Chapter 146: Lovers Ultimately Become Brother and Sister

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Bai Yan glanced at Jiang Chengyan, shoved the little water flask into his arms, and dashed away.

The thief was fast—very fast—but the rabbit was faster. Before he had gone very far, Bai Yan caught up with him.

She had been running at full speed, so when she seized him, she could not stop herself. Her hand jerked sharply on the thief’s clothes. He felt as though he were about to die on the spot.

Damn, what incredible strength.

“Your money pouch.” Bai Yan’s little face was still smudged with dust, but her eyes shone brilliantly. With one hand, she held out the purse to the wealthy lady who had caught up with her; with the other, she kept hold of the thief.

Madam Zhao finally came huffing and puffing after them. She first looked Bai Yan over carefully, and only after confirming that the girl was unharmed did she order the others to seize the thief.

“Don’t go running off like that again, do you hear me? What if that thief had been carrying a dagger or something? What would we have done?” Madam Zhao scolded Bai Yan fiercely.

Bai Yan gave a sheepish little laugh, then hid behind Madam Zhao and peered at the elegant, noble-looking lady.

“Miss, why don’t I treat you to a meal?” the noblewoman asked Bai Yan with a perfectly gracious smile.

“There’s no need to treat her, Madam. She’s nothing but a mischievous little monkey. A-Yan, hurry up and wipe your wife’s sweat,” Madam Zhao said.

It was rare for her to address Jiang Chengyan this way.

The noblewoman before them was clearly no ordinary lady. If she took a fancy to their girl, what would they do? They had to make their claim clear. This was a daughter-in-law of the Jiang family!

“So the little girl is already married,” Madam Rong said, somewhat surprised. Yet when she saw Jiang Chengyan and Bai Yan standing together, she could find nothing improper about it.

“Yes, she’s my daughter-in-law,” Madam Zhao replied with a smile, her voice carrying unmistakable pride.

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“What the little girl helped me recover today was no ordinary item. You must all come with me to the Ruyi Restaurant for a meal. I have reserved the restaurant’s first special dish.”

Whenever the temple fair was held, the restaurants offered a special first dish—only one portion, and extremely limited.

“What is the first special dish, Mother? Do we have one too?” Bai Yan asked Madam Zhao curiously.

“There’s only one portion, and we didn’t manage to reserve it.” Madam Zhao gave her an exasperated look. “You little glutton.”

“At the beginning of the year, when I went to burn incense, a venerable monk at the temple told me that I might encounter a special opportunity this year. I think this little girl is probably the opportunity he spoke of.” Madam Rong gazed at Bai Yan’s dust-covered face, finding her more adorable with every passing moment.

Madam Zhao smiled outwardly, but inwardly she snorted.

Hmph. What special opportunity? You just want to steal my daughter from me.

Seeing how curious Bai Yan was about the restaurant’s special first dish, Madam Zhao exchanged a glance with her husband. The two of them nodded in perfect understanding.

They really had to work harder at making money. Otherwise, their child could easily be tricked away.

Fortunately, Madam Rong truly meant nothing more than treating them to a meal. In the end, she even tried to give Bai Yan some gifts in return, but they politely refused them all.

After eating and drinking their fill, Bai Yan climbed onto Jiang Chengyan’s shoulders and went out to enjoy the festivities again.

Jiang’s father had already reserved two rooms at the Auspicious Restaurant. When they returned, Madam Zhao first looked around warily. Only then did she pull Jiang Chengyan aside and ask in all seriousness, “Why did you agree to let the girl go eat with Madam Rong today? Keeping a low profile is the sensible thing to do.”

“Madam Rong is the wife of Landlord Shen,” Jiang Chengyan replied calmly.

Madam Zhao had never been the sort to curry favor with the powerful. Hearing this, she frowned.

“Are you trying to build connections?”

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“Landlord Shen’s son has taken a fancy to your daughter-in-law.” As Jiang Chengyan spoke, his gaze fell upon the rabbit, sprawled on the couch and snoring away in deep sleep.

Madam Zhao and Jiang’s father: “!!!”

“You’re sending the girl straight into their hands!” Madam Zhao was frantic.

“Madam Rong has a particular quirk,” Jiang Chengyan continued.

“What quirk?” Madam Zhao asked.

“She likes adopting daughters.”

Madam Zhao: “…”

And so, when the young master of the Shen family suddenly discovered that the girl he liked had become his sworn sister…

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