Blooming Flowers, Silent Sorrow

Chapter 18

The carriage slowly ambled along for an entire day, and it was only by noon the next day that they finally returned to the Jin residence.

As soon as they reached the outskirts of the city, someone was dispatched on a fast horse to send word ahead. This time, as the carriage entered the Jin residence, a crowd gathered around in a flurry.

Xiao Bao, lively as ever, hopped off the carriage, sporting his usual carefree grin.

"Xiao Bao—my son!!!!" Lady Jin, seeing her son who had been missing for several days, burst into tears and rushed to embrace him, refusing to let go. She was heartbroken as she felt him all over, checking, "My son, are you hurt? You’ve worried your mother to death. You’re going to be the death of us, your parents!!"

Old Master Jin also came over with tears in his eyes, tenderly stroking Xiao Bao's face over and over again.

Xiao Bao, with a big smile, comfortingly patted the backs of his parents, "Dad, mom, don't cry. I'm fine, nothing's wrong. I just passed out for a few days, no injuries. I'll tell you all about it later. Please, stop crying, don't cry, be good."

Old Master Jin, being the head of the household, was the first to stop his tears. Seeing that her son was indeed unharmed, Lady Jin also felt considerably relieved.

It was no wonder their reaction was so intense. This precious child of theirs had never experienced such an incident before. Every trip he made was always well protected. When had he ever disappeared for three whole days? The Jin family had nearly turned the area within a hundred miles upside down in their search. The elderly couple was so frantic they were almost driven mad. If anything had happened to Xiao Bao, they wouldn’t have wanted to go on living.

Jin Xiaoyu also squeezed through the crowd to cling to Xiao Bao's legs, crying. Xiao Bao picked up the little girl and cooed at her vigorously until she finally cracked a smile through her tears.

"You little rascal, what exactly happened these past few days? Tell me everything." Old Master Jin looked at him sternly.

If this incident was orchestrated, then they must immediately eliminate any potential danger to his son. If it was an accident, those who made his son suffer must not be let off easily.

"Dad, don’t rush me. Let me have a drink of water first, alright? I’ll explain everything slowly, don’t worry." Coming up with excuses was second nature to Xiao Bao; fabricating stories came as easily to him as breathing.

Xiao Bao, arm in arm with his parents, was about to head inside when suddenly, a servant from behind exclaimed, "Young Master Su has returned."

Xiao Bao turned around in surprise, only to see Su Yin striding in through the door with an air of casual elegance.

Dressed in dark cyan robes embroidered with golden koi patterns, his tall figure and extraordinarily handsome features radiated a noble charm that was impossible to ignore. His thin lips curved in a slight smile, his demeanor carrying a hint of world-weary nonchalance, but his narrow, phoenix eyes gleamed with a sharp brilliance.

There are some people who are born to catch everyone's eye, like Huai En, and like Su Yin, this childhood friend whom he had envied from the moment he knew what jealousy was.

"Su Yin! What brings you here?"

Old Master Jin hurriedly explained, "I sent someone to the Su family for help. We couldn’t find you and were so worried, we thought to ask the Su family for assistance."

Xiao Bao grimaced, somewhat displeased, but realizing how anxious his disappearance must have made his parents, he refrained from commenting further.