Chapter 81

The princess stared wide-eyed at the mangled carriage, finding it hard to believe that such a thing could be done by human hands. She looked at Xue Jin'an again, her gaze now filled with a mixture of surprise and uncertainty.

Just then, little Taylor in his arms suddenly cried out "Wow!" with bright, sparkling eyes: "Daddy fell down! Uncle is so amazing!"

As Little Taylor spoke, she clapped her hands and pointed to her poor father, who was lying there in a daze, saying, "Mommy, Chaoyang wants to learn this!"

Her expression was undeniably vivid, and her voice undeniably lively—this was the first time she had been like this since her ordeal.

The prince consort was helped out of the ruins by several people. Xue Jin'an's move was so sudden that even someone skilled in martial arts might not have been able to react in time, let alone the prince consort who came from a scholarly family and had the physique of a pure scholar.

Fortunately, Xue Jin'an only struck the joints, so the carriage fell apart rather than being smashed to pieces. Therefore, there weren't many broken pieces of wood or other debris, and the floorboards remained intact. Otherwise, he would have suffered more than just a sore backside; he would have been bleeding.

The prince consort had fallen hard, his buttocks were numb with pain. Even with the best upbringing, his expression changed for a moment. But he still wanted to maintain his gentlemanly demeanor, so he endured the pain and had someone help him out. As a result, he saw his dear daughter clapping happily and even wanted to ask the culprit to be his apprentice and learn this skill.

Not only that, when Xue Jin'an clapped his hands and turned to leave, little Tai Le struggled to get down from the princess's arms, stretched out his arms to follow her, and kept calling out "Uncle, Uncle".

If the eldest princess hadn't been quick-witted and grabbed her hand again, this daughter would have truly belonged to someone else.

The old father could no longer maintain his composure.

The prince consort felt a pang of jealousy, but seeing his daughter's rare expression, he couldn't bear to spoil it. However, he still couldn't help but pinch little Tai Le's nose, saying, "You heartless little thing, you only care about your uncle and don't care about your father's life or death."

Little Taile picked at his fingers, then stood there silently, his eyes still fixed on the direction the Seventh Prince had left in. Even after the prince's figure disappeared around the corner, he still looked lost in thought.

As the prince consort watched, he suddenly chuckled. He raised an eyebrow at the princess, exuding a youthful and dashing air, and pointed at his daughter, saying with a smile, "Look, she truly is my daughter. She has the same style I had back then."

Du Qiu and Du Zhongting were once a spoiled young master from a prominent family. Although not so much of a nuisance as to be universally disliked, they were still known in the capital for their charms. They enjoyed admiring and painting beautiful women, and their homes contained a considerable collection of fans depicting them. However, the family of the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel was known for its strict discipline, with the young master being required to return home by nightfall. Therefore, they never caused any trouble.

Of course, even if there were any romantic entanglements, it would be impossible for him to become the consort of a princess, especially the eldest princess. As the emperor's first daughter, the eldest princess was already quite favored, not to mention that she was backed by the Jiang family, the pinnacle of nobility, making her truly of the highest rank and status.

Moreover, the eldest princess was beautiful, had a noble air, and displayed a gentle and graceful nature. She could be said to be the model of a noble lady in the capital, and countless men wanted to marry her.

It remains unknown why the Princess chose Du Qiu from among thousands of people, but it is clear at a glance that Du Qiu was willing to marry the princess; he was simply blinded by her beauty at first glance.

The princess was beautiful, but not beautiful enough to bewitch a nation or captivate the mind. However, she was exactly the kind of woman Du Qiu admired. When they first got married, he would often lose focus whenever he spoke to the princess, staring at her involuntarily, and was teased about it many times.

I used to be embarrassed about it, but now I dare to bring it up and make fun of myself.

The eldest princess also chimed in with a joke: "Beauty can be deceiving. You're no good; you're too easily fooled."

"I am willing to take the blame for you, I only ask that Your Highness show me more mercy." The prince consort pointed to the broken carriage and joked close to the princess's ear, only to be met with a sidelong glance from the princess.

The Seventh Prince had already gone far away. When the Prince Consort saw his daughter still looking around, he picked her up and pressed his forehead against her cold cheek, saying, "Good Chaoyang, stop looking. If you keep looking, your father will get jealous."

