Leng Ruoli and the others soon arrived at an inn. As they stepped through the entrance, they were stopped and questioned by several constables.
"Who are you people? Where do you come from?"
The leading constable, dressed in a blue fitted outfit and with his hands crossed over his chest, holding a sword, asked with an unfriendly expression.
"Greetings, constables. We are from the Nanzhao Kingdom. We were escorting a镖 (biāo - a valuable cargo) for someone, but we were attacked by bandits along the way. To protect the main group, we fell behind. Now it's getting late, and we just want to find an inn to rest for the night before catching up with the main group tomorrow," Yin Yi said, feigning a humble tone to the leading constable.
"Why would you have a woman with you during an escort?"
The leading constable didn't believe Yin Yi's words and glanced at Leng Ruoli beside him.
Upon hearing this, Yin Yi had a flash of inspiration and smiled.
"Constable, she is the eldest daughter of our main escort agency. She was very curious about our usual escorts, so she followed us," Yin Yi said with a helpless expression.
"What? You're going to manage even if this young lady personally goes on an escort?" Leng Ruoli's eyes flashed a sharp glint, and she spoke coldly.
Simultaneously, she exuded an icy aura that sent shivers down the spines of the constables.
"Uh... it's nothing. You may enter," the leading constable was instantly rendered speechless.
Thus, Leng Ruoli and her companions swaggered into the inn.
The innkeeper, seeing that his establishment finally had guests brave enough to enter for food and lodging, was beside himself with excitement and walked over to greet Leng Ruoli and the others with a smile.
The innkeeper was a middle-aged man, tall and slightly stout, but his eyes were clear of any ulterior motives. He looked honest and likely free of any deceitful schemes.
"Guests, are you here for a meal or lodging?" the innkeeper asked with a smile.
"We want both food and lodging. First, arrange three superior rooms for us and then prepare a meal to be brought to our rooms. Remember to add two roasted chickens," Leng Ruoli commanded, casually taking out a few pieces of碎银子 (suì yín zi - broken silver pieces) from her sleeve pocket and placing them in the innkeeper's hand.
Seeing the silver in his hand, the innkeeper's eyes brightened further.
"Certainly. I'll take you to the third floor to choose your rooms now. Once you've selected your rooms, I'll arrange for your food immediately," the innkeeper said with a kindly smile.
He then led Leng Ruoli, Jun Mohan, and the others up to the third floor where the superior rooms were, allowing them to choose.
Leng Ruoli chose three adjacent rooms in the left corner. She and Jun Mohan would sleep in the middle room, Yin Chen and Chu Mingxuan in the left one, and Yin Yi and Yin Er in the right one.
At this moment, Leng Ruoli smiled at the innkeeper and asked, "Innkeeper, why are there so many constables guarding the entrance of your establishment?"
"Alas, young lady, you wouldn't know. Recently, several children have gone missing in North Pass Town. It's rumored that a couple from the Tianwu Kingdom came to the Beichen Kingdom to steal children, so the authorities have dispatched constables to search the entire North Pass Town. Our inns and restaurants are strictly guarded, fearing that the child-stealing couple might be hiding in these establishments. However, they haven't caught anyone, which has scared away potential guests. My business has been abysmal lately. If this continues, my inn will go out of business," the innkeeper complained in a low voice.
Upon hearing the innkeeper's words, Leng Ruoli almost burst out laughing. A couple from the Tianwu Kingdom? Couldn't that be her and Jun Mohan? They had only descended from Tianyun Mountain today. When had they ever stolen children? They wouldn't be framed!
"Alright, thank you, innkeeper. We came from the south and were unaware of the recent events in North Pass Town. I appreciate your concern," Leng Ruoli said with a faint smile. Her smile was extremely subtle and light, like a feather drifting by, silent and delicate, yet possessing a unique charm that could easily capture hearts and leave a lasting impression.
"Very well, young lady and gentlemen, please rest in your rooms for a while. I will immediately instruct the chef to prepare a good meal for you."
After bidding farewell to Leng Ruoli and the others, the innkeeper turned and trotted downstairs.
After the innkeeper left, Leng Ruoli entered her room and said to everyone, "The King and I have been framed as child traffickers."
"This is outrageous! How could our King and Consort be child traffickers?" Yin Yi and Yin Er exclaimed indignantly.
"Only a few people knew that we secretly came to the Beichen Kingdom from our Nanzhao Kingdom. Most of them didn't even know we came to climb Tianyun Mountain. Could Da Riga Chi have leaked our whereabouts?" Leng Ruoli murmured to herself.
"Lier, you missed one person. He is the Pavilion Master of the Dark Night Pavilion," Jun Mohan reminded her.
"Yes, it must be him – the Pavilion Master of the Dark Night Pavilion. Although Da Riga Chi is unreliable, he cares for his tribesmen. The wolf poison on his tribesmen has not been cured. Da Riga Chi would not use the lives of so many tribesmen to reveal our whereabouts, because he still has a conscience. We exposed our true appearances in Da Riga Chi's underground chamber that day. The Pavilion Master of the Dark Night Pavilion already knows we are in the vicinity of the Keqin Grasslands. It's highly possible he has now informed Murong Qiansong of our arrival in the Beichen Kingdom," Leng Ruoli said slowly.
Jun Mohan nodded in agreement with Leng Ruoli's analysis.
"Jun Mohan, if those uninvited guests hadn't disturbed us tonight, I would have expedited the process of developing the antidote for the wolf poison to cure you of your wolf poison quickly. Tomorrow, you can send someone with over fifty doses of the wolf poison antidote to Da Riga Chi, so he can cure the wolf poison in those fifty-odd cavalrymen. Then we can quietly head to Haojing," Leng Ruoli said with sharp eyes.
Later, after Leng Ruoli and the others had talked for a while longer, there was a knock on their room door.
Yin Chen went to open the door. Outside stood the innkeeper, accompanied by several cooks, carrying hot dishes.
Yin Chen immediately made way for them to bring the dishes in, and the cooks successively placed the food on the table.
After placing the dishes from their trays on the table, the cooks said to Leng Ruoli and the others, "Enjoy your meal!"
Then they withdrew.
After the innkeeper and cooks left, Yin Chen closed the door again.
At this moment, Chu Mingxuan's mouth began to water at the sight of the steaming hot dishes on the table. This group had only eaten breakfast that day before rushing onto the back of the Snow Dragon to fly down the mountain. Because the Snow Dragon flew so fast, they had been in the air, enduring the cold wind all the way. Aside from drinking a few sips of water to quench their thirst, they couldn't eat anything else, and their stomachs were long empty.
Just as Chu Mingxuan was about to pick up a pair of chopsticks to taste a piece of meat, Leng Ruoli slapped his hand. The piece of meat held between the chopsticks immediately fell onto the table.
Chu Mingxuan was startled and bewildered.