“Alright, we are here.” Madam Cheng spoke out loud. Immediately, the two children from the earlier ran out of the door. This time, there was a collar on their necks. “Madam Cheng, welcome home!” both shouted in greetings while making a bow.

“Yes, yes. I'm home. Zhi Lang, you can go back to your post now. Ke Xing, come over here and help me serve the guest.”

“Yes!” the two shouted in unison. As ordered, the boy retreated back into the house while the little girl went to Madam Cheng’s side. It was obvious from her facial expression that she was extremely tense.

“wait a minute, I thought we were going to an eatery. What are we doing at your home?” Li En asked with suspicion.

“Well, so long as you pay for the meal, doesn’t it count as an eatery?” Madam Cheng responded with a smile on her face. “You don't have to worry too much about the pricing. I will give you a discount.”

“… so can you state what's the price for this meal?” Li En asked with caution.

“Why don’t you see it once you’ve already eaten?” Madam Cheng said, half-jokingly.

“Young Master, let's head back. There seems to be something –.” Before she could even finish, Shi Yan already gave a nod of agreement, *Un*

Seeing how her guest were going to leave, Madam Cheng laughed. “Ahahhaah! I didn't think that you would leave so quickly. Don’t worry, a meal here will only cost 40 copper coins. It’s definitely more expensive than that pig’s shop we were at but what shop isn't? Of course, you can always choose another mode of payment.” The middle-aged woman look towards the young boy hiding behind Li En.

“What else would you like?” Li En asked with her hand moved closer to Shi Yan.

“Why don’t we enter the dining area first before continuing. Such conversations should be best held under some warm tea.”

Li En expressed graver alarm, “No. I believe that out here is perfectly fine.”

“… I guess an outdoor lunch isn't that bad of an idea as well.” Madam Cheng clapped her hands and Ke Xing shuddered. The little girl tacitly understood her task without the need of further word service. Like Zhi Lang, she ran in without wasting a second and before long, a group of children came out in succession; each one carrying a piece of furniture. Within a few minutes, the posh table had been laid right in front of their eyes.

“Well, what are you waiting for? Take a seat.” Madam Cheng faced the chair, pulled by Ke Xing and sat down. “Why, do you all also need help from my little ones? If you do, just say so.” With a *click* from her fingers, Ke Xing stood next to another chair, ready to pull but was stopped by Li En. “No, need. We were just taken aback from that display earlier.” The old woman quickly glared at the Pot Head, forcing him to nod in agreement. “Y-yes madam, I was too shocked for words.”

As though she accepted such reasoning, Madam Cheng gave out two claps and Ke Xing went inside the cottage again. “Alright. Let's get down to business. Do you have any plans to hand over that child to me?”

“Li En…” Shi Yan cried out in worry and the old woman lifted the boy up onto her arms. She sat down on the seat, opposite of Madam Cheng and took a deep breath. “Of course not. He is my Young Master, how can I hand him over to you so easily?”

With eyes filled with contempt, Li En’s glare became menacing. It was just a glare but it was sufficient enough to cause Pot Head to unconsciously take a few steps back. However, such a gaze seem to not affect Madam Cheng as the fearsome grin on her face widened. “I can provide the necessary benefits for him. Education, shelter, clothing, food and much more.”

“Just like those children, you have inside your house right now? Those slaves?!”

“*Kakaka*, Miss Li, those aren't slaves. They are children that are doing their task. I do give them the appropriate rewards for each task that they undertake. Either way, it smells as though the food is here. Why don’t we eat first before continuing?” Ke Xing came out the house once again with a trolley overshadowing her small figure. She pushed the oversized food tray down the ramp and to Madame Cheng’s side; delicately placing plates and utensils on the table. Once she was done, she retreated back into the shadows, behind Madam Cheng; awaiting her next orders.

Picking up her fork, Madam Cheng began to take her meal. As free as the birds, she seemed to be without any concerns. She would occasionally make a satisfied expression but other than that, she kept silent. It was only till the meal left her half-filled that she finally placed down her tools to speak. “I did not put any poison inside. Don’t worry, I do business in a proper manner. There is no need for threats and lies. I will clearly state my terms and we shall negotiate from there.”

