Chapter 873: Let

Xiao Tuanzi ran quickly, her skirt swaying, and her steps made the floor thump‑thump loudly.

A few officers who were holding wine glasses and chatting raised their heads at the same time, their gazes fixed on the two figures—one big, one small—and their brows twitched slightly.

Cai Tong's heart jumped; as he hurried to catch up, Tuan Tuan had already been stopped at the stairwell by two soldiers.

They were tall and broad, standing on both sides of the stairwell, long muskets standing beside them.

One of them lowered his head to look at Tuan Tuan, who hadn't yet reached his waist, and muttered something in a garbled voice.

Cai Tong said, "They say the Governor has issued an order; without his permission, you may stay only on the first floor and are not allowed upstairs."

Tuan Tuan tilted her little face upward, her eyes blinking as she looked at the soldier, "I just want to go up and see! What's up there?"

The soldier expressionlessly shook his head repeatedly.

The other soldier said something in Hualan language, his tone full of impatience.

Cai Tong, with a smiling face, explained a few sentences to them, saying the child was just young and found everything fresh.

The two soldiers glanced at each other, hummed, and remained motionless.

Tuan Tuan's little head drooped, her tiny mouth puckered, and she pitifully turned to look at Xiao Er.

Xiao Er bent down, lifted her up, gently patted her little back, and turned to walk back into the hall.

Cai Tong followed behind, wiping the sweat from his forehead.

The officers, seeing them return, withdrew their gaze, held their wine glasses and continued chatting, their faces bearing a hint of amused indifference.

Tuan Tuan slipped from Xiao Er's arms, grabbed his hand, and ran toward the main door.

Cai Tong, seeing this, could only follow again.

Xiao Er, holding Tuan Tuan's hand, ran for a while on the open space at the doorway, his peripheral glance sweeping over the officers in the hall.

Although they were drinking and chatting, their eyes kept glancing toward the doorway now and then.

Tuan Tuan had run enough and returned to the hall.

She ran to the long table, grabbed a loaf of bread from a silver platter, hopped back to the stairwell, lifted her little face and said to one of the soldiers, "Here, have this; let me go up and play for a while, okay?"

A small piece of butter slipped off the edge of the bread, and with a 'pop', landed on the soldier's boot.

The soldier looked down at his shiny new boot, then at the chubby little hand, his mouth twitching, and shook his head.

Xiao Er whispered, "Miss, let's go back."

Tuan Tuan hummed, ran back to the table, placed the bread back on the platter, and began wandering the hall.

She pointed at the chandelier overhead: "This one's pretty!"

Then she pointed at a deer hide hanging on the wall: "This one's ugly!"

Xiao Er stayed right behind her, never straying a step, while Cai Tong ran ahead, shaking his head.

The officers watched the little girl gesturing all over the hall, and their smiles grew a little wider.

A younger officer whispered something, another replied, and several of them laughed.

Tuan Tuan examined everything visible in the hall, lifted a cup of wine, and ran back to the stairwell.

She rose onto tiptoe, held the cup before the two soldiers, and said, "This is for you to drink!"

The two lowered their heads to glance at the cup, met each other's eyes, wore helpless expressions, and shook their heads again.

Tuan Tuan returned to the hall again.

After repeating this five or six times, not only had the two soldiers at the stairwell grown too lazy to glance at her, even the officers no longer kept their eyes on her.

Cai Tong lifted a cup of wine and placed it beside Xiao Ningxun, whispering, "Third Young Master, they say this child is truly mischievous, can't sit still at all."

Xiao Ningxun smiled faintly, "Alright," and gave a subtle glance toward Lu Qi.

Lu Qi understood, rolled up his sleeve, curled his right fist, bent his elbow, tensing his upper arm, and his biceps bulged instantly.

He patted his own arm, lifted his chin toward Luo Zhenjiang, and said, "See? This is real skill."

Luo Zhenjiang hummed, drained the wine from his cup, set it on the table, and rolled up his sleeve to reveal his right arm.

That arm was a whole notch thicker than Lu Qi's, the blue veins pulsing faintly beneath its dark skin.

He lifted his head, "What's that? We grew up on the dock; who doesn't have brawn?"

Feng Zhou bounded over excitedly, "Stop bragging, let's just compare, okay? Anyone can move their lips!"

