Sunset painted the sky, casting golden light through the gaps in the trees. The road wasn't crowded, and the sounds seemed to be coming from the alleyway that branched off nearby. Search: \完本神站 to read high-quality literature for free. Accompanied by a woman's cry, the laughter that followed was crude and infuriating. Ning Yi and the others found it amusing. They walked a few steps and curiously peered down the alleyway from under the trees.

About twenty meters down the road, a scene of a villainous young master bullying a respectable woman was unfolding. A richly dressed, menacing young man and several servants were chasing a woman wearing a headscarf and carrying a basket. The woman looked poor and clearly wasn't wealthy. The servants were merely preventing her from escaping a certain area, allowing the young master to chase her for fun, though their expressions suggested hesitation. This was likely due to the presence of a knife-wielding man in the uniform of a Yuhou (a military officer) who was trying to dissuade the young master.

The Yuhou officer was probably also a servant of the young master, albeit one of higher rank. He cupped his fist and offered a few words of persuasion, which was why the other servants were hesitant. However, the young master ignored him and continued chasing after the woman, laughing. "Don't run... I don't mean any harm... My little Meow Meow will be very sad without me, he'll starve to death outside, hee hee hee..."

He pushed aside the man who was trying to dissuade him, grabbed the woman's sleeve, and tore a piece off. The woman screamed and threw her basket at him, but when she turned to run, she was blocked again, becoming increasingly anxious. Ning Yi and the others watched for a few moments. Xiao Chan, Yun Zhu, and Jin Er all frowned. Jin Er whispered, "How can there be such people? Isn't this under the Emperor's feet..."

Qin Shaoyu also watched for a moment and said, "That's Gao Munen, a yamen under the Grand Commandant's (Taiwei) office. He's Gao Qiu's adopted son. Everyone in the capital calls him 'Flower Grand Duke'..."

Ning Yi frowned. "You know him?"

Qin Shaoyu shook his head. "No, not really..."

In fact, in the eyes of most people, the adopted son of the Grand Commandant might not be that different from the nephew of the Prime Minister. But honestly, Qin Shaoyu hadn't really made a name for himself in the capital and couldn't be considered a very influential person. When Jin Er and the others heard the young master's identity, they fell silent. Xiao Chan, Yun Zhu, and Jin Er all understood the power and status implied. In the capital, you could throw a brick and hit several members of the imperial family. Trying to stand up for someone in any situation would ultimately cause trouble for Liheng.

They whispered to each other, while the young master Gao, seemingly being persuaded to go to a brothel instead of playing around, impatiently waved his hand.

"Lu Qian—get out of here and stop bothering me! I don't want to go to a brothel! It's not fun at all! I'm sick of it! I want respectable women! I! Want! To! Play! With! Respectable! Women! Lu Qian, you guys always say respectable women are the best, everyone marries respectable women, we have the same interests, great minds think alike, what's wrong with playing a little, right? I've been holding back for so long, ever since the Lin Chong incident you've been so nagging, I've only played a few times... Lu Qian, I know my dad sent you to follow me, but if you keep this up, I'll die in front of you—Girl, my little Meow Meow..."

Lu Qian tried to dissuade him several times. Seeing that the young master was truly angry, he had no choice but to back down. Gao Munen continued to chase after the woman. The servant who was blocking her noticed Ning Yi and the others at the alley entrance. He grabbed his saber hilt, waved his hand, and shouted, "What are you looking at? What are you looking at? Get lost!" Gao Munen glanced back, then continued to approach the woman to embrace her. After a moment, he turned his head again, drew a finger across his cheek, and looked over at them.

Ning Yi was already considering whether to leave or do something. He frowned and waved his hand. "Let's go." Jin Er had already pulled Yun Zhu and Xiao Chan's hands, and they started to retreat out of the alley. Qin Shaoyu wanted to say something, but Ning Yi looked at him. "Brother Qin, please escort them back." Under that gaze, Qin Shaoyu nodded almost against his will. "Oh."

