Chapter 254
Beiqiao walked past the two natives who had suddenly started fighting for unknown reasons, left the stable, and went into the inn, where he asked the staff for a box of mosquito coils. The mosquitoes in Beiqiao's Novice Village had almost disappeared, but those in the south were still rampant, buzzing around people non-stop.
Back inside, Bei Qiao looked at the ancient candles lighting the wall, feeling lost for words. This inn had a prime location, but due to the high cost of land, the rooms had been reduced in size. The player's hiding place had become incredibly small, barely enough for one person to lie flat, unable to turn over. Interestingly, this hidden room had a narrow passage leading directly to the basement. For a fee, players could spend the night in the basement, even during non-critical times.
Perfect for players with paranoid delusions... Bei Qiao put down his luggage, grabbed the fire pole in the passage, and slid down. The passage between the player's room and the basement was located in the corner of the room, quite close to the load-bearing pillars. The diameter was small, and even players with unhealthy weight could not get down even if they sucked in their stomachs.
Arriving in the basement, Bei Qiao let go of his hand and looked around. The basement's floor space was roughly the same as the inn's, with several tunnels leading to other areas. When Bei Qiao arrived, other players were already there. One wealthy player had even rented a tent and set up a homebody's paradise, complete with practically everything except electronics.
Bei Qiao had never seen anyone so willing to spend money. After all, the seats next to them were free, and people rarely ate or drank online. Large items weren't allowed in the basement, so anything they wanted to use had to be rented from the store, which was quite expensive. The average player in this other world didn't have a lot of money, so they saved whenever possible. Few were willing to pay for these things, and even fewer lived in the basement like the person in the tent.
"Who are you hiding from? You won't even go outside?" The speaker was a friend of the player who rented the tent. Ever since they arrived in Xiaoyue City, this guy had gone straight to the basement to rent something and start making a nest, refusing to go anywhere else. Her friend wandered around alone until nightfall and returned to find him still in the tent. She was speechless: "Did he offend some indigenous family, or did he owe someone money?"
"Neither." The player turned over in the tent. "If you must ask, I'm hiding from my cousin."
"Which cousin is yours?"
"Who else could it be? That one!"
"Wow, she's still using you as an emotional trash can?"
"More than that."
Upon hearing the gossip, the other players nearby poked their heads over and listened. Seeing the others' interest, Zhan Huan, eager to vent her frustrations, simply unzipped her tent so everyone could listen. "Here's a reminder for everyone: if you encounter a lovesick person, run! Run as hard as you can! The farther the better! If you sympathize with a lovesick person, they'll absorb your energy and fortune, devouring you completely and leaving you with nothing but complaints! I've already escaped and moved, and this guy actually found a man here and is looking for my help everywhere. It's just... " Slapping the curse words back into her throat, Zhan Huan sighed hard, "The consequences of almost running into a child from an aristocratic family while riding a horse weren't this terrible!"
"Found... one?" The other players thought this statement seemed a bit subtle.
"Ah, yes, she's a love-struck lapdog, but she's also a sea king, so she's a sea dog, and a very good time-manager." Zhan Huan wiped her face. "She can be a lapdog for several people while still keeping her job. I'm impressed." As a wealthy second-generation with a little money, she'd always been told not to start a business because she wasn't cut out for it. If she wasn't motivated, she could still be comfortable, but if she tried hard, she'd be back to poverty. Her cousin, Wusha, was different. She was a very capable career woman, and because of that, her parents didn't want their relationship to fray.
"Can a strong woman be a love-brained person?"
"It's weird, isn't it? She's so devoted to her man, and then she lets everyone else be devoted to her. In the end, those of us around her suffer, while she becomes the glamorous one in everyone else's eyes... Tsk."
"This isn't love-brained, it's more like that kind of...scheming girl?"
"I am scheming, but I am also in love. This has been verified by a lie detector, guaranteed!" Zhan Huan raised her hand to swear.
"Does she really like her current boyfriend?"
"No, she really likes every male god." Zhan Huan answered seriously.
"Wow, could you elaborate on that?" It sounds like a real story!
Bei Qiao didn't listen to the rest of the conversation. After leaving the basement, she went straight to the hall and sat by the window, looking out. It was already dark outside, and visibility was lower than during the day. The light from the lantern reflected on the doorway, attracting some flying insects.
"Hey, Miss Qiao, we meet again... Wow, you are so handsome!" Jiang Fufu, who happened to choose to stay in the official inn, met Bei Qiao in the lobby. Seeing Bei Qiao without a mask, Jiang Fufu, who came in first, came over in surprise: This face and this look are very beautiful, but if she wears men's clothes, she might be handsome in a different way!
