Phoenix Cries Return to Court

Upon being asked this question, Shen Jueyan's face instantly flushed red, and he stammered, "Your Highness... Your Highness, when you go out, there will naturally be someone to protect your safety."

Fu Chen chuckled and said casually, "Then you protect me, and I'll protect Master."

Upon hearing this, Lin Xihe looked at her beloved grandson with affection. She was about to speak, but then swallowed the words "truly filial" and simply patted Fu Chen on the shoulder.

Shen Jueyan's eyes darkened, his probing gaze sweeping over the two of them. The atmosphere around him instantly turned cold, creating a somewhat awkward moment.

Just then, cheers came from not far away, instantly attracting the attention of the three.

"What's going on over there? It's so lively!" Fu Chen craned his neck to look and said with great interest, "Master, let's go take a look!" As he spoke, he subconsciously reached for Lin Xihe's sleeve.

Shen Jueyan reacted quickly and subtly stepped between the two, saying, "Your Highness, please be careful. The marketplace is crowded and chaotic. I will stay with you."

The three followed the sound and, as soon as they reached the bustling area, they saw a boy of about twelve or thirteen years old standing in the center of the crowd. He was thin and looked as if a gust of wind could blow him over. He was wearing a faded coarse cloth outfit with several patches and was performing magic tricks.

The boy held a slightly worn, plain handkerchief in his hand, gently covering his face. With a slight sway, he raised his hand and lowered the handkerchief, his face suddenly changing, sometimes resembling Guan Yu, sometimes Bao Zheng. The speed was so fast that it was overwhelming. Everyone praised him, and Fu Chen also stopped and watched intently.

Shen Jueyan stood to the side, her expression aloof, but when her gaze fell on the boy's thin figure and the faint scars on his body, she couldn't help but frown.

Fu Chen watched with delight, chattering away to Lin Xihe. Lin Xihe remained silent, listening with a faint smile. Shen Jueyan felt even more stifled. He subtly moved closer to Lin Xihe, his gaze fixed on the incessantly talking Fu Chen.

Before long, the performance reached its climax. The boy bent down and picked up a worn-out bamboo basket from the ground, held it high above his head, turned it over, and found the basket to be empty. Then he gently shook the basket and lifted the lid, and a snow-white rabbit suddenly jumped out of the basket, causing the onlookers to gasp in surprise.

Then, as everyone watched him openly take out pigeons, flowers, and several strings of candied hawthorns from the empty basket!

With each item brought out, the cheers grew louder, and Fu Chen watched with great interest, his palms turning red from clapping.

After the performance, the boy picked up a broken small bowl from his side, looked at the crowd again, and said cautiously, "Please, gentlemen, give me some money."

As soon as he finished speaking, the crowd that had been so crowded dispersed in a flash, and in no time, only the little boy was left, holding the broken bowl, standing alone in the same spot.

The boy looked at the few copper coins in the broken bowl, fought back his tears, and sighed deeply.

Seeing this scene, Lin Xihe felt a pang of sadness. She stepped forward, took out a few coins from her sleeve, and gently placed them into the boy's broken bowl. The boy hurriedly thanked her, then hugged the broken bowl and ran towards a burly man not far away.

The man was about thirty years old, with a fleshy face, wearing a greasy short jacket, and had a blade of grass in his mouth. He sat leisurely under the tree, basking in the sun.

Seeing the boy run over, he squinted and stood up, snatched the broken bowl, looked at the few coins inside, and then slapped the child hard across the face. The child staggered and fell to the ground, and the next second, blood slowly flowed from his nose.

"You good-for-nothing who eats for free!" The burly man stood with his hands on his hips and shouted angrily, "Is this all the money you have? Is it even enough for me to have a drink? Or did you, you little brat, secretly hide the reward money?"

After saying that, she raised her foot and kicked the boy hard in the chest. The boy curled up on the ground in pain, but bit his lip tightly, not daring to make a sound.

"How could you hit someone!" Fu Chen was furious and rushed forward. Shen Jueyan and Lin Xihe hurriedly followed.

The burly man was startled by Fu Chen's sudden appearance, then sneered and glared at him, shouting, "This is my lackey! I can beat him however I want, what's it to you? Get lost, or I'll beat you up too!"

As he spoke, he raised his hand to push Fu Chen, but the boy suddenly sat up, grabbed the man's leg tightly, and shouted to Fu Chen, "Young master, run!"

The burly man spat and then kicked the boy several meters away. The rough ground instantly scraped his arm, leaving a bloody welt. The boy gasped in pain, but gritted his teeth and refused to shed a single tear.

"If you, young master, can't bear to see this, why not give him some silver to help him out?" The burly man looked at Fu Chen, whose face was flushed, grinned, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth, and picked up the broken bowl, holding it out to Fu Chen.

Lin Xi frowned and quickly stepped forward to check the boy's injuries.

Shen Jueyan stood in front of them, his eyes dark and serious, and said, "I'll buy this child. Name your price."

Upon hearing this, the burly man's eyes flashed with a shrewd light. This child was eating a lot these days, but earning less and less money. Sometimes he couldn't even earn 100 coins in several days, which wasn't enough to gamble away.

He'd been agonizing over whether to sell him to a theatrical troupe or a brothel to earn more money, and now this was like a godsend. Looking at the men before him, though their clothes were ordinary, their bearing was extraordinary. He forced a fawning smile and called out loudly, "Five taels of silver! Not a penny less!"

"Deal." Shen Jueyan nodded, took out a money pouch from his sleeve, took out five taels of silver, and handed it to the burly man.

The burly man took the silver, bit it with his teeth, and his greed intensified. He thought to himself, "If I had known this would happen, I should have asked for ten taels of silver!"

His eyes darted around, and he stepped forward, grabbing the boy and standing tall and righteously declaring, "Young master, this five taels of silver is just for him! You still need to give me three more taels. He grew up in my house, and I've provided for all his needs, from food and drink to his daily needs. You have to pay that too! Otherwise, you can forget about taking this child away!"

"You're talking nonsense!" The boy finally lost his temper and roared angrily, "Ever since you bought me, you've never given me a proper meal. You force me to perform every day, and all the money I earn goes to you for gambling and drinking! When have I ever spent even a penny of your money? You're clearly trying to extort me!"

"You little brat, you dare talk back!" The burly man, enraged, raised his hand to strike the boy's face again, cursing under his breath, "You're asking for trouble!"

But before his slap could land, it was firmly grasped by a steady and powerful hand.