I remembered the flying letter Zhang Tianshi had sent me earlier.
Perhaps I could find some clues from it, so I fumbled it out and handed it to Jin Yulan.
"I have a flying letter here that Zhang Tianshi sent a few days ago.
I wonder if I can find any clues from it."
He took the flying letter and read it carefully.
From the time indicated and the words he casually mentioned, some clues could be discerned.
"It seems Zhang Tianshi is likely still alive.
Perhaps others are also alive, but have temporarily lost contact.
Or perhaps they have encountered trouble."
Hearing him say this, we felt much relieved.
However, we were still worried if Zhang Tianshi and the others could escape their predicament and return safely.
Jin Yulan said to me.
"Muye, please keep this note with you for now."
I nodded and said.
"Alright."
"How about this, you go back first. If I get any news about him, I will inform you."
I was still a bit reluctant, wanting to learn more.
But Jin Yulan waved his hand and had someone escort us back.
After returning to the inn, I felt a wave of melancholy.
Sitting by the window, I sighed to myself.
Seeing me so dejected, Liu Shinian slowly leaned over and said abruptly.
"You're so eager to find Zhang Tianshi, it's because you want to go home, isn't it."
I was slightly startled, wondering how he knew.
I remembered I hadn't told anyone about this, and Ali wouldn't have either.
Seeing my silence, he smiled slightly and said slowly.
"You don't need to overthink it, I guessed it.
Since Young Master Jin knows you're a human, why wouldn't I?"
I was full of surprise, unable to figure out when he had discovered it.
Liu Shinian didn't pay much attention to these matters, only comforting me.
"Tianshi has profound strength, and not many people can harm him, so don't worry."
I sighed slightly, lowered my eyes, and asked him about discovering my identity.
"Was it after Young Master Jin mentioned it that you knew my identity?"
He laughed heartily, sat down on the dressing table by the window, and said with pure innocence.
"I discovered it much earlier than him. You could say,
I knew from the beginning, but I wasn't sure. Later, when I thought about it, I understood."
"Then why didn't you tell me earlier?"
"Tell you what? Whether you are human?"
I was speechless for a moment. He was right, how could such a thing be said.
Ali and Ada came in from the door.
One was carrying a large wooden box, and the other a bamboo basket woven with bamboo strips.
It was filled with fruit.
Liu Shinian asked curiously.
"You said you were hungry just now, was it to buy these?
What's in that box?"
"Buns."
Ali replied, carefully placing the wooden box on the table.
As he slowly opened it, a puff of hot steam emerged.
Seeing the steaming buns, I guessed they were freshly baked.
Freshly baked hot buns would be around tens of degrees Celsius.
Would Ali have burned himself holding them for so long?
"You were holding such hot buns, did you burn yourself anywhere?"
As I said this, I pulled his hand to check. Ali was full of smiles.
"That wooden box is insulated, so it didn't burn me."
"Why are you so worried? Ali isn't a delicate young lady.
He's much stronger than you."
Liu Shinian added his gossipy remarks again.
"Look at how close you two are, outsiders would think you're a loving couple.
You're not giving me any chances at all."
I was speechless and ignored him, only saying to Ali.
"It's good that you're alright."
"Mm, Ada bought all of this."
"Ada, you've spent too much."
Ada also placed the fruit on the table and said.
"It's nothing, being with you all, this little money is insignificant."
Liu Shinian grabbed a bun with one hand and patted Ada's shoulder, praising him.
"You truly are my good brother."
I looked at Liu Shinian speechlessly and said.
"Nothing good happens when I encounter Liu Shinian."
"What do you mean nothing good? I am the son of fortune."
He really didn't blush when he boasted so much.
Ali picked up a bun, blew on it, and handed it to me.
"Eat it quickly, it'll get cold soon."
I took the bun, filled with joy.
Taking a bite, I remembered that matter again.
"Alas, I wonder how Zhang Tianshi is doing?"
Even while eating, I couldn't help but worry.
It wasn't for myself, but I feared he might be in danger or have met with an accident.
Ali said.
"He will be fine, we just need to wait for news from Boss Jin."
"Mm."
"Hahaha."
Liu Shinian suddenly burst into laughter as if he had gone mad.
"What's wrong with you?"
Has he gone foolish from eating buns?
"I don't know what you have to worry about."
He said with disdain.
I turned my head away, feeling a bit angry. He truly couldn't understand others.
"Don't worry, if you really can't go back, you can stay and follow me.
Whether you are human or anything else, I will not dislike you."
He suddenly said such touching words.
I was actually a little moved, and looked at him eagerly. He was amused by my expression and laughed.
"Don't be too moved, it won't look good if you shed tears."
His words made me laugh, and I unconsciously hit him.
"Who wants to cry? You're the one who should cry."
He couldn't keep his mouth shut and babbled nonsense.
