Missy raised her head, her eyes fixed tightly on Bryson.
A strange feeling of unease rose inside her.
This feeling had started the moment she left the village.
From the earliest coachman to Jerome just now, she felt like she was being treated like cargo.
Just as she was about to ask Bryson directly, the little officer who had gone to the next forge came out holding an ID badge.
This forced her to swallow the question she was about to ask.
She watched Bryson quickly step forward, take the ID badge from the officer, then hand over some silver coins to him.
Seeing Bryson work so hard for her, Missy felt a growing guilt in her heart.
She thought she should not have doubted Bryson.
All along, he had been thinking about her and caring for her.
He even spent money for this stranger who suddenly appeared.
How could she look at such a person with suspicion?
She did not notice Bryson's expression as he turned his back to her.
Bryson tightly held the ID badge in his hand.
His eyes shone with joy, his lips curved into a small smile, showing his happiness.
At this moment, he was full of satisfaction.
Because this meant Missy was his from now on.
He would no longer worry, and no one else could take her away from him.
He picked up a lantern on the ground, hid his feelings, then slowly walked to Missy's side.
"Missy, what did you want to say just now?"
Bryson asked with a caring look.
Missy's mood slowly calmed down.
She realized her earlier behavior was rude.
Bryson had been quietly helping her.
Facing Bryson's help, she felt a little guilty.
How could she show him such an expression?
So she answered softly,
"Bryson, I will work hard and earn money later. I will repay you in the future."
Bryson smiled and said,
"Missy, you don't have to do that."
Then he gently held Missy's wrist, his eyes sparkling with joy.
"Let's go back to the inn first. It's already late."
He pulled Missy toward the outside.
Missy's small hand was delicate and smooth, like silk.
Holding it was very comfortable. Bryson couldn't help but stroke it a few times.
But Missy felt uneasy about this close touch.
Her face immediately flushed red because of Bryson's small actions.
She tried to pull her hand away.
She gently struggled but found Bryson's hand gripping her wrist like iron.
"Missy, it's very late now. I am holding your hand to take you back."
Bryson's voice was gentle but firm.
It sounded comforting but also a little forced.
"Be good, don't move around."
Although Missy looked like she was only twelve, her heart was actually eighteen.
She still felt something was wrong.
"Bryson, I can walk by myself."
But in the end, Missy didn't break free from Bryson's hand.
Because he told her it was late outside and dangerous.
With him holding her hand, he would feel more at ease.
This made Missy accept his decision to hold her hand.
Bryson took Missy to the inn, then went straight to the reserved room with the waiter.
After sending the waiter away, he asked Missy to sit at the table.
Then he took out the ID badge from his body and personally fastened it on her wrist.
The ID badge looked like a metal bracelet.
The bracelet had a metal plate the size of a mahjong tile hanging on it.
But it was thinner than a mahjong tile and very special.
Missy carefully looked at the metal plate in her hand.
She was curious about the metal it was made of. It was light but hard.
On the front were four big characters, written in strong strokes.
Below were two rows of very small characters, neatly arranged.
The back had five characters, but she did not recognize any of them.
She thought these might be characters from the Qi Kingdom, so it was normal not to recognize them.
But she still wanted to know what was written on it.
So she looked up, her bright eyes full of expectation at Bryson.
"Bryson, can you tell me what is written on that plate?"
Bryson was a little surprised.
He originally thought Missy would speak the official language and would recognize the characters.
He had been nervously waiting for Missy to question him.
He imagined she might get very angry after seeing the words on the plate.
But the result was unexpected. Missy did not know these characters.
He secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Bryson did not directly tell her what was written on the plate.
He just said that after they returned, he would teach her to read the characters so she could understand it herself.
Missy nodded in understanding.
Since she could not leave this place for now,
she had to learn everything here to better adapt and live.
After they finished dinner and cleaned everything up, Bryson was still there. He didn't seem like he was planning to leave.
Missy noticed this and felt a little confused. She spoke to him.
"Bryson, look at the time, it's already really late."
Bryson looked at her and smiled. His eyes looked like he was thinking about something.
"Missy, I only booked one room."
Missy looked at him carefully. She wasn't being too suspicious, but his expression reminded her of everything that happened during the day. It made her feel like she needed to be more careful.
She didn't believe that the inn had no extra rooms. So why did Bryson say he only booked one?
She took a deep breath and tried to stay calm.
Maybe Bryson was just joking?
She thought that maybe he didn't mean anything bad.
So, she took a deep breath and spoke again.
"Bryson, how about we try to book another room?"
She held on to the edge of her clothes nervously, not realizing it.
"Also, men and women shouldn't stay in the same room..."
Before she finished speaking, Bryson started to laugh.
There was a little helplessness in his eyes.
He walked over to Missy, pointed gently at her face, and his eyes showed a little smile.
He said jokingly,
"Missy, with the way you look right now, do you really think I would try anything?"
Right then, Missy remembered when she washed her face earlier.
The medicine on her skin wouldn't wash off with water.
Her face was still a dark yellow color with many black spots. She didn't look very good.
Bryson was taking advantage of the fact that Missy didn't know much about this world.
Even though she looked like that, in this country she would still be considered quite pretty.
Later, when she understood more about this place, she would realize how much Bryson had lied to her.
Before she could react, Bryson spoke again.
"Missy, go to sleep. I'll stay here tonight with you. I promise I won't do anything."
Just then, there was a sound from downstairs.
Bryson immediately turned and looked down carefully.
He noticed something was wrong and felt uneasy.
He turned to Missy and spoke quietly.
"Missy, something might be happening downstairs. I'm going to check. Stay in the room and don't come out."
Then he left the room.
Missy watched him go downstairs and quickly locked the door.
She looked around the room, trying to find something to protect herself with.
Suddenly, she saw the candle holder. She felt a bit happy.
She carefully took the candle and set it on the table.
In the candlelight, the sharp metal part looked very dangerous.
She held it tightly and felt a little safer.
Then she crawled under the bed, heart beating fast.
Everything around her was quiet, and she could only hear her own breathing and heartbeat.
Alone in the dark, her thoughts ran wild. She wondered what was happening downstairs and worried about Bryson.
She didn't know how much time had passed.
Suddenly, there was a strange sound.
It was the sound of the door latch moving against the wooden door.
Then the latch fell on the floor, and the door opened.
Missy felt someone coming inside.
Her heart beat faster and her whole body became tense.
From the small gap under the bed, she saw two people walk in.
She could only see their legs. She couldn't see their faces.
She held the candle holder tighter.
Then one voice spoke. It sounded greedy and excited.
"The girl in this room has a nice figure. Selling her in the dark house will bring at least a hundred taels. Along with the other ones we just caught, we can live a good life for years after this job."
Missy felt cold all over. She understood what was happening.
These men were kidnappers. They stole women and sold them in secret places. It was something they did often.
And now, they were after her.
The two men started searching the room, but they didn't find anything.
"Damn it. Where did they hide?"
A rough and angry voice spoke. He sounded very impatient.
"I'm sure this is the room. There was a man and a girl staying here."
The greedy voice said again. He sounded like he was trying to remember clearly.
Missy's heart jumped.
That voice sounded familiar.
She tried hard to remember.
"I'm certain. I gave them food with sleeping medicine earlier. They should be unconscious by now. There's no way they escaped."
That same voice spoke again, sounding very sure.
Suddenly, Missy remembered.
She knew that voice. It was the waiter who brought her dinner earlier.
"Keep looking. They must still be in this room."