Chapter 10 You treat me so well!

"Miss Zhuang," Lixia replied at the door, "The chef is cooking it and it will be delivered later."

"Okay." Zhuang Wan replied drowsily while lying on the couch ready for a nap.

A gentle breeze, carrying with it a hint of early summer heat, seeped in through the window, stirring up the dreams of the person on the couch...

In the dim room, there was an exquisite bed in the middle, and a woman was tied between the two pillars of the bed.

Her ankles were locked with iron chains, and the chains rattled when she struggled slightly.

The woman had disheveled hair, her long black hair covering half of her face, revealing only her small chin and delicate, round nose.

After a while, there was movement in the darkness, like footsteps. The woman slowly raised her head, her hair swaying, finally revealing a pair of eyes.

Seeing the clear and charming teardrop mole under her left eye, Zhuang Wan took a breath.

This woman actually looks exactly like her.

Soon, footsteps approached, and the person who came laughed ugly: "Miss Zhuang, please stop making trouble. Wouldn't it be better for you to follow our master and enjoy the good life? Why do you have to endure such hardships? When I come back, you can apologize politely and act coquettishly. Maybe I will be satisfied and not only let you go, but also give you a status."

The woman's pale face showed resentment and unwillingness, and she spat at the person who came.

The man immediately became furious: "I'm showing you respect and you call me Miss. Do you think you're still a wealthy woman? Don't forget, our master brought you back from the Music Bureau. You're no different from those whores in the brothel."

"If you don't accept my toast, you'll be in trouble!"

"Our master's patience is limited. If you persist, it won't be as simple as locking you up."

Hearing this, the woman struggled in agony, her chains rattling. Soon, tears streamed down her face.

This dream was very strange. After waking up, Zhuang Wan sat at the head of the bed in a daze.

The woman in the dream looked exactly like her, but she knew very well that it was not her and she had never encountered the scene in the dream before.

That face of resentment and unwillingness...

Could it be that the situation in the dream was exactly what happened to her original self? What had she gone through to feel such resentment and unwillingness?

Inexplicably, Zhuang Wan recalled the man in white she had seen at the restaurant entrance today. Although she didn't know who he was, she knew that her original self must have recognized him.

With such a nightmare before her, Zhuang Wan couldn't sleep anymore. She got up in her slippers and walked around the room.

Thinking about it carefully, Pei Xingju was not a pushover either. Now that he had lost his memory and was suspicious of her, she didn't act rashly. If he ever recovered and remembered everything, the situation that awaited her might not be any better than the one in her dream.

She had to start planning quickly... to gain Pei Xingju's trust... well... she also had to coax him into helping her escape from her humiliation and return to a decent life... oh, and she also needed money...

"The travel money can't be too little." Zhuang Wan thought.

After all, this era was harsh on women, and it was difficult for her to make a living without any special skills. Moreover, she couldn't endure hardship, so she needed money.

We have to make money quickly!

.

At dinner, there were indeed sea cucumbers, abalone, bird's nests, and a bowl of porridge on the table.

"Madam Xu was worried that the young lady would have trouble digesting her dinner, so she arranged for some light porridge." Lixia said.

Zhuang Wan nodded: "That's very good."

She picked up her chopsticks and first tasted the stir-fried sea cucumber with scallions, chewed it, and spat it out. She then tasted the steamed abalone with garlic and shook her head, saying, "It's too dry. It hasn't been soaked well enough."

Finally, I ate bird's nest.

"The bird's nest is pretty good," she said.

Jingzhe and Lixia, who were standing aside, stared at each other with wide eyes, feeling suffocated and feeling aches in their chests due to Zhuang Wan's picky attitude.

The first word that comes to mind when Lixia comes to mind is "arrogant because of being favored".

Miss Zhuang was really going too far. Such precious food, which was personally made by Pei Xingju's chef, but she actually said it was not tasty.

"What are you looking at?" Zhuang Wan raised an eyebrow. "It's not that I'm wasting food, it's just that it doesn't taste good. If you don't believe me, why don't you try it?"

Jingzhe Lixia hurriedly shook their heads, they didn't dare to taste it.

Zhuang Wan reluctantly finished her porridge, then stood up and walked in the courtyard. After a while, she asked, "Where is Pei Xing? I want to see him."

.

"I guess there's something fishy going on here!"

Study, Shen Yi said.

"The Ministry of Rites chose this very moment to propose building a royal temple for the Empress Dowager in Hezhou. Ha, the idea of ​​building a royal temple was fake, but the real purpose was to conceal the truth."

