Chapter 54: Sour 

Source: https://www.jjwxc.net/onebook.php?novelid=3614052
This translation is originally posted on https://love4baihe.blogspot.com please read it there. and check out other stories too.

Not only was Young Master Meng stunned on the spot, but even those who were sitting in the hall late at night, eating supper and gathering information, were momentarily frozen when they saw the newcomer.

Not everyone had seen He Changping’s real face, but those who had gathered here to ambush him had more or less already seen his portrait beforehand. At the very least, they could recognize the Lightning Swan Sword in his hand.

Everyone present had their own thoughts. When they each turned their gaze towards He Changping and his group, most of them were secretly thinking about the best moment to make a move. For a while, the hall was eerily silent. No one wanted to be the first to stand out.

Unlike the others, as soon as Yuechu closed her umbrella and followed Li Qiubai through the door, Young Master Meng’s eyes were already glued to the Princess. She couldn’t move her gaze away no matter what.

Tonight, the Princess was dressed in a crescent moon-colored wide-sleeved gown, covered by a snow-white fox fur cloak. At first glance, she looked like a goddess from the nine heavens stepping into the mortal realm.

When Young Master Meng saw the Princess’ face, the frown on her forehead gradually relaxed without her realizing it.

As the Princess and her group walked slowly from the threshold, Young Master Meng silently counted the steps from the Princess’ position: one step, two steps, three steps, four steps. When she finally saw her elder brother’s figure after counting four steps, Young Master Meng couldn’t help but smile.

Mm, Her Highness truly keeps her promises.

Perhaps because Young Master Meng’s gaze was too intense, after being stared at for a long time, Li Qiubai subconsciously looked up and followed her gaze to the side.

Now, Young Master Meng was standing in a rather conspicuous spot by the side of the road. Just one glance was enough for the Princess to spot her.

When their eyes met, the Princess couldn’t help but curve her lips into a slight smile. 

However, before the Princess could fully smile, her attention was drawn to the hands that Bai Shuangyan had placed on Young Master Meng’s shoulders. Seeing their almost affectionate, half-embracing posture, the Princess’ smile froze, and she slightly narrowed her eyes.

It was just a brief glance, but Li Qiubai soon turned her head away and stopped looking at Young Master Meng. Instead, she focused on the several glances frequently cast at them.

At that moment, the Princess’ expression, which seemed to be a smile but wasn’t, made Young Master Meng feel a chill run down her back and involuntarily shiver.

Before Young Master Meng could figure out what was wrong, Young General Lin, who had entered the estate with them, walked over, shaking the water stains off his oilcloth coat, and called out, “Manager Bai, our caravan has a total of one hundred thirty-two people. Are there any vacant rooms for us?”

As soon as he stepped into the hall, the dense hostility and the frequent glances around made Lin Xingyang feel uneasy.

Therefore, even after seeing Young Master Meng, the few of them still tacitly acted as if they did not recognize her.

Young General Lin’s tone was so familiar, as if he were the leader of a frequently visiting caravan. Ordinary passersby could not detect anything unusual from his words.

Bai Shuangyan also did not expose them. She immediately stopped whispering with Young Master Meng and turned around with a smile, saying, “Yes, yes, of course, there are plenty of rooms. Guests, please rest assured and settle in.”

Afterward, Bai Shuangyan turned back to instruct a few of the estate’s attendants, “Xiao Zhao, quickly show the distinguished guests inside and make arrangements! Oh, look, it is still raining so heavily outside. Fu Gui, go to the kitchen and make some ginger tea for the guests to prevent them from catching a cold!”

The carriages and horses, guided by the guards, proceeded in an orderly manner with the servants toward the deeper quarters of the inn.

As the sound of the carriage wheels began, Li Qiubai and Yu Jin and the others moved aside from the middle of the main road, temporarily standing by the side to let the caravan enter the inn and settle in.

Thus, Young Master Meng could only watch the Princess from afar, through the endless procession of carriages.

Feeling somewhat distracted and disheartened, Young Master Meng suddenly heard a frivolous teasing voice cutting through the crowd.

“Hey, it is rare to see such a noble beauty in the Jianghu. Little beauty, would you like to come and have a drink with us?”

When Young Master Meng saw the lecherous man holding a wine jug and cup approaching and shamelessly teasing the Princess, she was immediately filled with anger.

How audacious!

Meng Chang'an was about to step forward when Bai Shuangyan subtly held her back and whispered, "Girl, do not be hasty. Do not get yourself into trouble."

Before Young Master Meng could successfully move, Yu Jin, who was accompanying them, had already drawn half of his sword from its sheath and coldly shouted, “How dare you! Our young lady is not someone you can covet!”

“I am not going to eat your young lady. Look at how nervous you are,” the man holding the wine jug said. He was one of the people Ye Wuyou had pointed out to Young Master Meng earlier, the killing madman Yao Shiyi.

After being stopped in front of Li Qiubai, he was not in a hurry. Instead, he raised his cup and looked toward the side at He Changping, teasing, “You see, I just want to invite your young lady for a drink. Your young master is not anxious, so why are you, a mere guard, so eager?”

Who said the young master was not anxious?

Yuechu tilted her head and looked over at Young Master Meng across the road.

After seeing Young Master Meng’s sullen face, Yuechu found it quite amusing and immediately whispered a few words in the Princess’ ear.

At this moment, Yao Shiyi’s words, heard by others, were indeed provocative. After all, anyone would be unwilling to stand by if their own wife was being harassed.

