The monk then pushed Yueyue toward the steward, raised his chin at him, and said, "Tie them up and take them away. Don't cause any more trouble."

The person in charge showed no mercy, grabbing a rope and another burly man to come forward and tie up the two men.

Just then, a rustling sound came from the woods next to the temple.

Xiao Youran resignedly stretched out her hands, waiting to be tied up, when suddenly a foul stench wafted into everyone's noses, followed by two dark figures lunging at them.

The two people holding the rope suddenly let out two terrified screams.

Before anyone could react, they watched in horror as the two of them were pounced on by two spotted tigers, one large and one small, and fell to the ground. In an instant, their necks were bitten off, and they were lifeless.

Yueyue was already terrified and her legs went weak. When she saw the enormous creature in front of her, she was even more frightened and closed her eyes, sitting on the ground.

Xiao Youran was startled at first, then grinned and said, "Xiao Bai! It's you! You've gotten so much fatter!"

The little tiger, which had grown to be half a person's height, jumped to Xiao Youran's side and rubbed against her affectionately.

The large tiger beside it licked the blood from its lips, raised its head, and let out a long roar, "Awooo—"

The entire mountain forest trembled.

The group of burly men and monks surrounding them were utterly terrified.

This tiger's roar caused them to fall to their knees one after another.

Xiao Youran even smelled a strange odor with her sharp nose.

She laughed heartily, "Why aren't you all getting out of here!"

The monks and the burly men were so frightened that they fled down the mountain in a panic.

It wasn't that Xiao Youran was magnanimous, but rather that she knew she had made that entry in her accounting notebook, and those people were bound to come to a bad end.

Soon after, faint screams and wails could be heard from down the mountain.

Yueyue, already terrified and sitting on the ground, took a step back and stammered, "They...they..."

Xiao Youran hugged Xiaobai and stroked the tuft of white fur on its forehead. "Sister Yueyue, don't be afraid. Xiaobai is my good friend! This is its daddy!"

Then Xiaoyou said to Xiaobai, "Xiaobai, thank you for saving us."

Xiao Bai affectionately rubbed against her face and then stuck out its tongue to lick her face.

She waved to the big tiger again, "Thank you too, Little White Daddy!"

The tiger snorted through its nostrils, knowing the fear these human cubs had of it, and automatically moved a little further away, squatting on a higher rock, as if keeping watch for them.

Xiao Youran was no longer in a hurry. She hugged Xiaobai and rolled around on the ground, "Hehehe, Xiaobai, you've really gained a lot of weight! You've grown so much in just one month!"

"Thank goodness you went with your father, otherwise I wouldn't be able to afford to raise you!"

"Those three kittens you picked up didn't grow up as fast as you. They even have names now! They're called Little Yellow, Little Orange, and Little Flower, but none of them are as nice as your names. You're their leader!"

Yueyue finally calmed down from her fear and shock, and watched the man and the tiger playfully fighting, speechless.

A moment later, the big tiger suddenly stood up warily from the large rock.

Because the next moment, footsteps came from behind the temple.

Xiao Youran also stopped playing around and looked in that direction.

Unexpectedly, it was Nan Zhuo who brought a team of guards. Upon seeing Xiao Youran and Yueyue, they rushed over.

The tiger casually let out two roars to acknowledge its presence.

As expected, Nan Zhuo and his companions stopped in their tracks in shock, exchanging bewildered glances.

Xiao Youran saw the fearlessness in their eyes and quickly waved to the big tiger, saying, "Daddy Xiaobai, our people are here. We're safe! Thank you! You should go back and rest now."

The big tiger then nimbly leaped off the rock and walked to the little tiger's side.

The little tiger was clearly very reluctant to part, rubbing against Xiao Youran's legs.

Little Youran hugged its neck again and said, "Little White is the best! Little Youran likes you the most! You can sneak back to Sanyang Village to play sometime tomorrow! My three kittens and I will be waiting for you!"

Little White's eyes lit up, then it let out a low howl and disappeared into the woods with the big tiger.

Nan Zhuo then rushed over and knelt before the two women, "You scared me to death! I'm so glad you two young ladies are alright! I'm so glad you're alright!"

Xiao Youran walked over and gently helped Yueyue up before asking, "Brother Nan Zhuo, how did you find your way here?"

Nan Zhuo said, "We followed the tire tracks all the way, until we came to a big tree blocking the road. Then we turned back and followed the road to the west. But strangely enough, when we reached the foot of the mountain, the carriage was gone, and the people were nowhere to be found. We knew there must be secret paths on the mountain, so we spent some time finding one and finally made it up the mountain from the east. I never expected that it would be Xiao Bai who saved you..."

Xiao Youran then realized that leaving the tree across the road, while delaying the carriage, had also delayed Nan Zhuo's rescue. Who could have predicted that she and Yueyue would be carried alone onto that pleasure boat? If she hadn't been quick-witted and jumped off the boat, and accidentally stumbled onto this mountain of thieves, Nan Zhuo would have had a hard time finding them.

However, she didn't want to go into those details anymore. Instead, she looked at the temple behind her and said, "There were five or six other young girls on the carriage. There must be something special inside this temple. Why don't you report this to the magistrate, Brother Nan?"

Nan Zhuo nodded, "It's more important for me to escort the two young ladies back first. Master and the elders at home must be extremely worried!"

After saying that, he sent two people to watch over the temple, while the rest of the people protected Xiao Youran and Yueyue and prepared to walk down the mountain.

After walking only a few steps, you could hear groans and moans coming from the mountain path.

When Nan Zhuo's torch shone, Xiao Youran glanced at it and saw a bald monk with his face covered in blood.

Before long, a guard came to report, "There are several people who have fallen and injured themselves on this mountain path of Master Nan."

Xiao Youren sneered inwardly.

Nan Zhuo pointed to two more people, saying, "This is divine punishment! Even the heavens can't stand their wicked deeds. These evil people need to suffer. You two stay at the foot of the mountain and guard them, don't let a single one escape!"

They then sent another person to report to the county magistrate's office, and dispatched two more people to impound the pleasure boat.

He then escorted the two back to the mountaintop and descended the mountain via the path they had just taken up from the back.

The group returned to Fulai Inn, and Yueyue hugged her mother and wept bitterly.

When Madam Yun and Madam Su learned that Xiao Youran was missing, they were heartbroken. They went to the Fulai Inn with Madam Yu and the other children to stay and wait for the latest news on the search.

When Madam Yun first met the Eldest Princess, her heart was filled with shock and disbelief. Seeing Wen Yuanbai address the Eldest Princess as "Aunt," she became even more certain that his identity was extraordinary. Given his close relationship with the Imperial Concubine, his status as the Eldest Princess's nephew, and his childhood in the capital, there could only be one person: Chu Changfeng, the son of the Prince Xuan, also known as Prince Changfeng?