Chapter 396 - 336: There Will Always Be a Hot Meal Waiting for You to Come Back

「The rear courtyard of the Xiao Mansion.」

In the small courtyard, Zhou Ruoxi was reading a book.

The maid, Cuicui, sat beside Zhou Ruoxi, brewing tea for her mistress and nibbling on some pastries.

Just as Cuicui looked up, she saw the Young Master and the Princess approaching.

"Mistress, the Young Master and the Princess are here..." Cuicui called out joyfully.

At the sound of Cuicui’s voice, Zhou Ruoxi looked up toward the courtyard entrance.

"Mo’er, you’re back." Seeing her son had returned, Zhou Ruoxi stood with a smile and curtsied to Qin Siyao. "This servant greets the Princess."

"Aunt Zhou, there’s no one else here. You really don’t need to be so formal with me." Qin Siyao quickly helped Zhou Ruoxi up, her cheeks tinged with a faint blush.

Zhou Ruoxi looked at the Princess beside her, noting her shy demeanor and how she seemed a little nervous.

For some reason, Zhou Ruoxi felt the Princess was acting just like a young bride meeting her beloved’s family for the first time.

Moreover, the Princess’s gaze kept darting toward her son.

Zhou Ruoxi glanced between her son and the Princess, sensing that something might have happened between them.

"Mother, a Holy Decree came from the palace yesterday. I have to leave for the Northern Wilderness tomorrow morning..."

Xiao Mo said to his mother.

As he said this, Xiao Mo’s heart was filled with guilt.

Ever since he had joined the Iron Tiger Army, seven years had passed before he saw his mother again.

And now, after spending just over a month with her, he had to leave again...

"Is that so..." A flicker of disappointment crossed Zhou Ruoxi’s eyes, but she quickly suppressed her emotions so her son wouldn’t notice.

"Mother, I’m sorry. I can’t stay with you." Xiao Mo’s voice was tinged with self-reproach.

"Silly child, it’s nothing to be sorry for."

Zhou Ruoxi stepped forward and reached out to straighten Xiao Mo’s collar.

"Mo’er, you are now the Frost King of the Qin Kingdom. It is your duty to go to war for your country. Besides, you’re a grown man. You can’t just stay by my side forever, can you? What kind of talk is that?

Sit here in the courtyard for a while. I’ll go make a few dishes for your farewell meal, Mo’er."

"Alright, Mother." Xiao Mo nodded.

"Aunt Zhou, I... I’ll help you..."

Hearing that Zhou Ruoxi was going to cook, Qin Siyao quickly offered to help.

"You know how to cook?" Xiao Mo asked Qin Siyao. He had never seen her cook before, though he knew she could make pastries.

"I... I don’t... But Aunt Zhou can teach me, right, Aunt Zhou?" Qin Siyao took Zhou Ruoxi’s arm.

"If the Princess wishes to learn, then of course you can," Zhou Ruoxi said with a smile.

"Thank you, Aunt Zhou."

Qin Siyao happily followed Zhou Ruoxi into the kitchen.

Cuicui, feeling a little worried, also followed them inside.

Xiao Mo sat alone in the courtyard, watching his mother patiently teach Siyao in the kitchen. He couldn’t help but smile at Siyao’s clumsy, flustered movements.

’Perhaps after I leave, with Siyao around, Mother won’t be too lonely.’

Well over an hour passed before Qin Siyao and Cuicui finally emerged from the kitchen carrying the dishes.

Qin Siyao’s fair, delicate face was smeared with soot, making her look like a little kitten. It took quite a while for her to wash it all off.

"Xiao Mo, hurry and try this! Even though it’s my first time cooking, Aunt Zhou said I’m very talented."

Qin Siyao proudly placed a piece of braised pork in Xiao Mo’s bowl. They all sat around the stone table, just like a family.

"Alright... I’ll give it a try." Xiao Mo smiled and took a bite.

"How is it? Is it good?" Qin Siyao asked, her eyes sparkling.

"It’s delicious," Xiao Mo nodded.

’How could it not be delicious?’ Xiao Mo thought.

’Mother made almost every dish by standing behind Siyao and literally guiding her hands through every step...’

"If it’s delicious, then eat more." Zhou Ruoxi put more food in Xiao Mo’s bowl. "It’s your good fortune that the Princess cooked for the first time, and she even made all your favorite dishes."

"Aunt Zhou..." Qin Siyao lowered her head, blushing.

Seeing the Princess’s shy expression, Zhou Ruoxi said no more and simply maintained her warm smile.

During dinner, although Zhou Ruoxi didn’t ask about the specifics of Xiao Mo’s mission to the Northern Wilderness,

Xiao Mo told her everything anyway.

After all, his mother would find out eventually.

It was better to tell her himself now than to have her worry later.

However, Xiao Mo downplayed the dangers. He talked about how weak the Wei Kingdom was, how formidable the Snow-Trampling Dragon Cavalry was, and how he was just going to assist his father.

Zhou Ruoxi listened intently to her son’s every word, nodding with a gentle smile.

It was as if she believed everything he said.

After dinner, Xiao Mo stayed the night in the courtyard house.

Qin Siyao didn’t want to return to her mansion and wanted to stay in the courtyard as well.

Xiao Mo thought it was improper and, using the excuse that there were no spare rooms, tried to send her back to the Princess’s Mansion.

But to his surprise, his mother spoke up for Siyao and even agreed to let Siyao sleep with her.

Naturally, Xiao Mo could no longer object.

The next morning, just as the sky was breaking at dawn, Xiao Mo had just gotten up and left his room when he saw his mother and Siyao preparing breakfast.

Xiao Mo wasn’t sure if it was his imagination, but he felt that the bond between Siyao and his mother had grown much closer.

"Mother, I’m leaving now."

Having finished breakfast, Xiao Mo was ready to depart.

"Go on." Zhou Ruoxi straightened Xiao Mo’s collar. "You must take good care of yourself."

"Yes, Mother."

Xiao Mo gave a deep bow, then turned and left.

"Aunt Zhou, I... I’ll see Xiao Mo out of the city."

Qin Siyao also bowed to Zhou Ruoxi before jogging to keep pace with Xiao Mo.

An incense stick’s time later, as Xiao Mo walked the streets of the Imperial City, he glanced at the young woman beside him and asked with a smile, "So, what did you and my mother talk about last night, Siyao?"

"We... we didn’t really talk about anything..."

Qin Siyao’s cheeks flushed slightly.

"Aunt Zhou just told me some things about your childhood.

For example, that you’re stubborn and single-minded, and that if something comes up, I should talk to you gently because you respond to a soft approach, not a hard one.

She said you’re not very amusing on a normal day, that all you know is practicing your spear and reading, and that I shouldn’t mind.

And she also said that if you bully me in the future, I can go straight to her, and she’ll stand up for me."

"..."

Xiao Mo was speechless for a moment.

’So Mother really did figure something out.’

’This is all stuff a mother-in-law would say to her daughter-in-law.’

"And finally, there was one more thing..."

Qin Siyao looked up, blinking as she gazed at Xiao Mo’s profile.

"What?" Xiao Mo asked.

"Aunt Zhou... Aunt Zhou told me to tell you..."

Qin Siyao reached out and gently tugged on the corner of Xiao Mo’s sleeve.

"When the road ahead is unclear and you don’t know how to continue, you don’t have to force yourself.

No matter what, you can always look back.

In that little courtyard, there will always be a hot meal on the table, waiting for you to come home."