Meeting again

Perhaps the word "dirty man" was too powerful, because the others in the teahouse looked at each other and dared not interrupt, and Yan Xiangqing was powerless to retort.

Amidst everyone's astonished gazes, Fu Zhi Qiao emerged from the teahouse looking refreshed.

Yinxing looked at her with starry eyes: "Young lady, you were so imposing just now, you left those scholars speechless."

She also felt very relieved, since those scholars looked down on women. However, this was the first time she had seen such a young lady, who argued with a group of eloquent scholars without the slightest fear, and seemed to be radiating light.

The little incident at the teahouse did not dampen Fu Zhi Qiao's mood for shopping. She strolled around for another half an hour, learning about the layout of the shops in Qingzhou City. Just as she was about to head back, a small stall by the roadside caught her attention.

Several little children were gathered around a small stall, looking like they were about to drool.

Children's emotions are very direct. What attracts them?

Fu Zhi Qiao became interested and walked closer to take a look. The person setting up the stall was a girl who looked to be about sixteen or seventeen years old. She had delicate features and a thin figure. She was wearing a faded cloth dress and there was a wooden bucket in front of her with a bowl of something that looked like porridge on the lid. She sniffed and smelled a familiar aroma.

The woman at the stall made eye contact with Fu Zhi Qiao, and she quickly called out, "Homemade fermented glutinous rice, made with the best glutinous rice, is fragrant and sweet. Please buy some and try it!"

As she spoke, she opened the lid of the wooden bucket. Inside, the rice grains had swelled to twice their original size after soaking, and the surrounding area was filled with murky liquid. A faint aroma of wine wafted out, with a slightly sour smell.

Fu Zhiqiao's eyes lit up; the wooden bucket contained fermented glutinous rice!

Fermented glutinous rice is made by fermenting glutinous rice. Good fermented glutinous rice has a sweet taste and can be eaten directly or cooked. It tastes even better if you add an egg, some glutinous rice balls, or some brown sugar.

Fu Zhi Qiao was surprised to find that there was fermented glutinous rice for sale here. She took a step closer and smelled it. This bucket of fermented glutinous rice was not ready yet. The wine flavor was weak and the taste was sour. It needed to continue fermenting for a while until the sweetness became stronger and stronger before it would be perfect.

She used to eat pre-made products, and this was the first time she had ever seen them sold in their original form in a wooden bucket. Although the appearance of this bucket of fermented glutinous rice was average, it was made entirely by hand and had a natural, additive-free aroma.

Just as she was about to buy it, someone beat her to it.

A wealthy young master dressed in brocade robes stood in front of the stall, followed by two servants, scaring away all the children who were gathered around.

The rich young master squatted down and said in a frivolous tone, "Fermented rice is sweet? I think the person selling it is even sweeter." As he spoke, he reached out to grab the woman selling fermented rice, making no attempt to hide his lustful intentions.

The woman, dressed in fermented rice wine, turned pale and clutched the hem of her clothes tightly to avoid the man's touch. Her face flushed red from the effort, making her look helpless and pitiful.

The servants behind the rich young master burst into laughter upon hearing this, fawningly echoing, "Our young master buying your fermented rice wine is a sign of respect for you; don't be ungrateful."

There were already many people watching, but no one dared to speak up and stop him. It was obvious that the rich young master had an extraordinary status and position, and ordinary people could not afford to offend him. Even if the matter escalated and was taken to the authorities, in the end, it was the powerless common people who would suffer.

At this moment, the rich young master's folding fan was already pressed against the chin of the woman with fermented rice wine, and his other hand was about to touch her face.

Seeing his greasy and frivolous behavior, Fu Zhiqiao frowned. This person must have done this before. He looks decent enough, but his behavior is disgusting.

Fu Zhi Qiao didn't want to cause trouble for herself, but as a woman herself, she couldn't stand seeing this kind of bullying happen. Not to mention that she had just taught a group of arrogant scholars who looked down on women a lesson. At this moment, her sense of justice prevailed.

"Stop! You're humiliating women and children in the street! Don't you have any respect for the law?"

The servant behind the rich young master looked over upon hearing the noise, pointed at Fu Zhi Qiao, and said, "Where did this blind fool come from? Get out of the way! If you dare to delay my young master's good time, you'll regret it!"

Seeing that Fu Zhiqiao, a young woman, dared to step forward to stop him, someone kindly reminded her, "Young lady, he is the prefect's nephew. You should mind your own business!"

Fu Zhiqiao frowned as she listened, forgetting that this was a society based on power, where people were divided into different classes.

She has a government official in her family, so she really can't afford to offend him.

Two servants reached out and knocked her veil off.

"The law? Report to the authorities? Go ahead and go! Hahaha..." The rich young master laughed loudly.

When he turned around and saw Fu Zhiqiao, his eyes lit up.

Without the veil to cover her face, Fu Zhi Qiao's face was completely revealed. The rich young master saw that she was beautiful and had a slender figure, far surpassing the effeminate woman, and his mind immediately turned to her.

He scolded the servants, "Shut up! How dare you speak to such a beautiful woman?"

The servants bowed and scraped as they apologized to her.

Fu Zhi Qiao was too lazy to watch the master and servant put on an act. Seeing that the woman with fermented rice wine had cleverly hidden in the crowd, she breathed a sigh of relief and turned to leave.

Two servants immediately came up and blocked her way.

Fearing they might be caught in the crossfire, the onlookers stepped back, clearing a space for themselves.

"Beautiful lady, don't go! What's your name? Where do you live? Why not come with me, young master, and you'll enjoy endless riches and glory!"

The rich young master approached, fanning himself with a folding fan. His undisguised scrutiny made Fu Zhi Qiao feel extremely uncomfortable.

