She knew that marrying General Lin was a way of climbing the social ladder.

However, the thought of Zhao Yongze, the son of that Lord Zhao who was on good terms with my father, and the lewd look he gave me every time he looked at me made me want to vomit.

Therefore, Wu Jinyao secretly made up her mind that her husband must be someone she liked, and definitely not someone like Zhao Yongze.

The first time she saw the young general attending the banquet at home, she knew she would marry no one but him.

She had even decided that she would be willing to marry him as a concubine.

She would rather be a concubine to someone like General Lin than a wife to someone like Zhao Yongze.

Thinking of the question her father's advisor had asked her yesterday, Wu Jinyao felt a pang of sadness.

She was in love with General Lin and wanted to grow old with him, but she had to resort to such underhanded means? So she refused. She knew that her father must have known about this and tacitly approved of it, since her advisor dared to bring it up with her.

However, she didn't want to be looked down upon by General Lin. She told the advisor that she wanted to try again.

After Peng Xian and his party entered the city, the streets were so crowded that it was impossible to ride a horse quickly.

Thus, the sedan chair from the Wu family was able to follow smoothly.

The maid told Wu Jinyao that General Lin and his entourage had stopped at Juxianlou, apparently intending to dine there.

Wu Jinyao straightened her clothes, got out of the sedan chair, and prepared to pretend to pass by casually and go up to say hello.

She was very glad that she had dressed up nicely before going out today, wearing a new dress and a new hair ornament.

Looking at the handsome face of her beloved, Wu Jinyao couldn't take her eyes off him. He was the person she had set her sights on and had liked for nearly three years.

He silently went over what he was going to say again, and just as he was about to walk over, he saw the woman he had met at the Shen family's clothing shop.

She actually knows General Lin? No, wait, she entered the restaurant chatting and laughing with General Lin and others!

Wu Jinyao lowered her foot again and whispered to the maid, "Go and find out what happened."

The maid had also witnessed what had just happened, and upon hearing the sound, she quickly responded and went over herself.

She quickly turned back and said, "Your Highness, I have found out that it was that young lady who hosted the general and his party. The restaurant staff do not know the reason for the banquet."

Upon hearing this, Wu Jinyao's expression turned quite unpleasant.

After being wronged at the Shen family's clothing shop that day, her father sent someone to investigate the woman's background. The only thing they found was that she could freely enter and leave the military camp, but they were unsure whether she had any connection with the military officer inside.

Who would have thought it would be General Lin?

My father was a fifth-rank prefect. He invited General Lin several times a year, but the general only agreed two or three times.

Why did he come when the woman invited him?

Since she hosted a banquet for General Lin, it means they are not related!

Wu Jinyao almost twisted the handkerchief in her hand to pieces, feeling truly unwilling to leave like this.

After thinking for a moment, he came up with an idea and headed towards the restaurant with his maid.

Upon entering the restaurant, one could see the woman who had hosted General Lin standing in front of the counter.

The shopkeeper behind the counter noticed a customer entering and instinctively looked over. He recognized the young lady from Prefect Wu's family: "Miss Yao, would you like to dine here or order some dishes?"

"I'm here to buy lion's head meatballs for my mother. Oh, what a coincidence, this young lady is here too?" Wu Jinyao stepped forward and said.

Hong Xiaoduo simply nodded without offering any further response.

Although Yao Niangzi apologized to him at the clothing shop that day, it wasn't from the bottom of her heart; she was forced to show weakness because she was coerced by his words.

Hong Xiaoduo really couldn't be bothered to even try to deal with this kind of person.

"Shopkeeper, leave our two tables here for now. We'll adjust the bill later if there's an overpayment or a shortfall. If they sneak down to settle their bill, don't accept it from them." After saying this, Hong Xiaoduo placed a ten-tael silver ingot on the counter.

"Alright, when General Lin and his men arrive, I'll just say they've already paid." The innkeeper readily agreed; what the restaurant loved most was customers vying to pay.

"Shopkeeper, is this young lady entertaining General Lin?" Wu Jinyao asked, feigning surprise.

The shopkeeper nodded and said yes.

"Shopkeeper, may I treat those two tables of the young lady's?" Wu Jinyao said, taking a gold leaf from her purse and placing it on the counter.

The shopkeeper immediately looked at Hong Xiaoduo upon seeing this.

"Please don't misunderstand, my father always says that it's because General Lin and his men are guarding the border that we're able to live in peace. So, since it's almost the end of the year, let's treat General Lin and his men to a meal on behalf of the people of Dawu Pass," Wu Jinyao said.

Hearing this, Hong Xiaoduo, who was standing to the side, understood the meaning behind it. It was quite a subtle hint. Was this a way of winning over her father, who was going to be the prefect?

"I'm sorry, but I'm hosting this banquet for them today, so I'll naturally pay for it. If you want to thank General Lin on behalf of the people of Dawu Pass, you can leave the silver here and host another banquet for them later." After saying this, Hong Xiaoduo pushed her silver ingot towards the shopkeeper's hand.

Hong Xiaoduo was actually quite speechless. She just wanted to thank Peng Xi and the others, so why was it so difficult?

I hosted a banquet for them yesterday, but they ended up paying for it.

Let's make up for the missed treat today; yet another person is eager to treat us!

Hong Xiaoduo didn't want to argue with the daughter of the prefect. She already had gold beads and gold leaves, but there was no need to flaunt her wealth in a position like this.

“Young lady, it’s rare for me to run into them. I’ll treat them this time. You can find another opportunity to host a banquet next time, it’ll be the same.” Wu Jinyao raised her voice a little, not afraid that General Lin would hear her, but just afraid that he wouldn’t.

Hong Xiaoduo felt that the person in front of her was really looking for trouble: "Sorry, this meal is on me."

The shopkeeper behind the counter, seeing these two young ladies arguing, was usually delighted when customers vied to pay, but now it had become a difficult situation for him.

Logically speaking, the young lady who arrived first had a point, but he didn't dare offend the one who gave him the gold leaf!

For a moment, the shopkeeper had a headache.

"Young Lady Hong, the dishes are all served. We'd be too embarrassed to start eating if you didn't come up here," Qi Feng called out, leaning on the upstairs railing and looking down.

Upon hearing this, Hong Xiaoduo shouted at him, "Call your boss or General Lin down here."

Qi Feng also noticed the other young lady next to Hong Xiaoduo. It seemed that the two of them looked a little off, and the shopkeeper also looked troubled. What was going on?

However, since Miss Hong had asked him to call those two, he quickly returned to the private room and called them downstairs.

Lin Ansheng and Peng Xian both looked puzzled, but they still got up and went downstairs.

Quan Jinghuai's seven children, along with Ying Hai and the others, also came out of the private room. Instead of going downstairs, they stood around the railing and looked down...