12: I will wipe away Mu Nianci's tears.

The steam from the small steamed bun shop carried the scent of meat, wafting down half the street.

Xie Hui had just bitten into his first bun when the scalding hot soup splashed onto the corner of his mouth, making him wince and hiss in pain.

Mu Nianci, sitting opposite him, could not help but cover her mouth and chuckle at his appearance, handing him a plain handkerchief: "Young Master Xie, eat slowly. No one is going to snatch it from you."

"That's where you don't understand," Xie Hui said, still hissing as he spoke indistinctly. "Delicious food must be eaten while it's hot. Once it cools down, it loses that fresh flavor! You should try it quickly; there must be shrimp in this meat filling. It's even fresher than the hand-grabbed meat from the grasslands!"

Mu Nianci followed his advice and picked one up, gently biting a small opening.

The delicious soup spread across her tongue, and her eyes brightened slightly: "It is indeed delicious, much more authentic than what I used to eat at the Inn."

Beside them, Baturu was holding a steamer basket of buns, his face covered in grease as he ate.

He chimed in indistinctly: "It would be even better if there were some spicy sauce from the grasslands! The food here in Jiangnan is too bland; it's not satisfying to eat!"

This remark made the other customers in the shop laugh, and even the shopkeeper came over to say: "If this guest likes spicy food, next time you come, I will prepare some chili oil for you!"

Just as things were lively, a flurry of hurried footsteps came from outside.

Several men dressed in black burst in.

The leader spotted Mu Nianci immediately and shouted in a rough voice: "Miss Mu, our Young Master invites you to return!"

Mu Nianci's expression darkened instantly, and her grip on her chopsticks tightened: "I have already said, I will not go back with Yang Kang. Stop pestering me!"

"Miss, that's not the right way to put it," the man in black sneered. "Our Young Master is the son of Your Highness the Prince of Zhao. It is your good fortune that he has taken a fancy to you. Don't be ungrateful! Even if we have to tie you up today, we must take you back!"

Xie Hui put down his chopsticks, wiped his mouth, and stood up leisurely: "I say, you few, trying to kidnap someone in broad daylight—do you think this Jiangnan belongs to your family?"

The man in black looked Xie Hui up and down.

Seeing him dressed in a green robe and looking refined, he didn't take him seriously at all: "Where did this pretty boy come from, daring to meddle in the affairs of our Prince Zhaos Residence? If you know what's good for you, get lost quickly, or we'll deal with you too!"

"Deal with me?" Xie Hui raised an eyebrow and suddenly reached out to grab the man's wrist, twisting it lightly—a crisp "crack" sound was heard.

The man in black screamed in pain, cold sweat instantly soaking his clothes.

"I advise you all to behave yourselves, otherwise I will turn every one of you into a 'crooked hand,' so you won't even be able to pick up chopsticks in the future!"

Seeing this, the other men in black pulled out their Short Blades and surrounded him.

Baturu and the others immediately put down their buns and rolled up their sleeves, ready to fight, but were stopped by Xie Hui: "You don't need to intervene. I can handle these small fries by myself!"

Xie Hui released his grip, and the man in black crouched on the ground, clutching his wrist and wincing in pain.

The remaining men exchanged glances and lunged at Xie Hui, waving their Short Blades.

Xie Hui was unhurried, his body weaving through the crowd like an eel.

From time to time, he would reach out and lightly push their arms or the back of their knees—it looked effortless, but those he pushed lost their balance, either crashing into tables or falling to the ground.

In no time, a large group of them had fallen.

One man in black, unwilling to give up, tried to ambush Xie Hui from behind, intending to lift him up and slam him to the ground.

Xie Hui's ears twitched; he suddenly bent over, grabbed the man's ankles with both hands, and gave a light pull—with an "ah" sound, the man fell headfirst to the ground, nearly breaking his nose.

"I said, don't ambush me," Xie Hui brushed off his hands. "We people of the Jianghu value openness and integrity. What you did is not honorable."

The man in black scrambled up, looked at his companions lying on the ground, and then at Xie Hui's cold eyes.

Finally, he became afraid and crawled and scrambled his way out: "Let's go! This isn't over!"

Once the men in black had fled, the customers in the shop gathered around, giving Xie Hui a thumbs up: "This Young Master has great skills!"

"Those people from the Prince Zhaos Residence are too arrogant; someone should have dealt with them long ago!"

Xie Hui smiled and bowed with folded hands: "Thank you all for your praise; it was just a matter of helping those in need when encountering injustice."

He turned to look at Mu Nianci, and seeing her pale face and worried eyes, he quickly said: "Don't worry. With me here, they won't dare to come and trouble you again."

Mu Nianci looked at Xie Hui, her eyes suddenly turning red, her voice choked with emotion: "Thank you, Young Master Xie. If it weren't for you, I don't know how much longer I would have been pestered by them."

"No need to thank me," Xie Hui handed her a cup of hot tea. "Drink some water and don't be afraid. As for Yang Kang, I will find a way to help you resolve this. He won't harass you again in the future."

Mu Nianci took the hot tea, holding the cup with both hands, but tears still couldn't help falling: "When I first met Yang Kang, he wasn't like this. Back then, he would accompany me to see the lantern festival and buy me candied hawthorn. But ever since he found out he was the son of the Prince of Zhao, he has become increasingly distant and overbearing. I really don't know how he could have become like this."

Xie Hui sat beside her and gently patted her shoulder: "People change, especially in the face of power and wealth; some people lose themselves. But you don't need to be sad; it's not worth grieving for such a person. In the future, you will meet better people and live a better life."

