"No need, I can go by myself." Qiao Qiu lowered her head, glanced at the ring through the silver gauze, and turned to leave.
He Qixie followed and said, "Let's go together. There's no point in me staying here if you leave. I'll wait for you at the Shen residence."
...
In a secluded backyard, purple flowering trees gather in abundance, with a pavilion hidden in the middle.
Qiao Qiu stood inside this pavilion, a secluded spot she had created in Xiangzhou. Normally, no one was allowed to enter, and special mechanisms were set up for this purpose, making it the place where she would be least disturbed.
She took off her veil and placed it on the table.
The ring on her finger glittered, and a sweet, childlike voice appeared in her mind, "Master, why won't you listen? I've told you so many times not to go near him, but you just won't listen."
Qiao Qiu's eyes flashed, and she said, "I know what I'm doing. Xiao Jie, what kind of ring did He Qixie put on me? And why can you speak now?"
The ring felt that its owner was becoming increasingly unfathomable, completely unable to guess what she was thinking. How could things have changed so much in just a few worlds compared to the previous hundreds?
Despite thinking this, it still had to answer Qiao Qiu's question. "His ring is a 'repair ring spirit' and it has some effect on me. I was previously bound to the female protagonists of various worlds, and the ring spirit suffered great damage. So when you possessed me, I couldn't talk to you."
"I see." Qiao Qiu felt she still couldn't completely trust it; the ring might have other uses, so she had to be careful.
“Master, I know you’ve always been puzzled by the fact that you can’t heal your tendons and limbs. Now that I can speak, I’ll tell you everything. It’s because your soul is a woman, but your body is a man. Since the genders are different, your soul and body cannot merge. I consumed too much energy to help you merge. So, I can only help Shen Junbai’s body recover initially, but I can’t help with his tendons and limbs.”
Rings usually follow a certain logic; otherwise, she wouldn't have trusted them so completely in the first place. But it overlooked the most important point: if it went to such lengths to help her fuse, why couldn't it help her find a new body?
The most likely explanation is that it doesn't want her to be a woman in this life.
Qiao Qiu realized what the ring was trying to do.
To prevent her from being with He Qixie, people in ancient times still had a lot of prejudice against homosexuality. If He Qixie was straight, they could not be together.
Was the ring going to such lengths to stop her because He Qixie was the one preventing her from changing her original trajectory?
Whether it was He Qixie, Su Xi, or Zhao Yuce, they were all people who helped her overcome countless difficulties. Although their presence did cause a lot of unnecessary trouble, they were almost always the ones who wanted to solve it. Most of the time, she just watched from the sidelines.
If people like this are the ones who are stopping her, then who isn't?
The ring certainly wasn't telling the truth, so she'd follow her heart and be with him. As the saying goes, the truth will eventually come to light.
Perhaps he can help her.
Qiao Qiu looked down at the peach blossom on the ring. Wasn't this perfect proof?
...
After the ring told her what she wanted to know, she never spoke to it again. Instead, the ring, finally able to speak, kept bothering Qiao Qiu in her mind every day. And the central point of its nagging was always to advise her to stay away from He Qixie.
Having survived several worlds to acquire knowledge, Qiao Qiu had long since developed the skill of focusing intently on her work without being disturbed. No matter how much the ring fussed around, it couldn't interrupt her thoughts in the slightest.
A few days later, seeing that she was really ignoring him, the ring stopped talking.
Although Qiao Qiu didn't say anything, it really didn't want to provoke her anger. Most people would have lost their temper after being bothered by it for a day, but its owner hadn't made a move yet.
Such a person is more terrifying the quieter she is; if she were to become angry one day, it has no idea whether it could withstand her wrath.
Qiao Qiu remained silent and made no comment; she was researching how to expand her business to other provinces.
First, she needs to adapt to local conditions. She could start with food to establish a foothold before developing other economic activities. However, developing food requires sourcing ingredients locally. If she wants to make high-quality dishes, the materials needed will be exceptional. Ordinary vendors won't be able to sell them; she'll have to collaborate with local businesses.
Qiao Qiu believed that with her current status, expanding to other places would not be a problem.
However, if she did this, a fatal hidden danger would arise: the imperial power.
Once the business grows large, it will affect countless households. With just one order from her, the entire Southern Chu Kingdom could fall into an economic crisis.
Would the emperor allow such great power?
In fact, she had already thought of this when the imperial court reopened the case she had filed and sent troops to suppress the bandits.
It seems that we need to ask a minister for help at the right time, submit a memorial to the emperor, and have a proper talk. Perhaps this can solve the problem.
Her purpose in this world is to learn how to do business, not to amass wealth; everything else is secondary. If she has enough leverage in exchange, the emperor won't treat her badly.
Merchants are profit-driven; isn't their cooperation with the emperor also an exchange of interests?
Qiao Qiu was still thinking about how to meet the emperor, unaware that the emperor had already left the palace and was almost at the border of Xiangzhou.
The emperor heard all her legends along the way and felt both love and pity for this nineteen-year-old boy. Of course, most importantly, he was curious. He wondered what charm Shen Junbai possessed that made so many women infatuated with him even after his disfigurement.
If the "obsession" were merely with money, there would be an explanation, but most people are captivated by his personal charm, which is truly perplexing.
It was time for He Qixie to return to Shuzhou City again, and Qiao Qiu, as usual, wore a veiled hat to see him off at the Shili Pavilion outside the city.
"Junbai, I'll be back in a couple of days. Don't shake off your protectors again in the next two days, okay?" He Qixie instructed worriedly.
"knew."
He Qixie could tell from her tone that she didn't care, but there was nothing he could do about it.
Be careful.
"Alright, you can go now." Qiao Qiu felt a little annoyed. Every time He Qixie left, whether for a long or short time, he always had to nag her like this.
He won't admit his feelings for her, yet he wants to control her? Dream on.
He Qi Xie shook her head helplessly. Fortunately, Xiangzhou was her territory, so it didn't matter if she acted recklessly.
After seeing He Qixie off, Qiao Qiu did not immediately return to the city.
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