Chapter 43: This is a Master (Part 2)
Shen Tang looked at the young man expressionlessly.
[Following the usual pattern, someone who looks like they're about to kick the bucket at any moment usually has a longer lifespan than a strong and healthy guy; after all, evil deeds last a thousand years. Oops, I forgot this guy can read minds… Dude, he can hear that too?]
The young man coughed a few times: "...Young man, you're quite humorous."
Shen Tang: "..."
The shopkeeper, who was mute: "..."
He first stole a glance at Shen Tang's deep, wild, yet clearly feminine profile, confirming that he hadn't misjudged her gender, and secretly wondered if the young man had bad taste—
Why can they even mistake a man for a woman?
The young man's brow twitched slightly, but he did not offer any explanation.
The courtesan followed him out from behind the screen, his eyelids slightly lowered. He glanced at Chen Tang and the shopkeeper, then gave a wink to the servant. The servant understood and handed the shopkeeper a heavy purse filled with silver coins.
"Could you please take a look?"
Having handled countless amounts of money over the years, the shopkeeper could tell the difference in weight just by holding the coins in his hand. He opened the purse again, counted the coins, and said with a smile, "No problem, no problem."
The servant said, "Since that's the case, then we're even."
According to the procedure, the next step should be to "send the guests off".
The shopkeeper, being sensible, took the money pouch and prepared to leave with Shen Tang. However, whether by coincidence or not, a third unfamiliar cough came from behind the screen, followed by a muffled groan of pain as someone gritted their teeth and swallowed their throat. Something heavy rolled off the bed.
Shen Tang stopped in her tracks as she was about to get up.
Ah, this—
That voice was clearly male?
It seems like you're not feeling well?
She habitually assumed that those who came to the Xianggu Pavilion for pleasure were the ones who took the initiative, but judging from the commotion just now, the one lying on the couch because he was feeling unwell was the real customer? This made her think of a Chinese proverb: "A frog on a toad, ugly in appearance but skilled in tricks."
She could faintly smell the stench of blood and the bitterness of herbs, and she couldn't help but cast an admiring glance at the unassuming courtier.
Upon hearing the noise, the official's expression changed from indifferent. He almost strode around the screen, and Shen Tang only had time to catch a glimpse of a corner of his clothes.
Faintly, one could hear the courtesan saying, "Yun Chi..."
Shen Tang: "..."
Yunchi?
Which cloud, which gallop, what's their surname?
She felt like she'd heard that name somewhere before...
Just as Shen Tang was thinking about these things, she suddenly remembered something, and her facial features gradually stiffened and distorted. Her eyes darted around, her gaze slowly rising, finally meeting the gaze of the young man who was staring at her.
Seeing the meaningful look in the young man's eyes, she knew she had been eavesdropped on again. Doesn't the GM care about these cheaters?
Shen Tang took a half step back, placing her right hand behind her back. If the young man made any improper moves, she would immediately draw her Mother's Sword and teach this filial son a lesson. Given the distance between them, she was confident she could kill him with a single strike. After all, not every cunning strategist was as despicable as Qi Yuanliang.
The young man asked with a half-smile, "Why are you so nervous, young man?"
Shen Tang said, "Don't you know why?"
Under the shopkeeper's puzzled gaze, the young man asked Shen Tang without any hesitation, "Young master, do you know Young Master Yun Chi?"
Shen Tang countered, "His surname is Gong?"
The young man nodded: "Yes."
Shen Tang: "..."
It was Gong Cheng, Gong Yunchi!
How did he end up at Yuehua Tower?
For a moment, Shen Tang didn't know where to begin her rant—Gong Shi had been exiled. According to the official order, the men were sent to the frontier to serve as laborers, and the women were sent to the Xiaocheng Music Bureau—she recalled the passage again, making sure she hadn't misremembered.
Shen Tang's gaze fell towards the screen, her eyes seemingly trying to pierce through it to see the figures clearly: "Why is he here?"
