Chapter 349: The Dragon and Phoenix Twins are Found
Chapter 349: The Dragon and Phoenix Twins are Found
"Bao Zhu Zhu, what are you looking at?"
Tan Er asked her.
The man walked away and disappeared from Bao Shu's sight.
Bao Shu instantly regained her serious expression, "I need to pee, I can't hold it anymore."
"I know!"
Tan Er carried Bao Shu and used her light movement skills to enter the toilet.
Bao Zhu Zhu, who had been jostled and almost threw up milk: It's not necessary.
Meng Qianqian ordered a pot of lamb spine, a bowl of lamb soup, a plate of stir-fried vegetables, and a bowl of egg custard. She also asked the shopkeeper to make some pancakes.
"Lamb soup! Lamb soup!"
Tan Er's mouth watered.
Bai Yuwei scoffed, "Look at you, so greedy."
Tan Er stuck out her tongue, "If I'm greedy, then I can't help it!"
Bai Yuwei glared at her, "Why shouldn't I eat?"
"The lamb soup is here!"
The waiter cheerfully brought the lamb soup to the table, "Ladies and gentlemen, please have some soup to warm up. The dishes will be ready soon!"
"Egg custard."
Bao Shu spoke up.
The waiter smiled, "Alright, little customer, the first dish will be your egg custard!"
Bao Shu nodded in satisfaction.
Although she was a soft and sticky little bun, she insisted on acting like a little adult, which amused the waiter. He immediately went to the kitchen to hurry up with the egg custard for the little one.
Surprisingly, even though the restaurant was famous for its lamb dishes, the egg custard was unexpectedly delicious.
Bao Shu buried her head in her bowl and ate heartily.
The lamb soup was very tasty, with a hint of white pepper that left a mild tingling sensation in the throat.
Meng Qianqian fed Bao Shu a few spoonfuls, but the little one still preferred to dip her egg custard in rice.
The lamb spine was spicy, so Meng Qianqian didn't let her eat it.
Tan Er and Bai Yuwei ate until they were sweating profusely and couldn't stop.
"So spicy, so spicy," Bai Yuwei cried, tears streaming down her face, "Why is the lamb spine so spicy?"
Meng Qianqian quickly said, "Don't eat anymore."
Tan Er mocked Bai Yuwei, "You're such a wimp!"
Bai Yuwei immediately furrowed her brows, "Don't think I don't understand. Who are you calling a wimp?"
Tan Er held a piece of lamb spine with both hands and shook her head, "It's spicy, that's all!"
Bai Yuwei glared at her angrily, then picked out the largest pieces of lamb spine and started eating them with Tan Er.
"Sugar-coated hawthorn!"
The voice of a hawker selling hawthorn skewers could be heard from the street.
Bao Shu immediately slid down from her chair and crawled towards the window.
Just as she pushed open the window, Meng Qianqian quickly picked her up.
The little one's movements were too fast, and if she had been a second slower, the child would have fallen.
Meng Qianqian spoke sternly, "You're not allowed to climb out of windows again. It's dangerous, do you understand?"
Bao Shu nodded obediently, "Sugar-coated hawthorn."
Meng Qianqian couldn't help but laugh, "Alright, I'll take you to buy some."
Bai Yuwei and Tan Er stayed in the private room to continue eating the lamb spine, while Meng Qianqian carried Bao Shu downstairs.
Bao Shu could now walk steadily without wobbling, but with so many people outside, Meng Qianqian didn't feel at ease letting her walk on her own.
When Bao Shu saw the sugar-coated hawthorn, her little adult act faltered, and she squirmed excitedly in Meng Qianqian's embrace.
The weather was cold, and the hawker's nose had turned red from the chill.
Meng Qianqian noticed that he only had seven or eight skewers left and said, "I'll take them all."
The hawker was taken aback, "B-but... can you finish them all?"
Meng Qianqian as a collection of words and phrases, "There are many children at home."
After buying the sugar-coated hawthorn, Meng Qianqian intended to return to the lamb restaurant.
At that moment, a commotion broke out nearby.
"Oh no! Someone come and judge this! I, a widow, have been wronged! How can I go back to the village and face everyone? I might as well die!"
"Sister, don't be impulsive. Let's talk calmly!"
"What's there to talk about? I can't show my face anymore!"
Fortunately, a patrolling officer happened to pass by and heard the commotion. He immediately stepped forward to inquire.
Upon investigation, they learned that a village woman selling eggs in the market had been molested.
The officer asked, "Who did this to you?"
"Him!"
The village woman pointed at the man standing before her, who was wearing a conical hat.
Everyone's gaze shifted to the man.
He was dressed like a wandering swordsman, not extravagantly wealthy, but his demeanor suggested he was not the type to commit such a shameless act as molesting a virtuous woman in broad daylight.
The officer also found it unlikely, but adhering to the principle of impartiality, he still asked the man, "Did you molest her?"
"No."
The man's voice was raspy and unpleasant, like an old bellows.
The officer was momentarily stunned.
The village woman's eyes were red from crying. She pointed to her left hand, "Don't deny it! You just... put your hand on my waist! Do you think I'm blind?"
The officer asked the man, "Is this true?"
The man remained silent.
"May I ask you something, madam? Did you see him put his hand on your waist, or are you certain he touched you?"
Meng Qianqian, holding Bao Shu's hand, calmly walked out from the crowd.
"This..."
The village woman was speechless.
Meng Qianqian's beauty immediately captured everyone's attention.
Her voice was like a clear mountain stream, ethereal and enchanting.
