Xiao Yunjing looked at her and asked, “Are you really not going?”

Xiao Yuling shook her head. He wants to send me away? No way! As if I don’t know what he’s plotting. This unfilial son.

She shot Xiao Yunjing a glare and said, “I’m really not going. Even if I wanted to, this isn’t the right time.”

“Alright, then you behave yourself here, or I’ll send you to your uncle’s place.”

Of course, this was just a threat. Xiao Yunjing could see she wouldn’t go, which would save him the trouble of her causing chaos at home every day. He had lived two lives, making him over sixty years old in total. He had finally found a happy family, and it hadn’t been easy. He didn’t want his biological mother, who had suddenly appeared, to ruin it all. Of course, he wouldn’t be stingy with the respect she was due. No matter what, she was his biological mother; he wouldn’t exist without her.

“How am I causing trouble? Let your mother hold her little grandsons. Don’t worry, I’ll be very careful.”

Xiao Yuling sat down next to Xiao Yunjing, nudged him with her elbow, and said pitifully, Seeing such adorable little grandsons and not being allowed to hold them makes my heart ache with longing; I wish I could just snatch them away.

“With your temper, I’m afraid you’ll scare them,” Xiao Yunjing glanced at her, clearly unwilling to let her hold the babies.

“I’ll change, I’ll change, alright? As long as you let me hold them, I’ll change anything!” Xiao Yuling was desperate, willing to promise anything for her grandchildren.

“You? Change? Master Hui Jing saved you, detoxified you, and took care of you for over twenty years, yet you turned on her just like that,” Xiao Yunjing said, his expression clearly showing he didn’t believe her.

Xiao Yuling’s face fell, and she almost flared up. Why is this son of mine so unyielding? I’ve pleaded and cajoled, using every kind of word imaginable, yet this darned kid still brings up Hui Jing!

Thinking of her three beautiful and adorable little grandchildren, she took a deep breath, inwardly telling herself, Don’t get angry, don’t get angry. It’s just Hui Jing. I’ll just apologize to her when I see her in the future.

She said, “Well, it wasn’t entirely my fault. When I see her next time, can’t I just apologize?”

“And what about Li’er? How will you get along with her? Don’t talk about whether she’s good enough for me. I’m just a farmer now. If we’re talking about not being worthy, it’s I who am not worthy of her.”

Xiao Yunjing was speaking the truth. In his eyes, his wife was the best in the world, one of a kind. She had even come from some unknown time and space to marry him.

“SMACK!”

Xiao Yuling raised her hand and slapped Xiao Yunjing on the head. “What are you talking about? My son is the best in the world! If it weren’t for what happened back then…”

“Stop, don’t bring up ’back then.’ The past is over. I’m just a farmer now,” Xiao Yunjing immediately interrupted her. Great, his mother still thinks she’s the Imperial Noble Consort and he’s the prince. It’s been over twenty years, and she still hasn’t woken up.

“What farmer? Aren’t you a general? Don’t think I don’t know.”

Xiao Yunjing stood up to leave. Forget it, there’s no point arguing with her. She’s the type who can’t grasp reality; talking more is futile. He figured her ability to become an Imperial Noble Consort back then was probably because the late emperor liked her stubborn and unreasonable streak. The late emperor, used to conventional and rule-abiding consorts, must have found someone so unconventional refreshing. Xiao Yuling’s nature was to say whatever she thought, and in the late emperor’s eyes, this became a mark of sincerity. She didn’t know restraint, nor did she use her brain. No wonder both mother and son ended up poisoned. Thinking about it, with a temperament like hers, how many people could stand her? It would be strange if she didn’t get into trouble.

Gu Qingli watched Xiao Yunjing stalk out, fuming, and knew their talk hadn’t gone well.

This made her even less inclined to appear before Xiao Yuling. As long as Xiao Yunjing hadn’t formally acknowledged her, she would just treat her as a guest in the house, providing good food and drink.

“Miss, a letter from Wushuang,” Wuqing said, entering with a small paper scroll.

Gu Qingli took it and unrolled it.

The note stated that a large number of typhoid patients had appeared in the south, requiring a massive quantity of pills—an initial batch of one hundred thousand.

“Wuqing, go get Yunjing.”

“Yes, Miss.” Wuqing hurried to the study.

「A short while later」

Xiao Yunjing rushed over. “Li’er, what happened?”

Gu Qingli showed him the note.

“I’m afraid this isn’t a simple matter,” Xiao Yunjing said after reading it.

“Yes, I think so too. Have someone investigate,” Gu Qingli nodded. It was already November. Apart from the south, the other three regions were seeing snow. Under normal circumstances, such a large outbreak of typhoid shouldn’t occur. If it did, then it was serious. The biggest worry was an epidemic or poisoning.

“Alright, I’ll go now.”

Gu Qingli nodded. She instructed Nanny Man and the others to look after the children, then called Wuqing and Wuyou to enter the Space and make pills.

“Um, Xiaoli, you all seem so busy. How about I help look after the children?” Xiao Yuling ventured, seeing Gu Qingli giving instructions to the servants and looking like she had important things to do. These past few days, she had gleaned from the servants that this daughter-in-law of hers seemed to know how to make medicine.

Gu Qingli noted her hesitant expression and considered that Xiao Yuling had been behaving much better recently. With Yun No. 20 and the others watching in secret, there’s no need to fear her causing any trouble. So, she nodded. “Alright. But when the children are hungry, you’ll need to give them to Nanny Man and the others for feeding.”

“Yes, yes, I know!” Xiao Yuling was so overjoyed she didn’t know what to do with her hands, wringing them together as she quickly trotted over to where Nanny Man and the others were.

“Miss, aren’t you afraid of her?” Wuqing frowned.

Gu Qingli reached out, smoothed Wuqing’s furrowed brow, and smiled. “Don’t worry. Yunjing has been giving her the cold shoulder for a few days now, and she hasn’t made any moves. Now we can let her have some contact. Have you heard the saying, ’extremes breed reversals’?”

Wuqing shook her head.

Gu Qingli explained, “It means one shouldn’t push things too far; moderation is key.”

Wuqing understood then. Her Young Master and Miss were indeed a cut above the rest! For someone like Xiao Yuling, who was impervious to reason, this kind of cold treatment was the only way to handle her.

「A few days later」

Gu Qingli, Wuqing, and Wuyou had pulled several all-nighters to make the Jiang Pills, but they had also exhausted their supply of medicinal materials.

News had also returned from the Secret Sect.

“What did they say?” Gu Qingli asked.

Xiao Yunjing said solemnly, “The physician from the Gu Pharmacy personally examined the situation and replied. It’s a suspected epidemic, and it has already been reported to the Daqian Court. Now it’s up to Qingchen to handle it.”

Gu Qingli gasped. An epidemic! She had never encountered one, neither in her past life nor her present, but she knew it was something that made people pale at the mere mention. If it wasn’t controlled properly, the contagion would be devastating.

Fortunately, her pills could control it. She said, “Then quickly arrange for someone to send the pills over.”

“I’ll arrange it immediately.” Xiao Yunjing at once summoned someone from the Secret Sect. Gu Qingli had the pills loaded directly onto a carriage, and they were dispatched that very night.

Furthermore, Xiao Yunjing arranged for people from their base to go into the mountains the next day to gather more medicinal materials. Other areas were covered in snow, but one location still had them: the hot spring area.

「The next morning」

With the three little ones in the care of Wuyou and the others, Gu Qingli and Xiao Yunjing also headed to the hot spring area.