Gao Munen opened his mouth and almost subconsciously walked towards them. "Beau..."

Before he could finish, a burst of hearty laughter interrupted him. In his vision, the scholar who had been at the alley entrance was clapping and walking over, saying, "Soulmate! Hahahaha, what this brother said is absolutely right. I wish I had met you sooner—"

Gao Munen took several steps forward before realizing that the man was coming towards him. He had been about to say, "Little Meow Meow..." But the scholar had already approached. Two servants tried to stop him, but for some reason, the scholar stepped past them. Gao Munen's vision blurred, and his hand was warmly grasped by the scholar. The scholar's smile was sincere and enthusiastic, expressing his regret at not meeting Gao Munen sooner. He also vaguely possessed a similar temperament to Gao Munen when he was teasing the woman, making him seem like a kindred spirit at first glance. Perhaps that was why Lu Qian approached with his hand on his saber but didn't draw it.

"What you said is really too good. What's so fun about women in brothels? As the saying goes, 'One song breaks the heart, where can one find a soulmate?' I just saw two women over there, but when I heard your words, I couldn't help but come over to meet you. What you said is truly amazing. Of course, respectable women are the most fun, right..."

"Hahahaha, sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Huyan Leifeng, and I just came from Qingzhou... a small place, it doesn't matter if you haven't heard of it. But I've traveled everywhere, and all I've seen are extremely vulgar people, like this brother next to you with the saber glaring at me. What? What are you looking at? Don't you admit that you're wrong! What's his name? Is it Lu Qian? All he does is advise people to go to brothels. Brothels! What's so fun about that? You can play with them if you give them money. I can write two poems and they'll be as soft as anything, completely obedient, what's the point? Of course, it's more fun when they cry and scream, right..."

"But to be honest, your capital city is pretty good! Unlike our small rural places! The women have no class and are too proactive! What brothels or not! Let me tell you, brother, I went to a brothel and told a dirty joke to a prostitute, and the woman didn't even blush! I said, girl! I'm telling you a dirty joke because I want you to be shy and blush, I'm teasing you, not asking you to tell me an even more outrageous one! I tell other people that brothels aren't fun, but they don't believe me... I can't take it anymore, coming from so far away and finally meeting someone with such vision and insight as you, I can't take it anymore, let's swear brotherhood, your girls will be my girls, and my girls will still be my girls..."

The other man was incredibly enthusiastic and spoke extremely quickly. Gao Munen was stunned at first, then struggled. "Who the hell are you? Get out! Get out, get out! Who the hell wants to be brothers with you! My father is Gao Qiu!"

He broke free of the other man's grip and kicked him. The kick landed in empty air, but the other man had already stepped back, so he pretended that he had hit him. The scholar said, "Brother, don't do that, your girl is running away—"

Taking advantage of the servants' attention being drawn to this side, the woman who had been teased finally managed to escape. The servants were actually paying attention to the scholar's situation. Gao Munen looked back. "That girl is yours! Whoever likes her can have her... What are you looking at? This side! You freaking crazy, disgusting, go to hell... Little Meow Meow—"

He cursed the scholar a few times and ran towards the alley entrance with his servants. Lu Qian took a few steps back with his hand on his saber hilt, as if trying to remember the scholar's appearance, but then followed Gao Munen.

The group ran all the way to the alley entrance, but the beautiful woman was nowhere to be seen. Gao Munen shouted for everyone to search everywhere. Looking back, the scholar's figure had already reached the other side of the road and disappeared.

****************

Due to the slight incident with Gao Munen, everyone was a little worried about Ning Yi when they returned to the inn. Qin Shaoyu regretted not staying there to see what happened. Fortunately, Ning Yi returned safely soon after and spoke lightly about Gao Munen. Yun Zhu, Jin Er, and the others asked about it and learned that the woman had also escaped. Although Ning Yi said it wasn't his doing, but rather an accidental disruption, Qin Shaoyu felt that Ning Yi was worthy of his uncle's high regard and was truly profound.

