Lin Jing: "..."
He wasn't as good at acting as Shang Yunlan, so he could only keep drinking tea to cover up his speechlessness.
Su Ling paused slightly as she poured the tea, but her expression remained unchanged as she said calmly, "Perhaps that merchant misunderstood—as Your Excellency knows, rumors always get more and more outrageous as they spread."
Shang Yunlan nodded with a smile: "Yes."
The two smiled at each other, and not long after, Su Ling personally escorted them downstairs.
She looked at Shang Yunlan and said, "Your Excellency, please don't come to the Pleasure Pavilion again. This is not a place for gentlemen like you who are so upright and honorable."
Su Ling knew the principle of feigning indifference to lure Shang Yunlan, and she also knew that her words would definitely arouse Shang Yunlan's curiosity and make him frequently visit the Pleasure Pavilion.
After saying that, she looked at Shang Yunlan confidently, waiting for him to speak.
Shang Yunlan nodded, looking very obedient: "Yes, Third Sister, don't worry, I won't come again."
Su Ling smiled: "Really? Then..."
She froze before she could finish speaking.
This development doesn't seem right!
Shang Yunlan continued, "I've thought about it carefully, and the Paradise Pavilion really isn't suitable for me... I originally wanted to bring Third Sister into my household, but Third Sister also said that I'm upright and honest, so it's better if I don't continue to associate with you."
He paused, then patted his chest under Su Ling's shocked gaze, looking as if he had escaped a terrible ordeal: "Thank goodness, thank goodness."
Su Ling: "..."
Lin Jing silently tugged at Shang Yunlan, then looked apologetically at Su Ling: "Don't worry, Third Sister Su, I will definitely keep an eye on him from now on and won't let him come over again. Thank you for your trouble today."
Su Ling: "..."
She watched the two flee the street as if their lives depended on it, her face contorted in disbelief, and glared at their retreating figures with a look of utter despair.
As Su Ling walked back, she pondered to herself – could it be that any man who was associated with that Princess Heyang had some kind of mental problem?
...
Back at the manor, Lin Jing felt completely bewildered. He looked at Shang Yunlan and asked, "So we wasted the whole morning today, and the only thing we did was tease a young lady?"
Shang Yunlan ignored him and instead scribbled on the paper, which made Lin Jing even more puzzled.
But seeing Shang Yunlan's serious expression, he didn't ask any further questions and just sat aside watching him.
Less than fifteen minutes later, Shang Yunlan shook the paper and said, "Nothing was wasted."
Lin Jing took a moment to process what he was saying before realizing that this was an answer to his own question. He frowned and asked, "What do you mean by 'no waste'?"
Shang Yunlan smiled and said, "The young lady we met today had thick calluses on the tiger's mouth and fingertips of her right hand, and she was very agile when she helped me, which is the result of many years of martial arts training. Her tea-pouring movements were different from the elegance that is admired nowadays, and her movements were more expansive and bold, more like those of a martial arts practitioner. When she spoke, she would add a slight retroflex ending to the last syllable, which was not obvious. It can be seen that she was deliberately suppressing it, so she must have lived in Bei Zhou for many years."
Shang Yunlan took a sip of tea to moisten her throat, and then, amidst Lin Jing's astonished expression, slowly concluded: "There are three Jianghu forces permanently stationed in Northern Zhou: Xuehua Palace, Yunxiao Sect, and Changqing Sect. Among them, Yunxiao Sect and Changqing Sect pride themselves on being prestigious and righteous sects, and they don't get involved in the power struggles of the elite. They also rarely have female members... So, it seems she must be from Xuehua Palace. She must hold a high position in Xuehua Palace, otherwise she wouldn't have such a large gambling den in Shengjing. After much thought, only the two Su-surnamed left and right protectors of Xuehua Palace fit her identity—Su Yan and Su Ling. Su Yan is already a spy in the Nan'an Prince's Mansion, so this Su San Niang today must be Su Ling."
Lin Jing was completely dumbfounded.
After a long pause, he finally stammered, "You...you...you only met with the person for a quarter of an hour, and you already deduced their identity? And so accurately?"
As Shang Yunlan wrapped the paper she had just written in a small bamboo tube, she whistled to summon a pigeon, tied the tube to its leg, and explained, "I'm not entirely sure, but I should be about 80% certain. All that's left is to confirm my guess, so I sent a letter to Cheng Chu, who is currently on the border between Southern Chen and Northern Zhou, so he can take a look."
Lin Jing was speechless. He had been studying medicine for so many years and had always been called a genius, but now he realized that Shang Yunlan and Shang Shaoyan were the real geniuses.
He watched silently as Shang Yunlan began contacting different people, and it took him a long time to find his voice: "So, what are the chances of you succeeding?"
Shang Yunlan thought for a moment, then said uncertainly, "About 70-80%."
He paused for a moment, then explained, "The remaining 20% or 30% really depends on luck, but luck can be created, so An'an and I don't think the chances of this failing are very high. As An'an said, fate is in our own hands, not in the hands of heaven. We just need to do our best within our capabilities."
As he spoke, he looked at Lin Jing and said very seriously, "If you are really afraid that something will happen to us, then An'an and I will send you and Ale to Northern Zhou before the uprising. With your excellent medical skills, you will not suffer anywhere and can live well anywhere. When Southern Chen is in chaos, An'an and I will not be able to take care of you, and we are also afraid that you and Ale will be implicated."
Lin Jing stared intently at Shang Yunlan, then said with some anger, "In your eyes, am I such a coward who fears death?"
Shang Yunlan was taken aback and wanted to explain, but Lin Jing continued, "Yaochen, I was afraid twenty years ago, so I missed your mother; twenty years later, I will not be afraid anymore. I don't seek fame or fortune, much less power or wealth; I only want to see you two siblings safe and healthy. To be honest, when I learned of your intentions, I was afraid. I wanted to stop you, but I knew I didn't have the right to. All I could do was support you, protect you, and respect you."
As Lin Jing spoke, his eyes reddened slightly. He looked at Shang Yunlan and said, word by word, "Don't worry about me. Just focus on living yourselves."
"I can also do what I can for you, maybe provide you with medicine, or help you take care of the wounded... In any case, this time I will never leave again."
"Absolutely not."
Shang Yunlan was somewhat moved. He looked at Lin Jing, unsure of what to say.
After a long pause, he chuckled and said, "I was being too attached to appearances. I was only thinking about protecting you, but I didn't consider whether you even needed such protection..."
Just as the atmosphere was easing and the two were about to have tea together, Qingzhu hurriedly knocked on the study door: "My lord, my lord, something terrible has happened!"
Shang Yunlan's heart skipped a beat. She exchanged a glance with Lin Jing and quickly opened the door.
Shang Yunlan scolded, "What made you so reckless?"
Qingzhu's eyes reddened as she handed the letter to Shang Yunlan: "My lord, please take a look... This is a letter from the county princess."
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