As soon as she finished speaking, the horse beside her let out an excited neigh, instantly pulling Qin Qing back to reality. Seeing that the horse seemed to really like the name, she smiled as well.

Just then, a soft cough came from behind, and the old woman from the daytime slowly walked out, complaining.

"Oh dear, why aren't you sleeping so late, daughter? I heard the noise and thought something had happened!"

Qin Qing turned around, her bright eyes taking a deep look at the old woman, and then said with a hint of apology in her voice.

"Did I disturb you? Someone tried to steal my horse just now. I heard the noise and ran downstairs. The person just ran away."

As she spoke, she stared intently into the old woman's eyes, noticing the evasiveness in them, but feigning surprise in her tone.

"What? There really are horse thieves! You'd better keep a close eye on your horse, this old woman can't watch over it."

After saying that, the old woman turned to go back to sleep, but Qin Qing remembered the moment she had been stunned when she looked at the carriage during the day…

So, what the old lady was looking at wasn't the child and the peony in the carriage, but rather the fire ear in front of the carriage!

She did know that Huo'er was a valuable horse, and how could a wealthy person like Qianbai use an ordinary horse? Yet, almost no one had expressed any interest in Huo'er along the way. In this remote and impoverished place, how could an elderly woman recognize the value of Huo'er?

Thinking about this, she couldn't help but indulge in a conspiracy theory, and her expression gradually became serious...

The next day at daybreak, when Qin Qing and the others arrived at the stable to leave, they found that the reins used to tether the horses had been cut into pieces, and Huo Er was almost completely severed from the carriage.

"Oh no! The rope broke! Grandma, how are we going to get the carriage now?"

With such hot weather, prolonged exposure to the sun combined with hiking, it would be strange if nothing went wrong, especially since there was a little girl like Xiao Muyue among them.

Qin Qing looked at the almost unusable reins and his face turned somewhat grim. Peony couldn't help but complain as well.

"This can't go on. How about we find something to replace it?"

As soon as she finished speaking, the old woman came out of the post station, looking at them with surprise, as if she knew nothing.

"Gentlemen, what's wrong? Oh dear, all the ropes have broken! We're afraid we're out of reins and can't help you with anything."

After saying that, he looked at Qin Qing with a regretful expression, as if he was powerless to help.

Upon hearing this, Qin Qing slowly raised her head, a smile playing on her lips, showing no sign of displeasure.

"There's no other way, let's stay another day."

As soon as she finished speaking, a smile unconsciously appeared on the old woman's face.

"Oh dear, there's nothing I can do about it. I just made some porridge, so please have some with me. Consider it my way of apologizing, since it happened at our post station."

Qin Qing smiled and nodded, completely ignoring the anxious look on Shaoyao's face beside her.

After they sat down at the table, Peony finally couldn't help but whisper.

"Mom, this restaurant is clearly problematic. Why are you still staying for dinner? What if..."

Qin Qing turned her head and tugged at her arm, signaling her to act according to the situation and not to panic.

Then, with several people watching closely, he took out a small bottle from his pocket and calmly poured half of it into the old lady's bowl!

Xiao Muxing and Xiao Muyue looked on with curiosity and confusion. Qin Zifeng glanced at Qin Qing's unrepentant attitude and then at the excitement on Xiao Muxing's face, and his lips twitched... Oh no! They've been corrupted by their grandmother!

Soon, the old woman came out of the kitchen carrying a plate, her face beaming with a smile.

"Come on, come on, there's not much good food in the countryside, just this amaranth and sweet potato porridge, have a taste."

Seeing her enthusiasm, Qin Qing appropriately showed her embarrassment.

"With such a severe natural disaster, why are you still feeding us? We can just have some porridge, please don't go to the trouble."

After saying that, she picked up the porridge to drink, but was stopped by Shaoyao, who looked at the porridge warily.

The old woman seemed a little nervous upon seeing this, then smiled and said...

"Are you all worried about something? Well then, this old woman will eat first!"

He then took a big gulp of sweet potato porridge, making gurgling sounds as he spoke.

After a while, she put down the bowl, looked at the peony, and said with a kind face.

"How is it, little girl? Is my porridge alright?"

Peony didn't respond to her, but just watched her silently. At the same time, the old woman also noticed Qin Qing's casualness and the curious gazes of the three little children beside her.

"What are you all looking at? I..."

Before he could finish speaking, he completely lost consciousness!

Xiao Muxing and Xiao Muyue stared in astonishment, while Shaoyao turned pale with fright.

"Mother...she, she wouldn't..."

Qin Qing put down the porridge and said calmly.

"Don't worry, it's just an upgraded version of sleeping potion. Speaking of which, we have to thank An Ziyun; this upgraded version is amazing!"

Peony quickly relaxed, noticing the two little ones poking at the old lady. Just as she was about to tell them not to mess around,

The next second, Xiao Muyue curiously tugged at the old woman's clothes, accidentally pulling her hair, and a wig fell off!

"Snap!"

The wig on the ground made a sound, and the barrenness on the old woman's head was clearly visible. Qin Qing fell silent, Shaoyao was stunned, Xiao Muyue was dumbfounded, Xiao Muxing opened her mouth in surprise, and Qin Zifeng gradually frowned.

Then he stepped forward and reached out to rub the old woman's face, peeling off a layer of soft, limp skin!

"A human skin mask? Disguise?"

The slightly rough-looking man's face beneath the mask was crystal clear!

Half an hour later, Qin Qing found the innkeeper who was tied up in the woodshed in the backyard and finally learned the whole story!

It turned out that three days ago, three men on horseback came to the post station. As soon as they entered, they arrested him and hid him in this woodshed. Then two of them left, saying they had something to report, and asked the bald man to stay behind and lie in ambush...

This challenge lasts all day!

Qin Qing looked serious, but realized that this place was not a good place to stay. After asking the waiter for a new rein, the family quickly left the post station, while the bald man on the ground was left to the waiter to deal with!

Judging from the timeline, the half-dead man she ran over on the road must have been abandoned by these people, who left men to ambush them at the post station. It seems their target was someone who would pass through the area after them. Who could it be?

The more she thought about it, the more uneasy she felt. How could she encounter such a mess when she was almost leaving Qi? She really regretted getting off the carriage to check the situation! She should have just run away and pretended she hadn't found anything.

It would be safest to leave Qi as soon as possible!