The streets in the city weren’t particularly wide. Qiao Zhao followed the man with lowered eyes and a submissive demeanor, while her peripheral vision constantly watched the surrounding activity.

On one or two occasions when the man seemed to relax his vigilance, she still forcefully suppressed the temptation to escape.

Catching sight of the man’s slightly raised eyebrows, Qiao Zhao’s heart grew cold.

As expected, in this place full of people coming and going, the man would only watch her more strictly. His apparent relaxation was merely to test whether her obedience was genuine or feigned.

The man suddenly stopped and pointed to a tavern by the roadside: “We’ll eat here.”

Qiao Zhao didn’t move.

The man frowned, wondering if the little girl still hadn’t given up hope.

“Hurry up and go in. We still have to travel later!” The man urged while reaching out to pull Qiao Zhao.

The little girl raised her hand and pointed toward a three-story restaurant not far ahead, her voice as soft and sweet as glutinous rice wine fermenting little by little in one’s heart: “You said you’d take me to a fine restaurant for a meal. This place isn’t good.”

The man’s face darkened.

That was Baoling’s finest restaurant—a meal there wouldn’t be cheap.

As he hesitated, the little girl’s clear eyes immediately filled with tears, and she said stubbornly: “You’re lying! You said you’d take me to a fine restaurant, but this tavern isn’t presentable at all!”

It was currently mealtime, with quite a few people coming and going. The little girl’s voice rose slightly, immediately drawing many glances. The server standing at the tavern entrance had heard those words, and his expression had already changed as he stepped forward to chase them away.

The man’s expression shifted slightly.

He remembered the fine fabric the little girl had been wearing when he abducted her during the Flower Festival in the capital, knowing she came from either wealth or nobility. It was natural for her to look down on this roadside tavern.

“You promised me. I want to eat at that restaurant. Who knows if this tavern is clean? What if there are flies in the food?”

The tavern server had already reached them in a few steps, saying huffily: “Go, go, go! If you’re not eating, don’t block the entrance!”

He glared fiercely at the man: “How do you manage your child?”

Qiao Zhao paid no attention to what the server said, exclaiming: “Oh my, look! This server’s fingernails still have grease under them, and the towel draped around his neck is all black…”

Her voice was melodious and pleasant. Though she spoke quickly, those entering and leaving the tavern heard her. Two people immediately hesitated, and though they had intended to eat there, they turned and went to another establishment instead.

The tavern wasn’t large. The proprietress, who had come out to investigate, heard these words and grabbed the rolling pin tucked at her waist and charged over.

Since Qiao Zhao was young, the proprietress didn’t bother with her and aimed the rolling pin directly at the man.

Seeing the situation turning bad, the man grabbed the chattering Qiao Zhao and ran.

The two ran to the restaurant before stopping. The man pointed at Qiao Zhao, too angry to speak.

Qiao Zhao looked completely innocent: “I’m hungry.”

The man exhaled deeply.

Fine, fine. Though the food and wine at Drunken Immortal Residence were expensive, once he sold this girl, he’d earn back everything and more. Since the deal was almost done, it was better to avoid complications.

“Go in!” The man glared fiercely at Qiao Zhao.

Since they were dressed ordinarily, the server didn’t lead them upstairs but seated them at an available spot in the main hall.

“What would you like to eat, sir?”

Before the man could speak, a soft voice rang out: “Glutinous rice stuffed duck.”

The server was startled and couldn’t help but look at the man.

“I want to eat glutinous rice stuffed duck.” Qiao Zhao also looked at the man, her gaze persistent.

The man’s scalp tingled as he asked the server: “Do you have this dish?”

“We do, but it takes quite a while to prepare.”

Before Qiao Zhao could speak, the man waved his hand: “We’ll have that, plus any two small dishes and some wine.”

Soon, the man’s ordered food and drink were served. He picked up his chopsticks and began eating, while Qiao Zhao sat up straight and waited.

After about two quarters of an hour, only messy cups and plates remained on the table, and the glutinous rice stuffed duck was finally brought out.

“Ancestor, eat up!” The man lowered his voice, speaking through gritted teeth.

Qiao Zhao drew a handkerchief from her sleeve, asked the server for a cup of plain water, dampened the handkerchief, and cleaned her hands.

