Chapter 822
A Happy Family!
Chapter 822 A Happy Family!
Imperial Prefecture.
Knock knock knock—
Jiang Ning gently knocked on the door, the sound penetrating strongly in the quiet morning.
After a while.
Light footsteps came from the doorway.
Then came the sound of the bolt falling.
Kaka-
The door hinges rotate unevenly, indicating that they have not been properly maintained.
"Lord Marquis?!" As the gate of the Imperial Preceptor's mansion slowly opened, revealing a crack, a young and innocent face appeared in Jiang Ning's sight. The person who came was Qing He.
Jiang Ning smiled as he looked at the familiar face.
Then, Qinghe stretched out her slender arms and braced them on both sides of the door, forcefully opening it.
The gate of the Imperial Preceptor's residence was already heavy, and the friction sound from the bearings of the gate clearly indicated that it had not been well maintained.
Seeing Qinghe straining, Ji Mingyue stepped forward and pushed hard on the left door.
With Ji Mingyue's help, the door was easily opened.
"Thank you, Seventeenth Princess!" Qinghe said, "Greetings, Seventeenth Princess!" She then bowed to Ji Mingyue.
"How have you been these days?" Jiang Ning asked.
"Reporting to Your Excellency, all is well!" Qinghe said hurriedly as she watched Jiang Ning cross the threshold.
"How is the Imperial Preceptor?" Jiang Ning asked again.
“The master is still the same as before, there’s been no change,” Qinghe said.
at the same time.
Ji Mingyue followed beside Jiang Ning, while the crane followed behind them.
"Brother!!" Jiang Ning had just turned the corner of a tree when a tall and burly man walked towards him.
Jiang Ning looked up and saw that the person who had come was Jiang Li.
He walked towards Jiangning with his hands empty.
"What's going on, brother?" Jiang Ning asked.
"I went to the market to buy some ingredients. I just heard some noise in the front yard and wondered who it was. I didn't expect it to be my younger brother!" Jiang Li strode over.
He clenched his fist and punched Jiang Ning hard.
dong dong——
It sounded like a hammer striking a drum.
"You've gotten even stronger!" Jiang Li grinned, then looked at Ji Mingyue, who was half a step behind Jiang Ning, and quickly bowed: "Seventeenth Princess!"
"Brother, there's no need for that!" Ji Mingyue waved her hands repeatedly, somewhat embarrassed, "I came in such a hurry that I forgot to bring something with me."
“Princess, you’re too kind! You and Aning both call me elder brother, so we’re family. There’s no reason why I have to buy something when I come home.”
At this moment, Jiang Li looked at Ji Mingyue following behind Jiang Ning and smiled with satisfaction.
At this moment, how could he not understand that he had absolutely no need to worry about Jiang Ning's lifelong happiness?
Then, he hurriedly walked towards the side courtyard to greet Ji Mingyue and Jiang Ning.
After a while.
"Uncle!!" Upon seeing Jiang Ning, the little bean bun who was squatting on the ground giving the old turtle a bath immediately dropped the brush in his hand and ran towards Jiang Ning.
Her twin pigtails swung back and forth as she ran around.
Seeing the little buns rushing towards him, Jiang Ning immediately squatted down and smiled.
next moment.
Little Bean Bun bumped hard into Jiang Ning's arms.
"It seems you've grown a bit taller!" Jiang Ning ruffled her long, smooth hair, measured her, and said.
"Of course I've grown taller!" Little Bean nodded emphatically, then said, "These past few days, while Uncle's not around, I've been eating well, drinking milk every morning, and eating eggs!"
"Great job!" Jiang Ning praised her, then ruffled her hair vigorously.
"Pretty auntie!" Little Bean Bun looked up at Ji Mingyue again, met her gaze, and felt a little shy.
Jiang Ning gently patted Xiaodoubao's head.
Ji Mingyue also squatted down.
Then, Xiaodoubao stood on Ji Mingyue's arm with a bright smile.
"Pretty auntie, you smell so nice!"
Upon hearing this, Ji Mingyue ruffled her hair.
"You smell wonderful!" she complimented.
Then, with a flick of his wrist, he pulled out a sachet.
"This is for you, so you can smell even better from now on."
At that moment, Xiaodoubao's gaze was immediately drawn to the sachet that Ji Mingyue had given him.
The sachet, embroidered with a phoenix in gold thread, shimmered in the morning light, exuding extravagance.
The little dumpling carefully took it, brought it close to her nose and smelled it, her eyes curving into crescents: "It smells so good! Thank you, pretty auntie!"
Ji Mingyue smiled and helped her tie it around her waist. The golden phoenix swayed gently with her movements, as if spreading its wings.
"Ah Ning!!" A voice, both surprised and delighted, rang out.
Jiangning looks up.
Liu Wanwan, wearing an apron, appeared in his sight.
At this moment, Liu Wanwan was still holding a rolling pin covered in white powder, and her sleeves were rolled up to her elbows. Her forearms were also covered in a layer of white powder.
