Chapter 228 is about that little thief.

Before I knew it, the day arrived for my appointment with Wang Tongyun to visit the Xiangguo Temple Fair.

The swelling on Li Nanke's forehead had subsided, leaving only a small bruise, and the wound on his right temple had scabbed over.

She looked at herself in the mirror from left to right, thinking to herself that the medicine Shen Cong had given her was indeed very effective.

"Sister Zisu, please give me a simple hairstyle today."

Zisu responded and quickly styled her hair into two buns, then found two red ribbons.

The ribbon was adorned with pearls the size of a thumbnail, round and lustrous.

“This was a gift from His Majesty. I found it and attached it to the hairband to tie your hair. It’s both elegant and convenient.”

As she spoke, she tied the red ribbon around her twin buns.

"Young lady, would you like to take a look?"

Red ribbons draped over her shoulders, and jade-white pearls were perfectly set in the middle of her two hair buns, making her look both lively and elegant.

Li Nanke was very happy.

"Let's go, Tongyun will be getting impatient if we don't go soon."

She went to tell Song Yi and prepared to go out.

Song Yi was relieved to know that she had brought Zisu and Nangong Qiang with her.

The carriage met up with Wang Tongyun at the city gate, and the Wang family also sent a stewardess and guards to accompany them.

When Wang Tongyun saw her, she happily climbed into her carriage.

He excitedly planned: "I've heard that the variety show stalls at the Xiangguo Temple fair are really interesting. I must check them out today."

There are also food stalls. I want to eat braised lamb trotters, ghee-fried abalone and snails, "Qunxian Soup" (a type of sweet soup), and sugar candy...

With each word spoken, Wang Tongyun's eyes lit up a little more.

Li Nanke felt his stomach rumble as he listened.

This was her first time visiting a temple fair.

The temple fair was much more lively than expected. The carriage could no longer proceed even two miles from Xiangguo Temple.

As you walk around, you see stalls selling calligraphy and paintings, treasures, food, and variety shows... a dazzling array of choices that leaves you breathless.

Wang Tongyun sent her servants to buy a bunch of snacks, and then, with great interest, dragged Li Nanke along, watching the variety shows as they walked inside.

He can break boulders with his chest, breathe fire, and swallow knives...

The two watched with great interest and unknowingly walked to the innermost part.

"Ke'er, look! That's the stage that the Desheng Troupe has set up."

Wang Tongyun pulled Li Nanke along and pointed to the right front, shouting.

A large open space right next to the foot of Xiangguo Temple Mountain was fenced off, and the Desheng Troupe built a tall stage in the center.

Under the stage, many sheds were set up, with tables, chairs, tea, and snacks placed under them.

For ten taels of silver, you can rent a shed and listen to music there all day.

If you think it's too expensive, you can skip the tent and just stand outside to listen, paying two coins for tea before entering.

Wang Tongyun excitedly pulled Li Nanke inside, enthusiastically introducing the place as they walked.

“A single performance by the Desheng Troupe in Bianjing City cost at least a hundred taels of silver. My grandfather was very frugal and wouldn’t allow any family members to go to the Desheng Troupe to watch their performances.”

“The Desheng Opera Troupe has never performed at the Xiangguo Temple Fair before, but this year, due to the floods, they made an exception and performed at the Xiangguo Temple Fair.”

"Ke'er, you don't know, Yu Miaoyin, the leading actress of Desheng Opera, sings beautifully and melodiously. It is said that listening to her performance can make people forget all the troubles of the world."

Li Nanke exclaimed in surprise, "That's amazing! We'll have to listen carefully later."

The entire venue was now packed with people, so Li Nanke asked Zisu to rent a tent.

The tea in the tent was hot, and the play started as soon as we sat down.

"Oh dear, it's Yu Miaoyin coming on stage! We've arrived at the perfect time."

Wang Tongyun pointed at the stage, so excited she almost jumped up.

Li Nanke looked up.

