Chapter 10 Special Mission: Is Xue Rongyue finally going to kill me...?

Dark clouds rolled like ink, thunder roared and lightning flashed, and ten thousand pear blossoms trembled in the wind and rain.

Jingnu jumped down with an umbrella, then turned and helped Xue Rongyue down from the carriage.

Despite several days of spring rain in Chang'an, the taverns remained bustling with customers. The bright, rosy firelight illuminated the two-story watchtowers, and the waiters warmly welcomed and saw off the guests. As Xue Rongyue led Jingnu and her guard Luo Zhen into the tavern, the deafening drumbeats accompanied the graceful and captivating dance of the Hu women.

As the three sat down, a dance had just ended, drawing frequent cheers from the diners.

Jingnu excitedly ordered several signature dishes, including raw mutton sashimi, cherry biscuits, roasted donkey hair and camel hump, and golden minced meat sashimi. After the waiter went downstairs, Jingnu bent down to pour tea for Xue Rongyue. She pointed to the pink-clad woman dancing with the Hu women downstairs and said, "She is Zhong Wei's sister, Zhong Yuan."

Although Zhong Wei, the servant who delivered messages for Jiang Shiyan, was dead, Xue Rongyue discovered when she looked through his household registration and indenture that he had a younger sister still alive. The two of them settled in Chang'an and depended on each other for survival.

Zhong Wei was a key move in this game by the mastermind, and Xue Rongyue naturally couldn't let go of this clue. She disguised herself and came in the rain to take Zhong Yuan away.

The drums and music started again, and with a light touch of her toes, Zhong Yuan's graceful and charming figure twirled amidst cheers.

After serving the exquisite dishes, Jingnu bowed and poured a cup of sweet and fragrant grape wine for Xue Rongyue and Luo Zhen in turn. Xue Rongyue took a sip and watched the singing and dancing below the stage with little interest. Suddenly, she heard her name and Qin Jin's name being called from downstairs.

"How could the Xue family's daughter be engaged to the Liu family's son? Wasn't it rumored all over Chang'an that the Xue and Qin families were going to form a marriage alliance?"

Xue Rongyue was taken aback, then frowned and looked down—

Who is this drunkard spouting nonsense? How can their words be so absurd?

"Brother Lang, it's been several years since you last visited Chang'an. That's all ancient history."

Wang Jinhu swallowed a mouthful of strong liquor and slurred, "This Prince Qin is unruly and incompetent. He's a complete scoundrel in Chang'an, living a life of luxury thanks to his parents' wealth. If it weren't for his ability to win the Empress Dowager's favor, how could he possibly be so arrogant and domineering in Chang'an? And why would General Xue even look at him?"

The person drinking with him was taken aback: "How could this be? Back then, Prince Qin and Young Master Xue studied martial arts together under General Xue. I heard that the two of them were very skilled in martial arts."

Clicking his tongue, Wang Jinhu pointed at him mockingly: "I told you you were ignorant. The grass on that Xue family young master's grave is almost taller than me."

He changed the subject, scoffing, "Everyone says that Young Master Xue is highly skilled in martial arts, but I don't believe it. If he were truly so, how could he have died at the hands of a bunch of bandits? It's clearly an exaggeration, just like this Prince Qin..."

Xue Rongyue, who had been listening with great interest, suddenly turned cold upon hearing this, her chilling gaze falling on Wang Jinhu, who was still talking incessantly, her fingertips already resting on the long whip at her waist.

"Like me, what?"

A casual male voice suddenly rang out, a low, husky, and magnetic voice with a hint of cool laughter, stopping Xue Rongyue from standing up.

A gentle breeze blew through the hall, and the firelight flickered. Qin Jin leaned against the vermilion railing, seemingly drunk.

He stood slumped over, his eyes reddened and brimming with tears. He looked down at the two men below him, his robe slightly open, and a sip of clear sake trickled down his sharp jawline, past his Adam's apple, and finally into his firm, lean chest.

