Chapter 250 Reluctant to Part with General Xie

That's really impressive.

Jiang Zhi twitched her lips, speechless.

I wonder if he'll go crazy again.

“It’s fine if you don’t want to talk about it,” Xiao Xuanyou raised his hand to call Wen Quan in, “I’ll send someone to investigate and they’ll find out.”

“It’s Lin Yan from the Provincial Administration Commission,” Jiang Zhi stopped him, no longer needing to hide it. “He only slapped me once, and Lu Yuan has already gotten it back for me. He’s currently locked up in the General’s Mansion dungeon.”

A fierce glint flashed in Xiao Xuanyou's eyes, but he quickly regained his composure.

"Your Highness, please don't be angry. Look at me, I'm perfectly fine now, aren't I?" Jiang Zhi looked at his face and smiled. "The most important thing for Your Highness right now is to recover. Nothing else matters."

“Yes, I will listen to you,” Xiao Xuanyou took her hand, his face showing no sign of abnormality. “You don’t need to put on so much makeup just to cover it up; it’s not good for the injury on your face.”

Jiang Zhi finally felt relieved.

It seems that Xiao Xuanyou has really changed his ways; he's actually listening to her.

She had lunch with Xiao Xuanyou, and then pushed him in his sandalwood wheelchair to the courtyard for some fresh air. Seeing that he looked tired, she told him to come back and rest.

As soon as Jiang Zhi left, Xiao Xuanyou's gentle expression vanished, and he coldly called Wen Quan in.

“Go to the dungeon, and cut off whichever hand he slapped her with.”

Wen Quan naturally knew who his master was referring to. "Young Master Lin's hand bones were broken by Lord Lu last night."

“Even if it’s broken, it can be reattached,” Xiao Xuanyou said, his eyes flashing with malice. “Only by cutting it off can we be absolutely certain of success.”

“There’s no need to bandage the wound. If he bleeds to death,” he sneered, “it can only be attributed to his own incompetence.”

"Keep things clean, don't let Miss Ji know."

Wen Quan's expression hardened, and he accepted the order.

*

Jiang Zhi was somewhat surprised when she received the invitation from the Lin family.

Lin Qiyun invited her to the Lin residence for a winter fireside banquet.

She has been extremely busy these past two days, having transported a batch of goods from Xuzhou.

Lin Qiyun's invitation was definitely a trap, so she casually made up an excuse to decline.

Unexpectedly, Lin Xiyun came to invite them in person.

“Miss Ji, I truly want to apologize,” Lin Qiyun said sincerely. “My brother offended you, and now my father is furious, saying he acted impulsively and caused trouble and refuses to take responsibility anymore, leaving him to fend for himself. I really have no other choice.”

Actually, Lord Lin disliked being threatened and was certain that Xie Qi wouldn't dare do anything to Lin Yan, so he stubbornly argued with him to see who would lose their temper first.

Having no other choice, Lin Qiyun approached Jiang Zhi again.

"I would like to formally apologize to you at the fireside banquet in front of everyone. Please do me the honor of attending," she said softly.

"I'm sorry, Ms. Lin, I've been very busy these past few days. Let's talk another time when we have a chance."

Lin Qiyun bit her lower lip. "The guests at the banquet that day were all wealthy and powerful ladies from Yaocheng. Miss Ji, aren't you trying to sell the goods you brought in? If you can get a few words of praise from them, why worry about finding a market?"

Lin Qiyun's words struck a chord with Jiang Zhi, and her eyes lit up.

This time, she brought a lot of cosmetics and perfumes from Xuzhou, all of which are things that young women like to use on a daily basis. She put them on consignment in the rouge shop, but the sales have been mediocre.

She was worried about how to break into the upper-class social circle of the wealthy women in Yaocheng.

Although I knew Lin Qiyun certainly didn't have good intentions, the opportunity was truly rare.

After thinking about it, I agreed.

However, Jiang Zhi wasn't foolish enough to go alone, so she specifically went to Lu Yuan to borrow someone.

Unfortunately, Lu Yuan only brought men with him this time, so they couldn't accompany her into the Lin family's backyard.

Xiao Xuanyou sent over two people.

It turned out to be Shadow and Dark Moon.

"Miss!"

The two men saw Jiang Zhi crying tears of joy and knelt at her feet.

