Chapter 17 Explanation
A pearl lightly veils the beauty's face, her stunning beauty undiminished.
Zhou Jin squinted at the beauty whose neck he could easily snap with a single twist: "Falsified records? Incorrect household registration? Your background is quite impressive!"
"My lord, please listen to my explanation."
With each word Li Qu uttered, she felt a little less air in her chest.
The fear of suffocation made her instinctively try to pull Zhou Jin's hands away from her neck, but his hands were like iron clamps that were difficult to move.
"It's not what you think!"
"I am doing this to escape my enemies!"
The restraints around her neck loosened, allowing Li Qu to catch her breath, but the iron clamps across her neck still threatened her life.
She quickly said, "I bought a family register from a relative at a high price and traveled south to hide my identity. I pretended to be husband and wife with my second sister to confuse people and prevent our enemies from tracking us down."
"As for the inaccurate records of the places visited, they were obtained by the concubine through bribery of the officials."
"What grudge?"
"concubine……"
Feeling the restraints around her neck tighten, Li Qu quickly spoke up: "I disguised myself as a man and swindled a lot of money from Wu Xubai, the sixth young master of the Tongbao Money Shop in Yan."
"He was a homosexual and had a homosexual relationship with women. When he learned that I was a woman, he wanted to sell me into a brothel to vent his hatred."
"Therefore, I left my hometown with my family and went south to join my brother-in-law."
"When did you meet Haoyue?"
We were not acquainted; we had only met once.
Where?
"Yan land, Zhaoyue Tower. Please, sir, let go. All the mistakes are mine. Please, let's talk this out."
Although Zhou Jin's hand no longer tightened, the chilling sensation on her neck made her feel extremely threatened.
"If you truly despise me, my lord, I will leave and not be an eyesore to you. Please, for the sake of the time I have served you, spare my lowly life."
Zhou Jin recalled what Haoyue had said: that girl was exceptionally talented, no less so than any man.
Looking at the frail woman before him, her face filled with terror and her eyes brimming with tears of pleading, he forcefully pushed her aside and calmly sat down.
Li Qu broke free of her restraints and retreated to the side, subconsciously raising her hand to touch her neck.
Her household registration was that of her second uncle's family, which she bought for twenty taels of silver.
The document was equivalent to a modern ID card, issued by the place of household registration, and stated the reason for travel, identity, and route.
Li Qu's gender is false, and her identity is naturally fabricated.
When Li Qu first entered the Zhou family, the old lady suspected her because her gender and background did not match.
However, Li Qu used the excuse that "the journey from Yan to Wanxian is long, her appearance is too striking, and three of the four people in the group are weak women, so we have to disguise ourselves to ensure our safety."
Furthermore, the testimonies of Li Qu, Li's mother, and Li Rong were consistent, and the old lady also questioned people from the same registered residence area, finding no fault on their part.
The matter was then dropped in front of the old lady.
Unexpectedly, Zhou Jin suddenly launched an attack.
Li Qu didn't know if Zhou Jin had actually sent someone to her registered residence to investigate her background.
Her background was not investigated.
Therefore, she dared not use the same excuse she had used to fool the old lady in front of Zhou Jin again.
Fortunately, Zhou Jin only suspected her background and took the opportunity to provoke her, not to kill her.
This deception also made Zhou Jin realize that the woman in front of him, whose background and speech seemed inconsistent, had a big problem.
"name?"
"His surname is Li, and his given name is Qu."
The name on Li Qu's household registration was her cousin's name, Li Yaozu.
"Genuine household registration and transfer records."
"With my mother."
"You're quite cunning."
Li Qu paused for a moment before retorting, "I'm just being prepared."
If your identity is discovered, just take out the real one. If you lie and accidentally took the wrong one, you will at most be reprimanded, but you will not be arrested.
The government is currently keeping a close eye on population movement.
Zhou Jin knocked on the carriage, and Huai Qiu's voice came from outside: "Yes, Master. What are your orders?"
"Go to Jishui Lane to retrieve the Li family's residence and household registration."
Li Qu quickly spoke up: "Only I know where the things are."
Zhou Jin's gaze fell on Li Qu's face.
Li Qu lowered her eyes, avoiding Zhou Jin's gaze: "If you don't believe me, please ask Brother Huaiqiu to make the trip."
Zhou Jin withdrew his gaze and instructed the carriage, "Go to Jishui Lane."
Li Qu breathed a sigh of relief.
Thinking to himself, as long as he could fool Zhou Jin today, the matter of falsifying the household registration and residence records could be completely resolved.
Little did she know, the people Zhou Jin had sent to Yan to investigate her background had already set off.
The carriage slowly began to move, and Li Qu's mind gradually calmed down. Just as she was carefully considering what she had said in the emergency and what she needed to tell her family, the carriage stopped again.