“The road to exile is arduous, and ordinary people can hardly endure it, let alone someone whose dantian has been destroyed. He was almost dead, on the verge of reporting to the King of Hell, so I brought him here.” The young man spoke these words frankly and sincerely.
"Young master, you haven't answered yet. How do you know Gong Yunchi?" Before Shen Tang could reply, he said in a joking tone, "If you refuse to answer, for the safety of myself and others involved in this matter, you may not be able to return unscathed."
They were practically threatening to kill him to silence him.
Shen Tang thought to himself, "Tch, who doesn't know that Gong Shi has been exiled? Just because I know the name doesn't mean I have to know him."
He said, "I only learned about the Gong family's plight from others, and that Gong Yunchi, whom I had met once before, was also among those being exiled. Hearing a familiar name so suddenly, I naturally wanted to confirm it."
The young man smiled, narrowed his eyes, and asked again, "Really?"
Shen Tang said, "Absolutely no exaggeration."
The young man frowned and pondered for a moment, unsure whether he had believed it or not.
After all, Shen Tang knew that the young man could see into people's hearts. In this situation, his psychological activities were still active. How could he not be deliberately misleading his judgment?
Just as the atmosphere reached a stalemate, a hoarse young voice came from inside the room: "Mr. Gu, someone's here?"
The young man smiled and tucked his hands into his sleeves.
He said lazily, "They said we met once."
After a while, following a rustling of clothes, the courtesan helped out a young man whose upper body was wrapped in a strip of snow-white cloth. Though called a young man, he actually looked two years younger than the courtesan, at most seventeen or eighteen. Perhaps due to the hardships he endured on his journey to exile, his features had lost their youthful innocence and instead carried an inescapable, thick melancholy and frailty.
Shen Tang: "..."
This is absolutely terrible!
She dares not have any thoughts at all now.
That cheater with the ability to read other people's minds was still lurking nearby, and she didn't want to be silenced.
Gong Cheng also saw Shen Tang's appearance clearly and was slightly taken aback.
The young man knew from his reaction that Gong Cheng had seen Shen Tang's face before—this young man really wasn't lying?
"Yun Chi, is he someone you know?"
The male prostitute broke the silence.
Gong Cheng shook his head: "They're not acquaintances, but we should have met before."
The guard was on high alert, his sharp gaze fixed on Shen Tang, a look that carried a murderous intent unbecoming of his profession. An ordinary person might have been frightened by just one look.
He then asked Gong Cheng for confirmation: "Could this person harm you?"
Gong Cheng thought for a moment, then shook his head: "Probably not."
The courtesan's curiosity was piqued: "Who is this person...?"
Gong Cheng shook his head with a wry smile, raised his hand and patted the back of the servant's hand, indicating that he didn't need to be helped. The servant let go of his hand, and Gong Cheng leaned on himself to keep his balance. He bowed to Shen Tang and said, "I am Gong Yunchi, and I apologize to my brother-in-law."
These words shocked everyone in the room.
youth:"……"
male prostitute: "..."
The person most shocked was Shen Tang himself.
She nearly lost control of her emotions and managed to ask him in a stiff tone that wasn't too sarcastic, "What are you apologizing to me for?"
Gong Cheng was a member of the Gong family who was exiled.
As Tian Shouyi mentioned earlier, Gong Cheng was arrested and exiled on the day of his wedding to Shen's daughter. Gong Cheng had seen the bride, but because Tang Mei had a literary heart, everyone assumed that she was Shen's daughter's brother.
That's why he was called "brother-in-law".
The young man's surname is Gu, and he is currently a chaotic neutral party disguised as a chaotic and evil entity.
The male prostitute was an imposter.
The young man rescued Gong Cheng for certain purposes and hid in the Xianggu Inn where the courtesan worked to recover from his injuries.
The two are currently not related to the main characters' faction.
(End of this chapter)
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