I really don't want to date a girl addicted to the internet!

Suddenly, a sound came from the little body's belly.

She stared at the orange, swallowed hard, her eyes flickered for a long time, then gritted her teeth, found a shriveled one at the bottom, peeled it open, and put the segments into her mouth one by one.

After eating the fruit, she held the orange peel to her nose and sniffed it before throwing it on the roadside.

Then, he put on the cloak, stood up, lifted the basket with all his might, and continued walking forward, swaying unsteadily.

At that moment, a pair of long, straight legs encased in white over-the-knee stockings blocked her path.

She looked up and saw a girl with champagne-gold twin ponytails looking down at her with great interest.

"Hello?" Ye Shuang gave her signature warm smile, observing the pointed ears hidden under her cloak.

"Y-you, hello..." She subconsciously took two steps back, then suddenly remembered something and quickly took an orange from the basket and handed it to the other person, "Buying oranges? Extra sweet oranges!"

"How old are you? Selling oranges all by yourself?" Ye Shuang squatted down so that she was at eye level with her.

"How big? I don't know either." The blonde half-elf stared at the other person blankly for a moment, then shook his head vigorously. "Do you want to buy oranges? They're really sweet, I'm not lying to you!"

"Okay, how much are your oranges?" Ye Shuang asked curiously.

"One copper coin each! How many do you want?" Hope gleamed in the blond half-elf's eyes.

"Sell them individually? How much would all of these cost? Is one gold coin enough for me?" Ye Shuang took out the money Nagasaki Asuna had given her, and after a moment's thought, realized that she had completely forgotten the currency conversion rules of this world.

"I only... only one silver coin for all of these! You'll buy them all?" The blonde half-elf's eyes widened in disbelief.

"Okay, I've bought everything." Ye Shuang looked at her and couldn't help but smile, placing the gleaming gold coins into the other's small hand. "Here's your change, how much do you want?"

"I need to find you... I need nine silver coins, but I only have one?" The golden-haired half-elf hurriedly rummaged through his pocket and pulled out his last silver coin, then paused in surprise.

"How about this, you come with me to find my friends, they have some change for you, okay?" Ye Shuang thought for a moment and stood up.

"Where are your friends?" The blonde half-elf tilted his head back.

"We'll be at the shop over there soon, shall we go?" Ye Shuang pointed in a direction and smiled at her.

“Oh, okay.” The blonde half-elf quickly picked up his basket.

The two walked forward.

"By the way, my name is Ye Shuang. What's your name?" the girl with pigtails asked curiously.

“My name is…Shadow.” The blonde half-elf was somewhat dazed.

"Shadow? What a strange name." Ye Shuang pondered for a moment. "How about I call you Little Shadow?"

“Little Dark…” The golden-haired half-elf paused for a moment, then suddenly covered his eyes with his sleeve.

"What's wrong with you?" Ye Shuang asked, puzzled.

"No, it's nothing. Go find your friend quickly." The blonde half-elf shook his head.

So the two figures, one tall and one short, walked toward the tailor shop. To accommodate Shadow's pace, Ye Shuang also slowed down.

As the two were nearing their destination, two other figures, one large and one small, appeared in front of them.

The calm-looking blond youth, holding hands with the delicate silver-haired half-elf duo, suddenly stopped in his tracks as he passed them.

"Stop!" the blond youth shouted, casting a suspicious glance at the small figure draped in a cloak.

Ye Shuang stopped, looked around, and asked in confusion, "Are you calling me?"

Beside her, Shadow first looked up blankly, but when she met Edward's gaze, her expression changed drastically, and her small body stiffened. "You, you...?!"

The next second, the cloaked, blond half-elf clutched the basket of oranges and ran away, his extremely panicked expression as if he had seen a ghost.

“Jasmine!” Edward’s eyes narrowed, and he crouched down to let his familiar climb onto his back.

The silver-haired half-elf chanted softly, and bright, mysterious runes appeared in the air, enveloping the two of them in a pale blue light.

Edward immediately chased after the small figure ahead.

"Wait! Why are you chasing her? Are you city management officers?" Ye Shuang stood there, puzzled.

“You… Miss, I don’t know who you are. If you don’t know her, don’t interfere. She is a highly dangerous criminal wanted by the Empire.” Edward stared at Ye Shuang for a moment, then glanced at Shadow running further and further away. He decided to ignore this half-elf whose allegiance was unclear for now, quickly put his hand on his chest in a salute, and turned to continue chasing Shadow.

Ye Shuang watched this scene, unsure of what to do due to the other party's polite attitude.

So, on the streets of the upper town, the blonde half-elf stumbled and ran into an alleyway, tripped over a pile of clutter, and fell to the ground with a thud, scattering the basket of oranges everywhere.