Yingying's soft voice came from outside the carriage: "Thank you for saving me tonight, Third Master. If you do not despise me, I am willing to offer my humble service to escort you back to your residence."
Li Qu slightly raised her eyelids and saw Zhou Jin's slender fingers, which were resting on the coffee table, tap lightly.
"Can."
As Zhou Jinsheng's voice faded like the sound of jade plates falling, Li Qu quickly straightened her clothes and put on her veil.
Before Haoyue got on the bus, she had already moved to the side, making room for Zhou Jin and Haoyue.
Haoyue seemed to know that Li Qu was in the carriage, and greeted her with a smile as she got in.
Li Qu nodded in acknowledgment, indicating that they had exchanged greetings, then turned her head away without saying a word, giving Haoyue the false impression that she was jealous.
Haoyue bowed to Zhou Jin again, and after taking her seat, she exchanged pleasantries with him.
The carriage moved slowly and steadily forward.
Li Qu remained silent to the side, minimizing her presence.
Haoyue seemed oblivious to Li Qu's reluctance to get involved in her conversation with Zhou Jin, and steered the conversation toward Li Qu: "Please forgive my presumptuous actions, young mistress."
If it weren't for Third Master's rescue tonight, I fear my innocence would have been lost.
Li Qu gave a soft "hmm".
Haoyue seemed unfazed by the awkwardness, her smile sweet: "I caught a glimpse of the young mistress's face earlier and was amazed by her beauty. She does resemble my old acquaintance by about 50 percent."
Li Qu ignored him.
"However, I saw her three years ago. I imagine she is now even more radiant and graceful."
Li Qu closed her eyes.
"Speaking of which, my old acquaintance is just as lucky as the young lady, both having noble people who wholeheartedly protect them, unlike me, whose life is like a boat adrift."
Li Qu took a deep breath.
She felt that the other person should be able to sense her impatience.
"May I ask where the young lady comes from?"
Li Qu suddenly looked at Haoyue, her annoyed gaze shooting straight out through the veil, startling Haoyue's beautiful eyes.
Before Haoyue could admit her mistake, Li Qu had already lifted the carriage curtain and sat outside, startling Huaiqiu, who was driving the carriage, into stopping abruptly: "Auntie, it's not appropriate for you to sit here."
When the carriage stopped, Li Qu jumped off without any regard for appearances and headed towards the carriage where Granny Xu was sitting.
Li Qu boarded the carriage, and Zhou Jin gave no further instructions before the carriage set off again.
Inside Zhou Jin's carriage, Haoyue was somewhat surprised by Li Qu's identity.
The term "little wife" was merely a way of showing respect to the woman he brought with him, out of consideration for Zhou Jin.
Unexpectedly, Li Qu was indeed Zhou Jin's concubine with a formal title.
She is indeed a genuine young lady.
She smiled apologetically at Zhou Jin: "It was I who was being noisy and disturbed the young mistress."
Zhou Jin seemed unaware of what had just happened, raising his hand to press his temple.
"I do know some techniques to relieve headaches. If you don't mind, Third Master, I'm willing to help you."
Zhou Jin looked up at the bright moon for a moment.
Haoyue wore a gentle smile, her expression tender and affectionate.
Zhou Jin closed his eyes.
A hint of disappointment appeared on Haoyue's face.
"It's quite remarkable that Miss Haoyue still remembers our brief encounter three years ago."
Seeing Zhou Jin bring up the topic again, Haoyue quickly replied with a smile: "It's hard for a poor family to produce good melons. We were either from families of officials who committed crimes and ended up here, or our mothers were beauties from humble backgrounds."
Furthermore, the stewards in charge of the building were carefully selected, and their appearances were naturally superior to those of ordinary people.
“That old friend was different. Although he came from a poor family with a good social standing, he had an extraordinary appearance.”
Haoyue recalled Li Qu, whom she had met at Zhaoyue Tower three years ago, and couldn't hide her envy: "We are of poor birth, but because of our good looks, the tower protects us wholeheartedly, and we are able to have each other day and night."
She was beautiful and came from a poor family; she was a victim of her own possessions, yet she managed to live a peaceful life, even better off than the slaves. It was all due to her timing, luck, and fate.
Zhou Jin didn't respond. Haoyue was afraid that if she changed the topic, Zhou Jin wouldn't keep up, which would make things awkward, so she continued with the topic.
"Her sleeves fluttered with fragrance, and the red lotus swayed in the autumn mist. We servants are not in control of our own lives, and few can maintain their true selves. She is neither humble nor arrogant, and has a proud spirit that rises from the mud unsullied. She deserves the name 'lotus'."
The carriage suddenly stopped, and Zhou Jin opened his eyes.
Outside the carriage, Huaiqiu said softly, "Master, we have arrived at Jishui Lane."
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