After so many days, Hu Niu finally managed to learn a few words somehow. The word that she spoke the most was “meat”, and then it was “kill”, and also “Ling Han”. She only managed to learn these three phrases, which brought the total of her vocabulary up to only four words.
But, at least she now knew that “Hu Niu” was her name, and would raise her head in response when she heard it.
She still did not like to walk on two legs, but Ling Han had a large influence on her, causing her to unknowingly imitate his actions. By the time the four of them reached the imperial city, the wild little girl finally got used to walking on her legs. But when there was no one else, she would still be walking around on all fours. And she was extremely fast, as if she was a fierce tiger that had finally escaped its cage.
Her dislike for wearing clothes did not change though. A new suit of clothes, after only a mere few days, would be torn to shreds by her hands, causing Ling Han and Liu Yu Tong to feel very exasperated—though Ling Zi Xuan was extremely envious of this, because Hu Niu would be able to frequently get new clothes.
Entering the city actually required an entrance fee of a silver coin. Since there were four of them, they had to pay four silver coins. Though this was a paltry sum to Ling Han, but taking into consideration how many travelers entered and exited this city every day, the money that came merely from collecting entrance fees would definitely be an incredible wealth.
It was indeed a good life being the Emperor. I built this road, so if you want to enter, you’ll have to pay. It was completely fair.
After the four of them entered the city, it happened to be noon, so they decided to find some place to have lunch first before going to report at the Hu Yang Academy.
“Meat! Meat! Meat!” Hu Niu sat down very earnestly, drool already starting to drip from her mouth.
Ling Han did not look at the menu, and simply said to the waiter, “Just serve whatever’s good, but there must be a lot of meat!”
“All right!” The waiter replied before leaving.
There were not many customers in the restaurant in the beginning, but as dish after dish of delicious food was served to their table, it was also soon nearing the time when majority of people would be having their meals. The number of customers in the restaurant gradually increased, making the atmosphere increasingly livelier.
Hu Niu did not bother with using any chopsticks. She would simply reach out and grab onto a whole chicken or duck, and within a few moments, she would have completely devoured it. She really had a terrifyingly good appetite.
“Aren’t you scared of getting your hands dirty!” Ling Han shook his head. He had taught her who knew how many times, yet this wild little girl kept resenting the use of chopsticks because they were too troublesome to use.
Hu Niu only gave a giggle in response before continuing to devour the food in front of her.
Compared to her, Ling Zi Xuan was much more refined. She would only take small bites, and when she smiled, there would be no sign of her teeth. She had already learnt the basic demeanor of a daughter from a noble house.
“What a good-looking young girl,” an elderly voice was heard, causing both Ling Han and Liu Yu Tong to turn their heads to look at the speaker.
It was an old man who seemed to be in his sixties. He was dressed in rich robes, and out of the ten fingers on his hands, there were rings on eight of them. He was obviously extremely wealthy. His eyes were focused entirely on Hu Niu and Ling Zi Xuan. His stare was so intense that it seemed as if light could be seen from his eyes alone.
“Are the two of you the parents of these two little girls?” The old man asked as he walked over, but he immediately introduced himself afterward, “I am Chen Yun Xiang, the shopkeeper of the Four Seas Business. I am quite well-known.”
Liu Yu Tong shook her head, while Ling Han glanced a moment at this Chen Yun Xiang, and said, “We are not their parents, just their relatives.”
Ling Zi Xuan very obediently smiled at the old man, and addressed him as Grandpa, while Hu Niu only continued to think about eating. In her eyes, nothing was more important than eating meat.
Chen Yun Xiang seemed as if he liked these two little girls very much. He continued to babble on, causing Ling Zi Xuan to break out continuously in laughter, while Hu Niu acted as if she hadn’t heard him speak at all.
At first, Ling Han only thought that this old man was especially fond of children, and so did not think too much about it. But the old man’s gaze became increasingly odd, as if he was a wolf that had focused its eyes on two lambs. His eyes were so verdant that they were almost lit up, and Ling Han finally realized that they had encountered an old lecher, and this old lecher’s favorite target was little girls. [ED/N: Dunno how his eyes were green, but that’s what the raws say… probably reference to how wolves’ eyes supposedly glow green in the dark]
“Come, let Grandpa take a look at your palm lines!” Chen Yun Xiang could not hold himself back from stretching out a hand to catch hold of Ling Zi Xuan’s little hand, revealing his true colors of a lecherous molester.
