Chapter 742 - 516: Going Home

Chapter 742: Chapter 516: Going Home

Xiaomi woke up, feeling completely refreshed and invigorated; all of yesterday’s fatigue had vanished.

She squinted her eyes and stretched, but couldn’t move?

It seemed like something was holding her back.

This thought startled her awake, and when she finally saw the situation in front of her, she was stunned.

In front of her was Wei Ziang’s fair neck, his Adam’s apple and collarbone clearly visible. Slightly lifting her gaze, there was the faintly tinged blue chin, and further up was Wei Ziang sleeping soundly.

Xiaomi always knew the young man was handsome, the most handsome among everyone she had ever met.

From the first time she saw this face, she had that thought, even though it was actually dirty at the time.

But this was the first time she had observed this face so closely.

Handsome, gentle, an exceptionally attractive man in this world.

Walking down the street, whether it was men or women, they couldn’t help but turn back to take a look at him.

Although Xiaomi never admitted it, she indeed had been unconsciously drawn to this face more than once.

Probably somewhat of a face-obsessed trait, but no matter how good-looking her older brother and Ze are, she would never look at them this way.

Just as Xiaomi was lost in thought, Wei Ziang opened his eyes, saw Xiaomi looking at him in his arms, was initially stunned, and then revealed an absolutely stunning smile.

"Good morning, Xiaomi, you’re awake."

Xiaomi snapped out of it, coughed slightly in embarrassment, avoiding his gaze and struggled a bit, signaling him to let go: "How did I end up here?"

Her face was burning, too embarrassed to raise her head.

Wei Ziang released his arms with a smile: "I just lay down last night and you turned over towards me."

He wasn’t lying about this part; as for rolling over and then wanting to roll back, he had directly pulled her into his arms, which naturally didn’t need to be mentioned.

"Oh, I see." Xiaomi’s face was burning as she quickly returned to her spot and dressed with her back to him.

If she had just turned to look, she would have realized Wei Ziang was definitely teasing her.

Unfortunately, she didn’t.

Wei Ziang was very pleased with Xiaomi’s reaction; there’s nothing wrong with being shy, he was just afraid she wouldn’t react at all, which would be truly disappointing.

But Wei Ziang also knew that some things shouldn’t be pushed too far; one must learn to stop at the right moment.

"I’ll go out to take a look first, let’s have the meal Ling’er prepared, and we’ll head back after eating."

With that, he picked up his coat by the tent entrance and went out, calling out to Xiao Hei and Xiao Bai, who had already run up the mountain.

When Xiaomi came out after adjusting her mood, Wei Ziang was already preparing to dismantle the tent.

Xiaomi brought out a table, breakfast, and meals for Xiao Hei, Xiao Bai, and Xiao Mi.

These were all prepared by Ling’er, with plenty of space, there was a variety of food available, ready to be taken out anytime they wanted.

Having set everything up, seeing Wei Ziang still hadn’t finished tidying up his area, she went over to help.

By now, all the previous embarrassment and shyness had been left behind, and while working, they chatted about their return journey.

They were now quite far from Spring County, and even hurrying would likely take until evening to get back.

But what Xiaomi wanted to ask was whether they should hurry back or take their time.

"Let’s take our time returning; there’s no rush in one or two days, as long as we reach home tomorrow it’ll be fine."

They had mentioned to their parents that they’d be back a few days late, so as long as it wasn’t too late to worry them.

"Okay, then we won’t rush today, we’ll take our time, and Xiao Hei and the others can also stay outside a day longer to run around more."

Perhaps it’s due to the Spiritual Spring water’s influence. Clearly, Xiao Mi, Xiao Hei, and Xiao Bai were nearing the end of their lifespan relative to their species, yet they showed no sign of aging.

Without stating it, who would tell that the big black dog on the mountain chasing rabbits was nearly twenty years old?

Most of the village dogs were gone by their tens, and for those older, fourteen or fifteen was the limit.

Their family’s dog had been with them for eighteen years.

Still energetic and in its prime, full of vigor, hunting with ease.

No wonder they dared not let outsiders see.

Having tidied up the tent, the two went beneath the shade to eat; though it was morning, the sun made it quite hot.

After eating, they carefully checked all the belongings left from the night before, ensured nothing was left behind, and then set off on horseback.

As always, Xiao Mi was lazy; while Xiao Hei and Xiao Bai ran alongside, Xiao Mi seated dignifiedly in front of Xiaomi.

This seemed to be Xiao Mi’s first time on horseback, completely different from sitting on Xiao Hei and Xiao Bai previously; the view was much higher.

Curious and intrigued, Xiao Mi sat upright on horseback, rare for him not curled up asleep, but rather inquisitively enjoying the breeze.

Even while running, he didn’t sway at all, clearly benefiting from prior experience on Xiao Hei and Xiao Bai.

They didn’t have a map of the area, and Ling’er couldn’t come out temporarily, but Wei Ziang remembered roughly where Spring County was, easily calculating their current direction from Spring County.

They didn’t need to follow the previous route; exiting the forest, Wei Ziang observed the sun’s direction, the tree shadows for a while, contemplated inwardly, then pointed a direction.

"Let’s return from that side; no need to follow the coast the whole time, we can also explore other areas."

Xiaomi gazed at him with admiration: "How are you so skilled, dear brother? I don’t even know where Spring County is now."

Wei Ziang smiled slightly, urged his horse forward, with Xiaomi quickly following.

"When I was in Lishi City, sometimes missions took us to the grassland without a map, relying solely on the sun, moon, and shadows to navigate. Over time, I got used to remembering places we passed."

Speaking simply, Xiaomi listened somewhat perplexed, yet still nodded affirmatively: "Amazing."

Wei Ziang knew she hadn’t understood, but it wasn’t necessary to understand anyway.

"Once back, people should check the bay surroundings, guide the guards on the route here."

"Returning from here allows us to see whether staying closer to the coast or coming back from here is better."

Xiaomi nodded, noting this, though they were slightly surprised to encounter a small village within half an hour of setting off.

Along the coast, there were indeed several small fishing villages, although each village was small, barely having twenty house units.

They didn’t disturb too much, just taking a glance from outside before leaving.