"The Liang family embezzled a huge amount of tax silver in Hezhou. Now that they can't make up for it and can't hide it anymore, they want to cover it up by building the Taimiao. This is a very good plan."

"Has the situation been verified?" Pei Xingju asked.

"The evidence is solid, but the Ministry of Revenue has people from the Liang family, and I'm afraid they'll interfere."

"Hurry!"

Shen Yi nodded.

At this time, Guard Lu came in from outside and reported: "Sir, Miss Zhuang is here."

Pei Xingju frowned: "What is she doing here?"

"Uh..." Chen Yi laughed, "Should I avoid it for a bit?"

Noticing someone was at the door, the man who had been frowning and unhappy a moment ago suddenly changed his expression to a gentle one, and the corners of Shen Yi's mouth twitched.

He turned and went out, and met Zhuang Wan at the door and exchanged a few words with her.

"I heard that the farm girls are not used to the dishes prepared by the chef?"

Zhuang Wan was surprised. What happened half an hour ago reached Pei Xingju's ears so quickly?

As if understanding her surprise, Chen Yi smiled and said, "Miss Zhuang's matter is no small matter in the eyes of Lord Pei. Don't worry, Lord Pei will definitely find a better cook for you."

"Thank you." Zhuang Wan bowed and walked in.

"Something?" Pei Xingju put down his pen at the table.

"Yuzhi." Zhuang Wan walked over with the plate and bowed tenderly. "I heard you haven't eaten yet. I thought the hot weather might have ruined your appetite, so I made some snow pear and hawthorn soup."

Pei Xingju's eyes fell on the food plate and he remained silent.

"Don't worry, Yuzhi. Lixia made this with me. I put hawthorn and snow pear in it. It can clear away heat and relieve internal heat, and it can also calm the mind and help you sleep."

Zhuang Wan placed the food tray on the table with a sincere look on her face.

"What's the matter?" Pei Xingju did not move.

After he finished speaking, Zhuang Wan's eyes dimmed.

"Yuzhi still doesn't believe me. I've made this appetizing and nourishing soup for you several times before. I know your preferences best, so I added a lot of honey."

Pei Xingju paused.

Living in the capital, he felt a precarious existence, and he had long since suppressed and concealed his preferences and habits, save for his occasional craving for sweets. However, he had never been one to indulge in gluttony, and his food was quite casual. The cooks at the mansion were unaware of his preferences, so sweets were rarely served.

Even Shen Yi was not aware of such a secret, but he did not expect...

He slowly stood up and walked in front of Zhuang Wan. Taking advantage of the height difference between them, he calmly looked at the woman in front of him.

Her long eyelashes drooped slightly, a hint of loss in her eyes. Under her left eye, there was a dark teardrop mole, which made her look even more pitiful.

She is clearly only of jade-like age. If she was pretending, few people in the world could act so naturally in front of him.

After a moment, he put away the doubt in his eyes and said softly: "It's not that I don't believe you, but you also know that I can't remember many things. As for you..."

After thinking for a moment, he continued, "It will take me some time to accept it."

If I hadn't known he was acting, I would have believed his honest words. Zhuang Wan thought to herself that he was indeed a tutor to the Emperor, and his acting was truly top-notch.

She nodded softly in response to his words, the disappointment on her face disappeared, and she raised her face and put on a well-behaved expression.

"Yuzhi, I have another unwelcome request."

"Oh? What is it?"

"It's like this. I've been in your mansion for many days, but I still don't feel used to it. It's not that Jingzhe and Lixia don't serve well, nor is it that the people in your mansion are not considerate, but..."

Zhuang Wan turned around, avoiding his sharp gaze. "I've been used to Dong Ning and Qiu Tan since I was a child. When they're not around, it's really uncomfortable for others."

This is the purpose of Zhuang Wan's visit.

Pei Xingju has only lost his memory for half a year, and it is unknown when he will recover during this half year, so she has to take action as soon as possible before he recovers.

However, the first thing was to get the two maids to her side. With them around, it would be easier for her to do things.

She waited for a while, but Pei Xingju still didn't respond, and she felt a little nervous.

"I want those two maids to come back and serve me..." Zhuang Wan looked at him hopefully: "Is that possible?"

Pei Xingju had a faint smile on his lips, which was gentle but also distant.

"It's not difficult," he said. "I'll send someone to redeem your two maids."

"Very good!"

After thinking for a moment, Zhuang Wan walked over and hugged his arm: "Yuzhi, you treat me so well!"

Pei Xingju smiled.

But his gaze passed over her and fell on the food plate on the table, his eyes full of suspicion.