good season

As one of only two guests at the inn, Zhao Shiqing moved into the room next to Luo Liqiong's.

The inn was doing so badly that it couldn't afford to hire a cook. The young waiter wore many hats: he was not only a waiter, but also the head chef, the second chef, and the dishwasher.

In addition, the young waiter also has another identity: the young master of this place.

By the way, there's no innkeeper, but he's still the innkeeper; there's no accountant, but he's still the accountant.

His self-righteous grandfather bought this inn in the capital, thinking he had gotten a great deal. However, the inn had been operating at a loss for three years, and even when he wanted to sell it at a loss, no one would buy it.

Grandpa simply went back to his hometown, out of sight, out of mind, leaving this mess to his most beloved grandson.

Before leaving, he patted him on the shoulder and said, "My great grandson, I have the highest hopes for you. This inn is the empire I built for you. Run it well, and I'll be relying on you to support me in my old age."

The young shop assistant was so moved by the two ten-tael silver notes that tears welled up in his eyes.

The young waiter wanted to cry. Last year, the inn made a net profit of five taels of silver. This young master must have been sent by God to save him. This young master is much more reliable than his grandfather. He wondered if this young master needed a grandson. He wanted to change his grandfather.

The young waiter desperately wanted to use all his skills, but unfortunately, even a skilled cook can't cook without rice. There was only a bunch of spinach, two eggs, and a few pounds of flour in the kitchen.

The young waiter cooked a bowl of spinach and egg noodles with utmost sincerity.

He respectfully placed the noodles in front of Zhao Shiqing, who was so hungry that she could barely move. She needed at least three bowls of noodles, let alone one.

After finishing her bowl of noodles, she noticed that the young waiter hadn't left and was looking at her with a loving expression.

Zhao Shiqing was stunned. Why was he looking at her like that?
Feeling flustered, she asked, "Is there any more noodles?"

The waiter was taken aback: "You're not full?"

Zhao Shiqing nodded.

waiter: "Please wait a moment, I'll go cook some more."

"No need. Did you pass on a message to my nephew's mother? What did she say?" Zhao Shiqing asked.

The young man felt ashamed; he had been so excited that he had forgotten such an important matter.

"Wait here, I'm coming right away!"

The young waiter knocked on the door next door, but no one answered for a long time, as if no one was inside.

The young waiter was at his wit's end and was in a panic. This messenger service was included in the twenty taels of silver; if he couldn't deliver the message, he would have to get a refund.

Hearing the knocking outside, Zhao Shiqing knew that Luo Liqiong was not going to open the door. She was just waiting for the appointed time to walk out from there, go to the Dali Temple, and strike the Dengwen Drum.

Zhao Shiqing simply walked to the window and opened it. This was the second floor, and although they were next door to each other, there was still a distance between the windows of the two rooms.

Although Zhao Shiqing's martial arts skills were mediocre, she had practiced martial arts since childhood, so this small problem was no challenge for her.

The young man was still knocking on the door, and Luo Liqiong's heart was pounding just like the knocking.

She knew that her fate was uncertain, but the princess had said that regardless of whether she died or came to die, she could expose Lin Sen's evil deeds. If she died, it would be a loss of life, and Lin Sen would surely die.

If she were alive, she could use her words to expose the evil deeds of Lin Sen and the Lin family to the world.

The princess assured her that whether she lived or died, the princess would raise her children as her own.

A smile crept across Luo Liqiong's lips. Being a princess must be carefree. That princess was so beautiful, so noble, and so gentle.

Her mother was very gentle, but after her mother went mad, she was no longer gentle. Her mother would always curse people for no reason, including her, and would even hit her.

Later, she became pregnant. At that time, she thought that she must treat her children gently. She would not scold them or hit them. She would give them all her love.

But she didn't get a chance; her child was taken away, and she didn't even hear the long-awaited "Mother."

She was a useless mother; she never took care of her children, and her children never even wore clothes and shoes that she had sewn by hand.

Now, she can finally do something for her children. She wants to get them out of the wolf's den of the Lin family. The princess will adopt them, give them the best life, and provide them with an education. Her son can take the imperial examination and become the top scholar. Her daughter will have the princess's support and won't have the same bad luck she has experienced with men.

A tear slid down to her lips, tasting bitter and salty.

