Exile at the start? The princess is no ordinary woman.

The sound of the knife being drawn jolted Qian Laosi, especially the way the woman skillfully wielded the knife against the tree branch; the sharp, clean cut seemed to have pierced his own flesh.

This woman is terrifying. She handles the knife like it's nothing. Is she even a woman? The initial fear gradually built up.

The commotion alerted the other guards, who immediately sensed something was wrong. How could the prisoner have a knife? They were about to charge forward, swords drawn, when...

However, Gu Nanzhi had already quickly cut off the two branches she needed, and by the time they arrived, she had already thrown the knife back into Qian Laosi's hand.

"Thanks"

Then he walked away gracefully;

At this point, Qian Laosi was standing there, his body stiff, feeling like his legs wouldn't obey him. He only managed to catch the knife on instinct.

"Fourth brother, what's going on? Why did they let the prisoner carry a knife?"

"Fourth brother, what's wrong with you?"

"Brother Qian?"

The sound of their voices brought Qian Laosi back to his senses. He came to his senses and relaxed, feeling a cold sweat break out on his back.

No, that woman's eyes are terrifying. It's one thing to have a hidden weapon, but she wouldn't even blink if she picked up a knife. What kind of rich girl acts like that? It's too scary!

Faced with the questioning of the guards, he had no choice but to suppress his fear.

"Oh, it's nothing. What brings you here? They just wanted to borrow a knife to cut some branches, and I gave it to them out of kindness. It's alright, it's alright."

Actually, I was scared and didn't dare not lend it to her. Fortunately, the woman really only wanted to borrow it for a short while.

"When did you, Qian Laosi, become so kind?"

"Yeah, Qian Laosi, you wouldn't happen to have your eye on that young lady, would you?"

In response, the group teased Qian Laosi, saying that those who did this kind of work knew everything; everyone on the road needed to find someone to vent to.

"Hahaha"

But these jokes really scared Qian Laosi. That wasn't his initial thought at all.

Even if he had eight hundred lives, he wouldn't dare to have any improper thoughts about that woman now; it would be fatal.

"Get out! What are you saying? Get out of here right now!"

"Get out of here!"

I dare not let that woman hear these words; if she hears them and misunderstands, I will be the one who suffers.

Gu Nanzhi returned to their territory, and the others looked at her in surprise. When did those escorts become so easy to talk to?

Did the lady go there and immediately lend him a knife?

And it seems that the escort was quite afraid of their lady? What's going on?

"Hey, what are you looking at? I borrowed a knife and chopped two tree branches, now we can grill some meat!" Gu Nanzhi pretended not to see the surprise in their eyes and calmly began to prepare the rabbit.

"By the way, what kind of food did the guards give us tonight? Was it still dark flour flatbread?"

Gu Nanzhi asked the question, and only then did Steward Li and the others react, "Yes, yes, Madam, it's still dark brown flatbread, but there are also steamed buns and other food in the bundle, Madam and Master can eat them."

"Alright, take out all the food, heat it up, and we'll eat it with the meat later."

Gu Nanzhi knew the guards wouldn't provide good food; she genuinely disliked the dark-colored flatbread.

"Yes ma'am"

With Gu Nanzhi leading the way, it was as if the group had regained their focus and motivation, and they all started getting busy. They took out steamed buns and put them on the fire to bake, and they also took out the dark brown flatbreads to heat them up.

Although it tastes bad, we can't waste it. They don't have much food. They ate the black flour pancakes at noon, and they have meat for dinner, so they should eat the black flour pancakes too.

Soon, the aroma of meat began to waft through the air, making everyone who smelled it feel hungry and unconsciously swallow their saliva.

Even those gnawing on dry biscuits found it difficult to swallow.

Some people quietly clamored for meat, but where could they get meat to eat?

As the meat cooked, the aroma became increasingly tempting. After a long day of hard work and without any good food, some people still couldn't resist the temptation.

They couldn't have any and didn't want others to have any, so they started making a fuss.

"Why can they eat meat? They're all exiled, why?"

"I want to eat meat too! I want to eat meat too!"

"Officers, you should do something about this! They're all exiles, so why are they allowed to eat meat? It's not fair!"

"..."

Having already benefited, the escorts naturally wanted to protect them, especially since the other party was able to eat meat because they were capable of it.

The imperial edict did not stipulate that exiled prisoners could not prepare their own food.

This time, Chen Qiang directly betrayed you by suppressing the rioters, and then, brandishing his whip, he came right up to them.

"Don't talk to me about fairness. If you want to eat meat, go and fight for it yourself. If you can, I'll let you eat meat too."

He seemed ready to reason with them, but the next second the whip landed squarely on the troublemaker. "I'll let you eat meat! You're incompetent and penniless, yet you want to eat meat? You think you're some kind of rich young lady? You haven't learned your lesson yet. Tonight, I'll teach you a lesson!"

"Swish"

"Swish"

"Snapped"

"clap clap"

"Ah, don't hit me, don't hit me!"

"Stop hitting!"

"Eat meat, I'll let you eat meat."

"You still talk about fairness? I'll show you what fairness is."

"Ahhh, no, I was wrong, I won't do it again, I won't do it again!"

Chen Qiang caught him and gave him another beating with a whip. Everyone witnessed it, which served as a deterrent to anyone else who might have similar ideas. After this incident, who would dare to say anything about the aroma of meat wafting from over there?

Since they received benefits, these escorts naturally reciprocated by doing them favors.

Gu Nanzhi and the others were of course aware of the commotion here. As for this kind of person, all they could say was that he was stupid, as stupid as a pig.

"Uncle Li, could it be that the Zhao family has a grudge against your Prince's Mansion? Otherwise, why would they be so stupid, causing trouble all along the way?"

Butler Li was at a loss for words regarding what his mistress had said. The Zhao family had indeed had some minor conflicts with their manor, and had been reprimanded by their lord before.

But even now, they are truly foolish, utterly idiotic; they still think they are in the capital.

"Okay, it should be cooked by now."

Gu Nanzhi only sighed because she saw that the troublemakers and the ones who got beaten were from the Zhao family. She didn't need to get an answer, and her attention turned to the barbecue.

She grabbed the protruding branch, held the roasted chicken skewered on it up to her face, and smelled it. Instantly, her mouth watered.

Ah...it smells so good...

She placed the roasted rabbit and pheasant back onto the parchment paper she had just used, and then happily invited everyone to gather around and eat.

"Come on, come on, everyone, sit down! Let's eat meat!"

"Hurry up, what are you standing there for?"

Seeing that everyone was moving slowly, she urged them on directly.

So everyone sat in a circle around Jun Yanchen's seat.

As Gu Nanzhi spoke, she began preparing to distribute the items to everyone.

"Come on, there are exactly six of us, and six legs in total. Let's each have one. Do you want a chicken leg or a rabbit leg? Xiahe, which do you want?"

"Miss, I, I'm fine with anything."

"Alright, I'll make you some rabbit legs then," Gu Nanzhi said, praising her own cooking as she distributed the food. "Let me tell you, today I'll let you taste my cooking, and you'll never forget it after you've had it."