Lin Qinghe knew that You Rong must have heard about her stopping the Emperor's carriage.
She gently patted You Rong's back and said softly, "Don't worry, I won't do it again. Let's go home first. Mother must be worried sick these past few days."
You Rong emphasized again, "Yes, remember, you are absolutely not allowed to put yourself in danger again!"
Lin Qinghe chuckled helplessly, "I remember, and I remember it well. You can rest assured this time!"
Only then did You Rong release Lin Qinghe with satisfaction, taking her hand. "Yes, let's go home."
Lin Qinghe: "Okay."
The two returned home to Peach Blossom Village. Upon seeing them, Mother You was overjoyed. She clasped their hands tightly and kept chattering, "You two are finally back. You haven't been back for several days. No matter how busy the small restaurant is, you need to rest, don't you? What if you get too tired?"
Lin Qinghe smiled and comforted Mother You, "Mother, we know we were wrong. So we've decided to rest at home for the next two days and spend time with you."
Mother You, though unaware of the specifics, was not completely oblivious to You Rong's predicament.
Now that both of them were back safe and sound, she didn't ask further, only repeatedly saying, "Good, good... you two rest at home for two days. Money can always be earned, but as long as you are safe and healthy, that is the most important thing."
"Yes, Mother. You and You Rong go sit in the inner room. It's time for dinner. I'll go to the kitchen and make you something delicious!"
You Rong helped Mother You back to the room and then went to the kitchen. Lin Qinghe took out the pickled vegetables she had made earlier, chopped them finely, and mixed them with minced meat, planning to make the sauerkraut-filled dumplings she had been craving for a long time.
Seeing You Rong arrive, she smiled slightly and asked, "Why aren't you in the room with Mother?"
"Mother probably hasn't rested well these past few days. I told her to go back to her room to rest for a while and I'll call her when dinner is ready."
"Alright then, help me stoke the fire. After I finish making the dumplings, I'll cook some noodles for you and add two eggs."
In modern times, there was a saying about eating rice noodles to ward off bad luck. Since she didn't have rice noodles now, she would use noodles instead.
You Rong sat by the stove and stoked the fire for Lin Qinghe. They quickly prepared dinner and ate with Mother You. After washing up, they extinguished the oil lamp early and went to bed.
You Rong hugged Lin Qinghe, his large hand gently patting her back, and whispered, "Qinghe, do you know what I was thinking about when I was in prison?"
Lin Qinghe asked, "What were you thinking about?"
You Rong said, "I was thinking entirely of you. I was arrested, would something happen to you? Would you be afraid all by yourself outside? Did you worry about me at night, unable to sleep? You have a stubborn and proud personality. I was most afraid that if something happened to me, you would do something foolish..."
Lin Qinghe pressed her face against You Rong's chest, listening to his strong heartbeat, and retorted, "Then do you know... I was also thinking entirely of you these past few days."
You Rong nodded, "...I know."
Many words didn't need to be spoken; the two, with hearts in sync, understood each other.
You Rong held Lin Qinghe's hand tightly. His face was invisible in the darkness, but his voice was very serious. "Qinghe, from now on, I will treat you extremely well, I will not let you suffer any grievances. I also know that a good woman like you deserves someone better to stay with you, but I will never let go! You can only be mine!"
Lin Qinghe let out a light chuckle, "Don't you know how good you are? When you were arrested and put in prison, that Xu Yiyi specifically came to me and asked me to divorce you. I was even worried that others would snatch you away in the future."
"No," You Rong lowered his head, his forehead touching Lin Qinghe's. "You can only be mine, and I can only be yours! No one can take us away!"
Lin Qinghe's lips couldn't help but curve upwards. "...Mmm!"
At this moment, the system's prompt sounded: "Progress bar increased by two percent, total progress bar at ninety-eight percent."
-------------------------------------
Lin Qinghe and You Rong rested for two days, and the small restaurant reopened to customers, but the situation was worse than Lin Qinghe had anticipated.
The incident at the small restaurant had spread like wildfire. Even though You Rong had now proven his innocence, many people still believed the rumors that the food at the small restaurant was poisoned, resulting in a very quiet day at the restaurant.
Aunt Li said with worry, "Qinghe, it's been a whole morning, and only three tables of customers have come. If it were a normal day, the hall would already be full."
Aunt Zhang echoed the sentiment, worrying, "Yes, with so few people today, it's all that damn proprietor of Drunken Fragrance Pavilion's fault. What will we do if our business doesn't return to its former prosperity?"
Compared to their worry and anxiety, Lin Qinghe remained calm, smiled, and comforted them, "You don't need to worry. There will be fewer people for a few days. Once the rumors subside in a couple of days, it will get better. I have great confidence in our small restaurant's food. As the saying goes, the pure will remain pure. You Rong is innocent, which is our best proof!"
Aunt Zhang and Aunt Li nodded, "That's true. I also believe Qinghe's cooking is so good, and our small restaurant's food is affordable and delicious. Business will surely be prosperous!"
The newly hired helpers also chimed in, "Yes! Our business will definitely get better slowly, just like before!"
"No! It will be even better than before!"
As soon as they finished speaking, footsteps were heard from outside. Lin Qinghe turned to see the dock workers.
The workers had smiles on their faces and said, "Boss lady, your small restaurant is finally open again. We were so upset when you were closed last month. The food elsewhere isn't good, and where can we get food as affordable as yours? Ten odd coins can fill our stomachs!"
"Exactly! I felt like I hadn't eaten anything all afternoon after eating something. I was hungry before I even started working in the afternoon!"
"Old boss lady, you can't just close and rest casually from now on, or what will happen to us old customers!"
"Yes! Yes..."
Lin Qinghe's face broke into a bright smile at their words. She gestured to the side and said, "Please don't worry, big brothers. From now on, my small restaurant will not close randomly anymore!"
"That's great! Come, come... let's go in for lunch. Same old order, pig offal soup and white steamed buns!"
Lin Qinghe said, "Okay, please come in, big brothers. Hurry and sit down, I'll have someone bring you your food..."
The dock workers all went inside and sat down, immediately filling half the tables in the restaurant hall. Lin Qinghe went into the kitchen to have Aunt Li and Aunt Zhang get busy.
When she came out, she bumped into You Rong. They looked at each other and smiled. You Rong caressed Lin Qinghe's cheek and said softly, "Our little restaurant will get better and better."
Lin Qinghe smiled, "Mmm! It will get better and better."
Because the dock workers continued to patronize the small restaurant as usual, people outside saw that the restaurant still had so many customers, and naturally, they no longer believed the rumors of poisoned food. They also heard that the food at the restaurant tasted excellent, so they couldn't resist coming in to try it.