Chapter 104 Starting Point

After staying at Li Zhuo's residence for a while and arranging everything properly, Cen Yanhao finally left.

We came in through the side entrance.

When we left, we didn't even have a side gate to choose from; we had to climb over the wall.

The other follower was loyal, and after the initial shock, he quickly accepted it.

Hao San wasn't that he couldn't accept it, but rather, "It feels so good. I should have gone in with him."

After realizing what had happened, I felt a little regretful.

Unfortunately, it was Cen Yan who intervened and caused the death of Li Zhuo, not Li Zhuo himself.

Cen Yan: "..."

Cen Yan: "This matter was done by taking advantage of the right time and place. He also took the initiative to facilitate it. At a different time, it wouldn't have been so easy."

If he hadn't overthought things, his cleverness would have backfired; if he hadn't been careful to avoid suspicion, actively dispersing the surrounding servants and leaving not even the eunuch who had served him since childhood; if he hadn't been so suspicious, trusting no one except himself... In any other situation, Cen Yan would have been more cautious and wouldn't have acted so rashly.

Of course, most importantly, if it weren't for tomorrow...

Cen Yan: "After we get back, we'll have people keep an eye on things here. If there's anything unusual, we'll report it immediately."

Hao San: "Yes."

With Li Zhuo's matter temporarily settled, Cen Yan returned to his residence in Hangzhou, where he began to worry about changing clothes.

His clothes weren't light-colored, so it was fine in the dark, but the bloodstains became very visible when the lights were on.

I haven't done it myself in so long that I misjudged the distance.

If we had taken a step back then, none of this would have happened.

Now...

Hao San: "I'll go to the main house and get a set of clothes for the master?"

Cen Yan: "..."

It was said to be taking, but in reality, it was about using his skills to sneak past everyone and steal a set.

It's possible, but...

"No, thank you," Cen Yan said.

There's no need for that. It's our own home; we don't need to resort to such underhanded tactics.

Hao San scratched his head, "Then, Master, if you're trying to avoid the young master, you can't let Liu Fu see this, right?"

This was the first time Hao San's usually unused brain had been so accurate.

Cen Yan sighed softly.

Yes, to avoid Zhuang Dongqing, you also have to avoid Liu Fu.

Otherwise, if one person knows, the other person will also know.

"Or I'll go find Liu Fu and get everyone out of the way so you can go into the main room and change your clothes, Master?"

Cen Yangao glanced at Hao San and nodded.

After Hao Sanzhi opened Liufu, Cen Yan entered the main courtyard. When the servants saw him, they tried to approach him, but Cen Yan waved them away.

Upon entering the side room where clothes were stored, Cen Yan was momentarily disoriented.

There was no other way. He had been living in the Suzhou residence for more than two years since he came to Jiangnan. He had bought a house in Hangzhou, but due to the complexities of officialdom, Cen Yanwan would not leave Zhuang Dongqing and Cen An here alone. It would be no fun for him to live alone, so after several years, only recently, when the salt inspection was coming to an end, did he move the whole family here.

They were always busy, and the clean clothes they received every day were either provided by Zhuang Dongqing or Liu Fu.

Having lived here for a month or so, Cen Yan hadn't even stepped into this room once.

He opened another cabinet, and from the bright colors, he could tell that it contained Zhuang Dongqing's clothes. Cen Yan closed the cabinet door.

"Father, what are you doing?"

A childish voice suddenly came from behind, almost making Cen Yan freeze in place.

Cen An.

Cen Yan paused for a moment before speaking, "What's An'an doing here?"

The little boy, unsuspecting, cheerfully replied, "When I was playing hide-and-seek with Daddy, he told me to hide and he would come looking for me. I hid for a long time and he still didn't find me."

Cen Yan: "..."

I guess it's not that they didn't notice, but rather that they wanted some peace and quiet and deliberately didn't look for it, while the little brat also got a bit smug.

Zhuang Dongqing has used this move several times already.

But that's perfect...

Cen Yan: "Father needs to see Liu Qi. Can An'an help me call him over?"

"Uncle Liu?"

"Yes, it's urgent. Can An'an go now?"

