What imperial henchmen? Please call me Your Majesty!

The hour of Wei (1-3 PM).

As the sky gradually cleared, more and more people began to appear on the streets of Beijing.

The gates of the Qiao residence were wide open, and a prepared carriage was already waiting at the entrance.

A richly dressed woman and an exquisitely dressed woman walked out slowly, chatting and laughing, accompanied by two maids.

They were walking towards the carriage.

Su Mu still wore a straw hat and a raincoat to cover his body, with a blade of grass in his mouth. When he saw people come out, he picked up a long sword and walked over step by step.

Just as they boarded the carriage and the steward was about to whip the horse to go, they noticed someone blocking their way.

The butler immediately reprimanded:

"Are you blind?! Get out of here!"

Su Mu slowly raised his head, looked at the carriage and the steward inside, and smiled:

"I'm sorry, you can't leave right now."

The steward immediately looked at the two gatekeepers and called out:

"Come here and chase this kid away!"

Upon hearing that something was amiss, the gatekeeper immediately grabbed a stick from behind the door and rushed over.

But upon seeing Su Mu's face, both servants couldn't help but sneer. One of them spoke:

"So it was you? We've already told you, the capital has its own rules. If you do this, we'll report you to the authorities."

Su Mu looked at the two of them, and instead of being angry, he smiled:

"The capital has its own rules, and so do we escort agents. Besides, several people are lost during escort missions; shouldn't there be compensation for injuries and deaths?"

"That's your problem, what does it have to do with us? Get out of here! If you want the money for the escort, you'd better wait!"

"Heh, what if I don't leave?"

"You're asking for it!"

Upon seeing this, the two servants swung the sticks they were holding at Su Mu.

Seeing this situation, Su Mu felt somewhat helpless, because he knew exactly what the servant was up to and what he was thinking.

However...

A stick swung down, and as he dodged to the side, he turned and took a step forward, kicking out with his foot!

One of the servants was sent flying and crashed into the hooves of the two horses pulling the sedan chair.

The horses were startled and, in a panic, quickly turned around.

The steward was quick-witted and immediately pulled on the horse's reins to steady it, but this startled the people inside the sedan chair.

"Butler Wang, what's going on outside?"

"It's alright, Madam. There seems to be some inconsiderate person blocking the way; we're cleaning them up now."

As the steward turned around to speak, another servant flew right up to him and crashed into him.

"Ouch!"

A gasp rang out, and the people inside the sedan chair had no choice but to come out and check.

The curtain was lifted, revealing two gatekeepers lying outside, and the steward had also fallen down.

The maid in the sedan chair panicked and immediately lowered the curtain, looking at the lady in alarm.

"Madam, someone is causing trouble."

The woman was a little puzzled. Logically speaking, in the capital city, would anyone dare to cause trouble at the Qiao family's place? Had they gone too far?

"They've rebelled! Who are they?"

"I didn't see him clearly, but he seemed to be a江湖人 (jianghu person, someone from the martial arts world)."

"Ha, you江湖人 (jianghu people), I'd like to see what kind of trash you are!"

Qiao Qianqian quickly grabbed the woman's sleeve, looking somewhat worried:

"Mother, what if that person is targeting us? Wouldn't we be vulnerable if we went out?"

"Haha, this isn't outside, it's the capital! In broad daylight, who would dare to so blatantly snatch someone?"

The woman went out.

Qiao Qianqian had no choice but to follow them out of the sedan chair.

However, after waiting a while and looking at the person again, I was a little puzzled:

"Isn't this Chief Escort Su?"

Su Mu looked at her but didn't say anything. Instead, he looked at the two servants and the steward who had gotten up.

"Qianqian, do you recognize this person?"

The woman was also a little confused.

Qiao Qianqian nodded:

"They were the ones who escorted me back."

"Then why are you still like this? Are you trying to cling to the Qiao family?"

Qiao Qianqian didn't understand. Looking at Su Mu, she could only take two steps forward and ask:

"Chief镖师 Su, what are you trying to do?"