*Pa!* Li En slammed her fist onto the table in rage and screamed. “There is no need for -.”

Madam Cheng abruptly pulled her hand out to make a stop sign while speaking. “For any negotiations right? *Kakaka!*” her smile widened to turn even more sinister. It was a display of dominance that was so overt, that both Pot Head and Ke Xing shuddered. “Like I said before, eat first before we speak. I'm sure that little one could feel his stomach begging for food by now.”

*Gggrrrrmmm* Shi Yan’s stomach let out a loud grumble at the perfect time. The little boy looked at Li En’s face with slight embarrassment while the old woman gave out a sad sigh. “Sorry Li En…” Shi Yan whispered.

Initially, the boy felt no hunger at all. Unfortunately, the fresh, fragrant aroma from the table in front of him left his mouth watering with saliva.

“Its alright Young Master…” Li En knew that it was not the little boy’s fault but hers. After all, she was his caretaker but yet, she did not manage to ready his meal in time. However, even with taunting food in front of her little angel, she could not let down her guard. She signaled to the pathetic frozen old man, trying to pretend he was nonexistent, to come over.

Pot Head, without being able to resist concede to her orders. When he tried to walk, his movements were slow and dull. This could mainly be attributed to his partially disabled leg, which caused him to become limp but the fight between two tigress left him to become a shadow of his former self. He no longer had the haughty attitude he once had. After seeing the two women face off against each other, he now understood that he was at the bottom of the barrel.

[I thought that I could actually manage to manipulate this witch but it seems that I was truly blind...]

Pot Head had the goal of tricking Shi Yan to be his obedient disciple. The boy had shown much interest in pottery and leveraging on that, Pot Head wished to slowly wrap the curious devil into his palm. Unfortunately, he had never imagined that his target would be so cunning. That realisation sadly only struck him when his mouth was forcefully invaded by a spoon.

*Gulp,* he took the food in and anticipated the worst. Beads of sweat fell from his cheek but there was no way he could possibly regurgitate here; especially with those pair of insidious eyes staring at him. One second passed, one minute passed for the nervous wreck to finally breathed a sigh of relief.

“… It seems that my suspicions of you have gotten the best of me, Madame Cheng. I apologise for my rudeness.” Li En’s gaze shifted to the woman on the opposite side of the table.

“*Kakaka!* No need to apologise. I was also enjoying the play. Ah, ah. To think that it had ended with such an anticlimactic scene. Well, we still need to discuss the topic I mentioned earlier so could you quickly finish up?” Madame Cheng’s facial expression relaxed as she took another bite.

“…yes. Young Master, ahh.”

“ahhhh. *ommm, ommm*”

The table turned silent as the two sides began to focus on having their meals. Typically, Shi Yan would eat on his own but due to the special circumstances today, the little boy did not hassle with Li En and allowed her to feed him. Only when Shi Yan had his fill, did Li En begin to eat. She prompts a reminder to the pathetic old man at the side and nonchalantly continued to eat the half finished plate in front of her.

“It's delicious right? I bet that you’ve hadn’t eaten anything so great in such a long time. *Kakaka!*” Madam Cheng snapped her fingers and Ke Xing began taking away the plates on the table. "So, let's get back on topic. I'm willing to take custody of that child for a fee of 2 gold coins each month."

"Sorry, but my Young Master is not for sale. Please don't assume that you can get what you wish for with just money." Li En spitefully commented.

"No, there will be much more than just money involved. Education, food, shelter will be something I provide to those children under my care. Of course, that would mean disciple as well." Madam Cheng snickered.

"Like I've said, he is not for sale. You should know better as a guardian that people can't be easily swayed with money."

"Of course, but it really depends on the situation. Let's say the parents of the child is already starving to death. Would they not accept the offer? I'm providing safety and security for their child; at the same time, I'm also providing them with a chance to survive." Madame Cheng's wrap facial expression turned baleful as her green eyes seemingly shone some ominous light. "There is also the case where the guardian is ill or poisoned, and I provide aid to relief it."