“Pa!”
Ling Han reached out and caught hold of the old man’s wrist, his gaze severe as he said, “Old guy, you’re already so old, and yet you’re still unwilling to behave?”
Chen Yun Xiang was not a martial artist, and as he was gripped by Ling Han’s hand, he suddenly wailed from the pain of such a tight grasp. He only stopped when Ling Han flung him away, causing him to stumble and fall onto the ground. Raising his hand for a look, there shockingly appeared four finger marks on his wrist. They were so green that it looked like they were going to darken into a bruise soon.
His expression had also darkened as he gained a new fear in his heart for Ling Han, yet he was unwilling to simply give up two such pretty, cute little girls. Thus, he said, “They’re not your daughters anyways, why don’t you just name a price!”
A spark of killing intent flashed across Ling Han’s expression, and he said, “Old lecher, if you dare say another word, I’ll kill you!”
Chen Yun Xiang was about to continue increasing his offer and try to convince Ling Han, but when he saw the killing intent on Ling Han’s face, he could not help his heart shuddering; he no longer dared to continue making an issue out of it. He quickly turned the opposite direction and fled.
However, he would not give up so easily as he thought, ‘Heng, you don’t know what’s good for you. Then I’ll just ask the people of the Earth and Water Faction for help and snatch these two little girls from you!’
The old man staggered as he left, instantly causing the other customers in the restaurant to break out into raucous laughter.
“Brother, that old guy is a famous lecher, and his main target are little girls. If it was not for the fact that he had always used money to get what he wants, who knows how many times he’d have already been beaten to death,” one of the customers who recognized that old lecher said with a shake of his head.
Ling Han did not take it too seriously though. The old man was not a martial artist, so his social circle could only include ordinary people; his ability was naturally limited. If Chen Yun Xiang had continued to persist, not knowing what was good for him, Ling Han would definitely not have been merciful.
Hu Niu was very fast at eating her meat, as if she was afraid that someone would be fighting with her over it. By the time Ling Han and the others had all eaten their fill, she was still eating, and her speed had not slowed one bit.
Seeing this scene caused the customers in the restaurant much amazement. They couldn’t understand how the tiny stomach of this little girl was able to accommodate so much food.
Finally, a bit over two o’clock, the little girl finally patted her stomach a few times with satisfaction. She squirmed into Ling Han’s embrace, and very soon began to snore.
She could eat a lot and sleep a lot.
Ling Han stood up to pay the bill. Over one thousand silver coins had been spent on this one meal—at least ninety percent of it was in Hu Niu’s stomach, proving how much of a spendthrift this little girl was. Thankfully, because Ling Han had killed Hang Zhan, Ma Lang, and the others previously, there was no lack of money in his pocket.
The four of them exited the restaurant and continued their journey to Hu Yang Academy.
“There are two people who’ve been following us,” Liu Yu Tong said to Ling Han, after they had walked for a while.
Ling Han nodded, and said, “I noticed. But I don’t know if their target is our money… or us!”
If their target was them…. a ferocious light flashed through his eyes. Without doubt, it was definitely the antics of that old lecher, Chen Yun Xiang… if that really was so, then don’t blame him for being merciless.
“They’re coming!” Liu Yu Tong said softly. At the moment, the two of them had just walked into a remote little alley, with not one other person around them. This was of course what Ling Han had deliberately done.
Two sturdy men quickly ran towards them. When they reached Ling Han, one of them tried to carry off Ling Zi Xuan, while the other reached out towards Ling Han, intending to snatch away Hu Niu who was still sleeping in his arms.
These two sturdy men were not martial artists. They were only a bit stronger than normal people. After all, out of every ten people, there would only be one that possessed a Spirit Base, so martial artists weren’t really that common.
Ling Han smiled. He not only did not resist, he even raised his arms a bit, allowing the man to easily snatch Hu Niu away from his hold.
The man could not help being stunned for a moment. Such a reaction was something that he had never even considered would happen.
Meanwhile, due to the movement, Hu Niu was awakened. She was like a wild beast, and possessed a very alert nature. When she discovered that she was held by an unfamiliar man, a ferocious light immediately shone in her eyes.