"Uncle!" Little Taile called out, clutching his head.

The prince consort was also exasperated and couldn't help but sigh, "Back when you were first rescued and brought back to the manor, you kept calling me 'uncle.' When you had nightmares and cried, you wouldn't let your father hold you; you just wanted to find your uncle. It made me quite jealous for a while. Later, when I took you to the Yongyi Marquis's manor to see your beloved Uncle Chu, you hid behind your father and refused to come out. After that, you stopped calling him that."

"I never imagined that just two years after the last Uncle Chu, you'd find another Uncle Qi to nag about. Sigh, it really makes your father sad. I wish my little Chaoyang would be so devoted to her father." The prince consort said, carrying his daughter as they walked out.

The palace banquet had an unexpected mishap and ended much earlier than planned. However, after all the commotion, it was still past 7 PM. The carriage had broken down, and since they had their families with them, they couldn't stay in the palace any longer, so they had no choice but to walk back.

As the prince consort was speaking, he suddenly realized that the princess had not followed. He turned around in confusion and saw her standing behind him with a slightly furrowed brow and a bad expression.

"What's wrong?" The prince consort immediately went back, asking while reflecting on everything he had said. He suddenly realized that he had mentioned the abduction of his daughter two years ago, which had displeased the princess. He quickly grabbed her hand and said, "It was my oversight. I won't talk about these things again."

He immediately changed the subject, "I was sitting in the carriage just now and didn't see how the Seventh Prince dismantled the carriage. I didn't see him do anything. It's really strange."

He had only asked casually, but to his surprise, his daughter in his arms responded, "Uncle used pebbles to 'whoosh whoosh whoosh,' and Daddy fell down."

Her face was flushed when she said this, and her voice was unusually bright and cheerful, rather than dull, slow, and incoherent. It was clear that she had been thinking about this all along.

Although the prince consort was pleasantly surprised by his daughter's performance today, he was also quite jealous. Just as he was about to say something, the princess's voice interrupted, and after removing her usual gentle and tactful tone, it sounded rather cold.

"Chaoyang, who is the uncle you're talking about? Is it Chu Wenjing, or Seventh Uncle?" The princess's eyes were filled with a calculation that the prince consort couldn't understand. She vaguely grasped something and urgently needed to confirm it.

However, Little Taylor blinked and, a beat slow to react, said in a dazed tone, "An uncle is an uncle."

"Chaoyang, you know what I'm asking, don't play dumb." Everyone thought the child had been traumatized after experiencing hardship, but the princess knew that she was just lost in her own thoughts and ignoring everyone. In reality, she knew everything that people said and did.

The reason why the wet nurse who was beaten to death for gossiping in the manor could hear the Princess's words in private was because the wet nurse treated Xiao Tai Le as a real fool, didn't care about her at all, and didn't avoid talking to her.

The eldest princess didn't care that her daughter was immersed in her own world and became a well-known fool. Sometimes she would see that her daughter was young and knew that she didn't want to answer, so she wouldn't ask. But that didn't mean that she would let herself be fooled every time.

The eldest princess pressed, "Who exactly is this 'uncle' you're talking about?"

Little Taile shook his head, seemingly frightened by the princess. He buried his head in his husband's arms and went back to his own world.

"Alright, alright, we can talk about it later. Don't pressure Chaoyang." The prince consort gently patted his daughter's back on both sides to coax her.

The eldest princess frowned slightly, her face turned cold, and a hint of impatience flashed in her eyes, clearly indicating that she was preparing to find out the truth about the matter.

Seeing that things were not going well, the prince consort said, "What happened back then is in the past. We will not pursue it further. That's what we agreed on."

As soon as the words left his mouth, he felt annoyed, realizing he had said the wrong thing. Seeing that the princess was just looking at him without saying anything, he quickly reached out to take her hand, but she avoided it by covering her mouth.

The princess coughed twice, covering her mouth. The coldness and impatience on her face disappeared quickly like the receding tide, replaced by her usual gentleness and grace. She looked like a woman who had walked out of the misty rain of Jiangnan, and her smile was as gentle as a spring rain nourishing the earth.

This was the princess's favorite appearance. Every smile and frown seemed to have grown out of his preferences, yet he inexplicably felt a sense of irritation. After comparing her to the princess before, seeing her like this now felt like a mirage, a beautiful illusion.

