After Guizhi left, Su Mochen said coldly, "If you don't do it, be careful I'll go to Father Emperor and complain that you were spying on me when we were in Yongzhou..."

Before he could finish saying the word "body," Su Mochen blushed and lowered his head.

"How many times have I told you? It's an accident, an accident, don't you understand? If I wanted to, why would I need to peek? There are women from Jingzhou who want to be seen by me, they could line up all the way to Yongzhou. Do you think I would need to peek?"

"Who knows?"

Su Mochen pouted, "Don't you men always say... that the grass is always greener on the other side..."

"..."

Jing Zhe was stunned; he hadn't expected her to know so much.

His eyes darted around, and he said seriously, "Didn't we say we're on the same side and we won't use our status to intimidate each other? What, are you trying to use His Majesty to pressure me now?"

Su Mochen thought for a moment, then shook his head: "No, he will communicate with you as a father, and will not use his status to pressure you."

"..."

Jing Zhe did it in the end.

Whether Su Mochen reports it or not is irrelevant; the main thing is that he just wants to help her fulfill a wish!

Making a simple volatile oil extraction device would normally be a laborious task, but fortunately, there were countless skilled craftsmen in the palace, and once the requirements were given, it was made in no time.

Jing Zhe picked a lot more chrysanthemums—he personally preferred red ones, but Su Mochen threw him a lot of yellow chrysanthemums, so he could only put them all into the volatile oil extraction device, add strong liquor, and distill them.

After about fifteen minutes, the "chrysanthemum fragrance" began to slowly flow out. Su Mochen took a little and wiped it on his body. After smelling it, he felt quite satisfied.

"Smell it too, it smells so good."

Jing Zhe smiled and declined, "No need, I'm allergic to chrysanthemums..."

As she spoke, she subconsciously glanced at certain round, protruding parts of Su Mochen's lower body.

Su Mochen was enthusiastically testing the perfume when he heard him refuse, and looked up at the sky.

"Oh dear, time flies! It's already noon! Time to eat!"

Guizhi said, "Your Highness, the meal has been prepared in Fuchen Palace. You may return and dine there."

Su Mochen nodded, then smiled at Jing Zhe and said, "You've really worked hard today!"

Seeing that he was about to have dinner with her—his first time eating food from the Imperial Kitchen—Jing Zhe was still a little excited. So, he changed his previous resistance and said with a smile, "It's my pleasure."

"Alright, then you—go back!"

"???"

A sly glint flashed in Su Mochen's eyes. She lifted her skirt and jogged back, leaving Jing Zhe standing there, petrified.

We've been tricked!

Teaching your apprentice can lead to your own starvation. If I had known this would happen, I should have held back earlier!

Jing Zhe thought with frustration.

...

As soon as they came out of the Imperial Garden, Sui Shouren stood guard at the entrance.

"President Jing, did you enjoy your time in the Imperial Garden?"

Jing Zhe grinned. "What does General Sui think?"

As Emperor An's confidant, when Guizhi went to ask for strong liquor, he heard that Jing Zhe was going to use chrysanthemums to make perfume for the princess. He couldn't help but sigh in his heart, no wonder he could win the princess's favor, he really has a knack for it!

"It's definitely good!"

As she spoke, she looked at Jing Zhe's face and continued to praise him: "President Jing's face right now is just like... just like..."

As a military general, it's always normal and embarrassing when your vocabulary can't keep up with your thoughts. Suddenly, he thought of the row of chrysanthemums in the Imperial Garden, clapped his hands and laughed, "They're just like blooming golden chrysanthemums!"

After saying this, Sui Shouren was very satisfied. It turned out that he also had a wealth of literary knowledge!

"..."

Jing Zhe's face darkened, and he patted Sui Shouren on the shoulder: "General Sui, if you don't know how to use words, can you please stop using them carelessly? It's easy for people to feel anal pain when they hear them!"

"..."

After watching Jing Zhe leave the palace, Sui Shouren muttered to himself, "Why does this chrysanthemum... hurt?"

...

Upon exiting the palace and seeing the familiar round face, Jing Zhe felt an overwhelming sense of warmth and familiarity.

"So, did you catch up?"

He nodded, "I was secretly waiting outside their door this morning. He went out and took a long detour, went into a small alley, and then went into a house."

"Hmm, what are they doing inside that house? Did you see?"

Hanhan shook his head. "When I went over there, the gate was closed, so I knocked on it. Someone peeked out and asked if I had eaten. I said I had. He asked if I was full, and I said I had eaten three big vegetable buns and a big bowl of porridge, and I was quite full. Then he chased me out..."

In the end, Hanhan scratched his head somewhat awkwardly, seemingly feeling ashamed for not having done the task Jing Zhe had given him.

Jing Zhe chuckled and patted him on the shoulder: "It's not your fault, that's definitely their slang, it's normal that you don't know it."

It turned out that when Jing Zhe went out today, he instructed Hanhan to keep an eye on Zhang Xuehou and follow him to see where he went and what he was doing.

If I'm not mistaken, Zhang Xuehou must have gone to the casino. This casino is very well hidden, and it would be difficult to find without someone following him. The gatekeepers there are also quite alert. If you want to get in, you have to answer their questions. If you can't answer them, you'll be kicked out like a fool.

Now that the location had been decided, Jing Zhe felt relieved. As for what was happening inside, he still needed to know, but Hanhan could no longer be used.

He's still too naive; this kind of work is really too difficult for him.

Then he asked, "Has Hanhan eaten yet?"

"I ate breakfast... but I haven't eaten lunch yet..."

As he spoke, his stomach rumbled twice in perfect unison.

"Perfect timing, I haven't eaten yet either, let's eat first—"

After a pause, Jing Zhe suggested, "Let's go to the newspaper office!"

"..."

The two arrived at the newspaper office quickly. Although it was noon, the office was still bustling with activity. Only Wu Pin, who was guarding the gate, was very free. However, because he was afraid of Jing Zhe, he did not dare to enter the office even though he was free. Instead, he frolicked at the entrance of the office, almost lying down.

This job is pretty good!

Wu Pin basked in the sun, slumped on a chair he had somehow brought from somewhere, and took off his small felt hat, placing it over his face to shield himself from the sunlight.

Still quietly keeping track of Jing Zhe's little debts. He skipped work for half a day, and it's almost noon and he still hasn't come. Hmm, noted down.

Just as Wu Pin was feeling smug, the sunlight around him was suddenly blocked out, and it became dark even when looking out through the seams of his felt hat.

"Damn it, someone actually dares to block my way—"

Wu Pin lifted his felt hat and started cursing, but he stopped halfway through.

"President Jing... President Jing..."

Jing Zhe nodded expressionlessly: "What time did you arrive at the newspaper office today?"

"As President Jing said, we arrived before 7 a.m., earlier than everyone else."

He secretly gloated: Trying to find fault? Dream on!

"Hmm, not bad. So, which foot did you step into the newspaper office with first?"

Upon hearing this question, Wu Pin was stunned: Who could remember this?

————