A male voice came from inside the carriage.
However, before the girl could wave her hand a few times, she was pulled back, and then a scolding came from inside.
“Enough! Do you have any idea that your actions just now would bring shame to our family?”
“I…”
At the mention of family, the girl’s voice noticeably weakened.
At that moment, the carriage curtain was lifted again, and a silver coin flew out, landing in front of Shu Yue.
As it fell, it attracted many burning gazes, and at the same time, the male voice inside added another sentence: “Kid, take this money and get lost. My sister is not someone you can fantasize about.”
“…”
Shu Yue was speechless.
What a lunatic!
She turned and left, too lazy to bother with this inexplicable pair of siblings.
She didn’t even glance at the silver coin.
How much was a silver coin worth?
Using a standard Needle Leaf Silver Coin as a basis, it could support a commoner family of three for half a year!
Yet such a coin lay on the ground unpicked, making the surrounding commoners envious.
However, with the carriage blocking the way, they didn’t dare approach the noble’s carriage.
Having been exploited for generations, their fear of nobles had seeped into their bones, becoming an instinct.
The noble siblings inside the carriage paid no attention to the silver coin.
After being scolded by her brother, the girl looked sulky, clearly dissatisfied with his action of pulling her back.
The brother, as the elder, felt he had done nothing wrong.
It was an act of protecting his family.
If their father were present, he would surely praise him, so he didn’t apologize.
In the past, when he tipped commoners, they would at least say thank you after picking up the money, and some would even kowtow vigorously.
He secretly glanced outside and didn’t hear a single word of gratitude to the noble lord.
A hint of displeasure arose in his heart.
In his view, Shu Yue must have already picked up the money and run off like the other commoners, which was why she was out of sight.
But when he pulled the curtain back to look again, he found a small kid picking up the silver coin and running into the crowd.
Shu Yue hadn’t picked it up at all; instead, she was leisurely walking toward the back of the procession.
As Shu Yue was walking, a neatly dressed maidservant suddenly stopped her and said, “Sir, our young lady would like to have a word with you. Please, this way.”
“Uh… who are you?”
Shu Yue gave the maidservant a brief once-over.
She had a delicate, pretty face, shoulder-length dark golden hair, and a slender, graceful figure, but nothing worth Shu Yue’s prolonged attention.
She had seen too many beautiful girls, both high in quality and quantity.
Not to mention Eustia and Sister Zi, even Emily and Vanessa, that pair of best friends, were the top beauties in Grey Pine City.
Of course, looks were secondary.
The main issue was that this maidservant was too ordinary.
If she were a Tier 1, Shu Yue might have been slightly cautious, but she was just an apprentice, someone with a bit more strength and basic spells.
As for the young lady the maidservant mentioned, Shu Yue didn’t care much.
She had no interest in getting involved with such people.
The maidservant, being used to serving others, noticed the lack of interest in Shu Yue’s casual glance and immediately added, “The young lady wishes to talk about matters in the city.”
“She knows?”
“Yes, the young lady does have some information.”
“Alright, lead the way.”
Upon hearing that the other party knew what was happening in the city, Shu Yue agreed directly.
As soon as she spoke, the maidservant was imperceptibly stunned for a moment, then slightly turned her head to glance at the carriage right beside her.
But the maidservant quickly recovered, didn’t call her out, and instead made a gesture of invitation, directing Shu Yue’s attention to the carriage that was queuing up beside them.
Calling it a carriage was an understatement; it was similar to the motorhome buses from Shu Yue’s previous life.
The horses pulling it had a trace of Dragon Blood and were twice the size of ordinary horses.
Two such Dragon Beasts could pull the luxurious carriage, which was seven meters long and five meters high, giving it an extremely high-class appearance.
Shu Yue had seen such carriages before; they were usually used by powerful nobles when traveling.
Following the maidservant into the carriage, she met the young lady who had invited her.
She was a jewel-like beauty, with a lovely face and a gentle temperament, exuding the aura of a proper lady.
She gave Shu Yue a feeling similar to Vanessa, but her scheming seemed much shallower.
‘Hmm, a downgraded version of Vanessa…’
Shu Yue did not introduce herself.
Since the other party had invited her, they should introduce themselves first.
Inside the carriage, there was not only the noble young lady but also several maidservants and two female guards.
Their strength was passable—two Tier 1 initiates.
It would probably take Shu Yue two seconds to deal with them.
She could knock one out in a second.
The two female guards, clad in light leather armor, tensed up immediately when Shu Yue’s gaze swept over them, their hands resting on their sword hilts.
If Shu Yue made any sudden move, they would draw their swords instantly.
The noble young lady did not notice this.
She gave a gentle smile and said, “Sir, since we are just passing acquaintances, how about we don’t exchange names? What do you think?”
“Oh.”
Shu Yue had no objection.
She also hated introducing herself, as she had used too many names.
