Chapter 11: The squeaky wheel gets the grease. (Chinese server agent, guaranteed to cry, fight...)

Jin Shiyu picked up Jin Suiqing and put her down.

The posture was the one that Jin Suiqing was most familiar with and comfortable with on weekdays.

Jin Shiyu said apologetically, "That won't do, Your Excellency. My sister has been by my side since she was little, and she was frightened on her first day of school today. I'm afraid she can't be separated from me now."

Jin Suiqing couldn't help but wonder, had Jin Shiyu changed his personality? Why was he so concerned about her?

The guards snapped out of their daze and asked Jin Suiqing a few trivial questions.

It's simply a matter of what happened, what they came for, and how far the investigation has progressed.

Jin Suiqing answered them one by one.

Seeing that she was cooperating, the guard smiled, took out a few pieces of candy from his pocket, and waved them in front of her: "Give the little princess candy."

Jin Suiqing took the candy, unceremoniously unwrapped it, and popped it into her mouth.

She didn't see Kim Shi-ok's brow furrow slightly as she ate the candy.

Imperial Guard: "Little Princess, is the candy delicious?"

"tasty."

In the blink of an eye, the guard pulled out two more: "Does the young princess want more?"

Jin Suiqing nodded repeatedly.

"If the young princess answers a few questions truthfully, I'll give you a few more, how about that?" He added three more, "But if you don't answer well..."

He clasped his hands together, his expression hardening: "I don't have any sugar, but you have to give me back what you ate."

Jin Suiqing appeared frightened on the surface, but inwardly she was seething with resentment. Indeed, the trick of coaxing children is nothing more than a sweet date followed by a stick.

It seems this isn't just a formality; they're really here to interrogate her.

Seeing her cooperation, the guard said, "I heard from the students of the Imperial Academy that the young princess got lost?"

Jin Suiqing nodded timidly.

Guard: "Why are you lost?"

Jin Suiqing: "The courtyard gate is open. I'm looking for my brother."

She tentatively looked up at Kim Si-ok.

Kim Shi-ok's expression remained unchanged, but his smile persisted.

He didn't react, and Jin Suiqing was somewhat disappointed.

The imperial guard asked, "What did the young princess do inside the Hall of Imperial Guards?"

Jin Suiqing said, "I was so tired from looking for my brother that I fell asleep under the table."

The guard waved his hand, which was full of candy, in front of Jin Suiqing and laughed, "Little Princess, think again. Were you really asleep at that time? Did you not hear anything?"

“I didn’t hear anything,” Jin Suiqing pretended to think, then pouted in annoyance, “I didn’t hear anything, I only heard Teacher Chai say that I was a ghost.”

Jin Shiyu suddenly said, "Didn't you hear any clanging or tinkling sounds, little sister?"

Jin Suiqing asked blankly, "What's that tinkling sound?"

The guard said, "If something is stolen from the Jingxie Hall, it will make a jingling sound."

Jin Suiqing blinked: "Why is it making a sound?"

The guard's lips twitched; he was clearly taken aback by her stupid question.

Jin Suiqing pressed on, "Don't thieves always steal things quietly?"

The guard chuckled in agreement, opened his palm, and then withdrew his hand just as Jin Suiqing was about to take the candy inside: "Little Princess, you really didn't hear anything?"

Jin Suiqing pouted, on the verge of tears: "I really didn't hear anything!"

The guards didn't press the matter further, gave the candy to Jin Suiqing, exchanged a few pleasantries with Jin Shiyu, and then left.

Only the brother and sister remained in the hall.

Jin Shiyu looked at Jin Suiqing, who was chewing on his chest, and remained silent for a long time before asking, "You really didn't hear anything?"

"I...didn't hear you."

Sugar syrup sprayed all over Kim Shi-ok.

Jin Suiqing opened another one. It's no wonder Jin Suiqing is greedy; she loves sweets, and Jin Shiyu always keeps an eye on her, not letting her eat too much.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, she quickly stuffed it into her mouth.

Jin Shiyu frowned, snatched the candy from her hand, and held it up so that Jin Suiqing couldn't reach it. He frowned and said, "Didn't you hear what someone said?"

Jin Suiqing was startled, and her heart suddenly started beating faster.

Jin Shiyu's question was completely different from the focus of the Imperial Guards.

The guards were those who "listened".

Kim Si-ok's word is "say".

Listen, that's an admission that the people who entered the Jingxie Hall were there to steal the sulfur-burning machine.

The implication is that the people who sneaked in were looking for a place to discuss something that couldn't be heard by outsiders.

Thinking about it this way, the reason why Kim Shi-ok stayed behind seems to become clear.

