Chapter Forty

Zhong Zihe didn't pay attention to his "unreasonableness," but he felt a little uneasy when he saw the King of Qin.

The rumors about him in the Southern Capital were not good. Although he had been to Qin, he had heard from nearby merchants that the King of Qin was tyrannical and unpredictable, and it was probably a miracle that he could stand properly in front of him.

He secretly waved to Si Yanmo, winking and asking her if he should come again next time.

Si Yanmo knew he was afraid of Zhou Yanqing, so she deliberately teased him, hugging Zhou Yanqing's arm like a spoiled wife, and said in a high-pitched voice, "Your Highness, it was him who bullied me!"

When Zhou Yanqing was hugged like that, his heart started racing, and his Adam's apple bobbed involuntarily. He didn't hear what she was saying at all; all he knew was that the jasmine scent emanating from the girl was about to overwhelm him.

Zhong Zihe heard this and was so frightened that he waved his hands repeatedly, "I didn't! I didn't!"

He imagined a dramatic scene unfolding in his mind. Could it be that he would be paraded through the streets and beheaded just like in the play?

Taking advantage of the Prince of Qin's lack of reaction, he simply shoved the jewelry box in his hand into Si Yanmo's hands, jumped onto the carriage, and disappeared in a flash.

Hahahaha!

Si Yanmo laughed uncontrollably as she watched the carriage speed away. She turned to speak to Zhou Yanqing, only to find him standing there motionless like a boiled crab.

"What's wrong? Do you have a fever?"

She raised her hand to touch his forehead, but Zhou Yanqing dodged it.

"No...it's nothing, it's just the wind."

The man tried to steady his breathing, his gaze shifting to the jewelry box in her hand as if he had grasped at a lifeline. "That... what is it?"

His question brought Si Yanmo's attention back to the jewelry box that had just been placed in her arms.

She opened it and saw two velvet flower hairpins, one in the shape of an osmanthus and the other in the shape of an orchid, both so lifelike that she liked them at first sight.

Si Yanmo immediately picked up the orchid-shaped hairpin, gestured as she inserted it into her hair bun, and turned to ask Zhou Yanqing, "Does it look good?"

Seeing her smiling eyes and obvious delight, Zhou Yanqing realized that when she smiled at him earlier, it was clearly a forced smile.

He flicked his sleeve, turned and left, saying, "It doesn't look good."

Si Yanmo was left standing there, completely bewildered.

"Isn't it pretty at all?"

——

Si Yanmo didn't pay much attention to this little incident, after all, she had an important task to complete today—to go to the Ministry of Revenue.

According to the interpretation of Qi Muchen's fate that she had seen before, his death was very likely related to Tan Yin, who had once helped him.

Qi Muchen was not from Qin, but came from Qi Valley.

According to his destiny, he originally wanted to go to the Southern Capital.

However, not to mention that the Southern Capital Academy is directly under the royal family and it is extremely difficult to get in, he was also unfamiliar with the place and it was difficult to even find a place to stay.

Fortunately, he met Tan Yin, the Grand Commandant of Nandu at the time. Tan Yin greatly admired his talent and even invited him to stay at his residence temporarily.

Tan Yin also pointed him in the right direction—to go to Qin.

The people of Qin were not good at astrology, so the divination institute would need someone like him even more.

Qi Muchen listened to advice and came to Qin. With Tan Yin's introduction, he entered the divination academy very smoothly and later became a master and guardian based on his own abilities.

One day, the Southern Emperor's divination revealed that Tan Yin's clan was facing great misfortune and might endanger the Great Southern Kingdom.

The Southern Emperor ordered the execution of Tan Yin's entire family.

Tan Yin had no choice but to flee with his wife and children. When they arrived in Qin, he wanted to seek help from his old friend Qi Muchen, but Qi Muchen betrayed him, leading to the tragic death of his entire family.

Si Yanmo thought that if Qi Muchen really died because of this, then someone from the Tan clan must have survived back then, and she needed to know the details of the Tan clan.

When her carriage arrived at the Ministry of Revenue, before she could even enter, she found that the queue had already stretched to the entrance.

Most of these people spoke with a southern accent and were probably merchants who had come to "flee" from disaster.

The Ministry of Revenue in various regions must have been quite busy these past few days.

She walked straight into the hall and discovered that there were many merchants there to register their household registration, but only two officials from the Ministry of Revenue.

Si Yanmo couldn't help but look back at the team. If it were just these two people, it would probably take three days and three nights to finish.

She couldn't help but walk up to an official and ask, "With so many people in line, why aren't there a few more people to help manage it?"

The official didn't even look up when he heard this, and said impatiently, "Why are you talking so much? Go make an appointment first, then come and queue up. Can't you see I'm busy?"

"Next!"

Si Yanmo didn't like his tone, but based on the principle that everyone has their difficulties, she didn't want to argue with him, so she asked a nearby shopkeeper for a reservation and went to the backyard instead.

Upon entering the backyard, one finds a considerable number of people, likely waiting until dark.

She's here to investigate a case, and checking household registrations will probably take more than ten days. If this continues, the murderer might escape.

It seems we have no choice but to resort to some of the powers of divination!

Si Yanmo simply changed her approach. Ning He had been dismissed by her and Zhou Yanqing, and now the consul of the Ministry of Revenue was named Lin Buqing, who was no more than thirty years old.

She went upstairs, and sure enough, Lin Buqing was there.

