Chapter 183: Lu Chao Chao Changes Her Name
“Ah!”
Yu Shu let out a piercing scream, rousing the entire Lu household.
Her body trembled with fear, her face as pale as paper, as she staggered toward the main courtyard, crying all the while.
“Madam! Madam…!”
“The young lady is missing!” The moment Yu Shu uttered those words, the hairpin in Madam Xu’s hand slipped and fell to the floor.
“What did you say?!” Madam Xu’s legs nearly gave way beneath her.
Just last night, Lu Chao Chao had come to her room to frighten her—how could she be gone now?
Yu Shu was on the verge of breaking down, sobbing as she explained, “I was guarding the door, but when I woke up this morning, the room was empty.”
“I’ve already sent people to search the entire manor, but there’s no trace of the young miss.”
She hesitated, uncertainty creeping into her voice. “Last night, Yu Qin and I took turns standing watch. It was supposed to be my shift at the door, but somehow…”
“I fell into a deep sleep without even realizing it, even though I wasn’t the least bit tired. And when I woke up…”
“There were no traces of any drugs, either!”
Madam Xu’s expression darkened. To make Yu Shu collapse without a sound—this was no ordinary thief.
It could only be her little potato.
“Let’s go see for ourselves.” Madam Xu led a large group toward the Chaoyang Courtyard.
The three Lu brothers, having heard their little sister was missing, rushed over at once.
Lu Yan Shu rubbed his forehead, looking utterly defeated.
“There’s no sign of a struggle in the room, nor any indication of an intruder. Her clothes and shoes are gone, meaning she dressed herself before leaving.” If it were a kidnapping, she wouldn’t have had time to get dressed properly.
“Even the milk bottle is missing.”
“And her little blanket.”
“Madam, Windchaser is gone too.”
“Oh, and a bag of Windchaser’s dried meat has disappeared as well.”
A servant boy came to report.
The group exchanged strange looks. Lu Yuan Xiao was in shock. “She… she ran away from home?! Little Potato actually ran away from home?!”
“Wait, she left a note.” Lu Yan Shu noticed a piece of paper on the table and picked it up.
Well… if one could call it a note.
It bore all the hallmarks of an illiterate child.
There were two stick figures and a dog.
“One person, one dog, wandering the world?” At that moment, Lu Yuan Xiao’s thoughts were in perfect sync with Lu Chao Chao’s.
Madam Xu sighed in frustration. “This is my fault, all my fault.”
“Last night, I told her she had to start school. She seemed upset, but I never thought she’d actually run away!” Madam Xu was growing increasingly anxious.
“Little Potato is quite rebellious.”
“She’s got guts, I’ll give her that.” Lu Yuan Xiao chuckled.
Lu Yan Shu reassured her, “Mother, don’t worry. Chao Chao is a princess—she has secret guards watching over her.”
His tone grew serious. “In her past life, she must have held a position of extreme power, one where no one could control or restrict her. Mother, haven’t you noticed? Chao Chao instinctively places herself above others.”
“When she was granted the title of Princess Sunshine, she wasn’t surprised or delighted. If anything, she reacted as though it were expected—as if she had always stood at the peak, looking down upon the world.”
“And once she sets her mind on something, she will go to any lengths to achieve it. That means no one ever defied her will.”
Madam Xu pursed her lips and nodded reluctantly.
“Going to school means restrictions. It means learning human rules.”
“For someone who has wielded power over life and death without restraint, who has always been free-spirited, it’s only natural that she resists.”
“But rest assured, this is only a momentary rebellion.”
“Besides, she has countless secret guards watching her. She won’t be in danger.”
“If you drag her back now, it’ll only make things worse.”
“She’s only two years old. She’s bound to suffer hardships. Let her wander for a few days—see how she fares out there.” Lu Yan Shu chuckled. “Little Potato really is fearless.”
“I bet three days before she comes crying home,” Lu Zheng Yue grinned.
“I bet two. In this freezing weather, she won’t last three days,” Lu Yuan Xiao said excitedly.
None of them could have anticipated—
The one who wouldn’t be able to endure it—
Would not be Lu Chao Chao.
And the one who would end up crying at their doorstep—
Would not be Lu Chao Chao.
