0p0 Chapter 160 Worries and Arrangements
Chapter 160 Worries and Arrangements
With Qingjin leading the way and Qingze encouraging them, the atmosphere gradually became cheerful. Uncomfortable with being the center of attention, Lezhi couldn't help but move to Lezhong's back, using Lezhong's figure as a shield, only then did he feel a little safer.
Back in the clan, Le Zhong, who had a good relationship with Le Zhi, had experience as a human wall. So when Le Zhi moved, he stood in front of people without batting an eye, blocking the overly enthusiastic gazes from Le Zhi.
Seeing Lezhi's actions, Qingze and the others finally realized that their attitude seemed to have gone a bit too far, and they all lowered their voices, shriveling up under Qinglin's disappointed gaze.
The air suddenly became quiet. Lezhi noticed the change in atmosphere and poked his head out from behind Lezhong. The fur ball in his arms curiously nuzzled Lezhi's chin, with two heads, one big and one small, staring at him with wide, curious eyes.
"Lezhi, don't be afraid, they just want to express their enthusiasm." Helplessly trying to smooth things over for her people, Qinglin tried her best to make her smile look polite.
He had figured out Lezhi's personality a bit; she was definitely shy around strangers. Lezhi was much more at ease in front of familiar people, but now there were too many strangers present, and Lezhi probably automatically went into alert mode.
"Yeah, I know. I guess everything should be alright now..." Although she felt a little embarrassed, Lezhi knew that Leyou and the others were still waiting. Feeling guilty, she tried to say goodbye so she could hurry back to meet up with her friends and explain the situation.
No one present was stupid; they immediately understood what Lezhi meant. Lezhong smiled happily. Their son was so sensible, knowing that his clansmen were worried about him and understanding the difference between what was important and what was urgent. "In other words, the reward isn't urgent; we can talk about it later. If there's nothing else, I'll take my little one back now. The clansmen are all waiting."
When Le Zhong arrived, he didn't try to hide it from anyone. Other clansmen might not know what happened, but Le Jing definitely did. The important thing now is to take Le Zhi back.
Qinglin, understanding this, quickly nodded, "Yes, yes, it was our oversight. We'll handle the rest. Lezhi can go back now, I'll have someone take you."
If there weren't other things to explain, Qingjin would have liked to personally escort Lezhi back. But Qingze would also be fine; he was the one who took Lezhi away, so it would be appropriate for him to escort Lezhi back and explain things at the same time.
Qingze tacitly accepted that this was his duty, and stepped forward to nod to Le Zhong.
"Lezhi, is there anything else you want to say?" Le Zhong turned to Lezhi behind him and asked softly. After confirming that Lezhi had no objections, he nodded in agreement, "Okay, then we'll be going now."
On the way back, Qingze didn't need to carry her. There was enough space in front of the house for Maoqiu to transform. Qinglin also granted Maoqiu permission to fly within the tribe. So, Lezhi lay on Maoqiu's familiar back and followed Leshan back to the tribe's settlement.
There was a yard outside Lezhi's room where Maoqiu could stop. As soon as Lezhi slid down Maoqiu's wings and stood still, Leyou rushed up and grabbed her arm.
"Lezhi, my mother tree, how are you?"
"Lezhi..." Le Nian, Le Ting, and Le Ju followed closely behind, and the four of them surrounded Lezhi in an instant. Fortunately, when Maoqiu saw that things were not going well, it immediately transformed and lay on Lezhi's head, otherwise it would have been excluded.
After being pulled around and looked around several times by her friends, Lezhi smiled helplessly and replied, "What could possibly happen to me? Besides, even if something did happen, I still have Maoqiu, so there's no need to worry."
"That's what we say, but you just disappeared without a word, of course we were worried." Leyou patted her still-shaken heart, and only now that she had Lezhi safely in front of her did she truly feel relieved.
After all, he had been with Lezhi ever since Lezhi returned to the clan. His feelings for Lezhi were different from those for his peers. It was as if he had personally raised a child. Therefore, Leyou inevitably brought in the mindset of an elder.
