Chapter 170 The Noble Young Master of a Marquis's Family (Part 9) The Noble Young Master's Revenge and Love Story...

After leaving Cangchun Tower, Song Ce did not return directly to the Marquis of Weiwu's residence, but instead headed towards the Western Market.

The Western Market's foreign quarters covered an area of ​​immense size, comparable to the official Mingzhou quarters. Many Persian, Uyghur, Sogdian, and Arab merchants lived there, often gathering to sell exotic jewels, spices, jade, and felt carpets, among other rare overseas treasures such as coral and pearls.

On ordinary days, the customers who come to the Western Market's foreign trade quarters are mostly ordinary people, traveling merchants, and their stewards. A noble young man with such outstanding temperament and gentle demeanor as Song Ce is truly a rare sight.

As Song Ce approached the stone archway at the entrance of the foreign quarter, a foreign man dressed in coarse cloth came to greet him. With a smile on his face, he spoke in broken Mandarin and asked him politely, "Young master, have you come here to purchase some rare items? I am Arodi, and I have been a broker in this quarter for over ten years. I can find you any kind of exotic treasure."

Have you ever seen these things before?

Song Ce smiled slightly and took out a piece of Xuan paper that he had prepared earlier from his sleeve. On it, he used ink to outline the shapes of potatoes, corn and sweet potatoes.

Arodi squinted, examining the plants closely for a long while before scratching his curly beard and saying uncertainly, "These flowers and plants you painted, young master... I've never seen them before. However, a few days ago, a merchant ship owner from the Arab world brought back some strange-looking bonsai, saying they were rare items transported from the far west. Perhaps you can find what you're looking for there."

Upon hearing this, Song Ce immediately took out two taels of silver and handed it to A Luo Di, saying, "Thank you for informing me. Please take me there."

"Yes...yes, young master, this way please."

Arodi had never met such a kind and benefactor before. He immediately stammered his thanks and led Song Ce all the way to the shop of the Arab merchant ship owner.

"Click! Click! A distinguished guest has arrived! Come out quickly!"

Upon hearing Arodi's call, a large Arab man with a half-beard quickly emerged from behind the curtain.

"Hey, Arodi, what are you yelling about? I've only just rested!"

"What rest? Are those rare things you had before still alive? This young master wants to take a look, and if there are any that suit his taste, he can buy a couple."

Upon hearing Arodi's words, Kaz immediately perked up. He looked Song Ce up and down a few times, and then spoke fluent Mandarin: "Honored guest, this way please! My ship's treasures were watered with goat's milk a few days ago, and every single one of them is thriving!"

As he spoke, Kaz lifted the curtain of the inner room, and there were several tomato plants growing crookedly in the large earthenware pot.

Song Ce: "..." This is truly an unexpected delight!

He suppressed his excitement and pointed at the tomato, asking Kaz, "What is this?"

Kaz followed his gaze, scratched his head and laughed, "Honorable guest, you have a good eye! This is the Green-Red Demon Fruit that I transported from the far west. Although the fruit is inedible, it is an excellent ornamental plant! Look at its color and texture, red like fire and green like jade. Placing it in your home can ward off evil spirits!"

Upon hearing this, Song Ce raised an eyebrow. It seemed that someone in the far west had tried eating tomatoes, but unfortunately, the tomatoes weren't ripe yet, resulting in poisoning. This was why tomatoes were classified as poisonous.

Seeing Song Ce's calm expression, Kaz assumed that the distinguished guest hadn't taken a liking to the Green-Red Demon Fruit. Indeed, the Great Yue Kingdom considered itself a superior nation, and these nobles were even more arrogant; how could they possibly be interested in a demon fruit from such a small, remote polar region?

“Honored guest, take another look at this Woxinzi. I obtained this by chance when I passed through the land of Fusang. The Fusang people asked me for two hundred moon coins!”

Song Ce nodded, then picked off a chili leaf with great interest and crushed it, immediately filling his nose with a spicy aroma.

"Hmm, this thing looks quite elegant, but the smell isn't very pleasant. Kaz, how much is this pot of Woxinzi?"

Kaz chuckled and immediately began to boast about the wonders of the Woxin plant. He rattled off a long tale, but seeing Song Ce's ambiguous expression, he quickly stopped and tentatively asked, "If you like it, esteemed guest, give me ten taels of silver, and this pot of Woxin will be yours. How about it?"

Song Ce frowned, neither saying he wanted it nor he didn't. After a long while, he said, "You certainly know how to do business. You spent two hundred monthly coins to acquire this item, and then you're offering me five times that price to resell it."

Upon hearing this, Kaz immediately felt a little panicked. After all, this creature was delicate and expensive, and it was already somewhat wilted. If it ended up unsold in his hands, he wouldn't be able to sell it for a single penny.

“Honored guest, I, Kaz, am an honest businessman. If you are truly interested, I will give you this pot of green and red magic fruit as a bonus. How about that?”

He thought to himself, after all, this item only cost two monthly coins, so it couldn't be anything rare. He might as well do this favor and leave a good impression on this distinguished guest.

Upon hearing this, Song Ce smiled with relief and readily took out the money: "Deal!"

When Kaz saw that there were really suckers who believed his nonsense and paid for these useless bonsai trees, he laughed even more heartily.

"Honored guest, please take another look over here."

Kaz pointed to the sweet potato seedlings in the corner and said with a kind smile, "This thing is called ground honey grass. It has a beautiful shape and a well-developed root system. It's quite big!" As he spoke, he took out a section of reddish sweet potato root from under the straw mat next to him. There were also several spindle-shaped sweet potatoes attached to the bottom, covered with wet mud.