The wealthy servants who had come with the Qin family supported him tremblingly, fearing that he might lose his balance and fall from the building. He impatiently dismissed them, casually tapping his wine cup with his fingertips, chuckled twice, and leaned out, saying unhurriedly, "Speak quickly, I'm waiting to hear it."

Coming to their senses from their daze, Wang Jinhu and his companion, who had been terrified and were now mostly sober, stood up shakily and bowed deeply to Qin Jin: "This humble subject was drunk and spoke nonsense. I hope Your Highness will forgive me."

The carefree smile on his lips gradually faded, and under the apprehensive gazes of the two, Qin Jin frowned in displeasure: "It seems I'm not influential enough, Brother Lang is unwilling to give me face."

The commotion had already alerted the shopkeepers. The drumming and music gradually stopped, and the dancers lowered their heads and retreated to the side. The guests in the hall were silent, watching this scene with trepidation.

Upon seeing that it was this young master causing trouble, the shopkeeper was so frightened that he stamped his feet. The young nobles in Chang'an could change their expressions faster than turning the pages of a book, and this one was especially so. He took two steps forward with a worried look on his face, wanting to persuade him but not daring to speak.

The once noisy tavern fell into a chilling silence. Even the few diners who had been causing trouble under the influence of alcohol sat down with their heads down, no longer daring to act aggressively.

[A specific event has been detected. A special task will be assigned to the host shortly.]

With her left hand supporting her rosy cheek, Xue Rongyue drank a cup of grape wine and was leisurely enjoying the rare farce when she heard this. Her expression froze.

In the dead silence, Wang Jinhu's forehead was covered in a fine layer of cold sweat. Finally, he knelt down in fear and trepidation: "This humble subject...this humble subject..."

He couldn't help but curse. It wasn't unheard of for people to speak ill of this young master in the past, so why was he the only one who was so unlucky to be relentlessly pestered?

But he dared not utter those harsh words in front of Qin Jin, bowing his head to the ground, his body trembling.

With a "whoosh".

Qin Jin tilted the glass wine cup in his hand, and the strong liquor in the cup poured down from the second floor, the cool and pungent liquid dripping down Wang Jinhu's temples to the ground.

Wang Jinhu's body went limp again. He kowtowed to Qin Jin, his lips trembling as he fawned, "Thank you for the wine, Your Highness."

Qin Jin scoffed lightly, seemingly finding it boring, then turned around and staggered away with the help of his servants.

Wang Jinhu scrambled to his feet and fled in panic. The shopkeeper breathed a sigh of relief and was about to call the dancer to pour wine and apologize to Qin Jin in his private room when he turned around and found that Zhong Yuan, who should have been waiting by his side, had already disappeared.

Seeing from the window that Luo Zhen had taken advantage of the chaos to stuff Zhong Yuan into the carriage, Xue Rongyue withdrew her gaze, holding a bowl of freshly cooked hangover soup, and stood like a wooden stake in front of Qin Jin's room with a livid face.

[Please personally enter the room and serve [Qin Jin] a bowl of hangover soup.]

Surrounded by the deafening music and drums of the tavern, Xue Rongyue could only hear her own heavy breathing. Veins bulged on her forehead, and the tips of her fingers, holding the white porcelain bowl, turned white from the force. She felt that the system had completely gone mad.

Send her to deliver hangover soup to the drunk Qin Jin? Aren't you afraid that Qin Jin will get up and rush to the Taoist temple, begging the Taoist priests to exorcise her?

The system remained resolute, logging off immediately after issuing the task, not even giving her a chance to vent her frustration.

Xue Rongyue had never felt so desperate before.

Do you value your reputation or your life?

Although she had accepted her fate of having to win over Qin Jin, the question still tormented her. Under Jing Nu's horrified gaze, she wished she could smash the soup bowl right now, throw down the words "I quit," and turn around and leave forever to escape this place.

But she knew she couldn't.

