Disease rights policy

Upon hearing that Zhou Mu would be accompanying her, Qiao Ran couldn't help but recall his horrific acts of splattering blood everywhere, and immediately felt a little intimidated by him.

"No need to trouble Guard Zhou," Qiao Ran declined. "Just tell me the place, and I'll go by myself."

Chen Jiu told her, "It's inconvenient for you to go there alone. You should have Zhou Mu accompany you."

Just imagining having someone she didn't particularly like, and even a little afraid of, following her around all the time made Qiao Ran realize how uncomfortable she would feel. This feeling of unease instantly made her lose interest in her master, whom she had never met.

“Then let’s do it another day,” Qiao Ran said. “I suddenly remembered that I have something to do. I’ll go for a walk around the city first.”

Chen Jiu saw through her deliberate act and his expression immediately became somewhat displeased. "Did Zhou Mu offend you in some way? You don't need to protect him. If he did something wrong, he should be punished."

Despite his calm tone, everyone felt a chill. Zhou Mu panicked and immediately knelt down in front of Qiao Ran, startling her.

"What are you doing?" Qiao Ran asked urgently. "Get up first."

Zhou Mu lowered his head, extremely sincere, "I was wrong, please punish me, young lady."

"..."

Qiao Ran reached out to help him up, but Zhou Mu bent even lower, as if he had really committed some terrible mistake.

Qiao Ran instantly felt helpless. Seeing Zhou Mu's humble appearance, she couldn't help but feel guilty, blaming herself for being too petty.

That day, Zhou Mu was not entirely to blame. After all, he was thinking of himself. If he had been punished because of this, wouldn't he have felt guilty for a long time?

"Ran'er".

This intimate greeting came out of nowhere, and Qiao Ran responded blankly in bewilderment.

Chen Jiu pressed down his dark brows and said, word by word, "If you don't like Zhou Mu, I'll find someone else to go with you and punish him."

Qiao Ran quickly explained, "Zhou Mu is fine. It has nothing to do with him. I'm just used to being alone and don't want anyone following me."

"Really?" Chen Jiu asked, looking doubtful.

"Really." Qiao Ran thought that if she investigated further, Zhou Mu would really be punished, so she quickly said, "It's alright, let Zhou Mu come with me."

Chen Jiu stared at her for a while before nodding.

Zhou Mu was already sweating profusely. He quickly stood up and bowed, listening to Chen Jiu's instructions, "Take good care of Miss Qiao."

"Yes, son."

Chen Jiu boarded the carriage and slowly left the villa with Xie Laoshi and the others. Qiao Ran watched them leave before going over to pull Zhou Mu's sleeve and making a gesture of goodwill.

Zhou Mu, however, dared not let her touch him at all, and immediately stepped back, saying, "Miss, let's go too."

Throughout the journey, Zhou Mu remained silent. Qiao Ran awkwardly told him a few jokes, but he avoided her.

Qiao Ran couldn't hold back any longer and slapped him. "Guard Zhou, are you still angry with me?"

Zhou Mu shook his head: "I wouldn't dare."

“You still say you’re not,” Qiao Ran sighed. “You won’t even talk to me. You’re clearly angry. Isn’t it enough that I apologize to you?”

Zhou Mu led Qiao Ran through two more alleys, almost making her dizzy on the way there.

She quickly followed, chattering, "I didn't want you to follow me, mainly because you were too fierce. You slit someone's throat before they even finished speaking, and blood splattered all over my skirt. I'm a young lady, after all. I would have nightmares about that kind of scene every day."

Zhou Mu then cautiously turned to look at Qiao Ran, and after a long pause, he said dryly, "That was indeed my fault, I'm sorry. However, you misspoke earlier, I am the least 'fierce' person by your side, young master."

Qiao Ran's expression immediately turned complicated. She leaned closer and asked, "Are you the most good-tempered person around Chen Jinzhou?"

Zhou Mu nodded honestly; otherwise, the task of protecting Qiao Ran wouldn't have fallen to him.

