Young Lady~

Abnormal!

Extremely abnormal!

Shen Tang couldn't help but look around, rubbing her eyes.

After confirming that the scene before her was not a dream, she asked Qi Shan, "Yuanliang... did we come to the wrong place? Did we accidentally step into some strange illusion, or cross through some kind of portal... It, it's not right..."

She couldn't help but turn her head to look at the city gate they had come through.

The line, stretching as far as the eye could see, was still slowly crawling forward.

Most of these people were in ragged clothes and looked dispirited, while the citizens inside the city were rosy-cheeked and dressed in clean, decent attire.

The visual shock caused by the bizarre difference made her question her life.

Qi Shan's expression was blank: "What's not right?"

Shen Tang pointed in the direction of the city gate.

"Look outside the city, then look inside. What is right about it?"

Having grown accustomed to desolate and bleak scenes of ruin, seeing the prosperity and liveliness within Xiaocheng made one wonder if these two scenes truly existed under the same sky. But the reality was--they were separated only by a city wall and a moat.

Upon hearing this, Qi Shan lowered his gaze. Unbeknownst to him, a hint of mockery had appeared at the corner of his lips, displaying an air of seasoned maturity. "Young Master Shen, you need to travel more and see more. You'll get used to it eventually."

Shen Tang was displeased: "You think I'm making a fuss over nothing?"

He wasn't giving her any face at all?

"That's precisely what I mean."

Yes, not giving her any face at all!

Shen Tang: "..."

She felt like jumping up and performing a cranial trepanation on this fellow, as usual.

Passing by a tavern, Qi Shan pointed to a spot beside the entrance and instructed her, "Young Master Shen, wait here for me. I'm going to inquire about something. I should be back in about an hour. Make sure you stay put and don't wander off."

"Inquiring about something? Looking for your debtor?" Seeing that Qi Shan didn't answer directly, Shen Tang waved her hand indifferently, "If you're going, go early and come back early. We still need to find a place to stay for the night. I don't want to sleep by the roadside or under a bridge..."

Qi Shan: "..."

His previously complex emotions, like a burning fire, were suddenly deflated by Shen Tang's words, like a leaky balloon. All his feelings were disrupted. That surge of emotion, unable to rise or fall, finally churned and mingled in his chest, turning into a long sigh.

He repeated helplessly, "Yes, you too, don't wander off."

Shen Tang obediently stayed by the tavern entrance, watching Qi Shan's back disappear at the end of the street. Only when he was completely out of sight did her eyes suddenly light up. Although she had been traveling for almost a month, she had basically been with Qi Shan every day and had no personal time.

Naturally, she hadn't properly seen this world.

After waiting in place for a while, she turned and rented a small stool from the tavern owner. Her motorcycle also obediently crouched down to keep her company.

"What is this Young Lady's name?"

About fifteen minutes later, a deliberately prim male voice came from above. Shen Tang looked up and immediately saw a slightly stout, middle-aged man with rough features staring intently at her.

She raised her finger and pointed to herself, asking, "Me?"

Only an emoji could express her feelings at this moment.

OMG ()

Nearly a month of traveling, and this was the first time someone had addressed her gender correctly!

All the previous townsfolk had been led astray by Qi Shan.

What a sin, Qi Yuanliang!

The middle-aged man smiled and leaned closer, saying, "Yes, yes."

Shen Tang was pretty and attractive. At just over ten years old, her potential was already evident. She only needed a year or two to mature and start earning money. Her skin was fair, and her demeanor was clean, but her clothing wasn't luxurious, suggesting she wasn't from a wealthy family.

She looked around curiously at everything, like a country bumpkin, clearly a naive and inexperienced child.

Easy to trick.

He had noticed Shen Tang and Qi Shan when they appeared.

He hadn't harbored any particular intentions initially, especially since Qi Shan was with her. After all, one of the people you absolutely couldn't afford to offend in this world was a refined man dressed in scholarly attire, wearing a hair crown and hairpin. Who knew if they possessed a Literary Heart? It wouldn't be good to kick an iron plate. But who knew Qi Shan would leave, leaving Shen Tang alone?

Their accents clearly marked them as outsiders.

If he didn't fleece this fat sheep, when would he ever make a profit?

As long as he could abduct the person and move them away, Qi Shan would be useless upon his return.

Shen Tang was sitting obediently on the small stool, her eyes innocent. She even flashed the man a "friendly" smile: "Is there something you need?"

The man smiled and said, "Yes, the young gentleman who was with you just now asked me to escort you to an inn."

Shen Tang asked, "Yuanliang sent you to call me?"

"Yes, I'm a helper at the Fanghua Inn. Is the young gentleman who was with you tall, wearing a moon-white scholar's robe, and rather thin? He said you were waiting here in front of this tavern." The man spoke while gesturing a couple of times.

Shen Tang appeared completely innocent and naive.

She nodded as the man described her.

"Right, right, that's Yuan Liang... but didn't he say he was going to inquire about something and told me to wait here..."

The man interrupted Shen Tang's words, "Ah, that gentleman seems to have run into an old acquaintance and can't get away right now."

Seeing that he "didn't seem to be faking," Shen Tang was half-believing.

The man then asked, "Young Lady, are you worried I'm a swindler? How about I wait here with you for that gentleman to arrive? It's not safe for a young lady like yourself to be on the street alone."

Shen Tang quickly shook her head.

"No, no, no, that's not what I meant."

After speaking, she thought for a moment and asked the man again.

"If you wait here, won't it delay your work at the inn?"

The man waved his hand generously and replied with a hearty laugh.

"It's no trouble, even if it does. I can't just watch a young lady like you stay on the street alone; it's not safe."

Hearing him say this, Shen Tang's expression seemed to waver.

This scene also caught the eyes of the passersby.

The tavern owner glanced up at the man with disdain, but didn't speak up to expose him. The other shop owners were also familiar with this middle-aged man—a notorious thug in the area. He often scouted villages near Xiaocheng for boys and girls with potential, raising them at home for a couple of years. If they didn't turn out poorly, he would sell them at a high price. Some unsuspecting outsiders were also targets.

Clearly, he had his eye on this Young Lady now.

The tavern owner inwardly spat.

But he still maintained a hands-off attitude.

Business was tough for everyone these days.

Taking someone's money was like killing their parents.

If he offended this kind of thug, he wouldn't be able to do business in Xiaocheng anymore. It was better to have one less problem than one more; he'd pretend he hadn't seen anything.

At the same time, he inwardly sneered, mocking Shen Tang's naive foolishness.

This man had a pair of long, narrow, rat-like eyes. When Shen Tang wasn't paying attention, his gaze flickered back and forth between her face and her clothes. Coupled with his frivolous demeanor, he was clearly not a good person. Only a sheltered child from a wealthy family would fall for this.

She was even smiling and chatting with him amiably.

Little did she know, Shen Tang had her reasons for having this patience.

It was because he was the first person to correctly identify her gender!

Shen Tang smiled, and only then was she willing to chat with him further.

And then—

It would be good if he gave up his wicked intentions. If he persisted in his malice—

She would send him to an early paradise.