Compared to Leyou, the other three fared somewhat better. The observant Leju was the first to notice the change in Lezhi's appearance, exclaiming in surprise, "Lezhi, your hair?!"
"Hey, Lezhi, are you entering your late adolescence...?"
Reminded by Leju, Leting also noticed the emerald green at the ends of Lezhi's hair. He said that Lezhi, who was originally shorter than him, seemed to be the same height as him after this trip. Leting thought it was his imagination, but if Lezhi was entering adolescence, it would make sense.
Le Ting's exclamation made Le You and Le Nian, who were slow to notice, also take notice of Le Zhi's difference, and they all went forward to watch.
"Yes, the hair ends have grown so much longer, and the plant-like appearance is very obvious..."
"He's grown taller too, so it must be true..."
The minors discussed it in hushed tones for a while. Le Zhong, who had been watching from the sidelines, and Le Jing, who had just arrived, explained the situation to them. Seeing that they were still gathered together, they couldn't help but speak up.
"What are you little rascals doing standing there like that? Let Lezhi go inside and rest for a bit, I said..."
"Uncle Le Zhong," upon hearing Le Zhong's voice, the ever-familiar Le You ran up to Le Zhong with practiced ease, "Le Zhi has entered the sub-adolescent stage."
"I know, so what?" Le Zhong raised an eyebrow and responded with a half-smile.
"No, I just wanted to tell you why you weren't surprised at all." Le You pouted, feeling somewhat dejected after her desire to share was dampened by Le Zhong's words.
"Lezhi has been back in the clan for quite some time now, so there's nothing surprising about it. The most important thing now is to let him rest well. After he returns to the clan, he will start participating in the clan's training with you and learn to withdraw his external energy."
Having already learned of Le Zhi's physical changes from Le Zhong, Le Jing spoke up. As a mentor in the tribe who teaches the younger members of the tribe, Le Zhi would likely be assigned to Le Jing's teaching in the future, so Le Jing was considering the long term.
"Hmm, that's fine too. I bet Lezhi herself is looking forward to it too..."
"What are you looking forward to?" Surrounded by her friends, Lezhi nodded to Lejing in greeting as she walked forward. "Captain Lejing, thank you for coming all this way. I'm fine."
"Looking forward to you attending classes with us after you return to our ethnic group!" Leyou put his arm around Lezhi's shoulder. Since Leixiu left, Leyou has become much more unrestrained. When Leixiu was around, if he tried to touch Lezhi, Leixiu would force him away with a look.
"Classes?" Lezhi had heard Leyou mention this to him before, but he didn't expect it to be on the agenda so soon. However, thinking about the bow and arrows he would soon get, Lezhi's anticipation outweighed his anxiety.
"Yes, once we return to the clan, the clan leader should make arrangements. Don't be afraid, Leyou and Leju will be there, and you will all learn a lot of useful knowledge together," Le Jing replied gently.
"Hmm." He nodded solemnly. This was the Jormungandr version of compulsory education, which he was familiar with, having over ten years of teaching experience. He was not afraid of it.
"Alright, Leyou and the others have seen that Lezhi is alright, so you can go back now and let Lezhi rest. As for you, Lezhi, stay put. If anything happens, be sure to come find me or Lejing first, understand?" Lezhong said with some concern. Although Lezhi was no longer a cub, Lezhong still couldn't help but treat him like a child.
Fearing that they might not be paying attention, Lezhi might be kidnapped by those Windwalker Clan members again, Lezhong glanced at Qingze and Qingping, who were standing some distance away.
Knowing they were in the wrong, Qingze and Qingping didn't dare to argue when they heard Le Zhong's pointed remark. Qingze secretly touched his itchy nose and looked away, not daring to meet Le You and the others' eyes.
"Okay, I understand." Equally guilty, Lezhi chuckled awkwardly, raising his hand to promise he'd behave. Only then was he ushered into the house by Lezhong. After seeing his friends off, he finally slumped into the soft sofa, clutching the fur ball. What a long day...