"Sister-in-law!" Jiang Ning then stood up.
"What will we eat later? Your sister-in-law will make it for you!" Liu Wanwan said.
Upon hearing this, Jiang Ning replied without hesitation, "Braised beef noodles, with three poached eggs!"
"I knew it!" Liu Wanwan had an expression that said, "Just as I expected."
"Seventeenth Princess, why don't you stay and have breakfast with us?" Liu Wanwan looked at Ji Mingyue and invited her.
“Okay!!” Ji Mingyue nodded emphatically.
Then he jogged over to Liu Wanwan.
"Sister-in-law, let me help you roll out the dough!"
"No need, no need!!" Liu Wanwan waved her hands repeatedly: "You are the seventeenth princess, a noble lady, how could you go into the kitchen?"
Ji Mingyue smiled, revealing a crescent moon shape on her face, and said with an embarrassed smile, "Sister-in-law, actually, my purpose in coming to help was not to secretly learn cooking skills."
Seeing Liu Wanwan's puzzled expression, Ji Mingyue continued, "Sister-in-law, to be honest, a few days ago in Guangning City, I made your signature braised beef noodles for Brother Jiangning, and also fried an egg. But it was obvious that it didn't taste the same as yours."
Upon hearing these words, Liu Wanwan's face showed surprise.
They seemed somewhat unable to believe their ears.
In her understanding, daughters of officials almost always stayed at home, learning music, chess, calligraphy, painting, embroidery, and martial arts.
Nobody wants to learn cooking.
She is able to cook so well now because of Jiang Li, because of Jiang Yiming, and because of this family. She enjoys this feeling.
And who is Ji Mingyue?
That was a royal princess, the apple of the emperor's eye, and the most favored princess in the royal family.
She never expected that Ji Mingyue would be able to cook and even make braised beef noodles for Jiang Ning.
She looked at Ji Mingyue with a sigh, then nodded.
"Ah Ning is so lucky to have you!"
She then agreed to Ji Mingyue's request.
Just now.
"father!"
"mother!"
The young man's voice came through.
The group turned their heads and saw a tall, handsome young man with a hint of heroism walking steadily towards them. He also bore a resemblance to Jiang Ning in some ways.
The visitor was Jiang Yiming.
At this moment, Jiang Yiming was wearing a simple training uniform, with fine beads of sweat on his forehead, clearly having just finished his morning exercise.
"uncle!"
"Greetings, Seventeenth Princess!"
Jiang Yiming walked up, greeted Jiang Ning, and bowed respectfully to Ji Mingyue.
Jiang Ning looked him over and nodded slightly: "Your aura is much more solid than before. It seems you haven't been slacking off these days."
A glint flashed in Jiang Yiming's eyes, but he still maintained the composure of a young man: "I dare not slack off."
"Come on, practice with me!" Jiang Ning became interested when he saw Jiang Yiming looking so calm.
"Then I'll be offending you, Uncle!" Jiang Yiming clasped his hands in a fist salute to Jiang Ning.
"Sister-in-law, let's go make the dough! I want to secretly learn your cooking skills!" Ji Mingyue said.
Seeing her attitude, Liu Wanwan stopped refusing and replied with a smile: "Then Princess, please come to the kitchen with me. Be careful not to get your clothes dirty later."
As the two left, the courtyard was filled with the sounds of fists and feet striking each other.
at the same time.
At the corner of the courtyard entrance.
Zhong Ling's eyes dimmed.
She had witnessed everything that had just happened.
She could only feel envy, realizing she had absolutely no chance of getting involved.
At this moment, Lüyi was beside her.
"Sister Zhong Ling," Lü Yi began to speak, but didn't know what to say.
Suddenly, a gentle breeze blew by.
An aura appeared beside me.
Zhong Ling turned her head and saw Su Qingying, who was wearing a plain white dress and whose shoulders were as thin as knives.
"Greetings, Imperial Preceptor!"
"Is this the affection between a man and a woman?" Su Qingying asked.
“Yes!” Zhong Ling nodded: “The Marquis and the Seventeenth Princess are in love between a man and a woman.”
"I wasn't talking about the two of them!" Su Qingying shook her head, then turned to look at Zhong Ling: "I was talking about your feelings for him."
Upon hearing this, Zhong Ling was taken aback.
Then he shook his head, a bitter smile on his face.
"The Imperial Advisor is joking! Your Excellency is like the sun in the sky, shining brightly over the nine provinces, while I am but a speck of dust."
at the same time.
in the courtyard.
"Not bad!" Jiang Ning looked at Jiang Yiming, whose face was flushed, and nodded in satisfaction: "It seems that you really haven't let your guard down these past few days."
“I am my uncle’s nephew. From now on, when I go out, I can’t let my uncle down,” Jiang Yiming said.
