Chapter 48 Wan Ning's Scheme
The male voice seemed unwilling to say much to the madam, but simply said to the stunned Peony, "Peony, when did you become like this, accepting any customer without a second thought?"
Seeing that the man's voice seemed to be tinged with anger, Peony was startled and knelt down tremblingly, "Master, please calm down... this... this... this young master is the one I mentioned last time..."
Upon hearing what Peony said, there was silence behind the curtain. After a long while, the person sighed softly, "Fine, let them in."
Peony nodded and smiled at Ye Wanning, "Young Master Ye, please come in."
Ye Wanning stepped into the room. She looked around warily. Although the owner of Yichun Courtyard seemed to ignore the fact that she kicked the door because she was the inventor of the improved undergarment, who knew if there was any ambush inside!
After looking around for a while and seeing that there was nothing unusual in the room, Ye Wanning felt relieved and sat down next to Shaoyao. "Are you the owner of Yichun Courtyard? I've heard so much about you!"
After the greeting ended, there was no movement from inside the curtain. Ye Wanning was taken aback, filled with doubt, "What is this, Your Excellency...?"
There was still no movement inside the curtain. Seeing this, Ye Wanning couldn't help but feel annoyed. She got up and lifted the curtain, only to find that there was no one behind it. She turned her head and saw Shaoyao looking at her with a half-smile.
"My master doesn't like to make friends with strangers, so he'll be leaving now." Peony smiled as she spoke, "I hope Young Master Ye will understand."
Ye Wanning's lips twitched. Why didn't you say so earlier?! She looked at Shaoyao with a hint of resentment, "Shaoyao... what's wrong with you..."
"Hmph!" Peony snorted lightly, turning her head away from her. "I had no idea that Young Master Lin still remembered me!"
"Don't mention it!" Seeing Shaoyao's words, Ye Wanning quickly explained, "A few days ago, we received news from home that Mother was ill, so I just..."
"Your mother is sick?" Upon hearing this, Shaoyao was startled, frowned, and asked, "How is she now?"
Ye Wanning sighed softly and shook her head helplessly.
Seeing this, Cui'er immediately chimed in, "Auntie's health is deteriorating day by day... Now... what she most wants to see is her cousin getting married..."
"Marriage..." Peony paused, looking at Ye Wanning with some doubt, "Is that really so..."
Ye Wanning nodded, seemingly with utter helplessness. After a long while, she took Shaoyao's hand, stared at her, and said with sincere eyes, "Shaoyao, don't worry, I..."
Before Ye Wanning could finish speaking, Shaoyao immediately covered her mouth with her hand.
Her eyes were a little moist as she looked at Ye Wanning, her voice choked with emotion as she said, "I know the bitterness in Young Master Ye's heart... but... I only ask for a devoted lover, I don't care about titles or anything like that..."
As she spoke, Peony withdrew her hand, looking utterly dejected. "As long as you hold me in your heart, I don't care about anything else..."
What a wonderful woman! Ye Wanning looked at the peony before her, her eyes filled with admiration. She only sought spiritual satisfaction and asked for nothing in return for material things! If this were in modern times, she would be a hot commodity!
Ye Wanning stared at the peony, her eyes full of sincerity, "No! I want to prove to you that I am sincere! Didn't I give you that undergarment a few days ago? If this business goes well, nothing can stop us!"
"I had almost forgotten if you hadn't mentioned it, young master." Peony took out a handkerchief and gently wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes. "My sisters are all asking me where to buy these clothes!"
"Oh?" Ye Wanning looked at the peony, her eyes gleaming. "You mean..."
"Why does the young master look like he wants to devour people?" Peony said with a charming smile. "Just as the young master predicted, three days later, all the sisters asked me if I had any more patterns! They all said they liked them very much and wanted to buy more."
Hearing this, Ye Wanning was overjoyed, but she still pretended to be calm and touched her chin. She narrowed her eyes and looked at Shaoyao, "So what did you say to them?"
