Su Qing didn't particularly care about the maid's gratitude.
To her, she had simply resolved a minor loose end she had left behind in Chang'an. There was truly nothing worth being thanked for.
After leaving the courtyard, Su Qing found a quiet, secluded spot.
She formed a hand seal and summoned the Somersault Cloud. Taking the two girls with her, she soared toward Flower-Fruit Mountain.
This time, Su Qing didn't travel leisurely as she had before. Instead, she chose to fly at the Somersault Cloud's standard full speed.
At such a pace, the surrounding scenery became a blur, impossible to see clearly.
Consequently, Chaoyan and Red Boy were unable to enjoy any beautiful vistas along the way.
Fortunately, at this speed, it didn't take long at all to reach Flower-Fruit Mountain.
In the blink of an eye, the group arrived at the borders of the Aolai Kingdom.
Beyond the Aolai Kingdom lay the East Sea.
And upon that vast East Sea sat an island that resembled a shimmering pearl.
That was Flower-Fruit Mountain.
Presently, Su Qing hovered high above the East Sea.
The ocean scenery was magnificent. Both Su Qing and the two girls had to admit that the sea was exceptionally serene and beautiful.
"Have you seen enough?" Su Qing asked.
"Mhm, enough!" Red Boy said with a grin.
"I've seen enough too! The scenery of the East Sea isn't much different from my master's South Sea!" Chaoyan said, crossing her arms.
In truth, Chaoyan wanted to say there was almost no difference at all. However, after a moment's thought, she adjusted her phrasing to save some face for the incredibly excited Red Boy—lest the girl start another argument with her.
Su Qing chuckled and nodded. "Then let's head to Flower-Fruit Mountain!"
The reason Su Qing had stopped over the East Sea to admire the view was, of course, because of Red Boy. Even though the girl had seen the ocean before, for some reason, she still seemed to love it immensely.
Thus, as soon as they arrived over the East Sea, Red Boy had tugged on Su Qing's sleeve, asking to stop and look for a while.
Su Qing felt that since they were nearly there, a short delay wouldn't matter. Besides, they were out on a trip; being happy was the most important thing. So, she had agreed and accompanied her in admiring the seascape.
Upon hearing Su Qing's words, Red Boy nodded obediently. She had seen her fill and knew it was time to move on.
In reality, "moving on" only meant traveling a short distance further. From their current position, Flower-Fruit Mountain was already visible.
It wouldn't take much time at all.
With a thought from Su Qing, the Somersault Cloud surged forward.
In just a few breaths, the group arrived in the skies above Flower-Fruit Mountain.
Standing there, Su Qing could take in the entire mountain at a single glance.
Whenever she arrived at a location, Su Qing habitually observed it from the sky first. Whether it was a familiar place or a new one, she liked to get a bird's-eye view to form a general expectation in her mind.
At the same time, looking down from the heavens sometimes revealed things that would otherwise go unnoticed.
For instance, right now...
Su Qing had originally intended to see if Flower-Fruit Mountain had undergone any developments or changes during her absence, or if it had encountered any trouble.
But as she scanned the area, she spotted a white figure on the beach.
Su Qing's brow arched slightly. Looking closer, she saw it clearly—it was a young girl with white hair.
"And she seems to be a little girl of the Dragon Clan." Su Qing had excellent vision, and even if she hadn't, she could have used a spell to magnify her sight. She saw the girl quite clearly, especially the two small horns on her head.
To be honest, Su Qing had very little resistance against girls with cute little horns.
'This girl should be from the Dragon Palace, right? But what is she doing here?'
Su Qing's brow furrowed slightly, her eyes filled with confusion. She watched the little girl as she paced aimlessly on the beach. The girl seemed to want to enter the forest but didn't dare to. After hesitating for a long time, she continued to circle the beach. Witnessing this, Su Qing sighed softly.
'Fine, I'll meddle just this once! My wife is from the Dragon Clan, so they're practically relatives... Besides, this girl is likely from the East Sea Dragon Palace. Taking care of her business shouldn't really count as meddling.'
Having made up her mind, Su Qing turned to Chaoyan and Red Boy.
"I have something to take care of. You two head into the city first. You can wait for me at Jingyue's residence."
Her words left both of them stunned. Neither understood what Su Qing could possibly have to deal with.
However, since Su Qing had spoken, Chaoyan had no reason to refuse. She nodded and said, "Alright! Then remember to come back quickly, Godmother! Oh, right—where is Sister Jingyue's residence? If you don't tell me, I won't know where to find her."
Su Qing slapped her forehead, realizing she had forgotten such an important detail. She gave an embarrassed smile and pointed out the location where Jingyue lived.
Once she knew the location, Chaoyan didn't say anything more. She simply called out to Red Boy, "Let's go! Let's head into the city and look around first. Haven't you always wanted to see the city on Flower-Fruit Mountain?"
Red Boy glanced at Chaoyan suspiciously. "Why are you suddenly so enthusiastic? You're not brewing some kind of mischief, are you?"
Chaoyan: "...Do I look like that kind of person to you?"
"Don't you?"
"I am absolutely not!" Chaoyan said, crossing her arms. "I have always been dedicated to helping others wholeheartedly."
Upon hearing this, Red Boy still looked at Chaoyan with eyes full of distrust.
Chaoyan sighed helplessly. "Hmph, I just don't want you to disturb Godmother while she's handling official business. After all, if I didn't pull you away, you'd definitely try to follow her to see what's going on, wouldn't you?"
Red Boy blinked, then shook her head. "No way! I'm not that kind of person."
Chaoyan rolled her eyes. Did she not know Red Boy by now? "Fine, let's just go!" She didn't want to argue any further and pulled Red Boy away.
