Chapter 9: Xiao Ling’er Bold and Reckless

Xiao Ling’er unconsciously swallowed a mouthful of saliva and came to a conclusion:

This man was definitely someone either rich or noble—perhaps even royalty or high-ranking nobility.
And clearly, he was the kind of nobleman suffering from some hidden chronic illness.

Realizing this, Xiao Ling’er was secretly overjoyed. Her eyes sparkled with anticipation as she looked at the man, wondering what kind of generous reward he might offer her.

Gu Yunting, feeling Xiao Ling’er’s direct and slightly fervent gaze, flushed faintly and twitched the corner of his lips, surprised by his own reaction.

Had this ragged, skinny, and seemingly frail girl just looked at him with desire?

He was certain it wasn’t his imagination. Her eyes were full of open anticipation—tinged with heat—as though she wanted to pounce on him and devour him whole.

What puzzled him most was that he didn’t feel disgusted at all. In fact, his heart started beating faster.

Was it simply because her gaze was so pure? So unfiltered, direct, and sincere—just simple admiration and fondness?

She was completely different from the girls in the capital. Those women always looked at him with a mix of disdain, fear, desire, and possessiveness that made him sick.

Everyone in the capital knew he was a “monster”—his body temperature was abnormally low, and even in the heat of summer, he had to wear long robes.

Whenever he went out, people avoided him as if he carried a plague, unwilling to associate with him for fear of being laughed at.

Those noblewomen secretly adored his looks, his status, his power—but at the same time, they were repulsed and afraid of him.

But this girl… even though he was clearly overdressed in such thick clothing, her gaze didn’t show the slightest abnormal reaction.

Truly a strange one!

Indeed, she wasn’t like those pampered noble ladies with their exaggerated airs, nor did she resemble timid, ignorant peasant girls.

She was decisive, bold, and capable. What surprised Gu Yunting the most was that she could resolve a choking emergency—a feat even the imperial physicians in the palace couldn’t achieve.

Xiao Ling’er waited for a while after making eye contact, but when the man continued to stare at her blankly without saying a word, she inwardly cursed him as “stingy” and turned to leave.

“Miss, wait!” the man called out from behind.

Xiao Ling’er’s eyes lit up. She tried hard to suppress her smile and turned back, playing it cool as she asked,
“Young master, is there something else?”

Gu Yunting noticed the brightness in her eyes and the faint upward curl at the corner of her lips she hadn’t had time to hide.
Amused, his own eyes glinted with a hint of a smile.

Xiao Ling’er’s gaze followed his movements closely. When she saw his hand slowly reaching into his robe, her look of eager anticipation was nearly impossible to disguise.

Gu Yunting found it funny—so this little miss was really a money-grubber.

Strangely enough, he didn’t find it annoying at all. On the contrary, it was… kind of endearing.

He glanced around and noticed that many refugees had already gathered nearby.

So he deliberately slowed his actions. Just as Xiao Ling’er’s expression began to show signs of impatience, he finally pulled out a purple waist token and handed it to her.

“Master?!”

“Master?!”

Gu Bei and Gu Nan both exclaimed in shock.

Gu Yunting simply raised his hand slightly.

Under the weight of their master’s silent pressure, Gu Bei and Gu Nan fell silent, though their eyes stayed fixed on the token in Xiao Ling’er’s hand.

“Young lady, may I have your name? Also, if you’re willing, you can travel south with us. I promise to ensure your and your family’s safety.

If not, should you ever encounter difficulty, you may bring this waist token to Jianzhou to find me.
My surname is Gu, and my given name is Yunting.”

As he spoke, his gaze drifted toward the direction behind the tree, where Xiao Yuhao and Mu Xiya were hiding.

Xiao Ling’er knew he’d spotted her younger brother and mother, but she remained calm and composed, accepting the token with poise.

To be honest, Xiao Ling’er was a little disappointed when she saw that the man’s reward was just a waist token, even though she knew it wasn’t an ordinary item.

No, judging by the expressions of the two guards, this waist token was undoubtedly very important—at least to them.

But for her, it was somewhat of a “chicken rib”—tasteless yet a waste to discard. At least for now, it was of little practical use.

Sure, receiving this waist token was equivalent to getting a promise from the man.

But who could predict the future? In this war-torn world with poor transportation and constant disasters, even meeting again might be impossible.

What she really needed now was money and food—only those could ensure her and her family’s survival.

Still, disappointment was one thing; she smiled and thanked him politely:

“Thank you for your kind offer, young master, but my family and I aren’t heading south. If fate allows, we’ll meet again someday.”

She didn’t give her name. After speaking, she turned and walked away with ease and confidence.

Gu Yunting’s eyes flickered as he watched the girl walk off without hesitation. A faint sense of loss stirred in his chest, making him feel oddly uncomfortable.

Suppressing the strange emotion, Gu Yunting was certain he hadn’t imagined the disappointment in her eyes just now.

She had clearly disdained the reward he gave.

Scanning the surrounding refugees—many of whom wanted to approach but didn’t dare—Gu Yunting sighed silently.

Forget it, he thought. If she wants it, I’ll give it. I’ll just secretly assign a few guards to protect her. I want to know where she’s going anyway—it’ll save me trouble tracking her down later.

With that, Gu Yunting called out to her again: “Miss, wait a moment!”

Xiao Ling’er turned around—only to see a long, elegant, perfectly shaped hand with smooth nails appear in front of her.

“Gulp.”

She shamefully swallowed her saliva again. Dear heavens, as a hand-obsessed person, seeing such beautiful hands made her want to reach out and touch them!

Gu Yunting noticed the girl staring fixedly at his hand like a starving wolf eyeing its prey. Her eyes gleamed—was she too stunned by happiness to move?

Smirking inwardly, he extended the silver banknotes in his hand a little closer to her.

And yet…

What Gu Yunting never expected was that the girl’s eyes weren’t on the silver notes at all—but on his hand.

Even more shocking, she was bold and reckless, completely shameless. In broad daylight, in front of everyone… she groped him!

“Yunting, what’s wrong? Did our benefactor not agree to travel south with us?” asked Madam Ye Yu, seeing her son return with a flushed face.

“It’s nothing, Mother. She… she refused to come with us,” Gu Yunting replied, deliberately turning his head to glance into the distance—only to see that the girl had already walked off without looking back.

“Gu Nan, send a few people to protect her in secret,” Gu Yunting said, rubbing his burning fingertips and speaking with a calm but firm tone.

“Yes, sir!”

Gu Nan and Gu Bei exchanged a look, then silently took a few steps back.

Seeing their master’s dark expression, neither of them dared to provoke him.

And as for the troublemaker who had just assaulted their master and then walked away as if nothing had happened—neither willing to explain nor to take responsibility—they were both shocked and impressed.

What surprised them even more was that their master, though clearly angry, didn’t punish her.

On the contrary, he was secretly arranging for her protection.

Was it really just because she had saved the young miss?

But… hadn’t their master already given her a waist token and silver notes? And they both knew exactly how important that token was…