Chapter 64 What's wrong with using him?

In an instant, the girl's lips curved slightly, her clear, bright eyes looked at him with a wet expression, and she wrapped her arms around his neck.

Like a delicate, pure white jasmine flower, yet mixed with the alluring colors of a rose.

But she couldn't escape the sharp eyes of those who could see through her feigned maturity and sophistication, which masked her naivety and inexperience.

"Okay, then will you marry me? Will you bring me into your home as your principal wife with a grand wedding procession?"

The man stared at her intently, his dark eyes narrowing as if scrutinizing her. He pursed his slightly red lips but remained silent.

Seeing that he didn't speak, she naturally knew that he couldn't marry her.

"You don't expect me to follow you around without any status or recognition, do you? To be summoned and dismissed at will? Well, sorry, I'm not one of those obedient and sensible women, and I won't put my husband first."

Tao Tao smiled, her tone firm.

Duan Gan suddenly released her hand, and she pulled her hand back and fell onto the soft couch, her smile unchanged as if she had expected it.

He stood up straight, backlit, his handsome face expressionless, his chin slightly raised, exuding an air of superior arrogance and mockery.

Those icy eyes seemed to say that she was overestimating herself.

That same expression, that same look again.

Tao Tao didn't show it on her face, but she secretly clenched her fists, her heart filled with resentment.

"I know you can't do it. In your eyes, with my lowly status, I'm afraid even being made a concubine would be an honor, right?"

"Duan Gan, you've just never seen a woman like me before, so you're only interested in the novelty. You're just treating me like a pet. Once you see through me and get tired of me, you'll lose that desire to tease me."

"What am I supposed to do? Obey and become your mistress, trapped in this secluded mansion, waiting for your favor day and night?!"

"Do you think that being able to live a life free from worries about food and clothing is the greatest happiness for a person, and that her feelings and ambitions are completely unimportant? Do you believe that a woman's greatest value is that she has no value?"

"I admit that later I wanted to get on your good side and use your influence to make my shop survive. It's already frowned upon for a young lady to do business in public, let alone funerals, which are considered extremely unlucky and something to be avoided by others."

"It's common for people to cause trouble for us without explanation. We can only endure it and survive with difficulty."

"What's wrong with me using everyone and every connection I have for my family and my shop?"

After saying a long string of words, she suddenly sobbed, stubbornly turned her head away, revealing a section of her fair neck, with a blush on the corner of her eyes and the tip of her nose.

Suddenly, a large, cold white hand appeared in her eyes. She blinked, and a hot tear fell into his palm.

The large hand trembled almost imperceptibly.

The man's long, slender fingers grasped her smooth chin, his fingertips caressing it, sending a warm sensation through her.

He said in a calm voice, "Why are you crying? I've never treated you like a pet."

He brushed away the tears clinging to her eyelashes with his fingertips, then withdrew his hand and said:

“Tell me why you’re out on the street in the middle of the night. It’s curfew time. Aren’t you afraid the Imperial City Guard will arrest you?”

Tao Tao pursed her rosy lips, swallowed her dry throat, and said, "I escaped from the government office. I was imprisoned in jail for the case of the Yang family's paper doll murder in the north of the city."

Duan Gan frowned. "How can a paper doll kill someone? What's it to you?"

She recounted the entire incident, including her own speculations.

Upon hearing this, he scoffed, "That's utter nonsense. If paper figures could really come back to life and kill people, how could that family still be alive?"

It's fake, but they tell it in a very convincing way.

As for tonight's pursuit, it must be because she has some information she doesn't know, or someone she overlooked.

"You came to the Privy Council that day because the Chen family was hunting you down, wasn't it?"

She nodded: "Yes."

Not only was I chased that day, but my left hand was also stepped on and injured like this. It's still not healed. How could I not remember?

"The Chen family has lost all face in the capital. Madam Chen can't hold her head up in front of the noble ladies and is ridiculed and mocked. This is a far cry from her previous glory. Do you think she might want to kill everyone who knows about this?"

He walked to the round table made of golden pear wood, poured a cup of tea, returned to her side, and handed it to her.

Tao Tao frowned and took the teacup: "Although I knew, I didn't say anything."

"Besides, I'm a funeral director. I was the one who prepared Mr. Chen's body for burial. How could I not know?"

She watched him sit down beside her, leaning back in the soft chair, his feet on the round stool, looking languid and relaxed.

"Madam Chen doesn't dare to lay a hand on those noblewomen. Someone has to bear her anger. You poor little thing are the one she uses to vent her anger."

"Most importantly, her surname is Qiu, and she comes from a poor family named Qiu."

The Qiu family, from humble backgrounds?

Tao Tao thought for a moment, then suddenly realized: "It's the Qiu family, the former Chief of the Privy Council?"

She said irritably, "Then it all comes down to your fault. If it weren't for you, why would the Qiu family want to kill me?"

"How dare you speak to me like that? Hmm?"

He turned to look at her, his tone seemingly dangerous, but actually containing a smile.

Immediately, she put on a fawning smile, her eyes obedient: "Don't be angry, don't be angry, I am such a lowly person and not worth your anger."

The atmosphere returned to its previous harmonious and comfortable state.

Her face finally looked less heavy and depressed.

"What should we do now? I've already escaped, is it too late to go back to the government office?"

"What's the point of going back? As long as they have the guts to come to the Privy Council to arrest someone..."

As he spoke, his voice gradually faded away, replaced by soft breathing.

She was taken aback, noticing the faint dark circles under his eyes and the weariness in his expression.

Is it so tiring to serve the emperor? Well, it is true. Serving a ruler is like serving a tiger. He holds the power of life and death over the entire world, so one must be careful in serving him.

But what she didn't know was that while the emperor's carriage was still on its way, he had already traveled day and night back to the capital.

Tao Tao recalled the long string of words she had just rambled on and smiled.

She considered herself a pretty good actress; so what if she was just using him? Businessmen are profit-driven, and she didn't see anything wrong with it.

Scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants—why should merchants be looked down upon by these people?

Although she works in the funeral industry, haven't they heard that the dead are the most important people?

Based on what Duan Gan just said, it seems that the people chasing her have always been from the Qiu family. Could the framing incident be related to the Qiu family?

She quickly shook her head.

The Chen residence? She remembered that day at the gate. She had argued with the owners of the other three funeral parlors.

I don't know if there's any connection between the two.