Chapter 1: Whose Chubby Little Bun Got Lost?

After nightfall, the most bustling street in the capital lit up with lanterns. All eight streets and nine alleys were lined with stalls, lively and crowded.

A chubby little girl with her hair tied up in a high ponytail, dressed in a goose-yellow padded jacket, trotted anxiously through the crowd on her short legs. She didn’t know who tripped her with their cloth shoes, but the candied hawthorn skewer in her hand flew out and was instantly crushed by a passing carriage, smashed into a mess of sticky syrup and bits of sugar all over the ground.

She looked back at the broken remains with heartache, and when she turned around again, the carriage she had been chasing had vanished without a trace.

Yao Yao’s nose began to sting.

She hadn’t expected that just because she asked her mother to buy her an extra candied hawthorn skewer, her mother would turn around and abandon her.

It must be that her mother thought she was too greedy.

Now she had no candied hawthorn, and no mother either.

Yao Yao cried as she ran.

After crying herself tired, she could only sit on the steps in front of the biggest restaurant in the city and wait for her mother to come back for her.

She looked down at the new pair of shoes on her feet, afraid of getting them dirty and being scolded by her mother.

But she waited and waited—until the street vendors packed up, until the flower lanterns all went out one by one—and still, no one came to take her home.

Yao Yao buried her head in her arms and pitifully promised, “I won’t eat candied hawthorn ever again, okay? Please don’t be mad anymore, Mama.”

Her stomach let out a loud grumble. Yao Yao opened her eyes wide and stared at the bun stall across the street, subconsciously swallowing.

The plump white steamed buns smelled so good.

Yao Yao used her chubby little hands to dig around in the crocheted pouch hanging at her waist and only came up with two copper coins.

Nanny had stuffed them into her hand before they left the house.

Clutching the two coins tightly, Yao Yao ran to the bun stall, standing on tiptoe just to breathe in a little more of that delicious aroma.

The bun vendor had noticed her from the start.

She was cleanly dressed but had no adults with her.

She didn’t look like a poor child—the yellow padded jacket she wore was clearly made of luxurious fabric.

Before they left the house, Yao Yao’s mother had especially dressed her in the new clothes saved for New Year’s. Though the cuffs and pant legs were a bit too wide and baggy for her now, Yao Yao was thrilled. She had strutted proudly around the house in her new outfit.

Her eldest sister had laughed and taken out a silk flower pouch she had crocheted just for her. Her second brother had fumbled around his waist for a long time before pulling out a small gem-inlaid dagger, about the size of her palm. He had solemnly warned her not to show it off on the street, then carefully tucked it into her little pouch.

Even her father had generously let her tug his beard twice.

Yao Yao offered her two copper coins to the vendor. “Yao Yao wants a bun.”

The vendor chuckled, “Little girl, one bun costs five copper coins.”

Yao Yao pulled her hand back, disheartened. “But Yao Yao only has two coins.”

The vendor’s expression instantly darkened. “No money, no buns. Move along, move along.”

He had thought the little chubby girl would at least hand over some loose silver, but it turned out to be just two measly coins.

Just as Yao Yao turned to leave, a pair of soft, delicate hands suddenly held hers.

“Little girl, if you want a bun, you can have mine.”

With that, a steaming hot meat bun was placed in front of her.

Yao Yao looked up in surprise and met a pair of clear, round apricot eyes. She happily accepted the bun and gave a sweet smile. “Thank you, big sister!”

The woman saw that Yao Yao had no sense of danger and led her to a small alley across the street, nervously glancing around to make sure no one was following.

Her smile grew gentler, and she asked softly, “Little girl, where’s your family?”

Yao Yao was immediately struck by the question. The half-eaten bun in her hand no longer tasted good, and she mumbled in a small voice, “Yao Yao was greedy, so Mama got mad and threw Yao Yao away.”

When the woman heard that the child had been abandoned, her eyes lit up. “Little girl, big sister can help you find your family.”

“Really?” Yao Yao lifted her chubby little chin. “You can help me find my mama?”

The woman nodded and, before Yao Yao could react, quickly scooped her up and stuffed her into a nearby carriage.

As soon as she was inside, before she could look around, Yao Yao was drawn to a pair of cold phoenix eyes in the corner.

There was a boy seated deep inside the carriage, wrapped in a dark purple robe. His black hair hung loosely over his shoulders.

His facial features were strikingly handsome. The autumn breeze lifted the curtain, and moonlight streamed in, falling across half of his face—expressionless and distant.

Yao Yao gathered her courage and greeted him, “Are you looking for your mama too?”

The boy lifted his eyes slightly but didn’t speak.

Thinking she’d said something wrong, Yao Yao scratched her head and tried again, “My name’s Yao Yao. What’s your name?”

Still no reply. But his eyelashes twitched slightly, unintentionally.

Outside the carriage—

The woman who had lured Yao Yao inside glared at the driver. “That boy you picked up isn’t mute, is he? Mutes are hard to sell and not worth much.”

The driver sighed. “What can I do? The city’s cracking down hard lately. I heard they’re investigating corrupt officials. I waited all afternoon before I finally found one alone.”

The woman recalled hearing gossip on East Yang Street about the Yu family being raided.

She didn’t frequent the capital, so she didn’t know who the Yu family was.

“But that brat was dressed pretty well. Could he be some young master from a rich family?”

She sounded worried about crossing powerful people.

“No way,” the driver dismissed. “If he were really a rich young master, would he be alone without a single servant? When I found him, he was just standing in front of a well, completely still. Didn’t seem too bright either.”

“Well, whatever. We got lucky tonight. That little girl I found is fair and chubby. She’ll fetch at least twenty taels if we sell her to a brothel.”

“Twenty taels?!”

The woman looked visibly pleased.

At a fork in the road, the driver yawned.

The horse suddenly reared up, nearly tipping the carriage.

Annoyed, the driver whipped the old horse’s backside. It quickly settled down and trudged up a narrow, bumpy path.

The woman, startled wide awake, instinctively turned back and lifted the carriage curtain. Seeing that Yao Yao was asleep, her heart eased a little.

But then her gaze met that cold, eerie pair of eyes in the corner. Her scalp tingled. She hurriedly dropped the curtain and muttered, “That boy you picked up gives me the creeps. Once we reach Yucheng, let’s sell him first.”

The driver nodded. “Alright.”

Maybe it was because she had cried too much while chasing the carriage, and now the boy refused to talk to her, but Yao Yao soon tired of talking to herself. Her little head drooped, and she fell into a deep sleep.

She didn’t know how much time had passed when a rough shove jolted her awake.

Rubbing her sleepy eyes with her chubby hands, she was just about to stretch when a pair of cold little hands clamped tightly over her mouth.

The faint scent of jasmine wafted to her nose.

Before she could react, a low, hoarse child’s voice growled into her ear:

“We’ve been kidnapped.”