They had thought that the young lady had passed away, but the two of them were summoned to Yaocheng by the Crown Prince, and they didn't know who they would be sent to next.

I never expected that Miss is still alive, and even in Yaocheng!

How could they not be surprised and delighted?

After the three of them chatted for a while, Jiang Zhi asked, "How is Qingxing? Is she alright?"

Ru Ying said, "Since Miss left, Qingxing has volunteered to return to the house you used to live in, saying she wants to keep watch for you. Lord Shen has also taken good care of her."

"If Qingxing knew that you were still alive, she would be overjoyed!"

Jiang Zhi also missed her maid.

However, Yaocheng is far away and cold, and she didn't want Qingxing to travel such a long distance. She would wait until Qingxing had the opportunity to return to the capital in the future.

Lin Qiyun's fireside banquet was soon to begin.

Jiang Zhi dressed up specially today, with Ru Ying and An Yue disguised as ordinary maids following her.

As expected of the Lin family, who live in Yaocheng, a place known as "half the sky," their mansion covers a vast area that stretches as far as the eye can see.

Led by a maid, they entered the backyard of the Lin residence, where many young ladies were already sitting together chatting.

Today's fireside banquet is held in the warm pavilion, where an underfloor heating system is burning, and the silver charcoal is burning brightly. There is not a trace of cold air in the warm pavilion, and the warmth is just like spring.

Upon seeing Jiang Zhi enter, Lin Qiyun immediately stood up to greet her, smiling as she introduced her to everyone.

"I heard that Miss Ji is from the South. Why would she come to such a cold and harsh place as our Yaocheng?" someone asked her curiously.

Jiang Zhi wanted to say that she had been kidnapped to Yaocheng and had not come there voluntarily.

So he vaguely replied, "I guess I want to change my living environment."

“It’s not about changing living conditions,” someone else chimed in with a laugh. “I think it’s more about not being able to bear to part with General Xie.”

The young ladies immediately became interested when Xie Qi was mentioned.

"We are extremely curious. Could you please enlighten us, Miss Ji, what is your relationship with General Xie? How come you are so close to him?"

After all, General Xie was a young general guarding the border. He was of noble birth, handsome, and had made great military achievements. Even Miss Lin admired him, let alone these unmarried girls.

But only this orphan girl was allowed to live in the general's mansion and go in and out with him.

It wasn't entirely out of jealousy; they also wanted to know what methods she had used.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Zhi raised an eyebrow.

And that's how business comes in.

She coughed lightly and took out a sachet she had prepared beforehand. "General Xie and I are just ordinary friends. As for why I'm so close to him—"

She showed them the sachet in her hand, saying, "It's all because I wear this kind of Chinese herbal sachet. It's fragrant, wards off evil, soothes emotions, calms the mind, and is most suitable for a military general like him."

"The makeup I'm wearing today also helps to soothe the liver, regulate qi, and improve skin tone."

The young ladies immediately became curious about what she was holding.

Jiang Zhi then introduced them to each of them.

Lin Qiyun was also eager to try it.

Did Xie Qi really only get close to Ji Zhiya because he liked the sachet and cosmetics she wore?

Thinking of this, she suddenly came to her senses.

You, Ji Zhiya, actually started selling things to her!

She was furious.

Just then, the things she had instructed her maid to prepare were ready.

So she interrupted Jiang Zhi with a smile, "Alright everyone, Miss Ji just arrived and hasn't even sat down for a cup of hot tea yet. It's my fault as the host. Come and try my tea. It's different from the southern kind. It has ginger, dates, orange peel, and licorice in it. It's good for dispelling cold and moisturizing dryness, and it's perfect for this time of year."

Everyone's attention returned to Lin Qiyun. "Oh dear, I haven't had the tea here for so long, Sister Lin. No matter how I ask the maid to make it, it just doesn't taste the same as Sister Lin's."

"You're such a glutton, I'll bring more back with me later."

Lin Qiyun jokingly told the maid to serve tea to the others, and personally brought a cup to Jiang Zhi.

“My brother was blind and didn’t recognize my worth. It was really wrong of him to lay a hand on Miss Ji. As his sister, I apologize to you on his behalf. He has learned his lesson these past few days. I hope Miss Ji can be magnanimous and forgive him.”

Lin Qiyun's posture was extremely humble.