Chapter 75: IOU

"Sir, your wine has arrived—please enjoy!"

The waiter, flattering, carried the wine jar over, and seeing the plates piled as high as a mountain beside it, his heart suddenly thumped a few times.

That little girl can really eat!

Yan Buji drank his wine, watching Liu Qingqing eat heartily, as if she hadn't had a full meal in decades, with a puzzled look.

Although martial artists are known for huge appetites, it's rare to see someone with such a hearty stomach who doesn't practice cultivation daily.

"Uncle, you eat too, don't be polite—consider it a debt I owe you."

"Your words... have no flaw," Yan Buji said, sipping his wine with a smile.

"Hehe."

Liu Qingqing held a beef hoof in one hand and gnawed a pig's head with the other, showing none of her previous frailty.

Halfway through, Liu Qingqing wiped her mouth corner, downed a gulp of wine, her face instantly flushing, then continued to eat voraciously.

"If you can't handle alcohol, just drink less; tea quenches thirst just the same," Yan Buji said.

"Who said that! My drinking capacity is astounding!"

Indeed astounding—the wine jar was only five taels, and after drinking a little less than half, she was nearly drunk.

Yan Buji noticed the boy beside him staring this way, doing nothing.

When night fell, after finally being full, Liu Qingqing sipped tea, grabbed the melon seeds and peanuts before her, and began eating them.

Yan Buji inhaled deeply: "You weren't slapped for eating so much, were you?"

"Impossible!" Liu Qingqing quickly shook her head.

"With your way of eating, if you were born in my family I'd have given you away long ago; an ordinary household couldn't afford to raise you."

"My household doesn't lack food and drink, and besides... I wasn't beaten because of that," Liu Qingqing said, both hands on the table, flicking peanuts into her mouth.

Yan Buji took a sip of wine and asked, "Then why? Is it that the elders at home dislike you going out to play?"

"How do you know?" Liu Qingqing looked at Yan Buji in surprise.

"After all, you are young; out there there are good and bad people. If you get into trouble and can't handle it, your family will also suffer. Naturally, they don't want you frolicking outside," Yan Buji explained.

"Oh... Uncle, do you see your child the same way?"

"Me? My child... passed away long ago," Yan Buji said with a smile, shaking his head, and continued drinking.

Upon hearing that, Liu Qingqing sat up straight instantly, a bit embarrassed, and said, "I'm sorry, Uncle."

"It's fine. If my child were alive now, she'd be about your age, also a girl. She was adorable as a child, but the heavens couldn't bear our happy family— I don't know what sin was done. I just hope to do more good deeds now, to accumulate some hidden virtue for them," Yan Buji said.

Liu Qingqing nodded, comforting, "Uncle, you're so kind; your child down there surely isn't suffering."

"Hope so. By the way, it's getting late; you should hurry home so your family doesn't worry. Here's an IOU; sign your name, each of us gets a copy."

Yan Buji produced the prepared IOU and a brush, and laughed.

Liu Qingqing took the IOU, looked at it, and exclaimed in shock, "Why does it demand a hundred taels of silver?!"

"Why don't you look around you?"

Liu Qingqing turned, looking at the stack of dishes taller than herself, her face flushing.

"Oh, sign here?"

"Mm."

Liu Qingqing signed her name; Yan Buji took it back and read, "Liu Qingqing?"

"Yes, I'm Liu Qingqing. Uncle, what's your name?"

"I'm Ji Bu, the 'Bu' of plain clothes."

Liu Qingqing nodded, stood, stretched a lazy yawn; her languid posture with the slight curve had a certain charm.

"Then I'll be off, thank you, Uncle!"

"I'll be staying here for a while; remember to repay the money."

"Oh..."

Liu Qingqing waved and went downstairs; Yan Buji laughed, gathering the leftover food from the plates,

"Hey, guest, do you still want these leftovers?" the waiter beside came over, asking oddly.

You don't look like someone short on cash; you also want this pig slop?

"I plan to give them to the beggars over there; is that okay?"

"This..."

Yan Buji produced a silver note, smiling, "That should work, right?"

The waiter's eyes lit up; he tucked away the silver note and remarked, "Sir, you're truly a good person. In recent years, Shuibian Cheng has suffered floods; countless people have been displaced and become beggars. You still make sure not to waste this food—what a benevolent heart you have."

"Hahaha, just doing good deeds; as long as one lives, one must do something good, can't be a criminal."

"Indeed."

After chatting for a while, Yan Buji handed the packed food to some beggars in the nearby alley, received their thanks, and then returned to his room to rest.

At that moment, Yan Buji also sensed the boy's departure.

"If even this can't dispel that boy's vigilance, it can only mean he truly has some abnormality; what exactly is that strange sword intent?" Yan Buji frowned.

Although he wanted to tamper with Liu Qingqing, the odd boy made it difficult to act.

Forget it; time is long, let today's incident be a foreshadowing—maybe it'll be useful someday.

At least Liu Qingqing's guard has been lowered by Yan Buji; to him, such an inexperienced girl is easy to deceive.

"Let's meditate first," Yan Buji said, sitting on the bed, quietly practicing.

Meanwhile.

Liu Qingqing, having returned to her lodging, turned and, noticing someone following, shouted displeased, "Senior brother, why are you still following me? I've already come back!"

"Junior sister, I was worried you'd get into trouble, that's why I've been following you. Today the master indeed overstepped, but he is still our master; don't be angry."

I'm not angry! Hmph!

Liu Qingqing snorted, displeased, turned and ran back to her own room!

Smack!

The door was slammed shut, producing a huge noise.

Yun Hua's mouth twitched, and Yun Hua sighed.

I can't figure it out, I can't figure out what my junior sister is thinking.

"You brat, how did you make your junior sister angry again?" The old man walked over, staring at Yun Hua strangely.

"Master, I think it's still that slap of yours today..."

"Nonsense! I hit her because she speaks without weighing her words; if she could calm down and practice, I would have already passed on all the sword techniques to her. She isn't ignorant, she's just angry with me!" The old man also said angrily.

Yun Hua helplessly said: "What should we do now? Just let the junior sister stay angry?"

"Don't worry about her for now; the Zhi Sheng Dian has sent word that we'll set off after a while!"

Yun Hua's face instantly turned solemn: "Master, when are we leaving?"

"This matter hasn't been decided yet; first come, let me explain the key points to you."

"Yes!"