The old man couldn't catch up, staring in the direction the trio had left.
How could his meal ticket just run off?
He sighed with regret, and as he turned back, the dog had already groggily woken up. He suddenly sat up from the ground and shouted, "Old man, what did you do to me? Why is all my clothes wet!!!"
The old man shot him a glare, and while the dog wasn't paying attention, he walked over, picked up the silver notes from his waist, and tucked them into his own pocket.
"Silver notes?"
The dog, with sharp eyes, immediately spotted the old man's little action.
The old man grunted, his face unchanged, and showed off proudly, "Yes, silver notes, a whole hundred taels!"
"A hundred taels?"
The dog's eyes immediately lit up.
"Was that from those three suckers? Old man, you're good, you swindled so much money?"
"Swindled?"
The old man swore, "Swindled my ass! They gave it willingly."
"Willingly? Are they crazy?" the dog asked, his face full of surprise.
The old man tutted, sighing helplessly, "The other party is rich and doesn't care about a little bit of money. They left the money just because they pitied us."
"Pitied me, I..."
The dog stiffened his neck, somewhat indignant.
He hated it the most when people pitied him. What was there to pity about him? He had hands and feet, he wouldn't starve or go thirsty, why should anyone pity him!
The old man glared at him and reprimanded, "What, can pride be eaten? This hundred taels is enough to pay for all of Little San's medical expenses, and it will allow them not to go hungry for more than a month. Do you want face, or do you want their lives?"
The dog gritted his teeth, stubbornly raising his head, but his eyes turned red without him realizing it.
The old man sighed again, "I originally wanted to find a supporter for you, but they were unwilling. Doggy, I won't live much longer. The only thing I can do is find a pillar of support for you within my limited lifespan."
"You will be found sooner or later. If you don't have the means to protect yourself then, I'd rather you die with me than live a life worse than death."
"Old man..."
The dog's nose felt stuffy. He turned his head away, not wanting to hear this.
The old man ignored him and continued, "From today onwards, you are not allowed to go anywhere. You can only go out when you have memorized the 'General Principles of Pharmacy'."
"Old man!"
"No need to say more. We have money now, you don't need to go out stealing."
"Doggy, just consider it fulfilling my wish."
"Just consider it me begging you."
The dog clenched his fist, but finally slumped his head down like a deflated balloon, resigned, "I understand."
...
At Xu Shi, Nan Shiying and the other two sneaked back into the prince's manor during the shift change.
This day had been truly thrilling. First, their money was stolen, then they caused a scene at Dongbolou, and finally, they even encountered people from Yaowang Valley.
It had been a rollercoaster of emotions.
Bai Zhi narrated with great animation, leaving Xiao Huan and Lan'er dumbfounded. They both clamored to go out next time.
This terrified Bai Zhi.
She immediately stopped talking and refused to say more.
After changing out of the servant boy's clothes and taking a relaxing bath, Nan Shiying asked while sipping tea, "Has anything happened in the manor today?"
Xiao Huan said, "The servants in our courtyard have been very well-behaved, and nothing much has happened. However, I heard that there seems to have been some trouble in the main kitchen. I heard that Madam Xinyang suffered from continuous diarrhea after eating food from the main kitchen. It seems the procurement woman bought unripe vegetables and meat to skim profits. The concubine doesn't have time to manage it now, so she directly had her head maid deal with the woman."
"And I heard that they couldn't find anyone to replace her, so they let Granny Bian take on two roles alone. That certainly benefited Granny Bian."
By the end, Xiao Huan was somewhat indignant. Although the procurement woman was also someone favored by the concubine, after she was dealt with, the job fell to Granny Bian, a confidante of the concubine. What difference did it make, going back and forth like this?
"You're angry about this?"
Lan'er then shared what she had heard: "I heard that the concubine's maid had someone pretend to hit the procurement woman, but they didn't use any force. After losing her procurement job, the woman became an outside affairs嬷嬷. This isn't punishment at all, it's a demotion disguised as a promotion!"
"What? How can they do that!"
Xiao Huan's face turned red with anger!
News from the manor couldn't be kept hidden; one person would say a word here, another there, and it would fly throughout the courtyard. But who could blame them, since that woman was the concubine's confidante, and the concubine was in charge of the manor? Even if others had objections, what could they do? At most, they would curse in private.
Lü Wan thought more deeply. It was a small matter for the women to buy unappetizing food to skim profits, but what if these women were instructed to add something else to the food? Now, the princess they served was eating dishes sent from the main kitchen.
"Your Highness, you should ask the Prince to let the small kitchen start cooking. The food from the main kitchen... I fear certain people might use unsavory methods."
Nan Shiying glanced at Lü Wan.
Asking was impossible. The joy of sneaking out of the manor every day was something even several small kitchens couldn't compare to. However, one point she made was correct: if she continued to eat the food prepared by the main kitchen, would certain people, or some people, be able to resist taking action against her?
To be honest, Nan Shiying was a little curious.
"It's fine, I was just bored," Nan Shiying said with a smile at the corner of her mouth, eager and even wishing for the other party to make a move immediately.
Lü Wan and the others shivered violently, exchanged glances, and were speechless.
What bad idea was their princess brewing now?
Who was going to be unlucky next?
...
The prince's study.
"The Princess is skilled in poison?" Xuan Shisan heard Xuan Yi's report and widened his eyes in surprise. Was this something a young lady from a noble family should know?
Xuan Yi twitched his lips and added, "Young Master Wei Yuan's evaluation of the Princess is: skilled in poison but not in medicine!"
"What?"
As the saying goes, medicine and poison are inseparable. How could this person be so specialized?
This meant that their princess had only learned the skill of killing, but not the ability to save people?
Was she that bloodthirsty?
Ji Jinmo indeed didn't expect Nan Shiying to be skilled in poison, but he wasn't overly surprised. After all, this woman had been different from ordinary women from the very beginning.
"Actually, none of this matters," Xuan Yi's expression was somewhat strange. He paused and said, "The Princess also met Poison Elder."
"Who?"
Xuan Shisan almost choked on his own saliva. He was so shocked that his eyeballs began to tremble, "Who did the Princess meet? Poison Elder? The Poison Elder that our Lord couldn't find even when deploying the Demon Hunting Army?"