MCSCPM -Chapter 19 A Smooth Escape

After going upstairs, Yin Qingyue returned to her seat and deliberately overturned her bowl, spilling tea over her face and hands.

“Oh! Guest, what happened?” The waiter’s eyes were sharp; seeing the tea on her face, he hurried over attentively.

“Ah, I guess I’m a bit tired—I can’t even hold the bowl. Waiter, could you find me a room to wash my face and freshen up?” Yin Qingyue pretended to be troubled.

The waiter’s eyes flicked, and he pointed upstairs. “The first room on the right is empty. You may use it, and the water is ready.” He said this and quickly left.

Meanwhile, the burly men were growing impatient, wondering if that ugly girl had somehow really flown away.

Just as they were about to send someone in to check, a sound of astonishment echoed from the tavern.

“What a beautiful young lady!”

A stunning woman emerged from a room on the second floor.

As soon as she stepped downstairs, the diners froze, staring at her in awe, involuntarily murmuring praises.

It was as if she had already expected their reaction, and she quickly descended the stairs.

“Which family does she belong to? Such beauty!”

“An immortal descended from heaven!”

“What a peerless beauty!”

Once she had descended, the crowd gradually regained their senses and could not help but sigh in admiration.

The burly men guarding the doors were even more dumbfounded, staring blankly at Yin Qingyue’s graceful figure, their eyes nearly glued to her back.

The burly man at the rear door furrowed his brow, while the others began grumbling:

“What’s going on up front? They let a beauty in without telling us? Not fair!”

“Beauty isn’t the point! It’s the dang gui that matters!” Although they said this, even the burly men couldn’t help letting their minds wander.

Others noticed the leader’s thoughts and laughed. “Hey, seeing a beauty won’t stop us from getting the herbs. Let’s go inside and block her!”

The leader, with no good intentions to begin with, half-heartedly followed the others inside. Upon entering, they were immediately stunned by the beauty.

The woman’s hair was loosely tied, eyebrows like distant mountains painted with jade, a face as lovely as a lotus, eyes like autumn waters, lips like cherries, a graceful figure, a slender waist, and a smile full of charm.

Everyone else in the room was mesmerized, except the leader of the burly men, who snapped back to focus first. He stepped forward to grab her hand and barked, “Tell me! Where did those clothes come from? And that ugly girl!”

The beauty lightly dodged, raising her brow with a hint of displeasure. “Ugly girl? What clothes? Who are you, and why are you harassing me? Does Full Moon Tavern allow such ruffians?”

Everyone in the tavern, thinking of rescuing the damsel, immediately began scolding the burly men.

“What kind of person is this? Big and brutish, bullying a young girl!”

“I bet he’s trying to take advantage of her! Wanted to grab her hand too, shameless!”

“In broad daylight, in plain sight, how could such a person exist?”

The burly men had no patience for the whispers; their only thought was to find the “ugly girl.” If she escaped with the herbs, all their effort would be wasted. No matter what, they could not let her leave!

The beauty raised an eyebrow, half-smiling. “Brother, so you’re harassing me just because you think my clothes look like someone else’s?”

She turned to the surrounding onlookers. “Neighbors, judge for yourselves. The clothes I wear aren’t rare; anyone could buy them. This man couldn’t find who he wanted, and now he takes it out on me—isn’t that unreasonable?”

The crowd, already impressed with her, immediately began chastising the burly men.

“What kind of person blames a young girl for his own mistake!” An eyeing gentry said angrily.

“This is like blaming a passerby for lost property—there’s no law!” An elderly teacher added in outrage.

“Let her go! Or must we report this to the authorities?” Others began voicing their disapproval.

At the mention of authorities, the burly men shivered and unconsciously loosened their grip.

The beauty withdrew her hand, clasping her wrist to her chest, her bright eyes flashing with anger. “A bunch of thugs!”

With that, she gracefully exited Full Moon Tavern. The burly men wanted to follow but were blocked by the crowd.

“What are you still following her for? A toad trying to eat swan meat!”

“Do you think she’d look at you? She’s clearly from a good family—look at yourselves!”

“Arms and legs but no brains, pestering a young lady all day!” The crowd mocked endlessly.

The burly men, humiliated, tried to drive the crowd away.

“Shut your mouths! Dare offend me, and you won’t like the consequences!”

Though the crowd was angry, the beauty had left. There was no point in intervening further, so they slipped away as the men tried to disperse them.

One man, still infuriated, searched inside the tavern. Not finding Yin Qingyue, he grabbed the waiter hiding behind the counter. “Hey! Where’s that ugly girl?!”

“Sir, how would I know? I only serve the guests!” The waiter hunched and answered, smiling outwardly but inwardly disdainful of these men.

“You mocking me? I’ll teach you a lesson!”

The burly man slapped him and demanded, “The one with black eyebrows, red lips, and a mole on her face—where is she?”

“Sir, I truly don’t know! You can’t turn me into a woman for this!” The waiter was furious but refused to betray Yin Qingyue.

“Enough! Hitting him won’t solve anything. We need to find her!” The leader shook his head and sighed.

That “ugly girl” had Prince Jing’s backing. If she reported them, they’d be doomed.

“Brother, what should we do?” one man asked with a grim face.

“Find her! I don’t believe she can run to the ends of the earth. Once found, we’ll get her, no matter what!” The leader barked.

Meanwhile, the beauty took a secluded path after leaving Full Moon Tavern, glancing back to ensure no one followed.

When satisfied she was alone, she stopped at a well, wiped the sweat from her brow, and smiled lightly. “You thought you could touch me?”

Looking closely, her lively and radiant features were identical to Yin Qingyue’s.

In fact, this incomparable beauty was Yin Qingyue herself, having removed her ugly makeup upstairs.

She had been naturally beautiful, and her simple pale cotton clothing—a modest, commoner’s dress—did not diminish her charm, but rather enhanced it.

Ordinary beauties need lavish clothing and jewelry to highlight their appearance, but Yin Qingyue’s beauty needed no adornment. Even simple cloth became beautiful on her.

By revealing her true appearance while keeping her attire, she sowed doubt among the burly men, preventing them from confirming if she was truly the girl they sought. This uncertainty gave her the opportunity to escape.

Truly, a bunch of muscle-bound fools.

Yin Qingyue smirked disdainfully, brushing back stray hair. Dealing with them required no effort at all.

As she reached the main street, she noticed a dry goods store opening for business, with children laughing and playing around a kind elderly couple.

Observing them, she felt a twinge of sympathy for the body’s original owner—beautiful, but otherwise having nothing enviable.

Even that beauty had caused her so much trouble. But this fleeting melancholy vanished immediately; after all, now she was Yin Qingyue, the true owner of this body.

She glanced into the dry goods store again, an idea forming, and quickly walked inside.

The elderly couple, attending to their grandchildren, noticed a customer and looked up. The old woman handed the child to the old man and cheerfully greeted her: “Miss, what would you like?”

Yin Qingyue smiled faintly. “Grandmother, do you have peanuts?”

The old woman nodded eagerly. “Yes, yes! We have peanut candy, peanut brittle, fermented peanut, peanuts in the shell, and shelled peanuts.”