A Weird Family Tree

Madam Zhong furrowed her brows. She didn't quite understand what that meant.

Jing Yi could also see that she was having trouble but he didn't know how to explain. In the end, he turned to Qiu Ling, hoping that he would have a way.

Qiu Ling pursed his lips and pondered. He understood what Jing Yi was trying to do so he only tried to find an explanation for what it meant to enter a different realm. "Well, imagine it like this: At first, everyone is outside playing on the streets but then there's some lunatic riding down the street in a fast tempo. Everybody gets afraid that the guy will injure them so they leap to the side. But unfortunately, the street isn't big enough so Jing'er can only try to get into one of the houses to escape the lunatic. Thankfully, the door opens and he can get to safety."

Jing Yi looked at Qiu Ling in a daze. How … how did this explain the matter with the different realm at all? Well, granted, he had only been saved because he entered the realm but was this really enough? He glanced at his mother who still seemed confused but continued to listen to Qiu Ling. Well, maybe he should just follow her example and wait.

With both his beloved's and his mother-in-law's full attention on him, Qiu Ling felt as if he had a natural talent in finding such comparisons. He couldn't help but try even harder. "While Jing Yi was safe now, the situation hadn't completely passed yet. After all, the lunatic was still coming down the rode. When he dashed past on his horse, there was a gale and then the door fell shut." He looked at Jing Yi and Madam Zhong with sparkling eyes, waiting for their reaction.

Madam Zhong cleared her throat. "So what happened then?" She had the vague feeling that this son-in-law of hers had completely forgotten that he was only trying to explain something and wasn't actually telling a story. But, well, it was hard not to indulge him a little when he looked so happy.

"It's good that you ask!" Qiu Ling smiled brightly. "You know this is the most important part. Because the door fell shut so suddenly, the key that had been lodged in the keyhole fell out. Who knows where it went? Anyway, Jing Yi was inside but now the house was locked. Neither could anybody get in nor could he get out. And the worst was that even though all of us searched for the key, we couldn't find it anywhere!"

"Oh. So what did you do?"

"Well, it took quite a bit of effort to come up with this but … We made a new key."

Qiu Ling looked extremely proud of himself, prompting Jing Yi and his mother to exchange a glance. Jing Yi couldn't help but ask with his eyes whether she had understood what they had originally been talking about.

Madam Zhong nodded and turned back to Qiu Ling, humoring him further. "I imagine that must have been very difficult. I mean how would you make a key without knowing what the key is supposed to look like?"

Qiu Ling's eyes lit up. As expected, his mother-in-law was smart as usual. She immediately caught onto the key issue. "That's precisely it. I went to see a lot of people to ask them for help but apparently, there aren't many that know about keys. In the end, I was lucky though. As it turns out, my uncle-in-law actually has a son who happens to be a key-making-master!"

Madam Zhong's lips twitched. Alright, this was getting ridiculous. Maybe she shouldn't have indulged him after all?

Thankfully, Qiu Ling had almost reached the end of the story. "Anyway, my cousin-in-law never saw me before so he didn't just want to agree. That's where Nie Huang comes into play."

"Nie Huang?" Madam Zhong raised her brows, suddenly getting interested in this story again. "You mean when you came by the last time, the reason you were asking to see Nie Huang was because of that? She was somehow able to help convince your cousin-in-law?" This was simply too coincidental! What could Nie Huang have to offer to somebody who … well, he was probably like Qiu Ling if he was his cousin-in-law?

Qiu Ling leaned over the table and gave her a deep look. "You don't know this, mother-in-law, but actually, my cousin-in-law is Nie Huang's fiance. We're basically one big family!"

"You're kidding me."

Qiu Ling pulled back and gave her a miffed look. "Would I ever do that?"

Well, to be honest, she wasn't quite sure how to answer that. But … probably not? "Aiya, don't take it to heart. This is just so unexpected. I can hardly believe it."

"It's all the truth though!" Qiu Ling hesitated. "Well … other than the house and the guy on the horse. But you knew that."

"… yes." Madam Zhong gave a wry smile. Qiu Ling really was full of surprises. "Anyway, if Nie Huang is your cousin-in-law's fiance, then you should have heard from her, shouldn't you? How is she doing?"

Qiu Ling blinked his eyes. Uh … To be honest, he had never even thought about that? His gaze darted around before his expression finally lit up. "Actually, let's ask her ourselves!" He pulled out a transmission stone and then went to sit between Jing Yi and Madam Zhong, imbuing his spiritual energy.

A moment later, the face of a young man appeared. He raised his brows when he saw Qiu Ling and the two people crowded next to him. "Uh … Qiu Ling?" The boy next to him should be his lover. He had already seen him before when they saved him from the realm in the Leyuan region and he subsequently broke up with Qiu Ling. As for the woman on the other side … That was the one Nie Huang had worked with in the teahouse.

Before his father brought the pill over, Nie Huang had told him a lot about her life in the capital city so he felt grateful to Madam Zhong. He gave her a smile and nodded.

Madam Zhong only looked startled though. Her lips parted and she hesitated for a moment before she called out. "Xiao Li?"

All three people looked at her.

"Who's Xiao Li?" Qiu Ling blinked his eyes.

Madam Zhong smiled wryly. Obviously, it couldn't be him but … "Xiao Li is … Jing'er's cousin-in-law." She suddenly felt that their family tree was getting weirder and weirder.