Chapter 5744: Extra Story - Seven Flowers, Spring Blossoms Overflow the Pavilion
"Is this guy even my friend anymore?" Mo Lian fumed, utterly enraged by what was just said. He threw a punch, and Duan Yue quickly hopped aside, feigning innocence. "I said the wrong thing, I didn't mean it!"
You clearly did, Mo Lian thought, rolling his eyes.
Outside, the frantic knocking on the private room door intensified. Red-clothed shrieked from beyond, "Qiao Qiao, Qiao Qiao, come out quickly! They're about to start fighting downstairs!"
Qiao Qiao couldn't sit still. She quickly rose and walked towards the door. The moment she opened it, she saw Ao Ye's dark face turn, a wide grin revealing his exceptionally white teeth.
"Empress, did this pretty boy bother you? It's fine, it's fine, I can just kick him out." He's joking, right? Didn't His Majesty just give him a look? These pretty boys are truly annoying, always whining and causing trouble for His Majesty and the Empress.
Adult Qiao Qiao looked at them expressionlessly. Unable to suppress her curiosity, she subtly cleared her throat and said, "Let's go down and see."
She had just dealt with Mu Dongni and Gu Daozhen, so why was another troublemaker causing a scene at Spring Full Pavilion? Did these people have a death wish? One after another, they kept ignoring Adult Qiao Qiao's warnings. With that thought, Qiao Mu's face hardened as she descended the stairs.
The main hall was in chaos. Several servants in livery burst in, looking menacing, as if intending to smash everything. Yellow, Green, Cyan, Blue, and Purple tried to block them.
Blue Shadow calmly addressed a servant: "Who are you people? What are you doing here? This is a restaurant; don't smash things! If you break anything, you'll have to pay! Everything here is quite expensive. If you can't afford it, you'll be handed over to the authorities."
One of the servants snarled, "Shut up! A place like yours clearly runs illicit businesses. How dare you steal our master's clients? Are you tired of living?"
Blue Shadow blinked, looking hurt. "Guest, how can you say that? How are we illicit? We're all respectable people!"
"Exactly, we're all honest men!" another flower-like youth whimpered, gesturing delicately.
The servant sneered. "We're here by our master's command. Get out of our way!" In short, they were there to trash the place. Their master had instructed them to cause a ruckus, confident he'd back them up.
The Seven Flowers clamored, "You can't do this; this is thuggery! Don't smash things. It's not easy running a small business like ours."
"Your place is just a fraud," the servant retorted, annoyed. "Our master said places like yours shouldn't be on Changle Street." How can such a scandalous place operate in a prime location like Changle Street, where land is so valuable?
Ever since Spring Full Pavilion opened, its alluring male staff had inexplicably made it the most popular spot on the street. It's truly bizarre, how can they mess around like this? Instead of running a proper business, they resort to crooked ways, relying on their looks to attract attention. It's outrageous! Their master had tolerated it for a month, then finally, unable to bear it, sent ruffians to cause trouble.
Cyan, Blue, and Purple sniffled, whining pitifully, "How can you be so unreasonable? You're bullies and villains!" Their delicate and timid demeanor seemed to provoke the servants even more. These immoral men are probably attracting those infatuated women with their looks! The servant thought of his own wife, who had been frequenting Spring Full Pavilion, and felt utterly cuckolded.
Qiao Mu descended the stairs, her cold eyes scanning the chaotic hall. "Who are you?" she demanded.
"Qiao Qiao~" The young men of Spring Full Pavilion swarmed around her, as if finding their backbone. Some tugged her sleeve, others stomped their feet, crying tragically. "This is bad! Someone's here to trash the place!"
Mo Lian sighed, glaring at them. He unconsciously clenched his fists. These rascals are infuriating. They always act cute and spoiled in front of his Qiao, effortlessly, as if it's their natural state. They probably all believe that with Qiao here, everything will be fine.
A burly man stepped out from among the servants, head held high, disdainfully looking at the handsome men. Look at these useless wretches, now they're getting a woman to take charge. How ridiculous! "What, you don't like it? That's right, we're here to trash the place! Don't blame others for being cruel; blame your place for shamelessly selling looks!"
"Qiao Qiao~" a young flower-like man stomped his foot, covering his face as he whimpered, "Look! Look how he insults us! How can he say such things? Who's selling looks? We're still pure, innocent little flowers!"
Duan Yue visibly shivered. He glanced over and saw Feng Chen sitting calmly, holding a wine cup, drinking as if nothing was happening. This guy had been there from the start, silently enjoying the show. Duan Yue was exasperated, knowing Feng Chen loved drama. He moved and sat beside Feng Chen, pouring himself a drink.
Feng Chen gave a half-smile. "Mo Lian looks a bit upset, doesn't he?" How could he not be? With all these delicate youths fawning over Qiao Qiao, he couldn't possibly be happy.
"Oh, right, the Seven Flowers want to come with us to Sky-Null Star," Duan Yue added.
Feng Chen raised an eyebrow. "Really? Did Mo Lian agree?"
Duan Yue shook his head. "No." He wouldn't, of course. Those Phoenix clan members following Qiao Qiao around are already irritating him enough. If he had to bring a bunch of colorful 'flowers' too, Mo Lian would probably be depressed for a year...
Feng Chen chuckled softly. "Ah, well, the more the merrier. We'll see. If they're not too noisy, it's fine to bring them." How could they not be noisy? Duan Yue thought. Look at them now; they're already out of control.
Adult Qiao Qiao stepped forward, her face stern. "Who's your master? Tell him to come talk." Does this person really have no respect for the law? Seeing someone else's business doing well, he sends ruffians to cause trouble. Does he think Adult Qiao Qiao is a pushover?
