After I traveled through the book, I gained a humanoid pendant

When the voice behind him stopped, Ni Yangzhou turned his head.

The child was still young, holding tightly in his hand the straw target he used to beg for a living, leaning against the ground to help himself stand steady. He was only slightly above Ni Yangzhou's waist, and was wrapped in a Taoist robe, with only a bloodstained head showing.

Ni Yangzhou's gaze shifted to the child's face.

He had a pointed chin, thin lips, a straight nose, a sallow complexion, and red frostbite on both sides of his cheeks.

Further up, there is a pair of beautifully shaped phoenix eyes.

So beautiful that it is hard to tell whether it is male or female.

Ni Yangzhou met the child's eyes, only to see that the child's eyes were lifeless and his pupils were dilated and dull.

As if without waiting for Ni Yangzhou to speak, the child tilted his head in slight confusion and fear.

The child can't see.

Ni Yangzhou lowered his eyes and asked in a soft voice.

"Are you injured anywhere?"

The child said in a childish voice, "No...thank you, brother."

Ni Yangzhou stepped heavier, making noises, and took a few steps closer.

The child turned his little face towards the sound.

The child's hair was originally tied into a small bun with a dark cloth strip, but it had fallen apart during the struggle. Ni Yangzhou looked at the child and saw how pitiful he looked, so he handed the child a magnolia wood hairpin.

"Bundle it up."

Ni Yangzhou took the child's hand and placed the hairpin into his cold palm.

The child opened his eyes wide and stroked the shape of the object in his palm.

"It's given to me by others, so I have no use for it. Take it."

The child then nodded slowly, carefully touched the carvings on the end of the hairpin, and pursed his lips as he tied his hair up.

Ni Yangzhou saw that the child had some hair hanging down at the back of her head and then he realized that it was a girl.

The hairstyles of underage children in this dynasty were varied, but the most basic and convenient one was a bun. Boys had their hair all up, while girls had their hair left at the ends.

It is really dangerous for a girl to sell snacks on the streets like this.

Ni Yangzhou couldn't help but sigh.

"Where is home?"

The child said timidly: "Linzhuang outside the city."

"It's on the way, follow me."

The child nodded and said thank you again.

Ni Yangzhou looked at the candied haws on the ground, the surface of the sugar icing was covered with dust.

The child didn't even lift his feet to walk, and she didn't want to drop the food on the ground.

These are usually put out for sale, and I seldom get to eat a bite myself, let alone eat them in bunches like this.

The child rolled up his sleeves, leaned the straw target against the wall, tied the hem of his Taoist robe, squatted down, stretched out his hand, and tentatively picked up the candied haws.

Ni Yangzhou frowned and bent down to pick it up.

Picking up one, Ni Yangzhou would stick it on the straw target. Ni Yangzhou paid attention to the direction of the child's hand. If it was a wooden stick, Ni Yangzhou would pick it up first to prevent the child from hurting her hands, which already looked full of old wounds.

After they had picked up all the dirt, the old beggar was left hanging on one side. Neither of them had the energy to report the case to the authorities. Ni Yangzhou looked at the child whose nose was red from the cold and said:

"Let's go."

The child raised his head, looked in the direction of the young Taoist priest, and nodded.

The child reached out again and picked a bunch of big, red candied haws from the top of the straw target.

"Brother, this one is clean."

The child seemed to be afraid that Ni Yangzhou would dislike him: "I have been holding it tightly, and it has not fallen off..."

Ni Yangzhou took the candied haws and took a bite.

The thin icing is crystal clear, and it feels like biting into a layer of sweet ice in the cold winter wind. The seeds and tails of the hawthorn are removed, and the moment it breaks between the teeth, the sour and sweet taste overflows at the same time, accompanied by a crisp sound.

"good to eat."

Ni Yangzhou smiled back at the child.

The child heard the man's smile and suddenly said, "Xiao Liu."

"What?" Ni Yangzhou was chewing hawthorn and didn't hear clearly.

"My name is Xiao Liu." The child repeated carefully.

Ni Yangzhou heard it clearly this time.

"It's a good name. 'Liu' means 'stay'. Your parents love you."

Children of common people were often given vulgar names in the hope that they would be healthy and easy to raise, such as "Shitou" and "Shuanzi".

But the second half of the sentence was said intentionally by Ni Yangzhou.

As expected, Xiao Liu spoke again: "I don't have parents."

The Taoist walked slowly, still walking heavily, leading the child to walk on the clean and flat road, but did not respond.

Xiao Liu continued: "My grandfather named me that. He loves me."

The Taoist priest finally nodded.

After passing the city gate guards, Ni Yangzhou followed Xiao Liu step by step towards Linzhuang. Fortunately, the security near the imperial city was relatively good, and there were often people walking on the small roads outside the city. Even though the night was getting darker, it was relatively safe.

Ni Yangzhou looked at the child's limping back and wanted to help him take the straw target with the candied haws on it, but was rejected by Xiao Liu.

"Then I'll hold you."

Ni Yangzhou thought that the child looked no more than six or seven years old, and there was no one around, so there was nothing to be cautious about, so he took Xiao Liu's hand through his sleeve.

There were no lights on the road, and the child was not as tall and long-legged as Ni Yangzhou, nor did he have sharp eyes. He was very worried that the child would trip and fall while walking.

Xiao Liu's hand and arm trembled slightly.

But then he moved closer.

Walking at night, the stars in the sky were dim, and on the quiet path, only the footsteps of Ni Yangzhou and Xiao Liu were mixed in the bleak sound of the wind.

Ni Yangzhou listened to the rhythmic, repetitive sound under his feet.

Ta-da, da-da, da-da, da-da.

The two heavy sounds were my own, the two light sounds were Xiao Liu's, and there was one more...

A few strands of hair fell on his cheeks. Ni Yangzhou turned his head to look at the straw target held in the child's other hand.

The thin wooden stick touched the ground.

Another "click".

"Third brother."

Ni Yangzhou began to call the system in his mind again.

【I am here. 】

“Is there a time limit for this mission?”

[No, it depends entirely on the host's progress. ]

[But I suggest you do it as soon as possible and don't waste time on irrelevant things. If you stay in the mission world for too long, your fighting spirit will be worn out. ]

Ni Yangzhou clutched the long sleeves in his hands and responded with a "OK".

The last world lasted only a few months, and I was dead and alive again, so busy that I often opened my eyes and didn't know what day it was.

this world……

Ni Yangzhou thought of the old emperor's young sons, and sincerely hoped that time would fly and the children would grow up quickly.

Find the protagonist, wait for the old emperor to pass away, and then naturally push someone to the throne.

Speaking of death...

Ni Yangzhou suddenly asked:

"Third brother, will I still die in this world?"

There was silence for a moment:

[Information related to the plot cannot be disclosed.]

【But please, be safe. 】

Ni Yangzhou had a bad feeling.