Chapter 45 Your Highness, we're out of money again.

Chu Yanluo looked at Xiao Qingyuan in disbelief: "I was bullied at Wutong Garden, and instead of speaking up for me, you told me not to go there again? You don't care about me at all!"

"I care about you, how could I not care about you?"

Xiao Qingyuan had almost become numb from saying this over the past few days: "You are the person I like the most. I can't like anyone else but you. I'm not letting you go for your own good. You'll likely suffer if you go."

Chu Yanlu cried and said, "I don't care about losing out or not, I only care about whether you love me or not! Since you care about me, then go to Wutong Garden and get back the pair of jade bracelets you gave to Shen Wantang. They should have been mine!"

Xiao Qingyuan was taken aback: "You want those jade bracelets?"

"Yes, I've dreamed about them before. The jade bracelets are mine, and they've been with me in my dreams for a very long time!"

While crying, Chu Yanluo took Xiao Qingyuan's arm and softened her tone, which was rare for her: "Qingyuan, please go and get it back, okay? I've never asked you for anything before. This is the first time I've asked you for something. It's not that I'm greedy, but those bracelets really are mine. I can't let them be lost!"

Although Xiao Qingyuan was skeptical of her words, her initiative to hug his arm gave him the first feeling of being relied upon by Chu Yanluo. This feeling made him feel somewhat elated, and he almost couldn't help but agree to anything she asked.

However, after a while, once he calmed down a bit, he still shook his head: "Yanluo, if you like jade bracelets, I'll buy you another one. That pair was already given to Shen Wantang by my mother, so I really can't ask for it back."

Chu Yanluo immediately let go of his arm and sat on the bed in a huff: "If you buy another pair, it won't be the same pair I saw in my dream. The meaning will be different!"

"You don't love me at all. You're not even willing to do such a small thing for me. What's the point of me staying in this mansion?"

"Your Highness, please let me go. I will return to Jixin Nunnery to become a nun and spend the rest of my life there. Please do not come looking for me again."

Xiao Qingyuan sighed softly: "Yanluo, don't say such hurtful things. Life at Jixin Nunnery is so austere, how could I bear to let you go back? Put the bracelet aside for now. I've bought some maids, so take a look and see which one you like and keep her by your side to serve you."

However, Chu Yanluo lay down on the bed and began to sob softly: "I don't need maids. They all look down on me, even you look down on me. You would rather give the jade bracelet to Shen Wantang than to me. I am nothing. How can I be qualified to be served?"

Xiao Qingyuan felt a pang of sadness upon hearing this. He sat down on the edge of the bed and coaxed her in a low voice for a while: "What are you saying? Although the jade bracelet is in my storeroom, it wasn't a gift from me. It was a gift from my mother. I didn't give Shen Wantang any treasures. It was all my mother's idea."

But Chu Yanluo refused to budge and insisted on having the pair of jade bracelets.

Xiao Qingyuan gritted his teeth, got up and left the bedroom.

Outside, Mo Ji was already standing in the courtyard with a row of maids. Seeing his master finally come out, he quickly stepped forward: "Master, which ones should we keep?"

Xiao Qingyuan's gaze swept over all the maids, and he said with a headache, "Let them all move into the side rooms first. Once Yanluo is in a better mood, we'll let her decide which ones to keep."

Actually, a few days ago, Xiao Qingyuan did ask Mo Ji to buy a few maids to serve him, but Chu Yanluo was not satisfied with any of them.

She thought the woman was handsome and pretty, but she disliked her for her dishonest intentions. She felt that the woman exuded a seductive charm that seemed intent on seducing him, and her eyes kept glancing at him.

She disliked men who were plain-looking and honest, finding them too dull and unapproachable, too stupid to serve her.

The newly selected batch might not meet Chu Yanluo's expectations, but Xiao Qingyuan decided that no matter how picky she was, he would keep a few people, otherwise it would be very difficult to endure without anyone to serve him.

After settling the maids in, Mo Ji returned and whispered, "Master, we're out of money. What do you think..."

Xiao Qingyuan felt a splitting headache whenever he heard the word "silver": "Why are you out of money again? Didn't I give you all the five hundred taels I borrowed from Shen Wantang? You've spent it all so quickly?"

“Master, it’s all gone. Five hundred taels of silver doesn’t last long! Just buying Miss Chu’s inner garments, outer clothes, shoes, and stockings cost two hundred and thirty taels. And then there’s the bird’s nest soup Miss Chu eats every day—it’s the finest bird’s nest, costing twenty-five taels of silver per meal! And then there’s hiring the imperial physician, getting medicine, buying maids…”

Before Mo Ji could finish speaking, Xiao Qingyuan impatiently interrupted him: "Alright, alright, stop arguing with me like a commoner. It's annoying to listen to, making it sound like I'm destitute. And don't let Yan Luo hear any of this. She hates hearing people talk about gold and silver. I'll figure out how to get the silver. Just shut up!"

Mo Ji didn't shut up: "My lord, why don't you continue to borrow money from the Crown Princess? She's the only one who will give you money to spend now."

Xiao Qingyuan glared at him: "I haven't even paid back what I borrowed last time, and you want me to borrow again? What kind of person would that make me?"

"Who else could you be? You are her legitimate husband. The Crown Princess is in charge of the household now, and all the income, big and small, is in her hands. Isn't it only natural for you to ask her for money?"

Xiao Qingyuan was startled by his words and hurriedly covered the mouth of the damned servant.

He was afraid that Chu Yanluo would hear him, so he looked back and saw that there was no movement inside before he breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, Mo Ji spoke very softly, and they couldn't be heard talking inside the room, otherwise he probably would have had to coax Yan Luo all night again!

He angrily rebuked the servant: "Nonsense! I have no relation to Shen Wantang whatsoever. If you dare to say such things again, I will kick you out of the manor!"

Mo Ji lowered his head and muttered softly, "If it has nothing to do with you, why are you short of money? The first person you ask is the Crown Princess. Isn't it because you think the Crown Princess isn't an outsider..."

Xiao Qingyuan heard his muttering and smacked him on the head: "I think you're asking for a beating!"

Moji covered his head and begged for forgiveness: "I know I was wrong."

"Alright, go and send a message to Gu Qianhan and Yuan Zheng, asking them to come over. Tell them I'm inviting them to the Prince's Mansion for drinks tonight."

"Sir, we don't have any money to buy wine!"

"Why don't you let them raise them themselves? One is the second young master of a duke's mansion, and the other is the grandson of the richest man in Jiangnan. They both have plenty of money!"

The inkjet printer drooped its head.

Alright, this is the first time I've ever heard of inviting someone to your home for drinks and then expecting the guest to bring their own.

As expected, the young master of his family does not follow the usual path. The woman he chooses is different from others, and the way he entertains guests is also different from others.