Suddenly, a sharp bang startled Luo Liqiong. She instinctively looked towards the door, but the wooden door was intact, and the young man was still knocking outside.

"It's not a door, it's a window."

Luo Liqiong then looked at the window again. The window, which had been tightly closed, was now open—no, the window sash had fallen down!
Wait, who was speaking just now?

Luo Liqiong immediately tensed up. She looked around, but there was no one there.

When it turned around and came back, it almost bumped into someone.

Zhao Shiqing sighed: "Big sister, you're so stupid."

Luo Liqiong screamed in fright, but her mouth was covered, so the scream turned into "mmmmmm".

Zhao Shiqing: "You're all alone in the room, crying and laughing. What kind of beautiful dream are you having? Are you thinking that after you die, Princess Huixin will raise your son and daughter for you, support your son's education so he can become the top scholar and see all the flowers of Chang'an, and raise your daughter to be a lady like her, marrying into a high-ranking family with a grand wedding procession, and living a happy life from then on?"

Luo Liqiong: "Mmm mmm mmm."

Zhao Shiqing: "Is your brain flooded? Do you really think Princess Huixin has boundless magical powers? Do you know where her sister, who depends on her for survival, is? She's chopping wood and making fires at Ci'en Temple, washing the nuns' dirty clothes, not having enough to eat or wear, and being beaten and scolded every few days. She lives worse than a maid in a mansion."

She can't even help her own sister, so how can you expect her to raise your child?

You'd be better off believing in a god than believing in her!

Luo Liqiong shook her head vigorously: "Mmm mmm mmm."

Zhao Shiqing: "Lin Sen is not a good person. She doesn't want to marry Lin Sen, but although she is a princess, she is nothing in the eyes of the emperor. She dares not disobey the marriage arranged by the emperor. What can she do? She thought of you, you big fool!"
Sure enough, you believed her after just a few words and risked your life to help her break off the engagement.

Luo Liqiong, Lin's mother is your aunt. After your father died, did she keep saying that she would treat you and your mother well?

Has she treated you well?

She drove your mother mad, stole your property, ruined your reputation, and took your child away—this is what she calls "kindness." She treats you this way even though you're related by blood; how can you expect Princess Huixin, a complete stranger, to treat your child well?

Do you think that if you die for her, she will have a change of heart and keep her promise?
Luo Liqiong, the one thing you can least rely on in this world is conscience!

The Lin family embezzled the Luo family's property. You are the victim and a witness. If you, the victim and witness, die, this matter will be left unresolved. Even if Lin Sen's true colors as a hypocrite are exposed, the only impact on him will be that he cannot marry the princess. As for the injustice suffered by your Luo family, if even you, the victim, are dead, who will care?
Princess Huixin?
She'll say she doesn't know you at all, let alone the Luo family!
Lin Sen's only mistake was being greedy for wealth and abandoning his wife. Bao Longtu on the stage only beheaded Chen Shimei. Besides, Lin Sen didn't send anyone to kill you. You beat the drum to petition for your own death, so you can't blame him.

So all you got in return for your life was preventing Lin Senshang from becoming a princess.

This time, Luo Liqiong didn't struggle anymore. She stared wide-eyed at Zhao Shiqing in disbelief.

is it?

really?
Did she risk her life to beat the petition drum just to prevent Lin Sen from marrying the princess?
Seeing her expression, Zhao Shiqing knew she was touched and continued, "You don't want Lin Sen to marry the prince. You still have feelings for him and hope that one day you can be together with him and grow old together?"

Luo Liqiong paused for a moment, then slowly shook her head. She had thought about it before. At that time, she thought that since the two of them had a child, they should live a good life together from now on.

But when she was sent to the village, year after year, day after day, and fainted in the fields trying to save a single piece of bread, she gave up all hope.

She escaped from the village, not seeking to reunite with that man, but only to find her child. Now she knows how to farm and weave, and she wants to support her child with her own hands.

So whether that man marries the princess or not is none of her business!
Even before he had passed the imperial examination, he had already sent her to the countryside to suffer!

Zhao Shiqing continued, "If Lin Sen cannot marry the princess, the Lin family will not believe that this is Princess Huixin's wish. They will only think that you ruined this good thing. They hate you, not Princess Huixin, and certainly not the emperor."

But since you are dead, they vent their hatred for you on your children.

