Chapter 149 Sharing the Same Bed

"Be careful of your father?"

Xiao Yongjing read aloud the four large characters clearly visible on the letter, his brows furrowed, and he raised his eyes, hesitating as he carefully considered his words:

"What does this refer to...? Could it be...?"

Shen Yiqiu spoke with relief:

"Of course, it's my good father, Song Qingming."

Seeing that Xiao Yongjing seemed hesitant and had some reservations, she spoke frankly and openly:

"Your Highness, please speak frankly. There are no outsiders here, so there is no need to hide anything."

Seeing her like this, Xiao Yongjing no longer hesitated:

"As far as I know, Song Qingming came from a humble background and his highest achievement was passing the county-level imperial examination. His family was poor."

"After he married your mother, it was out of respect for the old Marquis of Yongjia, Shen Zhaohua, that he secured him a sinecure as a sixth-rank official in the Bureau of Ceremonies. Over the years, he accomplished nothing in this position and remained mediocre."

He abruptly changed the subject, his tone turning icy:

"However, according to my secret observations, the Song family's expenses over the years have far exceeded what a sixth-rank official's salary could support, and the family is quite wealthy."

"What's even stranger is that some influential merchants in the capital, and even several important officials in the court, seem to have secret dealings with him and are deliberately trying to win him over."

"There must be an unknown force supporting him behind the scenes."

He looked at Shen Yiqiu, his gaze serious:

“I once secretly sent people to investigate him, but all the clues seemed to have been deliberately erased, and nothing substantial could be found. It is no ordinary person to be able to do it so cleanly and efficiently.”

Shen Yiqiu was taken aback.

She had always focused her attention on the power struggles within the household and her good-for-nothing brothers, never imagining that her father, who seemed to ignore household affairs and was like a ghost, harbored such a deep secret.

Chen Yiqiu seemed lost in thought:

"Presumably, my grandmother also noticed his unusual behavior back then and investigated him in secret, which is why she left such a warning."

Her gaze returned to the letter, and she carefully examined the envelope, noticing:

"The lower half of the letter shows obvious signs of burning, with jagged edges, as if it had been hastily torn from something."

Xiao Yongjing took the yellowed paper, rubbed its texture with his fingertips, sniffed it lightly, and then brought it close to the candlelight and the water glass to observe their reactions.

After a moment, Liao Ran spoke:

"This is Snow Orange Paper. It is tough, has a unique fragrance, and a special texture. When exposed to fire, the edges will curl slightly and turn golden, while when exposed to water, dark patterns will appear."

“This kind of paper was extremely rare back then and was exclusively for the nobility. In principle, the Imperial Household Department or specific suppliers should have kept records of each batch produced and its destination.”

Shen Yiqiu immediately pressed for an answer:

"Where can we trace the whereabouts of this batch of papers?"

“There’s definitely a clue in one place…Feizhige. Feizhige started out very early and was one of the first businesses to introduce and sell this kind of paper.”

"The first batch of Xuecheng paper in the capital came from them, and there must be records in their own account books."

Shen Yiqiu's eyes flickered slightly, and she had already made up her mind.

If it's Feizhi Pavilion, then it's necessary to go find Ruan Tianxin.

She turned to leave.

"etc."

Xiao Yongjing reached out and grabbed her wrist, chuckling helplessly, "I just announced to the public that you stayed overnight in the side hall of the East Palace, and now you've left the palace late at night. Isn't that contradictory and arouses suspicion?"

Shen Yiqiu paused, turning back in surprise:

"Your Highness wouldn't... really want me to stay here overnight, would you?"

Xiao Yongjing deliberately leaned close to her ear and spoke in a teasing yet ambiguous tone:

"What, General Shen, are you... shy? You stay here, and tomorrow morning, I'll accompany you to find Miss Ruan. Wouldn't that be more legitimate and save you a lot of trouble?"

Looking at the mischievousness in his eyes, Shen Yiqiu felt no shame, but instead felt a desire to teach him a lesson.

She raised an eyebrow and actually began to untie the belt around her waist, as if to take off her outer garment. Her movements were swift and decisive, without the slightest hesitation.

This startled Xiao Yongjing. He turned away abruptly as if burned, his ears instantly turning bright red.

"What...what are you doing?"

This innocent yet flustered reaction inexplicably piqued Shen Yiqiu's interest.

She deliberately moved closer, gently placing her hand on his back. Feeling the stiffness in his back, she smiled playfully.

"Didn't His Highness say that we should share a bed? I was just... following His Highness's wishes."

Forced to retreat step by step, almost hitting the doorframe, Xiao Yongjing forced himself to remain calm and rebuked her:

"Shen Yiqiu, do you... do you even have any manners of a girl?"

Shen Yiqiu chuckled softly, ceasing her approach. Instead, she glanced around the simply furnished bedchamber and slowly said:

"I am merely curious. Observing the Eastern Palace, all the attendants are male guards, and I have not seen a single personal maid."

"I have never heard of Your Highness having any concubines or maids. Your Highness is not young, yet the Eastern Palace is so quiet. It is truly... intriguing."

His gaze lingered on his bloodshot earlobes, becoming meaningful:

"Furthermore, I have heard that His Highness the Crown Prince is extremely fastidious about cleanliness and dislikes people getting close to him. Regardless of gender, if anyone accidentally touches His Highness's body, they will disappear without a trace the next day... This can be considered an unwritten rule of the Eastern Palace, right?"

She leaned closer to him and said slyly:

"In that case, Your Highness's talk of sharing a bed was probably just a joke."

The rumored cold-blooded, ruthless, and ruthless crown prince, in private... turns out to be such a blushing young man?

Xiao Yongjing was speechless after hearing her words, which were both dismissive and offensive, and his face flushed even more.

He turned abruptly, somewhat awkwardly opened the door, and threw out a sentence:

"I'm going to the side hall!"

Perhaps because he was restless, he almost tripped over the threshold as he took a step. He swayed slightly before regaining his footing and hurriedly left.

Watching his hurried departure, Shen Yiqiu finally couldn't help but chuckle softly, calling out towards the door:

"Your Highness, please take care. May you...sleep soundly."

Xiao Yongjing closed the door of the side hall, leaned against the cold door panel, and subconsciously touched his burning cheek with the back of his hand.

This unfamiliar, out-of-control temperature made him restless and his throat dry.

It seems that...every time he tries to tease her, she always manages to turn the tables on him in an unexpected way.

"This Shen Yiqiu..."

He muttered to himself and gently shook his head.

However, just a moment later, the corners of her mouth subtly turned up, forming a curve that she herself was unaware of.

With his hands behind his back, he felt inexplicably relaxed and strolled leisurely into the inner room.