As the string music began to play on the stage, a slender woman gracefully lifted her skirt and twirled onto the stage. With a flourish of her flowing sleeves, her almond-shaped eyes, beneath her willow-leaf eyebrows, slightly closed, and her crimson lips parted to utter two words:

"enemy!"

Her voice was melodious and drawn out, with the final notes lingering like silk threads between the beams and pillars, immediately eliciting cheers from the audience.

Wang Tongyun listened intently.

Li Nanke wasn't very interested in the opera; he ate snacks and listened absentmindedly.

Suddenly, she saw a tall figure flash by behind the stage.

That figure...

She was so startled that she sat up abruptly. What was the Marquis of Anping doing here?

Last time when porridge was distributed, Marquis Anping invited the Desheng Opera Troupe to perform outside the city.

During that time, he frequently visited the Desheng Opera Troupe. She had Zilan secretly keep an eye on him for a while and found that he spent most of his time listening to operas at the Desheng Opera Troupe, and there was nothing unusual about him otherwise.

She had a vague feeling that something was wrong. She glanced at Wang Tongyun, who was listening with great interest, and then quietly got up and left.

Nangong Qiang and Zisu immediately followed behind.

Li Nanke walked around the stage and found a row of tents set up behind it.

This must be where the actors of the Desheng Opera Troupe changed their clothes.

Marquis Anping disappeared behind the innermost tent.

She hurried after him, and they were almost at the last tent.

Suddenly, a person walked out of the tent, and the two collided with a bang.

Caught off guard, Li Nanke fell backward.

Nangong Qiang steadily supported her.

"Little girl, are you alright?"

Li Nanke steadied himself and first gave Nangong Qiang a wink.

Nangong Qiang understood and quietly withdrew, then quickly chased after the direction where Marquis Anping had left.

Li Nanke then turned to look at the person who had bumped into him.

The other person was a woman in her forties, wearing a navy blue cloak with gold trim, with a round face, narrow forehead, fair skin, and a gentle expression.

He was looking at her with a face full of apology.

Li Nanke looked up at her, his eyes flickering slightly.

The person in front of me looked somewhat familiar, but I couldn't quite place where I had seen them before.

Seeing that she didn't speak, the other person asked again, feeling embarrassed.

"Little girl, did you get hurt? I was thinking about something and didn't look where I was going."

Li Nanke snapped out of her daze, smiled, and shook her head.

"I'm fine, madam. Haven't we met somewhere before?"

The lady smiled gently, her eyes revealing a touch of coquettish charm, showing glimpses of her youthful beauty.

The maid behind him smiled and said, "That little girl has a sweet tongue."

This is our lady's first time visiting Bianjing, we..."

The lady glanced at her indifferently.

The maid's expression hardened, and she immediately shut her mouth.

The lady smiled at Li Nanke, then turned and left.

Li Nanke stared at her retreating figure, his brows furrowing slightly.

Just as they were about to turn back to the shed, a commotion suddenly broke out ahead.

"Thief! Catch the thief!"

Amidst the clamor of shouts, a thin figure ran from the other end of the temple fair.

It was a boy of eight or nine years old, his clothes were so dirty that the color of the fabric was no longer visible.

His face was covered in black dirt; it was unclear whether it was mud or ash stuck to it.

Five or six people, men and women, followed behind him.

"Little beggar, don't run away, give me back my money bag."

The little beggar bumped into Li Nanke and disappeared into the crowd.

"Quickly, find him! You must catch that little brat!"

The people who were chasing after them were furious.

Li Nanke didn't take the matter to heart and slowly walked towards the rented shed.

Before they even arrived at their destination, a hand suddenly reached out from the side and pulled Li Nanke into the tent next to them.

"girl!"

Zisu exclaimed in surprise and rushed inside.

But Li Nanke stood steadily, staring at the person on the ground with a look of astonishment.

Zisu followed her gaze and exclaimed without surprise.

"It's that little thief!"