The man in the bamboo hat chuckled upon seeing Mu Anxiao, "You truly are a crude woman." With that, he reached out and nudged her shoulder.
Propelled by the man in the bamboo hat, Mu Anxiao involuntarily took half a step forward. At that very moment, his words echoed in her ears. She frowned slightly, momentarily disregarding Zhao Xiang before her, and turned to face the man in the bamboo hat.
Oblivious, the man in the bamboo hat said, "What, did I say something wrong?" He glanced around.
Mu Anxiao offered a feigned smile. "What do you think?" she replied. Stepping forward as a retort, she firmly pushed the man's shoulder and whispered, "If you don't speak, no one will think you're mute." She then thought to herself, thankfully he was wearing his black cloth, otherwise, she would have been exposed.
"You dislike me talking," the man in the bamboo hat began, his gaze inadvertently falling upon Mu Anxiao's male attire. He smiled. "Oh, I apologize. I forgot, you are..."
"Just shut up," Mu Anxiao hastily interrupted, already suspecting what he was about to say.
Concurrently, the man in the bamboo hat cooperatively retracted his words and obediently focused on Mu Anxiao's face.
Seeing that the man in the bamboo hat had stopped speaking, Mu Anxiao sighed in relief. "I assume you have your own matters to attend to?"
"No," the man in the bamboo hat replied directly.
Mu Anxiao, feeling as though her plans had been thwarted, froze for a few seconds before continuing, "No, couldn't you just say you have something to do?"
"I did have something to do, but not anymore," the man in the bamboo hat stated. xxs壹贰
Hearing this, Mu Anxiao instantly regretted her persistent entanglement with him in the forest. She mused that if she had spoken less then, this predicament might have been avoided. Even if she had expended some spiritual energy to heal She Ning, She Ning wouldn't be protecting this fellow so fiercely.
At this moment, the more she thought about it, the more regretful and uncomfortable she felt. With a soft sigh, she tilted her head back... and let out a sigh.
Seeing Mu Anxiao like this, the man in the bamboo hat burst into laughter.
Meanwhile, Zhao Xiang, pondering Mu Anxiao's words, took out his money pouch. "Mu Xiao, I have a question for you."
Upon hearing this, Mu Anxiao, still sighing, turned around and glanced at the money pouch in Zhao Xiang's hand. "You've thought it through," she said, without even looking at Zhao Xiang, reaching out to take the pouch.
Seeing this, Zhao Xiang quickly drew back the hand holding the money pouch. "Answer my question first," he said.
"Speak," Mu Anxiao replied. As she looked up, she noticed the dirty-faced man behind Zhao Xiang.
Zhao Xiang did not notice Mu Anxiao's gaze, nor did he care about her expression. Instead, he looked at his money pouch with a pained expression. "You can truly help me, right?"
"..." Mu Anxiao remained silent, her gaze still fixed on the dirty-faced man who was unaware of her. Just as she was about to utter the word 'thief,' the dirty-faced man suddenly lunged forward, snatched the money pouch from Zhao Xiang's hand, and fled.
Witnessing this, Mu Anxiao muttered, "Damn it," before turning to chase after the culprit.
Zhao Xiang, slow to react, looked down at his palm, stunned for a few seconds, then began to shout, "Ah, thief! There's a thief!" He flailed his arms helplessly, hopping about in place.
She Ning looked at Zhao Xiang with a helpless expression. "Your reaction time is truly abysmal," he said, then looked up at the man in the bamboo hat, who was staring in the direction Mu Anxiao had fled. "Aren't you going to help her?"
"She's so capable, she can even deal with monsters. Humans, she can handle too," the man in the bamboo hat replied. He then turned back to look at Zhao Xiang, who was turning his head left and right in confusion, and let out an uncharitable laugh.
The next second, Zhao Xiang turned and ran off without a word.
She Ning sighed and walked to stand alongside the man in the bamboo hat. "Benefactor, are you an immortal?" he asked.
"..." The man in the bamboo hat turned to fix She Ning with a stare.
She Ning smiled. "I could tell from the way you helped Mu Xiao conceal her spiritual energy. Don't worry," he said, placing his invisible hand on the man's shoulder, "I won't tell her."
"She's not stupid," the man in the bamboo hat replied, walking ahead.
She Ning smiled down and followed the man in the bamboo hat.
A quarter of an hour later.
In her relentless pursuit, Mu Anxiao cornered the dirty-faced man in a pitch-black narrow path. The dirty-faced man, bent over, looked at Mu Anxiao, who showed no signs of fatigue, and asked, "Aren't you tired?"
"..." Mu Anxiao said nothing and simply extended her hand.
The dirty-faced man frowned. "I can't give it to you," he said, glancing at Mu Anxiao's palm.
Mu Anxiao let out a soft hum and, still without a word, approached him.
Seeing Mu Anxiao advance, the dirty-faced man hastily began to retreat. "Just consider it a good deed. I..."
"Stop and run, shout and call, weave and dart," Mu Anxiao interrupted, still holding out one hand. "You've wasted a full quarter of an hour of my time."
"You didn't make me chase you either," the dirty-faced man gasped.
Mu Anxiao nodded. "Yes, you didn't make me chase you, but," she paused, "you are also the first person to steal money right under my nose. Quite bold."
"You..."
"I assume you know that fellow was going to give me the money," Mu Anxiao interrupted.
From the moment they entered the city, the dirty-faced man had fixed his gaze on Zhao Xiang. Although he hadn't heard a single word of their conversation, he knew... what Zhao Xiang's intention was in taking out the money pouch. It was then that he found his opportunity.
However, due to his intense focus, he hadn't noticed Mu Anxiao. It was only during this chase that he realized... he had provoked someone he shouldn't have.
As he looked at Mu Anxiao, he was about to grin when his body slammed heavily against the wooden poles standing by the wall. At that very instant, the poles began to topple one by one. He then glanced to the side, and without a second thought, threw the money pouch and crouched down.
Seeing this, Mu Anxiao raised her finger and drew a light line, causing the wooden poles to freeze directly above the dirty-faced man's head. She then glanced at the dirty-faced man, who was clutching his head, and without another word, walked forward, bent down, and picked up the money pouch.
Just then, Zhao Xiang appeared and, upon seeing the wooden poles suspended above the dirty-faced man's head, shouted, "Thief!"
Upon hearing this, Mu Anxiao quickly turned and rushed in front of Zhao Xiang, saying, "Shut up."
Zhao Xiang blinked in confusion. "What are you doing?"
"Let's not waste any more time," Mu Anxiao said, holding the money pouch in one hand and pulling Zhao Xiang's arm with the other as they left.
After they had gone, the dirty-faced man finally opened his eyes and noticed the wooden poles frozen above his head. He muttered, "A fairy helped me." With that, he stood up and, after taking a few unhurried steps forward, the wooden poles began to fall, one after another, crashing to the ground.
Watching this scene, the dirty-faced man lowered his gaze and suddenly began to laugh. "I have money now. The fairy gave it to me." He then bent down to pick up the scattered stones from the ground. Meanwhile, Mu Anxiao had already been cast from his thoughts.