The young attendant arranged seats for the two of them, called over a waiter, then turned and left.

In the main hall, a scattering of commoners were still eating. Some ate hurriedly, while others took their time.

“What would you two like to eat?” the waiter asked respectfully.

Feng Jiu’er glanced at the menu, then let her gaze settle on Qiao Mu.

“You order.”

“Mm.” Qiao Mu nodded and took the wooden menu board.

She could already guess that the little girl sitting across from her hadn’t come through that door to eat.

Qiao Mu casually ordered two pastries and handed the menu back to the waiter.

She raised her eyes, and following Feng Jiu’er’s line of sight, looked toward a table not far away.

“Tell me, what’s going on with the capital this time? Just one criminal, and they need to lock down the whole country?” A man in white poured himself a cup of wine.

“Exactly!” The man in gray set down the cup in his hand.

“With the gates shut, how am I supposed to get my goods out? Damn it!”

“Do you all have my troubles?” The man in blue-green was clearly a little drunk.

“The shrimp and fish at my farm are just ready to be shipped, and now this happens?”

He sighed heavily and poured himself another cup.

“Brother Yang, your fish and shrimp can still be raised a while longer if they stay in the water. My vegetables will just wither if I don’t harvest them.” The man in white drank another cup himself.

“It’s trouble either way!” The man in gray sighed softly.

“Brother Yang put so much money into his stock. Just when it was about to pay off, this happens. If something goes wrong, he’ll be ruined!”

“Only Brother Le understands the pain I’m feeling!” The man in blue-green set down his cup, his face full of worry.

“Brother Wu has it rough too.” The man in gray picked up the wine jug and poured for everyone. “Once vegetables go old, no one wants them.”

“A whole year of hard work for nothing, and I still have to pay rent on the land and wages to the workers!”

The man in white shook his head and raised his cup. “Enough talk! Today, we drink until we’re drunk!”

“Right, drunk it is!” The man in blue-green also raised his cup.

Just as the two were about to drink, the man in gray grabbed their arms.

“Let’s think of a way,” he said, raising an eyebrow at the two of them.

“What way could there be?” The man in white frowned at him.

“Even the town mayor has no way. What can we do?”

“I already went to the mayor,” said the man in blue-green, leaning toward the man in the middle. “I even sent him something, but…”

“He refused it?” The man in gray’s brow furrowed.

“Mm.” The man in blue-green pulled back his arm and downed another cup.

“Sigh.” He set the cup down. “This must really be serious, if even he doesn’t dare take it.”

“Think about it — is there anything he wouldn’t dare do? If even he says there’s no way, then there really is no way.”

“The mayor refusing money? I really never thought I’d see that.” The man in gray released the other man and tapped the table.

“Why don’t we…” He raised his eyes again.

When both men leaned in close, he lowered his voice. “Let’s go see the city lord. The city lord will have a way — it just depends on whether you’re willing to…”

The man in gray glanced left and right, a peculiar gleam flashing in his eyes.

“It’s not just us in Wutong Town — I’d guess plenty of people across Xixi City will be going to see the city lord. If we don’t go, the chance will just go to someone else.”

“Fine, let’s go.”

“We have to go. Even if it costs a fortune, we can’t come away with nothing.”

The other two men agreed readily.

The waiter brought out the pastries and waved a hand. “Please, enjoy!”

Feng Jiu’er drew her gaze back and gave a light nod.

“By the way, is your boss around?”

“Miss knows our boss?” the waiter asked.

“No,” Feng Jiu’er shook her head, “but I think he might know me.”

Qiao Mu looked at Feng Jiu’er and frowned.

But she asked nothing, picked up a piece of pastry, examined it, and put it in her mouth.

“Does Miss wish to see our boss?” the waiter asked softly.

Feng Jiu’er composed herself and nodded. “Is he here? Is now convenient?”

“The boss isn’t at the shop, but I can go ask around.”

“When he’s not at the shop, where does he usually go?” Feng Jiu’er asked.

“Our Fenglan Inn has nine branches in Xixi City alone. I don’t know offhand where the boss is right now,” the waiter answered, still respectful.

He seems quite dedicated to his work!

“Mm.” Feng Jiu’er picked up her chopsticks. “I know you have quite a few branches.”

I just didn’t know there were this many! She kept that part to herself.

“Not just in Xixi City — your Fenglan Inn must span the whole Feng Clan territory.”

“More or less,” the waiter said with a faint smile. “Miss, do you still wish to see our boss?”

“May I ask your name, Miss? I’ll go tell the manager.”

Feng Jiu’er glanced around, then beckoned him closer.

The waiter stepped in and lowered his voice. “Miss, what would you like?”

Feng Jiu’er tilted her head to look at him, pressing her lips together. “Nothing much — I just want to know, with the city gates sealed, will that cause you a lot of trouble?”

“Actually, I have some business dealings with Fenglan Inn. This trip was meant to be an inspection.”

“I didn’t expect the gates to be sealed.”

“If I remember correctly, a lot of your supplies are purchased together in bulk — right now…”

Feng Jiu’er was only guessing, but chain inns should have things in common, such as the dishes on the menu.

“Sigh.” The waiter sighed. “Miss is right, closing the gates really is troublesome.”

“But that’s not something I need to worry about. If Miss truly has important matters, you might first speak with our manager.”

“Our boss isn’t here — the manager handles everything.”

“Fine.” Feng Jiu’er waved a hand. “Go on and tend to your work. We’ll talk later, no rush.”

“Yes.” The waiter bowed and turned to leave.

Feng Jiu’er had sent the waiter away only because she’d spotted soldiers entering.

The waiter had barely taken a few steps when he saw the men come in and hurried to greet them.

An older man was hurrying outward.

The waiter met him and said in a low voice, “Manager, why have they come again?”

The manager gave a slight nod and kept walking.

“Brothers, are you starting the search again?” the manager asked, stopping in front of the soldiers.

“Yes.” The soldier in front swept his eyes over every corner of the shop.

“Starting today, searches like this will happen continuously. You must be ready at all times.”

“Understood.” The manager bowed respectfully and waved a hand. “Please, go ahead!”

The guests present kept eating and drinking as before, just a little more subdued than earlier.

They were uneasy inside, but showed little of it outwardly.