"You..." Xie Zhaozhao was reserved after all, and she couldn't bring herself to say it no matter what.

“That means I don’t like you,” Gu Shaoyu said disappointedly. “I thought you liked me as much as I like you! I don’t like you…”

The car swerved sharply and nearly crashed into the wall.

Gu Shaoyu said coolly through the carriage curtain, "Nanxing, your eyesight is bad. Why don't you switch places with Beichen later?"

Nanxing was so frightened that he quickly focused on driving and didn't dare to say a word.

Has the Grand Secretary lost his mind?

He doesn't like the lady?

How wonderful your wife is!

Good looks, good reputation, good family background, good manners, kind heart, intelligent, good at making money, good at managing a household, and so good to the Grand Secretary...

The Grand Secretary must be saying the opposite of what he means. So how will he reverse his words next?

Prick up your ears!

Gu Shaoyu deliberately didn't speak loudly.

He whispered in Xie Zhaozhao's ear, "Before I met you, winter was just winter; now, your smile is spring. Before I met you, snow was just snow; now, your smile is a riot of flowers. Before I met you, I was invincible, whether in court or in the countryside; now, one look from you and I'm completely defenseless..."

Xie Zhaozhao's eyes suddenly reddened as she listened.

Despite his deep affection, she was preoccupied with how to take revenge on the Marquis's family.

She dared not like him, and even worried that if he knew she had taken revenge on the Marquis's mansion, they might break up.

I just feel that this is probably the best it can be right now.

In her past life, she married Gu Chengyan. Forget about living in harmony, the deception had already begun before the marriage was even discussed. She was deceived by the entire Marquis's family, leaving her riddled with holes, her family destroyed, and her death filled with resentment.

In this life, the reason she agreed to marry into the Marquis's family, which she couldn't tell Gu Shaoyu, was to facilitate revenge against the people in the Marquis's family.

Although this marriage was planned by Xu and Xie Xiangxiang and approved by her father and brothers, she did not object to it.

Because if she had to get married, she should marry someone in a familiar environment where she would have the energy and opportunity to take revenge on her enemies.

She thought that things were already the best they could be, that they could discuss things with each other, care for each other, and each have their own space. This was the ideal of a harmonious and respectful marriage.

Her revenge plan was proceeding methodically.

"Xie Zhaozhao, I begged you to come to me. We've only known each other for a few months, and there's a long future ahead. When we're old and gray, I'll definitely make you fall in love with me."

Xie Zhaozhao hugged her waist and said, "I like it now too."

No, what you like now is just something called "cooperation".

It's just that we've recently added a little more "trust".

Not enough, far from enough.

The carriage returned to the Marquis's residence, and Bei Chen came out as soon as it entered Qingpu Courtyard. He followed the two into the main courtyard.

Gu Shaoyu said, "Go ahead and speak."

"Reporting to my lord, reporting to my madam, I have infiltrated Tu Qianyue's teahouse and discovered that their Panacea has been stolen." Bei Chen said without changing his expression.

Xie Zhaozhao was shocked: "It's been stolen?"

"yes."

"Did you report it to the authorities?"

"No, they dare not report it to the authorities."

"Tu Qianyue's panacea is all gone?" Xie Zhaozhao was only concerned about this.

"Most of them were lost. My subordinates heard them say that only a dozen or so kilograms were left, which were hidden in several places and guarded by special personnel."

Does that mean someone beat them to it and stole everything?

What do those people want the Panacea for? Besides Guan Yingying, is there anyone else who knows about the Panacea?

Seeing Xie Zhaozhao's anxious expression, Gu Shaoyu quickly comforted her, "Don't worry, I will handle this matter well. It must not end up in the hands of ordinary people."

Bei Chen hid in the shadows, his eyelashes lowered, thinking to himself: Of course you wouldn't let it fall into the hands of ordinary people, you've hidden it all in Moon Lake Garden!

Xie Zhaozhao was somewhat relieved to see that Gu Shaoyu was very cautious.

Ever since Shi Xiu drank that fruit tea at Guan Yingying's teahouse that night, he has found all other teas tasteless.

He ordered the servants in the manor to collect a lot of fruit and make fruit tea according to the recipe Guan Yingying had given him that day. However, the taste was much worse than Longjing tea.

He asked the palace's water depot for some fruit tea, but after drinking it, he found it was not only too sweet, but also lacking in flavor.

Seeing that it was still early, he rode out of the palace and went to Guan Yingying's "teahouse" in the East City.

It was broad daylight, but the building doors were closed, and Nianke and Yanke weren't there. Only a young man was sitting in the lobby eating, holding a book in his hand.

"Is Miss Tu here?" Shi Xiu asked.

The person sitting there eating was Wei Bufan. He had originally been invited by Guan Yingying to look after the ice shop, but the shop lost money, so Wei Bufan and his widowed mother rented a house near the academy to study.

Guan Yingying approached him again, offering the same price: ten taels of silver a month. He wouldn't have to do much else, just serve the important person well when they were around.

"Miss Tu has gone out on business. May I ask what brings you here?"

"Give me some fruit tea, my master wants it right now."

Shi Xiu wanted to have a drink, but Wei Bufan said the tea leaves were locked up and he couldn't get them.

Left with no other choice, Shi Xiu had to go back first.

When Guan Yingying returned from outside, she heard Wei Bufan mention that Shi Xiu wanted fruit tea, and she knew that he had fallen in love with it.

Send it? Impossible!

If you want it, just ask her.

Sure enough, after his shift ended, Shi Xiu came by himself and gave Guan Yingying a luminous pearl. Guan Yingying didn't delay and asked Yan Ke and Nian Ke to brew another pot of tea for Shi Xiu.

Shi Xiu drank a pot of tea all night, and Guan Yingying also played some games, such as guessing dice and playing cards, otherwise Shi Xiu would have become suspicious if he only drank fruit tea.

Shi Xiu felt an indescribable sense of comfort. As she walked, she felt incredibly strong, and even the winter wind didn't feel so cold anymore.

He even had a thought: what does it matter if he has testicles or not? How can he not be happy for the rest of his life?

Upon returning to the Crown Prince's residence, they found the gate surrounded by countless soldiers.

He asked anxiously, "What happened?"

"His Highness is in trouble!" the gatekeeper said. "Eunuch Shi, where have you been today? A group of bandits came, highly skilled in martial arts. They killed most of the guards and even wounded His Highness with an arrow."

Shi Xiu felt so lightheaded that he practically floated away, and he scrambled towards the Crown Prince's bedchamber.

The imperial physicians from the manor and the palace were both treating the crown prince, and basins of bloody water irritated Shi Xiu's face, making it look distorted.

The prince had already been beaten with a hundred lashes, and then shot with an arrow, which made him almost faint from the pain.

The imperial physician removed the arrow from the crown prince's head, but the prince complained of the pain and shouted for his life.

The imperial physician was terrified and broke out in a cold sweat. He even used anesthetic powder, but it was no use.

It won't work if the arrow isn't pulled out.

Shi Xiu suddenly remembered that box of panaceas.