With legs weak, the sickly stable boy became a mad regent.

These past few days, Shen Nannan has been sitting on the stone lion at the entrance of the mansion, swinging her legs, her eyes fixed on the street corner.

The first thing she did every morning was ask the housekeeper, "Where are my parents?"

The butler always replied, "Soon, soon."

She knew it was coming soon, but she was still on edge and couldn't relax.

"Little sister, come down, it's windy." Shen Run walked over with a cloak, sighing helplessly.

"Father and Mother didn't arrive until Chenshi (7-9 AM), and you've been sitting here for almost an hour."

Qiu Tong chimed in, "That's right, look how white your face is from the cold. Don't worry, you can't run away."

Shen Nannan shook her head, her fingers tightly gripping the hem of her clothes.

They don't understand.

They didn't know that she hadn't seen her parents in two lifetimes.

In my previous life, my father died in battle at Yanmen Pass, and his remains were never found.

Her mother's hair turned white overnight, and she fell ill from the accumulated depression. After the Shen family's downfall, Xiao Yunzhao arranged for her to live in a separate courtyard.

She was locked in the deep courtyard of the Regent's Palace, and until she died in his arms, the last thing that flashed through her mind was her mother holding her, smiling and saying, "Our little girl is the best girl in the world."

Countless nights, she cried out for her parents in her dreams, only to wake up to cold walls and endless darkness.

Now, they're back.

It's alive and well, it's back.

But she was afraid—afraid that she hadn't done enough, afraid that they would discover the secret she was hiding.

"They're here! They're here!"

The butler's excited shouts came from the street corner.

Shen Nannan suddenly jumped off the stone lion, almost twisting her ankle.

Ignoring the pain, she took off running towards the street corner.

In the distance, a procession of carriages and horses slowly approached.

On the black horse at the very front sat a man clad in armor, his figure as upright as a pine tree, his temples streaked with frost, yet his eyes remained as sharp as an eagle's—it was her father, General Shen Ce, the General Who Guards the North.

The carriage curtain was lifted, and a woman dressed in a plain dress peeked out. There were fine wrinkles at the corners of her eyes, but her gentle eyes were exactly the same as Shen Nannan's. She was none other than her mother, Liu Yun.

"Father! Mother!"

The moment Shen Nannan cried out, tears streamed down her face.

The moment Liu Yun saw her daughter, she opened her arms wide, her voice trembling uncontrollably:

"My little girl! My little girl!"

Shen Nannan threw herself into her arms, and all the longing and grievances she had accumulated over two lifetimes finally erupted at this moment.

She hugged her mother's waist, buried her face in her warm embrace, and burst into tears.

"Mother... I miss you so much... I miss you so much..."

In her past life, when she died, was her mother still waiting for her in the other courtyard? Was she still hoping that her daughter could return one day?

Thinking of this, Shen Nannan felt as if her heart was being squeezed, the pain making it hard to breathe. "Mother... Mother..."

"Mother's here, Mother's here." Madam Shen hugged her, her hands constantly stroking her hair, tears wetting the top of her head.

"It's all my fault, I've made you suffer so much in the capital all by yourself. I'm so sorry."

"No... Mother didn't do anything wrong to me..." Shen Nannan cried, unable to breathe. "It was my fault. I was immature before and always made you angry..."

Shen Ce stood aside, watching the mother and daughter hugging and crying. This iron-willed general, who had never flinched even when facing mountains of knives and seas of fire on the battlefield, now had red eyes.

He stiffly raised his hand and gently patted his daughter's back, his voice hoarse and barely audible: "Daughter... Daddy's back."

Shen Nannan raised her tearful eyes to look at her unharmed father, and at his right hand patting her back.

In her past life, she was unable to see her father one last time.

He died at the border, on the front lines, in a place she could never reach.

She didn't even see his remains, only to receive an imperial edict—General Shen was guilty of treason and his entire family was to be executed.

My father is still as valiant as ever, unharmed and still here...

"Father—" Her voice shattered, breaking into pieces.

"Father...you're back...you're really back..."

She threw herself into Shen Ce's arms again.

Mr. Shen was knocked back a step by her, and he put his arm around her shoulder and patted her gently.

"I'm back." His voice trembled. "Father's back."

Shen Nannan cried so hard she couldn't speak, burying her face in his chest, her tears soaking his armor.

She smelled his scent—the smell of wind and sand, sweat, rust, and a faint herbal scent. It was the smell of medicine for wounds.

She lifted her head from his embrace and looked him up and down: "Are you injured?"

"It's just a superficial wound, nothing serious."

"You're lying!" Tears welled up in her eyes again. "You always say it's nothing, but every time it's a serious injury..."

Mr. Shen was stunned for a moment. Looking at her red eyes from crying, a feeling of indescribable bitterness welled up in his heart.