It wasn't out of concern for her younger sister, but rather to test whether she had overheard their conversation.

The fact that the guards could ask that question indicates that Chai Zixin did not mention any fraud, and the focus of the investigation remained on the theft of the sulfur-burning machine; while Jin Shiyu's question clearly indicated that he knew something.

How did he know that?

She dared not think about it too much, nor did she have time to think about it.

As if facing a royal guard, Jin Suiqing reacted quickly. She clenched her fist and punched Jin Shiyu's chest in grievance, straightened up to reach for the candy in his hand, and her big, swollen eyes were full of resentment: "I already said I didn't hear anything! Stop asking! Brother, give me back my candy!"

Jin Shiyu chuckled and flicked his hand, throwing away the remaining few pieces of candy.

"Don't eat it, or you'll get cavities."

Ignoring Jin Suiqing's objections, Jin Shiyu picked her up and carried her back to the house, startling Huihong, who was embroidering a sachet. Before leaving, Jin Shiyu instructed, "Don't give her any more candy."

Jin Suiqing crossed his arms in an angry gesture, and only after everyone had completely left did he lie back on the bed in a spread-eagle position.

After lying down for a while, she turned over, rolled up the blanket, tucked it between her legs, and reached under the pillow to touch the sulfur generator.

The hot potato is still there.

Jin Suiqing closed her eyes wearily, rubbed her stiff cheeks, and couldn't help but sigh, "Today is another day that tests my acting skills."

*

Jin Shiyu actually refused to let Jin Suiqing go to school, no matter how much she struggled, Jin Shiyu wouldn't budge.

Finally, she disappeared altogether.

Left with no other choice, on the third day, Jin Suiqing, having reached her limit, unleashed her ultimate tantrum.

She went on a hunger strike, then went to find her scumbag father.

Jin Suiqing, staying up late at night, squatted by the small door and caught Jin Guizhong, who was drunk and pale from hunger, with tears in his eyes and his mouth pursed into an inverted triangle, looking pitiful.

“Father,” Huihong cried, the lamp in her hand illuminating Jin Suiqing’s face, “Brother has disappeared.”

The scumbag father should pretend to be a good father, and lead Jin Suiqing to Jin Shiyu's courtyard.

Stepping into the courtyard, Jin Guizhong took in the surroundings and was filled with anger: "How could the Jin residence have such a dilapidated place?"

Jin Suiqing said softly, "My brother has lived here since he was little."

Jin Guizhong remained silent.

Jin Suiqing added fuel to the fire: "Brother doesn't have a stove in his yard, so he has to come to my place to eat."

Rarely, in the eyes of this scumbag father, the smell of alcohol had completely dissipated, replaced by a hint of unspeakable pain.

It disappeared very quickly.

Jin Guizhong picked up Jin Suiqing and knocked on Jin Shiyu's door. When Jin Shiyu opened the door, Jin Suiqing struggled to jump down and threw herself into his arms.

Jin Suiqing cried, "Brother, why won't you see me?"

Jin Shiyu had just taken a cold shower and was icy cold all over. He subconsciously tried to touch Jin Suiqing with his hand, but couldn't. Jin Suiqing grabbed his hand and pulled it into his arms: "Why are your hands so cold, brother?"

Jin Shiyu didn't speak, but Jin Guizhong hiccuped and said gently, "Your sister is asking you a question."

Jin Shiyu lowered his head: "I just took a shower, and my clothes are disheveled. It's not appropriate to approach my sister."

Jin Suiqing looked up at Jin Shiyu. In fact, he was not at all disheveled. Not a bit of flesh was exposed. Only the fabric on his shoulders, damp from his wet hair, barely revealed a bit of skin.

The boy who was growing rapidly was not only cold, but also thin.

Wearing so little, his ribs were bruised and raw.

Jin Suiqing, dressed in blue, said with heartache, "Father, brother is so cold, brother is so thin."

In the darkness and by the dim light, Jin Guizhong looked at his son, whom he hadn't really taken care of.

Jin Shiyu had lowered her eyebrows and had beautiful eyes, looking exactly like Gu Hanjiang.

When he called out to Jin Suiqing, the lingering remorse in his heart, mixed with the wine, flowed out.

Jin Guizhong said to him softly, "Move out of this courtyard."

Kim Shi-ok was stunned, her drooping eyelashes trembling.

When my mother was alive, she never saw Jin Guizhong come here.

I never heard him say anything of concern.

His precious younger sister could easily summon them all with a simple act of coquetry.

Jin Shiyu kept his head down, staring intently at the dilapidated threshold, when Jin Suiqing's hand, which was gripping his, twitched slightly.

