If another woman were here, seeing such a lovable man, she would surely give him the hairpin, and some lecherous women might even buy it for him.
But Su Qinghe wasn't buying it!
Isn't this person just an ancient version of a pure and innocent woman? Does she think she's never seen one before?
How can a man like that compare to my own sweet and soft husband!
Su Qinghe turned and left without even glancing at him, showing him no respect whatsoever.
"How rude of you! My young master is speaking to you!" The servant was furious at the way his young master was being treated.
"Boss! Check please!" Su Qinghe placed the hairpin on the counter.
"Alright! Sir, that's 45 taels in total! I'll wrap it up for you!" The shopkeeper looked at Su Qinghe with a beaming smile.
"Shopkeeper, how much is this white jade hairpin? We'll pay double!" When Su Qinghe ignored him, the servant simply asked the shopkeeper directly.
Su Qinghe raised an eyebrow and looked over. Was he finally giving up?
“Uh…Young master! But this lady took a liking to it first, look at this…”
The shopkeeper looked troubled; she didn't want to offend either side!
"Shopkeeper! Since these items are displayed for sale, they are naturally available to everyone who sees them, and the highest bidder wins!"
The veiled man walked to the counter, turned to look at Su Qinghe, and said with a smile:
"I believe the Queen is a person of great principle and understands this, so she won't be dissatisfied with the shopkeeper, right?"
Huh? Trying to use moral blackmail? Well, you've bitten off more than you can chew!
Su Qinghe stared at him coldly, then suddenly burst out laughing.
"Then you've guessed wrong, young master. I'm a very petty person! If anyone offends me, I'll hold a grudge for years!"
"Who knows... they might do something crazy!"
"You!" Upon hearing her words and seeing her murderous expression, the man took a step back in fright, fearing that she might suddenly go mad and do something detrimental to him.
"Hmph! You little punk! You dare to steal things from others with such a small amount of guts!" Su Qinghe thought to herself.
"Hehe! Young master, look at this hairpin... do you still want it?" The shopkeeper's eyes darted back and forth between the group of people, and finally he looked at the veiled man with a forced smile.
Luo Zian was startled and felt ashamed. He met the shopkeeper's gaze and tried to sound tough.
“No, it’s just a white jade hairpin. My Luo family manages all the affairs of Tianhe County, so what kind of hairpin do we not need?” he said, looking at the white jade hairpin again.
"I only thought it was beautiful for a moment, but now that I look at it again, I think it's nothing special! Let's give it to this lady!"
"Green Bamboo, let's go!" Luo Zian called to his servant and walked out without looking back.
"Oh dear! This is bad!" Only after the man had gone far away did the shopkeeper realize which family he was referring to as the Luo family. She slapped her forehead in frustration.
"Is the Luo family very powerful in Tianhe County?" Su Qinghe asked.
"Oh! Of course!" The shopkeeper saw that she still looked confused and assumed she was from out of town, so he quickly explained to her.
"Our county magistrate's surname is Luo, and he just said that his family manages all affairs of Tianhe County. He must be the magistrate's son, no doubt about it!"
At this point, the shopkeeper shook his head and sighed again. "Having offended him today, business will definitely not be as good as before!"
Su Qinghe looked at her thoughtfully. It seemed the magistrate of Tianhe County was no benevolent figure, and not particularly close to the local people!
She couldn't care less about the manager's anxiety; after settling the bill, she went straight back to Piaoxianglou.
Dinner was eaten in Su Qinghe and Lin Xi's guest room. Since Ji Qingyu was already awake, she naturally came over with Ji Yuan as well.
"My lady! This piece has fewer bones!" Lin Xi placed a piece of braised fish maw on Su Qinghe's plate.
"Okay! You two eat more too!" Su Qinghe smiled and put a piece of fish on Lin Xi's and Ji Yuan's plates. Because Ji Yuan couldn't eat spicy food, she even peeled off the fish skin that was still sticky with chili peppers.
Ji Yuan thanked Su Qinghe, but when he looked up, he noticed the hairpin in Lin Xi's hair.
His smile froze for a moment, then he casually lowered his head to eat, a hint of envy rising in his heart.
Su Qinghe didn't notice Ji Yuan's fleeting change in expression and continued eating happily, occasionally putting a couple of bites on Lin Xi and Ji Yuan's plate.
Dinner was finished in this harmonious atmosphere, and no one noticed Ji Yuan's little thoughts, except for Ji Qingyu.
He kept observing the three of them while he ate, just to see if his brother was being bullied!
...
Night fell, and it was already past midnight. Su Qinghe was still sleeping in the same room with Lin Xi tonight.
As the third watchman rang out on the street, Ji Qingyu opened her eyes and quietly got out of bed.
He slowly felt his way and gently opened the door to Su Qinghe's room, heading towards the bundle containing the release contract that he had already discovered during the day.
Ouch!
With a "sizzle" sound, Ji Qingyu let out a low cry of pain and quickly covered his mouth with his hand.
"Um……"
The person on the bed turned over, and once again, long, even breaths could be heard.
"Sleeping like a dead pig, he won't even know if his house gets robbed!" Ji Qingyu breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that the man was still asleep, but at the same time felt extremely contemptuous.
He bypassed the stool that had tripped him earlier and continued to tiptoe forward until he reached the bundle.
Ji Qingyu rummaged through the contents and soon pulled out two indentures placed together.
He quickly stuffed the things into his pocket and tiptoed out. Before leaving, he even made a face at Su Qinghe on the bed.
He just didn't see that Su Qinghe, who was lying on the bed with her back to him, had her eyes open.
Ji Qingyu returned to her room in a very good mood.
"Brother! Wake up!"
He came to the bedside and gently shook Ji Yuan.
"Hmm... what's wrong... Yu-ge'er?" Ji Yuan opened his eyes groggily and looked at Ji Qingyu standing at the head of the bed with a puzzled expression.
“Brother, look! We’re no longer under her control,” Ji Qingyu said excitedly, taking out the indenture and waving it in front of her brother.
"This is... a contract of indenture!" Ji Yuan exclaimed in shock, his drowsiness instantly vanishing. He looked at Ji Qingyu, his face deathly pale, and asked in a trembling voice:
"Where did you get this from?!"
"It was in the bundle in her room! I tripped over a stool when I went to get it, and she still hadn't woken up!"
"Brother, let's leave as soon as it's light. By the time that woman finds out, we'll definitely be out of the city!"
Ji Qingyu was engrossed in recounting her glorious deeds, completely oblivious to her brother's increasingly grim expression.
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