Chapter 12 Even if they're not lovers, they're still mistresses

Although he was expressionless, the aura he exuded was awe-inspiring; an ordinary person would probably have been scared out of their wits long ago.

Unfortunately, Jiang Zhi had already been tempered by Lu Yuan's repeated interrogations, and her expression remained unchanged. She took out a few silver notes from her sleeve and placed them beside Li Yuanhu.

"Since Brother Li has guessed it, he knows I can't easily reveal my identity. I'm paying people to do my bidding. If you agree to help me, this banknote is yours."

Li Yuanhu picked up the silver note and looked at it, a glint of shrewdness flashing in his eyes. "You came all alone, aren't you afraid I'll swallow the silver note and not do anything for you?"

“I dared to come to you because I trust Brother Li’s character,” Jiang Zhi said with a calm smile. “Miss Jiangxue has always praised you as a loyal and chivalrous hero, otherwise you wouldn’t have been able to win over so many brothers. Although she no longer follows you, she still respects and admires you very much.”

Upon hearing this, Li Yuanhu merely curled his lips into a smirk. "Don't flatter me. Since you know me, you should know that I live a life of constant danger and have done all sorts of business. Murder, robbery, and double-crossing are commonplace for me. What are sentiments worth? Jiang Xue herself refused to be with me. I can't expect every Tom, Dick, or Harry she knows to come looking for me, can I?"

Li Yuanhu made his fortune by smuggling salt. Although he has now given up the business, he still has a large gang of brothers in the underworld and his hands are stained with blood.

Jiang Zhi anticipated that he wouldn't agree readily, so she simply used her trump card, "Brother Li, you're being too modest. When Lord Lu brought me here just now, he mentioned to me that it was only because you were in charge that Beilifang wasn't so chaotic."

"Lord Lu?" Li Yuanhu raised an eyebrow. "Which Lord Lu?"

Jiang Zhi said, "Naturally, it is Lord Lu Yuan, the Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard."

Li Yuanhu originally only wanted to test Jiang Zhi, but he didn't expect her to bring up Commander Lu.

He immediately called one of his men to go out and inquire. The man returned in a hurry and whispered a few words in Li Yuanhu's ear.

Li Yuanhu's originally fierce face showed surprise, and then he immediately became much more amiable.

I thought she was just a naive and ignorant girl, but I never expected that she would have a connection with Lu Yuan.

His men had only gone out to inquire casually and learned that the girl had been sent to Beilifang. After the men described the face of the person who sent her, Li Yuanhu knew without a doubt that it was Lu Yuan, not to mention the black horse under him, so there was no doubt about it.

Moreover, their relationship seems to be more than just ordinary.

I've dealt with Lu Yuan myself; he's a high-ranking official who never shows his emotions. When have I ever heard of him personally delivering someone on a single horse?

Even criminals don't receive this kind of treatment.

“So you’re Lord Lu’s friend,” Li Yuanhu said with a forced smile. “My apologies, why didn’t you say so sooner? I could have sent someone to pick you up in person and avoided all these misunderstandings.”

Jiang Zhi smiled and said, "Brother Li, you're too kind. I have something to ask of you, how could I trouble you?"

It was definitely the right decision to have Lu Yuan take her.

Today, she'll play the fox and use Lu Yuan's tiger skin to show off her power.

"Of course, of course. May I ask how this young lady is addressed? And what can I do for you?" Li Yuanhu had his servants serve tea and invited her to sit down.

"Brother Li, you can call me Chanyi."

Chanyi was the name given to her by the madam of Qifeng Tower in her previous life.

She had initially loathed the name that carried her pain and shame, but now, she saw it as a symbol of transformation and rebirth. Names are neither good nor bad; it's just a matter of one's state of mind.

"As for what needs to be done," Jiang Zhi took out a note from her sleeve and showed it to Li Yuanhu, "please take a look, Brother Li."

After reading the few words above, Li Yuanhu looked surprised. "Since you are familiar with Commander Lu, why don't you ask him to do this? It would be a piece of cake for him."

Jiang Zhi put the note back into her sleeve, looking troubled. "He is an official appointed by the imperial court. If I were to take action openly, it might give others something to talk about. I had no choice but to come to you."

Li Yuanhu nodded thoughtfully, "That makes sense."

"I agree to this. Just send someone to inform me when the time comes. As for the silver notes, you can take them back."

Jiang Zhi didn't move. "This is a reward for the brothers' hard work. If Brother Li refuses, I won't dare to ask you for help next time."

“Alright,” Li Yuanhu said without further ado, putting the silver note into his pocket. “Miss Chanyi is a straightforward person, just my type. Come visit my Money Lane more often when you have time.”

"Alright, I can't stay here any longer, Brother Li. I'll take my leave now."

Li Yuanhu personally escorted Jiang Zhi out of the courtyard. His subordinate approached him and asked, "Boss, should I send someone to keep an eye on where she goes and, while we're at it, investigate her identity?"

Li Yuanhu glared at him, "Dare to investigate her? If we offend Lu Yuan, none of us will get away with it!"

"Is it really that exaggerated? It's just that he knows Commander Lu." The subordinate said dismissively.

“You just said someone saw them coming from Xiefangju. Xiefangju specializes in cosmetics and face powder. Why would ordinary men go there? What do you think this means? They’re not just acquaintances, they’re clearly lovers!” Li Yuanhu said in a low voice.

"Boss, do you mean that the girl in the cicada-cloak and Commander Lu... are a couple?" The subordinate couldn't help but gasp.

“Even if she’s not my lover, she’s still a mistress. In any case, I can’t afford to offend her easily,” Li Yuanhu snorted. “When it comes to her job, make sure you handle it carefully and cleanly. We can’t let Commander Lu look down on us, understand?”

Jiang Zhi hadn't expected Li Yuanhu to misunderstand like this, but she didn't have time to worry about it right now.

To be on the safe side, after leaving Beilifang, she lingered on the street for a while, and even went to a clothing store to change her clothes and appearance to ensure that no one could associate her with the person she had just been. After taking a roundabout route to avoid being followed, she finally returned to the Jiang residence.

Qingxing had already prepared the medicine in Chuntang Garden, and she took the medicine to Zhizhi Pavilion.

Compared to yesterday, Shen Ci'an's complexion was much better. When Jiang Zhi arrived with the medicine, he was sitting on the veranda reading a book, dressed in a simple blue robe, looking upright and composed.

Seeing Jiang Zhi enter, he put down the book beside him, got up, took out the brush and ink he had prepared beforehand, and began to teach her calligraphy.

After about half a month, Shen Ci'an's illness had almost completely healed under Jiang Zhi's care, and her calligraphy had also improved rapidly under Shen Ci'an's guidance.

After seeing her calligraphy, Madam Jiang exclaimed that she had found the right teacher, Shen Ci'an, and instructed Granny Ji to send a lot of writing brushes, ink, paper and inkstones to Zhizhixuan to reward him.

After delivering the last dose of medicine that day, Jiang Zhi breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that he would no longer be as seriously ill as he was in her previous life and be sent out of the Jiang family mansion by her father.

"I've come today because I need to ask for a day's leave from you, Master," Jiang Zhi said, bowing to him.