“Perfect!”
“Perfect!”
"What are you looking at? Time to go!"
Looking at Hua Wuque who was standing in a daze in front of the window, Ruobai, who was standing at the door with a bag on his back, called him several times.
“Oh, come…come!”
Hua Wuque, standing at the window of the room on the second floor of the inn, withdrew his gaze from the entrance of the Yingbin Restaurant opposite, hurriedly followed Ruo Bai's pace, and went downstairs after leaving the room.
Could it be that he was dazzled? Hua Wuque was puzzled. Why did he seem to see Hua Qingcheng and four men walking into the Yingbin Restaurant across the street?
At the door of Yuelai Inn on a busy street in Wuyang Prefecture, a group of men with their hair tied up in buns and wearing the same grey robes were packing their luggage on a mule cart, preparing to go to the provincial capital of Qiandeng Province.
In late June, an elderly man from their village, Yuan, went out to buy some supplies when he accidentally fell into the water and was swept away by the turbulent river. Although Ye Fan quickly reported the matter to the authorities, nearly two months later, the authorities still could not find the old man's body.
A few days ago, the government suddenly posted a notice saying that Mr. Yuan’s body had been mistakenly identified and buried by others, but now the body has been found, and his relatives were asked to go and claim it as soon as possible.
The reason the combed-haired men had gone out this time was to go to the Governor's Office in Qiandeng Province to retrieve the old man's body. Although it had been nearly two months since Mr. Yuan's death, and his body was likely already decomposed, the dead were the most important thing, and he needed to be buried as soon as possible.
Yesterday morning, the men who had been combing their hair had already set out from Qibao Mountain in Yunshui Town. Thirty or forty men in uniform, along with seven mule carts, formed a mighty procession on the road to the provincial capital.
After leaving Qibao Mountain and arriving in Yunshui Town, the self-combed men traveled through counties and borders, often attracting numerous onlookers along the way. They finally arrived in Wuyang Prefecture yesterday evening. Seeing that it was getting late, they stayed at the Yuelai Inn, arranged by Ye Fan. After breakfast this morning, Ye Fan took everyone to the prefectural market to explore and sell some local produce.
"Wuque, what's wrong? Did you meet someone you know?" Ruobai looked at Hua Wuque, who looked a little sad, and asked with concern.
"No, it's okay. Maybe I saw the wrong person. Let's go, Brother Ruobai. Brother Ye and the others must be waiting anxiously."
Hua Wuque followed Ruobai out of the Yuelai Inn and met up with Ye Fan and the others at the door. After a leisurely glance at the Yingbin Restaurant across the street, Hua Wuque followed the men on their way to the provincial capital.
"Qingcheng, what's wrong?"
In a street-facing box on the second floor of the Yingbin Restaurant, seeing Hua Qingcheng standing in front of the window staring blankly at the door of the inn opposite, Situ Ye stood up from the large round dining table and walked to her side.
"Erlang, look!" Hua Qingcheng pulled Situ Ye to the window.
"That's the man who is determined not to marry or have children, Qingcheng."
Situ Ye followed the direction of Hua Qingcheng's finger and looked at a group of men, all with their hair tied up in buns and wearing the same gray robes, packing their bags and preparing to leave at the entrance of the inn across from him. Situ Ye thought she was just curious, so he patiently explained.
"No, Erlang. I seem to have seen Hua Wuque." Hua Qingcheng's mind couldn't help but emerge with the lively scene when she went to the stall to buy tofu and the women in the village gathered around to watch the tofu lady.
"Hua Wuque?"
Situ Ye was slightly surprised to hear this. Hua Wu Que had been missing for more than a month and a half. Ever since he disappeared, the women in the village seemed a little absent-minded while doing farm work.
Hua Wuque's mother, Hua Feihua, watched her son disappear inexplicably and the betrothal gift she received was taken back by Hua Fugui. She muttered to herself all day long as if she had lost her soul.
"Instead of marrying a woman like Hua Fugui, being a spinster might be a way out." Situ Ye said quietly.
"After all, a man who becomes a self-combed man is recognized by the government, so no one can force him to marry. However, he must pay a fine on time every year to receive the self-combed man identity card."
"That's true." Hua Qingcheng nodded after hearing that.
After all, this was an ancient time when reputation was paramount, and in the Laifeng Kingdom, a man who divorced would face a tragic fate. Marrying the wrong person often led to a lifelong tragedy. Knowing the pitfalls ahead, it was better to remain unmarried and childless, ensuring safety.
"Second Brother Situ, Qingcheng, it's time to eat!" Seeing that the waiter had already brought all the food, but Hua Qingcheng and Situ Ye were still standing at the window chatting, Si Chengfeng got up from the dining table and came to the window to call them.
"Come on, Chengfeng." Hua Qingcheng withdrew her gaze from the inn opposite, turned around, took Si Chengfeng and Situ Ye's hands, and sat down at the dining table.
"Chengfeng, including your two guards, there are only five of us. Ordering so many dishes is such a waste."
Looking at the whole table of delicious food ordered by Si Chengfeng, Hua Qingcheng couldn't help but frown, and the corners of her mouth twitched slightly. If you didn't know her, you would think she was a rich woman who lived a life of luxury!
"It's okay, Qingcheng. I'll pay for all the food, accommodation and transportation along the way."
Seeing Hua Qingcheng's painful expression, Si Chengfeng suppressed the upward curve of his lips. He just wanted to give her the best, but he didn't expect this woman to have such a big reaction.
"How can that be? Besides, this isn't a question of money, the key is the waste!"
Well, first of all, it was indeed a waste of money, but every meal was hard-earned, so wasting it was unacceptable. Moreover, one of Hua Qingcheng's purposes for going to the capital was to visit Si Chengfeng's relatives at the General's Mansion. Eating Si Chengfeng's free meal on the way here was really a burning sensation for her.
Hua Qingcheng was having a headache. Each of her husbands was better than the last. It seemed she had to work harder to make money, otherwise she would be the last one.
"Okay, I promise you, this won't happen again. Next time when we go to a restaurant to eat, we'll reduce the dishes by half." Si Chengfeng tugged at Hua Qingcheng's sleeve and tactfully surrendered to her.
At Hua Qingcheng's insistence, Si Chengfeng did not prepare separate meals for the two guards, but directly gave them some of the dishes on the table to eat at the small table next to them.
“Cough cough cough…”
"Let's eat!"
Looking at Si Chengfeng, who was so attentive, sweet-talking, tactful, and discerning, Hua Qingcheng felt both touched and helpless. She cleared her throat with a hint of embarrassment and announced the start of dinner.
Facing Si Chengfeng, who was as cunning as a fox and peacock-like, Situ Ye simply chose to play dumb. Although he wanted to show off, he probably couldn't match Si Chengfeng's financial resources. However, he could borrow flowers to offer to Buddha! So, Situ Ye used the serving chopsticks to fill Hua Qingcheng's bowl with food until it was full and could no longer hold any more.
Unexpectedly, the original owner tried every trick in the book to get close to a rich young man, but she still couldn't get a free meal. After Hua Qingcheng's soul traveled through time, there were always people chasing her and feeding her...
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