An elegant carriage was approaching through the desert.
Bao Zhang slightly raised the hat with which he had been covering his eyes from the blizzards and looked at the large white walls that jutted out in the middle of the desert and that seemed to surround the Zhou Kingdom within a large circle to obstruct the sandstorms that continuously hit against the kingdom.
And in front was a large and unique door through which he could enter inside.
Bao Zhang whipped the horse so that it continued to advance inside the great gate. but halfway his carriage was interrupted by several guards who were stationed on the other side of the exit, asking him to pay the entrance fee.
Bao Zhang did not show any problem since the guards treated him with enough respect since he belonged to the sect.
The payment consisted of 65 Copper coins, which could be expensive for ordinary people, but with the money that his mother had given him, he could easily pay this amount.
The money that is used throughout the ruined region consisted of;
Copper Coin / Silver Coins / Gold Coin. Dividing by the value of 100 Copper = 1 Silver Coin, and in the same way with Silver and Gold Coins.
After paying the 65 Copper coins, the carriage managed to advance easily and they officially entered the Zhou Kingdom.
…
After crossing through the entrance doors the kingdom, Bao Zhang observed the surroundings with some curiosity, noting that the surroundings consisted of a slightly wide dirt road, where the carriage advanced and after 10 minutes the carriage arrived at a large shopping area in the which was a lot of craft shops, clothes, and carriages with many villagers wandering and buying.
"Mother, do you know where we can park?" Bao Zhang asked with some bewilderment at not being able to find a place to stop the carriage.
Qiuyue who was inside quietly taking her tea, under the cup refinedly on the tray and opened the window observing the surroundings.
She felt a certain melancholy feeling when she saw the landscape where she lived formerly. the Zhou Kingdom from which she had left long ago.
"Mother?" Bao Zhang asked somewhat bewildered to see how Qiuyue remained still and without speaking.
"We are in the north of the Zhou Kingdom, in the regional zones, let's move forward for about 20 more minutes and we will arrive at the imperial capital. There we can easily park"
"Ok" nodding Bao Zhang whipped the horse so that the speed accelerated. And did not take long for the houses to become more common and robust, with bigger sizes and well decorated and clean stores, with large posters In detail designed by carpentry artists.
Then, Bao Zhang managed to find a parking lot with several pens for the horses. Approaching, Bao Zhang parked the carriage and finally let out a sigh as he stretched his back after the fatigue that had caused him to be sitting during all this time of the trip
*open*
Qiuyue opened the door and stepped elegantly with her hair moving in the wind, causing several people crossing the street to raise small moans of amazement at such a beautiful woman.
Bao Zhang, who saw the faces of amazement of the men, laughed lightly; 'Hehehe that's my mother ... that's my wife' Bao Zhang presumed inside his mind.
Following Qiuyue, Honoka came down with a slight leap and shook her clothes a little.
"Where are we going now?" Honoka asked naturally.
Qiuyue observe the surroundings a little;
"We are still an hour away from the Zhang and Wu Family, so we should eat something first," said his mother while pointing to a large three-story restaurant it not too far.
…
[Mirmillo Flower Restaurant]
"You are welcome! Welcome! "A beautiful waitress received them as soon as Bao Zhang and the two girls entered.
The waitress seemed to know them as members of the Sect for their tunics, as she treats them with extreme respect as she leads them to the third floor of the restaurant, which was only available to the nobles of the kingdom.
After ordering a light meal, Bao Zhang and the two girls finally enjoying a delicious meal freshly baked.
"Now I go back" Honoka got up, and quietly went to the ladies' restrooms.
Seeing that Honoka had left temporarily, Bao Zhang approached his mother and asked her;
"Mother, of chance, do you know the Patriarch of the Sect?"
"Mmh? The patriarch? I do not know him very much, but who I know is the matriarch"
Bao Zhang was surprised to learn that his mother, a very important Elder of the Sect, did not know much about the patriarch.
"Mother, do you know what the matriarch is like?"
Qiuyue brought her finger a little to her lips, licking the small trace of sauce on her fingers and continued;
"Although I do not know much about the patriarch, if I know the matriarch since she is the one who invited me to the sect to become an elder and apart from that she is the one who usually takes care of giving the new tasks for the elders and the announcements"
Bao Zhang was surprised, and the curiosity he felt for this patriarch increased slightly.
"Although I have not seen the patriarch many times, I have heard many rumors about him"
"Rumors?"
"Yes, I heard the rumor that the patriarch turns out to be a man obsessed with books"
Upon hearing that, Bao Zhang immediately got the image of Honoka with the book she never let go during the entire trip.
'No doubt it's his daughter' Bao Zhang thought as he saw the similarity between the Patriarch and Honoka.
"Although also, I heard that the patriarch is looking for something"
"Looking for something?" Bao Zhang asked curiously, but to his disappointment, his mother shook her head implying that she did not know the answer either.
"But Bao, why are you asking me about the patriarch so suddenly?"
Bao smiles as he turns his face towards Honoka who is approaching in the distance. Noticing the look of Bao Zhang, Qiuyue also turned her eyes and observed Honoka.
"I ask you mother, because it turns out that Honoka is the patriarch's daughter"
Qiuyue opened her eyes with amazement.