Not long after, a female figure gradually emerged at the end of the gravel road.

Wu Qing and Zhu Hanfei were both squeezed in the narrow shadow behind the pillar and could hear each other's heartbeats.

Wu Qing asked quietly: "Your heart is beating so fast, are you nervous?"

Zhu Hanfei turned her head slightly and lowered her voice to respond, "Indeed, I feel a little uneasy."

Zhu Hanfei rarely peeks at other people.

As a child, she didn't need to spy on others, because everything she wanted to know was always delivered to her ears by someone eager to do so.

Later, she lived a hard life and dared not ask about the private affairs of important people. After all, the more she knew, the faster she would die.

But for Zhu Hanfei, these are secondary.

What made her most uneasy was that she was so closely dependent on the palace maid named "Jinxiu".

The last time she was in such close contact with someone was with her sister Julie.

On a quiet winter night, even the slightest sound is noticeable.

In addition to Zhu Hanfei's own heartbeat, there was something else that kept making a thumping sound, attracting attention.

Zhu Hanfei sensed it for a moment, and then said to the people around her: "But your heart is beating so fast too."

Wu Qing lied without blushing or breathing heavily: "How could that be? Did you hear it wrong?"

She rubbed against Zhu Hanfei again.

【Beautiful lady, stick with me, hehe. 】

At the end of the gravel road, a person was walking slowly, holding a plain white palace lantern in his hand.

She looked around from time to time, her eyes revealing deep vigilance, fearing that her whereabouts would be discovered.

When she walked under the tung tree, Wu Qing and Zhu Hanfei finally saw her appearance clearly.

The man was about twenty years old, with a broad forehead and narrow chin, and no particularly outstanding facial features.

His face was ordinary, and it was hard to leave a deep impression in people's minds.

——Wu Qing was sure that he had never seen her.

So Wu Qing and Zhu Hanfei whispered, "Is this the Xing'er you were talking about?"

The visitor was dressed very simply.

She was wearing simple palace maid clothing with plain colors, and her hairstyle was the same as the palace maids', nothing special about it.

A hint of doubt flashed across Zhu Hanfei's eyes, and she was also unsure.

She also got second-hand information from Ruan Yue.

Zhu Hanfei advised: "Let's wait a little longer. Maybe someone else will come. Let's listen to their conversation and then make a judgment."

After a while, another girl came walking towards them.

And this girl, at first glance, is a concubine who has just entered the palace.

Her dress exuded an air of wealth and nobility. Her hair was combed into a bun, with a golden hairpin on each side. She wore a crimson palace skirt, and looked like a blooming violet.

Behind the pillar, Wu Qing asked curiously, "Who is this?"

Zhu Hanfei recognized the person at a glance.

She responded, "She is Candy Lo from Room 3 of the South Courtyard. Not long ago, she had a falling out with Aunt Zhao. Aunt Zhao wanted her to switch rooms with Miss Zhu, but Miss Zhu refused."

Wu Qing said "Oh" and reacted calmly.

"You know her too?" Zhu Hanfei asked.

Wu Qing shook his head, "I don't know him, so I feel warm and at ease."

Zhu Hanfei subconsciously said "hmm".

After she pondered this sentence over and over again, she realized belatedly that something was wrong.

According to the meaning of "Splendid"...

Only someone that Jinxiu doesn't know can make Jinxiu feel at ease?

What's the reason for this?

[It’s a good thing that I don’t know him. Most of the people whose names I remember don’t have a good ending.]

Wu Qing thought silently, "I have no impression of this Miss Lu, which means she will most likely not be chosen and will be able to escape from the palace, a place of trouble."

Candy Lo approached Myolie anxiously.

Wu Qing and Zhu Hanfei held their breath and watched intently.

Candy Lo looked at Xing Er carefully, her eyes like a searchlight, scanning back and forth over Xing Er's body.

Soon, a look of doubt appeared on her face.

"Are you Xing'er?"

As Concubine Ji was one of the most favored concubines in the palace, the servants around her should naturally have a good life.

but……

Candy Lo was somewhat disgusted by Myolie's plain dress.

"Your master has made so much money at Jingyixuan, doesn't he want to reward you with anything?"

There was a hint of sarcasm and ridicule in Candy Lo's voice, "You are dressed so poorly, aren't you afraid of losing face for Lady Ji?"

Her sharp voice was clear in the quiet night.

Wu Qing commented softly: "No wonder she offended Aunt Zhao. She was so ruthless when she spoke."

Zhu Hanfei nodded in agreement, "Look at Xing'er's face, there's no smile on her face at all."

Under the tung tree, Xing Er retracted her smile and responded to Candy Lo's words slowly.

"Fine clothing is not easy to hide, and is not suitable for a servant. A young lady coming here late at night should be hidden in the darkness, and should not be wearing such clothing."

"Besides, I only served Lady Ji before, so I can't be considered her confidant. Miss Lu, please don't make the mistake."

Candy Lo rolled her eyes, thinking that Xing Er was deliberately trying to distance herself from Lady Ji.

She said ambiguously: "I understand, I understand."

To make money, you can't just do it in the name of your master.

After listening to what Myolie Wu and Candy Lo said, Wu Qing was confused.

[This palace maid named Xing'er claimed to have served me? ...When did this happen? ]

Seeing this, Zhu Hanfei raised a meaningful arc at the corner of her mouth, as if to say to Wu Qing: "Look, I didn't lie to you."

Wu Qing thought hard, and finally she could only shake her head helplessly: "Impossible, I have never seen this person."

While she was still wondering whether her memory was declining, Zhu Hanfei had already smelled an unusual odor.

"Jinxiu" claimed with certainty that she was Concubine Ji's maid, and Xing'er also said that she was someone close to Concubine Ji.

Someone between the two must be lying.

So...who is it?

Wu Qing nudged Zhu Hanfei's back with his elbow to bring her back to her senses.

Wu Qing asked: "What are they doing here at night?"

Zhu Hanfei patted the back of her hand gently and said, "Be patient, let's continue watching."

"Li'er" had a fresh fragrance, which was neither as strong as the smell of medicine nor as primitive as the smell of grass and trees, which unexpectedly calmed Wu Qing's heart.

She couldn't help but move closer to "Li'er" and continued to observe the situation on the field.

Under the tung tree, Candy Lo asked straight to the point: "I want to buy all the records of the concubines in your hands. How much is the total price?"

Xing Er raised her eyebrows slightly.

She said slowly: "Miss Lu, this is not a small amount of money."

"You tell me first." Candy Lo raised her chin.

Xing Er said, "I only brought six files tonight. If you want all of them, you only need to pay one hundred taels of silver."

“…One hundred taels?!”

Miss Lu raised her voice slightly, and asked angrily, "Why did I hear that you only wanted ten taels of silver per portion before? Are you trying to cheat me?"

Xing Er remained calm and replied, "Everything in the world has its value."

"Miss, you should understand that rare goods are valuable. If there are more people who want it, the price will naturally be higher. If Miss Lu can't afford it, I won't force you."

"Besides, my mistress is Lady Ji, she is deeply favored by the Emperor, and everything she touches is extraordinary. It is a blessing for the girl to be able to board our noble lady's ship with only one hundred taels."

Candy Lo sneered, "Your master is so greedy, isn't he afraid that the boat will capsize?"

Wu Qing pricked up his ears and eavesdropped: "......?"

She slowly tapped out a question mark.

[Grass, what does it mean? ]

[This hundred taels is to be offered to me as tribute? How come I don't know anything about it. ]

[Who is the shameless person who secretly ruined my reputation? ! ]