Chapter 24 Burned Silly Sister
Jin Suiqing: "You'll know when we get there."
The carriage swayed out of the city and came to a stop after traveling a short distance. Jin Suiqing pushed Huihong and jumped off the carriage.
“Da da,” Jin Suiqing said, opening her arms wide, “I bought a courtyard house to open my own studio!”
"A studio?" Huihong asked, puzzled. "What's that?"
Jin Suiqing didn't say anything, but pulled Huihong into the courtyard. The courtyard was quiet, with three rooms facing south. The big dog and the little sheep had been almost taken care of. As per Jin Suiqing's request, the courtyard had been expanded quite a bit and enclosed with a fence. Now it was only missing two pieces of furniture, but that didn't affect its use.
Huihong's eyes widened, and she instantly forgot her previous doubts, exclaiming in surprise, "My goodness, Little Princess! This courtyard is huge!"
Jin Suiqing grinned: "You'll definitely like it."
"I love it! I really love it!"
With Jin Suiqing's approval, Huihong stepped into the courtyard, touching this and that, sometimes opening her arms to claim a piece of land, sometimes pointing to a spot and saying she wanted to build a chicken coop there. She ran around happily, having a wonderful time.
Huihong was bored out of her mind staying at home. She didn't like the luxurious life of wealthy people and preferred this kind of rural life.
Jin Suiqing looked at her and sighed quietly.
This is the courtyard that Zhang Yuyi left behind.
As long as she's happy, that's all that matters. Jin Suiqing doesn't care what the dead think; she only cares about whether the living Huihong is happy.
Huihong couldn't stay idle. She said she wanted to start cooking, so she went to clean the kitchen first.
Inside the house, Gong Xiaoyang pointed to the kitchen and asked, "Sister Huihong doesn't know anything?"
Jin Suiqing: "Zhang Yu left a letter at the post station early in the morning and delivered it to Huihong at the right time, saying that he had gone to the south and that she should not worry about him anymore."
Gong Xiaoyang nodded, seemingly somewhat saddened.
She glared at the big dog and the little lamb, and viciously slashed their necks with her hand, saying, "You two, if either of you dares to tell her that Huihong is burdened, I'll tear him apart."
Jin Suiqing was a precocious child. Although he looked like a six-year-old and spoke harshly, he didn't seem very threatening. However, Da Gou and Xiao Yang understood. They looked at each other and raised their fingers to assure each other that they would never reveal anything.
Before long, Xiao Yang was called away by Hui Hong to help. Gong Da Gou asked Jin Sui Qing, "You just gave the bamboo tube to your brother like that? It's full of evidence that could cause chaos in the capital."
Jin Suiqing rested her chin on her hand and blinked: "You mean, you want me to stay here, ready to die at any time?"
Gong Dagou chuckled憨厚ly: "Of course not, I'm just curious."
Jin Suiqing explained, "I am just a princess in name only, without money or power. Without power as my foundation, such a weighty thing would only bring me death if it fell into my hands."
Gong Dagou seemed to be deep in thought and wanted to speak again, but was interrupted by Jin Suiqing.
“Don’t be fooled by its alluring appearance,” Jin Suiqing shook her finger. “They are not afraid of the evidence, but of the person who has the ability to bring them down.”
Jin Suiqing: "Rather than leaving it as waste paper in the hands of someone like me who has no power and no ambition, it's better to hand it over to someone who can make it valuable."
Gong Dagou, being sensible, raised his hand to stop her from continuing, saying, "I understand, little princess. I'll go help in the kitchen."
After saying that, he ran away in a flash.
Jin Suiqing pouted, blew on her uneven bangs, and muttered, "I don't want to be the second Zhang Yuyi."
Dejected, Jin Suiqing slumped onto the table and closed her eyes to rest.
Although the matter has come to an end, there is one thing that Jin Suiqing still finds strange.
The mission that caused Kim Shi-ok to get injured.
It was completed inexplicably.
*
The craftsmen from Wuhoupu, carrying lifting equipment, were dismantling the ruins of Zuixianlou. The fire had eroded the structure, turning it into charcoal, and the hooks would turn it to ashes at the slightest touch.
The craftsman sighed, lamenting that such a fine building had been burned down.
Moreover, I heard that quite a few people died inside. Demolishing a building where people have died is like demolishing a grave, which brings bad luck and karmic retribution. However, I heard that the person who paid for it was a big shot. The craftsman thought that the dead cannot be brought back to life, but the living still need to eat.
Suddenly, the craftsman felt a chill run down his spine, as if someone was watching him. He looked around but saw no suspicious figures. Feeling a sense of dread, he clasped his hands together, shook them, muttered something, and quickly continued working.
