Chapter 30030 He just prefers that kind of thing?
When Lin Wan woke up, it was just past noon. The sun was shining brightly outside, and the warm sunlight streamed into the room through the openwork carved bed, illuminating the bed curtains.
As soon as she opened her eyes, she heard footsteps outside.
Shiliu pushed open the door and came in. Seeing that the person in the bed curtains had sat up, she quickly put the hot water she was carrying into the inner room, then came over, lifted the bed curtains and hooked them on both sides, and carefully helped her up.
Lin Wan felt dizzy and thought she had slept for a long time. She took the damp handkerchief that Shi Liu handed her and wiped her face slightly. When she got close to her lips, she suddenly felt a sharp pain that made her frown.
Looking in the mirror, her fair cheeks contrasted sharply with her strikingly red lips. Upon closer inspection, she noticed an extremely fine teeth mark at the corner of her lips. Could it be that she bit herself while she was asleep?
She gently touched the corner of her bitten lip with her slender white fingertips, remaining motionless for a moment. It seemed that she had gone to see Xie Huaiyuan last night.
She went to Xie Huaiyuan to return the guqin, but instead, she ended up listening to him play it. After that, she found herself confused and couldn't remember anything.
Lin Wan stared at herself in the dressing mirror, standing silently for a long while, wondering if it was just her imagination, but it seemed as if she had missed something.
Looking through the mirror, I saw the guqin quietly placed on the desk by the window. I vaguely remembered that when I left the Prince of Xiangyang's mansion last night, the guqin was back in my hands.
She woke up briefly while sitting in the carriage on her way back to the mansion. When she saw Xie Huaiyuan in the night, he showed a rare patience on his face: "This zither was your maternal grandfather's favorite back then. There is nothing wrong with giving it to you now. If you still want to learn the zither, I will teach you when I have some free time in a while."
After speaking, Xie Huaiyuan unusually avoided her probing gaze, leaving her with the words, "It's late, you should go home early."
As the carriage left the Prince of Xiangyang's residence, she lifted the curtain and watched as Xie Huaiyuan's figure gradually blended into the night.
Looking back now, Lin Wan felt even more that she had overlooked something very important last night. She got up and walked to the desk, her fingertips lightly touching the strings of the zither, and asked, "How did I get back to the carriage last night?"
She had only mentioned it casually, but unexpectedly, Shi Liu's expression changed drastically, and her eyes flickered: "Back to the carriage..."
"Didn't you walk back by yourself, young lady?"
"Why do I have absolutely no recollection of it?"
"Perhaps you were too tired, young lady. Didn't you take your medicine before you left last night? The renowned physician Hua said that he put something in the medicine to help you sleep and calm your mind. Maybe the medicine took effect. You didn't remember it when you walked back to the carriage." Shi Liu hurriedly left, making an excuse to go to the kitchen to check if breakfast was ready.
Shiliu's reaction was too unexpected for her. Lin Wan's heart sank. Could it be that she had offended Xie Huaiyuan by forcibly kissing him again?
Shiliu hurriedly walked out, her face full of annoyance.
Last night, she couldn't get into the heavily guarded Xiangyang Prince's Mansion, so she could only wait for Lin Wan at the carriage with the coachman outside the gate. To her surprise, she saw Xie Huaiyuan carrying the sleeping Lin Wan out and very considerately carrying her into the carriage.
She and the servants guarding the gate were stunned, but dared not say a word.
When the carriage curtain was lifted again, Shiliu spotted Lin Wan leaning against the carriage. Her luscious lips seemed to have been ravaged. Shiliu's breath hitched, and she opened her mouth, but no sound came out.
Xie Huaiyuan's expression was unreadable, but his dark eyes carried an invisible, powerful pressure, revealing a hint of sinister intent: "You are not allowed to utter a single word."
Upon hearing this, Shi Liu nodded in alarm, not daring to utter another word.
Lin Wan pondered for a day before carefully putting away the guqin, but she didn't say why Xie Huaiyuan insisted on giving it to her. If Su Furong came and saw it, she would probably nag about it endlessly.
-
The sunlight on the street was blinding, and pedestrians were constantly moving about.
Lin Wan hadn't left the house for several days. Today, taking advantage of the sunny weather, she went to the shop to discuss with Uncle Wen the names of the displayed goods. Uncle Wen suggested that it would be better to find someone who was good at writing to do the writing.
Therefore, Lin Wan and Shi Liu strolled through the streets, looking for a suitable person. However, after wandering around for most of the day, they still hadn't found anyone suitable. As dusk fell and the streetlights came on, she thought she would continue looking next time.
Suddenly, a familiar carriage passed by; it was the carriage Xie Huaiyuan usually rode in.
Lin Wan's heart skipped a beat. She inexplicably thought of the time she bumped into Xie Huaiyuan on the way back last time, but was ignored. However, when she turned to walk to the other side, she stopped after taking only two steps. No, why should she hide? She had to go and see. Besides, she was still concerned about the time she went to look for Xie Huaiyuan at night, something she had overlooked and forgotten.
From afar, the carriage stopped beneath a brightly lit high-rise building, with the three large characters "Fengyue Tower" (meaning "Lord of Love and Lust") written in a flamboyant style on a brightly colored signboard.