"Really?" Qiao Ran couldn't connect Chen Jiu with ferocity at all, and clicked her tongue, "Is your young master usually very strict with his subordinates?"

Zhou Mu dared not comment much on the young master's behavior, only saying, "The young master is well-mannered and fair in rewarding and punishing his subordinates, and we are loyal to him."

Qiao Ran clapped her hands and laughed heartily, "I've learned something new."

After going around in circles for a while, Qiao Ran asked out of boredom, "Is the master Chen Jinzhou found for me more capable than you and Guard Xie? Is he a man or a woman? What's his name? Is he old? Is he easy to get along with?"

Zhou Mu: "..."

"We've been gone for so long, where does he live? I'm getting further and further astray. He can't be a bad person, can he?"

"By the way, does he have any apprentices? What if he thinks I'm a bit slow, a good-for-nothing?"

"Sigh, I'm suddenly feeling a bit nervous, Guard Zhou... could you tell me about him?"

Zhou Mu scratched his head, unsure of which question to answer. To be honest, this was the first time he had ever met such a talkative girl.

"Guard Zhou?"

Zhou Mu stammered, "I don't know either."

Qiao Ran: "..."

After a while, Qiao Ran suddenly slapped her thigh, "I forgot to buy the apprenticeship gift!! Are we going to go empty-handed?"

"This..." Zhou Mu was also unsure. "Young Master has already made arrangements, so there's no need for you to spend any money, Miss. We can just go directly there."

"Isn't this not good?"

Although Qiao Ran was a bit mischievous, she had seen a lot of big occasions. How could she not understand any social etiquette on her first visit to her master?

If you go there with your head down and look silly, you'll definitely leave a bad first impression. And if you're a bit slow-witted, you'll definitely get tripped up.

Having figured this out, Qiao Ran was even less likely to go empty-handed. She stopped and looked around, not knowing where she was. The surroundings were rather desolate, with only a few dilapidated bungalows built together.

She asked Zhou Mu, "Do you know which wealthy family lives nearby... and what valuable treasures they have in their house?"

Zhou Mu was stunned. "What does the young lady mean?"

Qiao Ran exclaimed "Eh?" and got straight to the point, "It's that kind of rare treasure that not everyone knows about, and it's quite valuable."

"Yes, there is. Why do you ask, young lady?"

Qiao Ran clapped her hands and smiled cryptically, "It's a gift for becoming an apprentice. This is the first time I've ever become an apprentice, so I have to give something presentable."

Zhou Mu: "..."

He was instantly enlightened, so shocked he could hardly speak. "The young lady wants to steal someone else's treasure as a gift for becoming an apprentice?"

"Shh!" Qiao Ran glared at him. "Why are you shouting like that? I used to have a lot of good stuff, but I sold them all on the black market. I'm just a little short on cash now."

Zhou Mu swallowed hard, at a loss for words.

Even though he was a ruthless killer, he never thought of stealing other people's things to give as gifts. It would be so embarrassing if he were discovered, especially since it was a gift for becoming an apprentice.

If the young master finds out, I'm afraid I'll be punished.

Zhou Mu stopped Qiao Ran, "There's really no need to prepare anything, Miss. Since the young master didn't mention the apprenticeship ceremony, it's probably unnecessary. We should just follow his instructions."

"I just don't feel right," Qiao Ran muttered as she walked.

Zhou Mu kept his eyes fixed on her and advised her gently, "The nearest wealthy family is a half-hour journey away. If we go back and forth, we'll miss our appointment time, which would be even more inappropriate. Miss, let's hurry up and go."

"Almost there?"

“It’s just ahead,” Zhou Mo said with an ugly smile. “Hurry up, girl.”

Qiao Ran followed them to a dead end, and heard Zhou Mu say, "This is it."

Qiao Ran didn't seem like anyone wanted to live there. Zhou Mu pushed open the door of the dilapidated shop at the very back and turned around to say, "You'll see when you go in, miss."