The man couldn’t help but mutter: “What’s with all this fussiness? You were fine camping out in the open before.”

Qiao Zhao raised her eyes and smiled sweetly: “When conditions permit, naturally one should make oneself comfortable.”

The man was dazzled by that suddenly blooming smile and secretly clicked his tongue: Good heavens, the little girl was so young, yet this one smile nearly made him lose his composure.

He watched coldly as Qiao Zhao ate unhurriedly, growing more pleased the more he watched.

This little girl’s particular habits—when she grew up, those people would eat this up.

With such potential, he could naturally sell her for a good price.

Thinking this way, waiting didn’t seem so tedious.

The man’s reaction was exactly what Qiao Zhao expected. What she sought was the chance to eat this meal slowly. The man thought she had value, and being close to completing his business, he naturally wouldn’t want complications, so he would be more patient with her.

Qiao Zhao ate extremely slowly, taking small bites. Occasionally, her gaze would sweep across the main hall, inadvertently pausing for an instant at the staircase leading to the second floor, like a dragonfly touching water.

After waiting for who knows how long, when the man was getting quite impatient, footsteps sounded from around the stair corner, and soon three people came walking down the wooden stairs.

The three were like magnets, instantly attracting all the gazes in the main hall. The hall suddenly fell quiet, and even the man who had been strictly guarding Qiao Zhao forgot to blink for that instant, staring fixedly at one of the men in purple robes.

That man was tall and slender, with skin white as jade and features as refined as the finest porcelain. The smile at the corners of his brows and eyes seemed to hold a handful of clear radiance, and in the flowing light, he lacked any trace of artificial craftsmanship, naturally elegant and graceful.

“Shixi, it seems I really can’t go out with you anymore,” the blue-robed man beside the purple-robed man said quietly.

“Exactly. Whenever you appear, young and old, male and female, all stare at you alone, making us look like crooked melons and cracked dates,” the other man in green robes chimed in.

The purple-robed man’s eyes curved as he smiled: “I thought you were already used to it.”

The other two rolled their eyes in unison.

As the three chatted and laughed, they had already reached the main hall and walked leisurely toward the exit, with everyone’s gaze following them.

The corners of Qiao Zhao’s lips curved upward.

The person she had been waiting for had finally come down. It wasn’t in vain that she had specifically sat near the walkway.

Outside the tavern earlier, she had seen these three enter this restaurant with one glance and knew the opportunity she had been waiting for had arrived.

She happened to know that purple-robed man—he was the only son of Princess Changrong, surnamed Chi, named Can, with the courtesy name Shixi. His character was decent enough.

Even though she now had a different appearance, given Chi Can’s bearing, at least she didn’t need to worry about being violated.

Perhaps… Chi Can worried about such things more often in his daily life.

This thought flashing through her mind, seeing the three had already reached the entrance, Qiao Zhao hesitated no longer. She threw down her chopsticks, quickly stood up, and rushed toward the entrance.

Her movement was sudden. People hadn’t yet recovered from the shock brought by Chi Can’s outstanding bearing when they saw a young lady chasing after them, and they all thought in unison: Of course, a young lady would chase after him—not surprising at all.

The man nodded along, then suddenly froze.

Wait, the one who chased after them was—

His expression changed drastically as he got up to chase, but before reaching the entrance, he was blocked by the server: “Sir, you haven’t paid yet! Trying to eat and run? Don’t you know who owns Drunken Immortal Residence!”

With the restaurant server blocking the man, Qiao Zhao successfully caught up.

“Wait—”

The three stopped and turned around. Seeing it was a twelve or thirteen-year-old little girl who had chased after them, the other two simultaneously winked at Chi Can.

Chi Can raised an eyebrow and smiled at Qiao Zhao, who had run up to them: “Little sister, is there something you need?”

Ahem, though his charm was limitless, if such a young girl were to confess to him, he would refuse.

Qiao Zhao couldn’t afford to delay for even a moment.

She had planned for so long just to gain those few moments when the trafficker would be blocked by the server, giving her the chance to briefly explain that she had been abducted.

Qiao Zhao stepped forward and firmly grasped Chi Can’s sleeve, looking up pleadingly: “Uncle, save me!”

All three men, including Chi Can, instantly turned to stone.