After being poisoned by mushrooms, all the strange creatures became fascinated by me.

"What did you say?!" Sister Hong stammered, startled. "The buyer's surname is... Wu?"

Meeting the panicked gazes of the crowd, Sister Hong felt dizzy. She slammed her hand on the table and roared, "Hurry up and go find that Lord Wu to explain things clearly!"

That Master Wu is a man of great influence. The Wu family is a well-known family in this city. Several assassins in "Jie Bailing" come from this family.

"No, no, it won't work..." The leader's face turned pale. "Master Wu has already paid the deposit. We... we thought this was a sure thing, so..."

Sister Hong's expression changed drastically, and she slapped the man across the face: "You've already spent the money? What did you spend it for?!"

The middle-aged man pointed tearfully at the table full of delicacies that were already half-eaten: "Sister Hong, it's... we ate this whole table."

On the other side, there was someone who was particularly slow-witted, who quickly picked up the wine jug and presented it as a treasure: "Sister Hong, look, we even bought you your favorite Yutanchun wine. I kept a close eye on it, and no one touched it..."

Sister Hong slapped him again, trembling with anger: What should we do with a bunch of good-for-nothings?

Lord Wu is definitely not someone we can afford to offend. Should we take the risk... or kill that little girl? She's just a lowly servant. Sister Hong's pupils trembled violently. She's just a lowly servant... Lord Ji, Lord Ji won't take her to heart, won't... right?

"Shall we... kill that girl?" Sister Hong murmured.

"Okay, okay, Sister Hong," the man who spoke first forced a smile. "Well, Sister Hong, you can handle killing a little girl all by yourself, right?"

"Um, um... I'm enjoying the food and wine now too. I won't accept a single penny of the money Lord Wu spent on that fur coat; it'll all go to Sister Hong..."

He wanted to run away. He wanted to absolve himself of this.

Sister Hong was so angry that she cursed, "How dare you!"

The group began to shift blame, none willing to risk being held accountable by an assassin. The room erupted in a cacophony of voices, and just as the group, terrified and shouting at each other, lost its leader, a laugh suddenly came from the doorway.

A clear, childlike voice.

Everyone seemed to be frozen in place by some kind of spell. The room went from extremely noisy to extremely quiet. A group of servants, like a flock of dumb geese, turned their heads and stared intently at the short figure at the door.

The little girl they had been discussing over and over just moments before was now standing there, looking quite pretty. She was only five years old, with her hands behind her back, two little braids, and she was smiling as she watched their panicked expressions.

"So that's how it is," she smiled sweetly, then shook her head, feigning sadness. "Sigh, all my love for you all turned out to be for the sake of my body."

"...I wonder how much it can sell for?"

These were clearly adults, yet they began to tremble upon hearing her words. To be fair, she hadn't done anything bloody, but those few innocent words alone were enough to send chills down their spines.

It was truly bizarre. She smiled brightly when she heard others wanted to kill her, acting like a vengeful ghost in broad daylight.

Is there something she's relying on?

Lord Ji, Lord Ji... is he watching them from not far away?

What should they do then? If they don't kill her, how will they explain themselves to Master Wu?

"Alright, alright," Tang Li calmly reassured her, "there's no need to be so scared."

"There are ways to solve the problem now." The footsteps were unusually loud in the quiet room as Tang Li walked into the private room and closed the door behind her.

The little girl turned her eyes to them and smiled, "Since you've already set your sights on an innocent and pitiful little girl like me, why don't you all come up with something even more ruthless?"

A casual remark landed, "—If you can't kill me, then go kill someone else?"

"Weren't there a young couple with us?" Tang Li tilted her head slightly. "Although that older sister's skin might not be as good as mine, but..."

"Since we're all around the same age, if we just pretend to be someone else, we might easily get away with it, right?"

Tang Li spoke softly, making no attempt to conceal the malice lurking beneath her words.

But ironically, these very words struck a chord with these people.

"I think... this method is feasible." The first man spoke first, "Previously, Lord Wu only wanted a girl's skin, but... but he didn't specify the age."

"Although Shu Yijiao is of marriageable age, she is short, so even if she were made into skin... it would be hard to tell anything about her."

Sister Hong hesitated slightly: "But that girl is someone Manager Zhou has his eye on. What if Manager Zhou finds out..."

Tang Li tilted her head slightly, casually saying, "Ah, then let's not let Steward Zhou find out."

"Don't you all know how to make someone disappear without anyone noticing?" She smiled. "First, find someone to keep by her side so she can lower her guard."

"Then take him to a deserted alley and stab him through?"

Such a familiar plan...

Hongjie and the others stared at Tang Li in terror, cold sweat pouring down their bodies. They realized then that she hadn't learned of their plans while eavesdropping, but rather...

I knew it from the very beginning.

And so, with a smile on his face, he stepped into the trap.

"Don't look at me with that scary look. It's you who want to treat me like this." Tang Li sighed helplessly.

"From now on, will you follow my orders?" The little girl was very polite, her voice filled with a friendly smile. "I'd like to get closer to that Sister Shu."

Tang Li walked alone on the street, looking around.

The little girl had rosy lips and white teeth, and a bright smile. Her braids swayed as she walked, making her stand out even on a busy street.

The young boy and girl who were busy helping unload the goods naturally noticed her as well.

The two wiped the sweat from their foreheads, a sinister smile appearing on their lips, and exchanged a glance.

I originally thought I'd have to find her among the servants and trick her into coming out.

—That's really true, it came to me without any effort at all.

"Little Tang Li," a gentle voice called out, "what are you doing here all by yourself? Are you lost?"

Tang Li stopped and turned to look at the girl walking towards her from behind.

"No." The little girl's voice was clear and her eyes were innocent. When she looked at you with those eyes, it was as if you were the person she trusted most in the world.

"Sister, Tang Li is waiting for someone here."

—I'm waiting for you here.