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

"If you don't like green, then this peach pink one will make you look the most delicate and lovely..."

The shop owner enthusiastically persuaded Gu Nanzhi, showering her with compliments. Gu Nanzhi didn't let the owner's efforts go to waste; she chose a light green dress and a dark black dress for herself, and then selected a ginger yellow dress and a lake blue dress for Xia He.

After choosing the women's style, the shop owner recommended the men's style, which featured more subdued colors like black and navy blue.

At this point, they don't care about complicated or fancy styles, and besides, you can't find those fancy and exquisite clothes in this town.

The same men each had two sets of clothes according to their size, and they didn't lack shoes either, since they were on a long journey. Their clothes were fine, but their shoes would wear out the most.

When Gu Nanzhi made the order, the shop owner was overjoyed. This was the biggest order she'd had in the few days since she opened her clothing store.

My face was practically frozen from smiling the whole time. After packing up the clothes the customer bought and collecting the payment, I politely escorted them to the door.

"Please take care, esteemed guest. We welcome you to visit us again next time."

I won't be coming back next time, but I was quite satisfied with the service from the staff; they were very enthusiastic and had a great attitude.

Chen Gang's words about repaying the life-saving grace were not just empty words; he was putting them into practice by willingly becoming Gu Nanzhi's follower, carrying her things, and taking over all the clothes she had just bought.

"Miss Gu, is there anything else you need to buy?"

Gu Nanzhi thought for a moment. With the main clothing items bought, it was time to get food. But that meant she'd have to get Chen Gang out of the way. There was no other way; she'd just have to make him suffer a little.

She secretly drugged Chen Gang without him noticing, and Chen Gang, completely unaware, even kindly offered to accompany her as she continued shopping.

"Then let's go buy some pots, pans, and grains."

"Okay, Miss Gu, the rice shop is on the street we just came from. Let's go there now."

"Um"

The two headed towards the rice shop, but halfway there, Chen Gang felt unwell. He tried to bear it, but Gu Nanzhi, observing his reaction, wasn't surprised. However, she pretended not to know anything and asked, "Chen Gang, what's wrong? Are you alright?"

As Chen Gang walked, his stomach started to hurt. He tried to bear it, but he couldn't hold it in any longer and could only say apologetically, "Miss Gu, I... I have a bit of an upset stomach..."

Gu Nanzhi feigned concern, saying, "Your stomach isn't feeling well. Perhaps you ate something you shouldn't have. Chen Gang, if you're not feeling well, you should go and take care of it first."

"You don't need to come with me. I have a lot to buy, and time is limited. I'll go buy it myself. Don't worry, I definitely won't run away. I'll be at the meeting point on time at 4:45 PM."

Despite Gu Nanzhi's words, Chen Gang still hesitated slightly. Even though she was his savior, he couldn't really guarantee that she would leave on her own without being shackled. Besides, she was quite capable and not a sheltered, naive woman.

"Miss Gu...this..."

"I promise I will never run away and will return to the meeting point on time. You should know that if I really wanted to run away, you couldn't stop me. Besides, His Highness is waiting for me to return."

Gu Nanzhi reiterated that everything she said was sincere, and that she meant it; however, she also understood the distrust these people had.

Chen Gang felt the pain in his stomach intensify and could no longer bear it. In the end, he had no choice but to believe Gu Nanzhi. His benefactor was right; there was no stopping her from running away.

"Alright, Miss Gu, I trust you. I'll take my leave now. Please don't be late."

"Don't worry, don't worry, I guarantee I'll be there on time."

Chen Gang handed everything back to Gu Nanzhi and then quickly ran away, afraid that if he delayed any longer he would lose his temper.

Gu Nanzhi watched the person leave, a satisfied smile playing on her lips. She picked up the clothes she had bought and found a secluded spot to temporarily store them in her spatial storage. Although they weren't heavy, carrying them around would be inconvenient.

She then walked out onto the street, found a restaurant, and went inside. Before the waiter could even greet her, Gu Nanzhi went straight to the counter, took out five taels of silver, and...

"Shopkeeper, please prepare some food for me, and two jugs of good wine. I'll come back to pick them up at three-quarters past dusk."

The meeting was at 4:45 PM. She arrived on time to collect the food and wine, finding the meeting point and time perfect, as she had other matters to attend to later.

Seeing that the woman was generous, the shopkeeper happily agreed.

"Alright, sir, what would you like to eat from the menu?"

"No need to look, just prepare one of each of your restaurant's signature dishes for me. Consider this five taels of silver a deposit. If it's not enough, I'll make up the difference when I come to pick it up. If there's any extra, consider it a tip."

Tip? Although the shopkeeper had never heard of this term before, he quickly realized it meant a reward, so how could he refuse?

"Alright, sir, please go ahead with your business. Our shop will prepare the food and drinks for you to pick up within the time you request."

"Thank you, shopkeeper. May I ask you something else?"

"Please tell me, sir."

Do you know any places in town that sell horses and carriages?

Encouraged by the shopkeeper's enthusiasm, Gu Nanzhi told him what she wanted to inquire about. She had promised to cooperate fully in getting to Junlan, but she hadn't said she would walk there for two months straight; naturally, she needed to prepare a means of transportation.

The best option is a carriage; as for Chen Qiang and the others, she has ways to get them to agree.

"Sir, you wish to buy horses? There's a horse market on the east street; you may wish to go and take a look."

"East Market Street? Which direction is it in?"

"Sir, after you exit the shop, turn right and walk straight to the end, enter the East Market, turn left again, and you will see the horse market at the end."

Having obtained the accurate location, Gu Nanzhi didn't delay any longer.

"Thank you, innkeeper. Please remember to prepare wine and dishes."

"Alright, sir, please take care."

Gu Nanzhi went out and followed the shopkeeper's directions to the horse market. When she reached the East Market Street, she indeed saw the horse market sign. Upon entering, she saw two people dressed in coarse linen clothes bustling about inside.

"Excuse me, may I trouble you? Who is the shopkeeper?"

Gu Nanzhi's appearance caused the two men to stop what they were doing and look up at her. Seeing that she was a young girl, they didn't treat her as a guest, assuming she was just asking for directions or something.

"Young lady, what brings you here?"

I want to buy horses.

Gu Nanzhi stated the purpose of her visit directly.

"Young lady, do you want to buy a horse?"

Both of them looked surprised, seemingly not expecting such a young girl to come and buy horses;

"Yes, I want to buy horses. Do you sell carriages here? If so, I need both horses and carriages. Please prepare them for me; I need them on the spot."

Gu Nanzhi didn't know much about these things from ancient times, but she figured that if they sold horses, they must have sold carriages along with them.

"Young lady, are you sure you're not joking?"

"Just tell me if you have it or not, I'm in a hurry."