At that moment, Lu Chao Chao was curled up, warm and cozy, her little face flushed from sleep.
“Windchaser, you’re so warm.” Lu Chao Chao folded her small blanket and stuffed it into her bundle.
A few beggars eyed her suspiciously. How had she managed to fit such a big blanket into such a tiny bundle?
“Hey, little one, go home! If you’ve got a home and don’t return, you’ll freeze to death out here!” A lame beggar growled at her, his fierce glare meant to scare her off.
Another old beggar glanced at her and scoffed, “If you wander around for two days, I bet that dog of yours will be snatched and turned into hotpot.”
Lu Chao Chao was not afraid in the slightest. Though these three beggars spoke with harsh voices, she could sense no real malice from them.
“I no go home!”
“I also wanna beg for food!” Lu Chao Chao held a chipped, worn-out bowl in her small hands.
Outside, snow had begun to fall again.
With Windchaser at her side, Lu Chao Chao led the way, while the three beggars followed behind, their faces full of concern.
“That place got rich people…” Lu Chao Chao knew well where the officials gathered and where the wealth concentrated, so she immediately headed in that direction.
“No, no, we can’t go that way,” the crippled beggar’s face darkened slightly.
“That’s Scarface’s turf.”
“Begging has its territories too.” The old beggar had nearly had his bones broken just a while ago.
Scarface was the head of the beggars, occupying the most prosperous and affluent streets.
Last time, feeling indignant, they had secretly gone there to beg for half a day, only for Scarface to break their legs as punishment.
The crippled beggar subconsciously touched his injured leg, a flash of hatred in his eyes.
After that, they had been chased to the northern civilian district of the city.
“They have too many people. Let’s go somewhere else to beg.”
Lu Chao Chao lifted her chin. “Why?”
“The world is vast—why can’t I beg anywhere?”
She puffed up her cheeks in frustration. At home, she had to go to school. Now, even begging had territorial restrictions? How ridiculous!
Without another glance back, she darted into the streets.
She even scooped up a handful of ash and smeared it all over her little face, turning it completely black.
“Uncle… please, be kind?”
“Uncle, can I have a bun?” The little girl’s voice was soft and sweet, and with her short stature, she looked just like a tiny potato.
The owner of the bun shop gave her two steamed buns.
She ate one and gave the other to Windchaser.
“Windchaser, as long as I’m here, you’ll never go hungry!”
[If it’s plain, we’ll share it together.]
[Meat… we’ll see if we can get some later.]
Lu Chao Chao held the warm bun, savoring each bite.
Perhaps because she had begged for it herself, it tasted particularly sweet.
“Hey, hey, hey! Little beggar, do you even know whose territory this is? How dare you beg here!” Suddenly, a fierce voice rang out from behind.
Lu Chao Chao turned her head and saw a group of beggars standing behind her.
At the front was Scarface, his face full of menace, eyes sharp, a wooden club in his hand. The other beggars clearly took him as their leader.
The three beggars behind Lu Chao Chao trembled violently.
“Brother Scarface, please be merciful and let her go! This child is just having a quarrel with her family, she’s not here to take your livelihood…” The old beggar, though thin and frail, stood firmly in front of Lu Chao Chao.
Scarface sneered and shifted his gaze to Lu Chao Chao, freezing for a moment.
He eyed her suspiciously.
She looked familiar.
Pushing the old beggar aside, Scarface squatted in front of Lu Chao Chao, scrutinizing her carefully.
She definitely looked familiar.
The tense standoff was broken when Scarface hesitantly asked, “Little Noble… is that you?”
“During the last provincial exam results announcement, weren’t you the one who told me to take my men to the Marquis Zhongyong’s Manor to ask for celebratory money?”
“Later, you even had me send a message to the marquis…” He was the beggar responsible for stirring up that incident.
“You even rewarded me with silver.”
“What are you doing out here begging?”
An old acquaintance! This was Lu Chao Chao’s old acquaintance!
Meanwhile, back at the Lu household—
Madam Xu asked, “After wandering for a whole day, has Little Potato realized her mistake yet?”
Deng Zhi, having received news from the secret guards, wore an odd expression. “Little Potato changed her name.”
“She says… her name is Fierce Bun.”
Bwahaha