"If you can't go back, then stay and be Ali's wife.
Or marry me as a concubine, or at worst, marry Jin Yulan.
He should also want you."
"Hmph!"
I snorted coldly and hit him with my fist.
Liu Shinian turned to tease Ali.
"Ali, if you marry this temperamental woman.
Looking at your small physique, I'm afraid you won't be able to beat her."
Ali smiled slightly, remaining silent, perhaps already accustomed to it.
I quickly covered his mouth and said fiercely.
"Don't talk nonsense."
Ada, while eating, listened to our conversation and actually took it seriously, saying directly.
"Muye, if you have nowhere to go, you can come with me, and I'm willing to marry you."
My face suddenly turned pale then red, making me feel utterly ashamed.
Liu Shinian found it amusing, laughed heartily, patted Ada's shoulder, and praised him.
"You're getting smarter, learning to consider others."
Ada looked confused, but still smiled slightly.
"Since everyone is thinking of helping, I want to contribute too."
Seeing Ada's silly appearance, he surely didn't understand what marriage meant.
He only knew he was helping others.
I helplessly held my forehead, lamenting that Liu Shinian had corrupted another person.
In a daze, I heard someone knocking on the door, and suddenly heard a soft female voice.
"Shinian."
Heh, what an intimate address.
Liu Shinian got up curiously and opened the door.
At the door stood four or five women dressed in vibrant attire, wearing white veils.
Liu Shinian recognized them at once and greeted them one by one.
"Sister Hua, Sister Mu, Sister Yun, Sister Xi, Sister Lan."
The three of us curiously peeked out, looking at the newcomers, who seemed to be from Qingfang Lou.
Liu Shinian hadn't expected them to come either.
"Sisters, why have you come?"
Sister Hua said.
"We've missed you a lot these past few days.
Sister Qing saw we were pensive and told us you were staying here.
So, after discussing it, we decided to come and see you."
"Oh, then please come in quickly."
I must say, Liu Shinian truly had good luck with women.
Upon entering, they placed the items they were carrying on the table.
There were paper-wrapped items, large square red wooden boxes, and food containers.
Quite a generous gesture.
Sister Mu looked at the three of us standing by the side and said.
"I heard from Sister Qing that you've made some good friends.
She also told me their names, I guess this one is Ada."
She pointed at Ada.
Ada replied very politely.
"Sister guessed correctly, I am Ada."
Sister Lan also pointed at Ali and said.
"You must be Ali."
Ali smiled foolishly and replied.
"Sister guessed correctly, I am Ali."
The other sisters also became interested and pointed at me, saying.
"You're Muye, aren't you?"
I nodded.
"Sisters have sharp eyes, I am Muye. Please sit down, sisters."
The three of us stood up and offered our stools to them.
Ali and Ada returned to their rooms and brought stools for themselves.
Sister Xi surveyed the room's furnishings, fanning herself with her hand, and said.
"This room is alright, just a bit warm."
Sister Mu looked at everyone in the room and couldn't help but laugh.
"Hahaha, with so many people, how could it not be warm?"
"That's true."
Seeing them say they were hot and having no fans, Ali.
He took out a few leaves from his怀 and transformed them into palm-leaf fans, offering them to them.
"Sisters, please use these."
The sisters took these exquisite and beautiful palm-leaf fans, filled with joy.
They all praised Ali.
"Ali is truly both cute and considerate."
"These little palm-leaf fans are much prettier than my peach fans."
"It's good that Shinian has sharp eyes to make such rare good friends."
"Hahaha."
As they spoke, they couldn't help but burst into laughter.
Taking off their veils, they revealed their stunning beauty.
Ada was also mesmerized by their beauty.
Liu Shinian laughed.
"Sisters, it's been a few days, and you've become even more beautiful and captivating."
The sisters smiled shyly and said.
"Your mouth is always so sweet."
"Every time I see you, you always have to offer some praise."
"I'm just speaking the truth."
Why hadn't I seen Liu Shinian praise people so well?
In my memory, it was all his mockery and bickering.
Damn Liu Shinian, am I not a beauty?
Although I felt indignant in my heart, compared to the ones before me.
I was indeed a lot worse. Thinking this, why did Liu Shinian like Xue Ji.
It turned out he had only seen top-tier beauties.
Ada thoughtfully brewed tea for the sisters.
Sister Yun, seeing his cuteness, asked him.
"Ada, are you married?"
Ada gave an awkward smile and said.
"Not yet."
"How about this, if you fancy any of the girls in our Qingfang Lou, you can tell me.
I'll act as a matchmaker for you. Rest assured.
All the girls in our Qingfang Lou are respectable women, they perform but do not sell themselves."
Ada naturally knew this, but he hadn't thought that far ahead yet, and waved his hand.
"No, no, I haven't thought that far ahead yet."