"Let's go." The princess took his hand and led him toward the palace gate.

The prince consort wanted to say something, opened his mouth, but ultimately said nothing.

*

Xue Jin'an spent a rather relaxed period at Chaoyang Palace. During the New Year holiday, the morning court was suspended, and there were fewer people in the palace as they all went home to visit their families. Although the concubines in the palace could not leave, starting from the first month of the lunar calendar, relatives of the empress began to send their petitions to the palace to pay New Year's greetings one after another. The various live streaming rooms were quite lively, but the liveliness was somewhat similar.

Helian City's military training channel had also stopped training before the Lunar New Year. Xue Jin'an had gotten used to training with them every day, and suddenly without the background noise of the channel, he felt a little uncomfortable. So he simply stopped doing anything except for the daily basic training and gave himself a break.

On the sixth day of the Lunar New Year, the last day of his annual leave, Cui Zui was finally allowed to enter the palace. He entered the palace early in the morning, holding a stack of account books, his expression revealing his obvious and undisguised joy and pride.

Anyone who spoke to him in Zhaoyang Palace would only receive the same response: "What? How do you know that Jiutianyi Chess and Card Room earned 21,927 taels, 1 mace, and 4 wen in just five days?"

This amount, with both whole and fractional parts, has clearly been carefully calculated.

"So many?" Lingzhi and the others had lived in the palace for years, where even an egg cost a tael of silver. Although they had lost some of their normal concept of money, they still knew that a number of over ten thousand was a lot.

To put it simply, the annual tax revenue of the Great Qi Dynasty was only around tens of millions of taels of silver. The previous conscription reform had depleted the country's resources, and if any construction or mishap occurred, the reform would be impossible to continue.

Minister Feng had indeed put in a lot of effort to keep the national treasury running smoothly. No wonder he turned into a miser whenever money was mentioned, and no wonder he was so eager to cut the Ministry of War's expenses. It was true that the national treasury had no surplus money, while too much was spent on maintaining the army.

Fortunately, the reforms have now ended, funds have gradually flowed back, and the emperor has also consciously refrained from any further extravagance. When the national treasury was cleared at the end of the year, there was finally some surplus money left for further development.

Minister Feng was very pleased. If the eldest prince hadn't dragged Feng Shi out during the New Year's banquet this year and forced the Feng family to take sides, he would have been even happier this year.

On another note, when Lingzhi and the others heard about the profits from the card room, they all showed expressions of admiration, remarking, "Those powerful families really do have a deep foundation."

Cui Zui reported to Xue Jin'an that the Jiu Tian Yi Chess and Card Room officially opened on the first day of the Lunar New Year, with the families of three ministers from the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of Works, and the Ministry of War helping out, making the scene very lively.

Although the families of the three ministers were somewhat reluctant to support an unknown scholar, it wasn't that they were arrogant; it was simply that this was how social interactions among prominent families in the capital were—if you lowered your stance even once, you would be ridiculed by countless people.

However, they also knew that the cooperation between the three departments of Jiutianyi was a big deal that could not be ruined. They had to stand firm on this platform. They did their best to invite friends and relatives, and even sent out invitations in a very serious manner. It was fortunate that the three of them were together, otherwise, it was really hard to believe that anyone would come.

Fortunately, the chess and card room had a very novel selection of games and the service was very attentive. All the snacks and pastries in the store were from well-established brands in Beijing. They were not cheap, but they were free to eat. If you wanted to buy anything, you just had to ask, and the staff would help you buy it from outside. It was quite thoughtful.

Even if people who come here aren't really interested in card games, they won't find this place bad. Not to mention, the card games here are truly unheard of and unseen, captivating everyone's attention. "On the first day, 60% of the people paid to become members, and many more joined afterward, especially young masters and gentlemen, while there were fewer ladies and young misses."

During the Spring Festival, a time of leisure, not only officials and their sons come out to play, but ordinary people also go out for entertainment, making the streets and markets the busiest places. The owners of teahouses and taverns are quite shrewd; many have imitated the style of card and mahjong parlors, opening dedicated private rooms for these games and offering special packages. For example, spending a certain amount waives the card and mahjong fees and dining costs, along with various discounts and benefits—they are quite shrewd indeed.

In a game of cards, there are always winners and losers. The winners are happy and don't mind spending money to treat others to a meal. It's basically a sure-fire way for them to make money.

