Chapter 415 The Treasure Hideout
Yan Yan's silence only deepened Lin Yuesha's misunderstanding. She now looked down on the pockmarked man, but despite their time together, he had always treated her like a gentleman, leading her to believe he was a good person. Indeed, one cannot judge a book by its cover; she was too naive.
Why didn't the pockmarked man do anything to her? Lin Yuesha looked down at her chest and immediately found the answer.
Xiao Qi was unaware that his disguise had repeatedly backfired, each time more serious than the last, turning him from a savior into someone Lin Yuesha despised—a dramatic shift in his image.
At this moment, he had already secretly led Liu Quan and his subordinate Bai Ying down the mountain.
"Young master, shall we leave Dazhuang on the mountain...?"
Liu Quan looked back at the dark mountaintop, and imagining being thrown down by a rope, he closed his eyes, too afraid to go back.
Fang Dazhuang was a righteous man. He told Madam He that he would stay if she let the others go.
Although Lady He was a bandit, she liked Fang Dazhuang's loyal and righteous nature. After thinking it over, she agreed and, taking advantage of the darkness, had her men use a basket to lower the group down the mountain.
"Young master, why don't we report this to the authorities?"
Liu Quan suggested that since there were only three of them and they couldn't find a way out of the mountain, they had no choice but to ask the government for help.
Fang Dazhuang didn't hesitate to sacrifice his virtue, all for the safety of the three of them! When they descended the mountain, the other bodyguards were insanely jealous, their eyes practically spitting fire.
"No."
Xiao Qi stroked his chin and finally denied it.
Although the bandits acted without any rules, they valued integrity. Their coming down the mountain was tantamount to leaving Fang Dazhuang behind as a hostage. If the bandits found out about this, Fang Dazhuang's safety would not be guaranteed.
Upon hearing this, Liu Quan realized it made sense and broke out in a cold sweat.
“Brother Dazhuang, stay on the mountain and see how much sincerity Madam He has for him. She probably won’t make things difficult for him.”
The white-robed man with the big beard was trying to find an excuse for his master. They needed to speed up their journey to the capital. As for Fang Dazhuang, he would leave that to the others.
Liu Quan racked his brains but couldn't come up with a good solution. Since he couldn't report it to the authorities, the three of them had to find another way.
Right now, some of the money has been taken by the bandits, not to mention Big Beard, who is penniless. The whole group is starving, and the bandits didn't even provide them with food when they were chased down.
Touching his rumbling stomach, Liu Quan was at a loss.
"Young master, we have no money!"
Forget about worrying about Fang Dazhuang. With the carriage nowhere to be found, no money, and no food, Liu Quan decided to swallow his pride and beg for a few steamed buns from the villagers, hoping not to be kicked out.
"Yes, I have money."
Xiao Qi remained calm. The bandits searched the place thoroughly but couldn't find where he had hidden his money.
"By the way, young master, where did you hide the money that the young lady gave you?"
With no one around, Liu Quan still looked around furtively and asked.
The silver notes on the young master's person were the largest item; they were the travel expenses for the group to enter the capital, as well as the capital to settle down in the city.
"It's right down there."
After Xiao Qi finished speaking, he took off his shoes, revealing socks with an unusual chick pecking at rice pattern.
"The bandits just checked, but there's nothing there. Could it be that you hid the silver notes in a lining of your shoe?"
Liu Quan was puzzled, but the bandits had already checked the lining of the shoes, and the young master had also taken off his socks, so there were no silver notes.
"Here."
Xiao Qi twitched his eye and touched the little yellow chick. After a moment, the little yellow chick opened its mouth, revealing several silver notes inside.
Liu Quan and Bai Ying looked at each other, speechless.
Xiao Qi pulled a trick; the hiding place for the money was Lin Yuesha's idea—a little smokescreen.
"Miss is brilliant."
Liu Quan sighed. Since the silver hadn't been lost, he didn't need to worry about the food for the three of them on their way to the capital. Overwhelmed by the joy of suddenly having money, Liu Quan forgot about Fang Dazhuang, who was still suffering on the mountain.
...
In the mountains and fields, the night breeze was cool and the fragrance of flowers was refreshing, which gradually improved Lin Yuesha's mood.
The tent on the carriage had been lowered, and Qingxing and Qi'er laid out their bedding. Lin Yuesha climbed up to take a look and became increasingly satisfied with Xiao Dazhuang's transformation.
After a day of travel, everyone was quite tired, and Lin Yuesha went to bed early.
Half asleep, she heard the sound of horses' hooves. Lin Yuesha figured that the main road was nearby, and perhaps someone was traveling at night.
The next morning, Lin Yuesha was surprised to find that a luxurious-looking carriage had suddenly appeared in her caravan.
At breakfast, Bai Youran and Doctor Yan boarded Lin Yuesha's carriage together. Bai Youran kept her lips tightly pressed together and her face was sullen, making the atmosphere very tense.
Lin Yuesha didn't want to cause trouble, but Bai Youran's behavior was too obvious. She kept glancing at her, as if to say, "Ask me, come and ask me."
Under Bai Youran's intense gaze, Lin Yuesha asked slowly, "Sister Bai seems to be in a bad mood. Did you not sleep well last night?"
"I slept well."
Bai Youran had never camped in the mountains before, so she found it quite novel and went to bed early last night.
Before dawn, she got up to wash and found Doctor Liao in front of a luxurious carriage, talking to a young lady in a light purple gauze dress. The young lady covered half her face, but even with her face hidden, just looking at her eyes was enough to make all the flowers pale in comparison.
Bai Youran felt powerless. Such a beautiful appearance was something she couldn't even be jealous of; she didn't even have the right to be jealous.
She maliciously thought that the lady in purple was hiding her face because it was ruined.
She had never seen Doctor Liao so gentle; his conversation with the lady in purple was clearly intimate.
"Someone else is traveling with us?"
Hearing that a young lady had arrived, Lin Yuesha didn't react much. She had talked with Doctor Yan yesterday and said that her family needed to slow down their journey, so she didn't mind having another person. More people would make it more lively, especially since it was an acquaintance of Doctor Liao.
"Sister Yue Sha, you don't understand. That young lady was wearing light gauze. What respectable girl dresses like that?"
Bai Youran stared wide-eyed at Lin Yuesha in disbelief. What if they traveled with Hua Niang? Would they still have any reputation left?
"You Ran, watch your words!"
Seeing her cousin's increasingly absurd remarks, Doctor Yan angrily said, "It's all just your speculation. That young lady is an acquaintance of Physician Liao, so naturally she's with us."
To fabricate accusations that the young lady was a prostitute without any evidence, and to gossip about others behind their backs, is not the demeanor expected of a daughter of a respectable family. She is less reasonable than a village woman.
Bai Youran had voluntarily joined in, and now that someone else has joined, how can she have the face to ask that young lady to leave?
"Cousin, I'm naturally different."
Bai Youran was even more furious when she saw Doctor Yan siding with outsiders. If Yan Yan hadn't insisted on helping the concubine protect her pregnancy, her mother wouldn't have been isolated and helpless, and would have ultimately chosen to exchange marriages with the Li family to preserve her status. Now Yan Yan was scolding her without even asking what happened. It was really too much!
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