General, you should rest now; the lady is even more ruthless.

Shen Luo and the others didn't have to wait long.

About fifteen minutes later, the two mushroom-picking girls returned home with a basket full of their spoils.

Jiang Qiqi was somewhat surprised to see them arrive.

"Shen Luo, what brings you here?"

Although they were traveling together, the group was large, and their tents were always far apart when they camped out, so they hadn't seen each other for the past few days due to various circumstances.

"Perfect." She put down the basket, dusted off her hands, and said, "Lin'er and I went to the woods next door to pick some mushrooms. Let's make mushroom soup together!"

"Okay." Shen Luo nodded in agreement with a doting expression.

Shen Luo had been worried that she might not be able to handle the stress of traveling these past few days, but now that he saw how energetic she was, he was relieved.

It's a pity Jiang Qiqi didn't know what he was thinking, otherwise she would definitely say:

"A bowl of nourishing soup every day, even if your body can't handle it, you'll still feel full!"

Wild mushrooms are fresh and flavorful; they are truly a rare delicacy.

Lin'er often helped her mother cook when she was little, so she knows a lot about mushrooms. The mushrooms that Jiang Qiqi picked were chosen under her guidance, so there's no need to worry about them causing headaches.

Xiang'er brought out a large iron pot borrowed from the cook's camp, set up a fire, and placed the pot on it.

There were no outsiders around, so apart from Shen Luo, the others simply lifted their robes and sat down on the ground.

It's somewhat like a modern-day fireside tea ceremony.

Apart from Jiang Qiqi, none of Shen Luo and the others had ever had such an experience, and they found it very novel.

At first, there were only four people: Twelve, Shen Luo, Jiang Qiqi, and Xiang'er.

Lin'er returned after finishing processing the mushrooms and sat down as well.

Sixteen, seeing that the two hadn't returned to the tent for a long time, also rushed over.

Then came the thirteenth and nineteenth, drawn by the aroma of the mushroom soup.

Eventually, it escalated to a large group of people sitting around the big iron pot chatting.

"The atmosphere is so great, why don't we all put on a show?" Jiang Qiqi suggested.

His words were immediately met with approval from everyone:

"Great!" "Agreed." "Me too."

"Madam!" Twelve, always cheerful, exclaimed, "Then I'll go first!"

He drew his sword, leaped to the open space beside him, and performed a sword dance for everyone.

In the darkness, the silver light of the sword danced, causing the surrounding air to churn, and the sound of blades slicing through the air could be heard from time to time.

Even a sword dance primarily for viewing cannot conceal the unintentional murderous intent it reveals.

After the dance ended, Twelve sheathed his sword and bowed to everyone, saying, "I've made a fool of myself."

"Great!" "It looks good!"

Applause erupted from all around, and even Shen Luo clapped his hands: "In just over a year, Twelve's martial arts have improved a lot again."

“I’ll go next!” Xiang’er said.

She was demonstrating weaving.

She casually picked a few blades of grass from the side, and with a flick of her fingers, the grass seemed to come alive in her hands, transforming into various shapes at her beck and call.

In the blink of an eye, the grass transformed into flower crowns, flower baskets, and two love knots.

She presented two love knots to Jiang Qiqi and Shen Luo respectively, saying, "Wishing our young lady and son-in-law a long and happy marriage."

"Great!" Everyone applauded.

Shen Luo glanced at the "Grass Knot of Love" in his hand, then at Qi Qi who was studying it beside him, smiled gently, and put his hand into his inner pocket.

"Xiang'er, reward her with half a year's salary."

Xiang'er happily agreed, "Thank you for the gift, son-in-law."

Everyone: "!!!" You can even do that?!

The third one was performed by the 19th.

Since he didn't have much on hand, he simply led everyone to a nearby stream and performed a stone-throwing fish act.

The stream was shallow, only up to knee-deep.

Nineteen took off his long gown, rolled up his trousers, and waded barefoot into the river.

He stopped at a place where the water was flowing rapidly, bent down and slowly picked up a few pebbles.

He was completely focused, and the people on the shore also became tense, holding their breath and not daring to breathe loudly.

Suddenly, his ears twitched, and with a flick of his finger, the pebble pierced the water's surface and shot in with a soft "plop."

After a few breaths, a fish the size of an adult's palm floated to the surface of the water, belly up.

"We did it!" Everyone cheered. Although it was only a small fish, they all felt proud.

"You're amazing, Nineteen!" Jiang Qiqi didn't hold back her praise.

"But since you have this skill, why didn't you use it the other day? Catching a couple of fish for a treat would have been nice."

These past few days, Jiang Qiqi has been craving wild fish while walking along the river.

Imagine a fish just pulled from the river, its scales and blood drained, thrown into a pot. Nothing else is needed, just a little scallion, ginger, garlic, and salt for seasoning. Simmer it in the pot for half an hour, then lift the lid—ah! The aroma is irresistible.

Don't ask her why she doesn't catch it; the answer is that Xiang'er guards her every step of the way every day.

"Madam, isn't drinking the Ten-Ingredient Tonic Soup every day enough? Do you still need to eat fish and meat?"

Jiang Qiqi was hit where it hurt and fell silent.

However, this reminded Xiang'er.

"Miss, you missed half a bowl of the nourishing soup today. You need to make up for it tomorrow."

Jiang Qiqi: "..." I've already behaved myself, please let me go.

Then everyone continued to perform.

Lin'er was performing by swinging a sledgehammer, but her performance was a bit bumpy, and she accidentally broke a small sapling that was growing vigorously next to her.

Sixteen's performance was singing, and no one expected that this taciturn and wicked strategist would sing so well.

Thirteen performed a "magic trick"—in front of everyone, he pulled out more than ten hidden weapons from his originally neat clothes, including but not limited to darts and smoke bombs.

Even Jiang Qiqi took out her flute and played a tune.

"Miss, so you can play the flute." Xiang'er had always thought the flute was just an ornament, but she never expected that she could actually play it.

"Of course!" Jiang Qiqi said proudly. "Your young lady has many talents."

Finally, it was Shen Luo's turn. Everyone's eyes were on him, even Jiang Qiqi's eyes were full of anticipation.

“As for me…” Shen Luo began.

The twelve people next to them immediately stood up.

"Assassins! Protect Master and Madam!"

Almost as soon as they spoke, a rustling sound came from the trees next to them, followed by a rain of arrows.

"Protect our master back to camp," Sixteen said immediately. He paused for a moment, then corrected himself.

"Protect the master and his wife back to their camp."

After the rain of arrows, black-clad men flew out from all directions and instantly surrounded them.

"Twelve and thirteen will lead the way, and nineteen will cover our retreat."

As soon as he finished speaking, Twelve, Thirteen, Sixteen, and Nineteen all drew their weapons and rushed forward.

The guards who were resting nearby rushed over upon hearing the commotion, and the two groups immediately clashed.

"Miss, are you alright?"

With the help of the guards and the fact that they weren't the enemy's target, Jiang Qiqi and Shen Luo easily broke through the encirclement.

"I'm fine," Jiang Qiqi replied.

She looked at Shen Luo: "Is it the Second Prince or the Third Prince?"

Shen Luo replied, "The Third Prince."