Why did you provoke me?

Yu Meng took the basket with the cloud pattern, peeled off the second layer of skin from the cloud pattern, took out a portion of her own stone flower, and used a special technique to make a small jade pendant from the cloud pattern skin. She handed it over, saying, "It can save his life for half a year. Go find someone to give him an antidote."

The man pulled the little figure closer to his chest, then took the jade pendant with both hands. "We, the Zhou family, will forever remember your life-saving grace."

"Um."

In just over ten minutes, the group had dispersed, and the area returned to its former bustling state. Yu Meng sat there, staring at the throng of people, lost in thought. She simply stared blankly.

It wasn't until Dali's voice rang out, "Little sister, what are you thinking about? We're leaving," that Yu Meng snapped out of her reverie. "Big sister, I want to go home."

"Let's go home now. I bought a lot of things, and Mom is sure to nag again. I'll just say you bought them," Dali said, pulling Yu Meng along as they walked.

Yu Meng nodded, "My mother loves me the most; she can't bear to scold me."

Jiang Mingfeng's hands were full, and he even had a bag hanging around his neck.

Yu Meng suddenly smiled. She was doing well now; at least the family around her gave her the best of everything.

Yu Meng left without waiting for the old woman to return. As for whether the things were lost or not, who cares?

Unbeknownst to Yu Meng, all her actions were being observed by the old woman and a man with a goatee.

"I told you so, didn't I? Anyone who comes looking for you at this hour will have their troubles resolved by your last bit of kindness." The man with the goatee stroked his beard with his right hand.

"Hu the charlatan, it's really unreliable for me to entrust this huge business to such a young child."

"So, have you found a successor? Or do you simply have a lot of time on your hands?"

"Hua San Niang, how old were you when you took over this huge business?"

"Oh dear, how do we talk to those troublemakers in our family?" Hua San Niang asked.

"They already know your situation, so just tell them directly. If they don't want to, then let them give you a test to see how this little girl fares."

"Hu the charlatan, are you serious? That child is only twelve. You want her to fight a bunch of old foxes?"

"Well, there's nothing I can do about it. In all these years, this is the only one I've found. Also, we agreed before that if this one is approved, you have to call me Master Hu."

Hua San Niang curled her lip, "Isn't it still you at heart?"

"How can that be the same? A charlatan sounds like a fraud, but a Taoist priest is a legitimate official."

"Let's go back to headquarters and get this sorted out. As for the outcome, we'll leave it to fate."

The two turned and disappeared into the crowd.

When Li Yiqing arrived, everything had already been loaded into the car. "Why the rush? Aren't you going to spend a couple of days sightseeing in the city?"

"My little sister is homesick and can't wait a moment longer. She hasn't said a word since this morning," Dali said apologetically.

"I'm leaving everything here in your cousin's care. We're leaving soon. If you need anything, contact Mingfeng; he has a landline."

Li Yiqing handed a card to Yu Meng, saying, "I've deposited everything into your account. I hope we'll have the opportunity to work together again."

Yu Meng took it expressionlessly and stuffed it into Dali's hand.

"Cousin, we're leaving." Jiang Mingfeng checked the car, walked over to Li Yiqing, and patted his arm. "My little sister is like this, don't mind her."

Li Yiqing patted Jiang Mingfeng on the shoulder with a smile, "How could I mind? We owe her a lot this time. Drive carefully on the way back."

The car drove away.

Li Yiqing felt helpless. There were many things he hadn't said, but judging from Yu Meng's expression, he figured that saying them wouldn't lead to a good outcome.

Well, when the results come out, at worst he can just go to his aunt's house.

In the car.

"Little sister, who bullied you? Why are you unhappy?"

Yu Meng shook her head, lay down on Dali, closed her eyes, and pretended to sleep.

Yu Meng felt like she had been tricked, but after reviewing the situation, she couldn't find any suspicious points.

The decision to go to the morning market was made yesterday, and it was Jiang Mingfeng's older sister who called on him; we only found out this morning.

I chose the stall myself; the decision was made on short notice.

However, the person who gave him his business card said that someone had directed him to this place.

Why was she so soft-hearted? Why did she give something she had worked so hard for to a stranger who didn't even ask her last name?

Yu Meng was confused. Was there another kind of person in the world who could predict what would happen in the future?

Yu Meng's head was throbbing, and she unconsciously snuggled into Da Li's arms.

Dali looked at her younger sister, who was listless and without any energy, and felt heartbroken. Dali hugged Yu Meng in her arms and gently patted her, "Go to sleep, you'll be home when you wake up."

Jiang Mingfeng, who was driving, noticed in the rearview mirror that Yu Meng wasn't feeling well, so he gently pressed the accelerator. The car slowly accelerated.

When they got home, Yu Meng had finally fallen asleep. As soon as her mother saw them return, she rushed over, intending to wake Yu Meng. Dali stopped her mother, saying, "Mom, my little sister isn't feeling well. She just fell asleep. Let my dad carry her inside."

Aunt Yu asked anxiously, "But it's cold, you'll catch a cold."

She turned and left, saying, "I'll go make the mattress so your dad can be a little quieter."

Yu's father carried Yu Meng back to her room, then turned to Jiang Mingfeng and said, "Mingfeng, don't leave today. Have some food and get a good night's sleep. We'll talk about it tomorrow."

Yu's mother followed Yu's father into the house, climbed onto the kang (a heated brick bed), took off Yu Meng's shoes, and touched Yu Meng's forehead to see if she had a fever. Yu Meng's little face was pale, and she didn't wake up despite all the fuss.

"My sister gets carsick easily, and she was already feeling listless when she got on the bus. She's been feeling drowsy the whole way," Dali said, rubbing her arm.

"What happened to your arm?" Aunt Yu asked, looking at Dali.

"It's a little numb, but it's okay, it'll feel better in a bit."

"You and Mingfeng go to the kitchen to eat. We've been keeping it warm for you since we knew you were coming back," Aunt Yu urged Dali to eat.

After bringing everything back from the car, Mr. Yu came in. "How's Xiao Si?"

"I don't know what's wrong, she still won't wake up despite all this fuss." Aunt Yu sat to the side, her eyes fixed on Yu Meng. "Next time, I'm not letting her go on such a long trip, no matter what. Look at her little face, she had just gained some weight, and now it's all gone."

"You'll be fine after a nap. Do you want to eat something? You only ate a few bites earlier. You've been thinking about it a lot these past few days. Go and eat some more with Dali and the others. Xiao Si is fine," Yu's father advised.

"How can I eat like this, Xiao Si?" Aunt Yu wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes.

Yu's father sighed. Yu Meng's older brother and sister never had such privileges as children; they grew up healthy and without illness. But Yu Meng, why did she have so many misfortunes?

Yu Meng slept for three days before fully waking up. The first thing she did upon seeing her mother was to snuggle up to her and rub her head against her, saying, "Mom, I missed you so much."

Mother Yu finally breathed a sigh of relief. "You child, you always scare me like this. You'll scare me to death sooner or later."

"Mom, I'm hungry."

"You, you," Mom tapped Yu Meng's forehead with her finger, "I made you some porridge, I'll go get it for you."

"Mom is the best." Yu Meng gave her mother a big smile.