Running onto the street, she found it decorated with lanterns and streamers. Pedestrians came and went, a far cry from the chaos just now.
Su Xiaoliu was a bit anxious. She stood still and looked around.
If she ran away now, what if something happened to that young master? After all, he had stepped forward for her sake. Go back? No, no. She didn't know martial arts. Going back would be like courting death.
A night-soil cart passed by in front of her, wafting a foul stench.
Su Xiaoliu stared at the dirty barrels on the cart and suddenly curled up the corners of her mouth.
No one on the pleasure boat had the heart to appreciate its luxury and beauty anymore. Everyone was pushing to get off the boat.
"So the Heavenly Bestowed Sword is with you." A middle - aged man in black came out from the second floor. His temples were as white as snow, but his steps still carried a hidden force, indicating that his martial arts skills were not to be underestimated. A young and beautiful woman stood beside him, with her head down.
Behind the veil hat, the young master in white looked at him, secretly gathering strength in the hand that held the sword.
The maid who had just flown down from the second floor stood not far from the young master, staring at him intently, ready to strike at any moment.
"Lord Cang, to lure the young master here, you even specially found someone to deceive him into thinking the Heavenly Lord was here. You've really gone to great lengths. It's a pity that the young master still gave you some face." The gray - clothed man beside him sneered, his clear voice tinged with a hint of mockery.
The middle - aged man called Lord Cang looked at the young master in white but didn't say a word.
"Lord Cang is just the same as ten years ago. Should I feel honored, senior?" The young master said with a light smile. Under the veil, his ink - black eyes glistened slightly.
There were rustling sounds, and several ragged shadows surrounded them, trapping the two of them.
Su Xiaoliu ran back to the side of the pleasure boat and craned her neck to look at the situation on it. Most of the people on the pleasure boat had fled. The remaining ones were all involved in this matter.
She looked down at the barrel in her hand, reached into her bosom, took out a handkerchief and covered her face to block the stench that went straight into her nose.
"Damn it." Seeing those emerging black - clothed men, Su Xiaoliu murmured.
She dragged the barrel and carefully approached the pleasure boat, pausing after each step.
Cang Nanyan looked at the two who were surrounded, and the look of certainty on his face was hard to hide.
"The four Star Lords each hid something, yet none of them knew the whereabouts of the Heavenly Lord. You were careless, so don't blame me for seizing the opportunity." Cang Nanyan folded his hands behind his back. The hem of his black robe inlaid with gold fluttered in the wind.
"Young master, what should we do?" The gray - clothed man frowned and whispered to the young master in white. His silver - gray eyes were full of nervousness.
The young master stared straight ahead. His diamond - shaped lips, visible on his exposed chin, were slightly pursed. He didn't say a word.
Cang Nanyan raised the corners of his mouth triumphantly. Just as he was about to speak, he saw a bustling figure rush onto the pleasure boat...
"Giving out money, giving out money..."
Su Xiaoliu rushed over with a wooden ladle in one hand and a dung bucket in the other, constantly muttering. Her two exposed eyes were full of excitement.
Everyone was stunned. The young master in white turned to look at her.
The more than a dozen black - clothed men who had been standing still suddenly relaxed a bit and stared unblinkingly at Su Xiaoliu, who had somehow run up.
Su Xiaoliu turned to look at them, waved the wooden ladle, and said with a smile, "Why are you looking at me? Do you want some money? I'll give you some." With that, she lifted the lid of the barrel, and immediately a foul stench filled the air...
She inserted the wooden ladle into the barrel, stirred it, and scooped up a full ladle of the golden - colored stuff. With a "whoosh", she splashed it on the ground at their feet.
Suddenly, all the more than a dozen black - clothed men were in a complete mess...
"Where did you come from, girl?" The maid frowned and rushed up to grab Su Xiaoliu.
Su Xiaoliu dodged in time. She looked at the maid, raised her eyebrows, and said with a smile, "Why don't you go and arrange your young miss's marriage? Why are you chasing me? Do you want some too?" With that, she inserted the wooden ladle into the barrel again, pretending to splash a ladleful out.
When the maid saw this action, she immediately stopped in her tracks, changed her expression, and quickly took a dozen steps back.
Su Xiaoliu narrowed her almond - shaped eyes, turned around, and splashed a ladleful of night - soil at the feet of those black - clothed men who were about to sneak up on her from behind.
"Want to sneak up on me? No way, not even a window." She squinted and smiled.
The young master in white stared at her. His diamond - shaped lips, which had been slightly pursed, suddenly curled into an uncontrollable smile.
"Hey, why are you running!" Su Xiaoliu inserted the wooden ladle into the barrel and splashed it ladle by ladle, forcing the black - clothed men to retreat continuously.
Several black - clothed men scurried around in a mess, afraid that the dung juice would land on them.
"Young master, what's wrong with this girl..." The gray - clothed man looked up at his young master with a half - laughing, half - crying expression on his face and found that he was looking at Su Xiaoliu with great interest.
Cang Nanyan could no longer hold back his anger. He took a step forward and slapped the railing on the second floor heavily. With one palm, the railing was shattered, and the wood kept falling down.
"This is simply absurd!"
Su Xiaoliu ignored him. She turned around, looked at the young master, and said, "Run."
The young master in white looked at her and nodded slightly. The gray - clothed man beside him hesitated a bit but still protected the young master and quickly fled the scene.
Seeing that the prey was about to escape, Cang Nanyan frowned and shouted loudly, "Catch them for me!"
Su Xiaoliu looked up at him standing on the second floor and suddenly smiled maliciously. Cang Nanyan vaguely felt something was wrong, but before he could react...
