"Uncle, you have the very best manners! And you've raised your child so well! The streets are full of his child brides!"
Xia Wanwan flashed her tiny baby teeth and smiled.
"You... do you have any idea what standing our Qiao family has in Hezhou? Becoming a child bride in our family would be a blessing earned over eight lifetimes! Besides, our Qiao family wouldn't even spare a second glance for an ill-mannered girl like you. Tell your parents to forget about it!"
The middle-aged man snapped his sleeve angrily, losing his composure and launching into a tirade.
Xia Wanwan blinked and asked, "What standing? I really don't know."
The fat boy stepped forward with both hands on his hips. "My father is the Qiao family's... steward, at the government office in Hezhou!"
"Every soldier and commoner here knows my father!"
"Oh, so he's a steward. I thought he was the emperor!" Xia Wanwan muttered.
"You little girl, how can you talk such nonsense? You really have no manners! You'd better apologize to this young master. I'll get my father to forgive you. Otherwise, my father will have the government office arrest you. Believe me?"
Qiao Tianci, Steward Qiao's son, turned crimson with anger.
Yet the little girl before him was so lovely and delicate, prettier than any girl he had ever seen.
Once she had caught his fancy, there was no way he would let her leave!
"Oh, then go ahead and arrest me!"
Xia Wanwan plopped down on the ground, clutching her Little Embroidered Ball, her face filled with anger.
Everyone was left at a loss.
Was this child an idiot?
Steward Qiao froze for a moment, then told the soldiers guarding the gate, "Since her parents can't find her, take her to the Qiao Residence. When her