"Mm-hm, have your master come and talk to our master," the Seven Flowers chattered. "If you have any complaints, just tell our master. Why resort to these petty tricks? It's not easy for anyone to run a restaurant."
The servant, hands on his hips, looked scornful. "Do you think our master is idle? A big shot like him wouldn't come to deal with such a small matter!"
Qiao Mu waved her hand, and several black-clad hidden guards instantly appeared before her. "Subordinates present!" they shouted in unison. Everyone couldn't help but cover their faces. Qiao Qiao's hidden guards seem to be getting goofier. Before, Qiao Qiao would at least have to yell, "Where are the Crown Princess's guards?", and then they'd respond. Now, she just waves her hand, and they spring forward.
"Throw them out!" Qiao Qiao pointed at the ruffians, annoyed. These people were truly bothersome. She told them to get their master, but they refused. And those petty underlings couldn't make any decisions. They kept causing trouble in her restaurant, who knows what they were trying to do.
"Ah, Qiao Qiao, Qiao Qiao, I know! These people must be from the Colorful Tower across the street!" a young flower suddenly exclaimed. "Colorful Tower is also a restaurant, but their business isn't as good as ours. They must be incredibly jealous, that's why they sent people to smash and grab, trying to ruin our business! Qiao Qiao, we can't let such treacherous villains get away with this."
Adult Qiao Qiao nodded expressionlessly. "Then tie them up and let's go check out the Colorful Tower."
Everyone cheered, delighted that she was about to cause trouble. The young flowers even clapped excitedly, delicately saying, "Good, good." They practically had "causing trouble" written all over their faces!
Feng Chen almost spat out his wine, shaking his head in exasperation. Truly, they revel in chaos. Look at these Transcendent Realm cultivators; how idle must they be to find amusement in someone coming to cause trouble?
Seeing everyone flocking around their Qiao as they headed towards the Colorful Tower across the street, Feng Chen couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth. He turned to look at Mo Lian, whose handsome face was puffed up with anger, and said amusingly, "Don't be mad. Let's go take a look too. Why are you getting so worked up over them? They're just a bunch of wild flowers and weeds; how can they compare to your cultivated flower?"
Duan Yue nearly choked on his wine. He laughed, looking back at Mo Lian, whose handsome face was dark with anger – it was quite funny. Why does this guy always say such unpleasant things? Mo Lian secretly pondered.
Seeing that even the customers in the main hall had followed them to the Colorful Tower to watch the excitement, the three had no choice but to follow.
Imperial Revelations
Inside the Colorful Tower, there were only a handful of customers. It was dinnertime, yet business was so slow, suggesting that very few people frequented their restaurant on normal days. No wonder the owner harbored such intense resentment towards Spring Full Pavilion. After all, Spring Full Pavilion was directly across from them, clearly visible. Spring Full Pavilion was bustling with customers daily, while Colorful Tower watched enviously, barely getting any business. This stark contrast was bound to breed resentment.
As Qiao Mu and her group entered Colorful Tower, their large numbers created an undeniable stir, immediately alerting the owner. The owner, a pale, plump man with rolls of fat on his belly, jiggled as he ran down the stairs.
With a grimace, he pointed at Qiao Mu and the others, angrily demanding, "What are you doing? Are you trying to cause trouble? Don't you know whose territory this is? Do you know who's covering this place? Our Colorful Tower's backing is from the imperial family!"
Qiao Mu frowned, turning to look at Mo Lian who had followed her in. Her large eyes were filled with accusation, tinged with a hint of disdain. The moment Mo Lian met his wife's gaze, he knew what she was thinking. His wife must be cursing him in her heart: "It's those useless people from your family again, acting like bullies and throwing their weight around."
Mo Lian hastily squeezed through the group of young flowers, raised his hand to grasp his wife's hand, and said with immense grievance, "I don't know who it is." If he found out who had the audacity to cause trouble for his wife, he certainly wouldn't let them off.
"Which imperial relative? Quite a big name, aren't they? Tell me so I can know," Adult Qiao Qiao asked coldly. She wanted to see which imperial relative dared to be so arrogant, immediately resorting to smashing and grabbing when they saw another business doing well. If everyone on Changle Street was like this, would there even be any business left? Going after every prosperous business, causing trouble for them – wouldn't all the owners be worked to death?
The pale, plump owner's face was arrogant. "You wouldn't want to know. My backing is so great, you can't even imagine!" Saying this, he pointed upwards mysteriously, his chin held high.
Just then, a man who looked like a manager descended. Upon seeing Qiao Mu and Mo Lian, his face instantly turned pale. He trembled, about to turn and slip away, when two hidden guards rushed forward and grabbed him by the collar.
"Ah ah ah ah!" The man let out a wail. The hidden guards dragged him back and threw him directly in front of Qiao Mu.
The manager was so terrified he trembled all over, repeatedly kowtowing and begging for mercy. "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, have mercy, Empress, have mercy. I, I was just passing by."
The pale, plump owner, dumbfounded, couldn't help but chuckle. "What are you doing, Manager Cao? You're really..." He suddenly remembered that Manager Cao had just addressed the two people in front of him as...? His Majesty? The Empress?
The pale, plump owner's face instantly changed. No way? His Majesty, the Empress? Could it be who I'm thinking of?
Qiao Mu, however, looked at Manager Cao with curiosity. "Who are you? Do you know me?" The capital city was vast; it was normal for people not to recognize her. She usually either went out for training or hid in the palace, cultivating talismans and refining medicine. It was perfectly normal for not many common folk to recognize her.