The Lin family spends your money, abuses your children, doesn't feed or clothe them, doesn't let them go to school, and makes them like you—uneducated, indecisive, and easily manipulated!

You are twenty-two years old this year. If you die tomorrow, you will have lived for twenty-two years.

But what about your children? They live a life of hunger and cold, and are beaten and verbally abused. Will they even live to be twenty-two?

Luo Liqiong was already in tears. Zhao Shiqing let go of her hand, and Luo Liqiong slumped into the chair.

She's so silly, she's really so silly.

She cried for a while, then asked, "What should I do? I just want my child, I..."

Zhao Shiqing said, "Actually, if all you want is to get your child back, it's not difficult."

"Not difficult?" Luo Liqiong was incredulous. It would have been better if she hadn't come to the capital, but she had come here in a daze. This was the capital, far, far away from the Lin family's home. She didn't know if she could get there. After all, she had been kidnapped by abductors as soon as she left the manor.

Zhao Shiqing analyzed for her: "The Lin family is most reluctant to mention these two children now. They made you have children in the past so that they could rightfully take over the Luo family's business. Now the Luo family's business has become theirs, and Lin Sen has passed the imperial examination and obtained an official position. Even if he can't marry the princess, he can still marry a noble lady. Which noble lady would be willing to become someone's mother as soon as she enters the family? So the Lin family has already given these two children to their relatives. The Lin family is not a prestigious family. As long as the money is right, they can get the two children back."

Zhao Shiqing's analysis was very logical, and Luo Liqiong's dark eyes gradually brightened, but by the end, that light had disappeared again.

Silver? Where would she get any silver?

Zhao Shiqing: "You don't have it, but the Lin family does. Besides, the Lin family's money originally belonged to you."

Luo Liqiong didn't understand. How could she possibly get the money back? This young man was overestimating her.

Zhao Shiqing said, "I can help you, don't you believe me? You even believe Princess Huixin, how can you not believe me? You've hurt me so much, oh my god, I've been hurt!"

Zhao Shiqing's tone was exaggerated, but Luo Liqiong believed it to be true; she thought the little boy was really sad.

"Don't be sad, little brother. It's not that I don't believe in you, it's that I don't believe in myself. I'm really stupid."

Zhao Shiqing: Who are you calling little brother? I'm a grown man, why are you calling me little brother?

"It's almost dawn, shouldn't you be setting off?"

Luo Liqiong looked out the window. Yes, it was almost dawn. According to her agreement with Princess Huixin, she should indeed set off now.

Seeing that she didn't speak, Zhao Shiqing had a sudden thought and asked, "Do you know the way to Dali Temple from here?"

Luo Liqiong shook her head: "I just arrived in the capital, how could I know them?"

Zhao Shiqing asked, "Is someone coming to pick you up?"

Luo Liqiong nodded: "Princess, no, Princess Huixin, she said that when the time comes, someone will lead the way for me as soon as I walk out of the inn. I just need to follow that person."

Zhao Shiqing sneered. It must be really hard on this princess. She is so meticulous and thoughtful, considering everything that should and shouldn't be thought of.

"What time did you agree to meet?"

Zhao Shiqing looked at the water clock on one side of the room.

Luo Liqiong stated the time, and Zhao Shiqing said, "There's still a little time. Shall we play a game?"

Luo Liqiong looked bewildered. The little boy had just said he wanted to help her, and she was about to believe him, but then he said he wanted to play games. What time is it? Why does he still want to play games?

The little brother is still a child, and children all like to play games. This little brother must be a good person. Without him, she wouldn't know that she was being taken advantage of.

The little brother had done her a favor, so she would play games with him.

Zhao Shiqing was surprised that Luo Liqiong would think so much. Seeing Luo Liqiong nod in agreement, Zhao Shiqing was overjoyed.

"Now, take off your clothes."

Luo Liqiong was horrified. She covered her chest with her hands and looked at the little brother in front of her as if he were a lecher.

Children who misbehave deserve a spanking.

Zhao Shiqing sighed helplessly, "Fine, I'll take my clothes off first."

The young man outside finally got tired of knocking. He leaned against the door, panting heavily, and then he actually fell asleep.

Suddenly, the wooden door opened from the inside, and the young man fell to the ground, jolted awake, and was wide awake.

The young master's nephew's mother finally came out from inside. (End of Chapter)