Opposite the ruins of Zuixianlou, a newly built tavern of the same size is nearing completion.
Jin Shiyu went up to the third floor as agreed. The floor was empty, with only a tea table placed by the window. To his surprise, there were two people on the third floor.
Huangfu Li rested his chin on his hand and gazed out the window, intently watching the craftsmen dismantle the Drunken Immortal Pavilion, completely ignoring the Duke of England kneeling with his head bowed before the table.
The Duke of England confessed: "Your Highness, I...I really was just confused for a moment, that's why I...that's why I was with Qin Xianglan..."
"It's alright. By using your grandson to lure out Qin Xianglan, you've redeemed yourself." Huangfu Li didn't even turn his head, his tone teasing, "No, you've done a great service."
The Duke of England was overjoyed and kowtowed repeatedly.
Driven by greed, the British government illegally mined sulfur-based gold without permission. Unexpectedly, a mining accident exposed their scheme. They thought they could escape in time, but they didn't expect that the Crown Prince would seize on their incriminating evidence. The Crown Prince held onto the evidence for three years and kept the news extremely well under wraps.
Just when the British public thought his days of constant anxiety were finally coming to an end, the Crown Prince, accompanied by evidence and the dog from the Jin family, came to him, demanding that he lure out the person who was manipulating the imperial examinations.
Fortunately, following the Crown Prince's instructions, they assisted in removing Qin Xianglan, and the Drunken Immortal Pavilion was turned into a fire. Everything that should and shouldn't have been kept disappeared with the explosion and the fire.
At this moment, the British Duke, covered in cold sweat, felt a sense of relief, as if he had survived a disaster.
Huangfu Li suddenly asked, "I heard that your men were also at Zuixianlou on the night of the explosion?"
The British Duke shuddered: "Yes, there is."
"Where are you going? Tell me."
"It's...it's just that I wanted to..."
"What are you thinking about?" Huangfu Li fiddled with his folding fan, pondered for a moment, then suddenly closed it. "Never mind, this is boring. You can leave now."
After Huangfu Li said that, the Duke of Ying dared not leave.
The crown prince is capricious and unpredictable, and his cunning is terrifyingly deep despite his young age.
He was afraid.
The Duke of England was afraid of Huangfu Li, this twelve-year-old boy, fearing that he might reveal some of the deadliest things he had ever done.
Huangfu Li gave him a disdainful look: "Aren't you leaving yet?"
The Duke of England shuddered, hurriedly scrambled to his feet, stiffly turned around, and shakily lifted his leg.
After taking only a few steps, Huangfu Li said with a grin, "Duke of England, remember to remind your son to return to school."
The Duke of England's knees buckled, nearly causing him to kneel on the ground. He dared not stop any longer. Without even raising his head, he brushed past Jin Shiyu's shoulder and went downstairs. Jin Shiyu glanced back at the Duke of England; the old man was walking very fast and almost tumbled down the stairs.
When Huangfu Li saw him arrive, he smiled and waved, "Why are you looking at that old man? Come and have some tea with me."
Jin Shiyu quietly observed Huangfu Li. Huangfu Li acted kindly, as if he adored him.
Jin Shiyu sat down opposite Huangfu Li and threw the bamboo tube onto the table, making quite a commotion that shook the tea in his cup.
Jin Shiyu coldly said, "Didn't you say your people would take good care of Suiqing? How can you go back on your word?"
Huangfu Li scoffed, "I thought it was something serious, Young Master Jin. You scared me to death. Suiqing, why are you calling me 'sister' so affectionately?"
Seeing Jin Shiyu avoid his gaze, Huangfu Li leaned back and said hypocritically, "Yes, I'm sorry, I've made my sister suffer. Jin Shiyu, what are you pretending for? Wasn't it you who suggested using Suiqing as bait?"
Jin Shiyu frowned and remained silent, quietly clenching his fist and pressing it hard twice on his right calf.
A burning pain shot through me.
Beneath his trousers, on his right calf, a patch of skin the size of a palm was red, swollen, and twisted, a truly horrifying sight.
It was Kim Si-ok who burned it with red-hot charcoal.
The wound is on the same side as Jin Suiqing's.
Huangfu Li asked him with a cold smile, "Have you forgotten your purpose?"
Jin Shiyu glanced sideways: "No."
His goal of bringing down the Jin family has never changed.
Huangfu Li: "I think you've forgotten that your sister's surname is also Jin."
After pressing the wound several more times, amidst the intense pain, Jin Shiyu strangely calmed down: "I haven't forgotten."
"Then why..."
Jin Shiyu raised his eyes and calmly met Huangfu Li's gaze: "My surname is also Jin."
Huangfu Li paused, all his sarcastic remarks were silenced by Jin Shiyu's words. He shook his fan irritably and said, "Never mind."
