"Young Master Mo, your subordinate is rather stubborn. I told him many times this morning that you might have been captured deliberately, but he wouldn't listen. He searched the entire inn and even the snow-covered forest. If not for this young lady returning to the inn and mentioning she met you, he'd probably still be searching frantically." Chu Mingxuan said helplessly.
Hearing Chu Mingxuan's words, Leng Ruoli and Jun Mohan felt quite moved.
"Yinchen, get up quickly. This is not your fault," Leng Ruoli said hurriedly.
However, Yinchen remained unmoved.
"Get up," Jun Mohan then said.
Only then did Yinchen slowly stand up. It seemed he only dared to rise after Jun Mohan spoke.
Yan Yu, who had been silent, also spoke.
"Today, thanks to the young lady and the young master, you saved Yan Yu's life. I will never forget your great kindness," Yan Yu said softly.
As she spoke, she knelt before Leng Ruoli and Jun Mohan. If Leng Ruoli and Jun Mohan hadn't arrived in time to save her, she would have died in agony like the woman whose skin was peeled off, never to see the sunlight again.
"Miss Yan Yu, you don't have to do this."
Leng Ruoli wanted to help her up quickly, but Yan Yu insisted on kowtowing three times to Leng Ruoli and Jun Mohan before rising on her own.
"Young master, young lady, you should also be staying at that inn down the mountain tonight, right?" Yan Yu asked.
"Yes," Leng Ruoli replied with a smile.
"That's perfect. My parents used to be the owners of that inn. Years ago, those people killed my parents and occupied our inn. I managed to escape and settled in a village not far from the inn. But unexpectedly, a few days ago, those people raided the village and captured all the young men and women with good looks, locking them up on the mountain solely for the 'Skin Doll Madam' to peel their skin."
As Yan Yu spoke, she recalled the scenes in the underground palace and still felt a chill down her spine. That person was truly terrifying.
"Alright, it's all over. It's getting late, let's head down the mountain quickly," Leng Ruoli said, gently patting Yan Yu's shoulder.
Thus, the group returned to the inn at the foot of the mountain in a grand procession.
As soon as they stepped through the inn's doorway, Jun Mohan suddenly asked, "Yinchen, were those who attacked us last night captured?"
"Reporting to the King... Young Master Mo, those people tried to attack us again at dawn today but failed. They ended up fighting with us. As a result, two thin men escaped, and the rest were captured by us and are now locked in the woodshed," Yinchen replied.
"Take us to see them!" Jun Mohan said.
"Yes! Your subordinate obeys!"
Then, Yinchen led Jun Mohan and Leng Ruoli to the woodshed in the backyard. Upon opening the door, they saw the very men who had attempted to insult Leng Ruoli last night, bound inside. However, the masked man in black and the one called Skinny Monkey were nowhere to be seen. They had likely realized something was wrong and fled earlier.
As the men watched Jun Mohan approach them, exuding a chilling aura, they grew fearful.
How had they not noticed how terrifying this man was last night? Now, they didn't dare to look at Jun Mohan, afraid of angering him.
But having harbored the thought of insulting Leng Ruoli last night, Jun Mohan would not let them off easily. He kicked them hard in the groin, effectively blinding them, which made everyone tremble.
Afterward, the group returned to the hall.
"Lili, have everyone who went down the mountain with you returned home?" Leng Ruoli suddenly remembered.
"Sister Li, they all rushed home after going down the mountain," Lu Lili replied truthfully.
Hearing this, Leng Ruoli nodded.
"And have you found your grandfather?" Leng Ruoli asked again.
"My grandfather, my grandfather, hmm, he was standing behind us just now?" Lu Lili said with a confused expression.
"Your grandfather smelled the wine aroma from my backyard just now and should be in my wine cellar," Yan Yu shook her head and said with a smile.
Upon hearing this, Lili scratched her head sheepishly and said, "Sister Yan Yu, I'm sorry. My grandfather is a drunkard and loves wine. No matter how deep the alley is, he can smell the wine. I was so worried about him for two days when I was captured and locked up on the mountain. Turns out, he was fine and secretly hid in the inn's wine cellar, drinking wine for a whole night. After getting drunk, he slept in the inn's wine cellar for two days and two nights."
Alas, it was fortunate that Lili knew her grandfather's bad habit, otherwise, she would have been frantic.
"Alright, Lili, don't worry. When my parents were alive, they stored a lot of wine in the inn's wine cellar. He'll come out after drinking for two days," Yan Yu comforted her. "Also, I've released the chefs my parents hired earlier. To thank everyone for rescuing them and restoring their freedom, they've decided to showcase their culinary skills for everyone tonight."
As she spoke, Yan Yu introduced the chefs, who were bruised and battered, to everyone.
"Today, the few of us greasy heads have regained our freedom thanks to everyone. To express our gratitude, we've decided to showcase our skills tonight," the chefs said with smiles.
"Great, great! Hearing you talk about food makes me hungry," Chu Mingxuan said, patting his emaciated stomach and smacking his lips.
Immediately, everyone burst into laughter.
Half an hour later, everyone was enjoying delicious food, and the hall was filled with laughter and joy.
At this moment, a man in black clothing and Skinny Monkey were observing the activity in the inn from outside, intending to rescue those locked in the woodshed.
Seeing the lively scene in the hall, they thought they could sneak into the inn's woodshed undetected to rescue them. To their surprise, as soon as they pried open the woodshed door, they were surrounded by everyone, beaten to a pulp on the spot, and then also locked in the woodshed.
Seeing that all these villains had been captured, Jun Mohan ordered Yinchen to summon the magistrate of Qingyun County that very night to take all these wicked individuals to the yamen for imprisonment. He also ordered the magistrate to execute them in the street at noon the next day.
And so, everyone finally had a good night's sleep that night.
The next day, Leng Ruoli and Jun Mohan's group arrived at the street early to witness the Qingyun County magistrate executing the bandits.
After watching the bandits lose their heads, everyone let out a sigh of relief and returned to the inn to pack their belongings and bid farewell to Yan Yu and Lili.
"Yan Yu, Lili, we'll stay here for another night when we return to the capital after finishing our business," Leng Ruoli said, seeing Yan Yu and Lili's reluctant expressions.