Chapter 155: Mysterious Sovereign

Chapter 155: The Mysterious Sovereign

"Meow~"

In a grimy, mottled corner by the wall, a dirty little tabby cat let out a sharp yowl.

Sunlight flickered through the trees, casting shifting shadows on the wall. The little tabby, curious about the shadows, pounced at them, only to bounce back, covered in dust.

"Meow!"

The little tabby dug at the ground in frustration, its cry turning more wary and agitated.

"Foolish thing."

A man who'd watched the tabby run into the wall chuckled.

"Sovereign, time for your medicine." The woman behind him respectfully presented a small medicine box. "The High Priest said your wound's healing well, but you need to avoid anger, worry, and strong emotions, or it could strain your heart."

"Understood."

The man took the medicine box, his voice calm.

The tabby seemed curious about the box and reached for it, but the man gently nudged it away. "You can't touch this."

The man downed the pill and gave the tabby a gentle stroke. "It would kill you."

This time, the man wasn't wearing a cloak. His sharp, aggressive features stood out even more against his long, brown-gold hair.

"Little thing, you really remind me of him."

Giving up on the medicine box, the tabby started playing with the man's braid, making the little gold bells jingle.

"Sovereign, careful that thing doesn't scratch you."

The woman frowned. This little beast was just like that dead bird—not likable in the slightest. Yet the Sovereign was willing to put up with it.

"Poor thing." The man cradled the tabby in his palm and sighed. "Could crush it with one hand."

The woman felt a pang of disappointment when the man ignored her, but she didn't dare show it.

Luckily, the man didn't mess with the tabby for long. After a moment, he instructed the woman, "Have Miao Mao wait at Jing Pass. That pawn we saved back then should come in handy now."

"Yes! I'll send a falcon right away."

With that, the woman turned and left, and the man stayed to play with the tabby. He scratched the tabby's chin gently, but his gaze landed coldly on the noisy crowd nearby.

The annual Divine Maiden selection nearly went off the rails because of a snake, but luckily, some skilled martial artist stepped up and killed it. The crowd cheered, and then the officials started tossing copper coins to "dispel poison and spread blessings."

Then the man watched the Prince of Lingnan and Little Master Qin get swept apart by the excited crowd. Once the crowd settled, the Prince of Lingnan's shadow guards showed up, searching for the missing young master and a "Flowery Peacock."

"Xie Nai."

The man's lake-green eyes were cold and unsettling, like a wild beast's. "We meet again."

As if sensing something, Xie Nai suddenly looked his way from the crowd—

The summer breeze rustled the branches, painting shifting light and shadow on the white wall. By the grimy alley, a little tabby lay on the ground, lazily licking its fur. Everything was calm and peaceful, as usual.

"What's wrong?" Xiao Baiyu asked, puzzled.

"Nothing." Xie Nai shook his head. "Let's find Qin Jiao and He Zhao first."

The surging crowd had scattered their group moments ago, but luckily, He Zhao and Qin Jiao got pushed together this time.

"Let's split up."

"Yeah." Xie Nai nodded.

People came and went, the noise never letting up. The green-eyed man blended into the crowd, murmuring with a nostalgic yet cold tone: "Prince of Lingnan, it's been a long time."

"I've had it with this!" In front of a shabby alley, He Zhao leaned against the wall, catching his breath. "This young master hasn't been this messed up in ages!"

Qin Jiao nodded in agreement: "Those commoners are completely nuts."

He Zhao complained while fixing his messy hair: "I can't decide whether to curse Xiaoxiang County for being so extravagant or thank it for being so generous."

Qin Jiao gritted his teeth: "Generous, extravagant, and crazy all at once!"

He Zhao: "...You've got a point!"

I mean, who tosses copper coins mixed with pearls, jade, and a giant lump of incense ash?!

No wonder those commoners went nuts—forget the incense ash, if someone picked up a pearl, that alone could feed a regular family for half a year.

Brushing the incense ash off his clothes, He Zhao turned to Qin Jiao: "Alright, the crowd's thinning. Let's go find Xiao Baiyu and Xie Nai."

