Chapter 187: Just to Ask a Question
g happened to her" Yisheng was a little worried, because when it involved Qin Luoyan, he would get anxious.The two guards exchanged glances, their eyes holding something only adults possessed. One of...187
“It’s just a prick, there’s no need for such an expensive wound medicine! That gold wound medicine was specially sent by the King last time when I scraped my skin. It is said to have been purchased at a high price from a small country on the border. There's no need to waste it for this minor injury.” Xiao Changyue raised her hand and stopped Gui MoMo’s actions.
Guimei answered with a "good" and then took out her handkerchief to dramatically apply it to Xiao Changyue's finger, shaking her head and sighing, "Ai, the princess has hurt her hand. If the king sees this, he will be heartbroken again."
"Where there's a will, there's a way, Your Highness wouldn't even care about this little injury." Although she said that, Xiao Changyue still put on a coquettish pose.
Xiao Changyue and Gui Momo's duet performance made Yun Xiaoying's face turn pale the moment she stepped in. However, Yun Xiaoying wasn't someone to be trifled with. She immediately feigned surprise and exclaimed, "Ah, so the King still remembers his elder sister I heard that the King hasn't entered the Queen's courtyard for several months. I thought he... I was just thinking of finding an opportunity to advise him, but since this is the case, I won't have to bother anymore."
Yun Xiaoxue's counterattack immediately caused the smile on Xiao Changyue's face to collapse. The expression of a well-bred lady couldn't hold up, she pulled at the corner of her mouth and said coldly, "Miss Yun is too polite. I can't bear this title of sister. After all, Miss Yun hasn't truly entered the Wangfu yet. Miss Yun is a guest, so it's appropriate to call me Princess or sister-in-law."
Xiao Changyue and Yun Xiaoying's back-and-forth attacks were like a captivating palace intrigue drama, leaving Qin Luoyan, sitting on the sidelines, speechless. In her opinion, these two women weren't easy to deal with, even their wickedness was hidden beneath the surface. But now, they were openly confronting each other. Thinking about it carefully, it seemed that their struggle over the past few months had reached a fever pitch.
So, in each other's presence, they didn't even need to pretend.
Qin Luoyan found it amusing. For a man, women could stoop so low, resorting to life and death struggles, all for the chance to win his affection. It was just... if a man lingered between them both, yet remained unobtainable by either, what then
The two of them were bickering, getting quite heated, which left Qin Luoyan with nothing to do. She saw some melon seeds on the side, grabbed a handful and casually started munching on them in her palm.
After a while, Xiao Changyue and Yun Xiaoying had already begun to attack each other with their attire. Qin Luoyan's melon seeds were already half shelled, with a pile of shells scattered around her feet, messy yet unrestrained.
When Fu Zi Mo walked to the courtyard gate, he saw this bizarre scene: Xiao Chang Yue and Yun Xiao Ying smiling while holding their swords, and a pregnant woman leisurely cracking melon seeds and watching the show.
A perfect curve unconsciously played at the corner of his lips as he asked Kinkan beside him, "Kinkan, don't you find this woman interesting"
Jin Mu twitched the corner of his mouth. He was a normal man and wouldn't be interested in a pregnant woman. Did you think everyone was like you He dared not say it out loud, even if he had ten thousand bears' gall to give him courage.
"That's interesting," Kaneki said, forcing a smile.
Fu Zi Mo was satisfied, lifting his foot to step inside. He saw his maids and servants about to bow, but he waved his hand, making a silencing gesture. The maids and servants immediately quietly retreated to the side.
Yun Xiaoxue and Xiao Changyue, engrossed in their struggle, were flushed with embarrassment. They hadn't noticed the changes around them. Qin Luoyan stood with her back to the entrance of the courtyard, unaware of what had happened.
Until a tall figure blocked her light, she only felt a shadow above her head. When she looked up again, she saw Fu Zimo's face, a smirk playing on his lips.
"So, how did you find the play" Fu Zi Mo asked.
