Chapter 107 Private Request

Mu Xi then directly occupied Mu Xun's work shed.

"Your Highness, this place is really simple. You'll have to make do with it tonight." Cao Pan'er had already cleaned the simple wooden house again.

Bao Fan wasn't just a eater; he was quite strong and managed to unload almost all of Mu Xun's cartload of things, filling half the room.

The drizzle outside grew heavier, and Mu Xi was worried about Mu Xun, who was on his way: "I have no idea what he is like outside. I imagine he must be having a hard time."

“This servant thinks the Second Young Master isn’t the type to care about these things.” Cao Pan’er poured Mu Xi a cup of tea. “The water here is better than the well water in the Jun residence.”

The raindrops pounded down on their heads, and they had no idea where Mu Xun had gone or if he had any shelter from the rain.

Mu Xi stroked the teacup, shifting her focus from her worry: "You don't mind bringing you back here, do you?"

Cao Pan'er brought a cup of tea to Bao Fan, who was eating a sesame seed cake under the eaves while it was wet with rainwater. She turned around and smiled, "This servant never dwells on the past, only looks forward."

"Your looking forward is all about revenge?" Mu Xi looked out the window. The rain was getting heavier and heavier, and the sky and earth were covered in a blanket of water, like beads hanging on a string in front of her eyes.

The overseer finally gave the order, commanding the craftsmen and slaves to scatter and take shelter from the rain.

Cao Pan'er looked at the crowd running in the rain: "If he were still alive, he would just be one of those people now. With the rain so heavy, there's no way to escape it, no matter where he runs."

Mu Xi remained silent.

As evening fell and the rain subsided, torches were lit again at the construction site, indicating that they were going to work non-stop.

Yan Shu brought over a basket of charcoal and a roll of bedding: "The nights in the mountains are not as cool as in the city. The conditions here are simple, so please make do with them, Your Highness."

"Thank you for your trouble, Lord Yan," Mu Xi said, then asked, "Is this going to be done overnight?"

Yan Shu presented another food box: "Yes, how can we keep up without three shifts? However, most people are happy to work at night, but it's a bit noisy. Your Highness, it might be disturbed at night."

Mu Xi couldn't care less about the noise, and instead asked, "Why are they happy to work at night?"

"Give me double the wages!" Yan Shu pulled out another flask of wine from somewhere and was about to sit down casually when he realized there was only one chair in the room. "I'll have them bring two more chairs."

Mu Xi glanced at the flickering firelight under the night sky: "Working at night is dangerous and exhausting, so they should be paid three times the normal wage. Lord Yan should issue the order tomorrow, and I'll figure out the money."

"Does Your Highness really have a solution?" Yan Shu had been preoccupied with the issue of money. "Based on the current estimates, any rush to complete the project and add materials would probably cost double or even several times more, and the Sikong Mansion can no longer squeeze out any more money. But now, even two or three hundred thousand taels wouldn't be enough."

"Don't worry, I have my own way." Having missed out on Qi Zhuying's 100,000 taels, Mu Xi devised an even better plan.

"In that case, I would like to trouble Your Highness to make arrangements as soon as possible." Yan Shu did not ask too many questions about the money, and instead said, "The guards Your Highness brought are all arranged on the left and right. If you need to arrange for night watch, I will have someone arrange another room and move the guards to the sides."

Mu Xi bowed slightly: "Thank you, Lord Yan. No need to trouble yourself. Just make do for one night."

"I already told you, Your Highness, there's no need to be so polite. Mu Xun's brother is just like my own brother." Yan Shu finished speaking but showed no intention of leaving.

Just then, the chair arrived.

Yan Shu then invited Mu Xi to sit down, her fox-like eyes smiling: "The cooks at the construction site are not very skilled, but I have instructed them to prepare two special dishes for the young master. Today, we must have a couple of drinks with the young master."

Mu Xi immediately declined, saying, "I appreciate your kind offer, but I never drink alcohol, so I'll just accept it."

Yan Shu wondered, "I heard that after the young master came back from the dead last time, he went to a brothel that very night and got so drunk that he had to be carried back. How come he doesn't drink a drop of alcohol now? I'd like to hear the young master tell me the secret of his resurrection. Please don't refuse, young master."

"There's no secret. If you want to know anything, just ask Mu Xun later. It really is because of that incident that I swore I would never drink again." Mu Xi waved her hands repeatedly, which was quite true.

Yan Shu, who enjoyed making friends, was not about to let the opportunity slip by: "Your Highness is not joking, is he? A person lives a full life, how can one not drink alcohol, then..."

"Eh..." Mu Xi suddenly had an idea and lowered her voice, "I have something to ask of Lord Yan, I wonder if he would be willing to help?"

Yan Shu immediately became interested and leaned forward: "What is it? Just give the order, Your Highness, as long as I can do it."

Mu Xi first said to Cao Pan'er beside her, "Take the food box and bring Bao Fan down to eat."

Cao Pan'er, being sensible, immediately picked up the food box and took the wine pot with her.

After the two left, Mu Xi put on an extremely solemn expression: "This matter was not entrusted to Yan Shu, the Junior Secretary of the Imperial Household Department, by Prince Jin Fang, but rather I, Mu Xi, privately entrusted it to Brother Yan."

This was one of the purposes of her trip. If she hadn't been desperate for someone else, she would never have risked entrusting this matter to Yan Shu, whom she had only met twice.

Yan Shu's fox-like eyes gleamed in the candlelight: "What is it? Young Master, please tell me."

"This matter is not difficult, but it can only be known to the two of us. Even Mu Xun cannot be revealed to it. Brother Yan, do you agree?" Mu Xi tried to be cautious.

Upon hearing that it couldn't be revealed to Mu Xun, Yan Shu pressed her round face against him, rubbing her hands together eagerly: "Okay, okay, what is it, Your Highness, please tell me quickly."

Mu Xi leaned back to avoid his gaze, scrutinizing him: "Hmm? Are you really Mu Xun's friend?"

"Yes, how could it not be?" Yan Shu's fox-like eyes widened, her face round and her eyes wide. "I'm just curious. Chengfeng used to be so secretive about you, the young master, but after getting to know you, he's actually very approachable and easy to get along with. So why are you still hiding things? I wonder what the young master is up to."

"What are you doing... no rush..." Mu Xi felt she had received half of Yan Shu's approval and was even more confident.

The "divine revelation" is not the main point; the most urgent task is to get past Jin Fangjun's birthday banquet.

Only by passing the Jin Fangjun birthday banquet can there be a sequel to Qifengtai; otherwise, it's all for nothing.

Yan Shu, however, was itching with curiosity: "What is it? Just give me a hint, so I can sleep."

Mu Xi chuckled: "Brother Yan, don't be nervous. It's naturally related to the completion and sacrificial ceremony at Qifeng Terrace. It's nothing serious."

"Oh..." Yan Shu was disappointed. "That's not very interesting."

Mu Xi was merely testing the waters beforehand, and could not reveal her true intentions to Yan Shu, so the topic ended there.

After finishing speaking, Yan Shu showed no sign of leaving.

Mu Xi then stood up to personally see him off, saying, "It's getting late, Lord Yan must be tired after a long day..."

As the door opened, a gust of night wind blew in.

"Cough cough..." Mu Xi immediately felt a chill run through her entire body.

Yan Shu, who had already left, turned back and said, "Oh, Your Highness, you've caught a chill. How about we drink some wine to warm ourselves up?"