Okay.

The little brat was honest. Cen Yan didn't even turn his whole body around (afraid that the bloodstains would frighten the child). He just said a few words to the side and then ran out on his short legs to call for help for his father.

Only after Cen An'an left did Cen Yan finally exhale a breath of relief.

If I had known, I should have asked Hao San to steal one.

But things are better now.

When Liu Qi arrives, he will cover for him.

With help, Cen Yan was no longer in a hurry. He sat down by the screen where he was changing clothes and began to repeatedly review the details of tonight in his mind, checking for any oversights and how to deal with them correctly tomorrow.

Lost in thought, Cen Yan heard the door open and said, "Find some clean clothes; yours are dirty."

Liu Qi listened without saying anything, and soon, the sound of rustling and rummaging came from inside the room.

Cen Yan: "Hao San went to see you, didn't he?"

“He’s not careful, so you’ll keep an eye on him tonight too, make sure nothing goes wrong.”

After giving the instructions, the new clothes were hung on the screen from the outside.

Cen Yan began to loosen his belt, then thought of something, "Take another set of inner garments too, they might have gotten soaked."

A short while later, a brand new set of inner garments appeared next to the new clothes.

Cen Yan: "You can deal with this outfit."

The old clothes were draped on the screen. The clean ones were not to be thrown on the ground by Cen Yan, who was afraid of getting blood on them. After he took them off, he put them aside. Only after he had changed completely did he hand them out, saying, "Be careful, don't get them in the room."

After saying this, his obsessive-compulsive disorder kicked in, and while tidying up his new clothes, he instructed, "Have someone thoroughly clean and sweep this house tomorrow to avoid bad luck."

The clothes in her hands were taken away, and her fingertips accidentally touched Cen Yan's wrist, causing Cen Yan to immediately pull her hand away.

He frowned, but considering it was dark, he didn't blame her.

Cen Yan: "Has An'an gone back to her room? Liu Fu, is he back too? Where is Qingqing?"

After I asked the question, there was no answer for a long time.

Cen Yan then realized that something was wrong.

When I looked up, the person outside the screen hadn't left; instead, they were examining the clothes closely.

Cen Yan's heart skipped a beat.

Realizing something, I was somewhat afraid to make out the outline on the screen.

After a moment, the other party finally stopped moving and looked over from a distance in the darkness.

After a moment of silence, Cen Yan asked in a hoarse voice, "Qingqing?"

"……Um."

Silence fell between the two sides again.

Squeak—

The door opened again, and a very soft voice sounded: "Master?"

Cen Yan: "..."

Zhuang Dongqing: "..."

Liu Qi has arrived.

“I coaxed An’an back into the house and handed her over to Grandma. Hao San came to see me. I’ve temporarily sent Liu Fu to the storeroom. Have you changed your clothes? Your clothes are all in the trunk. The young master’s and the young master’s clothes are hanging in the outer room. Oh right, I just passed by the main house and didn’t see the young master. I don’t know where he went. You’ll have to hurry…”

“I’m here,” Zhuang Dongqing said. “I figured An’an should be asleep by now, so I came here to find him.”

Liu Qi: "..."

Cen Yan: "..."

Liu Qi: "Cough, cough cough cough!"

Zhuang Dongqing spoke up unexpectedly, and Liu Qi choked on his own words before he could finish.

Cen Yan: "I'm here too. I've changed my clothes."

Liu Qi: "..."

Liu Qi clicked her tongue: "Then, then I..."

Zhuang Dongqing: "The blood-stained clothes are in my hands. Take them and dispose of them."

Cen Yan: "..."

Liu Qi: "..."

Liu Qi: "Okay."

It was pitch black, and all movement was made possible by the light from the lanterns in the courtyard that shone in through the windows.

Liu Qi reached the spot where the two people were speaking and discovered that there was a screen between them.

Silently taking the clothes, Liu Qi asked, "Then I'll... go downstairs?"

Cen Yan sighed.

"Let's light a lamp."

Liu Qi: "Oh, okay."

Liu Qi lit a lamp in the distance and walked very fast.

