Chapter 54 Confusion "Grandpa An, is the powder on your face poisonous...?"
The moment An He met Zhao Liangxu's gaze, he casually looked away.
Zhao Liangxu said to Azar, "A eunuch is a man who cannot have children."
She spoke bluntly, and Zhang Changfei and Benaben listened intently. Zhao Liangxu's words made them lean back and gasp.
Zhang Changfei was surprised that Zhao Liangxu said it so smoothly. Didn't she feel ashamed?
Hazard said thoughtfully, "Oh, oh."
She was still a little confused, but then a thought struck her, and she held up one finger, realizing the truth.
"Impotence"
Zhang Changfei, who was at the next table, accidentally spilled his drink on himself.
She pondered, "Is it correct to say it like this in the Southern Zhou dialect?" Seeing that Zhao Liangxu remained silent for a moment, she thought that she had used too direct words and frightened the girl from Southern Zhou, so she smiled and said, "There are many men in the caravan, and I can always hear when people from the Central Plains come to trade. There's nothing wrong with saying it, is there?"
“But aren’t there many eunuchs? Would so many impotent men let others know about their condition and then work in the palace?” Hazar asked again.
Zhao Liangxu shook her head slightly. She glanced at Zhang Changfei, just as wine was spilled on his lower robe. After a moment's thought, Zhao Liangxu looked at the wine stain and said the two words: "Cut it off."
Zhang Changfei hurriedly wiped the wine off his clothes. After hearing Zhao Liangxu's words, he accidentally bumped his elbow on the corner of the table, and his face turned as red as a pig's liver.
Upon hearing those two words, Zhang Changfei couldn't tell if it was his elbow that was hurting, or if he was experiencing a dull ache elsewhere.
Zhao Liangxu, this woman who has no restraint, is so arrogant. What kind of occasion is this, that she dares to use such foul language!
The person who uttered those two words was still thinking to herself that she had been tactful enough. In fact, she originally wanted to be more direct, such as cutting off her genitals, but considering that the people there wouldn't understand, and given that it was a banquet, she decided to be more reserved.
This glance was very instructive. Hazard followed Zhao Liangxu's gaze, pondered for a while, and then suddenly realized, "So that's how it is!"
She asked with great interest, "So, is that Ninth Prince Anhe also like that?"
But Zhao Liangxu did not answer directly. She looked at Hazar and said seriously, "Hazar, this is not something you can ask. He has a very high status. You know what eunuchs are all about. There is no need to delve into it further."
When Ben heard Hazard's question, she felt conflicted. She realized that she didn't really want to project such a naked topic onto Anhe, at least not to talk about it with Hazard like it was something to discuss after dinner.
She could tell you what kind of people eunuchs were—something Hazard could ask anyone on the street—but when it came to Anhe…
Zhao Liangxu hesitated.
Anhe was right there, but he couldn't hear anything. However, Zhao Liangxu was reluctant to bring up this matter through Anhe.
"Alright then, I've always been good at reading the room. I don't want my beautiful head to be left in Southern Zhou by this Ninth Prince. My eyes should be looking at more places." Seeing that Zhao Liangxu's expression was a little serious, Azar ended the topic at the right time and even told a slightly bloody joke.
But having satisfied half of one's curiosity, it abruptly ends, much like a starving person seeing a sumptuous feast but only being able to smell it without being able to taste it.
One curiosity is not enough, so one can only express it through other questions.
"Would you be willing to tell me about the customs of the Southern Zhou Dynasty or any interesting things? Or, if you have time, would you like to visit our caravan? This is a very sincere invitation! I don't know if this will offend you?"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Liangxu's eyes flashed with a bright light. Although she was still paying attention to An He's side, she still said to Azar with an upturned tone, "It's not an offense, it's my honor."
Hazard's words made her feel a little better.
The banquet was in its later stages, and Li Ying had mostly stopped talking. Only in the center of the hall were the tulle fluttering and the cheerful singing playing.
In this way, the other translator is enough to deal with the Hazards. Benna has hardly spoken, and Hazard has already answered all the questions and questions he wanted to ask. He can basically be regarded as mute. The other colleague only needs to translate for Hazard.
Zhao Liangxu had lost count of how many times she had looked up at An He, but she always managed to meet his gaze.
This time, she and Anhe stared at each other for a longer time. Her eyes moved slightly, and she could see Anhe blinking repeatedly. Zhao Liangxu turned to Azar and smiled apologetically.
"I have some urgent business to attend to, so I'll have to trouble my colleague with the translation. If you'd like to hear some interesting stories from Southern Weekly, we'll have plenty of opportunities to exchange ideas after the banquet. I'm also very curious about your treasures. Is that alright?"
Hazard straightened up abruptly. Zhao Liangxu agreed, and she smiled brightly: "Of course, my friend!"
Zhao Liangxu got up and quietly left, exiting the main hall through a side door. Outside the main hall was a corridor, where she leaned against a pillar and waited under the eaves.
