Chapter 89 Injured?
After Yanzhi left, Ye Mingzhu continued to sit by the window in a daze.
The soft sunlight shone on her face, casting a faint glow on her porcelain-white and pretty features, and making the bewilderment in her eyes clearly visible.
Baozan called out to her, "Miss, what are you daydreaming about? Are you still thinking about what Liu Rumei said? I think she's just not thinking straight and is talking nonsense. What injustice in the world, what men and women, she's thinking too much."
Ye Mingzhu was amused by her: "So what do you think?"
Baozan raised her chin: "If you ask me, this is very simple! Just choose a good family for yourself before you get married, right?"
Ye Mingzhu said, "Marriages are all arranged by parents and matchmakers; how can we have the right to decide for ourselves?"
"Then eat well, sleep well, and get your body in good condition."
"Huh?" Ye Mingzhu didn't understand Baozan's logic at first and asked, "To get her body in good condition so that she can bear children for her husband's family and be valued by them?"
"Of course not!" Baozan immediately waved her hand. "Oh dear, I'm not that stupid! I was thinking that if I marry a mediocre man, I can use my strength to beat him into obedience, just like Lianyu said!"
"..." Ye Mingzhu asked helplessly, "Do you know that women are almost always weaker than men?"
Baozan became even more smug, putting her hands on her hips and saying, "Even if he's a man, he still has times when he falls asleep, right? If he's not afraid I'll beat him up while he's asleep, he'd better not bully me when he's awake!"
Ye Mingzhu thought for a moment and agreed, "...That makes sense."
Ruixiang and the other two laughed until their stomachs hurt.
Lianyu's weak voice came from the roof beam: "What if the man you marry also knows martial arts? If you make a move, it will alert him, and he'll be even better at fighting than you. What will you do then?"
Baozan's smug smile froze, and she stomped her foot in anger: "Oh dear, what kind of nonsense is this? Can't you think of something better? Maybe he's so happy to see me that he's lost his mind and gone completely mad?"
Hearing her rambling, the maids in the room laughed even harder.
As the group was laughing and joking, a maidservant outside the door announced in a soft voice that Bu Xi had arrived.
Baozan immediately said, "I'll go ask what's going on."
He ran off in a flash.
Ye Mingzhu watched her fleeing figure and couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Baozan didn't hide for long and returned quickly.
She informed Ye Mingzhu, "Miss, please tell him that the Duke is going out later and will be having dinner outside. He won't be coming back to Linfeng Hall."
"I understand." Ye Mingzhu thought for a moment, "In that case, I'll take a look at the account book and then go talk to the Princess. I'll have a meal at Jingchun Residence tonight."
...
Drunken Flower Pavilion.
The Drunken Flower Pavilion, built on the riverbank, is a four-story building with flying eaves and painted corners, and is brightly lit.
As night falls, the dazzling candlelight is reflected on the river, rippling gently with the waves, creating a truly beautiful and picturesque scene.
In the Yunshui Hall on the fourth floor, Sheng Yunche leaned back on the chaise lounge, holding a glass of crystal-clear wine, which he casually rested on his raised left knee.
When a beautiful woman threw herself into his arms, he merely gave her a warning look, and no one dared to approach within three feet of him.
The famous Qingque girl, renowned throughout Yanjing, played her zither and sang a song while casting a wistful glance at him. He, however, pretended not to see it, treating the beauty's sorrow as nothing.
Staring at him for several moments, a young man in a purple robe asked curiously, "Jun Zhao, you've been married for several months now, haven't you consummated your marriage with your wife yet?"
Upon hearing his question, the others present immediately exchanged knowing glances and burst into malicious laughter.
They had all heard about what Sheng Huai'an had caused before, but they hadn't had a chance to catch Sheng Yunche in person to "show their concern." They sent a letter to the Duke of Wei's mansion, but Sheng Yunche didn't reply. They were all getting increasingly curious.
Sheng Yunche glanced at the group indifferently: "Looking for death?"
This drew another burst of laughter.
