"I don't have any," Ming Yu quickly explained. She wouldn't dare offend Li Chenxi, lest she not be allowed to sleep in the bed.
Li Chenxi didn't say anything more. She pushed open the room and gestured to the bed. "You sleep on the bed. Winter Ming and I will find another place!"
The fatigue of the journey had already made Ming Yu drowsy. The moment she touched the pillow, she fell asleep. She only woke up in a daze to Chang Yu's voice, "Miss Yu, wake up quickly!"
"Chang Yu, is that you? I want to sleep more!" Ming Yu couldn't control her desire to sleep, her eyelids felt heavy, and she didn't seem to want to wake up at all.
"Miss Yu, you can't sleep any longer. Hurry up and get up!" Chang Yu's voice held a hint of urgency. Ming Yu instantly sobered up quite a bit. If it weren't for something important, Chang Yu wouldn't have disturbed her.
Opening her heavy eyelids, she could vaguely see Chang Yu's shining eyes in the darkness. She sat up with Chang Yu's support, but her head ached more and more. "Chang Yu, my head hurts so much!"
"Miss Yu, hold on for a moment. I'll take you out. We can't stay here any longer!" Chang Yu picked Ming Yu up, kicked open the window, and leaped out.
Unexpectedly, several black-clothed figures were already hidden outside the window. "Get out of the way!" Chang Yu said coldly.
A black-clothed man snorted, "Since you're here, why not stay a little longer? Why the rush to leave?"
"I come and go freely. What does it have to do with you?" Chang Yu retorted.
"This is our master's inn. You can only enter, not leave!" the black-clothed man said coldly.
"Under the very feet of the Son of Heaven, there are still people doing business like this, only allowing entry and no exit. I've never seen anything like it!" Ming Yu said coldly, enduring the throbbing pain in her head.
"The Son of Heaven is too far away to manage so much. Here, our master is the law, he is the Son of Heaven!" the black-clothed man replied.
Hmph, what big words! But I'm afraid you'll be disappointed this time!" Chang Yu said. Then, holding Ming Yu tightly with one hand and wielding her long sword with the other, she charged forward.
Amidst the flashing blades and clashing weapons, Chang Yu, being someone by Hua Yun Dan's side, had no problem dealing with these common thugs. In the time it took for an incense stick to burn, the black-clothed men were all eliminated. Chang Yu wiped the sweat from her brow and looked at Ming Yu, who had fallen asleep in her arms, a fleeting thought and tenderness she shouldn't have arose in her heart.
The next day
Ming Yu woke up, rubbing her still aching head. She looked at her surroundings. It was a dilapidated temple, and Chang Yu was nowhere to be seen, presumably having gone out.
"Miss Ming Yu, you're awake?" Chang Yu walked in, holding an oil-paper packet.
Ming Yu widened her eyes, looking at Chang Yu before her, and rubbed her eyes. "Chang Yu, is it really you? Am I dreaming?"
Chang Yu chuckled at Ming Yu's words. "I was ordered by my master to protect Miss Yu, so I wouldn't abandon you halfway."
Ming Yu said, "Thank you, Chang Yu. But where is Li Chenxi?" The one who said she would go with her?
"Li Chenxi had something to do, so I volunteered to come!" Chang Yu replied.
"Really? That's great!" Ming Yu said happily. With Chang Yu here, she felt truly at ease.
She saw the paper packet in Chang Yu's hand, and at that moment, she was also hungry. She clutched her rumbling stomach and smiled, "It's perfect timing, I'm starving. You're so thoughtful!"
Chang Yu smiled and said, "I knew Miss Yu would be hungry."
Ming Yu picked up a bun. The aroma made her forget all pretense, and she began to eat heartily. Yesterday, when they arrived at the inn, she was too sleepy to eat anything, only drinking some water. Water? She put down the bun and looked at Chang Yu.
Chang Yu seemed to know what she was thinking and said, "The inn we stayed at was a black inn. You could only enter, not leave. The food and tea contained drugs that would make people lose consciousness and just want to sleep."
"Then was any of our stuff missing?" Ming Yu quickly checked the silver in her baggage. If the silver was gone, it would be a big problem!
"Don't worry, I discovered it before they could act," Chang Yu replied. He had been secretly following them, and unexpectedly saw that the inn was a black inn, which was why he appeared in time. Otherwise, the consequences would have been unimaginable.
Ming Yu nodded. "Fortunately, you discovered it in time. Otherwise, if all our silver was gone, where would we live?" She felt a chill just thinking about it.
"No, I can't keep it all in my baggage. I need to carry some with me!" Ming Yu opened her baggage, gave Chang Yu some banknotes and silver, and tucked some into her own clothes. She left nothing in the baggage except for a few pieces of clothing. She couldn't let anyone steal all her money, she didn't want to sleep out in the open.
"We still need to find an inn!" She couldn't spend all her time outdoors, as she wouldn't be able to sleep soundly.
"There's only one inn in this area. If you need another inn, you'll have to go to the next place!" He had already investigated. This inn was opened by the younger brother of the Minister of Justice, and with the backing of a high-ranking official, and being so far from the capital, who would dare to report it?
"Doesn't the Empress even know about this? This is too bad," Ming Yu shook her head and sighed, saying that if things were like this near the capital, then the situation in other places could be imagined.
She hadn't expected that she had only left here for a short time, and the court had already fallen into disarray. It was estimated that factions had formed in the court over the years, making governance difficult.
"You are not allowed to speak about the Empress like that!" As the voice fell, a woman in red appeared. Ming Yu looked closely and realized it was Qian Siming from last night.
"I was just expressing my feelings!" Ming Yu knew that speaking about the Empress like that was truly unintentional.
"Qian Siming..." A man standing quietly beside her suddenly stopped Qian Siming from continuing.
Qian Siming looked wronged, "The facts are just like this, and yet..."
"Qian Siming, if you continue like this, you can go back!" the man said coldly.
"Brother, don't be angry. I won't say anything more!" Qian Siming pleaded in a begging tone, trying to get the man not to be angry.
"Miss, my sister's rudeness last night was indeed wrong, but she was also afraid that you would be targeted by the innkeepers' assassins, which is why she acted that way!" the man said faintly. His vacant, lifeless eyes were like a mirror, reflecting Ming Yu's shadow.
"Brother, there's no need to explain. I'm just this spoiled and willful," Qian Siming said, looking disdainfully at Chang Yu.
Ming Yu pursed her lips and was silent for a moment before saying, "My apologies for last night. I hope you don't take it to heart!"
"Hmph, it's good that you know!" Qian Siming said disdainfully.
"So, Young Master knew long ago?" Ming Yu asked in surprise.
Before the man could speak, Qian Siming interjected, "Of course. Otherwise, do you think I would bother with such trivial matters for no reason? It's just that my kindhearted brother is too benevolent, and this young lady, out of great mercy, saved you from this disaster."
"Then thank you very much, Miss!" Ming Yu said respectfully.