"Qin Luoyan watched with her eyes fixed on her nose and her nose fixed on her heart. A melon seed got stuck in the gap between her teeth, then she didn't blush or pant, and in front of Fu Zimo, she used her finger to pry the melon seed out.
As expected, the moment she made the move, Fu Zimu immediately frowned and took a step back.
Fu Zi Mo's voice finally drew the attention of Yun Xiao Ying and Xiao Chang Yue. The two stopped arguing and mocking, immediately standing up and curtseying to Fu Zi Mo with a hint of coquettishness.
"My Lord..."
"Ink..."
The two moved in unison, both wanting to lean towards Fu Zimo's side. However, Fu Zimo subtly took a step back, causing their attempts to get closer to fall short.
"Lady, how are you adjusting to life in the Duke's Manor" Fu Zimo didn't even glance at the two people, but turned his head to ask Qin Luoyan instead.
Qin Luoyan clutched a handful of melon seeds, feeling the resentful gazes from Yun Xiaoying and Xiao Changyue, making her scalp tingle. She was enjoying the show just fine when he had to bring the fire onto her
She then stood up and bowed to Fu Zimu, "In response to Your Highness' words, the grandeur and magnificence of the Prince's Mansion are beyond compare. It is a blessing for this common woman to have had the honor of seeing it in her lifetime. There is nothing she finds unsuitable. As an ordinary wife, being able to come to the Prince's Mansion to alleviate boredom for the Princess and Miss Yun is a great fortune indeed."
“Oh…” Fu Zimu stared at her without answering, his gaze lingering on her eyes.
Such a direct gaze, Qin Luoyan really wished she could shout and ask him, you, the King of Wu Xuan, staring at her, a pregnant woman, in front of so many people, especially in front of your two wives, what are you looking at!
It's fine that she, a woman from the common folk, came to the Prince's Mansion. After all, she is just a woman entering the inner courtyard of the mansion, accompanying the wives and concubines within. That's understandable. But by you staring at her like this, you are blatantly drawing hatred towards her!
My heart was pounding with rage, but I dared not show even the slightest displeasure on my face.
But Yun Xiaoxue on the side couldn't stand it anymore, she rushed to Fu Zimo's side and grabbed his arm, "Mo... You look at your wife like this, she'll be embarrassed. Besides, a woman's reputation is more important than life..."
"What did I do" Fu Zi Mo raised an eyebrow, shaking her hand off, "I just felt that my wife's eyes resembled a certain acquaintance of mine, so I couldn't help but take a few extra glances."
"It's not what you think, I just don't want Madam to feel awkward," Yun Xiaoxue smiled sweetly, looking innocent and carefree, and then asked, "By the way, Mo, how did you get here"
"What, does this prince need to report to you where he's going" Fu ZiMo's cold voice made Yun XiaoYing's face flush. She blushed and her eyes held a hint of resentment.
Seeing her fail, Xiao Changyue was the happiest. Seeing Yun Xiaorou hit a snag, she, Xiao Changyue, wouldn't make the same mistake again. She quickly called Fu Zimu over and said, "Your Highness came just in time. Mrs. Wu is about to tell us an interesting story."
Fu Zi Mo didn't refuse, but sat down beside her instead. "Oh This king is rather curious to hear what kind of story Wu Shi has to tell."
Qin Luoyan was truly about to die of embarrassment. Facing Fu Zimu's meaningful gaze, she could only sit back down and start from the beginning, "Speaking of it, the Hua family lives in a remote village..."
When she talked about Hua Mulan turning the tide of battle, Yun Xiaoxue nonchalantly spoke up, "Madam, you're wrong. Even if she disguised herself well, it's impossible for a woman to sneak into a military camp without being discovered! The barracks aren't all single rooms, they sleep in bunks, so she couldn't possibly go unnoticed. Besides, a woman mixing with men would definitely be rough and uncouth. There's no way a man would like that. Madam really knows how to fool people."
