Seeing the mess in the kitchen, I was too lazy to clean it up.
Fearing that Zhou Lang would be cold when he woke up, I dragged Wen Heng back into the room and changed him into clean clothes. By then it was past midnight, and I had been tormented all night.
She yawned and drifted off to sleep again, nestled against Wen Heng's body.
I didn't sleep well that night either, and it wasn't even dawn yet.
I woke up before Zhou Yu.
I got out of bed, which was quite unusual for me, and got up very early. I boiled water and roasted sweet potatoes.
When Zhou Lang rubbed his sleepy eyes and came out of the room, I gave him a bright smile: "You're awake? Come and eat."
Zhou Lang blinked his clear, bright eyes, then said with a hint of guilt, "Ahua, I'm sorry. I overslept and woke up late, which made you feel bad."
“Zhou Lang didn’t get up late, it’s Ah Hua who got up early. Come and sit down to eat, we still have things to do today!” I replied gently.
"oh……"
Zhou Lang obediently sat down next to me, and I handed him a peeled sweet potato: "Eat quickly."
Zhou Lang scratched his head, somewhat embarrassed, and accepted the gift, saying, "Ah Hua, you're so kind."
I smiled at him and stroked his head: "Zhou Lang is very good too! Thank you for being so good to me."
Caught completely off guard, Zhou Lang suddenly and gently pressed his lips to my cheek. I saw him blush, pick up the sweet potato, and lower his head to eat it with a smile.
Then, mimicking the gesture I usually made for him, he gave me a bright smile and a thumbs-up: "Delicious!"
It's not tasty at all. I haven't cooked in a long time, and this time it wasn't even cooked through. It's still a bit rusty.
Besides, I'm so sick of eating sweet potatoes every day.
Zhou Lang and I ate a few bites, then put the packaged ginseng in our pockets and went out. We asked around and arrived at the gate of the Zhou Prince's Mansion, which the waiter had told us about yesterday.
I had assumed that since the Prince Zhou's residence was occupied by a young royal prince, it would be a grand and imposing mansion.
When Zhou Lang and I stood on a desolate, empty street, we saw a dilapidated courtyard house with a small wooden door bearing the words "Zhou Wang Mansion" on its plaque.
If it weren't for that plaque, I would have thought I was standing in front of an ordinary person's home.
It completely lacked the grand, imposing, and aristocratic feel of the imperial power and wealth described in the book.
There were no guards at the gate. Could it be a down-on-his-luck prince who had been demoted to the frontier by the current emperor?
Actually, I don't care where he lives. What I care about is whether, given his circumstances, he can afford to give me ten taels of gold.
However, according to the shop assistant, this prince is the wealthiest and most generous person in our pharmacy, and he is the one who supports our entire business. So, he is, after all, a member of the royal family, and even if he is poor, he is still richer than ordinary people.
So I put aside my worries and stepped onto the door without hesitation, reaching out to knock on the door.
After knocking for a long time, I could finally hear faint footsteps approaching from inside.
With a creak, the old wooden door creaked open.
A middle-aged man with a black mustache poked his head out from inside, looked me up and down, and said calmly, "Who are you? What brings you here?"
"I'm a clerk at Changsheng Pharmacy. A few days ago, our pharmacy acquired a bunch of ten-thousand-year-old ginseng, and the shop assistant specially sent me to deliver it to our young prince." As I spoke, I took out the tightly wrapped ginseng from my pocket, bowed, and handed it over.
The man did not take the ginseng from my hand. He simply glanced at it with an expressionless look and said, "Wait a moment, I'll go report to him first."
Then, with a loud bang, the door was slammed shut again.
"Who dares to bother Uncle Cai?" A young man's melodious voice came from the courtyard, sounding as if he were lying on his back.
"Your Highness, the shop assistant at the Changsheng Pharmacy outside said that they recently acquired a rare, ten-thousand-year-old ginseng and specially brought it to you to nourish your body," the man replied.
Fortunately, the courtyard of this house was not large, and I could hear all the conversations inside thanks to my keen hearing.
Zhou Lang sat on the doorstep, propping his face up with his arm, patiently waiting for me.
But I stood at the doorway, listening intently to the conversation between the two people inside the courtyard.
The young man's cool voice said indifferently, "Oh, no need. I recently obtained a secret medicine formula, and my health is fine now. I'll leave the ginseng to those who need it. Send her away!"
"Here you go."
Then they heard the middle-aged man's footsteps approaching the door from a distance.
Hearing the conversation inside, I felt a pang of disappointment: "Oh dear, who had to give me this secret medicine at this crucial moment, curing this chronically weak person and blocking my path to wealth?" As I pondered this...
The middle-aged man opened the door with a creak and repeated what the man in the yard had said. Before I could react, he slammed the door shut with a clang.
It's really infuriating! Indeed, the imperial family is the most ruthless; they lavishly spend money when they need you, but neglect you when they don't.
However, I suddenly recalled the sickly young master I met a while ago. His clothes, appearance, and the beautiful little bodyguard who asked me for medicine all fit perfectly in terms of timing and identity.
I suddenly realized, "Ah!" I exclaimed. Could it be that I've cut off my own source of income?
If that's really the case, then the more proud I was of getting a tael of silver for free back then, the more disappointed I am now of losing those ten taels of gold.
I slapped my forehead, feeling extremely annoyed and regretful.
Hearing my dejected cry, Zhou Lang quickly came to my side, frowning with concern, and asked, "Ah Hua, what's wrong?"
I rubbed my forehead and waved my hand: "It's nothing, just a headache! I'll be fine after a short rest."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Lang quickly pulled me to sit on the doorstep to rest.
After sitting on the doorstep for a moment to calm down and regain my senses, I analyzed the situation carefully. If it really was that sickly young master and the little guard, then I couldn't let myself suffer a loss and let them get away with it.
I stood up and surveyed the small courtyard. It wasn't very tall, so I decided to sneak in first to confirm who was inside.
I told Zhou Lang to sit here and wait for me for a moment, and I would be right back.
Zhou Lang nodded obediently.
I wandered to the side wall of the house. Sigh, it's been so long since I've used my skills that I'm a bit rusty. I prepared myself and leaped up the wall. As soon as I landed on the edge, I sensed a deadly hidden weapon flying towards me from afar!
My eyes narrowed, and I shifted my body along the wall, just managing to dodge the flying weapon. A throwing knife pierced straight into the bluestone slab on the ground.
Fortunately, I have mastered the solid skills I have developed over thousands of years. If my body were to lose its balance even slightly and deviate by an inch, I would be pierced through the intestines by that flying hidden weapon.
I had just steadied myself when a lightning-fast figure leaped from the rooftop and landed on the wall where I was in the blink of an eye. Before I could even see the figure's face, it stretched out its arm and slashed at me.
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