“Do some market research. It seems that the types of card and board games don’t suit the tastes of the ladies.” Xue Jin’an immediately grasped the key point and brought up the issues of family and multi-person shared memberships, as well as membership points.

"Okay, I'll get it done as soon as possible." Cui Zuixian agreed first, then asked, "If I use points to redeem, what's a good thing to redeem? Isn't the commemorative edition board game a bit too monotonous?"

Xue Jin'an thought for a moment and said, "Find a few craftsmen to make merchandise, such as sculpting the characters on the cards."

Xue Jin'an explained the concept of "surroundings" to him, and Cui Zui's eyes lit up as he listened.

In addition, Xue Jin'an also helped Cui Zui solve the problem of excessively high operating costs. The main issue was that the tea snacks in the shop were expensive and consumed in large quantities. After asking how many people were willing to buy the tea snacks after trying them in the shop, Xue Jin'an directly asked Cui Zui to use them as tasting points to advertise to other shops.

Many shops would be willing to spend money on advertising. In addition, books and magazines can be added. It doesn't take up much space, but all of these can be utilized.

Cui Zui was immediately enlightened upon hearing this, and he even drew inferences from it, thinking that other functional rooms could be opened, such as rooms specifically for playing the piano and singing.

Isn't this just like a KTV in later generations? However, Xue Jin'an thought about it and shook his head. He agreed with Cui Zui's idea, but said that it wouldn't work in a chess and card room, but could be turned into a separate KTV in the future.

The main reason is that ancient soundproofing technology was not good, and even in modern times, KTVs can easily be associated with sex, which requires a lot of mental effort.

Cui Zui nodded repeatedly, his gaze toward Xue Jin'an growing increasingly reverent.

Cui Zui had finally built up his business and had so many things he wanted to learn, that he unknowingly missed the time to leave the palace, so he simply stayed in Zhaoyang Palace.

"That's perfect. Let's have hot pot together tonight and have some fun." Lingzhi smiled, rolled up her sleeves, and went downstairs to prepare the meal herself.

The hot pot broth was prepared by Lingzhi herself. To ensure everyone could enjoy it, a half-and-half pot was specially made. However, for hot pot, unless you can't eat spicy food at all, most people would choose the spicy broth. Everyone ate together with great enthusiasm and in a very lively atmosphere.

Halfway through the meal, Cui Zui suddenly returned to his carriage mysteriously and came back carrying something in his clothes.

"What is this?" Fu Lu sniffed, put down his chopsticks, rubbed his nose with a handkerchief, and asked curiously.

Cui Zui chuckled lewdly, and just as he got into a fighting stance, his master saw right through him, saying, "The wine is three years old."

Xue Jin'an had already analyzed the data on the unfamiliar odor molecules in the air around him. He not only accurately revealed the time of the wine's brewing but also described the brewing environment, leaving Cui Zui completely stunned.

"Is that so?" Shouquan nudged Cui Zui with his elbow and asked.

Cui Zui subconsciously said, "How would I know? I stole this wine from the old man... no, I took it secretly. It wasn't stealing; he even bought it with my money."

"Oh~" The crowd looked at him with amusement.

Ignoring them, Cui Zui pestered Xue Jin'an, asking, "Master, how did you know that?"

Xue Jin'an told the truth: "I could tell by smell."

Cui Zui sniffed hard at the wine jar wrapped in his clothes in his arms, but could only barely smell a trace of wine. He couldn't tell what it was after a long time.

He wanted to ask again, but the others wouldn't let him. Lingzhi even directly ordered Fuling to grab it, while Fulu added a voiceover: "Give it to me!"

"Hey, let me smell it again, I'm sure I can smell it!" Cui Zui was very unwilling to admit defeat.

Fu Ling, who rarely spoke, opened and closed her mouth and uttered three idioms: "bringing shame upon oneself, bringing about one's own destruction, and feeling ashamed of oneself."

Cui Zui: "..."

Cui Zui was suppressed, and the jar of wine was opened and divided. Xue Jin'an only took two sips and then stopped drinking. He had no interest in wine. The data his tongue gave after tasting it showed that it was related to pain and bitterness. He didn't quite understand why some humans liked to drink.