"Really?" Mu Nianci looked up, her eyes full of confusion. "Can a woman like me, with no one to rely on, live a better life?"

"Of course you can," Xie Hui said firmly. "You know martial arts and you are kind-hearted. As long as you are willing to work hard, you will definitely be able to carve out your own world. If you are willing, you can come with me in the future. I will take you to see a wider world and let you know that besides Yang Kang and the martial arts competition for marriage, there are many interesting things waiting for you to do."

Looking into Xie Hui's sincere eyes, a warm current surged in Mu Nianci's heart.

She nodded and wiped away her tears: "Okay, I will go with you. From now on, I will no longer be sad for Yang Kang; I want to live for myself for once."

Xie Hui smiled and picked up a small steamed bun to hand to her: "That's the spirit! Come, have another bun. Once we're full, we'll continue our journey. There are even more delicious and fun things waiting for us ahead!"

Mu Nianci took the bun and took a bite, finally revealing a smile on her face.

The sunlight shone through the window onto her face, dispelling the previous gloom and making her look exceptionally bright.

After breakfast, the group continued their journey.

Just as they left the small town, they saw a crowd of people gathered by the roadside, making a lot of noise.

Xie Hui walked over curiously and saw an old woman sitting on the ground crying, with an injured young man lying beside her, blood flowing from his leg.

It looked like he had been beaten.

"Elder, what happened?" Xie Hui squatted down and asked.

The old woman looked up and wiped her tears: "This Young Master, my son was just passing by here when he was stopped by a group of bullies. They said he was blocking their path, not only robbed him of his money but also beat him like this! In this world, is there no justice left?"

Xie Hui frowned, and just as he was about to speak, a group of men dressed in brocade walked over.

The leader was a fat man with a face full of flesh, holding a folding fan, swaying as he said: "Who is meddling in affairs here? This brat blocked my path; beating him is a lesson for him! If you don't want to cause trouble, get lost quickly!"

"You are that bully?" Xie Hui stood up, his gaze icy.

"Robbing and beating people in broad daylight—are you not afraid of the authorities arresting you?"

The fat man sneered: "The authorities? I am sworn brothers with the county magistrate here; who would dare to arrest me? I think you are tired of living, daring to meddle in my business! Brothers, beat him up!"

Following the fat man's order, the men behind him waved their sticks and lunged at Xie Hui.

Baturu and the others immediately blocked in front of Xie Hui, preparing to fight.

But Xie Hui waved his hand: "No need, I'll play with them."

Xie Hui stepped forward, not waiting for the men to get close, and took the initiative.

His movements were agile, his fists fast and accurate.

In no time, he had knocked several men to the ground.

Seeing this, the fat man turned pale with fear and turned to run.

Xie Hui rushed forward in a single bound, grabbed his collar, and lifted him up with a light tug: "Want to run? Not so easy!"

The fat man was so terrified that he experienced Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering, and he quickly begged for mercy: "Young Master, spare my life! Young Master, spare my life! I will never dare to do it again! I will return the money to them, and I will apologize to them!"

"Wouldn't it have been better if you were like this earlier?" Xie Hui threw him to the ground. "Return the stolen money to the old woman and pay for her son's medical treatment. If you dare to play any tricks, I will make you pay dearly!"

The fat man nodded repeatedly, took silver from his pocket and handed it to the old woman, and ordered his men to carry the injured young man to the medical clinic.

The old woman took the silver and thanked Xie Hui repeatedly: "Thank you, Young Master! Thank you, Young Master! You are truly a kind person!"

Xie Hui smiled: "No need to thank me; this is what I should do. If you encounter such things again in the future, go to the authorities to report it. If the authorities don't care, just say you know me. My name is Xie Hui."

The old woman quickly noted it down and looked at Xie Hui gratefully.

The group continued their journey.

Mu Nianci walked beside Xie Hui, her eyes full of admiration: "Young Master Xie, you are truly amazing. Not only is your martial arts good, but you are also so kind."

"It's nothing," Xie Hui said with a smile. "Helping those in need when encountering injustice is something everyone should do. As people, we must have a clear conscience and cannot watch others suffer without doing anything."

Mu Nianci nodded, her affection for Xie Hui increasing a little more in her heart.

She felt that being with Xie Hui not only gave her a sense of security but also allowed her to learn many things.

This kind of life was much more fulfilling than revolving around Yang Kang as she did before.

After walking for about half an hour, a small river appeared ahead, with several black-awning boats docked by the riverside.

Xie Hui smiled and said: "Let's take a black-awning boat. It's a perfect chance to see the water town scenery of Jiangnan; it's much more interesting than riding horses."

Everyone nodded in agreement, and Mu Nianci was even more excited; she had never ridden a black-awning boat before.

The group boarded the black-awning boat, the boatman pushed off with a bamboo pole, and the small boat slowly sailed away from the shore, heading downstream along the river.

Sitting on the boat, looking at the beautiful scenery on both banks, and feeling the gentle breeze, Mu Nianci felt exceptionally comfortable.

She turned to look at Xie Hui, seeing him gazing into the distance with eyes full of longing, and couldn't help but ask: "Young Master Xie, where do you plan to go in the future?"

Xie Hui turned back and said with a smile: "I want to go to many places, see different scenery, and meet different people. If you are willing, you can keep traveling with me until you find what you want to do."

Mu Nianci's heart warmed, and she nodded heavily: "Okay, I will go with you."

The small boat sailed slowly on the river, leaving a long wake behind.