Yinxing's legs were starting to go weak, and she tugged at her sleeve: "Miss, what should we do?"

If anything were to happen to the girl, she would not be able to atone for her sins even if she died ten thousand times. Although Yinxing was very scared, she still stood in front of Fu Zhiqiao to shield her from the rich young master's wanton gaze.

"Beautiful lady, it's your good fortune to have caught my eye!" The rich young master's laughter was arrogant and swaggering. After saying that, he reached out to touch her hand.

Fu Zhi Qiao does have some martial arts skills, but she only practices boxing for fitness and strength training. Her few real sparring experiences were with her coach. The opponents outnumbered her and the difference in strength was too great. She was quite certain that she couldn't win, not to mention having her little "burden" Yin Xing with her.

Fu Zhi Qiao turned around and shielded Yin Xing behind her. She tried her best to stay calm, and adopted a boxing stance with her feet one in front of the other, controlling her body weight on the balls of her feet, ready to kick the rich young master at any time.

No matter what, she would not allow others to bully her.

The rich young master's hand drew ever closer.

Fu Zhi Qiao's heart was pounding.

Suddenly, a figure flashed by, and the rich young master was instantly kicked away.

Everything happened so fast that no one had time to react.

"Who? Who is it? Have you lost your mind?" The man fell to the ground in pain, instinctively covering his abdomen with his hands as he was kicked, letting out a wail.

Xie Zhuo had just come out of the teahouse and was about to return home when the carriage suddenly stopped halfway there. The driver said that there was trouble ahead and the road was blocked.

Xie Zhuo was skilled in martial arts and had excellent hearing. He found the noise outside somewhat familiar.

Lifting the carriage curtain, a casual glance revealed several men surrounding and harassing a woman, who turned out to be the girl from the teahouse.

Seeing that the man's hand was about to touch her shoulder, Xie Zhuo didn't have time to think. She leaped out of the carriage and kicked the man away.

"Protect the young master!" Two servants rushed forward, eager to help, but were beaten to the ground in just two moves.

"Who are you? How dare you ruin my good time?" The rich young master struggled to get up from the ground, his eyes fierce, and he raised his fist and was instantly in front of Xie Zhuo.

Xie Zhuo dodged to the side and struck the rich young master on the shoulder with a palm strike.

The rich young master's clenched fists dropped instantly, and he collapsed to the ground as if he had lost his support.

The servants panicked upon seeing this and stammered, "Who...who are you? How dare you address my young master..."

"roll!"

Sensing the chilling aura emanating from him, the servants knew they were no match for him and hastily helped the rich young master away.

*

The onlookers fell silent for a moment, then cheered after they realized what had happened.

With the crisis averted, Fu Zhi Qiao's anxiety gradually subsided. She took a deep breath and silently warned herself: Times have changed, and I must never act impulsively again!

"Thank you for your help, young master!" Turning around, Fu Zhi Qiao's eyes shone.

His sculpted features were sharp and handsome, without any hint of effeminacy. His long, black hair was neatly tied back with a white jade crown. He was over eight feet tall, with broad shoulders and narrow hips. He wore a long blue robe, which made him appear as upright as a pine tree.

The phrase "beauty that's pleasing to the eye" must be used to describe this kind of person! Having been in the Great Wei for so long, this is the first time she has seen such an outstanding appearance.

A flash of amazement crossed Xie Zhuo's eyes. He had only heard her clear voice in the teahouse, but he hadn't expected her appearance to be so outstanding. Her small face was delicate, her skin was as white and smooth as snow, and her eyes were bright like a clear pool of water. She was breathtakingly beautiful.

"Are you injured, young lady?"

"No, thank you for your help, young master."

A delicate woman dared to argue with a man in public, and after a heated debate, she held her own. Recalling her words in the teahouse, "Be lenient with yourself and strict with others," and that resounding "dirty man," Xie Zhuo's eyes lit up with a smile.

However, she was completely different from the arrogant woman she had been in the teahouse. She looked like a frightened fawn he had encountered while hunting.

Delicate yet bold, this was the first time he had ever met such an interesting woman. Ignoring the strange feeling in his heart, Xie Zhuo left after confirming that she was alright.

Fu Zhi Qiao was unaware that he had seen her arguing with someone in the teahouse. After watching Xie Zhuo leave, Fu Zhi Qiao's expression softened. Remembering the woman selling fermented rice wine who had been standing nearby, she walked through the crowd to her and asked, "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, thank you, young lady." The woman with fermented rice shook her head, her face full of gratitude. Although she had just hidden in the crowd, she hadn't gone far because she was worried that Fu Zhi Qiao would be implicated.

"May I have your name?"

The woman, still somewhat shaken, said, "I... my name is Chen Xiaoyue."

According to Chen Xiaoyue, the fermented rice in the bucket was brewed by her father. When he was young, her father was an apprentice in a wine shop. Later, he lost an arm in an accident. After losing his arm, the wine shop no longer wanted him, so he had to return to the countryside to brew and sell fermented rice to make a living.

The father is disabled and makes fermented rice wine at home to support himself, while his daughter goes from street to street selling fermented rice wine and is bullied. Fu Zhi Qiao felt sorry for her and said, "Xiao Yue, if you need help, you can come to the Fu residence in Lingshui Lane to find me."

Chen Xiaoyue stood there stunned, stammering, "Thank you so much, benefactor! Here, have a taste of this bowl of fermented rice..." After saying that, she ran away like a thief.

"Hey, don't you want your bowl anymore..." Ginkgo shouted as she chased after him.

Fu Zhiqiao watched Chen Xiaoyue's departing figure, then stared at the bowl of fermented rice for a long while, looking thoughtful.

She has an idea for starting her own business!