Su Mu smiled and said:

"What is your intention? Isn't it obvious enough?"

"Chief镖 (bodyguard/escort), if you're not satisfied with the escort price, we can discuss it further, but there's no need to make such a big fuss. This is the capital city."

Damn it!

That's just another rule of the capital.

Ok.

Since you want rules.

Then let's understand the rules.

Response:

"Why is that? Don't you understand? You were there when we discussed everything back in Boundless City. Have you forgotten?"

"Of course I haven't forgotten."

"Several men lost their lives, and they still escorted you back. They're already being kind by not asking you for compensation. But what about you? You're not even in the money for the goods, and now you expect to receive it a month later?"

Qiao Qianqian looked at the housekeeper with a puzzled expression:

"Butler Wang, didn't you handle this properly?"

Butler Wang was already quite old, and this fall caused him pain all over; he looked aggrieved.

"Miss, I don't know any of this, and no one told me."

The servant realized he couldn't win, but he could still argue back:

"This is the rule in the capital. These镖师 (bodyguards/escorts) also have to follow the rules. The money is only paid to the镖局 (escort agency) a month after confirming there are no problems. You've broken the rules!"

"That's right! Who knows if you did anything to our young lady on the way? What's your hurry!"

Su Mu remained calm, observing their reactions and then looking at Qiao Qianqian:

"Could it be that you're going back on your word?"

Qiao Qianqian was about to say something when the woman stepped forward, pointed at Su Mu's nose, and started cursing:

"Rules are rules! Besides, you injured one of our men, so don't expect a single penny of the escort fee! We're already being lenient by not making you pay compensation or reporting you to the authorities. Now get out of here!"

I don't like hearing that.

We came here to discuss things.

But they started by making a move.

It's not very good.

He looked at them with indifferent eyes:

"We tried to reason with you, but you wouldn't listen and insisted on making a scene. Since you have your rules, we have ours too. Since the money hasn't been paid, we need to get the person back. We'll release him when the money is paid—that's the rule!"

As Su Mu spoke, he slowly walked towards Qiao Qianqian.

The two servants, having witnessed his prowess, dared not advance any further and kept retreating.

Even Qiao Qianqian was a little scared. How could something that could have been resolved properly have escalated like this?

Upon seeing this, the woman quickly pointed at him:

"What are you trying to do!"

"What are we doing? Heh, since you're unwilling to pay, there's nothing we can do. We'll just have to use her as collateral. I'm sure Miss Qiao can fetch a good price, right?"

Su Mu now acted like a complete rogue, which made them a little afraid, even Qiao Qianqian herself was a bit scared.

The woman changed her mind:

"Steward Wang, go and call for help! And report it to the authorities! I refuse to believe he can act with impunity in the capital!"

Qiao Qianqian tugged at the woman's sleeve, looking somewhat anxious:

"Mom, let's give it to them. Besides, we already agreed on this. If we do this, it's understandable that they're trying to renege on their promise."

"Get out of here! You're not even married yet and you're already siding with outsiders! A mere镖头 (bodyguard/escort) dares to challenge the Qiao family like this! If word gets out, even your father will lose face!"

"Mother~"

Qiao Qianqian was a little flustered. She was well-educated and reasonable, but the ways of the world and people's hearts made her unsure of what to do.

Su Mu watched them chat quietly and figured out that the Qiao family's young lady was a decent person, but unfortunately, she couldn't make decisions.

As for the lady of the Qiao family, it seems that things are a bit off between the master, the servants, and the doorman.

I don't understand how such a family environment could raise such a pure and innocent girl.

Soon, several more servants ran out of the Qiao residence, all carrying sticks.

This is a bit like bullying others by relying on their power.

If it weren't for my master's teachings, I might not have been good enough to beat these bastards.

But now...

He carried the sword on his shoulder, his hands resting on the hilt and scabbard like he was carrying a load on a shoulder pole.

"Ha, fighting? I'm good at that."