Qin Luo'yan sighed and said, "Miss Yun, what I said was just a story. There may be many similarities, but the details are definitely not entirely accurate. You only heard the story. If you want to treat the story as historical fact for research, then you should go to the Hanlin Academy."
“I was just saying, things like killing enemies on the battlefield, no woman could possibly do that, sigh, it’s just a story after all.” Yun Xiaoxue seemed to deliberately go against Qin Luo'yan. Qin Luo'yan knew this was because she was upset about Fu Zimu's look at her earlier.
Xiao Changyue, who rarely sided with Yun Xiaoying, idly munched on melon seeds and said, “That’s right. I think women should put their husbands first and serving their husbands and in-laws well is the most important thing for a woman.”
Qin Luoyan suddenly felt a bit powerless. She was tortured by the social hierarchy and male chauvinism, feeling suffocated. She took a breath and couldn't help but say: "To put husband above heaven Why should it be to put husband above heaven Have you ever thought that women can do what men can do, but men just haven't given us the opportunity. In the early stages of society, women's status was higher than men's, and later, as dynasties changed, women's status gradually declined. One day in the future, this change in status will certainly change again."
"What are you talking about" Yun Xiaoxue put down the candy in her hand and looked at her with disdain, "Madam, your words are truly outrageous. Forget it, I think you don't need to tell this story anymore. Saying such things about female superiority over males is going to get you into trouble if not worse."
Xiao Changyue also couldn't understand Qin Luoyan's words, but looking at Qin Luoyan's eyes, she looked down on her a bit. Among their aristocratic women, only the most lowly and despicable peasant women would clamor to be equal with their husbands.
Both of them seemed somewhat disinterested, and surprisingly, they both showed a strong aversion to Qin Luoyan.
Women's rejection of each other stems from men's pleasure. They can sense Fu Zimu's interest in Qin Luoyan, so driving Qin Luoyan away serves their common purpose.
"Well, I'm tired too. I'll be going now. We can have your wife come another day and tell us a story." Xiao Changyue said this with the intention of dismissing them.
Qin Luoyan was a sensible woman, she immediately stood up and prepared to say goodbye, but before she could turn around, she heard Fu Zimu's faint voice.
"Wait a moment, madam," Fu ZiMo's gaze fell on her, his eyes seeming to have no focus, as if he was looking through her at something far away. "Where is your home, madam"
Qin Luoyan was startled, her heart pounding with a mixture of apprehension and uncertainty. After a moment's hesitation, she said, "Even if Your Highness were to ask, I doubt he would know. My hometown is a remote village in Yun City."
"Yun Cheng." Fu Zi Mo murmured the two words softly, a deeper smile playing on his lips, "This king is rather curious about the madam's thoughts. Please sit down and speak with this king."
"Uh…" Qin Luoyan really didn't know what was wrong with Fu Zimu. If he recognized her, he definitely wouldn't have such a calm attitude. If he hadn't recognized her, then his attitude was too strange.
Seeing her doubt, Fu Zimu added, "To be honest with my wife, I have a friend who is from the same hometown as you. Her thoughts are different from ordinary people, so I thought that since she is your fellow countryman, perhaps you could understand her thoughts through you."
Qin Luoyan secretly let out a breath of relief. Of course, she could guess that the fellow countryman Fu Zimu was talking about was herself. "Your Highness may not know, our village is very remote, more backward than people in other places in Yun City. My thoughts may not represent the thoughts of your friends."
"It's all right to talk about it." Fu Zimu gestured for her to sit down.
Qin Luoyan had no choice but to grit her teeth and sit down.
"Is it one man and one wife there" Fu Zi Mo suddenly asked.
Qin Luo'yan's heart skipped a beat, and she quickly plastered on a smile. "Our village is small and everyone is poor. Who could be rich enough to afford two wives It's great just to have one wife, so everyone practices monogamy."
This answer was seamless, Qin Luoyan thought to herself, carefully looking at Fu Zimo's expression.
The air grew somewhat silent, the courtyard very still. Perhaps Fu Zimo's abnormality made everyone acutely aware of it, so much so that no one dared speak at random.