Fu Lu and Shou Quan didn't drink much either. They each took a small sip and their faces turned red. Ling Zhi was also quite restrained. The remaining wine was almost entirely divided up by Cui Zui and Fu Ling. The two even fought over the last sip of wine.

Unexpectedly, Cui Zui's fighting ability was halved due to the alcohol, while Fu Ling, also drunk, was the complete opposite, attacking faster and harder than usual. As a result, Cui Zui was caught off guard and lost the fight. Frustrated, he couldn't help but yell, and in the end, the impatient Fu Ling hung him from the roof beam.

No one knows how Fuling tied him up, or perhaps Cui Zui's fighting power was so greatly reduced by the alcohol that he couldn't break free. Hanging from the rafters and swinging back and forth, he actually became sleepy and closed his eyes to doze off.

The others also started to feel the effects of the alcohol. Fulu hugged Xue Jin'an's leg and began to wipe away tears. He hugged a stool as if it were Zhou Yuting's memorial tablet and kept babbling and praising Xue Jin'an to him.

Shouquan patted him on the shoulder to comfort him. At first glance, he didn't seem drunk, until he picked up the chopsticks on the table, took out a tinderbox and started to light it, while wondering, "Why is this incense so hard to burn?"

Lingzhi was the least obvious one. She even remembered using a cup of leftover wine to boost Xuan Shiyi's favorability and talking to him for a while as a colleague of the Clothing Department. Of course, Lingzhi was not from the Clothing Department, but Lu Bingzhu was the former head of the Clothing Department, so Lingzhi inevitably knew some things when she was learning from him.

Lingzhi told Xuan Shiyi those things not to turn him to the side, but simply to lull him into a false sense of security and establish some connection with him. Since this person was staying in Zhaoyang Palace, he couldn't just be a freeloader; there would be a time when he would be useful.

Lingzhi didn't have much conversation with Xuan Shiyi, whom she barely knew. After talking for a while, she went back to her room and saw the scene of the demons dancing wildly. She couldn't help but twitch her lips.

Xue Jin'an genuinely believed she wasn't affected by the alcohol until she heard her say, "Your Highness, do you enjoy Buddhist scriptures?"

Lingzhi had been curious about the Seventh Prince's daily chanting of Buddhist scriptures in his sleep for a long time, but after asking, she realized, "Wait a minute, Fulu told me before that the Fifth Prince had heard your singing, but why have I never heard it before?"

Xue Jin'an grasped the key point: "You want to hear me sing?"

Instantly, everyone's eyes turned to him, and even Cui Zui opened his sleepy eyes.

"Is that alright?" Lingzhi asked.

“Nothing is impossible. What would you like to hear?” Xue Jin’an asked.

Lingzhi didn't know much about songs, but Fulu raised his hand and said, "The Fifth Prince said you sing from the Book of Songs. Your Highness, may we listen?"

Xue Jin'an did not answer. He directly retrieved the list of songs from the Book of Songs that he had listened to before and sang the first song on the list, the classic "Jianjia".

"The reeds are green and lush, the white dew has turned to frost..."

When the first note came from Xue Jin'an's mouth, everyone couldn't help but widen their eyes. When a line of lyrics was sung, they seemed to hear the faint, ancient, and solemn sound of bells. When half of the song was sung, they suddenly heard bursts of Buddhist chants and seemed to see the majestic image of Buddha.

After the song ended, everyone's face was blank, as if they had been cleansed by Buddhism, and they had all sobered up.

"Doesn't it sound good?" Xue Jin'an looked at their indescribable expressions and became curious for the first time.

“No, it’s not that it sounds bad, the tune is accurate…” Cui Zui was trying to organize his thoughts.

Fu Lu stared blankly and slowly said, "After hearing this, I feel like I have no regrets in this life..."

Shou Quan added: "It was very calm, without any ups and downs, like someone was chanting a spell in my ear."

Fu Ling aptly summed it up: "That bald-headed donkey."

Lingzhi gently advised, "Your Highness, perhaps you should recite fewer Buddhist scriptures recently, and maybe listen to something more lively instead."

Xue Jin'an didn't understand. He tilted his head and decided to take the suggestion.

So that night, Xue Jin'an's bedtime music was changed to festive and lively background music with suonas and trumpets playing, and gongs and firecrackers exploding.

Lingzhi, with her profound internal strength and excellent hearing: "..."