Prefect Wu approached, accompanied by several officials, and solemnly paid his respects to her, "I represent the hundreds of thousands of people within the entire region of Yangzhou in thanking Divine Doctor Gu. Thank you for saving the people of Yangzhou from disaster."

Yun Jiao returned the salute, then respectfully bowed to those around her, loudly declaring, "Everyone, please return home. Thank you all for seeing me off."

None of the people stood up; one by one, they knelt down and kowtowed.

Yun Jiao felt a sting in her nose, and her eyes grew moist. She quickly boarded the carriage.

Captain Fang swiftly commanded the convoy to move forward.

Yun Jiao continuously gazed out the window.

The line of kneeling townsfolk seemed endless, stretching far into the distance.

The convoy slowly advanced, moving further away.

On the journey back, her heart longed to return swiftly.

The weather wasn’t as hot anymore, making travel easier. By the evening of the fifth day, she could already see the gates of Xiang City from afar.

The Forbidden Army escorted Yun Jiao all the way to the gates of the Duke Mansion before returning to their camp to report.

Yun Jiao alighted from the carriage at the second gate, and as soon as she entered, she was almost knocked over by a small figure rushing towards her.

Then she was knocked into twice consecutively.

Struggling to keep her balance, she looked at the three children clinging to her arms and legs, weeping bitterly, and her heart melted completely.

You Er, the shortest one, clung to her leg, sobbing, "Mother, why did you leave for so long? I missed you every day."

Ruru held her waist, "Sister-in-law, sobbing, I missed you so much while you were not home."

Qi Er grabbed one of her arms, eyes teary, "Mother, why did you only come back now? If you hadn’t returned, I was going to look for you."

Yun Jiao embraced each child in turn, "Alright, alright, you’re all grown up now, still crying like babies."

"Mother is dirty and needs to take a bath quickly."

Reluctantly, You Er let go of her, "Then you have to sleep with me tonight."

The other two chimed in hurriedly, "We want that too."

Yun Jiao had no choice but to say, "Okay, okay, I’ll sleep with you tonight."

The maids and children clustered around her as they headed indoors.

The maids busied themselves; some prepared the items Yun Jiao needed for bathing and washing her hair, some called for elder servants to fetch water, and some surrounded Yun Jiao to remove her hairpins and clasps.

Others took Yun Jiao’s luggage to arrange it.

Seeing Cai Ping still busying herself, Yun Jiao hurriedly said, "You go rest, running with me on this trip was hard work for you. I’ll give you a month off."

Cai Ping replied with a radiant smile, "Thank you, Young Mistress. Then I shall return."

After a bustle of activity, Yun Jiao finally lay down in the bathtub.

A maid stood behind her, dry-washing her hair.

Washing hair in the inns was troublesome, and Yun Jiao hadn’t washed her hair in five days.

The maid dry-washed it twice before carefully rinsing it clean with water, allowing Yun Jiao to comfortably rest her head on a small cushion at the edge of the tub.

After getting out of the tub, she dressed and sat at the dressing table, while the maid diligently dried her hair.

Just then, Jiang Youzhi came in from outside.

He walked over to Yun Jiao and embraced her without a second thought.

The maid who was drying her hair quickly dropped the towel and left.

Jiang Youzhi buried his head in the crook of her neck, greedily absorbing her scent.

Ever since the day he brought her back from Jin Country, he had silently vowed never to be apart from her again.

Yet the world has some things that are beyond control.

Yun Jiao sat in the chair, tilted her head back, and wrapped her arms around Jiang Youzhi’s back.

Jiang Youzhi bent over, insistently burying his head in her neck.

Their posture was quite uncomfortable, yet neither moved, both savoring the serene beauty of their emotional connection in that moment.