Jiang Zhiqing stared intently at Li Zhao's facial expression, trying to read something from his face.
He gazed at her tenderly, not blinking an eyelid. He even reached out to tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear and said in a soft voice, "What are you thinking about, Yingniang? Of course, we'll never be separated. You're my wife, Li Bingjun's wife. You were in the past, and you'll always be in the future."
Jiang Zhiqing felt relieved. She broke into a smile and said, "Yes, my lord is also my husband, and always has been."
"If that's the case, you should also keep up with your husband's pace." Li Zhao took her hand and led her forward.
Jiang Zhiqing was greatly startled. She quickly glanced around and tried to pull her hand back. "My lord, this... this is against the rules."
She had never seen a man and a woman walking hand in hand in public. What if they were laughed at?
Li Zhao suppressed his smile and bent down slightly. "Yingniang, have you forgotten? We're wearing the Taoist priest's yellow talismans. Others can't see our faces clearly and won't remember them."
Jiang Zhiqing was taken aback for a moment, then relaxed and stopped struggling. She obediently let him hold her hand, but her eyes were still nervously looking around.
Perhaps it was the effect of the yellow talismans. At first, some people did look in their direction, but they quickly averted their gazes, and there was no look of surprise or disdain on their faces. Jiang Zhiqing gradually became more and more relaxed.
The two walked slowly side by side, leisurely taking in the street scenes of Guangdu Town.
As the sun gradually moved, the number of pedestrians on the street increased. The shops on both sides opened their doors one after another to welcome customers. The quiet town gradually became noisy. This touch of earthly warmth made them both feel it was quite rare.
On the way, they saw a jewelry store. Without hesitation, Li Zhao led Jiang Zhiqing inside. At first, Jiang Zhiqing was a bit reluctant. She didn't want to spend any money, but Li Zhao was extremely insistent, so she started to make a selection.
Besides buying hairpins and jewelry for Jiang Zhiqing, she also picked out some ornaments for Jiang Mian. This was a mother's love for her daughter. She always wanted to dress up her child well to make up for the years of absence.
The two strolled around at will, lingering on the streets of Guangdu County, enjoying this time alone together.
On the other hand, after Jiang Mian, Li Zhao, Jiang Zhiqing and the others left the inn one after another, Huang the dog, under Xiao Jingcheng's guidance, manipulated his own body and quietly ran out of the back door of the inn. Following the faint smell in the air, he ran in a certain direction in Guangdu County.
As Huang ran, he left his marks at the roots of the walls from time to time. After running through about seven or eight marketplaces, he heard the sound of someone following him from behind.
[Little, little purple guy, someone's catching up.] Huang's tail drooped. He looked back nervously at the empty street behind him.
In his ear, Xiao Jingcheng said, [I've taught you. Don't be afraid. The more afraid you are, the more arrogant they'll be.]
[Listen to me. Now crouch down and growl menacingly in that direction.]
Huang licked his lips. Following Xiao Jingcheng's instructions, he took two steps forward, crouched down facing the street behind him, and let out a low "growl" from his throat.
This was a show of defiance and provocation to the "pursuers" behind him.
Sure enough, in a short while, a black dog's head popped out from behind the corner. This dog was tall and had strong limbs. It looked even more powerful and fierce than Sangbiao in Dongli Town. Huang was just a domestic dog. When he saw such a fierce wild dog, the sound of his growl subconsciously weakened.
This made the chasing dogs think he was weak and easy to bully. The black dog immediately led the other dogs behind it, growled, and approached Huang.
However, having been with Xiao Jingcheng for a long time, Huang's character was somewhat influenced by him. At first, he was indeed a bit timid, but then he plucked up his courage. If he wasn't afraid of Sangbiao, why should he be afraid of this black dog?
Moreover, no matter how powerful it was, could it be more powerful than the little purple guy?
With the little purple guy's guidance, he wasn't afraid at all!
Huang increased the volume of his growl, stared fixedly at the approaching black dog, and tensed his whole body, looking ready to pounce at any moment.
The black dog in front of him should be the leader of the dog pack. It was also a very conceited one. Seeing that Huang was just a single dog, looking delicate and clean, and should be a pet dog, it didn't take Huang seriously at all. It thought it was enough to deal with Huang alone.
So, it just circled around Huang twice, then opened its mouth and pounced on him, wanting to teach this audacious outsider dog, who dared to mark everywhere, a lesson.
It thought this weak dog would soon lie under it, begging for mercy and wagging its tail, but who would have thought...
The first pounce missed!
[Good. You should pay attention to the black dog's body. Any movement has a sign.
Its muscles are tense, and its eyes are always on your right side. It's aiming at your right front paw.]
Xiao Jingcheng's voice rang in Huang's ear.
Sure enough, the big black dog pounced towards his right side.
However, with Xiao Jingcheng's reminder, Huang was well-prepared, so he easily dodged the black dog's attack again.
After two failed pounces, the black dog even rolled awkwardly on the ground. Finally, it began to take Huang seriously.
It was annoyed and let out even more ferocious roars. Saliva dripped from its canine teeth, making it look even more ferocious.
Xiao Jingcheng snorted. [Next, you should turn from defense to offense and find out its weakest spot.]
Huang pounced on the black dog. Of course, he didn't expect to hurt the black dog with these two attacks, and the black dog was very experienced and easily dodged Huang's attacks.
However, after several rounds of confrontation, Xiao Jingcheng saw the black dog's weakness.
[The black dog has a hidden injury in its right hind leg. It's not as flexible as you, and it's getting old. Speed up and wear it out.]
Following Xiao Jingcheng's instructions, Huang began to lead the black dog in circles in the alley.
Sure enough, after a long time, the black dog's movements became a bit sluggish, and its right hind leg trembled a bit.
Seizing the opportunity, under Xiao Jingcheng's guidance, Huang successfully pounced on the black dog and bit it to the ground. His sharp teeth bit into the black dog's throat, and his claws firmly pressed on the black dog's head.
The black dog never thought it would lose to a yellow dog that was even smaller than itself!
At first, it couldn't believe it. It even felt angry and ashamed, but when the yellow dog's sharp teeth bit through its skin and its throat was almost bitten off, it finally felt afraid.
It whimpered and begged Huang for mercy. It even rolled over on its back and wagged its tail obsequiously, completely surrendering.
Huang loosened his mouth and backed away. The black dog got up from the ground in pain and crouched down in front of Huang, showing submission.
The dogs it brought also crouched down one after another.
[Boss!]
[From today on, you're our boss!]
Huang was extremely happy. This was the first time he had ever defeated other dogs on his own!