Chapter 188: Quietly Following

Gu Zhang came out and stared at Gu Fei for a moment, then burst into laughter. "My daughter takes after her father—she’s a beauty, HAHAHAHA."

Mrs. Chen retorted teasingly, "She clearly takes after me!"

Little Cao ran in, clapping her hands. "Auntie is pretty! Auntie is a fairy!"

Gu Fei took Little Cao’s hand. "Let’s go see the lanterns!"

The whole family, full of joy and excitement, boarded the mule cart and headed for Ping’an City.

As they passed through the city gate, the men driving the cart didn’t notice a horse-drawn carriage parked by the entrance. Zhang Ze sat inside, lifting a corner of the curtain. Seeing Gu Qing and the others driving the cart, a look of delight appeared on his face. He whispered, "Young Master, Miss Gu and her family have arrived."

They had been waiting here for over an hour. If they hadn’t come any later, the Young Master would have likely lost his patience and gone out of the city to look for them.

Su Chen let out a soft "Mm" and suppressed the urge to lift the curtain himself. "Follow them, discreetly."

After entering the city, the family looked for an inn, only to find that it was already full.

It turned out many people from the surrounding areas had come into the city to see the lanterns.

They drove the mule cart to several different places before finally managing to book a few rooms. By then, the sky had already turned dark.

Mrs. Chen looked at the sky. "Where are we going to eat dinner?"

Gu Zhang waved his hand dismissively. "Forget dinner. The streets will be full of all kinds of snacks in a bit. We should save our appetites and try a few different things."

Gu Fei quickly took out some broken silver and distributed it to Gu Qing, Er Lang, and Sanlang. She also secretly pressed a small piece of silver into Lan Zhi’s and Lian’er’s hands.

The inn was a bit out of the way. The family left and started walking toward the Jinshui River. Mrs. Chen couldn’t help but nag, "The Lantern Festival is crowded, and there are child snatchers about. Gu Qing, hold Little Cao tight. Er Lang, Sanlang, you two keep an eye on your sister. Don’t get separated."

Sanlang looked at Mrs. Chen. "Mom, our sister can kill a wolf. What are you worried about?"

Only then did Mrs. Chen remember that her daughter knew martial arts.

She gave Sanlang a light punch. "She still has to be careful! What if someone with bad intentions takes a fancy to her because she’s so beautiful?"

Gu Sanlang agreed verbally, but his eyes were already wandering elsewhere.

Meanwhile, Gu Erlang was sneaking glances at Lan Zhi, not having heard his mother’s words at all.

Only Lian’er was thinking to herself, ’I’ll stick close to Little Fei and not leave her side for a moment.’

Along the way, all sorts of lanterns were already hung up.

Gu Fei didn’t know how to describe this kind of beauty. It was a delicate, bustling prosperity that made it hard to know where to look first.

Before they had walked far, Little Cao pointed to a small stall on the roadside selling dumplings. "Daddy, I’m hungry. I want to eat that."

Gu Fei wanted to eat them too. She pulled Lian’er to sit by the roadside, ordered a bowl of crab meat dumplings, and got a bowl for Lian’er as well.

Lan Zhi’s upbringing didn’t permit her to eat on the street, so she continued walking ahead slowly with Gu Zhang, Mrs. Chen, and Er Lang.

Little Cao was a slow eater, so after Gu Fei and Lian’er finished, they went on ahead.

Seeing that Sanlang was with his sister, Gu Zhang felt at ease and stayed behind to eat slowly with Little Cao.

Before long, they reached the street where the First-class Pavilion was located.

This was one of the most bustling streets in Ping’an City. Gu Fei saw that the First-class Pavilion was brightly lit, its exterior adorned with all kinds of lanterns.

After walking a little further, Gu Fei suddenly noticed a two-story building facing the street. While every other house was hanging lanterns, its entrance was pitch-black.

Gu Fei stared at the house curiously. The doors and windows were covered in a thick layer of dust, and there was no plaque above the entrance. As she was looking, she tripped on something and nearly fell, but Lian’er quickly steadied her.

Gu Fei looked down and saw an old man in ragged clothes, his legs stretched out, sitting against the wall.