Suddenly, a voice came from within the room, sounding exactly like their little son.
Shu Ge'er shot to his feet: "It's Xi'er!"
Cao Jun also stood up, looking around. Seeing only the two of them in the room, and not their little son, he asked towards the air,
"We can hear you. Is that our little treasure?"
As everyone knew, the Cao family had two treasures: the big treasure, Cao Jun's husband Shu Ge'er, and the little treasure, the Cao family's young ge'er Cao Ming Xi. It was better to offend the men of the family than these two ge'ers.
"I am your little treasure!"
*Zizi zizi...*
Ming Xisuddenly appeared before Cao Jun and Shu Ge'er, though only as a faint, shimmering image.
Tears immediately welled up in Shu Ge'er's eyes. He reached out to grab his hand, "Xi'er!" but his hand passed through the apparition.
Anxiously, he turned to Cao Jun, "Quick, see what's wrong! How did Xi'er become a phantom?"
Cao Jun grasped his hand and glared at Ming Xi,
"Aren't you going to explain? Look how you've scared your dad!"
Ming Xi: ........
"Speak. When are you coming back? Oh, and your uncles Ye Xiao and Xuan Yue are following you. If anything happens, just call for them. Don't blame your father. The outside world is dangerous. My little treasure is so beautiful; you have to watch out for those little yellow-haired scoundrels."
"Who are 'little yellow-haired scoundrels'?" Shu Ge'er asked, puzzled.
"That's not important. Just think of them as bad people trying to sweet-talk our little treasure away."
He then looked back at Ming Xi.
"One more thing, keep a low profile on the road. Don't be too lavish with silver. Even though our family is immensely wealthy, when traveling, you must follow the principle of not flaunting your riches. Most importantly,"
Cao Jun suddenly turned serious, "don't trust people easily."
Ming Xion the other side avoided his gaze, looking extremely guilty. Cao Jun knew at once he was hiding something. His eyes turned stern as he stared at him, waiting for him to confess.
"I... I fell off a cliff. A man saved me. He might be a thousand-year-old fox. I'm at his house now. I have to repay the debt of gratitude." After saying this, he glanced towards Ling Cang.
Picking at the flower branch, he muttered, "He has to be satisfied before he'll let me go home."
"Ah!" Cao Jun and Shu Ge'er were shocked.
"Someone! Go to the palace and summon the Emperor!" Cao Jun shouted towards the outside.
He turned back. "Xi'er, tell me where you are. Let Mingli go fetch you."
Cao Jun said urgently, feeling it was his fault for letting his son fall into what sounded like a cult, for not properly educating him.
"I'll send word to Mingqi, have him bring troops," Shu Ge'er said.
Ming Xi frantically waved his hands.
"No, no, no! Dad, Father, Xi'er must repay the kindness. Father said, 'Know gratitude and repay kindness.' If it weren't for him, your son might never have seen Father and Dad again. This debt of gratitude must be repaid."
"Xi'er, my little son..." Shu Ge'er's eyes were tearful. He hit Cao Jun's arm.
"It's all your fault! If you hadn't always talked to him about 'knowing gratitude and repaying kindness,' how would he know about repaying favors!"
"My fault, my fault," Cao Jun conceded.
"You said a fox saved you?" Cao Jun asked Ming Xi.
Ling Cang: Finally, we get to this point.
"Mmm, he's so powerful," Ming Xi's eyes suddenly lit up talking about this.
"It's snowing outside, but his yard is full of peach blossoms! And there's a rabbit too! The house has lots of vegetables. The bed isn't cold at all in winter, no charcoal fire needed, still not cold." Ming Xi seemed to be describing something very interesting, without any fear or terror.
Cao Jun and Shu Ge'er exchanged a look. "Sweetheart, can Father and I come see you?" They felt their silly son had been deceived.
Ming Xi stole a glance at Ling Cang, leaned close to the peach blossom branch, and whispered,
"daddy, the fox has a terrible temper. I haven't managed to placate him yet. Wait until Xi'er has soothed him, then you can come."
Cao Jun: This brat has never even tried to placate your father!
"Then have him come over. Let Father and Dad see what he looks like?"
Ming Xi looked at Ling Cang. Ling Cang sat casually on the stone stool, leaning back slightly, supporting his head with one hand. His eyes gazed deeply at the person opposite him, a faint, elusive smile playing on his lips.
