Xu Lingqing smiled slightly, feeling warm inside; she thoroughly enjoyed this feeling.
The two princes specially sent her a lot of tonics to help her recover, and also gave her several personal maids, all of whom knew martial arts.
"We feel at ease leaving them here."
Xu Lingqing said, "I can't keep any of the people around me. If I didn't trust you, I would never have accepted you."
Xuanyuan Ming nodded like a chick pecking at rice, and started talking about the past. He blinked and said, "I was only six or seven years old back then, a very mischievous age. My eldest brother was really ruthless. I only scared you once, and he beat me so badly that I couldn't get out of bed for a month."
Xu Lingqing couldn't stop smiling.
A clear and melodious laugh came from inside the house. Zhao Zhiyan stood there, hesitant to go in, then turned around and left.
Xuanyuan Ming stayed for most of the day, and only reluctantly left when it was almost evening.
"Sister Qing, I will come to visit you again tomorrow."
"good."
Xuanyuan Ming smiled and waved at her before turning to leave. He had barely left the Eighth Prince's residence when someone blocked his way.
"Young master, please have mercy."
A little girl held up a broken bowl, her big, clear eyes staring at him expectantly.
"You little liar, you're lying to people again!"
Suddenly, a pretty, pale yellow figure flashed by, grabbed the little girl by the collar, and said angrily, "I've searched three streets for you, and you dare to lie to me? My money isn't so easy to fool, hand it over."
"I...I didn't!" The little girl looked at Xuan Yuanming nervously: "Young Master, please save me!"
The woman reached out to grope the little girl.
Xuan Yuanming reached out to stop him: "What are you doing? Why would a proper young lady make things difficult for a little beggar?"
During the argument, a jade pendant fell to the ground and shattered into several pieces. The woman froze instantly, her body trembling as she bent down to pick up the jade pendant.
The pitiful little beggar hid behind Xuanyuan Ming.
The woman looked up, tears still welling in her eyes. She glared angrily at Xuan Yuanming: "Open your eyes and look! This jade pendant is mine! I kindly gave her silver, but she stole my jade pendant!"
The little beggar, feeling guilty, tried to run away, but the woman grabbed his wrist: "He broke the jade pendant, you should ask him to pay for it, it's none of my business."
After saying that, the little beggar bit the woman's hand hard. The woman cried out in pain and let go. The little beggar then dodged the bite with incredible agility, weaving left and right through the crowd and disappearing in the blink of an eye.
The woman was so angry that she stomped her feet.
"Damn it! Don't let me catch you again!"
Xuanyuan Ming was dumbfounded.
The little beggar looked so weak and feeble just now; I never expected him to be a conman.
The woman bent down and laid the handkerchief on the ground, carefully picking up the fragments of the jade pendant and placing them on the handkerchief. Seeing this, Xuan Yuanming felt a little uncomfortable: "I... I didn't know she was a fraud. This jade pendant was broken because of me. How much is it? I'll compensate you."
The woman rolled up the handkerchief and held it in her palm. She glared at Xuan Yuanming and said, "This is a keepsake left to me by my mother. No amount of money can buy it!"
Hearing this, Xuanyuan Ming felt even more guilty.
Ignoring Xuan Yuanming, she turned and left. Perhaps she was walking too fast, for a carriage came speeding from a distance and was about to hit her.
Xuan Yuanming swiftly reached out and grabbed the woman: "Be careful!"
A horse-drawn carriage flew by.
The two were nearly hit by the wind.
The handkerchief in the woman's hand was blown away, and the jade pendant fell to the ground again, shattering even more badly. People were walking by on the street, and some accidentally kicked away the fragments.
"No!" The woman bent down and picked up the items piece by piece from the ground, crying like a child, her shoulders shaking violently.
Xuan Yuanming felt even more guilty: "Yes, I'm sorry."
The woman glared at him angrily, then burst into tears, drawing the attention of passersby. Xuan Yuanming's face turned red, and he wished he could disappear into the ground.
I just felt ashamed.
The woman propped herself up to stand, casually wiped away her tears, turned and left without even looking back.
Xuanyuan Ming pursed his lips, feeling somewhat uneasy. He asked the attendant beside him, "Do you remember what that jade pendant looked like?"
The servant shook his head.
Xuanyuan Ming didn't see it clearly and picked up a piece of jade. It felt very rough. He had at least a basketful of such jade pendants in his backyard.
Unexpectedly, I met that girl again at the post station. The difference was that she was dressed as a waiter and was running around, serving tea to the guests.
"Miss Aqin, this is where you pay the bill."
"They're here!" Ah Qin rushed over, smiling as she started calculating the bill. The customer at the table was a middle-aged man who reached out and touched Ah Qin's hand, but Ah Qin skillfully avoided it: "Sir, Ah Qin is lowly, please don't dirty your hands."
The other party smiled and didn't seem annoyed.
He stood there for a while, watching the little girl bustling around without stopping for a moment. He sent someone to inquire and learned that "this girl is called Aqin. She came from the village to seek refuge with relatives, but the relatives did not recognize her. Her mother died a few months ago. The manager of the post station is from the same village as Aqin, so he took them in and asked her to do some hard labor to support her younger brother."
Xuan Yuanming felt even worse upon hearing this. He had also lost his mother at a young age and was raised by his older brothers.
Seeing her small, frail body struggling to carry a jar of wine, her face pale and her teeth clenched as she held on, Xuan Yuanming felt a pang of pity.
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