Chapter 8: The Follies of Youth

As he walked out into the courtyard with the letter, Su Han caught the lingering scent of blood in the air.

He shook his head. There were some things he didn't want to do, but he also knew the meaning of having one's hands tied.

Not dwelling on it for long, Su Han went straight out and handed the Princess Consort's personal letter to the old steward.

He didn't need to worry about what came next. The Foundation Establishment couldn't proceed without the necessary conditions anyway.

And so, Su Han suddenly found himself with nothing to do.

Having been cooped up in the Prince's Residence for half a month to study the Skill Tree, Su Han was getting restless less than an hour after returning to his courtyard.

"Su Xiao'Er."

He walked to the door and called out.

A few breaths later, Su Xiao'Er appeared at the door.

"Crown Prince, your orders?"

"Su Xiao'Er, get ready. We're going out for a walk."

Su Xiao'Er gave Su Han a confused look. "Crown Prince, get what ready?"

Su Han was taken aback. He had said it completely out of habit. As for what one needed to prepare for a walk, he couldn't think of anything off the top of his head.

"Hmm, bring some money."

"Bring money?"

Su Xiao'Er was even more bewildered. "Crown Prince, don't you usually just pay with your face?"

Su Han: "…Then let's just go."

With that, Su Han stepped out the door, and Su Xiao'Er dutifully followed behind.

The master and servant left the main gates of the Prince's Residence. After they rounded a long street, the bustling atmosphere of the city washed over them.

"Candied haws! Sweet and sour candied haws!"

"Buns! Steamed buns with thin skins and big fillings!"

"Flatbread! Freshly baked flatbread!"

"Duck pears for sale! Crispy and sweet duck pears!"

Walking down the street, listening to the vendors' calls echoing in his ears, Su Han felt like he had truly come alive.

He was never one to sit still. Despite his lazy, good-for-nothing nature, he had a paradoxical love for lively scenes.

Strolling through the streets and listening to music were some of his favorite pastimes.

He fondly recalled the time he was eight, when he took Su Xiao'Er to the Yunshui Pavilion to listen to music. The memory of coming home and getting his bottom spanked raw by the Princess Consort… ah, such nostalgia.

After wandering halfway down the street and buying a few trinkets, Su Han started to feel hungry.

"Su Xiao'Er, are you hungry?"

"Crown Prince, I've already had breakfast. I'm not hungry yet."

Only then did Su Han remember that he had gone to see his mother first thing in the morning and hadn't eaten anything yet.

Just as he was thinking this, the scent of baked grains wafted to his nose.

"Flatbread! Freshly baked flatbread!"

Hearing the call, Su Han turned his head and saw the same flatbread vendor he had passed when he first entered the street.

The first time he saw him, the man was shouting about "freshly baked flatbread." Now, after he'd been wandering the streets for nearly half an hour, it was still "freshly baked flatbread."

If he weren't aware of how hard it was to run a small business, Su Han would have been tempted to ask if the man was selling them right out of the oven he was carrying.

"Hey, flatbread vendor."

Su Han wasn't a picky eater. He could smell the fragrant, baked bread even through the white cloth covering the vendor's basket, so he turned and called out.

"Oh, Young Prince! Were you calling for me?"

Su Han wasn't surprised to be recognized. After all, Lingzhou County was Prince Jing's fief, and as the Crown Prince of Prince Jing's Residence who frequently made public appearances, there were few vendors on the street who didn't know him.

Su Han nodded and asked the vendor, who was jogging over, "Hey, flatbread vendor, how much are these?"

"Now what kind of question is that? Since when have you ever paid for flatbread, Young Prince?"

The vendor said this with a sincere smile, pulling out two sheets of clean oil paper to wrap two flatbreads before handing them to Su Han.

"Hey, watch your mouth. The way you put it, it sounds like I'm some kind of freeloader."

Seeing Su Han's glare, the vendor wasn't frightened in the least and simply continued to smile.

"Freeloading? No way, that's impossible. This entire Lingzhou City is your family's domain. As they say, the monk can run, but the temple can't run with him. Even if you don't pay, the Prince's Residence isn't going anywhere, is it?"

The vendor chuckled and casually added, "Just add it to the Prince's Residence's tab to be settled at the end of the month, right? Don't you worry, we all know our way to the gates of Prince Jing's Residence."

This was because the Prince's Residence was a massive enterprise that did business with all sorts of trades in Lingzhou City. Even a simple flatbread vendor would have the Residence occasionally purchase some of his wares as a staple food. The cost was typically put on a tab and settled at the end of the month.

This was precisely why Su Han found it bothersome to carry money. Whatever he bought, he would simply put it on a tab with his name and face, and the Prince's Residence would settle the bill for him at the end of the month.

Taking the flatbread from the vendor, Su Han took a bite and nodded in satisfaction.

"It tastes just like I remember."

"I'm glad you like it, Young Prince," the vendor said with a smiling nod. "If there's nothing else, I'll get back to selling my bread."

Su Han nodded and waved his hand. "Go on."

The vendor turned, and after just two steps, the sales pitch on his lips was cut off by an anxious shout.

"Wu Da! Wu Da, it's terrible! Your wife has been taken by men sent by the Gao Family's third young master!"