"According to those Lü Mo people, this root tastes sweet and can be cooked to fill one's stomach when necessary. On the return voyage, I had the boatmen cook a few for us to try, but the taste was rather bland and dry, so we left them aside to feed the horses. If you are interested, I will give you two to try."

Song Ce approached calmly, running his hand over the rough skin of the sweet potato: "You mean, beneath the lush green vines of the ground honey grass, the root system is so coarse?"

Kaz: "..." What nonsense is this guest talking about?

Hearing Song Ce's critical comments, Kaz quickly smiled apologetically: "Honored guest, if you don't like this one buried underground, you can simply not look at it, so as not to offend your eyes!"

"Alright, alright, I'm not that picky. Name your price for this ground honey grass! But you have to let me take these roots back. If these few ground honey grass plants don't survive, I can take care of them myself."

Kaz smiled and said, "How about I charge you ten taels of silver for this ground honey grass?"

Song Ce smiled and glanced at Kaz indifferently, which made Kaz's heart pound.

Kaz: "Distinguished guest, if you feel the price is too high, we can discuss it further."

"No need, ten taels it is, but..."

Upon hearing Song Ce's agreement, Kaz was overjoyed. "Honorable guest, is there anything else you need? Please tell me, and I, Kaz, will certainly not refuse! I will consider you a friend!"

...

Half an hour later, Song Ce left the Xuan paper with the potatoes and corn drawn on it with Kaz, asking him to keep an eye on them. Kaz immediately agreed. Seeing this, Arodi found two of his men to help Song Ce carry these precious plants onto the carriage, and then followed him out of the foreign quarters and onto the Marquis of Weiwu's residence.

Upon seeing the imposing vermilion gates of the Marquis of Weiwu's residence, Arodi and his two subordinates immediately widened their eyes. Good heavens! This young master actually comes from a first-class duke's family in the Great Yue Kingdom! What an extraordinary and noble status!

Song Ce smiled, took out three taels of silver and handed it to A Luodi, then gave each of his two subordinates one tael of silver before instructing the guards at the gate to move all the things he had bought into Xianyuan Garden.

Arrodi beamed with joy as he held the newly acquired three taels of silver, and led his men in a respectful bow, saying, "If you need anything in the future, please feel free to send someone over to give the order!"

"Okay, thank you very much for today."

After returning to the mansion, Song Ce went straight to the secluded garden in the backyard.

Previously, this secluded garden was a medicinal herb garden specially managed by the original owner's grandfather, Song Chengming. Now it is overgrown with weeds and is just right for him to use as an "experimental field".

"Moshu, go to the back room and get some hoes, and while you're at it, have someone find some night soil and wood ash."

"...Young master, Night Soil, ugh...what use do you have for Night Soil?"

Song Ce smiled leisurely, "How about I exchange a bucket of night soil for five qian of silver?"

"Please wait a moment, young master. I will immediately instruct my servants to find Ye Tu for you!"

Mo Shu perked up, grabbed a hoe, and hurried outside. Song Ce watched his retreating figure and couldn't help but smile, then picked up the hoe and began clearing the land from the east end of the garden.

On one side, Song Ce was rubbing his hands together, preparing to transplant crops such as sweet potatoes, tomatoes, and peppers; on the other side, Sun Qing'er was restless in the house, constantly looking out the window.

About the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, her personal maid, Zi Ming, rushed into the room, panting, and said, "Miss... I've found out that His Highness the Second Prince... did indeed bring a woman back to the manor! This woman seems to be very much favored by His Highness; she has been serving him in bed for several days in a row!"

"Are you telling the truth?" Upon hearing this, Sun Qing'er's hand trembled, and the handkerchief she was tightly clutching fell to the ground.

Zi Ming nodded hurriedly, "This is absolutely true, how could this servant dare to lie to you, Miss!"

Sun Qing'er suddenly stood up, her voice trembling as she asked, "That woman... have you found out anything about her background?"

"I heard that this woman named Lüzhu is the top courtesan in the Hidden Spring Pavilion!" Ziming lowered her voice, her face full of disdain. "She's nothing but a prostitute who's been ridden by a thousand men and slept with by ten thousand. I don't know what His Highness the Second Prince was thinking, bringing such a person into the manor!"

"She's... a woman of the night?"

Sun Qing'er's heart skipped a beat, and her fingertips suddenly dug into her palm.

"Miss, Miss? Why do you look so pale?" Zi Ming said worriedly, taking her arm. "Are you feeling unwell?"

"It's nothing, you can go now. I want to be alone for a while." Sun Qing'er took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down.

"Yes, Miss." Zi Ming bowed deeply to her and quietly left.

Sun Qing'er was the only one left in the room. She didn't bother to pick up the handkerchief and hurried to the dressing table, only to see a pale and haggard face reflected in the bronze mirror.

Sun Qing'er stared fixedly at her reflection in the mirror, her beauty no longer what it once was, her mind a jumble of emotions. Warm sunlight streamed through the cracks in the window, casting dappled shadows on the floor, mirroring the complex emotions she felt.

Ironically, just days before he carried her into the mansion, he had someone summon him to leave for a secret rendezvous... Although the ring of finger marks on the back of his neck was covered with rouge, some faint bluish-purple marks were still visible.

Looking back, she had been subservient to Zhao Xuanhong for two years. At this moment, she desperately wanted to know: to him, what did she, Sun Qing'er, mean?

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Author's Note: [Dog head with rose in hand]