When the crowd grew impatient, Fu Zimo suddenly stood up and walked out of the courtyard. His mood seemed off, radiating an aura that chilled the air.
When Fu Zimo's figure disappeared at the entrance of the courtyard, everyone in the courtyard came back to their senses.
Qin Luo'yan was even more bewildered. She stopped him, just to ask that one question
As soon as Fu Zi Mo left, Xiao Chang Yue and Yun Xiao Ying stopped keeping her company. Taking this opportunity, she bid them farewell.
After leaving the back door of Prince Wu Xuan's Mansion, Qin Luoyan finally let out a long sigh. Facing Fu Zimo in the courtyard just now, heaven knows how much courage she had used.
But now it seems that Fu Zimo is indeed unrecognizable. This time, she can rest assured.
As for Yun Xiaoying and Xiao Changyue, she thought that after this incident, they wouldn't take the initiative to invite her to the prince's mansion to tell stories again.
She subconsciously pulled out the silver note from her bosom to have a look. Sure enough, wealth and danger go hand in hand. She had made it through this perilous journey unscathed and earned a fortune that an ordinary family couldn't accumulate in several lifetimes.
On her way back, Qin Luoyan's steps seemed much lighter. If she hadn't been discovered by Fu Zimu, she could live peacefully in Fenqicheng.
However, she didn't know that after she left Wuxuan Prince's Mansion, the mansion's guards had gone to Yun City under Fu Zimo's orders.
When Qin Luoyan returned to the courtyard, Old Madam Liu had already prepared lunch. Seeing Qin Luoyan back, Old Madam Liu went to call Mr. Zhou and Shi Tou to eat. During the meal, everyone noticed that Qin Luoyan seemed in a good mood, which surprised them. They asked Qin Luoyan what was up, but she only replied that she had seen something interesting on the street earlier. The others didn't think much of it and stopped asking.
As the saying goes, "Where there's money, there's influence." Now that Qin Luoyan had money in her pocket, she spoke and acted with more confidence. The next day, she booked a table at Fengqicheng's largest restaurant, ordering a feast of good wine and delicacies to express her gratitude to Mr. Zhou and his companions for their patronage over the past few months.
Stone instantly jumped for joy upon hearing about the delicious meal. Mr. Zhou had initially not planned to agree to this extravagant plan, but when he heard that the restaurant served his favorite 30-year aged flower wine, he immediately expressed that indulging occasionally was acceptable too. Grandma Liu, as always, was a woman of few words; she naturally wouldn't say anything about their plans.
That night, after packing up their belongings, the group left and went straight to the largest restaurant in Fenqicheng.
The restaurant was divided into two floors. The upper floor consisted of private rooms, but the cost of a private room was twice that of a regular table. Although Qin Luoyan had money, she hadn't reached the level of a tycoon yet. Besides, with just a few of them, they didn't really need a private room, so they found a relatively quiet spot on the first floor and sat down.
“A cup of flower wine costs three ounces of silver!” Mr. Zhou opened the menu and exclaimed in exaggeration, immediately attracting curious glances from the table next to him. He sheepishly lowered his voice, “I said girl, this place is too expensive. Why don’t we come another day when that stinky boy treats us”
He was talking about the brat, naturally, Yin Qi. Qin Luo Yan shook her head, "It's nothing, I have money, just rest assured."
"I want to eat red braised meatballs!" Shi Tou couldn't understand the menu, so he could only order what he had eaten before.
Qin Luo'yan touched his head, "Okay, our Stone can eat whatever he wants, we have enough." She turned her head and asked Liu Po, "Liu Po, what do you want to eat"
"I..." Old Mrs. Liu thought for a moment and then said, "I'll just have tofu with eggplant."