Li En's eyes twitched as she tried to remain calm. She was about to speak but Shi Yan was too quick, "can you cure her?"

"*kakaka* I did not say that I could cure her. I said I could relieve it. Little one, do not misunderstand. I may be considered as an evil being in front of the general peasants but I pride myself in keeping my words."

"Li En..." Shi Yan called out to the old woman hugging him. "Young Master, you don't have to think of anything else. There is absolutely no need for you to do something like that."

"*Kakaka*, you aren't so good at lying."

"Silence!" Li En snapped. "Stop trying to trick a young child into this mess! Young Master, don’t bother yourself with her nonsense. There are-.”

*Tok* a wooden bottle clad in a purple embroiled cloth was abruptly placed on the table in front of the pair; accompanied by a hysteria laughter *Kakakakaka!* “Sorry, it's just been so long since someone actually dared to scream at me. *Kakakaka…* there is no point to speak with you since you don’t use logic. Little one, make her drink this. If she refuses, you could spike the water she drinks. If that doesn’t work, you could always wait for her illness to strike and force feed her. *Kakaka!*”

Li En’s eyes seem to turn blood red as the veins in her temples grew to the point that they were about to burst. Picking up the bottle in front of her, she threw it back at Madam Cheng. “There is no need!”

Without even breaking a single bit of sweat, Madam Cheng catches the wooden bottle. “*Kakaka*, no need to get so angry. If you want to have a go, I'll let you have your chance.”

Any onlooker could tell that the match would one sided. Even Li En herself, with all of her experiences added up together, could foresee her inevitable defeat as long as they fought. Taking a deep breath, she calmed herself down. “provocation is something that won't work so easily on me.”

“Is that so? Well, consider me impressed. However, I'm no longer interest to speak with someone who doesn’t bother listening to me. Little one, would you care to enter the house so that we can have a private chat?”

Shi Yan quickly shook his head as he dug his head into Li En’s bosom. “Don’t bully Li En!”

“Little one, there is a lot of difference between trying to help and bullying someone. There is something called hard love in this world. But it seems to be something you are not familiar with. Of course, under such circumstances, I cannot classify my familiarity with you lot to be close enough to love. However, I certainly can say that I somewhat care.” Madam Cheng spoke with her eyes turning to an ‘n’.

As though Li En realised something, her voice became more coarse as her breathing became heavier, as she spoke with even more malice in her voice. “Then what's wrong with showing soft affection? Why must you be so hard on the children under your care? Why must you treat them as though they lacked emotions and desires?! You spoke about leaving my Young Master with you but look at the eyes of those children under your care! There is not a single ounce of love for you!”

“*Kakaka* your words really sting you know that? But, isn't it better for them to benefit in the long run? I'm not seeking self-satisfaction in what I do. In a way, you can even say that this is an altruistic act on my part. But what about you? Aren't you bathing yourself in love, restricting the growth of the ones you love? *Kakaka...* I've seen many faces in my life but none as selfish as yours. Or should I say, none as narcissistic as yours?"

Li En's hug tightened around Shi Yan and the boy looked up to the old woman seeming to be a little confused. "Then, isn't it right to say that you are simply reasoning out your act of negligence? Madame Cheng, you said that you look forward to their growth but isn't that a mere figment of your ideas on what they should be? Isn't it just another lie to say that you care without putting in the effort to understand them? Come on Young Master, let's leave already." Li En carried the boy in her arms and stood up. Meanwhile, Madam Cheng spoke out, "you haven't paid for the meal yet."

"Aren't you already planning to see what answer my Young Master gives?" Li En snorted.

"*Kakaka!* You know me very well. I understand. I will visit that Potter of yours very soon. So, make sure you don’t run away." Madam Cheng muttered something more in silence but no one else could hear her words. Standing up, *Toct* she clicked her hands to order Ke Xing to pack up and walked towards the cottage. But, before she entered the door, she turned around and break into a smile once again; watching the three figures depart without bidding their farewell.