"Hey, Mo Wubu, what brings you here?" The man stood up and came to greet him.

"It's like this, you must know about the murder of Qi Shibao from the divination institute the other day. I've come to the Ministry of Revenue today to check the household registrations and find the murderer. Nothing much, just..."

Before she could finish speaking, Lin Buqing interrupted her, "Mo Wubu, as you can see, the Ministry of Revenue is extremely busy. They don't have time to look for your household registration from ten years ago. Why don't you make an appointment according to the rules and come back in seven days? I'll find someone to help you look for it then."

He smiled, but the smile didn't reach his eyes.

Si Yanmo knew that this guy had received Ning He's favor, and now that Ning He was gone, he naturally held a grudge against her and Zhou Yanqing.

She had no choice but to resort to Zhou Yanqing's intimidating power, saying, "This matter was ordered by the King of Qin to be investigated by me. I hope Lin will be lenient."

"Even the King of Qin has to follow the rules, right?" Lin Buqing wasn't someone who could be intimidated by a few words.

He opened the window and pointed to the merchants below who were registering their household registrations. "With so many people here, who isn't in a hurry?"

"If one person cuts in line today and another makes an exception tomorrow, how long will they keep dragging this out?"

"Besides, the Mo Wubu is incredibly powerful; he might just figure out the murderer someday. Why would we be needed?"

Since he's already said that, anything Si Yanmo says next would be tantamount to "enjoying privileges and oppressing the people."

She could only smile and say, "What Lin says is true. But I wonder why, if Lin is so considerate of his subordinates and cares so much for the people, he didn't send more people?"

“Then I’ll have to ask Princess Qin to speak to His Highness on my behalf,” he said, changing his form of address, his eyes now showing more amusement and disdain. “The Ministry of Revenue does indeed have too few officials and needs to transfer some more personnel.”

Si Yanmo could tell that this guy was determined to cause her trouble.

But the other party was so meticulous that if she continued, it would be as if she were picking a fight.

Si Yanmo had no choice but to obediently go down and make an appointment, only to be told that the Ministry of Revenue was too busy at the moment and the appointment could only be made in fourteen days...

——

While things weren't going well for Si Yanmo, Zhou Yanqing was feeling even more frustrated.

"Brother Yanqing, that person is just Sister Si's friend, you don't need to..."

When Zhou Yanqing chopped the wooden stake in front of him for the twenty-fourth time, Sano finally couldn't help but speak up.

Ever since Zhong Zihe came this morning, he hasn't been in a good mood. He's been venting his frustrations on the wooden training posts in the military camp, and he's already broken several of them.

He really doesn't understand the world of young couples. Is it really that serious?

Zhou Yanqing threw aside the broken wooden stake, grabbed a water bottle from the side, and poured it into his mouth.

"I'm not angry. When did I get angry? Which eye of yours saw me get angry?"

Its beak is harder than a duck's.

Sano glanced weakly at the broken wooden stakes beside him, which had already been piled up.

Zhou Yanqing rolled off the training platform and sat down next to Sano.

To be honest, he didn't know where this inexplicable anger came from.

It seems he has become very strange ever since the Great Divination Ceremony.

No, to be precise, Si Yanmo has become very strange.

Why does his mind go completely blank whenever this woman gets close to him?

Why does she get inexplicably angry when she gets close to others?

But I don't want to get angry with her?

Zhou Yanqing particularly hated the feeling of having her emotions out of her control, but there was nothing she could do about it.

He really began to suspect that Si Yanmo had researched some kind of poison and given it to him.

Seeing the person in front of him looking lost, Sano sighed like a little adult.

“Brother Yanqing, you don’t have to deny it. My parents are like that sometimes too. If my mother talks to another man for a few minutes, my father will be jealous for a long time.”

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yanqing seemed to have been bitten by something, and jumped up abruptly, "What nonsense are you talking about? What jealousy? I'm not jealous! Me and her..."

"It's not what you think!"

The man shook his head violently, as if trying to shake the thought out of his mind.

Sano didn't believe it at all; someone's affection for Sister Si was clearly overflowing!

He asked directly, "Is she your wife? Are you married?"

“That’s not true…” Zhou Yanqing was speechless for a moment, “Oh dear, I can’t explain it to a child like you!”

"I'm not a kid anymore!" Sano stood up, retorting with dissatisfaction. "Then tell me, what are you angry about?"

"I..." Zhou Yanqing was about to refute with reason and evidence, but found that she couldn't seem to come up with any reason.

Does he... really like Si Yanmo?

How is that possible?

He's just...

But...

"I'm just afraid she'll be scammed." He finally came up with an excuse after racking his brains for a long time.

That woman used to be a little simpleton, and she's only been normal for a little over a year. What kind of cunning could she possibly have?

They're definitely the kind of person who gets sold out and then helps the seller count the money.

That Zhong Zihe is clearly a playboy, never serious.

If she likes this kind of person, she'll be crying her eyes out sooner or later!

But they were childhood sweethearts! That guy could win her heart with just two hairpins!

Ha, it's just two hairpins.

He still didn't believe he couldn't give Si Yanmo something she would like even more!

Zhou Yanqing seemed to have calmed himself down and stopped thinking about the inexplicable irritation. Only one thought remained in his mind—he wanted to give Si Yanmo something she would like.

So their conversation turned into...

What do you think a girl would like to receive as a gift?