The candlelight flickered, illuminating the inner room, and the two finally saw each other clearly. Cen Yan's expression was complicated, and Zhuang Dongqing's was equally so.

As soon as the door clicked shut, Zhuang Dongqing remembered something and said, "Oh right, weren't you just going to tell Liu Qi something? I'll call him back so you can repeat it."

Cen Yan: "...Let's talk about it when he gets back, it's fine."

It must be some kind of tacit understanding; they'll come back and let me know when they're done, Zhuang Dongqing thought.

With her eyelashes lowered, Zhuang Dongqing said softly, "I came here to see An'an."

"I didn't expect to hear your voice as soon as I walked in..."

"You'll know the rest later."

Cen Yan closed his eyes.

Zhuang Dongqing was uneasy, her left hand gripping her right: "At first, I was wondering why you didn't turn on the light. It wasn't that you didn't speak on purpose. You asked me to find clothes as soon as you arrived, so I didn't think much of it..."

Later, when he realized something was wrong, he didn't dare to say anything more.

Deep down, I could probably guess that Cen Yan was avoiding me.

Later, Cen Yan himself offered up the reason for hiding, and the clothes smelled strongly of blood as soon as he received them.

"Qingqing".

Cen Yan suddenly interrupted him.

He took half a step out from behind the screen, exposing himself completely to Zhuang Dongqing's view. After a moment of silence, Cen Yan said, "I killed Li Zhuo."

Li Zhuo... Oh, it seems he was going to meet someone tonight.

Wait, what's that word in front of me...?

Zhuang Dongqing's eyes widened suddenly, "Killed? Killed?"

"Um."

Cen Yan calmly replied.

If Zhuang Dongqing hadn't seen the bloodstained clothes, then it would have been fine if he hadn't told her.

Having seen him, Cen Yan didn't want to deceive him.

Shunxin chose to tell the truth.

Zhuang Dongqing was speechless for a long time, unable to recover for a long time.

Cen Yan felt a lump in her throat and asked, "Don't you have anything to ask me?"

"Can...can I ask?" Zhuang Dongqing swallowed unconsciously.

"Sure, there's nothing you can't ask."

He asked, and he answered.

I wonder what kind of look and mood Zhuang Dongqing will have after hearing it.

Zhuang Dongqing: "There's something I wanted to ask earlier."

"you say."

"Are you... not hurt?"

Cen Yan: "..."

Cen Yan was in a daze.

My first reaction was to tilt my head and ask, "What?"

Zhuang Dongqing reached out with her right hand to grasp her left, saying, "I'm saying, since we started fighting, are you alright? You weren't hurt, were you?"

"It's all...it's all his blood, isn't it?"

Cen Yan: "..."

You heard right.

Not only did I not mishear, but looking at Zhuang Dongqing's expression, I saw worry in his eyes under the candlelight.

An undisguised worry.

Cen Yan laughed.

Zhuang Dongqing was bewildered by the laughter. "W-what's wrong?"

Cen Yan: "Is that all you wanted to ask me?"

Zhuang Dongqing's eyes darted away for a moment, then he looked back at her honestly, "This is the most important thing."

Cen Yan's heart softened completely.

He relaxed completely and joked, "Qingqing, you're really... If I ever killed someone in front of you and they weren't quite dead, would you help me finish them off?"

Zhuang Dongqing's mind didn't quite catch on, and she actually thought about it seriously, saying, "It depends on the situation..."

"for example?"

"Someone like Li Zhuo, I guess so."

Since a fight has broken out, the two sides can't let it end peacefully. If finishing off the enemy would kill him, he probably would.

Otherwise, living would definitely be more troublesome.

Cen Yan actually laughed, leaving Zhuang Dongqing puzzled.

Cen Yan: "I was just teasing you, didn't you realize?"

Zhuang Dongqing: "Huh?"

Cen Yan's smile faded, and he looked at Zhuang Dongqing with tender eyes. "It's alright, I'm not injured."

Leaning forward to close the distance, Cen Yan said, "I really want to kiss you."

His tone was solemn, as if it were something very serious.

Zhuang Dongqing: "..."