While waiting, Zhao Liangxu put her right hand on her left forearm, pinched her arm, and looked up at the corner of the beautifully curved eaves.
She had previously concluded that her feelings for Anhe were superficial and fleeting, a shallow liking that she might lose interest in after a while.
If that's the case, then one shouldn't be overly concerned about peace and tranquility, nor should one feel inexplicable resistance when communicating with Hazard.
This feeling is as if... Anhe holds a high position in her heart, and she even has a strange possessiveness towards Anhe.
Who would be happy if others criticized their work?
No matter how bad others may think of her, she is still hers.
You can tease him yourself, but you can't let others make fun of him.
When this thought popped into Zhao Liangxu's mind, she herself found it utterly absurd.
Anhe was a powerful and treacherous eunuch. Even though she had become familiar with Anhe these past few days, and Anhe was happy to indulge her, in Zhao Liangxu's eyes, her affection was illusory, and Anhe's leniency and interest in her were also illusory.
She could sense the change in Anhe's attitude and enjoyed it, so she was happy to actively step into the area that Anhe was showing her.
But for Anhe, how easy would it be to kill her? No matter how much he indulges her, she can't possibly actually like him.
Zhao Liangxu was a little confused.
She was so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn't even notice Anhe walking up to her.
The last time Anhe and Zhao Liangxu looked at each other inside the hall, it was clear that Zhao Liangxu's eyes were glancing straight towards the door.
This is... calling him out.
So he came out.
As he walked out of the main hall, he saw Zhao Liangxu leaning against a towering pillar at a corner not far away, looking up as if she were very melancholy.
This was truly unusual; he had never seen Zhao Liangxu in such a state before.
He thought that as he walked slowly over, Zhao Liangxu would hear his footsteps as always, and then turn around and greet him with a smile, calling out "Eunuch An." But even when he got right in front of her, Zhao Liangxu didn't notice him.
Are you stupid?
An He cleared his throat and said first, "Princess Zhao."
Zhao Liangxu still did not respond.
He lowered his brow: "Secretary Zhao?"
Zhao Liangxu remained immersed in her own world.
An He clicked his tongue and took a step forward, drastically shortening the distance between them: "Zhao Liangxu!"
An He's slightly raised voice suddenly jumped into Zhao Liangxu's ears, startling her back to her senses. She abruptly pulled her head back from its tilted-up position, but An He was already close to Zhao Liangxu. As Zhao Liangxu lowered her head forward, she accidentally bumped into An He's face.
Anhe couldn't tell whether he felt it on the tip of Zhao Liangxu's nose or her lips, but it was a soft spot on Zhao Liangxu's face that brushed against his cheek.
He was initially annoyed that Zhao Liangxu was playing a trick on him, but now he was stunned and frozen in place.
Zhao Liangxu was quite aware of the situation; she accidentally pressed half of her face against it, feeling the tip of her nose and lips touch it.
She subconsciously licked her lips, which tasted sweet. Zhao Liangxu's eyes widened.
Today is a very formal occasion, and as the Ninth Prince, Anhe must have applied face powder again! Although the face powder Anhe used was definitely not the kind that old eunuchs used, which would fall off in a flurry, it was definitely not so difficult that not a single bit could be wiped off. In ancient times, face powder would not have any anti-makeup properties!
What is this powder made of? Is it edible?
I guess it didn't contain lead powder, or... mercury?
Zhao Liangxu licked it for a moment, then subconsciously spat it out twice.
Anhe immediately realized that her mouth had definitely touched her face.
Realizing this, his mind was in complete chaos, like boiling water. Thoughts bubbled up and burst in his head like bubbles. In his panic, he didn't even care that Zhao Liangxu was spitting out "Pui pui pui" with her head down.
Zhao Liangxu had barely spat twice when she realized that An He was still in front of her. Given An He's tendency to overthink, he probably thought that she disliked him.
Today's banquet had turned out so badly for her. Zhao Liangxu struggled weakly for a moment and asked, "Eunuch An, what... what's in the face powder you usually use?"
Anhe was speechless again by these words. Not knowing what expression to make, he pretended that nothing had happened and said with a straight face, "Why are you asking this? Do you expect me to eat it as a snack?"
Zhao Liangxu said helplessly, "I...I'm worried that the powder is poisonous."
Anhe felt that Zhao Liangxu was looking for trouble: "What are you thinking about all day? How could our family use poisonous powder?"
But seeing Zhao Liangxu's extremely serious expression, he felt there was nothing to hide.
"Alright! It's nothing but powder made from jasmine seeds. If it doesn't poison you, when have I ever seen you so cowardly!"
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Author's Note: Writing went smoothly again today, because I got to another plot I really liked, hehehe.
Yesterday, a reader asked what kind of work I do. Haha, of course it's finance-related stuff—we bought high-scoring stocks and then they plummeted in value. I'm so glad it's not an internship where I'm paying to stay (tears).
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