Song Zhiyu circled Lotus Heart Lake and finally found the foreign merchant Qin Xu had mentioned.

Seeing the various herbs displayed on their stall, Song Zhiyu's eyes lit up, and she knew that this trip had not been in vain.

These herbs may not be considered particularly rare, but each one has its unique properties, and they are difficult to cultivate, so they can often only be traded with these exotic medicine merchants.

If a method for planting can be found, the amount of money saved will be considerable.

Thinking of this, Song Zhiyu stepped forward and casually picked up a medicinal herb.

Upon seeing Song Zhiyu, the foreign medicine merchant's eyes flashed with amazement. Were all the girls in the Lintian Dynasty so beautiful?

At least, in all his years of traveling around the country, this girl in front of him was the most stunning.

After a moment, the foreign medicine merchant slowly regained his senses. Seeing the herb in Song Zhiyu's hand, he hurriedly stepped forward. "Young lady, the herb you are holding is called Red Heart Lotus. It has the effect of promoting blood circulation and removing blood stasis..."

Before he could finish speaking, Song Zhiyu put down the Red Lotus, straightened her expression, and her clear and pleasant voice slowly rang out, "Boss, I wonder if you would be interested in doing business with me?"

The foreign medicine merchant was taken aback, as if bewitched by the smile on her face, and couldn't help but ask, "What kind of business?"

After he said it, he regretted it a little, not believing that a young girl raised in a secluded room could talk business with him.

She doesn't even know if she can recognize all these herbs, yet she wants to start a medicinal herb business.

"Besides the Red Heart Lotus, there's also this Snow Cornelian Cherry." Song Zhiyu picked out the two herbs separately and placed them in front of the herbalist, her eyes full of confidence.

No one would be unmoved by a business that promises huge profits.

*

At this moment, on the opposite shore of the lake.

Shen Jinshu searched for a long time but couldn't find Song Zhiyu. The smile on her lips grew smaller and smaller as she suspected that Song Zhiyu had played them for a fool.

"Cousin Qin, didn't you say that Second Sister promised to come to the lake tour? Why haven't I seen her yet?" Shen Jinshu's patience was wearing thin. After waiting for almost an hour without seeing Song Zhiyu, a feeling of being played for a fool welled up in his heart.

Instantly, Qin Xu's face fell. "She said she would come..."

He himself was somewhat unsure when he said this.

He had already gone to the foreign medicine merchant's place, but he didn't see Song Zhiyu at all.

Even the pharmacist's stall was deserted, let alone other places.

Was Song Zhiyu really just making fun of him?

Qin Xu's face grew increasingly grim as he thought about it. If Song Zhiyu didn't come, how could their plan be carried out?

"Perhaps something happened on the way, let's wait a little longer." Seeing his appearance, Shen Jinshu pursed her red lips and kindly comforted him.

Upon hearing this, Shen Rushan, who had been standing quietly to the side, chuckled sinisterly, making no attempt to hide the malice on his face. "We've been waiting for an hour. She should have crawled over by now, even if she had to."

The distance between the Marquis's residence and West Street is neither too far nor too near; it shouldn't take an hour to walk there.

When no one else is around, he's never bothered to pretend. But at this moment, he almost lost his temper.

He is now having such a difficult time in the court, and is not valued by His Majesty, all thanks to Song Zhiyu. How can he not hate him?

Shen Rushan's dislike for Song Zhiyu was so obvious that Qin Xu couldn't ignore it even if he wanted to.

In particular, Qin Xu was quite surprised by the unusually cold expression on Shen Rushan's face, which was very different from his usual demeanor in front of others.

This Marquis Chengen's mansion is really interesting; none of them are easy to deal with.

Even the seemingly kind and harmless Miss Shen is actually a ruthless character with a sweet exterior but a bitter heart.

Noticing Qin Xu's teasing expression, Shen Jinshu carefully tugged at Shen Rushan's sleeve, "Brother, don't say that about Second Sister. She's busy treating Miss Chu, perhaps she's tied up and can't get away for the time being."

It would have been better if she hadn't mentioned treating Chu Sangyue's illness; the moment she did, the icy coldness in Shen Rushan's eyes practically turned into sharp blades.

Even Shen Jinshu felt a chill run down her spine at that sinister look.

She looked away uncomfortably, successfully provoking Shen Rushan's anger towards Song Zhiyu before stopping there.

As she looked up at the opposite bank, a familiar figure flashed past her eyes, slender and graceful.

She would recognize that figure even if it turned to ashes.

"Isn't that my second sister? She really came." Shen Jinshu curled her lips, drawing the attention of the other two.

Shen Rushan stared intently at the slender figure, and chuckled inexplicably, "It's good that she came. I was afraid she wouldn't come."

They had prepared a grand gift for Song Zhiyu; if she didn't come, their efforts would have been wasted.

"Cousin Qin, the rest is up to you." Shen Jinshu had already made the arrangements and was just waiting for Song Zhiyu to arrive.

Qin Xu gave the two of them a reassuring look, straightened his clothes, and strode out.

"Second Miss, you promised you'd come, and you really did. I've been waiting for you here for an hour, thinking you weren't planning on coming. But something happened at the Marquis's residence, which is why I was delayed." Pushing through the bustling crowd, Qin Xu walked up to Song Zhiyu and flashed what he thought was a gentle and warm smile.

He deliberately spoke ambiguously to lull those around him into a false sense of security, making them think there was an unclear and ambiguous relationship between the two of them.

Sure enough, the men and women who were strolling around with great interest couldn't help but stop in their tracks.

“Are we that close? Stop trying to claim kinship. You’re just a distant relative of my grandmother at best. You’re only staying at the Marquis’s mansion temporarily, and you’re already acting like you’re the master?” Song Zhiyu wasn’t going to tolerate him. Although her words were harsh, the logic was sound.

Many onlookers echoed this sentiment, saying that it was outrageous for a distant relative living under someone else's roof to be meddling in the young lady's affairs.

Qin Xu turned ashen-faced, having been humiliated in front of Song Zhiyu, and he almost lost control of the anger in his heart.

He had never lost so much face because of a woman before; Song Zhiyu was the first, and would be the last.

"I originally thought that since the Second Miss agreed to come to the lake tour, we would be friends. I didn't expect I was overthinking it." Remembering Shen Jinshu's instructions, he quickly changed his strategy and put himself on the side of the weaker party.

Seeing the wavering on many people's faces, Qin Xu secretly gave Shen Jinshu a thumbs up in his heart.

Miss Shen's plan was truly brilliant; she turned the situation around with just a few words.

Song Zhiyu looked down at Qin Xu's dejected appearance and twitched her lips in annoyance.

These familiar actions and words were as if they were carved from the same mold as Shen Jinshu.