668. Nagasaki Asuna was struck by lightning.

The lightness spell didn't stop the blonde half-elf's chin from hitting the ground hard. She cried out in pain, tears welling up in her eyes. Her small body struggled to get up from the ground, and she found that her palms were also scraped and burning.

"...My oranges?!" Her eyes widened as she hurriedly tried to pick up the scattered fruit, but then realized that enemies were chasing her from behind. She quickly picked up a few and hugged them to her chest, looking back as she ran forward. Her expression was terrified, and her small body was overwhelmed by the strenuous exercise, her breathing rapid as if she were about to suffocate.

Just then, the tightly closed door next to her suddenly opened a crack, and a strong hand reached out, grabbed her by the back of her collar, and pulled her back.

With a bang, the door slammed shut, leaving only a few oranges on the ground, which rolled a distance deeper into the alley before slowly coming to a stop.

When Edward followed him into the alley, all that awaited him were oranges scattered on the ground and a gentle breeze blowing from the depths.

The blond youth stopped, observed the situation warily, and picked up a plump orange from the ground, gripping it tightly.

"Aren't you going to chase after him?" Jasmine whispered, resting her head on his shoulder with her eyes slightly closed.

"Forget it, it's easy to suffer losses if we rashly pursue it without knowing the terrain. It's enough to confirm that the ship is still in Riften." Edward shook his head and let out a soft sigh.

“You hesitated just now,” the silver-haired half-elf said again.

The young man paused for a second, then said, "What's the difference between attacking a lone half-elf and being a despicable guy like Cheng Fei?"

“Edward…” Jasmine closed her eyes and rested her small chin on his shoulder.

……

Ye Shuang bit her lip and stood there, taking a few seconds to think about whether to save the stranger, An Ying, or to protect herself. After some hesitation, the girl chose the latter. After all, acting recklessly could cause trouble for her friend, and it was uncertain who was right and who was wrong. Perhaps the seemingly lovable An Ying was the bad guy, and the blond youth was a city management officer or a policeman (although she didn't know if such a profession existed in this world).

Having made her decision, the twin-tailed girl looked around when no one was paying attention to what was happening, then used Star Platinum to leave the scene. Just to be on the safe side, she circled around the street before returning to the tailor shop.

Afterwards, Ye Shuang told the few people who knew nothing about her experience.

"Shuangshuang, you mean you met a little girl with red eyes, blonde hair, pointed ears, a slightly blank expression, and who said her name was Shadow, selling oranges on the street?!" Nagasaki Asuna was struck dumb, grabbing her hair with both hands.

"Hmm, you know her?" The girl with pigtails tilted her head.

"It sounds like Xiao An, doesn't it?" Zhou Han thought to herself.

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go find Xiao An!" Milian shouted, raising her fist.

"You also call her Xiao An?" Ye Shuang looked surprised.

"Well, Xiao An was originally a familiar that Cheng Fei bought. Because Cheng Fei promised to set her free when we landed, she got off the ship, and we've been looking for her ever since," Nagasaki Asuna quickly explained.

"Familiar..." The twin-tailed girl pondered, "I think I understand. Since she wanted to leave on her own, why are you still looking for her?"

"Because An has a problem with her head, she's like a child who doesn't know what she's doing, and her half-elf body is very fragile, she's completely unable to live alone." Nagasaki Asuna said with a worried expression.

“But she seems to be doing alright…” Ye Shuang recalled the blonde half-elf’s disheveled appearance, unable to sell even half an orange. “Well, she must be having a really tough time out there all alone.”

"So where is she? Let's go find her now!" Nagasaki Asuna said with a determined expression.

Ye Shuang hesitated, then continued, "But she was..."

The girl with twin ponytails then told the others what happened next.

"Shuangshuang, you mean a blond nobleman appeared with a silver-haired half-elf, recognized Xiao'an, and chased after her?!" Nagasaki Asuna was struck dumb again, grabbing her hair.

"Doesn't this sound like Edward? He's chased us all the way to Riften?" Zhou Han blinked her round eyes.

"So those two are enemies?" Ye Shuang was completely confused.

"Oh no, Xiao An must be in danger! We have to get there right now!" Nagasaki Asuna grabbed her and ran.

When the group arrived at the scene, they found oranges scattered all over the ground.

Nagasaki Asuna's pupils contracted and she covered her mouth.

……

"Teacher Shen, do you think we might not be able to buy fuel until the end of the war, and we'll just have to keep waiting here?" The boy shrugged.

"Then you should try to find a way, whether it's stealing or robbing, to get a few buckets of crystal powder back." The aloof girl with long silver hair narrowed her eyes and walked quickly forward.

