Chapter 99: 99, Return Trip Chapter 99: 99, Return Trip Song Yan Ning carried her luggage out of the room. Since she had brought luggage when she arrived, she couldn’t possibly leave empty-handed.
Qin Yushen saw Song Yan Ning coming and smiled faintly at her, stepping forward to take the luggage from her hand while also taking her hand, “Uncle Qing Shan is already waiting for us.”
Song Yan Ning smiled and nodded slightly, “I drank so much yesterday, I thought he would oversleep.” After spending these past couple of days together, she and Qin Yushen had become close as life-and-death friends, so she naturally did not mind these small gestures. Besides, they were still children, holding hands was nothing significant.
“Little girl, I heard that. You’re speaking ill of me early in the morning,” Liu Qingshan said with a chuckle as he approached Song Yan Ning and Qin Yushen. Although Xiao Ning was not particularly good-looking, seeing her standing with Qin Yushen made them seem remarkably well-matched, perhaps due to a similar air about them.
“Uncle Qing Shan, I was actually praising your ability to hold your liquor. If it had been someone else who drank as much, they definitely wouldn’t be able to get up now,” Song Yan Ning laughed. She certainly understood that Liu Qingshan was joking with her.
Liu Qingshan laughed heartily, “Let’s have something to eat first, and then we’ll set off.”
Song Yan Ning and Qin Yushen nodded, following Liu Qingshan toward the main house.
As they entered the main house, they saw Zhang Dahai and Xiang sitting opposite each other, Zhang Dahai with a helpless expression, and Xiang’s expression cold.
Hearing footsteps, Zhang Dahai turned his head and saw the trio, “You finally came. I’ve been trying to persuade her to eat for a long time, but she refuses.” He remembered she hadn’t eaten last night either. Wasn’t she hungry?
Xiang saw Song Yan Ning, stood up, and walked respectfully behind her.
“Uncle Dahai, don’t mind her,” Song Yan Ning said, sitting at the table and pulling out a porcelain bottle from her pocket to hand to Xiang, “You go wait outside for us.” Inside the bottle was an elixir she had concocted. After Xiang consumed it, she could transform into a true member of the Demon Clan and could occasionally eat human food afterward. Otherwise, once they returned, her not eating would surely arouse suspicion from her grandfather and grandmother.
“Yes,” Xiang took the porcelain bottle and turned to walk outside.
“Do you Song Family always place so much emphasis on status?” Zhang Dahai frowned. He felt that it was alright for the Song Family to emphasize these customs at home, but now that they were outside, sticking rigidly to these rules was unnecessary.
“I don’t know,” Song Yan Ning sipped soy milk from the table. She had never lived with the Song Family and was unclear about the situation there.
“Aren’t you a member of the Song Family?” Zhang Dahai and Liu Qingshan both looked at Song Yan Ning in surprise.
Song Yan Ning smiled, picked up her chopsticks, and took a bite of the fried dough. Some things she knew were best kept to herself and not made known to everyone.
Seeing that Song Yan Ning did not answer, Zhang Dahai and Liu Qingshan exchanged a glance and asked no more. However, their impression of the Song Family had worsened.
Alan walked with a basket towards the fields. Passing by Zhang Dahai’s house, he saw several people coming out, Qin Yushen and Liu Qingshan carrying luggage. He stopped, curious. Were they leaving? Was that beautiful woman also leaving?
His gaze shifted to Xiang, already standing by the carriage. Did she and Dahai not have a relationship? Had he misunderstood?
With this thought, Alan’s gloominess vanished, and a bright smile spread across his face.
Zhang Dahai felt a gaze watching him, turned his head, and saw Alan, giving her a smile.
Alan’s heartbeat suddenly accelerated out of control, and she quickly turned her gaze away and ran towards the field. Dahai smiled at her; was she dreaming? She felt so happy!
Watching Alan run away, the smile on Zhang Dahai’s face deepened. She was such a cute, silly girl! Once he figured out her feelings, if she felt the same about him, he would go to her family to ask for her hand in marriage. He was not getting any younger; it was time for him to settle down.
Yang Lisheng and Li Meixiang had arrived early at the airport, having received a phone call that Xiao Ning had boarded the plane and rushed over. Just two days without seeing Xiao Ning, and they already missed her a lot. Without Xiao Ning by their side, they always felt something was missing in their home, and they could hardly concentrate on anything.
Liu Shanyue checked the time, “Don’t worry, they’ll be here soon.” She had received a call from Xiao Shen and had gone with Haoming to the quadrangle courtyard, planning to meet Yang Lisheng and Li Meixiang to pick up the family together. However, by the time they arrived, the couple had already taken a taxi.
“Mm,” Li Meixiang and Yang Lisheng nodded. Not seeing Xiao Ning always made them feel uneasy.
Song Yan Ning felt someone tapping her and slowly opened her eyes, turning to look at Qin Yushen next to her, “Have we arrived?” She had not slept last night, working all night on creating elixirs, and had fallen asleep not long after boarding the plane.
Qin Yushen nodded, “The plane is already landing. If you’re still tired, you can sleep a bit more,” noticing she still seemed sleepy.
Song Yan Ning shook her head, “No more sleep for me.” She really wanted to see her grandparents and couldn’t wait to get back to them. She hadn’t asked her elderly grandparents to come to the airport to meet her.
The plane landed smoothly at the airport, and Song Yan Ning, with Xiang in tow, followed Qin Yushen off the plane.
As soon as she stepped out of the plane, Song Yan Ning spotted Yang Lisheng and Li Meixiang waiting for her. A look of surprise flashed in her eyes as she ran swiftly towards them, “Grandpa! Grandma!” She truly hadn’t expected them to come and pick her up.
Yang Lisheng and Li Meixiang hurried to meet Song Yan Ning.
Song Yan Ning threw herself into Li Meixiang’s arms, cooing, “Grandma, I missed you and Grandpa so much!”
Li Meixiang indulgently ruffled Song Yan Ning’s hair, “Grandpa and I missed you too. Are you adjusting well there? Have you been sleeping well? Eating well?” She was most worried about these things.
“It’s been okay; I’ve gotten used to it,” Song Yan Ning giggled.
“Gotten used to it? You’ve got dark circles under your eyes,” Yang Lisheng laughed. He had thought Xiao Ning would be gone for at least ten days or half a month. It was a relief that she returned so quickly. Otherwise, they might have had to go looking for her in a few days.
Song Yan Ning playfully stuck out her tongue, stepped out from Li Meixiang’s arms, and turned to point at Xiang behind her, “Grandma, Grandpa, this is Xiang, my friend. From now on, she’ll be living with us.”
Yang Lisheng and Li Meixiang turned to Xiang and smiled, nodding at her, “Xiang, welcome.”
Xiang nodded slightly, her expression still icy cold. She hadn’t smiled in nearly two hundred years and didn’t know how to smile anymore. Plus, there was something odd she noticed; seeing Yang Lisheng and Li Meixiang didn’t trigger her usual urge to consume their souls. What was happening?
“Grandpa, Grandma, please don’t mind. Xiang doesn’t like to talk much, but she’s a good person. You’ll get to know that in time,” Song Yan Ning explained. Xiang hadn’t interacted with people in a long time, but she’d adjust after a while.