"Nice to meet you again." Bei Qiao nodded slightly to Jiang Fufu: She doesn't look too embarrassed, nor too angry. The Crazy Horse incident should have been resolved?
"Oh my God! Someone killed my horse and refused to pay me..."
Bei Qiao: “…” Well, it seems not.
Outside the inn, the owner of the crazy horse was still crying out in despair, but there were far fewer people watching the excitement than before. There was also a constable staring at this side from a distance with his arms folded, yawning in boredom.
The main entrance was blocked by the owner of the Crazy Horse, who randomly stopped passersby to complain and spout lies. To avoid being pestered, Bei Qiao and Jiang Fu Fu hurriedly said their goodbyes and left through the back door. Besides those who left through the other door like Bei Qiao, others simply climbed through the windows in the hall. Before the owner of the Crazy Horse at the door could even notice them, these people were running, incredibly fast.
"Damn it! If it weren't for this guy, I could have chatted with her for a while longer!" Jiang Fufu turned around angrily and glared at the owner of Crazy Horse. "If this happened outside the city, I would have to... Ouch!"
"When will you change your habit of speaking without thinking?" Zhuang Maidong, who had just entered the hall, pushed Jiang Fufu to sit on the bench next to him: "Who are you talking to? What do you want to eat tonight? Don't tell me you are full, or you will be hungry and have to wake up to find food when you go to bed at night." It's not that they can't eat at night given their family conditions, but irregular diet is bad for the body.
Jiang Fufu, feeling prejudged, opened her mouth and said, "Then, just eat whatever you want, but eat less." Did she seem to have forgotten something? Never mind, it must be something unimportant.
Zhuang Maidong told the others to order food and sat down at the table. "Don't run off alone next time. It's not safe."
"I know, I know... Wow, this guy has been howling for half an hour. He's really determined." Jiang Fufu straightened the bowl of rice brought by the waiter, took the chopsticks handed to him by the maid, and sighed towards the door: "With such determination, can't he do something useful?"
"Money comes slowly from honest work, so dishonest people will naturally choose dishonest ways of making money." A woman wearing a pink pomegranate flower dress and holding a large flower pot in her arms walked in from outside the inn.
"Hey? Narcissus? How did you get in? Didn't the people at the door stop you?" Jiang Fufu put down her chopsticks in surprise and went to greet her.
"If he wants to stop me, I can't come in?" Zhuang Shuixian let Jiang Fufu hold her arm. She walked gracefully to Zhuang Maidong and sat down. She placed the flower pot on the table and replied softly, "Who knows what happened to this guy? He suddenly collapsed with a convulsion."
"Haha, yes, it's a seizure! It must be because he did too many evil things and his body was affected by the backlash!" Jiang Fufu nodded repeatedly and sat down opposite him very sincerely: she almost forgot how efficient Xianxian was in poisoning.
The owner of the mad horse lying on the ground outside: Speak up for me! Someone speak up for me!
Zhuang Shuixian, the most talented young person from another branch of the Zhuang family, excelled in the use of poison and was once nearly pushed for the position of head of the Zhuang family. However, she lost her bid for the position after poisoning an elder who was attempting to sell her to a powerful figure. Her graceful beauty and dignified, gentle demeanor set her apart from the typical poison doctors depicted in storybooks, often dressed in black or red. Furthermore, her gentle voice often led even acquaintances to forget that she was a ruthless individual, prone to poisoning at the drop of a hat.
"Sister Maidong, I heard you died." Although her voice was gentle, Zhuang Shuixian was never tactful. "Your whole family is coming to you all over the place to collect the unpaid medical bills. They're planning a funeral for you."
"What? A funeral? No, we've only been away for a few days!" Jiang Fufu was so shocked that she didn't even feel hungry: "The last letter was sent yesterday! Who is spreading rumors?" He's a living person and is still with Maidong!
"I guessed they would cause trouble." Zhuang Maidong was not surprised at all.
"So what do you mean?" Zhuang Shuixian leaned towards Zhuang Maidong: "Is there a way out? If so, give me one. I feel like there is no hope at all in that family." Elders who have no ability but like to betray young people, elders who have nothing to do all day and only know how to suppress other people's elders, young people who either run away from home or go with the flow... Let alone three generations, just this group of scattered people, without Zhuang Maidong, the miracle doctor, this generation may not be able to survive.
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