The shop assistant stood by, listening to the few people report the dish names, and immediately his face fell. "Several guests, our Fengxiang Building doesn't have these ordinary dishes. The dishes here are all the same as those in the imperial palace, each one is a masterpiece among masterpieces. For example, this Dongpo donkey meat is our signature dish. All the diners who have eaten it say it's good. Why don't you try a serving"
Mr. Zhou looked at the price and couldn't help but exclaim again, "Thirty taels for one dish! Are you robbing people"
That little boy heard this and his face turned even worse, "Our Fengxiang Building is priced like this! If it wasn't for this young lady reserving a table in advance, even with your money you wouldn't be able to eat here. Without money, what airs are you putting on!"
"You, young waiter, how do you speak like that Don't you understand that the customer is always right" Mr. Zhou became angry and stood up, slamming his hand on the table.
“Only those who can afford our food are our guests! You lot, with your common faces and pretending to be rich but can’t even afford it, are not our guests.” The shop assistant snatched the menu back from Mr. Zhou’s hand. “Alright, you guys go to the small eatery across the street for some home-style dishes if you want. Don’t hog up the tables here.”
Mr. Zhou was so angry he couldn't speak, pointing at the arrogant shop boy.
Qin Luoyan was just about to persuade him when the shopkeeper, seeing someone making a commotion, hurried over. The shopkeeper glared at the boy, “What are you yelling about Don't you see that you're disturbing other customers”
That little guy didn't even mean to admit his mistake. Instead, he pointed at Qin Luoyan and the others, "It's not these few people who don't know where they came from. They probably heard about the reputation of our Fengxiang Building and came to eat, but when they saw the prices, they thought it was too expensive and couldn't afford it."
Qin Luoyan thought that the waiter spoke like this, as the manager of a large restaurant, he should discipline the waiter well. Unexpectedly, when the manager heard this, he said to several people: "How can we meet people who have no money and love to put on airs every day If you can't afford it, don't come to our Phoenix Pavilion! And you, what are you doing talking so much nonsense with them, just drive them out directly"
I've seen businessmen who are shrewd, but one so blatant Qin Luoyan has never seen anyone like it. For a business like this to become the number one in Fengqicheng is simply a miracle! She's now quite curious, what kind of eccentric opened up this Phoenix Pavilion.
Following the drama's typical plot, Qin Luoyan should pull out a silver note at this point, slap it hard on the face of that contemptuous shopkeeper, and bellow with grandeur, "Bring me all your best dishes!"
But reality isn't a TV drama. She has already received insults from this shop, why would she let them make another profit off of her to regain face She certainly wouldn't do something so disadvantageous.
So, Qin Luoyan smiled. She calmly picked up the tea on the table and took a sip, then, under the astonished gazes of the shopkeeper and the shop boy, she smashed the teacup to the ground.
The crisp sound immediately caught the attention of the diners on the first floor. Many turned their heads towards it. Qin Luoyan gave the shopkeeper a strange smile and then exaggeratedly covered her stomach, shouting: "This tea is not clean!"
"You, you savage village woman! What utter nonsense are you spouting! This is our shop's finest new tea this year! You have some nerve, trying to scam Fengxiang Lou!" The shopkeeper pointed at Qin Luo'yan's nose and berated her.
Qin Luo Yan didn't even look at him. Instead, she weakly leaned into Liu Po's arms and squeezed out a few teardrops of grievance, "I only drank one cup of tea. It wasn't the tea that was problematic, so what's going on Don't believe me Let's ask others if they have the same symptoms"
When she spoke, she also winked at Mr. Zhou, "Mr. Zhou, please go ask the people around."
Mr. Zhou was taken aback, but quickly reacted. He strode over to a man at the next table and, appearing anxious, grabbed the man's wrist. "Sir, have you drunk the tea Have you reacted"
“I did drink, but…oh dear, my stomach hurts.” The man wailed as well.
Mr. Zhou walked up to the other people, asking them the same questions. As soon as Mr. Zhou touched them, they all wailed in pain. No one saw that while they were wailing, Mr. Zhou silently put away his silver needles.
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( : b/23/23838/)arketplace. She walked quickly, but as soon as she reached the street corner, the commotion ahead caught her attention. If it were anyone else causing a ruckus, she would just glance at them and leave...