Ming Xi held the peach blossom branch with both hands, slowly moving it in front of Ling Cang.
"My father said he wants to see you."
Ling Cang smiled, straightened up, and hooked a finger. The peach blossom branch flew into his hand.
The scene shifted, and Cao Jun and Shu Ge'er saw the "Mister Fox" Ming Xi had spoken of.
"With looks like that, no wonder Xi'er called him a fox," Cao Jun muttered quietly.
Shu Ge'er slapped him, then smiled at Ling Cang. "Thank you for saving our son's life, young master. May we ask, when can Xi'er return?"
Ling Cang glanced at Ming Xi. "It's the depths of winter. Heavy snow has sealed the mountains. He can leave no earlier than March next year."
Ming Xi looked outside the courtyard; it was still snowing. Because the peach blossoms inside were blooming so vibrantly, he often forgot it was the harsh winter.
"In that case, we'll trouble you, young master, to look after Xi'er for a while. Our family is the Cao Manor in the capital. When you come to the capital, just name your price—silver, an official position—our Cao family will surely satisfy you."
Then he asked, "Might we ask your name, young master? Where is your home? Are there others in your family?" Cao Jun inquired.
Ling Cang smiled. "My surname is Ling, given name Cang. I currently reside in Yunxi Village. I am the only one in my family."
"Might I ask if Young Master Ling Cang has a wife or children?" Shu Ge'er followed up.
"Father, Dad, why does this sound like you're interrogating a potential son-in-law?" Ming Xi pouted, unhappy.
Ling Cang looked at him, a smile still on his lips. "I currently have no wife or children."
The three conversed back and forth. Ling Cang didn't get annoyed, lightly tapping the table with his fingers, a smile on his face, appearing very patient—a far cry from the cold, aloof, and unapproachable Ling Cang the immortals were used to.
After some conversation, Cao Jun finally felt reassured enough to leave Ming Xi with Ling Cang. He even began to think he was a qualified candidate for a son-in-law. The man was good-looking, knew some unusual mystical arts, and was the only one in his family. If Xi'er married him, there would be no mother-in-law conflicts. The only issue was he seemed poor, but that didn't matter; Cao Jun had plenty of money.
"Xi'er, be good. When the roads are clear, your father and I will come fetch you," Shu Ge'er said.
Ming Xi nodded, his eyes red.
"Young Master Ling, since you possess this art of projecting images across distances, could you teach it to us? In the future, if his dad misses Xi'er, it would be good to have a way to contact him, wouldn't it?" Cao Jun asked with a smile. Ling Cang's technique was advanced, leaping ahead millennia; its function was comparable to a smartphone.
Ming Xi leaned close to Ling Cang, looking at him with eager, round eyes that seemed to say,
Me too, me too!
Ling Cang rubbed his teacup.
"If you wish to see someone, simply chant the name of the person you wish to see three times."
Cao Jun and Shu Ge'er bowed in thanks.
At that time, Ling Cang didn't know this action would cause him endless headaches in the future. He couldn't change it, nor could he take it back.
"What about me?" Ming Xi looked up and asked him.
"Is it also calling the other person's name three times? Can I contact anyone? Like Mingli, Mingqi?"
"If you contact others recklessly, it will shorten your lifespan by three years," Ling Cang said, looking up at him.
"Oh, you little ge'er! Just contact Father and Dad We will relay messages to those two for you," Cao Jun said.
"Alright then!" Ming Xi nodded gloomily.
"Master, the Emperor has arrived," someone announced at the door.
Cao Jun: "Alright, that's enough for today. Mingli is here. If you miss us in the future, just contact us. Be good."
Ming Xi: "Father, Dad, you have to call often to check on me."
"We will," Shu Ge'er said with a smile as the apparition completely dissipated.
Outside the room,
Mingli, standing in his dragon robes, paced nervously back and forth, muttering to himself, "How do I say this? 'Father, I lost track of Ming Xiwith the men I assigned'?"
"No, no, if I say that, Father will skin me alive."
"'Father, Dad, your little son is missing? But I've already prepared a heavy reward throughout the city to find him.'"
He stopped abruptly before the door, resigned to his fate.
"Forget it. Sooner or later, it's all the same. Anyway, first thing when I go in, I'll hug Dad's leg."
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