Chapter 21 The Twenty-First Kill

"I'm not here to buy candied haws,"

Xiaoyu explained and then asked, "Is it because that brother's mother agreed to move that he stopped selling Tanghulu?"

The last time she came, she heard that her eldest brother's mother was unwilling to move away from her hometown, and said that she was afraid that she would not be able to find her way home after she died.

"How can that be possible?" said the old woman with the floral scarf. "Someone from the business office in front came and said that the candied haws made by Old Xu's family were not fresh and were short of weight. They will not allow him to make them anymore."

"The Commerce Bureau? They're involved in too many things."

"Who says it's not true? But they have someone behind them to back them up. What can we ordinary people do? We can just not do it and think of other ways to make a living later."

Xiaoyu and the old woman with the floral headscarf sighed together. The world is unpredictable and they are just ordinary people.

"Hey, look, that's Erlangzi's Huahua back, right?" said an old man with gray hair nearby.

The old woman in the floral headscarf nodded and stood up: "That's right, Erlangzi, how is your Huahua?"

Xiaoyu followed their gaze and saw a young couple walking down the street. The man was holding a little girl in his arms and was walking towards them.

Both of them had expressions of sorrow, especially the woman, who was already in tears.

The old woman in the floral headscarf walked towards them with a cane, trembling and staggering. "Silly old woman, why are you crying? Don't wake Huahuat up."

The woman's face froze, and she turned her head and leaned on the man's shoulder, crying loudly.

The fool man next to her also had an ugly face and red eyes filled with tears.

Seeing them like this, the old woman in the floral headscarf trembled and asked, "Why, there is no hope for rescue?"

Erlangzi nodded, his facial muscles squeezed into a ball, looking very ugly: "We went to five clinics, and they all said there was no hope, and asked us to prepare for the funeral. Huahua was gone after leaving the clinic."

Xiaoyu walked closer to them, supporting the old woman with a floral headscarf. Only then did they see that the "Huahua" they were talking about was the little girl who was held in Xiaoyu's arms and fed with grapefruit candy last time.

At that time, Huahua had a rosy complexion, a plump body, and a pair of round eyes full of curiosity and kindness. Now, she was lying in the man's arms, her eyes were tightly closed, and her face was pale.

The old woman in the floral headscarf reached out and touched Huahua's hair, "Hey, go home early."

The Erlangzi couple responded and left with Huahua in their arms.

When they passed by each other, Xiaoyu saw Huahua still holding the grapefruit candy that Xiaoyu had given her.

Watching the skinny grapefruit candy going further and further away, Xiaoyu asked, "Grandma, what happened to Huahua? She was still alive and kicking when I came over last time. How come she is gone so soon..."

The old woman with the floral headscarf took her walking stick and pounded the ground fiercely. "It's all because of the expansion of the imperial city. When those soldiers came to urge us to move out, they were all very fierce. Huahua was pushed down by them and her head hit the stone steps. That's why she couldn't be saved. What a sin!"

Because of excitement, her body swayed twice in the air and she almost fell down.

Xiaoyu hurriedly supported her: "Grandma, be careful."

The old woman in the floral headscarf laughed at herself, "I'm an old man, it would be good if I fell to my death. But it's a pity for Huahua, she's not even four years old, and she's gone. How are Erlangzi and his wife going to live in the future?"

Xiaoyu's eyes also turned red, "Grandma, don't think too much, I'll take you home."

"Let's go. The house you want to go to is close to mine. I'll take you there."

"Okay, thank you, grandma."

Xiaoyu supported her and the two of them walked around a corner. Xiaoyu watched her enter the house with her own eyes before walking towards where she was going to live.

Most of the residents on both sides of the road had already moved away, and the further they walked, the more desolate it became. Xiaoyu found the yard and knocked on the gate. Soon, he got a response from a young woman: "Who is it?"

Xiaoyu said hurriedly, "Manager Zhu asked me to come. My name is Xiaoyu, and I'm here to stay for a day."

The gate was opened, and a kind-looking woman with a bun on her hair appeared. She looked to be in her early twenties.

Xiaoyu bowed to her: "Hello, sister."

The woman said, "Since it is Manager Zhu who ordered you to do so, then please come in."

Xiaoyu followed her and said, "Sorry for disturbing my sister."

She was polite, and the woman chuckled and spoke in a bold and clear voice: "Okay, you little girl, why are you acting so old-fashioned? Since I am older than you, you can call me Sister Qiutang. Your name is Xiaoyu?"

Xiaoyu nodded: "Hello, Sister Qiutang."

Qiu Tang took her into the room: "Have you eaten?"

Xiaoyu was not hungry, and did not want to cause trouble for Qiutang. "I have eaten, please don't worry about me."

"Well, sit down."

Qiu Tang sat down in front of Xiao Yu and looked at her with her head tilted. "What is your relationship with Manager Zhu? Don't get me wrong. Yun'er is my good sister. If Manager Zhu treats Yun'er badly, I won't allow it."

This was so clear, Xiaoyu explained: "I have no other relationship with Zhu Zongguan. I came from the palace and I cook in the East Courtyard."

Qiu Tang clapped her hands and suddenly realized, "Oh, I see. Last time, Yun'er told me that she ate the duck with soy sauce that Zhu brought back from the palace and thought it tasted very good. It was made by a girl in the East Courtyard. Was it you?"

"Yes, it's me!"

Only then did Qiutang feel completely relieved.

After she finished speaking, Xiaoyu began to ask, "Sister Qiutang, is it appropriate for me to stay here at night?"