The younger sister gripped her hand even tighter; her palms were damp and warm.

Jin Guizhong frowned: "Unwilling?"

Jin Suiqing breathed on his palm and blinked, chiming in, "Brother, do you not want to move?"

No matter where she was unwilling to move, in the original book, Jin Shiyu kicked the fake heiress out on the very day she was exposed, and moved in herself with Gu Hanjiang's memorial tablet.

Her courtyard faces south, so it's warm in winter and cool in summer, much more comfortable than here.

In recent years, Jin Suiqing has found it difficult to bring up the matter of changing his courtyard.

First, she is too young to speak with authority; second, she cannot find a suitable reason.

Today was nothing more than a tantrum, seizing the opportunity to simultaneously boost favorability.

Jin Suiqing hugged him and said, "If you like my courtyard, I'll make it available for you to live in!"

Anyway, she won't be bad off wherever she lives.

Jin Shiyu shook his head: "There is no reluctance."

It was far too easy.

My mother's favorite place was that courtyard.

Because it's where you can get sunshine, dry your clothes, and feel the warm, cozy sunshine.

Whenever his mother passed by with him in a hurry, her eyes would be filled with expectation and envy as she would gaze at him for a long time before rushing away.

She was afraid that if she looked at it any longer, she would develop unwarranted hopes.

Even after her mother left, Kim Si-ok, who was left behind, would never forget the expression on her mother's face at that time.

Jin Suiqing, unaware of what was going on, shook his hand and said, "Then let's go, brother."

After moving to a new house, she could no longer use the excuse of living in a remote area to stop her harassment. Jin Suiqing quickly calculated that the tasks would be easier to complete and the favorability would be easier to increase.

Jin Shiyu withdrew his hand and rubbed his warm fingers together: "It's too late to move it today."

Jin Suiqing thought for a moment, then lifted her skirt and scurried into his room: "Okay, I'll move tomorrow. I'll sleep with you tonight, brother."

Before Huihong could stop her, she leaped a few steps, casually kicked off her shoes, and jumped onto Jin Shiyu's bed without any hesitation.

The bamboo bed creaked a few times, and Jin Suiqing kicked off the quilt and wrapped it around herself.

If she doesn't sleep now, when will she? Who knows what method Jin Shiyu will use to get rid of her if she doesn't hurry up?

Jin Suiqing refused to believe that she couldn't resolve the issue of her not being able to go to school by pleading and cajoling all night.

Huihong blushed with embarrassment, but dared not enter the house rashly. She wanted to wait for Jin Guizhong to speak. Unexpectedly, Master Jin was very happy to see the brother and sister on a blind date and let Jin Suiqing go.

He told the servants to disperse and asked Jin Guizhong, "Why don't you let your sister go to school?"

There was no blame in his tone.

Jin Shiyu calmly replied, "When the sulfur generator was lost at the National Academy, my sister was present. One of the people involved fled to avoid punishment, which only confirmed the crime. As a result, Young Master Li's studies have been temporarily suspended until the sulfur generator is recovered. During this period, it is not suitable for my sister to go to school."

After a moment's thought, Jin Guizhong patted Jin Shiyu's shoulder in agreement. Jin Shiyu frowned slightly and forced himself to stay upright so as not to dodge Jin Guizhong's hand.

Jin Guizhong, oblivious to the situation, said, "You did a good job protecting your sister. But what if the sulfur generator can't be found?" He countered, "Can you keep her locked up forever?"

Jin Shiyu shook his head: "No."

Jin Suiqing pricked up her ears and carefully eavesdropped on her father's conversation with Jin Shiyu. Jin Guizhong said, "No wonder we ran into the Duke of England while drinking today. He wanted to hold a flower-viewing banquet under the pretext of the Yuanzu Festival. He mentioned that his grandson was in the same class as Suiqing and invited his classmates as well. However, Suiqing was not there, so he could only ask me."

The British Duke has two grandsons. The younger one is in the same class as Jin Suiqing, and the older one must be the young master Li who wanted to buy the exam questions that day.

Under the covers, Jin Suiqing rolled her eyes.

What a cheap dad! He only found out his daughter wasn't going to school from outsiders.

She couldn't see Kim Shi-ok's expression, but she heard him ask, "Where will the banquet be held?"

Jin Guizhong: "Zui Xian Lou (Drunken Immortal Pavilion)".

A note from the author:

If you like it, please add it to your favorites. It's not easy for a part-time writer like me, and the support of my readers will be my motivation to continue writing!

Twenty red envelopes in this chapter, just scattering them (if anyone sees this). (Bitter smile.jpg)