"What else can I say?" Hearing Ye Wanning say this, Shaoyao couldn't help but say coquettishly, "These clothes were given to me by you. You haven't come and no one has told me about these things. How can I tell them!"
Seeing that even when she was angry, Peony looked incredibly charming, Ye Wanning couldn't help but get goosebumps. She suppressed her shiver and apologized, "It's all my fault, Peony, please don't be angry."
"Hmph!" Peony glanced at Ye Wanning, "Let's see if you dare to do it again!"
"I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare!" Ye Wanning replied with a smile. She really wouldn't dare. Who would want to suffer such disgusting things for no reason?
As she spoke, Ye Wanning looked at the peony and said, "If any young lady asks where to buy it another day, just say it's at 'Ruyi Cloth Shop' three miles from the city gate."
“Ruyi Cloth Shop…” Peony frowned, paused for a moment, then seemed to remember something and asked in surprise, “Isn’t that the Prince Jin’s residence… Young Master Ye, you…”
"Shh!" Hearing Peony ask this, Ye Wanning immediately reached out and covered her mouth. She looked around cautiously before letting go of her hand. "This cloth shop does belong to the Prince of Jin's mansion, but I took it over a few days ago."
Peony was taken aback and looked at Ye Wanning with some surprise, "When did this happen? I've never heard anyone mention it before?"
“This is not something that can be said casually.” Ye Wanning opened her folding fan and fanned herself gently. “The Prince of Jin is so poor that he has to sell his shop. This is a scandal of the royal family. Who would dare to talk about it?”
"Besides," Ye Wanning pursed her lips, "this matter was conducted in private, and not many people know about it. The shop is still under the name of the Prince of Jin's Mansion. They need money, and I need the title. It's a very worthwhile deal."
Hearing this, Peony thought for a moment and then said, "What Young Master Ye says is true, but recently His Majesty's health has been poor. I'm afraid that you, with the name of the Prince of Jin's mansion, will cause a lot of trouble in the future!"
Ye Wanning was startled. She closed her fan and stared at the peony in astonishment. The Emperor was unwell, so how could a courtesan from a brothel know about this? This brothel was definitely suspicious! She pursed her lips and gave Cui'er a look.
Cui'er also sensed something amiss from Shaoyao's words. Seeing Ye Wanning give her a meaningful look, she immediately said, "Cousin, a merchant from the city invited you to have tea with him today to discuss business. It's getting late, you see..."
Seeing that Cui'er cooperated well, Ye Wanning was overjoyed, but she still pretended to be angry and said, "Shaoyao and I were just getting into the conversation! Don't spoil our fun!"
"Hey!" Upon hearing Ye Wanning's words, Shaoyao immediately scolded, "How can you not distinguish between what's important and what's not! You should go and talk business with them first, and come find me tomorrow!"
Cui'er chimed in, "Miss Peony is so sensible. Cousin is truly blessed."
Hearing Cui'er's praise, Shaoyao couldn't help but smile, stood up and pulled Ye Wanning up, "Young Master Ye, you should go quickly!"
Ye Wanning smiled helplessly, "Alright, alright, I'll go, I'll go." Before leaving, she didn't forget to give Cui'er a glare in a pretentious way.
After the play was over and they were far from the brothel, Ye Wanning was still worried. She looked at Cui'er and couldn't help but ask, "Cui'er, who do you think is behind this brothel?"
Cui'er was taken aback, not expecting Ye Wanning to ask her this question. Somewhat flustered, she said, "I...I...I only know that this Peony Girl definitely has a problem..."
Ye Wanning's eyes darkened. This was obvious; she could understand the political situation in the court so clearly. Ye Wanning sneered, "I just hope it's not a plot to harm the Prince's Mansion."
"How did you know, sister?" Cui'er frowned.
Ye Wanning smiled slyly, "If they're in the dark, we'll find a way to bring them into the light. That way, we'll know, won't we?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