She couldn’t very well make up a new name for every woman she met—what kind of person would that make her?
“Your person said you know what happened in the city?”
“Yes.”
The noble young lady replied calmly.
Shu Yue nodded, sat down nearby, and said, “Let’s hear it.”
The maidservant who had led her in frowned with slight anger when she saw Shu Yue being so disrespectful to her lady.
But due to a warning glance from her mistress, she could only retreat to the side and lower her head silently.
The noble young lady also sat down and began to tell Shu Yue what had happened while she was away for the past two days.
“Baron Jim is dead. The Jim family has been wiped out.”
“What?”
Shu Yue was stunned upon hearing the surname “Jim.”
She hadn’t gone to exterminate their entire clan to root them out.
She didn’t consider herself a cold-blooded person, nor could she bring herself to annihilate a whole family.
So who had done it for her?
Although that Baron Jim was a detestable fellow, and his family’s extinction should have nothing to do with Shu Yue, she still felt something was off.
This was too coincidental.
Shu Yue asked the noble young lady, “Has anyone been found responsible? Openly killing a titled noble and destroying a baron’s family—each act is a challenge to the Empire’s tolerance. What does the City Guard say?”
Killing a noble was a serious crime in the Empire, and a massacre was even more so.
But anyone daring enough to do such a thing wouldn’t be afraid of the Empire’s punishment.
Shu Yue asked that to get more information.
The noble young lady shook her head and said, “They say it was a cult. This Baron Jim was involved with a cult, and for some reason, they chose to abandon him. To destroy the evidence, they eliminated both Baron Jim and his entire family.”
“I see.”
Shu Yue didn’t believe that explanation.
Generally, such initial public disclosures were seventy percent false and only thirty percent true.
Baron Jim must have had some connection to the Black Feather Sect.
Otherwise, why would he have insisted that Shu Yue killed his son, instead of blaming the Black Feather Sect?
Because they were in collusion, partners in crime.
So if it wasn’t the Black Feather Sect’s doing, he could just ask them, and the only remaining suspect would be Shu Yue.
That was why he caused trouble for her.
‘So that’s it! I’m so clever, hehe~’
By the way, the Black Feather Sect had been coveting her body, wanting her to become their Saintess and Mother of God.
The Black Feather Sect was a massive force that hadn’t been wiped out by the Holy Radiance Church for so many years, indicating its deep roots.
Shu Yue definitely couldn’t provoke them, at least not now when she lacked the strength to resist.
If they casually sent a Tier 3 mage, Shu Yue could only run.
Once captured, she would surely face death.
‘I have to get stronger as soon as possible. Only by being strong enough can I truly control my own destiny.’
Shu Yue’s conviction grew stronger.
She had become a priceless jade in the eyes of others, and her very existence tempted others to commit crimes.
Either hide for life, or become strong enough to make everyone back off.
The first path didn’t suit her personality, so there was only the second.
‘I must make good use of Eustia and that young lady named Luolan to obtain the resources I need: Dragon Blood, more Dragon Blood, and knowledge of the Path of Transcendence. Step on them to climb higher, and never believe any gentleness they show!’
Her thoughts returned to the present.
Shu Yue looked at the noble young lady and accepted the tea she offered.
The noble young lady smiled and continued, “Baron Leicester is preparing a wedding for his daughter, and even at a time like this, he insists on holding it. The wedding is tomorrow, and that’s the purpose of my trip. What are your plans, sir?”
“Me? I’m also here for the wedding.”
Shu Yue answered naturally, because wasn’t she one of the main participants?
No, to be precise, it was the wedding of the boy named Liya White, whose identity she had taken over.
Upon hearing this, the noble young lady showed an expression of understanding and became a bit more enthusiastic toward Shu Yue.
“Then sir, why not sit here with me for a while? The checkpoint at the city gate will take some time. If you go back to the end of the line now, you probably won’t be able to enter the city until evening.”
“That wouldn’t be appropriate. I’m a gentleman, and it’s not proper for someone like me to stay in the same compartment with a lady like you for an extended period.”
Shu Yue could climb over the wall.
If caught, she could have her cheap father-in-law come to bail her out.
As a baron, he could definitely retrieve her from the City Guard.
Otherwise, who would marry Emily tomorrow?
The noble young lady insisted, “That’s not a problem. Besides, I’m not the only one here in the carriage. There are others too. Sir, you need not worry about them gossiping behind your back.”
“Well, alright then.”
Seeing her being so polite, Shu Yue decided not to stand on ceremony.
On second thought, climbing over the wall and getting caught would be more troublesome.
It was easier and more convenient to hitch a ride into Grey Pine City.
The noble young lady was visibly startled.
She hadn’t expected Shu Yue to actually settle in so readily.
What about social niceties?
The back-and-forth?
This wasn’t what Mother had told her.
How was she supposed to handle this?
She wanted to flip through her notes, but with Shu Yue sitting right there, she couldn’t pull them out.