After taking countless deep breaths, Xue Rongyue repeatedly comforted herself in her heart, and her frozen body finally took a small step forward.

She gritted her teeth and raised her hand, but then suddenly stopped, unable to bring herself to push open the door.

In the midst of his struggle with himself, the door to the side room creaked open from the inside.

Xue Rongyue stared in horror, her eyes widening. She jumped back several steps, watching the person who came out of the side room warily.

Unexpectedly, there was someone standing in front of the side room. Qin's servant, Guang Sheng, was also startled and stepped back, clutching his chest: "Who are you!"

Suppressing the urge to turn and run, Xue Rongyue stood rooted to the spot. Before she could think of what to say, Guang Sheng looked her up and down, his gaze finally settling on the bowl of hangover soup on the tray in her hand: "Did the shopkeeper send you to deliver the hangover soup?"

Jingnu lowered her head and pretended to be dead. Guang Sheng's gaze gradually became more probing. Xue Rongyue's ears were ringing. After a brief and eerie silence, she nodded stiffly.

"...This shopkeeper is quite understanding."

Guang Sheng muttered something under his breath. He had just been assigned to serve Qin Jin and was unsure of the young master's temperament. Considering that the young master had not strictly forbidden dancers from serving him, he stepped aside and said, "Go in. The young master is drinking. Please keep your voice down and don't disturb him."

Under the incomprehension but respectful gaze of Jingnu, Xue Rongyue walked in with a blank face and a dazed expression.

A bright red gauze curtain, draped with mandarin ducks playing in the water, hung to the ground. The room was dimly lit, with only a single candle casting a warm yellow glow. A night breeze, carrying the faint scent of pear blossoms, blew in through the half-open window, causing the gauze curtain to flutter lightly over Qin Jin.

His pale skin resembled fresh snow on a high mountain. Behind the landscape screen, half of his body lay in the shadows, his gaze fixed on the rain outside the window. The warm light, sometimes bright and sometimes dim, fell on his brows and eyes, making his dark eyes appear even sharper.

Hearing the door open, he didn't look up, lying lazily on the soft couch, and said, "The hangover soup is here?"

Xue Rongyue slammed the hangover soup onto the crumbling table with a thud, her face darkening, and she turned to run away.

Guang Sheng thought the dancer was stupid and didn't answer when the prince asked her a question, so he had no choice but to bring her a hangover soup and say, "It's all better now."

Qin Jin rubbed his aching temples, sat up, and drank the hangover soup in one gulp: "How did it get here so quickly?"

Guang Sheng stepped back, letting him look at Xue Rongyue, who was turning to flee at the door of the private room: "The shopkeeper prepared it in advance and had it delivered by a dancer."

Qin Jin was taken aback and frowned as he looked over—

"puff--"

The last sip of hangover soup spurted from Qin Jin's thin lips, and the porcelain bowl fell from his hands, shattering into pieces.

He stared at Xue Rongyue, dumbfounded, his pupils dilated, as if he had seen a ghost. He stammered, "Who, her?! Are you crazy?!"

The servant was startled and scratched his head, puzzled.

Qin Jin could now truly understand how Princess Yu'an felt that day. He felt uncomfortable all over his body; his hands ached, his stomach ached, and his head ached even more, with waves of churning in his stomach.

Is Xue Rongyue finally going to kill me?

He thought about it slowly.

...Am I going to die?

Xue Rongyue, I will haunt you even as a ghost! After I die, I will become a vengeful spirit and squat by your bedside!

Qin Jin's eyes blazed with grief and anger. Before he could rush over to fight Xue Rongyue, his stomach churned again. His expression changed drastically, and before he could even speak, he rushed to the spittoon and vomited violently.

Xue Rongyue: "......"

Xue Rongyue: "…………"

That can't be right.

A note from the author:

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Xiaoyue: Whoever I deliver food to is afraid of me, that's what reputation is all about. [Rabbit head with upright ears]