Qin Jiao: "Can't go."

"What's wrong?" He Zhao saw his grim expression. "Are you hurt?"

"No."

Qin Jiao lifted the hem of his robe to show He Zhao his problem. "I lost a shoe in the crowd."

"..."

Good grief! He Zhao looked closer—not just the shoe, Qin Jiao had lost his sock too. No wonder he'd gritted his teeth so hard when he said "Xiaoxiang County is insane." That was why.

He Zhao couldn't help laughing: "Then we'll just wait for them to come find us."

With that, he spotted a chair nearby and was about to grab it when he caught three shadows at the alley's turn out of the corner of his eye.

"Qin Jiao, does that person over there look like Guan Jiu?"

Guan Jiu, the county official of Xiaoxiang County, had just appeared at the Divine Maiden selection.

"Let me see."

Qin Jiao, balancing on one leg against the wall like a "golden rooster," craned his neck to peek around the corner.

After a moment, Qin Jiao confirmed, "It's him."

"Too bad the other two are blocked—can't make out their faces." He Zhao said in a low voice. "But one of the guys seems to have a burn scar on his face."

"A burn scar?"

Qin Jiao thought for a moment. He vaguely remembered someone with a scar like that, but couldn't place who.

Qin Jiao and He Zhao were hidden, and the three men hadn't spotted them yet. Finally, with his ear almost pressed to the wall, He Zhao managed to catch a few key words.

"Goddess," "still taking the water route," "medicine guide"... He Zhao slowly recited these completely unrelated phrases, his confusion deepening.

"This Guan Jiu is being all weird." He Zhao muttered quietly to Qin Jiao.

In the middle of the day, why couldn't they talk about this at the government office, and why did they have to meet in this out-of-the-way alley? It's hard not to be suspicious.

"Something's off."

Qin Jiao shared He Zhao's thoughts.

"Are they up to some shady deal?"

Just as He Zhao was making wild guesses, the three suddenly went quiet. When they looked over again, He Zhao's eyes locked with one of the men.

We've been spotted!

The man who locked eyes with He Zhao yelled urgently, "Grab them!"

Quickly sizing up the situation—three against two, no way they could win!

The next second, Qin Jiao and He Zhao blurted out together, "Run!"

At that moment, Qin Jiao didn't even care that he had no shoes on, dodging left and right as they sprinted away.

Behind them, a tall, cloaked man was hot on their heels.

"Are Xie Nai and Xiao Baiyu moving like turtles or what!?"

Qin Jiao and He Zhao ran at full speed, He Zhao was exhausted, almost ready to curse: "It's been forever and they still haven't found us! Slow as molasses!"

Qin Jiao thought, now's not the time for wisecracks... Then he looked up, and boom—there was a wall right in front of them!

A solid, unmoving wall, easily five or six people tall.

Qin Jiao: "..."

He Zhao: "...Good thing I've got my Lightness Skill!"

With that, He Zhao scooped Qin Jiao up by the waist, ready to carry him over.

Qin Jiao trusted He Zhao completely, hugging him tightly. He Zhao pushed off the ground and soared into the air—then, the very next second, they both started plummeting!

Qin Jiao couldn't believe it: "!!!"

Aren't you supposed to be great at lightness skill?! You're dropping mid-flight?

As if sensing Qin Jiao's silent accusation, He Zhao decided to shift the blame loudly first:

"Little Qin Jiao, you need to eat less! You're getting all chubby and round!"

Qin Jiao: "..."

Sometimes, when you're this speechless, you can't help but laugh in frustration!

Just as they were about to splat into two flat pancakes, a figure suddenly flew out from over the high wall. With fast, precise, and fierce moves, he grabbed the backs of He Zhao's and Qin Jiao's collars, and with one strong pull, he hauled them over the wall!

"Whoa, easy there!"

Qin Jiao and He Zhao landed on their feet.

"Thanks a lot!"

Qin Jiao turned around to thank him, and as he looked up, he found himself looking right into a pair of lake-green eyes.

What unique eyes, Qin Jiao thought to himself.

----------------------------------------