Although it was a small matter, Ning Yi later asked Qin Shaoyu about Gao Munen. In the capital, although Gao Munen relied on his power to bully others, like Bao Daoyi, he probably had some things he feared. He was notorious outside, but if he saw someone who truly had status, he wouldn't dare to touch them. In the capital, others might run into Gao Munen, but Gao Munen might also accidentally bump into a few imperial consorts. Speaking of power, Gao Qiu was deeply favored and was the Emperor's confidant. His influence on the Emperor wasn't necessarily less than Qin Siyuan's, but if Gao Munen really offended a few imperial consorts, Gao Qiu might not be able to protect him from the outrage of the capital officials.

Therefore, although his record of bullying men and forcing himself on women was appalling, Gao Munen couldn't just act recklessly. Even if they hadn't left today, as long as they had the Qin family name, he wouldn't have dared to act recklessly. Because of the case of the Imperial Guard instructor Lin Chong, the capital had been in an uproar, and Gao Taiwei had asked Gao Munen to restrain himself and sent his trusted subordinate Lu Qian to follow him. Of course, it was more likely to say, "Keep your eyes open when you do this kind of thing." Gao Munen might not have had good judgment, but Lu Qian was very capable. That was why he was putting up with Gao Munen's temper and advising him to go to a brothel instead of looking for a "Little Meow Meow" on the street.

These things could be imagined, but since it concerned Yun Zhu and the others, he had to find out the details to be at ease.

Ning Yi's conversation with Qin Shaoyu was one thing. That night, after Yun Zhu and Jin Er returned to their room, they were also talking about the events of the evening. Honestly, as women, they wanted to stand up for the woman when they saw such a thing, but they couldn't cause trouble for Ning Yi. Who knew that although Ning Yi hadn't said anything, he had still helped the woman out after telling them to leave. In fact, such a thing was equivalent to saving the woman's life.

"But... what exactly was going on with Ning Yi today..."

As the night deepened, both of them had taken baths. Yun Zhu was tidying up the clothes, while Jin Er was lying on the bed bored and rolling around, doing some simple exercises. She had already changed into light, loose-fitting pajamas. She lay on the large bed, holding her slender feet with her hands from behind, almost bending herself into a circle - she had always been good at dancing and could bend her body into incredible shapes without much effort.

Thinking of this, she asked the question. Yun Zhu, who was folding clothes, paused slightly. "Hmm?"

"It's just... I always feel like he has ulterior motives... I don't know why..."

She tilted her head back, her white toes almost touching her forehead as she pondered, speaking with some hesitation. Then she pushed with one hand, and her almost-circular body rolled backward.

Yun Zhu lowered her head. "He might be trying to match you up with Su Wenyu..."

Her body wasn't a true circle, after all. After swaying backward, she crashed back down. Her toes left her forehead, and her legs swung in the air before slamming onto the bed like a beautiful snake. Seeing her lying there in silence, Yun Zhu was worried. "Jin Er?"

There was no answer. Yun Zhu said, "Actually, if you..."

"Why does he get to decide—" Before Yun Zhu could finish, Jin Er suddenly raised her head and shouted, her face full of anger. After saying that, she lowered her head and didn't speak anymore. After a moment, her body rolled from side to side, sometimes clenching her fists, probably quite angry. Finally, she rolled into a corner of the wall, wedging herself into the corner and sulking. She remained like that until Yun Zhu got into bed and reached out to turn her over, hugging her. Then she finally mumbled, "Sister Yun Zhu, are you worried that I like... him?"

"Do you like him?"

"Of course... I don't like Su Wenyu..."

Yun Zhu smiled and gently stroked her back. Jin Er hugged her, nuzzling her head in her arms.

"...I want to sleep," she muttered, then tried hard to fall asleep...

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