Finally noticing the bamboo tube, Huangfu Li asked, "What is this?"
Jin Shiyu picked up his teacup and said, "What you want is a backup of the evidence of Qin Xianglan's collusion with various aristocratic families and officials in Ziwei City."
Huangfu Li wasn't in a hurry to check the contents of the bamboo tube. He looked Jin Shiyu up and down and said, "Wow, impressive. Where did you come from?"
Jin Shiyu sipped his tea and said casually, "I found it in the building."
"That building across the street?" Huangfu Li asked curiously. "I heard that you and your sister were inside when the explosion happened. Do you know how it happened?"
Jin Shiyu lowered his eyes and watched a couple of tea stalks float on the water. After they settled, he said, "The Wuhoupu reported that the explosion was caused by the super sulfur burner left in Zuixianlou. The code on the remaining fragments matches the one that was lost in Jingxietang. Zhang Yuyi also left a note admitting to the theft. The result is clear."
"The case of the Zuixianlou fire is closed as a fireworks explosion used in the Yuanzu Yue performance." Jin Shiyu raised an eyebrow. "Is there anything else Your Highness doesn't understand?"
Huangfu Li was stunned for a moment, then covered his face with his folding fan and laughed for a while before saying, "Of course there's no problem, they all match up."
“I also want to thank my sister,” Huangfu Li said, shaking the bamboo tube twice. “She only suffered a minor injury, but she got this, which will help her Crown Prince brother control the treasures of Ziwei City.”
After saying that, he observed Kintoki's expression.
He said this on purpose to provoke Jin Shiyu, and if Jin Shiyu showed any further protection for Jin Suiqing.
This dog is no longer usable.
Unfortunately, Kim Shi-ok remained calm and took a sip of tea, saying, "This tea is quite good."
Huangfu Li withdrew his scrutiny and sneered, "You're so boring. I'm so envious! My silly sister actually went back to Zuixianlou alone to save an ingrate like you. Sigh, speaking of which, I've been thinking of building a restaurant here too, what do you think..."
As if listening to nothing, Kim Shi-ok remained silent, then pressed his hand, hidden under the tea table, against the burn mark twice more, his brow twitching imperceptibly.
The sister who went back to the dangerous place alone to save him was indeed a fool.
I wonder what my silly little sister is doing right now.
Kim Shi-ok looked out the window.
On the street, the people coming and going have become accustomed to the dark ruins of Zuixianlou, and they are not even surprised by the skyscrapers that have been erected rapidly across the street in just a few days.
It's just a slightly more luxurious tavern.
There will always be another one to fill its vacancy.
*
After eating and drinking to their hearts' content, Gong Dagou thought of something, pulled out a box about an arm's length and a palm's width from the corner, and presented it to Jin Suiqing.
Gong Dagou: "Speaking of which, before Qin Xianglan died, she sent me on a mission to deliver this box to a magic craftsman in the west of the city. Now that she's dead, the magic craftsman has moved away from the capital overnight. This box is of no use to me. Little Princess, take a look, do you want it?"
Jin Suiqing opened the box with a puzzled look, and when she saw what was inside, her big eyes lit up as if a lamp had been lit.
They were all blueprints for French weapons.
Jin Suiqing grabbed Gong Dagou's hand tightly: "Well done, comrade, this is good stuff!"
Huihong leaned closer: "Little Princess, isn't it a bit too early for you to be involved in these things?"
Jin Suiqing spread out the blueprints and began studying them: "It's not early at all, these things are all treasures that can make money."
The magician can sell blueprints, which are worth a fortune.
Because private magic weapon makers need to register and be subject to the control and review of the Bureau of Industry and Commerce, the process is complicated and strict, which indirectly leads to higher prices and greater demand for magic weapon blueprints on the black market.
Jin Suiqing had long wanted to make money by drawing blueprints, get rich, and then run away with the money, but he lacked the channels to learn how to do so.
These drawings are excellent reference materials.
Although the plan to win over Jin Shiyu was showing initial success, the two Huangfu brothers were determined to kill her. Even Jin Suiqing's attempt to become a harmless mascot couldn't stop those two from showing mercy.
The Drunken Immortal Pavilion cheating scandal taught Jin Suiqing that personal career must be prioritized and that he must arm himself with hard currency.
In order to survive, don't trust your brothers.
Making money is the only way to go.
Six-year-old Jin Suiqing picked up a charcoal pencil and began to study the blueprints in front of her intently.
Author's Note: I've started a new job with long hours and late hours. I apologize for not being able to reply to your comments promptly (bows with a hint of remorse).
I read every single comment, and I'm so grateful for all the messages from you lovely angels!
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