“Get lost.”
With a cold expression, Shen Qingyao spat out a single word.
Li Zhiyuan froze for a moment, and the flirtatious smile on his face immediately disappeared.
But the next second, he smiled again, took a step forward, and spoke with a hint of menace in his voice.
“Miss, do you even know who I am? In Yunying City, no one dares speak to me like that. Go ask around and find out what kind of person I, Li Zhiyuan, am.”
As he spoke, he glared at the surrounding crowd.
The people around them all exchanged uneasy glances.
Li Zhiyuan was the local bully of Yunying City. His father was wealthy, and his brother-in-law held official power. No one dared provoke him.
This young woman was obviously not from around here.
Otherwise, how could she dare offend Li Zhiyuan like this?
“Miss, our young master’s father is incredibly rich. If you follow our young master, you’ll live a life of luxury.”
One of Li Zhiyuan’s lackeys stepped forward and boasted proudly.
This woman really couldn’t read the situation.
Their young master had both wealth and influence. What could possibly be bad about following him?
The women they had brought back before had all cried and made a fuss at first.
But after staying in the Li Residence for two months, every one of them became obedient.
After all, they ate well and dressed well there. Their lives were far better than before.
When the young master eventually wanted to send them home, they didn’t even want to leave.
“That’s right! Our young master is handsome, elegant, wealthy, and influential. You’ll never regret following him.”
Another lackey hurried over to flatter his master.
The two lackeys praised Li Zhiyuan until he became smug with satisfaction.
He raised his chin so high that he looked like a large white goose strutting around.
The crowd watching the spectacle secretly rolled their eyes.
Handsome and elegant?
These two were lying through their teeth.
Li Zhiyuan looked completely ordinary, and his height was average as well.
In their opinion, aside from being rich, he had no redeeming qualities.
“So? Have you made up your mind, beautiful? Follow me and you certainly won’t regret it. I’ll give you more money than you can spend. You’ll wear the finest clothes and eat the finest delicacies.”
He refused to believe there was any woman who could resist the temptation of money.
Looking at Li Zhiyuan’s smug face, Shen Qingyao suddenly threw a straight punch.
Her fist slammed directly into his nose.
“Ah!”
Li Zhiyuan cried out in pain as he clutched his nose.
He immediately felt something warm flowing beneath it.
Even an idiot would know his nose was bleeding.
He reached up and touched it.
His fingers came away sticky.
Everyone present froze for a moment before gasping in surprise.
“Oh…”
That punch looked incredibly painful.
This young woman really hit hard.
Li Zhiyuan’s nose was bleeding badly.
The lackeys behind him stood there in shock for a brief moment before snapping back to their senses and charging forward.
This damned woman really didn’t know what was good for her.
It was her blessing that their young master had taken a fancy to her.
Yet she actually dared hit him.
She must have a death wish.
Li Zhiyuan was so furious he nearly passed out.
Never in his life had he been beaten by a woman like this.
It was the greatest humiliation imaginable.
An absolute humiliation.
With so many people watching, he had completely lost face today.
He glanced around.
Sure enough, many people were looking at him with mocking expressions.
Humiliated and enraged, he pointed at Shen Qingyao and shouted viciously,
“You bitch! Don’t refuse a favor only to regret it later! It’s your blessing that I took a liking to you. You actually dared hit me? I’ll make sure you pay dearly for this!”
“Oh? Then keep that blessing for yourself. This young lady doesn’t want it. Looking at your face is enough to make me lose my appetite.”
Shen Qingyao replied calmly, her words capable of infuriating someone to death.
She didn’t care in the slightest about Li Zhiyuan’s twisted expression.
Did he really think he was some local emperor?
As if she didn’t have money.
Her wealth rivaled that of an entire nation.
She simply preferred to keep a low profile.
She really didn’t know where this man got his confidence.
He was nothing more than the son of a wealthy landowner.
What was so impressive about that?
Oh, right.
His elder sister had married the county magistrate.
Li Zhiyuan’s patience finally ran out.
He waved a hand and ordered the four guards behind him,
“Capture this bitch and take her back to the residence! As for that brat, beat him up and throw him aside!”
This damned woman really didn’t appreciate kindness.
She should have asked around before offending Li Zhiyuan.
The surrounding crowd looked sympathetically at the brother and sister, shaking their heads helplessly.