The sisters laughed heartily and praised him for being cute.
Sister Xi then asked about Ali.
"Ali's appearance is gentle and charming, he is also a rare handsome man.
I wonder if Ali has a woman he fancies?"
These words made Ali hesitant, and I was also full of anticipation.
I hoped he would say yes, and also hoped he would say no.
Ali hesitated for a long time before saying.
"I have met someone, but I haven't thought much about it."
One sentence said it all.
My heart was filled with joy.
The sisters nodded and asked no further questions.
Then they turned to me and asked.
"Muye, do you have a man you fancy?"
"I..."
Before I could speak, Liu Shinian preempted me and replied.
"The man she fancies is me, and she has agreed to be my concubine."
The sisters looked astonished.
My heart suddenly fluttered. I hadn't expected him to say that, and I quickly explained.
"No, no, no, that's not true. He's just talking nonsense. I haven't, I haven't thought about it."
Liu Shinian retorted.
"Then who is the man you fancy?"
"I..."
It was so obvious, did I need to say it? Liu Shinian was clearly trying to embarrass me.
"You can't say it, can you? If you can't say it, then it's me."
"Shameless!"
I originally intended to say "shameless," but with so many people present today.
I decided to save him some face, so as not to make him look bad, and changed it to.
"Speechless."
Seeing this, the sisters burst into laughter and spoke about Liu Shinian.
"Shinian, you're teasing the young lady again."
"Hahaha, you said last time that your favorite was Xue Ji.
How did you change your mind so quickly?"
"It seems your reputation as the most devoted lover in Nanhai City is about to end."
Liu Shinian chuckled and explained.
"My favorite is still Xue Ji. Now that Xue Ji is not here.
I'll just settle for anyone and live my life."
Upon hearing this, the sisters burst into laughter again.
They hadn't expected Liu Shinian to say such a thing.
In their impression, he was clearly just a playful big boy.
I was quite speechless, Liu Shinian truly dared to speak his mind.
After laughing, Sister Yun said.
"We came in a hurry and casually brought some snacks, we don't know if you'll like them."
Liu Shinian said.
"It's already thoughtful of you sisters to come and see us.
It doesn't matter if you bring these things or not."
"You're so sweet-mouthed."
After chatting for a long time, the sisters saw that the time was getting late.
They decided to leave and said one after another.
"I think it's getting late, let's go back."
"Mm, otherwise we'll be scolded again if we return too late."
"Yes, since we've seen Shinian and some new friends, we should be going back."
As they spoke, they got up to leave, and Liu Shinian reluctantly tried to keep them.
"Sisters, please stay a bit longer."
Sister Mu said calmly.
"You know Sister Qing's temper.
She only approved half a day off for us today.
If we return late, we'll be scolded again."
Liu Shinian patted his chest and guaranteed.
"What of it? I'll talk to her, won't that do?"
Sister Hua laughed.
"We're already happy to have come to see you.
We also have other things to attend to and need to rush back."
"If that's the case, then I won't insist."
Sister Lan also said.
"If you have time, come and visit us often, so we don't have to run back and forth."
"Definitely, definitely."
Liu Shinian readily agreed, but I didn't know if he would actually go back.
Sister Xi looked at the palm-leaf fan in her hand and quickly called out to her sisters.
"Ladies, you're still holding Ali's palm-leaf fans."
The sisters looked down and indeed, they were. They all walked back to return them to Ali.
Ali waved his hand and said.
"These little palm-leaf fans, please take them to use.
It's hot on the road, and they can be used to cool yourselves."
Seeing this, the sisters accepted the palm-leaf fans and said.
"Thank you, Ali. We're leaving now."
"Alright."
After they left, Liu Shinian became bored again.
"Muye, if you can't go back, then stay and marry me."
I was full of speechlessness and contempt.
"Who wants to marry you."
Liu Shinian patted Ali's shoulder and asked him.
"Ali, if she were to marry you, would you be willing to marry her?"
Liu Shinian's question made my calm heart suddenly rise again. He really knew how to ask.
Ali thought for a moment, then nodded and said softly.
"Yes."
"Yes."
That single word felt like an invisible stream of warmth surging from the bottom of my heart.
My face instantly turned as red as a teapot.
I hadn't expected him to say that, to think that way, and my blood rushed to my head.
Covering my face, I cried out shyly.
"Ah!"
Then I rushed out the door.
"What's wrong with Muye?"
Ada looked at me running out suddenly, full of confusion.
Liu Shinian's speechless gaze, however, had already seen through everything. He patted Ada and said.
"She's so happy she's speechless. We're all willing to accompany her.
She's too excited, she's gone to find a corner to think about who to choose."
Ada looked somewhat skeptical.
"Really? It doesn't look like it."
"Don't you know her? Women are greedy."
Liu Shinian started to spout nonsense again, truly a representative of lying with his eyes open.