It's Your Grandma

The Heaven Dou Auction House often auctioned off "slaves" whose mutated Martial Souls could not be retracted.

Although the two great empires prohibited slave trading, that law was nothing more than decoration!

In the Heaven Dou Empire, slavery was an extremely thriving industry. Some families unable to survive sold their sons and daughters, or sold themselves into servitude, becoming slaves.

Others came from criminals and their families. After being tried, they were branded with slave marks and could never turn their lives around, destined to serve as slaves for the rest of their lives.

Those cases were tolerable enough, but one kind was utterly vile: the Slave Hunting Groups.

Their prey was not soul beasts, but people. They targeted commoners, especially those with attractive looks or those who had awakened decent Martial Souls. They would capture these commoners and sell them openly to auction houses, where nobles could bid on them as slaves.

At every moment, countless Heaven Dou Empire commoners were reduced to slavery because of Slave Hunting Groups. This could not be stopped at all; one could even say that the royal family was involved.

Otherwise, slave auctions would not have appeared in every major auction house. There was nothing those auction houses did not dare to sell.

And people like Sigewinne, whose "mutated Martial Souls" could not be retracted, were the favorites of those Slave Hunting Groups.

Yet no one had made a move on her so far. That was quite telling.

Did anyone really think those bottomless nobles would refrain from acting just because she had won the goodwill of everyone in Heaven Dou City?

Obviously not. The reason the Slave Hunting Groups and those nobles did not dare act was either that Wriothesley and Sigewinne had powerful backing, or that they themselves were very strong.

Now that their backing was known, Wriothesley's relationship with Xue Qinghe did not seem particularly deep. Given the current situation, the latter possibility was more likely.

"Hmm?" Xue Qinghe paused slightly and looked at Wriothesley. "Duke, you don't seem very eager for me to help."

Wriothesley casually swept his gaze over the Crown Prince's Residence guards. Their faces were utterly impassive, as though they found Xue Qinghe's words inexplicable.

"Duke, you must have misunderstood. We merely happened to meet you here. We were not deliberately following you."

Seeing Wriothesley's expression gradually change, Xue Qinghe hurriedly explained.

The corner of Wriothesley's lips rose slightly. He glanced at Xue Qinghe and said, "Your Highness, the Crown Prince, there is no need to explain."

After everything he had been through, there were very few people he could trust. He did not wish to owe anyone a favor!

If he had merely been an ordinary soul master, perhaps he would have been willing to accept Xue Qinghe's goodwill. But unfortunately, he was not!

"I understand." Xue Qinghe's gaze shifted.

Xue Qinghe knew that Duke Wriothesley probably did not think much of him now, but he did not get angry over it.

On the contrary, Wriothesley intrigued him even more. A person with such a distinctive character was bound to have something extraordinary about them.

Of course, Xue Qinghe was not one of those noble young masters. He would not stir up trouble for the sake of a stranger.

Xue Qinghe was a smart man.

Still, the relationship between him and Wriothesley remained rather delicate.

After all, in Xue Qinghe's eyes, Wriothesley had become someone worth winning over as a potential partner. Naturally, he would not offend him lightly.

The two continued browsing. Wriothesley did not mind having someone follow them; they were only buying a few things, after all.

"Your Highness, the Crown Prince, it's noon. Would you like to have a meal together?" Wriothesley glanced at the sun overhead and asked calmly.

Xue Qinghe had initially wanted to refuse, but he suddenly thought of something crucial.

"Very well. Since Your Grace, the Duke, has invited me, I would be impolite to refuse." Xue Qinghe smiled.

"What does the Head Nurse think?" Wriothesley glanced at Sigewinne beside him.

Sigewinne tilted her head and blinked. After resting her index finger against her lips and thinking for a moment, she said, "I don't mind."

"Head Nurse?"

This was not the first time Xue Qinghe had heard Wriothesley call Sigewinne that. After all, Douluo Continent had no profession known as nurses; there were only physicians, doctors, and healing-type soul masters.

And Sigewinne always called Wriothesley "Duke." If Xue Qinghe had not known that neither of the two great empires had a duke named Wriothesley, he might really have thought that the two of them had come from somewhere else.

What made Xue Qinghe curious, however, was that the two seemed to be quite close, yet the age gap between Wriothesley and Sigewinne seemed a little too large, did it not?

Could this be what people called a friendship that transcended generations?

If Wriothesley knew what Xue Qinghe was thinking at that moment, he would probably not know whether to laugh or cry.

If they were talking about actual age, Sigewinne was older than your grandfather.

Though she looked as adorable as a little girl, she was actually much older.

Unofficial records claimed that Sigewinne was the descendant of Neuvillette and some Melusine. Naturally, Neuvillette, Fontaine's Chief Justice, denied this.

Sure enough, there was a reason unofficial records were called unofficial. They were so wild that only the "records" remained.

Still, Melusines were generally long-lived, so this piece of "unofficial history" required further investigation.

Moreover, Sigewinne had already been in Meropide for a long time before Wriothesley entered it, and Meropide itself had been established for several hundred years. She had stayed there for an extremely long time, so if her age were truly calculated, Sigewinne might be close to—or even over—four hundred years old.

Yet Sigewinne's appearance truly was that of a little girl. No one would believe that such a tiny little thing was already four hundred years old.

The sunlight of Heaven Dou City filtered through layers of misty clouds and fell upon the streets, bathing every corner in shimmering golden light. The bustling marketplace rang with voices, and shops of every kind lined both sides of the street. Yet to Xue Qinghe, none of them seemed prestigious enough.

"Duke, Miss Sigewinne, this hotel belongs to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. Its service and food are among the very best in Heaven Dou City." Xue Qinghe looked toward the towering, magnificent building. It resembled a lofty fortress, surrounded by lush flowering plants and exuding an air of luxury and elegance.

The hotel's exterior was primarily made of seven-colored glazed crystal. Under the sunlight, it shone brilliantly, like a dazzling gem embedded in the earth. On the marble steps at the entrance, two attendants dressed in splendid uniforms bowed respectfully with smiles on their faces, as though they had long been prepared to welcome distinguished guests.

"Shall we eat here?" Xue Qinghe turned to Wriothesley and Sigewinne with a smile, his tone carrying confidence and composure. He knew that choosing the Seven Treasure Hotel was not merely for its delicious food, but also to establish a certain image of himself in the eyes of others during social occasions.

"Won't it be too expensive?" Although Sigewinne treated the commoners of Heaven Dou City every day, those were all free consultations and cost nothing. Thus, she was still somewhat cautious about spending money, so she asked Wriothesley for his opinion.

However, Wriothesley did not care. He simply nodded and smiled. "It's fine."

With someone volunteering to be the sucker, there was no reason not to eat.

"Please." Xue Qinghe made an inviting gesture.