This child seems to have changed a lot. She wouldn't have cried like this before, wouldn't have clung to him like this, wouldn't have said "it's okay every time"—as if she had witnessed him getting hurt many times before.

"My dear daughter." He reached out and wiped away her tears. "Daddy's alright. Really, I'm alright."

Shen Nannan shook her head, tears streaming down her face.

She wanted to tell him how tragically he died in his past life.

She wanted to tell him that his supplies had been withheld, he was isolated and helpless, he had been hit by more than a dozen arrows, and in the end, even his remains were never recovered.

She wanted to tell him that after his death, someone had splashed him with dirty water, saying he was a traitor, that he had let down Da Yin and the Emperor.

But she couldn't say it. All she could do was cry.

After crying for a long time, Shen Run finally stepped forward, scratching his head and laughing, "Alright, alright, your parents just got back. Don't stand at the door crying. Come inside and talk."

Madam Shen then released Shen Nannan, cupped her face in her hands, and looked at her carefully, her heart aching with worry: "You've lost weight... How did you lose so much weight? Have you not been eating properly? Has someone bullied you?"

"No, I ate very well." Shen Nannan wiped away her tears, shook her head with a smile, and said, "It's Dad and Mom who have lost weight; they've suffered at the border."

"We're fine. What's a little hardship at the border? As long as you're alright, that's all that matters," Shen Ce finally spoke, his voice terribly hoarse.

He clumsily pulled something wrapped in red cloth from his pocket and stuffed it into Shen Nannan's hand, "This is for you, a wolf's tooth from the border, it can ward off evil spirits."

Shen Nannan unfolded the red cloth, revealing a smoothly polished wolf tooth, still warm from her father's touch. Clutching the wolf tooth, tears streamed down her face again.

In her past life, her father had given her an identical wolf tooth. She thought it was ugly and casually threw it in a drawer. It wasn't until her father died in battle that she found it and wore it day and night.

This time, she held on tightly, determined never to lose it again.

very nice.

This time, both her parents were present.

This time, she wouldn't let them get into trouble again.

Upon entering the mansion, Madam Shen held Shen Nannan's hand tightly, refusing to let go for a moment, asking her all sorts of questions.

"Is the food in the manor to your liking? Has anyone bullied you? Has that wicked woman, Madam Tong, made things difficult for you?"

"Has that brat of a brother of yours been taking good care of you? If he dares to bully you, tell your mother, and I'll break his legs."

"Have you put on more clothes because it's getting cold? Did you kick off the covers while sleeping last night?"

Her rambling words warmed Shen Nannan's heart.

She obediently answered each question, and seeing the heartache and concern in her mother's eyes, her nose tingled again.

In my past life, my mother was the same way; I would talk about her several times a day.

But back then, she was spoiled and willful, always complaining that her mother was nagging, and would often lose her temper.

It wasn't until later that she realized that all those rambling words were expressions of love that couldn't be hidden.

During lunch, Shen Ce didn't say a word, but kept putting food on Shen Nannan's plate. Her bowl was piled high with food, but he kept adding more.

"Dad, I can't eat anymore." Shen Nannan said, both amused and exasperated.

Shen Ce said "Oh," put down his chopsticks, but then picked up a piece of her favorite sweet and sour pork ribs and put it in her bowl: "Have another piece. Look how thin you are, you'd fall over in the wind."

After saying that, he turned and glared at Shen Run: "How have you taken care of your sister? Let her get so thin? You're asking for trouble!"

Shen Run nearly spat out his food: "Dad! I'm innocent! I buy her delicious food every day, it's just that she doesn't eat properly!"

"How dare you talk back!" Shen Ce picked up his chopsticks and hit him on the head.

Qiu Tong was trying not to laugh, her shoulders shrugging.

Looking at the noisy family in front of her, Shen Nannan felt like crying.

This is the home she's willing to risk her life to protect.

During the meal, Shen Ce brought up the matter of the second wife.

He put down his wine glass, his eyes sharp: "I've heard about what happened between the Tong family and Shen Zhong."

Shen Nannan paused, her hand holding the chopsticks still. She was about to explain when Shen Ce waved his hand, his tone firm: "You did the right thing. The Shen family will not tolerate traitors, much less those who collude with the enemy. From now on, you'll be in charge of things in the manor, and I'll back you up."

Shen Nannan felt a warmth in her heart, and her eyes reddened again.

In her past life, she always felt that her father was strict and didn't love her. It wasn't until her family was destroyed that she realized his love had always been hidden in his heart, hidden in every silent act of protection.

"Father, Mother."

"You...don't leave me again."

Shen's mother was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and reached out to touch her face.

"I won't leave. Mother won't go anywhere."

Watching the mother and daughter, Mr. Shen's eyes also reddened. He picked up his teacup, pretended to drink tea, and suppressed the bitterness in his eyes.

Madam Shen held her and whispered, "My dear, I will never leave you alone again."

Yes, it will never happen again.