TNIBFT -Chapter 193 The Grand Eunuch

From their conversation alone, it was clear this man was no good!

Ye Shuangxue frowned, wondering whether she should teach this old monster a lesson.

Sensing the burning gaze, Gao Defu turned his head. Not far away, under the eaves, stood a little girl of four or five years old. She was as delicate as jade and snow—adorable beyond compare. Most striking were her eyes, dark and radiant like ink; one glance was enough to make people lose themselves in them.

Such a beautiful child was truly rare.

Gao Defu immediately grew interested. With a sinister smile, he looked at Ye Shuangxue and said, “Little girl, come here.”

“Me?”

Ye Shuangxue frowned, looking at him.

There wasn’t a trace of fear in her eyes, which only excited Gao Defu even more. The corners of his lips curled upward as he bent slightly, covering his mouth with a red handkerchief. “Come with me, and I’ll let you enjoy endless delicacies from land and sea.”

“What do you think?”

His gaze was lewd. Sun Wuji looked at Gao Defu, a fierce glint flashing in his eyes—he wished he could gouge them out on the spot.

“What are ‘delicacies from land and sea’?” Ye Shuangxue asked blankly.

Her little face, with its slight frown, looked adorably naive.

Before Gao Defu could reply, Ye Shuangxue lifted her chin proudly, crossed her arms, and rolled her eyes. “Auntie, do I know you?”

“Ugly and stupid, and you still think you can trick me?”

Auntie?

Gao Defu froze on the spot.

His face shifted from green to purple, while the few lackeys behind him looked terrified, lowering their heads and not daring to make a sound.

“Old man, let’s go home!” Ye Shuangxue didn’t even spare him another glance. With her short little legs, she ran straight toward the hotpot restaurant.

Gao Defu slowly straightened up, his gaze dark and gloomy as he stared at the hotpot restaurant. “Investigate!”

“Find out whose child that is. After dinner, I want her sent to my room.”

“Yes!”

His subordinates clasped their fists, too frightened to even raise their heads.

…

Yuan Heipang spoke with a silver tongue. No one knew exactly what he said to the crowd outside, but in just a few words, he had them cheering, and soon the crowd gradually dispersed.

When he entered the shop with dark circles under his eyes, Ye Tian set down his teacup and said with relief, “Old Yuan, you’ve worked hard. Thanks to you, the situation was resolved in just a few words.”

Receiving praise, Yuan Heipang beamed brightly.

Ye Tian continued, “Without you these past few days, this business would’ve gone under.”

Seeing the gratitude on Ye Tian’s face, a surge of heroic pride rose in Yuan Heipang’s heart. With a solemn expression, he said, “No, no, no, this is all the boss’s credit. I’m just a brick for the boss—wherever I’m needed, I go.”

Ye Tian nodded.

Yuan Heipang added, “Boss, you rest. I’ll go check on the pharmacy workshop. Without supervision, those workers will definitely slack off.”

“They just won’t behave!”

With a pained and serious look, he rushed off as soon as he finished speaking.

Xiao Wang and the others wiped tables while watching Yuan Heipang’s back, dumbfounded. No wonder Old Yuan could become the shop manager—working day and night like this, his stamina far surpassed theirs.

“Ye Tian!”

A soft, sweet voice called out. Everyone turned toward the door. Ye Shuangxue came running in quickly, her little legs moving fast. In just a few steps, she reached Ye Tian, holding up a leather bag with both hands and waving it in front of him. “I bought buns for you!”

“That was my money…” Sun Wuji entered and added weakly.

When Ye Shuangxue looked at him, he pouted.

Ye Tian reached out, took the bag, and opened it. Inside were two and a half buns. He picked up the remaining half and took a bite without ceremony. “What did you just call me?”

Ye Shuangxue’s big eyes darted around as she guiltily replied, “Dad!”