Yet not a single person stepped forward to help.
They were only ordinary commoners.
They didn’t want to play the hero, much less bring trouble upon themselves.
Shen Qingyao wasn’t surprised.
People were naturally indifferent.
Besides, the people around her were complete strangers.
Why would they offend someone they couldn’t afford to provoke for the sake of someone they didn’t even know?
No one was foolish enough to do that.
The four guards had long since grown accustomed to carrying out their young master’s orders.
All of them wore smug smiles.
Only two of the guards rushed forward first.
Without the slightest hesitation, they charged at Shen Qingyao and Leng Xingchen.
After all, they were convinced she was only a woman.
The two of them were more than enough to deal with her.
Shen Qingyao remained completely calm.
There wasn’t the slightest trace of fear in her eyes.
She reached out and pulled Leng Xingchen, who had spread his arms to shield her, behind her with one hand.
A little kid should act like a little kid.
Just stay put and stop causing trouble.
“Stay behind me and don’t get in my way.”
Her voice remained calm.
The guards rushed over and reached out to grab Shen Qingyao’s arms.
Of course, she wasn’t about to let them succeed.
After all, she had learned Taekwondo and Muay Thai since she was young.
She held a black belt in Taekwondo, and her Muay Thai skills were excellent as well.
How could she possibly be frightened by a few guards?
That simply wasn’t going to happen.
Just as the guards were about to grab her arm, Shen Qingyao sneered.
Her fists shot out like lightning.
One punch landed squarely on one guard’s right eye.
The other struck the second guard’s left eye.
Standing side by side, the two of them ended up with matching black eyes, like a pair of pandas.
The force behind those punches was tremendous.
It felt as though a heavy hammer had smashed into their eyeballs.
“Ahhh!”
The two guards screamed as they were sent flying backward.
One of them happened to crash directly into Li Zhiyuan.
The other slammed heavily onto the ground, spat out a mouthful of blood, rolled his eyes back, and fainted.
Li Zhiyuan was crushed beneath the falling guard and let out a miserable howl.
“Ahhh!”
The remaining two guards froze in place.
They stared blankly at their young master behind them before looking back at the beautiful young woman standing before them.
Taking advantage of their daze, Shen Qingyao curled her lips into an icy smile.
She raised her leg and kicked each of the remaining guards once, sending both of them flying a long distance.
The people nearby hurriedly backed away.
None of them wanted to end up like Li Zhiyuan, pinned beneath a guard.
What a miserable sight!
Absolutely miserable!
One of the guards hit the ground, spat out a mouthful of blood, and fainted on the spot. Li Zhiyuan was trapped underneath another guard and struggled for quite a while before finally pushing the unconscious man off himself.
Damn it!
Today was unbelievably unlucky.
He definitely hadn’t checked the almanac before leaving home.
Standing behind Shen Qingyao, Leng Xingchen’s eyes were wide with shock.
Soon, they were filled with nothing but admiration.
Elder Sister is amazing!
She took down four men all by herself with just two punches and two kicks.
Li Zhiyuan clutched his aching waist and cried out,
“It hurts… It hurts so much… My waist hurts! Is it broken?”
The spectators were all dumbfounded.
This young woman looked so slender, yet she was unbelievably strong.
She had knocked all four of Li Zhiyuan’s guards to the ground.
Li Zhiyuan groaned for quite a while, but no one came to help him up.
When he looked around, he realized that all four guards he had brought with him were lying on the ground.
He swallowed hard.
How could such a beautiful woman be so terrifying?
She had kicked a grown man flying so far with a single kick.
That kind of strength was simply horrifying.
He was scared.
Supporting himself with one hand on his aching waist, Li Zhiyuan slowly sat up.
To his horror, he saw the beauty walking toward him.
Every step she took felt like it was stomping directly on his heart, filling him with genuine fear.
Li Zhiyuan had no desire to end up coughing blood like his guards.
As the saying went, a wise man knows when to yield.
He immediately changed his attitude.
Dropping to his knees, he begged,
“Miss, I’m sorry! I failed to recognize a true master. I won’t dare do it again. Please spare me!”
Good heavens!
Why was he so unlucky today?
He had actually run into such a fierce shrew.
Looks really were deceiving.
The prettier a woman was, the more dangerous she might be.
