Cui Xiaoqi looked up at the sound, but the person had vanished!
This wasn’t like finding herself a husband—more like finding a mind-reader. Whatever she thought or did, he knew it all.
If not for the fact she was in ancient times, she’d have thought a Crystal Element had been implanted in her brain.
Cui Xiaoqi drove the ox-cart to the city gate and respectfully handed the Travel Permit to the dozing guard.
Disturbed from his sweet dreams, the guard took the permit unhappily and asked lifelessly, “What’s in the cart?”
“A pig for you, sir.”
The guard glanced at Cui Xiaoqi’s hunter attire, walked to the cart, and poked beneath the cornstalks with his sword sheath.
“Go on in. What’s the point of hauling a dead pig around in the middle of the night?” he grumbled discontentedly before leaning against the gate and starting to snore.
Under the city wall inside the gate, three shadowy figures crouched.
One of them, wrapped tightly with only his eyes showing, nudged his companion and gestured toward the ox-cart.
In a hushed voice, he said, “Follow them.”
Understanding, the companion stood up and shook out his numb legs.
They’d been waiting all night and had finally caught sight of their “prey.”
The three trailed behind, stopping and starting as they went.
Cui Xiaoqi skillfully drove the ox-cart to the back door of Drunken Immortal Pavilion, hopped down, and knocked.
She waited quietly.
After a moment, the back door creaked open, revealing the plump face of a middle-aged man.
When the man saw it was Cui Xiaoqi, his drowsiness vanished, replaced by delight. “Miss Cui! It’s been almost half a month—I was starting to wonder when you’d show up. What good stuff have you brought this time?”
Cui Xiaoqi’s eyes sparkled mischievously as she revealed a sly dimple.
She pulled back the cornstalks to expose a sleek, black wild boar on the cart, its tusks still dripping with fresh blood.
“Just hunted it. I couldn’t even bear to keep any for myself. The villagers insisted on buying half with silver, but I refused. I thought it had to be delivered whole to you.”
“The blood’s still warm. Follow the recipe I told you—stir-fry the blood and intestines, braise them, stew them—I guarantee the guests at Drunken Immortal Pavilion will be slapping the tables with delight…”
Uncle Tong listened to Cui Xiaoqi’s sweet talk and chuckled. “You crafty girl, Uncle won’t shortchange you on the silver. Wait here…”
Seeing her goal achieved, Cui Xiaoqi grinned, sat on the cart, yawned, and waited for Uncle Tong to call the workers to weigh the boar.
Soon, Uncle Tong returned with two burly workers. The scale beam tipped high.
“Two hundred catties! Miss Cui, you’re amazing to hunt such game.”
After saying this, Uncle Tong decisively pulled three one-tael silver ingots from his pocket and casually tossed them to Cui Xiaoqi.
Then he took out a string of coins and tossed that over as well.
Cui Xiaoqi’s eyes lit up at the sight of the silver. She caught each piece and carefully tucked them into her robe. “A bonus too? Well then, see you next time. I’ll bring you more good stuff.”
With that, she drove the ox-cart out of the alley and stopped in front of the tightly shut main entrance of Drunken Immortal Pavilion.
She scanned the empty street and muttered under her breath, “Hasn’t he arrived yet? Could he not know about Drunken Immortal Pavilion, the most famous place in the city?”
Suddenly, three shadowy figures darted out from the base of the wall.
“Little lady, waiting for your lover?” The leader, a scrawny man, tilted his head as he spoke.
Cui Xiaoqi’s heart tightened. Her hand slipped into her boot, retrieving a sharp blade hidden in her sleeve.
Three scrawny men surrounded the ox-cart, clicking their tongues with ill intent.
Their gazes roamed brazenly over Cui Xiaoqi’s full chest.
Cui Xiaoqi hadn’t expected to run into thugs. Without her bow and arrows, she was no match for these three men.
She suppressed the unease in her heart and said calmly, "Get lost! If you don’t leave now, when my husband arrives, you won’t even be able to crawl away!"
The man seemed to have heard a hilarious joke and burst into loud laughter.
"We three brothers followed you all the way here. Where’s this husband of yours? Unless you’re planning to pick one of us?"
The man wrapped up tightly had the boldest lustful intentions. While speaking flirtatiously, he reached out to touch Cui Xiaoqi’s hand. "How about… all three of us become your husbands~"
Lewd whistles filled the air.
Cui Xiaoqi flashed a sharp blade, slicing the man’s outstretched hand, then pointed the tip at him, her voice stern and fierce. "My knife has no eyes—it loves to pierce necks."
The man clutched his bleeding hand, his brows furrowed in anger. "We were just planning to take your silver, have you serve us comfortably, and then let you go. Now, I’m going to play you to death!"
Cui Xiaoqi was both shocked and terrified, only wanting to buy time until Pei Ji arrived.
"Second brother, third brother, seize this woman and tie her up."
Cui Xiaoqi gripped the blade tightly with both hands, imagining the scenes of slaughtering rabbits and chickens in her mind. She waved her hands, trying to scare the men away.
But she hadn’t expected these men to have some skill.
One of them knocked the knife she was using for self-defense out of her hand and restrained her in one swift motion.
Cui Xiaoqi bit her lip, the taste of blood filling her mouth. She suppressed her fear, forced herself to calm down, and quickly thought of a way to protect herself.
"Where did you hide the silver? Let your husband feel around?"
The man let out a lewd laugh, his hands slowly approaching as if teasing her.
Tears of humiliation welled up in Cui Xiaoqi’s eyes. "St-stop! My husband is the Dongchang Supervisor. Do you want to be skinned and have your tendons ripped out?"
She could only borrow the reputation of the "Living King of Hell" from rumors to frighten them.
Sure enough, upon hearing the words "Dongchang Supervisor," the three brothers immediately withdrew their hands, their eyes scanning the darkness…
The skinny man’s blood-stained hand brushed against her flushed cheek as he leaned in with a malicious grin. "Stupid woman, you think you can scare us? Just come with me…"
Before he could finish his sentence, he stiffened and fell backward.
Warm, sticky blood splattered onto the faces of the two men beside him.
They didn’t see how their brother had died. Fear crept into their eyes, their legs trembling. They didn’t dare look back, afraid they would be the next to fall.
With a thud, both knelt on the ground, kowtowing repeatedly and begging for mercy.
Cui Xiaoqi was suddenly released, her legs so weak that she collapsed to the ground.
Someone had died!