“Then what did you think I was calling you? Let me tell you, I just ran into a really strange person across the street. He looked so scary—like… like one of those paper figures from the paper effigy shop on East Street!” Ye Shuangxue said with exaggerated expressions.

Ye Tian ate seriously, and listened just as seriously.

Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at Sun Wuji, who was acting sneaky. At that moment, Sun Wuji was staring at a large bundle of copper coins, his eyes shining with excitement, mouth wide open as he reached out to grab them.

“Old Sun.”

Ye Tian called out. Sun Wuji immediately drooped his face and reluctantly straightened up.

Ye Tian deliberately said, “Maybe that person is just an opera performer.”

“No, no!”

Ye Shuangxue shook her little head like a rattle drum.

Sun Wuji shot Ye Tian a disdainful look, strode over, and raised his voice. “That’s a eunuch.”

“You brat have no experience, huh? Never seen a eunuch before?”

Sun Wuji looked smug.

The others in the shop all turned to look, craning their necks with curiosity. Xiao Wang said, “We actually have a eunuch in Sifang City? Senior, you’re not mistaken, are you?”

“If there’s a eunuch, does that mean there’s an emperor too?”

“Could it be that the Son of Heaven is traveling incognito?”

Everyone was extremely curious. Sun Wuji, pleased with himself, glanced at the country bumpkins and said, “Maybe he’s a eunuch who committed a crime, or one who rendered meritorious service and was released to enjoy life. Or maybe he’s a eunuch sent to purchase goods for the imperial consorts and the emperor. Anyway, those neither-man-nor-woman types—none of them are good people.”

Ye Tian said, “You’re not going to dislike him so much that you sneak off in the middle of the night to kill him, are you?”

Exposed, Sun Wuji widened his eyes. “Do I look like that kind of person? I’m a good man!”

The group bantered noisily.

With a loud bang, Shangguan Ning returned from outside and kicked the front door open. A gust of cold wind swept into the hall. Everyone looked up, saw it was her, and didn’t say much.

After Sun Wuji learned that Shangguan Ning was a woman—and that she had risked her life to save Ye Tian—he no longer harbored killing intent toward her. Since they had little interaction, no new conflicts arose, and things remained relatively peaceful.

The key point was that Shangguan Ning came and went like a ghost; no one knew what she was up to.

Shangguan Ning’s gaze swept across the room. When she saw Sun Wuji inside the hall, her aura immediately weakened a bit.

“Boring. I’m going to sleep.”

Sun Wuji stretched his arms with a yawn and turned toward the backyard.

Shangguan Ning stepped forward, her sharp gaze fixed on Ye Tian.

Seeing this, Xiao Wang and the other workers quickly found excuses to retreat to the kitchen. That look clearly meant the boss had been caught flirting with a married woman on the spot!

“I heard what you said just now,” Shangguan Ning spoke.

Seeing her gritting her teeth, Ye Tian only felt she was being unreasonable. He replied coldly, “And?”

“Do you know who that person is? Ye Tian, you really have some nerve. You actually managed to offend the chief eunuch close to the Noble Consort of Great Liang. He’s already plotting how to kill you—do you understand?” Shangguan Ning blurted it all out in one breath.

Ye Tian was stunned.

He hadn’t even met any eunuch—how could he have offended one?

This woman must be crazy!

Ye Shuangxue spread her arms and stood protectively in front of Ye Tian, her little brows raised in anger as she glared at Shangguan Ning. “What right do you have to say that about my father? Even if my father offended some grand eunuch, I’ll just go kill that grand eunuch. What does it have to do with you?”

“That’s not it…”

Seeing the fierce look in the little princess’s eyes, Shangguan Ning didn’t know how to explain for a moment. She calmed herself, took a step back, and said respectfully, “I’m just angry that, as a father, Ye Tian keeps stirring up trouble and putting the three of you children in danger. He’s not worthy of being a father. I think the time has come—you three should come with me. That would be the safest choice!”