Chunjun's face flushed red with embarrassment, and he let out another cold snort.
"Stop talking nonsense!" Xiao Ji glared at him, stood up and shouted, "I'm hungry! What's Xia Lan having for lunch?"
Xia Guoan quickly replied, "Please come to the hall." He then led everyone to the back hall.
As soon as Yi Chunjun turned around, Xiao Yuan grabbed his sleeve. She lowered her head, but her grip was firm. He shook his arm coldly, but couldn't shake off her hand.
A few suppressed laughs rang out, and everyone quickly left with strange expressions.
As Xia Lan walked, she instructed the maid, "Bring over the young lady and the young master's meal."
Yi Chunjun pouted, but his face turned slightly red.
Xiao Yuan pulled him into the room. He didn't say anything and reluctantly let her pull him along, but he didn't try to break free from her hand.
Xiao Yuan closed the door, leaned against it, and stared at him intently. He turned his face away, deliberately ignoring her. She pursed her lips tightly, walked over angrily, and plopped down on the edge of the bed, continuing to be angry with him.
She went over and cupped his face in her hands… He had lost so much weight. Tears welled up in her eyes without warning, falling onto his thin cheeks. He shuddered and turned to stare at her.
"Do you know you were wrong?!" he demanded angrily.
She nodded, sobbing. Let him twist the facts however he wanted; her heart ached. When her lips gently touched his cheek, his expression darkened. How could he continue to be angry with her? He stretched out his arms, pulled her onto his lap, and couldn't help but glare at her: "Don't let this happen again!"
"Mmm." She nodded obediently, resting her face against his chest and wrapping her arms around his neck.
"If there's a next time, I'll cripple your martial arts!" he said sullenly. "What's the point of having high-level kung fu? All you can do is run fast!"