Several days had passed since Chen Shou arrived at the South Courtyard, but Lanqin still hadn't given him any specific instructions.
Watching Lanqi water the tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants in the small vegetable garden, he squatted down beside her, watching the water gurgle and be instantly absorbed by the scorching soil.
"Lanqi, has the princess forgotten about me? I've been here for several days and she hasn't assigned me anything. It's like I'm just eating and staying here for free." Chen Shou suddenly felt a little confused.
“Gege knows what she’s doing, so just stay put. Or, if you have nothing else to do, go to the kitchen and fetch a bucket of water for me,” Lan Qi said.
Chen Shou immediately stood up, picked up the empty wooden bucket, and went to the kitchen.
Inside the room, Lanqin lay on a chaise longue, holding a copy of "The Search for the Supernatural." The sound of melting ice dripping echoed from the four corners of the room. On a small stool on the main couch sat a copper basin filled with water, upon which floated many white gardenia blossoms. Lanqin disliked burning incense; she preferred the natural fragrance of these flowers.
Nianxue and Xicha were preparing things for the delivery room under Aunt An's direction, while Sihua was taking a nap beside Lanqin.
"Si Hua, go and summon Chen Shou in." Lan Qin put down the book in her hand and placed it on her stomach. Her eyes were fixed on the carved dragon and phoenix beams above the door. The vermilion-lacquered nanmu wood was already quite old, perhaps due to leaks, the corners of the walls were mottled, and the nanmu door carved with the Four Gentlemen of Spring, Autumn, Winter and Summer was also somewhat faded.
Before long, Chen Shou, with his hands tucked into the sides of his robe, followed Si Hua into the room.
"Go and check how my red date and barley porridge is cooking. Go to the kitchen and keep an eye on it." Lanqin sat up slightly, her slender hands resting on her large belly covered by a cloak.
Si Hua understood that this was a private conversation with Chen Shou, so she naturally and consciously withdrew.
"Chen Shou, how have you been these past few days at the South Courtyard? As you've seen, there's not much going on here," Lan Qin said.
"Your Highness, I am new here and there are still many things I don't understand. So I'm following Sister Nianxue to learn. But I'm a restless person, and now that I have nothing to do, I'm getting restless." Chen Shou honestly expressed his feelings.
Lanqin smiled and asked, "Are you eighteen this year?"
Chen Shou didn't know why Lanqin asked about his age, so he nodded, feeling inexplicably uneasy.
"Now, I have something I'd like to entrust to you. I wonder if you are up to the task?" Lanqin knew she was taking a risk. If this Chen Shou was the Fujin's man, then her actions would undoubtedly expose her entire scheme to the Fujin.
Can Chen Shou be trusted? Lan Qin scrutinized the person in front of her.
Driven by intuition, Lanqin decided to take this man under her wing. But now, as she carefully examined Chen Shou, she no longer felt the same certainty she had when she first decided to employ him.
"Please give your instructions, Princess." Chen Shou kept his eyes lowered and did not look at Lan Qin.
Lanqin looked at his fair face. If his father hadn't died young, this man might not be destined to be a servant now.
Alright! Trust those you employ, and don't employ those you don't trust!
Lanqin decided to take the risk. Besides, even if the Fujin found out, she would only lose the clue of Que'er, and there would be no other loss.
After figuring it out, Lanqin slowly lowered her feet from the chaise longue and reached out a hand to Chen Shou.
Chen Shou quickly went over, took the hand, and helped Lanqin up from the chaise longue.
"Princess, be careful!!" Chen Shou carefully helped Lanqin move around the room.
"Chen Shou, you said the other day that you have a mother and an older sister. Do you usually visit them?" Lan Qin held Chen Shou's arm with one hand and her waist with the other, pacing back and forth in the room.
“Since I sold myself to this household, I have had no contact with my mother and sister,” Chen Shou said. “My mother remarried and had another child. If I were to bother her again, it would only be bad for her life. My sister married far away. We exchanged a few letters, but then we lost contact.”
Lanqin glanced at Chen Shou and asked, "Then tomorrow you should go out of the mansion to visit your mother, since she gave birth to you and raised you."
Chen Shou was puzzled. He lowered his head and pondered for a moment before saying to Lanqin, "What does Your Highness want me to do? Please tell me."
Lanqin smiled with satisfaction and said, "What I'm about to tell you is extremely confidential. Remember, you are not allowed to reveal a single word to anyone."
Chen Shou's mind tightened, and his gratitude towards Lan Qin turned into appreciation. He realized that he was not familiar with her: from covering up his ugliness to transferring him out of the flower room, and now entrusting him with an important task.
"This servant is so grateful for Your Highness's trust; I would gladly die for you. How could I possibly have any disloyalty to you? Please give your instructions, Your Highness," Chen Shou said excitedly.
"It's not a big deal, actually. I just want you to meet someone and ask her some questions. This person used to be Li's personal maid, named 'Que'er,' you might have met her before. But now, she's working as a geisha at the entertainment academy," Lanqin said.
“This servant has met her, but she may not remember this servant. Back then, the East Courtyard was a place where everyone fawned over her; she wouldn’t remember a little gardener who delivered flowers,” Chen Shou said.
"The Third Prince suspects that Lady Li was framed and poisoned before she committed suicide. Now Mingyan's whereabouts are unknown, and she may have been taken into custody. Que'er may know something. I need you to go to the art academy disguised as an ordinary official and tell Que'er that as long as she tells the truth, I can help her get out of this predicament," Lanqin said.
Chen Shou immediately bowed his head and said, "This servant will definitely find a way to help the princess and tell her some things about the Li family. It may just take some time."
Lanqin knew this was no easy task, so she said, "Of course, but it would be best to get her to agree before the eldest princess's coming-of-age ceremony. I've already figured out a way to get her into the mansion for the ceremony, and then the Third Prince will ask her personally."
Chen Shou agreed and left. Lan Qin then ordered Nianxue to send Chen Shou one hundred taels of silver; it was impossible to go to a place like that without spending money.
Chen Shou pondered the matter but couldn't come up with a solution. He knew that Lan Qin had told him such a secret based solely on a natural trust, so he didn't want to disappoint her and was determined to handle the matter well.
After tossing and turning all night, he secretly came up with an idea, but he was afraid that he wouldn't be able to finish it within the time Lanqin had given him.
The following day, Chen Shou asked Lan Qin for the written order, and then left with the silver she gave him.
Although the entertainment venues in the capital were not brothels, they were still places where high-ranking officials and nobles sought entertainment and pleasure. Chen Shou specially found a clothing store and spent ten taels of silver to buy himself a new set of clothes.
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