The next morning, the sun shone brightly and the birds were singing. It was another refreshing day.
Ye Zhinan stretched a big yawn towards the sky. She took a look at the backyard land. The small vegetables and fruits were growing very satisfactorily.
Singing a song, she watered the plants. Just then, Ye Yingfeng had just finished a set of combined punches.
"You take better care of them than you do of us," Ye Yingfeng said.
Ye Zhinan gave him a sidelong glance. "Are you jealous? If you could also make delicious dishes, I'd take care of you like this too."
After saying that, she walked towards the kitchen. The kitchen was filled with steam. Han Xiangmei had been busy inside since early morning.
She had picked some fresh Chinese toon shoots from the backyard yesterday and was going to make scrambled eggs with Chinese toon. On the other side, the pot was steaming. The pancakes were on the verge of being overcooked.
Just as Ye Zhinan came in, she saw this and quickly saved the pancakes from the pot.
"Smells so good!"
The pancakes seemed to dance between her fingers and the next second they were in her mouth.
"Hey, they're not done yet!"
Han Xiangmei saw her daughter's eager look, patted her hand and then laughed.
"By the way, I made some fish soup. You can take it to Ruonan later!"
"Okay!"
Since Liu Ruonan gave birth, Han Xiangmei had taken over her meals. Now, with the full - fledged cooperation of Ye Zhinan and Han Xiangmei, Liu Ruonan had recovered and become plump. She was even more lively than her baby.
After Ye Zhinan finished her meal, she took the fish soup and fresh pancakes to the Liu family. The house was bustling.
Although Wang Zhilan had raised children before, she was still at a loss when facing her naughty grandson.
This baby slept when it was time to eat and just giggled at people when it was time to sleep. And just now, the baby had pooped, making the room smell strange.
Liu Dongxing heard the noise outside and quickly came out to greet her.
"Miss Ye is here! The house is in a mess. I'm really sorry!"
Saying so, he quickly cleared a place for Ye Zhinan to sit.
"We don't need to be so polite. I'm here to see the baby and give the new mom a post - natal check - up!"
At first, the Liu family was confused about the strange words that Ye Zhinan occasionally used, but now they were already used to it.
Liu Ruonan skillfully picked up the baby and cooperated with the check of the baby's height, weight and head circumference.
"Do we need to draw blood today?" Wang Zhilan asked carefully.
Last time, the baby cried heart - rendingly after being pricked, and the adults were also sad for a long time.
"No, it's a simple check today."
As Ye Zhinan said, she was recording a series of numbers in a thick notebook.
"You have quite a few babies in your records now!" Liu Ruonan pointed to the thick notebook.
"I have to thank you all for the publicity. After I'm done with your family, I have to go to the next one. Remember to drink the fish soup while it's hot. And when you make bone soup..."
"Skim off the oil!" Wang Zhilan and Liu Ruonan said in unison.
Then the three of them looked at each other and laughed.
The baby also giggled when it saw the adults smiling.
As soon as Ye Zhinan walked out of the gate, Liu Ruonan followed her out and stuffed a package into her hand.
"My father just wove a batch of silk cloth. This is my little token of gratitude."
Silk was a rare thing in the northern border.
Ye Zhinan was just about to decline, but her hands were tightly held. Looking into Liu Ruonan's sincere eyes, she withdrew her hands.
"I'm not hiding the matter of the medicinal materials from you. It's just..."
"I understand. Inspector Qin has told me everything. Our family has the cloth and marinated food business. We have enough to live on."
Ye Zhinan was still worried about how to tell her, but unexpectedly Qin Yihuai had already taken care of it.
She owed him another favor.
After saying goodbye to the Liu family, Ye Zhinan visited several new mothers' families and then went to work in the fields.
The sun was shining brightly, making the land look white.
Ye Zhinan wiped the sweat off her forehead. She noticed that Sister Hong didn't show up today. She asked around, but no one had seen her either. So she unconsciously walked towards the supply station.
"Is Inspector Qin here?"
Strangely enough, Chen Zhenhai, who usually popped up at the first moment, was also not there. Ye Zhinan had to ask a guard at the door.
The guard recognized her. His small eyes squinted into a slit with a smile. "Inspector Qin has gone to the town on business. He won't be back for a while. You can tell me if you have anything to say."
Qin Yihuai was also not there!
Ye Zhinan had a bad feeling in her heart, but she couldn't tell what was wrong. She could only leave awkwardly.
However, Sister Hong didn't show up for several consecutive days. The stone in Ye Zhinan's heart became heavier and heavier. Even Ye Shenyan noticed something was wrong.
"Recently, people in the mine said that they haven't seen Inspector Qin for a long time. Is something wrong?"
"Sister Hong hasn't shown up for a long time either. I'll go look for her again today."
Just as Ye Zhinan was about to go out, Lu Yanlai stumbled in.
"What happened to you?"
Ye Zhinan asked with concern, pointing at Lu Yanlai's ankle. There was a circle of mud around her shoe. Obviously, she had just sprained her ankle and rushed here through the pain.
"Don't worry about me. Hurry up and pack your things and go up the mountain with me!"
"Go up the mountain?"
Ye Zhinan hadn't reacted yet when Lu Yanlai grabbed her hand and was about to leave.
"You have to explain clearly or I won't go with you."
Ye Zhinan grabbed Lu Yanlai and pressed her onto a stone bench. Then she was about to check her sprained ankle.
"Really, the emperor is not worried..."
Seeing that others were gathering around, Lu Yanlai immediately turned to Ye Shenyan. "Grand Tutor, Sister Hong has been arrested. Sooner or later, our business of buying medicine will be exposed. Fei Long asked me to take Nannan up the mountain to hide for a while."
It was hard to explain everything in a few words, but just the fact of going up the mountain to avoid disaster made everyone understand that the situation was serious.
Ye Shenyan frowned. "Yingfeng, you go up the mountain with your sister."
"Dad, what about you and Mom?"
Ye Zhinan's voice choked up instantly. She bit her lip and sobbed.
"I'm already half - buried in the soil. Besides, I'm a former grand tutor. They won't do anything to us."
While they were talking, Han Xiangmei silently packed up their bags. "You guys go quickly. Take some food. Don't worry about us."
Caught between Lu Yanlai and Ye Yingfeng, Ye Zhinan was led out of the Ye family.
On the way, Ye Zhinan kept asking Lu Yanlai what had happened, but the other party remained silent. Helpless, she had to think of other ways.
When they got to the mountain, it was a familiar sight and familiar people.
Li Feilong had been waiting there for a long time.
"Everything has been arranged properly. You can stay here at ease. There's an old man guarding the mountain. If you need anything, just tell him. We'll also come to check on you from time to time."
The arrangement was so detailed that Ye Zhinan had a sense of deja - vu, but she still couldn't tell where it was familiar.
Before Lu Yanlai was about to leave, Ye Zhinan grabbed her hand. "Is it the Wei family?"
Lu Yanlai shook her head. "I don't know. But the Wei family has been very low - key since the incident of Wei Shishi."
"And him?"
Ye Zhinan's eyes flickered slightly, with a hint of scrutiny.