Even the child by her side looked like a fairy child from a New Year painting, stunningly beautiful.
"Of course he touched me!"
The village woman asserted confidently.
Meng Qianqian slightly curved her lips and said to the woman, "Then tell me, which hand did he use? Was his hand black or white? Were his fingers long or short? Did he have anything in his hand?"
The village woman's eyes flickered, "I... I couldn't see that clearly..."
"It was just a hand!"
Meng Qianqian pointed at the man, "This gentleman had a sword in one hand and medicine in the other. How could he possibly have a free hand to touch you?"
Everyone's gaze fell on the man's hands.
Indeed, his left hand held a sword, but his right hand was hidden by the wide cloak, out of sight.
An official stepped forward and lifted the man's conical hat.
As expected, two fingers of his right hand were hooked around a stack of medicine packets.
And both his hands were covered in black gloves.
The village woman had not mentioned a single distinctive feature.
Meng Qianqian said to the village woman, "You'll be imprisoned for false accusations."
"I... I... I must have mistaken him for someone else! It wasn't him!"
The village woman turned and left without even taking the basket of eggs on the ground.
The official called out, "Hey, don't leave—"
The village woman scurried away faster than a rabbit. The official shook his head, "These days, there are all sorts of people."
He turned around and politely cupped his hands towards Meng Qianqian, "Thanks to you, Madam, for your meticulous investigation. But how did you know he had medicine in his hand?"
Meng Qianqian replied, "I smelled it."
"Ah..."
The official was stunned.
The man walked away.
The official exclaimed, "Hey, he helped you out, at least say thank you! Tch, he's gone. These days, everyone seems to be a rabbit, running so fast!"
The man walked through the bustling streets and entered a quiet, secluded alley.
He didn't want anyone to catch up to him, but as he walked, he suddenly sensed something amiss.
He looked down and saw a soft, sticky little bun hanging on his leg, looking adorable as it lifted its small head and gazed at him innocently.
The man: "..."
He tried to remove Bao Shu.
Bao Shu refused to let go.
"Get down."
The man spoke in a damaged voice.
Bao Shu shook her head.
The man threatened, "If you don't get down, I'll—"
Bao Shu pouted and burst into tears!
Meng Qianqian followed the sound of crying and found the alley.
"Zhaozhao!"
Bao Shu immediately stopped crying, not shedding another tear.
Meng Qianqian relaxed and held the little one in her arms, "You..."
The man left without looking back again.
This time, Meng Qianqian wasn't going to let him go so easily.
She leaped forward, landing in front of him and blocking his path. She turned around and stared at him, "The person who saved me twice at the hunting grounds was you, right? Once when I fell off the cliff and once when I encountered hidden weapons. It wasn't a coincidence that you were passing by; you've been following me all along."
The man didn't respond.
Meng Qianqian continued, "Lin Wan'er, or should I say, Xiao Li, was waiting for you too. Even the person we met in the secret passage in the Duke's Manor a few days ago was you. You've been giving us clues, but why haven't you shown yourself? Who are you?"
The man still didn't answer.
Meng Qianqian blocked his path, so he turned around and walked back.
Meng Qianqian held the drowsy Bao Shu, looking at the jade pendant in her hand. She narrowed her eyes and said, "Shen Hou!"
The man's steps halted.
Meng Qianqian's eyes flickered, "Is it really you, Shen Hou?"
If it was Shen Hou, everything would make sense.
He had discovered that Hai Zhu was a traitor and confronted him, but Hai Zhu, to protect himself, had developed murderous intentions towards Shen Hou.
Knowing he was no match for Hai Zhu and the Chancellor, Shen Hou staged his own death.
But Hai Zhu always suspected that Shen Hou was still alive. To confirm his suspicions, Hai Zhu had Xiao Li pretend to be Lin Wan'er.
As long as Lin Wan'er was alive, Shen Hou would eventually come looking for her.
"The person Hai Zhu met in the prison was also you, right? Only by seeing someone he had killed with his own hands would he lose his composure like that."
"But I don't understand, why won't you meet us? Are you worried that we're also traitors? By now, you should believe that Celestial Dragon, Si She, Ji Li, and I, along with the late Yin Hu, are not traitors!"
"Lu Lingxiao said you died in battle, and you were severely injured. What happened after that? Why did your appearance and voice change...?"
Meng Qianqian didn't ask further but instead advised, "Come with me to the Duke's Manor. If you don't want to stay there, Ji Li and Si She live in Fengshui Hutong."
"No need."
The man finished speaking and quickly left the alley.
By the time Meng Qianqian chased after him, he was already gone.
Instead, a carriage had stopped in front of her.
Lu Yuan lifted the curtain, "What's the hurry?"
Meng Qianqian, holding the sleeping Bao Shu, got into the carriage and took the jade pendant from her hand, "It's Shen Hou's jade pendant. I met that person, and he is Shen Hou."
Lu Yuan looked at the jade pendant strangely.
Meng Qianqian said, "I can't be mistaken."
Lu Yuan played with the jade pendant and raised his eyebrows, "He wants to hide his identity, but he wears a jade pendant that might reveal who he is?"
Meng Qianqian was taken aback, "What do you mean?"
Lu Yuan put the jade pendant back into the little one's hand, "He's not Shen Hou."
Meng Qianqian was astonished, "Not Shen Hou... Then who could he be? Besides the 'resurrected' Shen Hou, who else could make Hai Zhu change his attitude?"
Lu Yuan said, "Let's not talk about this for now. Second Aunt's child has been found."
(End of Chapter)
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