Qiao Qiu smiled and said, "Your Majesty, I believe that a man should not rely on his appearance to gain fame."

"Haha, well said. You are so young yet have such a broad mind. I should have sent men to kill those bandits sooner. You are disfigured, but many more people would have lost their lives." As the emperor said this, a shadow of gloom flashed in his eyes.

"Your Majesty need not blame yourself. You have done very well. At least you are not a tyrant, which is the greatest blessing for us common people," Qiao Qiu comforted him.

The Emperor waved his hand, "I am ashamed."

Qiao Qiu thought for a moment. She had long wanted to negotiate a deal with the Emperor, and now that the opportunity had arrived, she couldn't miss it. Although this person had only spoken a few words, his actions clearly indicated that he was the Emperor. Alright, she would seize this opportunity; she could deal with the rest later.

"Your Majesty, you have a deal you wish to discuss with me, and I also have a deal I wish to discuss with Your Majesty."

"Oh?" The Emperor raised an eyebrow. This was the first time he had encountered someone who dared to negotiate with him. "Tell me about it."

"The deal I want to make with Your Majesty is this: I will earn money for Your Majesty, and 70% of the money will be handed over to the national treasury. I will keep 30%, with 20% as cost and 10% as my own."

The Emperor was astonished to learn that Qiao Qiu had abandoned her own interests.

Qiao Qiu continued, "I do this only in the hope of making our country strong and prosperous, and that Your Majesty can use this money for the benefit of the country and its people. As for me, I beg Your Majesty to grant me a marriage. No one but myself can decide my marriage, and no one can force a woman upon me."

The Emperor pondered for a moment, then couldn't help but chuckle. "This imperial edict... I can't help but feel that you're wary of me. Fine, someone as extraordinary as you can't be thought of in ordinary terms. I'll grant you this imperial edict and a gold medal. Seeing the gold medal is like seeing me."

Qiao Qiu bowed down, "Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty."

The Emperor took out the gold medal and gave it to Qiao Qiu, saying, "I have made you my friend. From today onwards, in private, you may act without any formality in front of me. Get up."

Qiao Qiu stood up and said, "Your Majesty, shouldn't you first give me a written edict? If one day Your Majesty forgets today, wouldn't I be in big trouble?"

The Emperor laughed and said, "You are quite cunning. I will draft an edict for you right away."

After speaking, the Emperor took out a small imperial edict that he always carried with him, wrote it down with his own brush, affixed his seal, and handed it to Qiao Qiu.

Qiao Qiu glanced at the edict, and after confirming that its contents were genuine, she smiled and said, "Your Majesty, I didn't give you any tokens. You trust me based on just a few words? Aren't you afraid that I might betray you in the future?"

The Emperor laughed nonchalantly and said, "I trust my own judgment. As the saying goes, 'If you employ someone, don't doubt them; if you doubt someone, don't employ them.'"

"Your Majesty is a little too confident." Qiao Qiu put the imperial edict into her sleeve. She knew that what he really thought was that she dared not betray him. His so-called trust was just confidence in the imperial power.

"If I lack self-confidence, how could I have ascended the throne and become emperor?"

Having said all that, Qiao Qiu said no more. After all, the emperor was right; one who lacks confidence cannot be an emperor, and even if he were, he would only be a puppet emperor.

"Before His Majesty arrived in Xiangzhou, did he pay any visits to the top ten wealthiest merchants?"

"Of course I've visited them. They're very different from you," the Emperor said meaningfully.

"Oh? What are they like?" Qiao Qiu asked, already having a rough idea in mind.

"You'll see when you meet them."

The Emperor was unwilling to say more. Qiao Qiu raised an eyebrow. It was no use trying to get information from the Emperor. It seemed she would have to think of another way.

"Shen Junbai, the more I look at you, the more you remind me of someone."

"Who does he look like?" Qiao Qiu pretended not to know, even though she knew the answer.

"Have you heard of the young master I met yesterday, named Qiao Qiu?"

Qiao Qiu shook her head. "I haven't heard of it."

“What you said isn’t wrong. Yesterday he said he knew you, but you didn’t know him.” The Emperor showed a regretful expression, then said to Qiao Qiu, “I won’t be staying in Xiangzhou for long. Go find him for me. Once you find him, check his injuries. If they haven’t healed, find a doctor to treat him. I accidentally injured him.”

"Judging from the Emperor's condition, is he seriously injured?" Qiao Qiu examined her own injuries and felt that she was alright, with nothing particularly unusual. She should be fine after a few days of rest.

"I didn't strike hard, but considering his pale face, I'm afraid he might have other injuries," the Emperor said with some concern.

"The Emperor is so concerned about him, could he be a woman disguised as a man?" Qiao Qiu found it somewhat amusing, unsure whether the Emperor's heartfelt approach to talent was right or wrong.

The Emperor rested his forehead on his hand, looked at her, and a smile flashed in his dark eyes. "Is Jun Bai jealous?"

"Your Majesty, please consider your words carefully. If I'm jealous, it's for someone I like. But we're friends now, and we're both men." Qiao Qiu emphasized the last two words.

"So what if he's a man? Throughout our dynasty, many emperors have been bisexual. As far as I know, the person my father loved most was a man." The emperor could tell that Qiao Qiu wasn't angry, so he decided to take the joke a little further.

"His Majesty is quite open-minded." Qiao Qiu was a little surprised, but thinking about it, it made sense. In ancient times, people were very open about homosexuality, and emperors were even the originators of homosexuality.

"You are no ordinary person either, to hear such words and not feel the slightest disgust." The Emperor was also surprised. He stood up, walked to Qiao Qiu, and reached out his hand to her face.

Qiao Qiu subconsciously took a step back. "Your Majesty, what are you doing?"

With his hands behind his back, the Emperor said, "I want to see your scars. I'll ask the imperial physicians later if they can be treated."

"Thank you, Your Majesty. I have grown accustomed to this scar."

"If you're really used to it, what are you afraid of me seeing?"

Qiao Qiu said, "I'm afraid I'll scare you."

"I've seen sores all over my body, how could your tiny scar frighten me?" The Emperor insisted on removing her mask.

Qiao Qiu took another step back, avoiding his hand, and said, "If Your Majesty wants to see, then let him see."

The Emperor did not make another move, watching as Qiao Qiu reached out and removed the mask. The shocking scars surrounding her eyes instantly shattered any sense of mystery or beauty she once possessed.

"Your Majesty, now that you've seen it, what do you think?" Qiao Qiu looked up slightly; the Emperor was half a head taller than her.

The emperor narrowed his eyes, moved a few steps closer to her, and touched her scar with his fingertip.

Feeling something was off about the edge of the 'scar', Qiao Qiu suddenly panicked and instinctively took another step back. However, this time she wasn't so lucky. She stepped on the edge of the step, lost her balance, and fell backward.