She nodded sadly, feeling as if she had been experiencing scenes of separation for the past few days. The spring greenery of a few days ago, and the covenant of today, were both scenes that made it impossible for her to feel joy. After taking the baby in her arms, she turned and got into the carriage.
"Let's go, be careful on the road!"
Before the contract could even finish speaking, the coachman had already pulled down the curtain and turned back to glare at him fiercely.
Qi didn't get angry but laughed instead. Oh dear... I never expected that the cruel tyrant would be surrounded by such loyal servants. In order to teach him a lesson, he deliberately tried to say a few more words to Shu Yao, but the coachman had already jumped onto the carriage and hurriedly drove away, whipping the whip, which was quite amusing to watch.
Before sunset, they arrived at a place called "Bianzhou," where there happened to be a fairly clean inn, but...
"I'm sorry, sir, our inn is fully booked and there are no vacancies!" This inn is located at a major transportation hub from north to south and is very popular. When someone came in, the innkeeper at the counter didn't even look up and told them that there were no rooms available, which was tantamount to kicking them out.
"The rooms are full before it's even dark? But you're the only inn around here. If you're full, are we supposed to sleep in the mountains tonight?" Shu Yao immediately became annoyed.
We'll probably arrive at the next place around midnight. It doesn't matter to me, but Xiao Bao has just recovered from his illness and absolutely cannot withstand any more hardship. What if he catches a cold in the wild?
Undeterred, she asked the innkeeper again, "We only need two of the most dilapidated rooms, enough for one night, and we'll leave first thing tomorrow morning."
"No, no, our shop is full, even the storerooms and stables are full." The shopkeeper was still engrossed in working on the abacus beads. When Shu Yao kept asking questions, he waved his hand impatiently.
"But……"
"But what but? I already told you, aren't you annoying, woman? If you keep bothering me, I'll have the waiter..." The shopkeeper finally raised his head, but suddenly fell silent, staring at her with wide eyes and a face full of horror.
"Why are you being so fierce? If you don't have it, then forget it, we'll just leave." She turned around angrily and was about to walk away.
To her surprise, the shopkeeper rushed out from behind the counter and stopped her in a panic, looking like he was about to cry.
"Please, please don't go! I'm so sorry, I was so overwhelmed by all the mess of debts just now, and I even spoke rudely to you. Please forgive me, Madam. I have two superior guest rooms available, I've reserved them for you. Please don't mind, Madam, and make sure you stay here comfortably." As he spoke, his eyes seemed to be constantly glancing timidly behind her, and his wary look made her suspicious.
"Didn't you say the barns and stables were full? How come two more rooms have appeared in the blink of an eye?" she asked, puzzled.
The innkeeper's face twitched slightly. "This... Ah! Madam, this is the room reserved for our most distinguished guests..."
"The most honored? Am I the most honored guest?" she asked with a mocking smile, pointing to herself. Knowing her own status was ordinary, she probably didn't even qualify as "honored" in front of this manager who was used to seeing high-ranking officials and dignitaries. So how could she be considered "the most honored"?
"Oh dear, if you don't count, then who does?... I mean, every customer who comes to our shop is a distinguished guest, and I will do my best to solve their problems. I was negligent in my hospitality just now, and I hope you won't blame me, Madam. I sincerely apologize to you now. I'm so sorry." He wiped the sweat from his temples, afraid that she would leave in a huff because she was dissatisfied with his previous neglect. If he couldn't keep this important person, then his entire inn would be in trouble.
Seeing that she was starting to soften her stance, the shopkeeper pressed on, "Look, it's getting late, Madam, please take the young master to his room to rest."
His obsequious attitude was a far cry from his arrogant and rude demeanor just moments before, which truly broadened Shu Yao's horizons.
"Then I'll have to trouble you. Please reserve the two rooms for me." She glanced casually in the direction the innkeeper had been looking. There was no one there, just a few servants unloading luggage from the carriage. Perhaps she was being too sensitive.
"No, no, madam, please rest first. I'll have the waiter prepare food and hot water right away. You can take a nice bath and wash away your fatigue from the journey. Please come in." The innkeeper hurriedly led the way himself.
Shu Yao smiled nonchalantly. The driver and Xiao Bao were still in the carriage, how did this person know she had a child? And how did he so accurately say it was the young master? If he didn't have prior knowledge, then he must be a fortune teller, capable of predicting the future.
The shopkeeper hadn't realized he'd let something slip, and kept asking her about every little thing along the way—whether she had any dietary restrictions, what she needed to prepare for tomorrow, his enthusiasm almost overwhelming.
After settling into the guest room and putting away their luggage, Xiao Bao ate her fill and quickly fell asleep, giving her a chance to catch her breath. She sat down on a chair by the window. It has to be said that the journey was incredibly smooth. There were food vendors along the roadside when she was hungry, and tea vendors when she was thirsty. Everything went so smoothly that it was as if everything had been arranged in advance.
She's not stupid; how many "just right" moments are there in the world?
This can only mean one thing: the man was not as heartless as he seemed on the surface, and he didn't even really want to let the mother and child go.
She couldn't make this trip to Suzhou in vain; she had to find out the guy's true intentions!
Thinking of this, she deliberately opened one of the windows wider and then leaned against the window to look at the moon outside.
That feeling of being watched returned, intense and ever-present. Very well, she'd see how long this tough guy could hold out. If he had the guts, he could hide in the shadows forever, a cowardly turtle hiding in the shadows.
This superior private room was located at the very back of the second floor, facing a gentle slope. The windowsill was several meters above the ground, and looking down would make one dizzy, but she deliberately sat on the windowsill, swinging her two shapely, slender legs in mid-air, nonchalantly enjoying the scenery...
Not long after, the coachman knocked on the door under some pretext, saying he had suddenly remembered he hadn't asked her what time they were leaving the next morning so he could feed the horses and load the luggage onto the carriage in advance. In order to answer her, Shu Yao had no choice but to jump off the windowsill, thus naturally leaving that windy and dangerous place.
After the driver left, she gave a strange smile, took a thick blanket and covered her son on the bed. Then she did the same thing again, going back to the window and opening all the windows. The night wind was a little chilly, and if she were to be exposed to this wind all night, she would definitely catch a cold the next day.
Before long, the new manager arrived. He bowed and brought in a pot of her favorite Tieguanyin tea. He also helped her close the windows one by one and carefully instructed, "Madam, please don't open the windows anymore. This place is sparsely populated and the wind is colder than in the city. Don't catch a cold."
She chuckled inwardly, pretended to agree, and then escorted him to the door. But soon she opened the window again and paced back and forth as if she couldn't sleep. The driver, the innkeeper, and the waiter were all running back and forth for the window until midnight. Fearing that her son would really catch a cold, she finally stopped playing around and obediently went to bed.
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