CLATTER!

Hearing the shout from the short pear vendor, the flatbread vendor's basket fell to the ground.

Su Han, who had been about to continue his stroll, was startled by the shout and instinctively looked in its direction.

"Er Baozi, you… is what you're saying true?"

Er Baozi nodded. "I didn't see it myself, but an old beggar just came looking for you. He said your wife was taken by men sent by the Gao Family's third young master."

"This..."

"This..."

Wu Da was in a complete panic. "What am I to do?"

"Wu Da, what are you standing there for? They probably haven't gotten your wife to the Gao Residence yet. Hurry up and go after them!"

"Right! Right!"

Wu Da cried out in agreement as he took off running towards the Gao Residence. The pear vendor, Er Baozi, worriedly chased after him.

As for the old beggar who had delivered the news, he watched Wu Da's retreating back, then looked at the basket of flatbread on the ground. After hesitating for a long moment, he sighed and bent down to pick it up.

Su Han thought the man would grab a few flatbreads to fill his stomach. After all, a beggar's life was one of uncertainty, never knowing where the next meal would come from. It was common to go a whole day without a bite to eat if they didn't meet a kind soul.

But to his surprise, after picking up the basket, the old beggar glanced inside a few times, then forcibly tore his gaze away from the pile of bread. He handed the basket to a woman selling rouge nearby.

"Excuse me, ma'am. Could you hold on to Wu Da's flatbread for him? I'm going to follow them and see what's happening.

I hope Wu Da doesn't lose his head and do something foolish."

The rouge-selling woman nodded and accepted without hesitation.

Just as the old beggar was about to follow, Su Han, his interest now piqued, called out to him.

"Wait a moment."

Hearing the voice, the old beggar turned and gave Su Han a surprised look, pointing at himself uncertainly.

Su Han nodded, confirming that he was indeed calling him.

"Lingzhou City has been under reformed governance for seven years now. While I wouldn't go so far as to say all its people live in peace and prosperity, there shouldn't be many beggars left, should there?"

Hearing the suspicion in Su Han's tone, the old beggar bowed his head. "You're right, sir. I only arrived in Lingzhou City about half a month ago. The people here are kind and willing to spare some food, so I decided to stay."

Su Han nodded. "I overheard you saying something about the Gao Family's third young master sending people to abduct the flatbread vendor's wife. What's that all about?

Are there still cases of men forcibly abducting women in Lingzhou City?"

The old beggar gave Su Han a quizzical look. 'The way this gentleman talks…' he thought, 'it's as if Lingzhou City belongs to his family.'

But despite his inner doubts, the old beggar answered Su Han's question.

"Some time ago, that Wu Da fell gravely ill. They consulted several doctors, but none could cure him.

His wife, Lady Wu, was desperate. She heard that the Gao Family's Hundred Herbs Pill could cure all manner of illnesses, so she went to the apothecary to ask about it. But the Elixir was far too expensive for them to afford.

At that moment, the Gao Family's third young master stepped in and, acting as a guarantor, let Lady Wu have one Hundred Herbs Pill on credit.

Wu Da took the Hundred Herbs Pill and, sure enough, he recovered. But he also fell deep into debt.

To repay the Gao Family, Wu Da has been working from dawn till dusk selling his flatbread. But it hasn't even been half a month, and the Gao Family's third young master already came to collect. Lady Wu couldn't produce the money, so Young Master Gao had his men seize her, saying he would take her as payment for the debt."

After hearing the old beggar's story, Su Han instinctively glanced at the flatbread in his hand, an indescribable feeling welling up inside him.

Repaying one's debts was a matter of course. And for the common folk of this world, selling one's children or wife when unable to pay was not unheard of.

Even he couldn't just intervene without a good reason.

But for some reason, the name "the Gao Family's third young master" left a bad taste in his mouth.

"Su Xiao'Er, what do you know about this third young master of the Gao Family?"

Su Xiao'Er was ever the dutiful servant, ready to assist his master.

"Have you forgotten, Crown Prince? He's that little fatty from when you were eight. You two were fighting over a girl at the Yunshui Pavilion, and you knocked out eight of his teeth.

Because of that incident, the Princess Consort found out you were visiting a pleasure house. You spent the next half-month lying face down in bed."

Su Han: "..."

He shot Su Xiao'Er a fierce glare. He was starting to think his attendant really had it in for him.

'I asked you if you knew the Gao Family's third young master. Couldn't you just have told me who he was?'

'Did you have to be so detailed? Are you trying to air my dirty laundry on purpose?'

But with Su Xiao'Er's reminder, Su Han did recall which "third young master of the Gao Family" it was.

"So it's that little whelp. Daring to fight me over Miss Meng at such a young age… and now I hear he's abducting common women. A leopard really can't change its spots."

"Come on, let's follow them. We'll see if there's a chance to teach him another lesson."

With that, Su Han gave a grand wave of his hand and strode forward, taking the lead.

After a few steps, he slowed down.

He waited for Su Xiao'Er to catch up before giving him a reminder.

"Su Xiao'Er, lead the way."

Su Xiao'Er: "..."

'No wonder all your heroic momentum vanished,' he thought. 'So you don't even know the way!'