When she came in just now, she saw men's clothes drying on bamboo poles in the yard.

Qiu Tang said, "It's appropriate. My husband is also on duty in the palace. He went out with his boss to do some work and won't be back tonight. You can stay here without any worries."

Qiu Tang brought her to the room and helped Xiao Yu put on a clean quilt. Seeing the tiredness on Xiao Yu's face, she said, "It's late at night, you should go to bed early. My husband is not at home, and I get up late in the morning. If you are hungry tomorrow morning, the kitchen is across the street, you can make something to eat."

"Okay, thank you, sister."

Xiaoyu escorted her out of the room and bolted the door. She was the only one left in the room. Her shoulders slumped listlessly. She took off her coat and lay on the bed, looking at the bed curtains under the dim moonlight, but she couldn't fall asleep.

Sixteenth sister's jade ring was hidden by Xiaoyu in her pocket. Now when she took it out, the jade ring was warmed by her body temperature and was still hot.

Xiaoyu stroked the marks on the jade ring with her hand, turned over, and the warm and full feeling of Huahuawo in her arms appeared in front of her eyes again.

She shouldn't be so sad about death. As early as when she was learning the door of worry, her teachers had taught her that as a killer, she should abandon these emotions. Otherwise, when she met the target of assassination, not only would she fail to assassinate him, but she would also get into trouble.

Xiaoyu feels that he has already brought trouble upon himself.

She put the jade ring away, forced herself not to think about anything else, had a good sleep, and would set off back to Jieyoumen at dawn the next day.

Anyway, since her Sixteenth Sister is gone, she doesn't have to worry about anyone harming her fellow apprentice again.

No, don't hurt the prince again.

From the moment he attacked her today, he was no longer her junior apprentice.

The oil lamp on the table burned out and slowly went out, and the room fell into darkness. After an unknown amount of time, Xiaoyu fell into a daze and fell asleep.

The next day, when the little fish heard the first rooster crow, he opened his eyes.

The sound of sweeping the floor came from the yard. Thinking of what Qiutang said before she went to bed last night, Xiaoyu woke up immediately and stood at the door with a hunched back, looking out.

It was Qiutang sweeping the fallen leaves on the ground.

Xiaoyu opened the door and said, "Sister Qiutang, didn't you say you would get up later? Why are you here to sweep the floor so early?"

Qiu Tang put down the broom: "Is it because I am too loud and disturbed your sleep? Sorry, I won't sweep anymore. You can go back to sleep. It's still early."

Xiaoyu shook her head: "I can't sleep. How about you, sister?"

Qiu Tang covered her chest and said, "Me too. I don't know why, but I'm so nervous."

Xiaoyu asked, "Are you worried about Big Brother?"

"Well, he was away for ten days or half a month before, and I never worried about him. But last night, he had a nightmare and woke up in shock. Since waking up, I couldn't fall asleep again."

"Brother, who in the palace does you work for? I know some people in the palace, so I can go and ask around."

Qiu Tang quickly refused: "Forget it, my man doesn't like me asking about his affairs. I'll wait a little longer, maybe he will come back later."

Xiaoyu thought about it and it was true. Sister Qiutang knew Manager Zhu. If she wanted to find out something, she would have gone to Manager Zhu long ago. She accompanied Qiutang to eat breakfast and cleaned the kitchen. Seeing that she looked relaxed, she suggested leaving.

Qiu Tang held her back and said, "Xiao Yu, if you are not in a hurry, can you stay one more day? I really don't want to be alone today."

Xiaoyu agreed without thinking. The master gave her three days to leave early tomorrow morning. If everything went well, she would be back at Jieyoumen in the evening, which was not too late.

"Okay." Xiaoyu sat next to her and said something to divert Qiutang's attention, "From what you said yesterday, the eldest sister-in-law of Zhu, the housekeeper, is called Yun'er?"

Qiu Tang nodded and started talking: "Yun'er is a very good person. When my husband and I first came to the capital, we were taken care of by Yun'er and settled down here. So yesterday I heard that you were sent here by Manager Zhu, so I asked you that, Xiaoyu, don't mind it."

"Of course I didn't. It was only thanks to Chief Steward Zhu that I was able to enter the palace."

"Really? Tell me in detail."

Seeing that Qiutang was interested, Xiaoyu told her everything from her first meeting with Manager Zhu to their last meeting, causing Qiutang to open her mouth in surprise.

"Xiao Yu, you are really amazing. You dare to fight with Madam Zhao. I heard Yun'er say before that Madam Zhao is very arrogant and doesn't care about anyone. However, she also really cares about the prince. I think it is because of this that the prince has kept her until now."

"Who knows? Anyway, she and I will never see each other again." Xiaoyu said.

The two talked until noon, and after making lunch together, they sat together and talked about each other's past with great interest. Xiaoyu then found out that Qiutang and her man had come to the capital to escape their marriage.

"So the eldest brother in your family is a very famous nobleman in your area, and you are the village girl he fell in love with at first sight?"

Tears welled up in Qiutang's eyes.

"Well, he gave up everything for me and came all the way to the capital. We thought that a bright future awaited us in the future, and then we would return home in glory. But there were too many talented people in the capital, and his martial arts skills were simply not good enough to rank here. Later, we met Yun'er, and through the relationship of Zhu Zongguan, we were able to get him to work in the palace. It was all for me. If it weren't for me, he would still be that noble young master, why would he come here to make a living by selling his life."