Ye Wanmian had no idea why the yellow dog had suddenly left her and chased after the carriages of the Three Kings. She could only assume that it harbored a grudge against Bu Hua, who had kicked it, and wanted to take this opportunity to get revenge.
After all, she had raised it with her own hands. She couldn't just ignore it. While no one was paying attention, she bent down, smeared some yellow mud on her face to make it harder for others to recognize her.
Before she knew it, following the yellow dog and the carriage procession, she arrived at Liuxiang Tower, the largest inn in the town. Seeing the carriages stop, the yellow dog didn't go any further. Instead, it hid behind a small stall and peeked through the gap.
A moment later, Ye Wanmian caught up, out of breath. She crouched behind the dog, grabbed it in her arms, and gritted her teeth. "You bad dog, just wait till we get back. I'll teach you a lesson!"
Xiao Jingcheng turned his head, nudged Ye Wanmian's mouth with his snout, and then pawed at her sleeve, as if signaling her to be quiet.
The wet touch of the dog's nose was quite strange. Ye Wanmian covered her mouth and stopped talking, but a strange feeling flashed through her mind. Before she could figure it out, people started getting off the other carriages following the carriage of the King of Mu in the front.
When she saw the people getting off the last carriage, Ye Wanmian's heart skipped a beat. She instinctively crouched even lower.
If she hadn't covered her mouth tightly, she might have let out a scream.
It turned out that Ye Wanxing and Ye Huan, the eldest son of the Ye family, were sitting in that carriage!
Even though Ye Wanxing was dressed in men's clothes, Ye Wanmian recognized her at a glance.
She had been relieved that the Ye family members weren't among the group, but it seemed she couldn't escape after all!
Xiao Jingcheng beside her didn't notice her unease. His attention was focused on the King of Mu, the King of Xuan, the King of Ning, and Bu Hua, trying to figure out which of the three Bu Hua was closer to.
But there were too many people gathered outside the inn, blocking Bu Hua's figure. This made him a bit annoyed.
It was still too far away. Even though a dog's hearing was sharp, it was difficult to pick up their conversation from so much noise.
Moreover, the Pei family's army was guarding the area so tightly that not even a fly could get in. It was unrealistic to get closer to eavesdrop.
How could he get the information he wanted?
Xiao Jingcheng observed the front while thinking deeply.
Ye Wanmian stared intently at Ye Huan and Ye Wanxing. After they got off the carriage, they stepped forward to pay their respects to the King of Xuan and the others, and then stepped aside.
After the Kings of Mu, Xuan, and Ning entered the inn first, the others followed one by one. The Ye siblings walked at the end.
Watching their figures disappear, Ye Wanmian came back to her senses. Only then did she realize that she had clenched her fists so tightly that her nails had dug into her palms, causing a sharp pain.
As soon as she saw those two familiar faces, she would remember everything that had happened in the Ye family, the hardships she had endured in the past two years, Jiang Zhiqing, who was locked in the yard all day and had gone crazy, and the big lie the Ye family had told her.
Why had Ye Wanxing returned to Dongli Town at this time?
The King of Xuan and the others had come for the case of the crown prince's assassination and disappearance. What about Ye Wanxing and Ye Huan?
Surely her whereabouts hadn't been exposed?
The appearance of Ye Wanxing and Ye Huan made Ye Wanmian worried. On the way back, she kept thinking about her recent actions and forgot to scold the yellow dog.
What she didn't know was that Xiao Jingcheng was also deep in thought, thinking about how to gather information and find clues.
The human and the dog walked slowly and heavily, their backs looking surprisingly similar.
It wasn't until they entered the area of Qingyu Alley that the ears on top of Xiao Jingcheng's head twitched slightly. He came back to his senses, leaped in front of Ye Wanmian, lowered his body slightly, and growled menacingly at the front.
[Come out!]
Ye Wanmian woke up with a start and frowned. "Big Huang, what's wrong?"
The next moment, several small figures emerged from the wall roots and grass. The leader was the shaggy stray dog that Ye Wanmian had seen outside Jiang Zhiqing's yard before.
Why was it here again!
Ye Wanmian's heart skipped a beat. She looked around, trying to find a handy weapon.
At this moment, ignoring Xiao Jingcheng's threatening growls, the shaggy stray dog took two cautious steps forward and spat out a bloody thing at Ye Wanmian's feet.
"Ah! What's this!"
Caught off guard by the bloody thing, Ye Wanmian let out a scream.
Seeing her frightened, before Xiao Jingcheng could react, his body instinctively let out a fierce bark and he lunged at the shaggy stray dog with his mouth open—
However, the next moment, the shaggy stray dog lay on the ground, showed its belly to Xiao Jingcheng, whined softly, and wagged its tail gently, stirring up the dust on the ground.
Seeing the shaggy stray dog like this, the other dogs that had come with it also lay down, showed their soft bellies to Xiao Jingcheng, and wagged their tails vigorously.
By now, Ye Wanmian had realized that the bloody thing on the ground was a badly bitten rat. Looking up and seeing the scene of a group of dogs rolling over and whining at her and the yellow dog, she guessed that the shaggy stray dog wasn't here to fight today. It was probably here to pledge allegiance to her Big Huang.
But this scene...
She couldn't help but burst out laughing.
Xiao Jingcheng looked at the obsequious shaggy stray dog with a black face and asked the other light ball in his body:
[Hey, stupid dog, what are they saying to me?]
Although he was possessing the yellow dog's body and gradually getting used to the dog's natural instincts, he still couldn't understand the language of communication among dogs.
Big Huang's voice sounded extremely excited. [They, they're calling you Sang Biao.]
Xiao Jingcheng: ???
What Sang Biao?
Him?
Sang Biao?
The yellow light ball jumped up and down, trying hard to explain to Xiao Jingcheng. [Sang Biao, the most powerful. There are many Sang Biaos. You're very powerful. You're Sang Biao.]
Xiao Jingcheng roughly understood what the yellow dog meant.
Sang Biao wasn't referring to a specific person. It was just a title, representing the king among the dogs in Dongli Town, the recognized leader.
He had defeated the shaggy stray dog a few days ago, so the shaggy stray dog was here today to show its loyalty. It had brought not only the carefully prepared "tribute" - the dead rat, but also the "honorable" title of "Sang Biao".
Xiao Jingcheng was both angry and amused.
These days, even the titles of dogs were hereditary. It was really absurd!
Moreover, he didn't want the title of "Sang Biao" at all. It sounded so tacky! It was really an insult to his reputation!
Just as Xiao Jingcheng was about to drive the dogs away, he had a sudden thought. His gaze fell on the shaggy stray dog that was lying on its back, showing its submission.