Looking at Li Zhiyuan’s cowardly appearance, Shen Qingyao curled her lip in disdain.
What a useless waste.
“So, you’re not planning to take me home as your concubine anymore?”
She asked teasingly.
Li Zhiyuan shook his head so hard it looked like a rattle drum.
His voice trembled.
“I wouldn’t dare! I really wouldn’t dare anymore!”
Forget it.
If he brought a fierce shrew like this home, he might not live to see another day.
No matter how beautiful she was, he simply wasn’t blessed enough to enjoy her.
Besides, he already had ten beautiful concubines waiting for him at home.
Silently, Leng Xingchen made up his mind.
From now on, he would practice martial arts with all his strength.
He absolutely could not let Elder Sister fight personally again.
What if those filthy people dirtied her hands?
He was a man.
How could he let a girl protect him?
There absolutely couldn’t be a next time.
With the corners of her lips slightly raised, Shen Qingyao looked at Li Zhiyuan and said coldly,
“Really? You’re sure you don’t want to marry me anymore? Why don’t you think it over?”
As she spoke, she casually waved her fist at him.
Li Zhiyuan frantically shook his head again.
“No! No! I’m scared! I can’t handle it!”
His answer made the people around them burst into laughter.
It was the first time they had ever seen Young Master Li, who usually bullied both men and women, act so cowardly.
Hearing the laughter around him, Li Zhiyuan glared viciously at the crowd in warning.
The townspeople immediately wiped the smiles from their faces.
They lowered their eyes as though they had never laughed at all.
Only then did Li Zhiyuan withdraw his gaze in satisfaction.
He was afraid of the fierce shrew who could fight four men by herself.
But he wasn’t afraid of these ordinary commoners in the slightest.
After warning everyone, he turned back to Shen Qingyao with an obedient, ingratiating smile.
Seeing how spineless he looked, Shen Qingyao couldn’t even be bothered to deal with him anymore.
She turned around and walked back toward the inn.
Leng Xingchen happily followed behind her, carrying all the bags.
Once the fierce shrew finally left, Li Zhiyuan let out a long sigh of relief.
The burden weighing on his heart finally lifted.
But the pain in his waist suddenly overwhelmed him.
His body went limp, and he fainted on the spot.
The moment the crowd saw Young Master Li lose consciousness, everyone scattered.
No one wanted to get themselves involved in trouble.
Only the master and his four servants were left lying there alone.
It was quite a pitiful sight.
After returning to the inn, Shen Qingyao settled the bill for their rooms, and the two of them left.
It wasn’t because she was afraid of the Li family.
The Li family was nothing more than a wealthy merchant family.
She simply didn’t want the unnecessary trouble.
After the pair departed, the innkeeper let out a sigh of relief.
He had already heard that this young woman had beaten up Young Master Li.
Although the Li family were merely merchants, the eldest daughter of the family had married the county magistrate.
Otherwise, how could Li Zhiyuan have been so arrogant?
The two of them left the city and continued traveling south.
Their carriage wasn’t moving very fast.
They eventually stopped at the foot of a mountain not far from a town.
Shen Qingyao’s only responsibility was handing the food and cooking utensils to Leng Xingchen.
Everything else had nothing to do with her.
Leng Xingchen busied himself outside.
Gathering firewood, starting the fire, and cooking the meal—he handled everything by himself.
When they stopped, it was still before sunset, making it easy to collect firewood.
They had chosen to rest at the foot of the mountain because there was a small river nearby.
Every time they stopped, they deliberately chose somewhere with a water source.
Water was the most important thing.
If she had been traveling alone, it wouldn’t have mattered whether there was water nearby.
After all, she had water inside her Space.
But with another person traveling with her, they had to stop somewhere with a natural water source.
Not long after they left, Li Zhiyuan was carried back to his home.
After the physician revived him, Li Zhiyuan felt utterly humiliated.
No matter what, he had to get his revenge.
He immediately ordered people to find out where that fierce shrew was staying.
However, the men he sent out soon returned with their report.
The fierce shrew had already left.
No one knew where she had gone.
When Li Zhiyuan heard the news, he was so furious he nearly exploded.
He had suffered such a huge loss for nothing.
Now he couldn’t even find the person he wanted to take revenge on.
It infuriated him to no end.