"I almost forgot about you!" Su Xiaoliu swung her hand, and a full ladle of night - soil "whooshed" and was directly splashed on his face.
Cang Nanyan stood there stunned. The dung juice in his hair dripped down his face. The young and beautiful woman beside him was so disgusted that her beautiful face turned pale. She leaned against the wall and retched.
The young master in white looked back at Su Xiaoliu. He saw Su Xiaoliu throw the barrel in her hand, rush over, and pull him to run together.
While running, she looked back at Cang Nanyan, who was trembling with anger on the second floor, and smiled provocatively, with a look of "what can you do to me".
"Catch, catch her for me!" Cang Nanyan wiped the stuff on his face with his sleeve, wiped it several times in a row, and finally turned green - faced from the stench.
Several black - clothed men looked at each other. One of them summoned up the courage and chased after them.
Su Xiaoliu looked back, smiled, and said, "Here you go!" Then she suddenly threw the wooden ladle in her hand at his face, directly knocking him unconscious...
"Let's go!" Su Xiaoliu turned around, pulled the young master off the pleasure boat, and ran towards the crowded area.
They stopped on the long street. Su Xiaoliu turned around, out of breath.
She looked up at the young master, then down at her hands, and suddenly froze.
She said blankly, "I didn't wipe my hands..."
The young master also froze. He looked down at his cuffs, and five finger - prints were clearly printed on his white clothes...
The gray - clothed man widened his gray eyes, pointed at Su Xiaoliu, and said angrily and amusingly, "Why are you so reckless, girl? Other girls aren't like you."
Su Xiaoliu didn't like to hear this. Just as she was about to defend herself, the young master in white spoke first.
"Do you have any silver on you?" The young master looked at her. His expression couldn't be seen under the veil hat. Only his nice diamond - shaped lips opened and closed.
Su Xiaoliu was stunned for a moment. She reached into her bosom. Under the gaze of the gray - clothed man, she took out a copper coin and said, "I still have one."
The young master's diamond - shaped lips parted slightly. Just as he was about to speak, he saw Su Xiaoliu rummaging through her body. She said anxiously, "Where's my two taels of silver!"
The young master was a bit dazed. He kindly reminded her, "Didn't you give it to the beggar?"
Su Xiaoliu suddenly stopped moving. She suddenly looked up at him, took a step back warily, and said warily, "Were you following me?"
The gray - clothed man couldn't stand it anymore and said, "Girl, who would follow you for no reason? The young master has helped you so many times..."
Su Xiaoliu didn't pay attention to the second half of his sentence. She rubbed her nose boredly, reached out her hand, and handed the copper coin over, saying, "Here, take it."
The young master looked up at her in confusion.
Seeing him looking at her, Su Xiaoliu got a bit impatient. She grabbed his hand and put the copper coin in his palm, saying, "What are you looking at? I really only have this one left!"
The young master was speechless.
After a while, the young master returned the copper coin to her and gave her a gold ingot, saying, "If you don't go home, just find an inn to stay in."
Su Xiaoliu looked down at the gold ingot in her hand. She wasn't unfamiliar with gold, but for a moment, she felt that this gold ingot was a bit different from the ones she had seen before... It seemed to carry a bit more human touch.
Just as Su Xiaoliu was about to ask how he knew she wasn't going home, she saw a familiar face in the crowd, looking around.
She didn't care about anything else. After leaving a "thank you", she ran away.
The young master watched her leaving back, and a captivating smile appeared on his lips.
Su Xiaoliu looked back while running. After making sure no one was following her, she breathed a sigh of relief.
The face she had just seen was that of her personal maid. It should be that her father had sent her out to look for her. The news that she had been divorced by the number - one talented man must have reached her father's ears. If her father knew, her two elder sisters must also know. Going back now would be to invite humiliation.
Thinking of this, Su Xiaoliu turned a corner and hid in the alley.
Far away from the bustling street, it became very quiet. The silence was a bit uncomfortable.
"Should be okay now..." Su Xiaoliu murmured to herself and quietly poked her head out.
As soon as she stuck her head out, she met a pair of lively eyes.
Su Xiaoliu was so scared that she took a step back. Then she saw a girl about sixteen or seventeen years old, wearing a light - yellow silk dress and with two buns on her head, walking towards her.
"Miss, are you hiding from me?" She curled up the corners of her mouth. Her lively eyes sparkled with an interesting light.
Su Xiaoliu calmed her breathing and looked at her, saying, "Su Ling, why did you come out?"
The little maid called Su Ling smiled and bent her lively eyes, saying, "Master asked me to look for you."
Sure enough, her guess was right. Su Xiaoliu thought to herself.
"Master said... that the third miss should pack up and get ready to marry her fourth husband." Su Ling deliberately beat around the bush and finally dropped this bombshell.
It was like a thunderbolt out of the blue, shattering Su Xiaoliu.
The fourth one?
"I don't want to marry anymore!" Su Xiaoliu frowned and shouted loudly.
Su Ling grabbed her hand and said with a smile, "Master said that if you don't go back, he'll let me follow you all the time."
Follow her all the time?
Su Xiaoliu widened her almond - shaped eyes and tried to break free from her hand but couldn't.
What a joke! Having Su Ling, this little maid, follow her would drive her crazy with annoyance!
"So, let's go back." Su Ling smiled and bent her eyes, grabbed her hand, and dragged her away.
Su Xiaoliu stared blankly at the crescent moon in the night sky. A sentence echoed in her mind:
I don't want to get married. I don't want to be divorced again...