Yun Duoduo shook her head and threw away the dagger in her hand: "This princess must be confused. They say that you will see whoever you are thinking about."
"You are an assassin, not Jinzhi's brother."
Yun Duoduo shook her groggy head, trying to banish this fantasy from her sight.
Jin Jinzhi smiled: "It is me, it is me."
"Um?"
Yun Duoduo tilted her head to look at him, and through the window, she stretched out her two paws and pinched Jin Jinzhi's arm.
Does it hurt?
Jin Jinzhi was both amused and exasperated: "It hurts."
Yun Duoduo didn't feel any pain. She cupped Jin Jinzhi's face in her hands and pulled it close to her face to look at it carefully: "His eyebrows, eyes, nose, and mouth really do look like his."
"Such a realistic feel..."
"Are you really Jinzhi's brother?"
Yun Duoduo was still tipsy, her cheeks flushed. As she looked at Jin Jinzhi, a sudden surge of anger welled up inside her.
"Today is my coming-of-age ceremony, why aren't you here?"
Yun Duoduo let go of his hand, put her hands on her hips, and looked up to ask him.
"Also, I've already come of age, and you..."
Yun Duoduo hesitated, but his care for her over the years gave her reason to believe that he was someone special.
But why doesn't he express his feelings?
When Xi Jing came to force her to marry him, Kang Qiming was willing to offer a betrothal and a fake marriage. Why did Jin Jinzhi prefer to lead troops to war rather than propose marriage?
Do you like me or not...?
Yun Duoduo blurted out.
Jin Jinzhi paused for a moment, looked at Yun Duoduo, and gently touched her face.
"I like it, of course I like it, I like it very much."
"Then what are you waiting for?"
Yun Duoduo couldn't stand the push-and-pull and guessing game; their ambiguous relationship had been going on for far too long.
Jin Jinzhi looked at him, her gaze unwilling to leave his face.
He had been waiting for her to come of age, but now that she was of marriageable age, he still hadn't taken that step.
[Waiting for the borders to stabilize, for Jiangning to be pacified, for the world to be free from war...]
Yes, Jin Jinzhi, what are you waiting for?
He had hesitated and been afraid, worried that someone like him, who was always on the battlefield, would one day end up as a skeleton.
But now, seeing Yun Duoduo's aggrieved look, he decided to stop being afraid.
Jin Jinzhi looked ashamed: "I traveled day and night, but I still couldn't make it in time for your coming-of-age ceremony."
"Oh, right, you were handling things in Jiangning. Look at my brain." Yun Duoduo nodded, seemingly regretting asking those questions earlier.
"It's all Father's fault. If I hadn't sent you, you could have come to my coming-of-age ceremony."
Jin Jinzhi looked at her, rarely seeing her so willful. When she held his face in her hands earlier, he could smell the alcohol on her.
"Duoduo, how much did you drink?"
"Alcohol? I didn't drink any, just a tiny bit..."
Yun Duoduo was a little unsteady on her feet, swaying her head and gesturing with her hands. Jin Jinzhi quickly steadied her.
"Brother Jinzhi, were you injured while handling matters in Jiangning?"
Jin Jinzhi shook her head: "I'm fine, don't worry."
"Duoduo, this is for you." Jin Jinzhi placed a wooden box in Yun Duoduo's hands.
Yun Duoduo opened the wooden box and found a pair of earrings inside.
These earrings are pretty, but they look a bit rough around the edges.
"Where did you buy these earrings, Brother Jinzhi? Couldn't you have spent a little more money and bought some better quality ones?"
Yun Duoduo muttered, "Why is the coming-of-age gift so crude?"
Jin Jinzhi was taken aback, somewhat at a loss. He had come in such a hurry that he hadn't prepared any extra gifts.
Then, Yun Duoduo noticed that Jin Jinzhi's hands had large and small cracks, and there were bloodstains on them.
Yun Duoduo grasped Jin Jinzhi's hand and exclaimed, "Brother Jinzhi, what happened to your hand?!"
Yun Duoduo suddenly realized that drinking really does lead to mistakes, and her IQ wasn't up to par.
"Did Brother Jinzhi make these earrings by hand?" Yun Duoduo looked at Jin Jinzhi with great surprise.
She never expected that Jin Jinzhi would personally make earrings for her.
Jin Jinzhi withdrew her hand, but Yun Duoduo pulled it back again.
"Come in, I'll apply the medicine for you."
Jin Jinzhi shook her head. "My hand injury is fine. You should go inside. It's cold outside. With the window open, the cold wind is blowing. Don't catch a cold."
"Then wait for me a moment."
Yun Duoduo knew that he must have thought it was inappropriate for him to enter her bedroom so late at night, so she ran to the bedside, pulled out the medicine box from under the bed, and took out the wound medicine.
"Use this. I mixed it myself. After applying it, it will definitely heal very quickly."
Yun Duoduo insisted on watching Jin Jin apply the medicine. Jin Jin had no choice but to open the cap of the ointment and haphazardly apply it to her hands.
After applying the medicine, he watched Yun Duoduo go to bed before closing the window and leaving Anqing Palace.
Yun Duoduo, clutching the box Jin Jinzhi had given her, drifted off to sleep sweetly.
...
Outside Fushuang Palace, Military Advisor Cao waited for Jin Jinzhi at the base of the wall.
When Cao Canjun saw Jin Jinzhi come out with a happy expression, he finally felt relieved.
[Finally, I can get a good night's sleep tonight!]
Since Cao Canjun started following Jin Jinzhi, although he didn't have to go through fire and water, he often had to endure wind and rain and travel at night.
They often don't know where their next meal is coming from, and they're either doing tasks or on their way to do tasks.
"Have you investigated the matter I asked you to investigate?" Jin Jin asked as they walked outside.
“The investigation is complete, Jiang Ning…” Cao Canjun nodded.
“I wasn’t talking about Jiangning,” Jin Jinzhi waved his hand.
[Isn't this a matter for Jiangning?]
Cao Canjun frowned deeply, pondering Jin Jinzhi's words.
"Have you found out that person's family background?" Jin Jinzhi asked again when Cao Canjun didn't respond.
"Who?" Cao Canjun was completely confused.
He tried hard to recall the people Jin Jinzhi had asked him to investigate, and suddenly it dawned on him.
"Your Highness, are you referring to the young man who spoke with the Ninth Princess at the Imperial Pharmacy?"
"Ah, Your Highness is talking about this!"
Military Advisor Cao slapped his forehead.
Jin Jinzhi glared at him. Wasn't that exactly what they were talking about at the palace gate just now?
How come Cao Canjun's IQ has become so pitiful in just one hour?
Cao Canjun secretly groaned inwardly. He was always by Jin Jinzhi's side, never leaving her side, and with her going to Jiangning and returning to the palace, he had no time to investigate others.
The information he had in his mind came from his inquiries and review of case files before he went to Jiangning.
"That man's name is Yi Qingchen. He is the assistant pharmacist of the Imperial Pharmacy, nineteen years old, and a subordinate of the Ninth Princess," Cao, the military advisor, cleared his throat and stated his findings.
"That's all?" Seeing that Military Advisor Cao remained silent, Jin Jinzhi looked at him suspiciously.
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