When Lu Zhaoan arrived at the Gu family home, Gu Yaoniang was already waiting for him in the hall.
He was in a hurry, clearly having rushed over as soon as he received the news, without any delay on the way.
Lu Zhaoan used to be very curious about the Gu family's courtyard, but this time he didn't look at it at all. He was led into the Gu family's courtyard by Uncle Zhong. Several times, because he was in a hurry, he almost walked ahead of Uncle Zhong.
Gu Yaoniang was sitting and drinking tea in the side of the flower hall when Lu Zhaoan saw her from outside the door. He hurried across the door and came to Gu Yaoniang, asking, "Are you alright?"
Were you frightened? Were you anxious and unable to express your feelings?
Lu Zhaoan's tone was rather urgent.
Gu Yaoniang was slightly surprised to hear Lu Zhaoan's anxious voice when she heard that no one had announced anything.
Seeing Lu Zhaoan's barely concealed anxiety, her previously depressed mood suddenly eased considerably.
She smiled gently: "How could I be in trouble? I just rushed over from the princess's residence."
Lu Zhaoan breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this: "That's good, that's good. Then..."
"Cough cough..."
An untimely cough broke the silence in the room, and Gu Yaoniang looked towards the head of the table. Clearly, Lu Zhaoan hadn't noticed that someone else was seated at the head of the table.
Gu Xingzhi stared at the two people standing opposite each other in the hall with a dark face. The girl smiled gently, dignified and petite, making the tall and long-legged man stand out even more.
Hearing that something had happened at home, he rushed back. He was talking to his niece when this clueless young man barged in.
No wonder he disliked him before. He wasn't wrong about him after all!
After a moment of stunned silence, Lu Zhaoan's face showed a fleeting hint of embarrassment before he turned to Gu Xingzhi and bowed respectfully: "Second Master Gu."
"Mr. Lu, what a rare guest!"
Gu Xingzhi smiled and cupped his hands in greeting, making no attempt to embarrass Lu Zhaoan, and formally invited him to take a seat.
"Today's events are also related to the Lu family. Since Boss Lu is here, let's discuss it together."
Lu Zhaoan first glanced at Gu Yaoniang, seeing that she was very calm, neither surprised nor displeased, as if she was not surprised, or perhaps she had her own plans. He then bowed to Gu Xingzhi and sat down calmly.
"I just spoke with Yaoyao, and she doesn't know anything about the thieves this time. Our guard also said that the two thieves are very different and should not be the same group. I wonder if Boss Lu has any clues?"
Lu Zhaoan frowned: "Last time, the thieves acted very cleanly and had no intention of harming anyone. I could only speculate, but I haven't found any evidence yet. However, I heard that this time the thieves went extremely far and your family suffered heavy losses. The more they do, the more flaws will appear. If you trust me, Second Master Gu, I can investigate this matter."
Gu Xingzhi smiled enigmatically: "How can Boss Lu be so magnanimous and extend a helping hand like this? It's not like our shrewd and calculating Boss Lu."
Seeing that Lu Zhaoan seemed somewhat anxious again, Gu Xingzhi was secretly annoyed at his untimely criticism of Lu Zhaoan, and quickly said seriously, "Then I'll trouble you, Mr. Lu. Our family will also investigate. If there is any new information, the Gu family and Mr. Lu will keep you informed immediately."
Lu Zhaoan politely agreed, and then respectfully cupped his hands to Gu Xingzhi: "Second Master is an elder, and our two families have a lot of dealings, so we are friends. It would be too formal to always call me Boss Lu, so it would be better to call me 'Jinchuan'."
Gu Xingzhi narrowed his eyes—this kid! He always manages to make him break his composure just when he's about to give him a friendly look.
Why call each other so intimately? We're just business partners with some acquaintance.
Gu Yaoniang couldn't help but recall the first time Lu Zhao'an asked her to call him "Jinchuan". At that time, Lu Zhao'an had just said that the two of them were friends, and then he said that because the two of them were friends, Gu Yaoniang's Jinyulou should sell pastries and snacks to Lu Zhao'an's Zuiyuelou.
Is Lu Zhao'an plotting something bad again?
“Lu Zhaoan is a very cunning man. Son, don’t be fooled by him.”
Deep within the palace grounds, in a side hall of Changqiu Palace, Empress Lu leaned back on a couch, peeling an orange with her delicate hands.
As she carefully peeled off the orange segments, meticulously removing the white veins from the orange flesh with her well-maintained nails, she earnestly and patiently instructed Prince Qing.
Prince Qing said impatiently, "I know, I know."
Empress Lu was not annoyed, and continued to persuade him earnestly: "Although I am his aunt, we are still from different branches of the family and are not close. He is very powerful in the Lu family. His birth mother was of lowly birth and caused your eldest aunt to never rise again. Even so, he still managed to coax your eldest uncle into entrusting him with such a lucrative business deal. He is no simple man!"
These days, who in the Lu family doesn't have to watch their step and act according to his wishes? If you offend him, you won't even get your monthly wages! He earns so much money, isn't it all thanks to the Lu family's power? And now, look at him, putting on airs with the Lu family. Oh, you have no idea…”
Empress Lu was about to speak again when Prince Qing rudely interrupted her: "Mother! I don't want to hear this."
Empress Lu was not angry. She smiled and gently handed the peeled orange segments, with the white pith removed, to Prince Qing, Zhao Yang.
Prince Qing took it naturally and put it in his mouth. Empress Lu looked at him lovingly and said, "I won't talk about him anymore. I won't talk about him anymore."
She said nothing more, but after swallowing all the orange segments, Prince Qing took the initiative to ask, "Why did you say that Lu Zhaoan instructed you to do it?"
"Hey!"
Empress Lu straightened her gorgeous palace dress and spoke slowly, "His business dealings with the Gu family... if it's not him, could it be that little girl from the Gu family?"
She dismissed it: "Come on! That little girl is obviously simple-minded and naive. How could she have imagined humiliating you with scrap paper? You went through so much trouble to snatch a few pieces of paper, and you gave yourself away in a fit of anger. That's exactly what Lu Zhaoan wanted to see you do."
Prince Qing frowned, looking extremely impatient: "It was your bad idea to go and rob them of their silver. Now we haven't even gotten the silver, and we've even lost money to pay those bandits."
"And you too! Why must I be the one to get my hands on Gu Yaoniang and the Gu family? Even if they're on good terms with my elder sister, if I inherit the throne, do you think they'd dare refuse? It'll all be mine eventually."
Empress Lu pinched her slender index finger and gently poked her son's forehead a few times, but she couldn't bear to use too much force.
She was quite disappointed in him: "If Yao Yao gets the money, how will you get that position?"
"Father, do you really intend to defy the world and establish a crown princess? Besides, I don't think my elder sister has any such intention. It's just that you're idle in the harem all day and like to think about all sorts of things."
Empress Lu looked at Prince Qing reproachfully, wanting to scold him, but ultimately she was somewhat reluctant, and only said lightly, "You child."
She then asked, "Has that group of bandits been dealt with?"
"Don't worry! It's all settled! While my son and his cousin are at school on the parade ground, they'll surely catch up on things, won't they?"
As he spoke, he stood up and said, "I'm leaving! Your son takes his leave!"
Without waiting for Empress Lu to speak, he left the palace gate without looking back.
Empress Lu sighed behind him: "Who did this child learn from?"
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