Shen Rou was about to thank him when she suddenly recognized him as the man on the cliff that day. She never expected to meet him here.

A blush appeared on her face and she lowered her head in embarrassment.

Shangguan Yunting looked at Shen Rou's reaction and couldn't help laughing in his heart. He even walked forward deliberately and whispered, "Miss, do you still remember me?"

Shangguan Yunting didn't wait for Shen Rou's answer. His grandmother came over and looked at him gratefully.

"Thank you for your help, my child would have been injured otherwise. To thank you, try our breakfast! Our breakfast is one of the best in the whole Yunzhou."

"Thank you, old lady. It just so happens that my uncle and I didn't have breakfast either."

Shangguan Rui and Ye Qing came to the grandmother, bowed slightly and said respectfully: "Thank you for the invitation, old lady."

"Three gentlemen, come in and take whatever you want to eat. Don't be polite."

Breakfast was placed on the table in plates. Shen Rou helped the guests get what they wanted and calculated the money. The spicy soup was in a large wooden barrel, and anyone who wanted it could just pour it in.

Grandma saw them walk in directly. She brought two plates of pan-fried buns and dumplings and placed them on their table. She also poured them some dogwood oil fried with pork, which is now called chili oil and is very fragrant.

"You can eat it with this dip, it's especially delicious. I'll go get you some spicy soup."

"Thank you, madam."

Ye Qing hurriedly followed his grandmother out and brought the spicy soup.

The uncle and nephew started eating, praising him as they ate: "Mm, it tastes good, the skin is crispy, it's juicy and rich in flavor. It's even better than what your chef makes."

"Uncle Jiu, I think it's delicious too. It would be even better if I could eat it every day in the future."

"Isn't that simple?"

"You want to stay and work as a handyman in her house?"

"I have my own way."

The uncle and nephew talked while eating, and did not treat themselves as outsiders.

Shangguan Yunting glanced at the busy Shen Rou from time to time. Even without gorgeous clothes and jewelry, she was several times more beautiful than the girls in the capital. Most importantly, her eyes were clear and insightful.

"Uncle Jiu, can you be more reserved? If you keep staring at the girl, people will think you are a pervert."

"Do I look like him? Is Dengtuzi as handsome as me?"

Shangguan Rui rolled his eyes. He was speechless at Uncle Jiu's innate self-confidence.

"What's that look in your eyes? Be careful or I'll punish you without mercy."

"Uncle Jiu, bullying the weak is not what a gentleman does."

"I'm teaching you how to be a good person. This is what your father allows. If you don't agree, go back and complain to your father."

Shangguan Rui turned his face away and didn't look at him, fearing that he would make him so angry that he wouldn't be able to eat breakfast.

Shen Rou also felt Shangguan Yunting's gaze, but she pretended not to see it, busying herself with serving breakfast for the guests and then going back to the kitchen.

Grandma was very happy to see them eating happily, "My breakfast is delicious!"

"Madam, your breakfast is delicious."

"Don't call me old lady, I'm just an old woman from the country."

"You are so polite. We will come here often in the future. I don't know what to call you."

"If you don't mind, just call me Grandma Shen!"

"Alright."

After the three of them finished eating, Shangguan Yunting glanced at Ye Qing and hurried to give the grandma some silver.

"You helped my granddaughter, how can I, an old woman, ask you for money?"

“Grandma Shen, we will come here often to eat in the future. It would be inappropriate not to pay.”

"We'll talk about it later, but I definitely can't ask for it today."

After they finished eating and said goodbye to grandma, Shangguan Yunting glanced towards the kitchen. There were many guests now, so it was not the time to talk.

They left the shop and looked at the cloth shop next door. "Ye Qing, go buy this shop."

"Master, do you want to sell cloth?"

"No, clean up the back wing and give it to us to live in. Then send someone to invite Master Yang Yun from the capital."

"Master, why did you invite Master Yang to Yunzhou?"

"Doesn't our Third Prince need to study? This matter must be kept secret."

"Yes."

"Uncle Jiu, your real purpose is not to drink. You want to hire a teacher for Miss Shen's brother! I was just using this as an excuse."

"Asking knowingly."

"Ye Qing, go investigate the prefect and his nephew to see if they are abusing their power in this prince's territory. Once you've investigated, arrest them and they will be at my disposal."

"Yes."

When Shen Rou finished her work and came out, she was relieved to see that Shangguan Yunting was not in the shop. She had been staying in the kitchen to avoid embarrassment.

Yunzhou City has been extremely lively these days, with people in the streets and alleys talking about the news that the prefect was thrown into jail by King Mu.

The people all applauded and cheered.

Outside the prison where the prefect was being held, many people gathered and expressed their gratitude to King Mu, praising him for ridding the people of this evil.

An old man in the crowd said excitedly, "The prefect has been tyrannical and embezzling money. He even allowed his nephew to oppress the people and force women into prostitution. Now he's finally getting his comeuppance. It's truly gratifying!"

Everyone echoed and the scene was full of joy.

Elsewhere in Yunzhou City, the prefect's nephew was frightened upon learning that his uncle had been arrested and tried to flee Yunzhou.

However, Han Lin and his guards cut off his retreat and arrested him and the people who caused trouble that day and put them in jail to await trial.

With the prefect and his nephew being brought to justice, the people of Yunzhou City finally welcomed the long-awaited peace.

Shen Rou was very happy to learn that the prefect and his nephew were executed, and she also praised Prince Mu for eliminating the harm to the people.

Today she suddenly saw that the owner of the shop next door had changed, and she said in surprise: "Grandma, the shop next door has a new owner."

"The cloth shop owner moved away a few days ago, and you were so busy every day that you didn't notice."

"I've searched four brothels in Yunzhou and there's no trace of Xiaoxue. Grandma, tell me where she is. I'm really worried about her."

"Xiao Rou, don't lose heart, you will find her sooner or later."

"Well, I will."

At this moment, Xiaoxue was imprisoned in the backyard of a brothel called "Changchun Pavilion" in Ji County, not far from Yunzhou. At that time, the brothel owner bought five little girls, and they all became obedient after being beaten.

Only Xiaoxue disobeyed and tried to escape, but the madam ordered her to beat her until she was covered in wounds. She curled up in a corner, her body trembling, the pain from her wounds making it difficult to breathe.

Her eyes were filled with despair and fear, and she didn't know how much longer she could hold on.

Tears also fell, and she choked and said: "Sister, brother, where are you? Xiaoxue is scared, sister..."

The old lady brought the food over and saw Xiaoxue was beaten so pitifully. She persuaded her, "Girl, eat! You can't escape from here. You have to be obedient to survive."

Xiaoxue held the old lady's hand and begged, "Grandma, please save me! I want to go home to find my older sister and younger brother."

"Little girl, you can't get out once you get here. Unless your family brings money to redeem you, it will be difficult to escape."

Xiaoxue suddenly burst into tears of despair and helplessness.

There were only my eldest sister and younger brother at home, and my eldest sister was unconscious at the time.

Both she and her younger brother were captured by that evil woman's servants and taken to the county to be sold to human traffickers. Now no one knows what happened to her elder sister, nor does anyone know what happened to her younger brother.

She was sold to such a faraway place and would never see her elder sister and younger brother again in this life. Thinking of this, she became even more desperate.

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