Since Yao Shiyi was willing to be the troublemaker, the others were naturally eager to watch the fun.

Unfortunately, they had miscalculated the relationship between He Changping and Li Qiubai, and they had also misjudged their temperaments.

The scenario of a man flying into a rage for the sake of a beauty did not occur with He Changping.

Instead, he smiled and replied with a question, “How do you know I am the young lady's husband? What if I am just her older brother?”

Upon hearing this, Yao Shiyi’s smile momentarily froze.

Those who dared to take on a deal worth a thousand gold taels had already investigated the matter beforehand.

First recognizing the clothes before recognizing the person, just by looking at the material of the garments, one could see the status of He Changping and Li Qiubai among the group. Moreover, the news of the Princess and the Prince Consort traveling back to their hometown had already spread everywhere. Anyone who recognized He Changping could easily guess that the noble woman accompanying him was indeed the current Princess.

Originally, Yao Shiyi would not dare to openly harass the current Princess. He only acted so recklessly because he believed ignorance was an excuse. Now that He Changping had questioned him, he could only continue pretending not to know their identities and responded with a calm smile.

“If she were just a sister, that would be even better. A graceful and virtuous lady is a match for a gentleman. This little beauty is to my liking, so I am merely inviting her to have a drink. As her supposed older brother, you would not refuse, would you?”

Before He Changping could speak, the Princess beside him had already sneered in disdain.

“Do you even deserve it?”

This one sentence immediately caused an uproar of laughter in the hall.

“Yao Shiyi, the little beauty simply looks down on you!”

“Ha, you should go take a pee and look at yourself. Do you even deserve to invite a beauty for a drink?”

“She must be blind to go with you.”

The laughter in the hall was incessant. Yao Shiyi, hearing the taunts, was not only unbothered but also seemed pleased to take on the role.

“If you do not drink the toast, you will be punished.”

Yao Shiyi casually squeezed the porcelain cup in his hand until it shattered. Before the pieces could fall to the ground, he picked up several fragments and hurled them towards Li Qiubai and He Changping.

The fragments barely grazed He Changping's hair before embedding themselves into a distant wooden pillar behind him.

When He Changping turned back, Yao Shiyi had already grabbed a wine jar and swung it at his head.

Without further ado, the two men quickly engaged in combat. Yao Shiyi's every move was ruthless, clearly aiming to take He Changping's head. Even unarmed, Yao Shiyi forced He Changping to retreat repeatedly.

Seeing this, Yu Jin, who had temporarily stepped away from the battle, quickly leaned close to Li Qiubai and asked in a low voice, “Your Highness, it looks like this is aimed at the Prince Consort. Should we go help?”

As soon as Yao Shiyi began his attack, the crowd in the hall started to stir, each person secretly readying their weapons and watching the fight, clearly intent on seizing the opportunity to surround He Changping.

Before Li Qiubai could respond, a flying abacus bead suddenly struck and separated the two men fighting.

The abacus bead came with great force, and if it hit, it would at least cause a serious injury.

Yao Shiyi quickly stepped back, narrowly avoiding the abacus bead.

“Alright, alright, stop fighting!”

Before Yao Shiyi could steady himself and attack He Changping again, Bai Shuangyan had already leaped over the carriages and positioned herself between the two men, forcibly separating them.

"Once you are out of Bai Yun Inn, you can fight however you like; I will not interfere. But here at Bai Yun Inn, anyone who causes trouble and disrupts my business or cuts off my income, I, Bai Shuangyan will be the first to oppose!"

Though Bai Shuangyan spoke with a smile, the underlying threat was clear, causing Yao Shiyi to feel a shiver and making everyone in the hall silently retract their weapons.

Bai Shuangyan, known in the martial world as Abacus Bai, was famous for her love of money.

After all, this was Bai Yun Inn's territory. If trouble was caused without reason and Abacus Bai had to take action again, it would not end well.

Yao Shiyi, who was merely testing the waters, did not persist. He quickly withdrew, apologized to Bai Shuangyan, and retreated on his own.

It was just a minor skirmish and did not truly injure anyone, but it unexpectedly revealed Bai Shuangyan's stance.

Once Yao Shiyi left, Bai Shuangyan continued, "Come, quickly lead these guests into the inn and arrange accommodations for them properly!"

At this moment, the carriages had all entered the inn. Seeing that Li Qiubai showed no intention of pursuing the matter, Lin Xingyang signaled to withdraw the heavily armed guards.

Before Li Qiubai and the others had completely left, and while others resumed their late-night snacks, no longer interested in the commotion, Bai Shuangyan returned to Meng Chang'an's side. She leaned close to the young master's ear and whispered soothingly, "It is alright now. You can return with peace of mind. Do not worry too much about your elder brother and sister-in-law. As you saw earlier, those people are all afraid of making wedding clothes for other people in vain*, they are all timid people who want to sit back and make a fisherman's profit**, they will not achieve anything.

*be someone else's pawn

**someone who doesn't want to do the work but want to have the benefits 

Just as Meng Chang'an was about to respond, the Princess unexpectedly turned her head before leaving.

The Young Master was caught off guard and met the Princess’ gaze.

After once again catching the Princess' ambiguous look, Young Master Meng suddenly realized something was off. She hurriedly pushed away Bai Shuangyan, who was leaning close to her, and stepped back properly, responding softly, "Thank you, Aunt Bai!"