After Xie Huaiyuan got off the carriage, he did not have his attendant Lüzhu follow him. Instead, he went in alone and soon followed the waiter upstairs.
Instead, Green Bamboo turned around and drove the carriage to another place where carriages were parked.
Lin Wan was really curious as to why he would come here. She saw that all the people entering and leaving the building were richly dressed men, and when she looked through the open door, she saw women dressed in extremely bright and revealing clothes walking back and forth. It was such a place of romance and pleasure.
She tried to go inside without thinking, but was stopped by the waiter who was greeting guests at the door.
The waiter looked her up and down and politely advised, "Miss, this is not a suitable place to entertain you. I'm really sorry."
The men coming and going from the side, either in twos or threes, all looked at her with ill intent, which startled Lin Wan so much that she hurriedly ran away.
Lin Wan noticed a teahouse not far away that offered a good view of the area, so she went there and chose a seat near the entrance, directly facing the entrance of the Fengyue Tower. She wanted to see if Xie Huaiyuan, the gentleman everyone talked about, was just like any other man, indulging in the pleasures of the brothel.
Shi Liu, standing to the side, was filled with worry. She was still terrified of Xie Huaiyuan. If Lin Wan were discovered spying on Xie Huaiyuan's whereabouts, it would likely have a negative impact. She advised, "Miss, the young master may have official business to attend to. Perhaps he is going to a banquet at a brothel. We have been out for most of the day. Why don't we go back now?"
Lin Wan stared at the brothel with a serious expression, her face already showing displeasure: "What respectable banquet would be held in such a place of pleasure? What banquet? It's clearly...it's..."
The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. To her, Xie Huaiyuan would rather seek out courtesans than reciprocate her affections, which was truly infuriating. Was she really that unlikable to him? Or did he simply have a preference for courtesans?
"Miss Lin?"
Suddenly, she heard a voice calling her name. She looked up and saw Gu Qinghe.
"Greetings, Young Master Gu." Lin Wan concealed her displeasure, put on a smile, and slowly rose to greet him. "What a coincidence! Young Master Gu, are you here for tea?"
“Yes, this is my colleague,” said Gu Qinghe, accompanied by a young man of similar age. “Cui Yi, we agreed to come here to try the new dishes at the teahouse. It’s better to meet by chance than to invite someone. Would Miss Lin like to sit at the same table with us?”
Lin Wan looked around. The teahouse was only one floor, and it was very lively tonight. Except for her table, the whole place was full of people. She hadn't noticed that the teahouse was packed with guests because she was so focused on the table opposite her.
As dusk approached, Xie Huaiyuan still hadn't appeared. She couldn't just leave like that, so after hesitating for a moment, she forced herself to calm down and agreed, "Of course, that would be great."
As soon as Gu Qinghe sat down, the shopkeeper sent someone over to tidy up the place, replenish the tea supply, and at Gu Qinghe's request, prepare a lot of exquisite snacks, new teacups, new bowls and plates, etc. A small stove was boiling water, and a pot of new tea was brewed. The aroma of the tea wafting from the pot was refreshing and pleasant, and it smelled like good tea, different from the tea that Lin Wan had ordered earlier.
In the past, Lin Wan would not have wanted to associate with Gu Qinghe, but tonight was different. Her mind was still on the brothel across the street, so how could she have noticed the secret exchange of glances between Gu Qinghe and Gu Qinghe?
"Qinghe, I heard that His Majesty still intends to have you investigate the bandit suppression case in Licheng five years ago. Is that true?"
"It was indeed mentioned, but we'll have to see His Majesty's opinion to know the final outcome."
Lin Wan's teacup trembled slightly, almost spilling the tea. She looked at them with a complicated expression, her fingertips gripping the teacup turning white. She asked, "The bandit suppression case in Licheng?"
"Does Miss Lin also know about this matter?" Gu Qinghe said. "I don't know the specifics yet, but this matter was brought up in court this morning. They said that the handling of the bandit suppression case in Licheng back then was too unbelievable. Now that someone has found some things from back then, there may be other hidden stories."
Upon hearing this, Lin Wan's expression froze, and she remained silent for a moment.
Just then, as Lin Wan lowered her eyes and fell silent, Xie Huaiyuan walked out from the entrance of the Fengyue Tower across the street and quickly got into his carriage.
Xie Huaiyuan happened to catch a glimpse of Lin Wan and Gu Qing drinking tea at the same table with them.
At this moment, the curtain of the carriage was silently lifted by a corner and remained still for a long time. He looked down at them in the teahouse across the street, chatting happily. His gaze fell on one of the beautiful women. He couldn't hear what she was saying across the street, but judging from her expression, she seemed to have something in common with Gu Qinghe. Her eyes and expression were fixed on Gu Qinghe.
He stared for a long time, his eyes dark and tinged with a hint of coldness. He couldn't help but sneer, feeling somewhat uneasy, and said, "Return to the manor."
As Lin Wan looked up again toward the Fengyue Tower, the carriage had just passed by. All she saw was the brightly lit gate, but she didn't see the person she was looking for.
Green Bamboo sat in front of the carriage, but inexplicably found the atmosphere inside to be unusually oppressive, as if a silent chill was rolling in.
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