“Your thinking is wrong!” Jiang Ning shook his head: “Practicing martial arts has never been about saving face. You need to think clearly about why you practice martial arts and what your purpose is! You need to understand the source of your motivation! The hard work in martial arts training has never relied on self-discipline or self-restraint. Self-discipline and self-restraint are just appearances. You need to find your true inner driving force to persist for ten years without wavering, and only then can you truly achieve something in martial arts.”
"Thank you for your guidance, Uncle!" Jiang Yiming nodded earnestly.
Jiang Ning glanced at Jiang Yiming a few times and then waved his hand.
"Go back and think carefully about why you practice martial arts and what your purpose is in practicing martial arts."
"Yes, Uncle!" Jiang Yiming bowed again and then took his leave.
Then.
Jiang Ning turned his head to look at the corner of the courtyard entrance, and then took a step.
“Zhong Ling.” “Qing Ying,” Jiang Ning said.
“Brother Jiang Ning!” Zhong Ling said softly.
Then he added, "Brother Jiangning is back, so I'm going to say goodbye to him and return to Wuyue Prefecture."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Ning frowned slightly.
"Was it your great-grandfather who wrote you a letter summoning you back?"
Zhong Ling shook her head: "No! I haven't received any letters from my grandfather these past few days. I'm just a little homesick!"
“That’s true!” Jiang Ning nodded, indicating his understanding.
Wuyue Prefecture is even farther from the capital than Guangning Prefecture.
Having been away from home for so long, with no relatives or friends around, the only people she truly knew were him and Lüyi.
“I’ve been away from home for so long, I do miss it,” Jiang Ning said, then continued, “Once I’ve finished dealing with matters in the capital and the situation has stabilized, I’ll send you back to the Five Mountains Prefecture! What do you think?”
"Thank you for your kindness, Brother Jiangning, but no need!" Zhong Ling shook her head. "Brother Jiangning, you don't need to worry about me. I can go back by myself! Brother Jiangning has his own things to do and doesn't need to waste his time worrying about me."
“That won’t do!” Jiang Ning shook his head: “It’s not safe outside the capital right now. You’re a woman, and you’re beautiful. It’s not safe for you to go out alone.”
At this moment, a sweet smile involuntarily appeared on Zhong Ling's face.
She seemed pleased with Jiang Ning's praise.
“Brother Jiang Ning, don’t worry, I’m not weak as a chicken!” Zhong Ling said, then raised her thin arm: “I also have martial arts skills, ordinary bandits are not qualified to get close to me.”
“Wait another half a month or a month. I will be at the Imperial Preceptor’s residence during this time. I will then send you off. It will be faster than if you set off now,” Jiang Ning said.
"Alright!" Zhong Ling glanced at Jiang Ning and slowly nodded.
Seeing that Zhong Ling was no longer insisting, Jiang Ning secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Zhong Yue entrusted Zhong Ling to him, as he was truly unwilling for Zhong Ling to take such a dangerous risk.
If anything happens to Zhong Ling, he won't be able to explain it.
He didn't want anything to happen to Zhong Ling.
"How have you been lately?" He then looked at Su Qingying, whose shoulders were thin and who was wearing a plain white dress.
"Not bad!" Su Qingying nodded: "Now the influence of divinity on me is getting weaker and weaker, and I have also read a lot of stories about love in the human world, so I can understand human emotions better."
“Not bad!” Jiang Ning nodded.
Then she looked at Jiang Ning and said, "I understand now. I couldn't get pregnant when I slept with you like that before. We had to take off our clothes and hug each other."
Jiang Ning: "."
He suddenly broke out in a cold sweat as he looked at Su Qingying.
At this moment, Zhong Ling stared at the two of them, dumbfounded.
Her gaze lingered on Jiang Ning's face for a moment, then on Su Qingying's face for a moment, her small mouth slightly open.
"Brother Jiang Ning, you and Sister Su Qingying...?" Zhong Ling swallowed hard, asking in disbelief.
"Don't overthink it, it's not what you think!" Jiang Ning patted her head, signaling her to stop thinking nonsense.
Then he added, "I'm a little hungry. I'll go to the kitchen and see if there's anything I can eat to tide me over!"
After saying that, he turned and headed towards the kitchen.
He had just started walking when Xiaodoubao pulled him away again, asking him to help him go see Sister Linglong.
Upon hearing the name Linglong, Jiang Ning's heart stirred.
After bringing Linglong here, he stopped caring about her.
The reason I raised Linglong was to protect my family.
Now, in the Imperial Preceptor's residence, there are few places in the entire capital that are safer than this.
Moreover, this is Su Qingying's residence, and with Su Qingying here, there is no danger.
If there is a danger that even Su Qingying cannot withstand, then cultivating Linglong will be of no use.
Moreover, after Linglong becomes a great demon of a thousand years, the resources required for her to continue growing are not insignificant.
Feeding him his essence and blood also has a great impact on him.
The loss of essence and blood cannot be replenished out of thin air.
(End of this chapter)