Without a word, Lu Qi and Luo Zhenjiang sat face‑to‑face, propping their right elbows on the table edge, and clasped their large hands together tightly.

Feng Zhou squeezed between them, placed one hand on their clasped palms, and shouted, "Begin!"

The two exerted force simultaneously.

Lu Qi's arm was drawn tight like a fully‑stretched bowstring, Luo Zhenjiang's palm cracked as he clenched, and their hands wrestled inch by inch on the tabletop, neither able to overpower the other.

Xiao Ze stood with a wine glass, Xiao Ningxun and Xiao Ningchen leaned left and right, shouting "Use force! Use force!"

Feng Zhou placed both hands on the table, his head turning from left to right and back, shouting nonstop, "Almost there, almost there! Just a little more!"

A few Red-haired Barbarians officers, who had been leaning against the table chatting, saw this and hurried over.

Lieutenant Hai Deng pushed to the front, lowered his head to look at the clasped palms, his green eyes full of curiosity.

Colonel Bo Er Te stood behind him holding a wine glass, his gaze fixed on Lu Qi and Luo Zhenjiang's interlocked hands.

The two persisted for as long as a pot of tea would brew, sweat beads sliding down their cheeks, yet their palms remained locked, neither giving an inch.

Feng Zhou slapped the backs of their hands, "Tie!"

Lu Qi released his grip, flicking his tingling wrist.

Luo Zhenjiang also withdrew his arm, the two exchanged a glance and broke into wide smiles.

Luo Zhenjiang jabbed his fist into Lu Qi's shoulder, "Not bad, brother!"

Lu Qi returned a punch, "You're not bad either!"

Hai Deng stepped forward, rolled up his right sleeve, revealing a shaggy, robust arm.

He clenched his fist, bent his elbow, tensed his upper‑arm muscle, tipped his chin toward Lu Qi and Luo Zhenjiang, and babbled something incoherently.

Cai Tong listened, then looked at Lu Qi and Luo Zhenjiang, his face somewhat embarrassed: "He said, your strength is too small, none of you are as strong as him."

Lu Qi raised his eyebrows: "Not as strong as him? Come, try a round then we'll talk!"

After saying that, he sat down again, propped his right elbow on the table edge, opened his palm and waved it toward Hai Deng.

Hai Deng smirked, sat down opposite him.

Their palms clasped together, Feng Zhou shouted again "Start", and both exerted force simultaneously.

Hai Deng Captain's arm was thick like a ship's rope, his muscles bulged like hills.

Several officers stood behind him, shouting together, cheering him on.

Xiao Ningxun also did not show weakness, leading the cheers for Lu Qi; Tuan Tuan also clapped her small hands and shouted loudly, and the hall instantly became lively.

Lu Qi gritted his teeth and held for a moment, but his arm was still being pressed down inch by inch.

Feng Zhou exclaimed "Ai ya", with a regretful face slapped the table: "Lu Qi lost!"

Several officers laughed loudly, Hai Deng released his hand and stood up, proudly raising his fist toward his companions.

Lu Qi rubbed his wrist, gave Luo Zhenjiang a wink.

Luo Zhenjiang understood, looked at Hai Deng and said: "He already competed with me once, what's the point of you beating him?"

"Now you also competed once, I also competed once, let's us two go!"

Cai Tong translated it in the Orchid language, Hai Deng showed no fear, sat down again, and extended his palm toward Luo Zhenjiang.

Xiao Er held Tuan Tuan and slowly retreated from the crowd, whispering softly in Xiao Tuanzi's ear: "Miss, it's enough."

Tuan Tuan slipped into his embrace, quickly untied the small embroidered pouch at her waist, took out half a small seashell, and muttered: "Let the red-haired ghost at the stairway not see us!"

After saying that, she loosened her small hand, and the small seashell fell down.

A faint light flashed, and the small seashell instantly disappeared.

Tuan Tuan patted her small hand: "Let's go, Second Uncle, let's go upstairs!"

Xiao Er held her and walked toward the stairs.

In the hall, Luo Zhenjiang and Hai Deng's palms clasped together, Feng Zhou glanced quickly toward the stairs with the corner of his eye, and shouted loudly: "Start!"