"Here we go again? She usually acts all proper, but when things get tough, she immediately reveals her ruthless nature, willing to do anything to achieve her goals. The Celestial Queen is as cute on the outside as she is on the inside." Cheng Fei looked at that serious little face with great interest.

"Shut up! First of all, this is a last resort. Secondly, you do it, and if you do something immoral, it has nothing to do with me!" Shen Xi gritted her teeth and kicked him.

"I understand. Is this the fate destined for a governor? To bear the infamy of being misunderstood by billions of dimensions for Her Majesty the Empress. But since it is Her Majesty the Empress's order, I have no choice but to obey." Cheng Fei sighed, like a pawn who was abandoned to serve the emperor.

"Stop talking nonsense. I only asked you to get a few buckets of crystal powder, and that was a hypothetical. Let's wait a few days." Shen Xi kicked him again.

Leia and Vino followed behind the two, looked at each other, and suddenly felt a sense of kinship.

The two of them hadn't stopped talking since they left the dock, as if they always had endless topics to discuss. Every now and then they would punch each other (Shen Xi unilaterally) and kick each other a couple of times (again unilaterally). In addition, their pace was sometimes fast and sometimes slow, so outsiders couldn't get a word in edgewise.

Today was the day we were supposed to pick up the goods from the mine, but the mine owner said there were still no goods and we would have to wait a few more days, so the four of us returned empty-handed.

"Teacher Shen, if there's nothing else, I'll log off when I get back. I'm quite tired today. By the way, thank you for your selfie, it's really beautiful. I wouldn't mind taking a few more..." Cheng Fei stretched.

"Go to the Business Corner again and get the final payment." Shen Xi interrupted him without any politeness.

"Okay, then how about taking a selfie...?"

"Stop dreaming, there won't be any more filming." The girl interrupted again, looking straight ahead.

"Why?" The boy was stunned.

"Why not just have that vixen take the photos for you? She's got the looks and the photography skills are even better now." The girl sneered.

"She told you? Okay, Teacher Shen, you really know how to eat... uh, eat tiramisu." The boy choked halfway through his sentence, and after a lot of effort, he changed his words and lowered his head sincerely, "In my heart, you and she are both unique and irreplaceable loves, so please stop overthinking it."

"Cheng Feiyu is always all talk and no action." The girl scoffed, making no attempt to hide her disdain.

669. Cheng Fei invites Shen Xi to watch fireworks.

The four (two of them) walked and talked as they arrived at the Merchants' Corner Chamber of Commerce's headquarters.

When Cheng Fei explained his purpose to the receptionist, the person in charge whom he had met before quickly appeared in front of the four of them and said in a low voice, "Lord Haisen has been waiting for a long time. Please follow me."

Afterwards, instead of taking Cheng Fei directly to the office as before, he led the four of them out of the Chamber of Commerce, around the area, and back through an inconspicuous side door. Along the way, he looked around anxiously, seemingly worried about something.

Cheng Fei remained silent on this matter for the time being.

Soon, the person in charge pushed open a door to a room.

The young nobleman from the Empire named Hysen stood up, put his hand on his chest, and smiled as he looked at the group. "Long time no see. It seems you all had a pleasant journey."

Beside him, a red-haired half-elf, clutching a teddy bear, sat expressionlessly with his chin held high on the sofa.

"Long time no see." Cheng Fei nodded casually and led Leia forward. "As agreed, the person has been brought out. Where are my three thousand gold coins?"

“That’s quite straightforward.” Haisen scratched his head, pulled out a box, opened it, and showed off the small mountain of gold inside. “Three thousand gold coins, not a single one missing.”

"It's been a pleasure doing business with you." Cheng Fei quickly inspected the box, smacked his lips in satisfaction, and decisively picked it up like a worker rushing to leave work. "Well, if there's nothing else, we'll be going now."

"No problem, but by the way, what are your plans for the future?" Hysen asked casually.

Cheng Fei thought for a moment and felt there was nothing to hide. "If nothing unexpected happens, let's go and take a look at the roots of the World Tree."

"Are you traveling together?" Hysen glanced at Leia.

Cheng Fei nodded.

"I have a question." The elven saintess stared at Hysen, her heroic face filled with deep doubt. "Why did you help me?"

“Your Highness, if you really want to know the answer, then go and meet the Allied Marshal in the future.” Haisen bowed slightly to her, his smile enigmatic.

"Allied Marshal... I understand." Leia pondered for a moment, then nodded silently.

"Oh, and I'd like to offer you a suggestion as well." Haisen then looked at Cheng Fei, "If you're planning to leave Riften, you'd better do it as soon as possible. It won't be this peaceful here after the Festival of Light."

"Okay." Cheng Fei met his gaze for a second, then nodded. "But what is the Flowing Light Festival?"

"You can easily find out about local traditional festivals by asking around," Haisen said with a smile and a shrug.