"This prescription is for someone who had injured their martial art foundation. Looking at her, she has no such injuries and her level is too low. Who would this prescription be for?" said a cold voice.
The owner of the voice was standing and looking at the beautiful inner garden. His presence in the room overshadowed the exquisiteness of it. The waiter felt he was looking at a living painting. The prestance of his pose, the nobility of his stance made him think the man was otherwordly. Not far from the beautiful man, there was a screen that allowed him to see all that was happening in the hall where Ai was currently in. His eyes went back to study Ai's reaction while he strategized.
A Master had come into his territory and had been harmed. If this was not handled properly, it could shake the foundation of this country. In this age, a martial art master with a qi foundation was equivalent to the force of an army. For now, it had not been exposed as the other wanted to keep secrecy but who's to say if that person would be a foe or an ally? He waved his hand and a shadow guard appeared next to the waiter.
"Wei, give her the prescription without asking for money, but ask for a token as deposit. No5, tail her and monitor her closely. I want to know who is the person behind her."
"No5, mission received." The guard disappeared in the shadows awaiting for the young girl to leave so he could accomplished his mission.
"Brother Qing..."
Before the waiter could finished, the handsome man named Qing had already cut him out.
"Wei, let's just see observe for now. It's too early to act, let's not make unnecessary moves."
Indeed, the waiter was not a simple person. He was the younger brother and the 2nd heir of a previous dynasty. Dynasty that crumbled under the siege of the current emperor of their country, which was very far away from Capital city. Back then, the Xing brothers were saved by a loyal vassal which had sent them here. Luckily, they managed to fend off their assasins and had built, with the help of some loyal factions and their sect master, a notable merchant empire. Though they were powerful in this country, they still needed to stay hidden in the shadows. Now, a potential menace was arising.
Both of the Xing brothers hoped they could gain a powerful ally since they still needed to reclaim their throne but they also both understood they needed to tread carefully.
5 minutes. 10 minutes. 15 minutes. 30 minutes. Ai had been patiently waiting for already half an hour without moving a muscle. Sitting straight, looking right in front of her, she had maintained her elegant posture without fail. She could still feel the presence of multiple individuals intensely observing her, giving her even more reasons to be especially attentive to her environment. The hall was completely silent. "Such an unnatural place, no sounds transpired at all." As the minutes went by, Ai's anxiety grew but she still had stay stoic and unfazed. She still didn't know if she was in ennemy's territory, hence why all her senses were heightened.
Finally, the waiter came back with a beautifully crafted box. At first glance, it may had looked rustic but the painting on it was intricate. The waiter put the box on the table.
"Here are all the ingredients on the prescription as well as how to prepare them. You can take them for now, we will not be asking for money..."
As Ai's was about to grab the box, the waiter purposefully put his hands on hers and added
"But we WILL ask for something..." He was now sizing her up and down. Ai didn't really appreciate his look but still remained calm.
"I have nothing of value right now."
"Who said so? I see plenty of value right in front of my eyes. In this age and time, a beautiful maiden has a lot of value..."
Before he could finish, Ai grabbed the box and attacked him fiercely.
"My body and virtue had never been for sale or trade! You lecherous pervert!"
They exchanged a few blows. While fighting, Ai was wondering why no one was coming to help the waiter. Speaking of him, though she somewhat expected it, he was not an easy opponent. All her strikes were countered.
"Feisty. Should at least, let me finish my sentences before attacking." Followed another exchange of heated blows.
Ai was fully focused on paring and attacking. This man was difficult to deal with.
"Like I was saying, a beautiful has a lot of value, so her..." He waved her handkerchief and her token.
Ai knew then she had to quickly escape. She wasn't his opponent. She threw a powder bomb on the ground, fished her token back but failed to grab her handkerchief and flew through the door and ran as fast as she could while trying to confuse her pursuants with an erratic trajectory.
The waiter didn't bother giving chase. He knew his brother had assigned a shadow guard to follow her and thus didn't have to worry, besides while fighting he had managed to trap her identity token. It's too bad he didn't have the time to take a closer look at it. This lass was not bad at all. He had to exert quite a lot of energy to keep up with her.
As for Ai, after running for a while she realized no one had given pursuit so she went to rest a bit.