As for what Su Qing was actually doing, Chaoyan was naturally curious, but she was more interested in behaving well in front of Su Qing. She knew Su Qing preferred well-behaved children.
As for dragging Red Boy along, there was another reason: she had to make sure that if she wasn't following Su Qing, Red Boy couldn't either. Aside from being friends, they were also competitors; she couldn't afford to be careless.
And so, Red Boy was dragged away by Chaoyan.
Su Qing, unaware of the internal dynamics between the two, nodded in satisfaction at the sight.
'Chaoyan is still the more sensible one. Red Boy is a bit too prone to recklessness.' Su Qing chuckled and whispered to herself, 'Now, time to see what that white-haired girl is up to.'
Su Qing lowered her cloud and landed softly near the white-haired girl.
"Hey! What are you doing here?" Su Qing asked first.
Hearing the voice, the white-haired Dragon Girl instinctively turned to flee. However, strangely, the moment she neared the seawater, she hurriedly scrambled back as if the water were poisonous.
Seeing this, Su Qing's brow arched slightly. It seemed she had stumbled upon something interesting.
While Su Qing was lost in thought, the Dragon Girl stared at her and asked, "Who... who are you?"
Hearing the girl's slightly trembling voice, Su Qing was momentarily stunned. Did she look that terrifying? She felt as though she were being treated like some great villain.
However, Su Qing quickly changed her mind. She realized that the little girl didn't seem truly afraid; she was putting on an act of being frightened.
Su Qing narrowed her eyes. Although she had no concrete proof, she definitely had that feeling.
"Me? I am the Mountain God of this Flower-Fruit Mountain... You can call me Su Qing." Su Qing wore a gentle smile as she looked at the girl. "So? Who are you? And why are you here?"
Su Qing had many questions, but she didn't ask them all at once. Questioning had to be done step by step; if she asked everything at once, the other person wouldn't know where to start.
Upon hearing Su Qing's question, the Dragon Girl pondered for a moment before saying, "Me? My name is Zhu Ling... I-I'm just lost."
"Lost on a beach?" Su Qing chuckled, not believing a word of it.
She wasn't even sure if the name was real or fake. The reason Su Qing had suddenly lost trust in the girl was because she felt the girl was not as simple as she appeared, so she wouldn't be foolish enough to believe her blindly.
"I... I mean, I got lost in the sea and ended up on this beach... Then, that forest looked so big that I didn't dare go in, so I've just been stuck here." The Dragon Girl gripped the hem of her clothes, fidgeting nervously. "You... you're a Mountain God, so you shouldn't have anything to do with the Dragon Palace, right? You... you won't catch me, will you?"
Su Qing shook her head with a smile. "I indeed don't have much to do with the Dragon Palace, and I certainly have no reason to catch you. However, I am curious—why would the Dragon Palace want to catch you?"
Su Qing's words were half-true. After all, although her wife was a princess of the Dragon Palace, she had long since cut ties with the Dragon King, only remaining in contact with her mother. So, saying she had no connection wasn't entirely inaccurate.
Hearing Su Qing's question, the Dragon Girl scratched her head and said, "I... I ran away from home..."
"Are you a princess of the Dragon Palace?"
"Ye... yes!" The Dragon Girl averted her gaze and nodded.
Su Qing shook her head. "I don't believe you. You don't look like a princess... Tell me, who are you really? And what did you do?"
Su Qing sighed. This girl felt like she was full of lies, so she didn't want to continue playing along.
"You... I..." The Dragon Girl was stunned, momentarily at a loss for words.
The little girl, who had been faking her nervousness and panic, was now truly starting to panic.
Seeing this, Su Qing gained a general understanding of the girl.
The Dragon Girl was flustered. She looked toward the sea, then at the dense forest that made her heart race with dread. Finally, she gritted her teeth and decided to dive into the seawater.
However, Su Qing wasn't about to let her escape. She lightly formed a hand seal and cast a spell.
Several streams of seawater surged out from the ocean, easily binding the girl.
Bound by the seawater, the little girl was now completely immobilized. She couldn't even struggle.
Su Qing sighed and beckoned with her hand, pulling the girl toward her. She looked at the girl and said, "Speak. What is your name, and what did you do?"
The Dragon Girl fell silent for a long time. Finally, looking into Su Qing's eyes, which were as calm as an ancient well, she seemed to make a decision.
She asked tentatively, "If I tell you... will you kill me? Or will you hand me over to the people from the Dragon Palace?"
Su Qing's brow arched. "I won't kill you. As for whether I'll hand you over to the Dragon Palace, that depends on the situation... It depends on what you've done. If I think what you did was good, I won't hand you over. If I think it was bad... then I'm sorry. Of course, if you choose not to speak, I'll just toss you straight back to the Dragon Palace."
Su Qing habitually left herself some room to maneuver.
The girl fell into silence once more after hearing this.
Fortunately, Su Qing wasn't in a hurry. She could wait for the answer.
Not much time passed—perhaps a dozen breaths.
The girl finally sighed and said, "Fine... I'll tell you. But... I want to know, what counts as 'bad' in your eyes, and what counts as 'good'?"
Su Qing smiled and looked at her. "Well, why don't you guess? But instead of that, you'd better answer my questions honestly. Oh, and by the way, you'd better not lie. Your lies can't fool me... and even if they could, they can't fool the lie-detecting spell in my hand!"
Hearing this, the Dragon Girl felt an immense pressure.
Because she didn't know what Su Qing's intentions were, nor did she understand her definitions of good and bad—even with her exceptionally strong mental fortitude, she couldn't help but feel overwhelmed.
"I understand," the Dragon Girl sighed.
Su Qing smiled and nodded. "Good. Now, tell me—what is your name?"
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