Finally sensing the shift in the tense atmosphere, Zhuang Dongqing said awkwardly, "Then...then you..."

Cen Yan: "No, I'm dirty."

They had just fought, and blood had splattered on them. If they hadn't been caught, fine, but if they had, Cen Yan would be the first to despise them, let alone try to get close to Zhuang Dongqing in this state.

"Could you please ask Luk Fook to prepare some water for me? I'm not feeling well right now."

"Okay, sure."

Thinking of something, Zhuang Dongqing asked again, "What about Liu Qi? Should I call him back?"

"This is a big matter, you should discuss it."

Cen Yan smiled and nodded, "Thank you for your trouble, Qingqing."

Fearing delay, Zhuang Dongqing immediately went to call for help.

Cen Yan stood there for a while, his mind filled with all sorts of filthy thoughts. After a moment, he cleared them all away and walked out.

*

After explaining everything, Cen Yan went to wash up.

He washed his whole body and even his hair. Zhuang Dongqing was beside him, helping him add water, her expression focused.

Somehow the conversation turned to An'an, and the two talked for quite a while. It wasn't until they were drying their hair that Zhuang Dongqing remembered Li Zhuo's matter.

But they only asked a few key questions.

For example, is it troublesome?

Did Li Zhuo do anything excessive?

Can you handle this properly?

Such as...

Cen Yan chuckled: "You really don't ask about anything else?"

Zhuang Dongqing thought for a moment and said seriously, "First of all, I don't like this person. Secondly, if you really did resort to violence, you must have your reasons."

Zhuang Dongqing never doubted Cen Yan's judgment of the situation.

If the problem cannot be resolved, Cen Yan probably won't take action.

They started fighting...

Zhuang Dongqing muttered, "Anyway, he's not a good person."

"You're so biased, Qingqing."

"But I like it so much."

He likes Zhuang Dongqing and favors him.

She only favors him.

Zhuang Dongqing felt somewhat embarrassed by what he said.

Cen Yan said no more, there was no need, and took Zhuang Dongqing's hand and kissed her.

When things got out of hand, Zhuang Dongqing pushed Cen Yan and said, "Stop messing with me."

"Stop making a fuss. Is that okay?"

Realizing what Cen Yan was asking, Zhuang Dongqing paused for a moment before replying, "Sure, but didn't you say..."

They said he wasn't feeling well and wanted to wait a while longer to recover.

"I've changed my mind."

"?"

Cen Yan pulled Zhuang Dongqing down and whispered in his ear, "Slow down, okay?"

A few kisses landed on his earlobe, the sensation making Zhuang Dongqing tremble. His warm breath rushed into her ear canal, and Cen Yan said in a hoarse voice, "I don't want to hold back anymore, I can't hold back anymore, okay? Hmm? Qingqing, Qingqing..."

Zhuang Dongqing's eyes welled up with tears, and she nodded breathlessly, "Okay."

So obedient.

The night was indeed very slow.

Cen Yan dared not let Zhuang Dongqing use his arms to pull her up.

Holding it, spinning it around, grinding it.

In the middle of the night, Zhuang Dongqing's voice was choked with sobs as she begged for mercy.

Even so, it took another half an hour before they could finally rest.

Zhuang Dongqing didn't want to move a single finger.

After tidying up, I fell asleep the moment my head hit the pillow.

I slept without any dreams.

Zhuang Dongqing didn't wake up until almost noon the next day.

When I woke up, I heard the news of the accident.

Rumors were swirling within the mansion.

explain,

The fourth prince killed the third prince in the morning and fled.

Zhuang Dongqing: "Huh?"

Liu Fu whispered, "The Fourth Prince arrived in Hangzhou in the middle of the night. After the ship docked, he rode to the Third Prince's residence before dawn. When the servants pushed open the door to bring tea, they found the Third Prince lying in a pool of blood, with the Fourth Prince beside him..."

"They wouldn't let them leave, and the Fourth Prince and his men even killed a servant..."

"When Eunuch Feng heard this, he rushed over, but the Fourth Prince had already escaped by boat."

"It is said that Eunuch Feng is currently having a headache, not knowing how to report this matter back to the capital."