mtlumby2d Chapter 532: A Restaurant
Chapter 532: A Restaurant
Jiang Ruoxue coaxed Xiao Qiao distressedly and wiped her tears. Then her motherly love burst out and she pointed at Shen Changgong and said,
"Why do you always bully her? She is obviously helping you, but you don't treat her well and always bully her. Why are you so mean?"
"I was just teasing her."
"Go tease someone else, don't tease our little sister Qiao."
"Can I tease you then?"
Hearing this, Jiang Ruoxue's pretty face turned slightly red and she spat at him.
At this moment, the dragon chariot in front stopped, and Shen Changgong's carriage also stopped.
Shen Changgong lifted the curtain and asked,
"what happened?"
Tu Queling, who was sitting on the deck, said,
"It seems that His Majesty wants to stop. I don't know why."
"I gonna go see."
Shen Changgong got off the carriage and walked forward. When he got on the dragon chariot, he saw the empress changing clothes.
"How can you be so rude? You barge in while a woman is changing clothes."
Yan Fuyao rolled his eyes at him.
Shen Changgong discovered that not only Yan Fuyao, but also Tang Xinyi and Gongsun Wan'er were changing clothes.
"What are you doing? Why are you all in casual clothes?"
Gongsun Wan'er said excitedly,
"There's a small town five miles ahead, located at the junction of Qi, Liang, Wei, and Qin. It's under the jurisdiction of Qi and is a major commercial town, quite prosperous. Your Majesty wants to go there incognito to see the local customs, people, policies, and governance.
His Majesty said that to judge a place's governing ability, one cannot just look at the city; these remote places are where the ability is better reflected."
"Private visit incognito?"
Shen Changgong was startled when he heard this, turned his head to look at Yan Fuyao, and said,
"Since you know this is a junction of four countries, you should know how chaotic this place is. You're going on a secret visit here. Aren't you afraid of encountering danger?"
"What are you afraid of? I will bring my shadow guards and follow you in disguise."
"What if there are local gangs or bandits?"
"Then delay for time and send someone to quietly call for help."
Yan Fuyao changed into a less gorgeous brocade dress, stood up and said,
"Besides, there are tens of thousands of troops here. Which blind gang would dare to cause trouble at this time?"
"Okay, I'll go change and go with you."
"Humph, you have to follow me no matter what I do."
"I was trying to protect you. Besides, why don't you take Xiao Qiao and the others for a walk? I just made Xiao Qiao cry, so I'm going to town to buy her something to comfort her."
"You're bullying the little girl again, go away."
Shen Changgong returned to his carriage and asked Mei Yan and Jiang Ruoxue to change their clothes. He took off his royal robe and changed into a brocade robe.
Tu Que Ling didn't need to change. She wore black clothes every day, had a stern face, and wore casual clothes all year round.
They wanted to change Xiao Qiao's clothes, but Xiao Qiao refused and only wanted to wear her Taoist robe. She was angry with Shen Changgong.
They changed to a less luxurious two-horse carriage, and everyone got on together, filling the carriage to the brim.
Behind them were twenty shadow guards, dressed in various disguises and carrying weapons.
Follow on horseback.
When they arrived at the entrance of the town, they got off the carriage and asked a coachman to lead the carriage behind while they walked in front.
"Luyao Town, this town has a good collar. No matter which capital city you go to, the journey is the longest."
Shen Changgong smiled.
Fairy Meiyan gently turned the umbrella in her hand and said,
"The emperor is far away, and places like this are the most likely to breed sin. You beautiful women, if you stay in a place like this, I'm afraid you will be eaten up."
Jiang Ruoxue pouted her lips.
"You're not a pretty woman."
"I'm a skilled martial artist, unlike you who can be slaughtered if you're caught."
"I……"
Jiang Ruoxue wanted to refute and prove how powerful she was, but she found that she was really not that powerful.
Everyone walked into the town and wandered around.
This town is very big, with an area estimated to be half the size of a county town. It can be said that although it is small, it has everything.
The shops along the street are very prosperous, with hawkers shouting incessantly, peddlers and vendors bustling about, and most people have smiles on their faces.
The streets were also very clean, and they even saw some old men and women cleaning the streets.
Occasionally, you can see merchants pulling carts full of goods, shuttling back and forth and trading with local people.
Shen Changgong bought a candied haws for Xiao Qiao to eat. The little guy was stubborn at first and refused to eat it, but he couldn't resist the temptation. His faith was not strong enough, so he chose to eat it.
Yan Fuyao looked around and said,
"I originally thought this place would be desolate and the people would be living in poverty, but I didn't expect it to be so prosperous. Even the beggars on the street don't look like they're starving. It seems the local mayor is a capable man, able to manage this lawless area in an orderly manner."
Shen Changgong pointed to a restaurant in front and said,
"The restaurant is the best place to find out things. It's afternoon now, so there shouldn't be many people in the restaurant. Let's go eat something and ask the waiter.
If this mayor is truly capable, it would be ok to give him a promotion. What we need most now is someone who can govern the area."
"That's right, let's go."
They walked into the Xianghe Restaurant. A waiter was sweeping the floor. When he saw them come in, he smiled and asked,
"Dear guests, would you like to stay overnight or have a meal at the hotel?"
"Have some food and set up a big table."
"Okay, let's go to the private room upstairs?"
"No need, the lobby will be fine."
There were only two or three tables of guests eating in the lobby. Shen Changgong saw a large table in the corner by the window, so he took the girls over there.
The combination of this man and many women attracted a lot of attention.
At first the waiter thought he was a human trafficker, but he didn't look like that. A human trafficker would not dress a woman in brocade clothes. That piece of brocade clothes would be worth more than a woman.
Could she be his concubine?
Wow, rich people are so powerful.
Tu Que Ling bought two ingots of silver and said,
"Bring out the best wine and food. Choose for yourselves. Let us try your specialties."
"Okay, sir."
The waiter quickly collected the silver and handed it to the shopkeeper, who was also surprised and quickly told him to serve this table of guests well.
A moment later, the disguised shadow guards came in in twos and threes, sat separately, surrounded the table of Shen Changgong and others, and ordered some food and drinks casually.
Shen Changgong waved to the waiter, and when he came, he asked,
"Waiter, we are merchants from out of town. This is our first time here. We have heard that your Luyao Town is a well-known commercial town.
I just want to ask you, what kind of person is your mayor?"