"We've finally arrived in Tianjiang!"
"Wang Jingyuan! Why aren't you in the carriage? What are you doing outside? Do you even know how to pull a carriage?" Li Mingke shouted at Wang Jingyuan as he lifted the curtain.
Wang Jingyuan turned around and said, "I can't pull the rickshaw, but I can direct the driver! We've finally arrived in Tianjiang after so many days, can't I just shout out my joy?"
"No way! Look how dark it is! Won't it scare people if you shout at this hour?" Li Mingke forcefully pulled Wang Jingyuan back into the car.
The four of them rented a horse-drawn carriage and, after nearly three days of bumpy travel, finally arrived in Jiangtian. They successfully entered Jiangtian City just before the city gates closed.
The carriage traveled for about half an hour before stopping. "Distinguished guests, we have arrived at Jiangtian's best restaurant. Please alight!"
The four jumped off the carriage, which stopped right in front of the restaurant. Before them were luxurious signs and a bustling crowd.
"Thank you for your hard work." Wang Jingyuan gave the driver the money and a generous tip. The driver beamed with joy. "I wish all our distinguished guests a pleasant stay in Jiangtian and that you receive the blessings of Yao Nu!"
As soon as the four entered the shop, someone came up to them and said, "You look travel-worn but have distinguished appearances. You must have come all the way from out of town to Jiangtian. It's so late. May I ask how many rooms and tables you would like for your distinguished guests?"
"Four superior rooms, a top-class banquet, and hot bath water and tea prepared in each room." Wang Jingyuan tossed the money pouch to the receptionist, whose attitude was exceptionally courteous. "Alright! Your satisfaction is guaranteed!"
After a long day's journey, the four of them were starving and immediately sat down to have some fun.
Surprisingly, Ma Gege ate the most among the group, finishing most of the table's food.
"I never imagined that such a small body could contain so much energy." Li Mingke didn't even know where to pick up his chopsticks.
"I'm a sword cultivator, I need to exercise a lot, I can't even swing my sword if I'm not full!" Ma Gege patted her bulging belly and leaned back comfortably in her chair.
After finishing his meal, Li Mingke returned to his room, where a bath was already prepared.
She thought for a moment, checked all the doors and windows to make sure no outsiders could see her, and then took off her clothes.
When her fingers touched the disguise bead on her neck, she paused for a moment, thinking, "Maybe I should just take the bead off and relax a bit."
So, the turquoise beads were placed on the dressing table, and her originally unremarkable body suddenly became slender and exquisite. Her well-developed body, like a flower bud on a branch in March, exuded the charm of a young girl.
As her jade-like feet stepped into the water, Li Mingke let out a contented sigh.
"Taking a bath feels so good~" She wet a towel and covered her face with it.
Just as she was lost in thought amidst the rising steam, she suddenly heard a commotion outside the door.
She picked at her ears. Jiang Tian's restaurant was nothing special; the soundproofing was terrible. They must have cut corners. She wondered if anyone had complained about it.
She thought the noise was just temporary, but it got louder and louder, completely ruining her bathing experience.
"Is this ever going to end? Can't a person get any rest?" She stood up from the water with a splash, wrapped herself in her clothes, and of course, didn't forget to bring her disguise bead.
"Can you all keep your voices down? Where's the bartender? It's so noisy, why aren't you doing anything about it?" She opened the door and shouted at the people outside.
"Who do you think you are? How dare you tell me what to do!" A burly man, a head taller than Li Mingke, yelled at him when someone interrupted, "Grandpa is the nephew of the Right Prime Minister! Bartender? Even the Heavenly King himself wouldn't dare to tell me what to do!"
Li Mingke looked closely and saw that the bartender hadn't failed to arrive; instead, he was already kneeling on the ground, along with a sobbing young woman.
Li Mingke roughly understood what was going on. "You forcibly abducted a woman?"
"Pah! Do you think I need to rob me? She's short of money, and I told her I'd give her money if she came with me, but now that she's here, she doesn't want to anymore!"
"I thought you were going to introduce me to a job, but I never expected you were going to take me to do that kind of thing!" the young woman cried and cursed.
"You woman, if it weren't for your looks, do you think you could have gotten close to me? Instead of being grateful, you're cursing me! Fine, you've messed with me, you'll have no place in Jiangtian anymore!"
"You!" The young woman was both shocked and furious.
Li Mingke couldn't bear to listen any longer, so he pulled the young woman up and shielded her behind him.
The burly man protested, "This is my man, what right do you have to..." Suddenly, something appeared before him. It turned out that Li Mingke had taken out the identity token of an inner disciple of the Immortal Sect and held it up in front of him. "Since you are the Right Prime Minister's nephew, you should recognize this, right?"
"This..." How could he not recognize it!
In the mortal realm, some powerful and wealthy families will also produce cultivators, and they take pride in having a cultivator in their family. The higher up they go, the closer they are to the cultivation world, and sometimes cultivators will even hold important positions in the mortal realm.
The burly man knew he couldn't afford to offend this person, so he had no choice but to give up. "Since the immortal wants this woman, I can't say anything. I guess I'm just unlucky!" He glared at the young woman and then left defiantly, leaving the young woman trembling behind Li Mingke.
Li Mingke pulled the young woman into his room.
"How should I address you, sister? How did you offend the Right Chancellor's nephew?" She comforted the young lady, sat her down at the table, and poured her a cup of hot tea.
The young woman held the teacup, tears streaming down her face.
“My name is He Banjian. I’m originally from Qinggeng Village in the south. The Yao Maiden’s blessing ceremony is coming up soon, and the village specially recommended me to participate in the selection. If I’m selected, my family will receive a bag of rice! My family is poor, so I didn’t bring much money. By the time I got to Jiangtian, I had spent all my money. But the Yao Maiden selection will take several more days. I was thinking of finding a job to earn some money first, and then I met that guy. He said he would give me money if I went with him. I never expected…”
As she spoke, tears streamed down her face again.
Li Mingke was completely taken aback after hearing this. "Wait, what did you say your name was?"
"He Banjian, what's wrong?"
"Why this name?" There are so many names out there, why do you have to be called Banjian!
"Because my home is not far from the home of that Half-Seeing Fairy, my mother is not very educated, but she has heard of the name Half-Seeing Fairy. She heard that Half-Seeing Fairy was beautiful, and she also hoped that I would be beautiful, so she named me Half-Seeing."
Li Mingke was at a loss for words after hearing this.
"Sigh..." It's terrible to be uneducated!
"So what are your plans now?" Li Mingke asked.
"Let's make money first. I'll go see if anyone wants to hire me after it gets light. I can do any kind of work."
"Since that's the case, it's so late and you have nowhere to go, take this money first, find a place to stay for the night, and use the rest of the money to buy some food." Li Mingke put a purse into He Ban's hand.
"This... Young Master's great kindness is something I will never forget!" He Banjian was about to kneel down when Li Mingke stopped her. "There's no need for that. Consider this money an investment. Maybe you really will become a Yao girl!"
"Thank you for your kind words, young master!" He Banjian wiped away his tears.
Li Mingke's words were merely words of comfort. Although the Yao girls were selected nationwide, the choice ultimately rested with the royal family and nobles, and several generations of Yao girls had already been daughters of noble families. However, it wasn't without its advantages for ordinary women; during the selection process, it was possible to catch the eye of certain wealthy and powerful families.
He Banjian took the money, thanked him profusely, and then left the house.
The moment the door closed, she abandoned her usual gentle demeanor and curved the corners of her mouth into a smile.
"That's all there is to it..."
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