Not only would smoke rise—her brother, with his stubborn and overprotective nature, would absolutely go berserk.
By then, the entire General's Mansion would be in complete chaos, and all of Song Nian's energy would be consumed by the commotion. He wouldn't have any leisure left to bother with Jiang Mingyue's trivial, sentimental nonsense.
This idea was absolutely brilliant.
But…
The light that had just lit up in Song Luo's eyes gradually dimmed again.
Where exactly was she supposed to find a bandit who met these criteria?
She couldn't very well ride alone to Wu Qishan and kidnap one back, could she?
With her scrawny arms and twig-like legs, forget about capturing a bandit—she'd probably become meat on someone's chopping block the moment she reached the foot of the mountain.
"Ugh, this is so hard." Song Luo let out another long sigh.
Just then, the light at the entrance of the main hall suddenly dimmed.
Song Luo instinctively looked up, tracing the outline of the doorway.
A towering man walked in from the entrance, backlit against the sun.
The day was bright and sunny, yet the sunlight seemed unable to penetrate the aura surrounding him.
He stood against the light, making it impossible to see his face clearly.
But even without seeing his face, Song Luo could distinctly feel an oppressive pressure emanating from this man that made it hard to breathe.
The waiter who had greeted Song Luo earlier was just then carrying a dish to a table when he happened to run straight into this man.
The waiter's steps came to an abrupt halt, and his face instantly turned deathly pale.
He stared nervously at the man who was more than a head taller than him, swallowing hard in fear.
He forced a smile that looked worse than crying and shuffled forward tremblingly: "Th-this gentleman… o-our humble shop just opened, w-what would you like to try?"
Li Rongshang paid no attention to the waiter's trembling fear.
He looked past the waiter's shaking shoulders and swept a casual glance across the crowded, noisy hall.
The moment his gaze passed over the corner by the window, it stopped.
He spotted Song Luo at once.
Her little face was cute and adorable, and she was currently lying limply on the table.
Gone was the lively, mischievous energy she'd had when provoking her brother earlier.
Seeing that Li Rongshang remained silent, the waiter's heart pounded wildly. This man wasn't here to eat.
Then what was he here for?
Collecting protection money?
Or causing trouble?
The waiter's gaze darted quickly around the hall when he suddenly caught sight of the red paper posted on the doorframe. A flash of inspiration struck him.
He hesitated for a moment, then gathered his courage and asked again: "I see—are you… are you here about the help-wanted notice we posted outside? Our humble shop… we do need a few general laborers for odd jobs."
As he spoke, the waiter's voice grew weaker and weaker, because he noticed that the man's gaze had finally withdrawn from the window and landed coldly on him.
"Would you… be able to do it?" the waiter asked in a trembling voice.
The moment the words left his mouth, the waiter wanted to slap himself.
He couldn't imagine this gentleman doing menial labor—he looked far more like someone who'd rob houses and plunder homes.
The merchants at that table earlier had been whispering about "burning, killing, and looting" and "killing without blinking"…
The waiter's heart lurched violently. His legs went weak, and he nearly collapsed to his knees on the spot.
He blurted out: "Y-you… you wouldn't happen to be from Wu Qishan, would you?"
The moment those words were spoken, the hall fell into deathly silence.
Everyone who had been murmuring among themselves suddenly clamped their mouths shut.
Even their breathing grew softer as they looked in panic at the man by the door.
A few of the more timid customers had already begun quietly crawling under the tables.
A fierce bandit from Wu Qishan had actually come into the city in broad daylight?
Li Rongshang narrowed his long, narrow eyes slightly.
Without a word, he lifted his long, powerful leg and stepped over the high threshold of Pinxiang Pavilion.
As he walked into the hall, the harsh backlight finally faded from his form.
Song Luo's hand, which had been propping up her chin, paused slightly as she clearly saw his face.