As friends of many years, they knew Sheng Yunche's temperament well, so they changed the subject and started talking about other topics.
No one asked about the absurd things Jia had done today; after all, it was a scandal, and even friends need to maintain appropriate boundaries.
Yang Boyan, who was sitting closest to Sheng Yunche, was the white-robed young man that Ye Mingzhu had met once at Su Xuetang. He nudged Sheng Yunche with his elbow and asked in a low voice, "Your health has improved a lot recently?"
Sheng Yunche turned to look at him, not hiding anything: "Yes."
"Did your sister-in-law treat it for you?"
Sheng Yunche cleared his throat, a hint of a smile flashing in his phoenix eyes, and said reservedly, "Yes."
Yang Boyan: "..."
Sheng Yunche added, "You're right, she's very attentive to me."
Yang Boyan hissed softly, feeling a toothache: "I didn't ask."
“You asked.” Sheng Yunche met his gaze.
"Okay, okay! I asked, I asked in my heart!" Yang Boyan raised his hands and suddenly burst out laughing. "Seeing that you're doing pretty well now, I'm relieved. I'll ask my wife to invite your wife out more often, and you should have a daughter soon so she can be my youngest son's wife in the future."
Sheng Yunche gave him only one word: "Get lost."
Yang Boyan chuckled and returned the favor with a half-eaten rose shortbread. Sheng Yunche grabbed it with one hand, his disdain conveyed without a word.
Yang Boyan took out a letter from his pocket and handed it to him: "This is what you asked me to look into before. I found it. Take a look."
Finally, he received a pleasant look from Sheng Yunche.
There was a curfew that night, and after sitting for a while longer, Sheng Yunche got up to say goodbye.
Knowing that he never spent the night in brothels, Yang Boyan and the others did not keep him. They just teased him, saying that he used to be aloof from women, but now he has a shrew at home.
They were different; they always spent the night at the Drunken Flower Pavilion.
Viewing a beautiful woman at night has a unique charm.
But no matter how enthusiastically they talked, Sheng Yunche glanced at them with his phoenix eyes and they all pretended to be very busy. In the blink of an eye, they started talking about other things, from literary gossip to important news in the court. In an instant, they were talking about it with great enthusiasm.
Sheng Yunche let out a soft chuckle.
As he emerged from the Drunken Flower Pavilion, the evening breeze carried away the lingering scent of rouge and powder from his clothes. He slowly exhaled as he boarded the carriage.
Unexpectedly, he recalled another, warmer, sweeter scent.
This made him even more eager to return home.
Once on the carriage, he took out the half-eaten rose shortbread from his sleeve, and, suppressing his disgust, took out the secret letter wrapped in wax paper inside the shortbread filling.
After reading the secret letter by candlelight, he immediately set it on fire.
He tapped his long fingers on the carriage floor and instructed the driver, Bu Xi and Bu Bei, in a deep voice: "Once we get back to the manor, immediately gather your men in place. There will be an operation tonight."
Both joy and sorrow responded simultaneously: "Yes."
...
After having dinner with Princess Ronghua, Ye Mingzhu was stuffed with a bunch of good things by her.
She felt a little embarrassed.
She was clearly worried that Princess Ronghua would be upset by Jia Shi and wanted to talk to her, but she was eating and taking things from her, making her feel like she was freeloading.
Back at Linfeng Hall, she had Ruyi put the things Princess Ronghua had given her into storage, and then she and Ruixiang continued to take stock of the dowry shop's accounts.
Thanks to her experience in her previous life, she managed the shop more skillfully in this life, and the profits were considerable.
Upon examining the ledger, they arrived at the hour of Hai (9-11 PM).
Sheng Yunche has not yet returned to the manor.
Ye Mingzhu wanted to wait for him to come back so she could finish the acupuncture before going to sleep, but she couldn't resist the drowsiness and fell asleep on the table.
When she woke up again, she was already in bed.
The dim candlelight created a warm and inviting atmosphere.
Sheng Yunche half-embraced her, gently rubbing his high nose against her shoulders and neck while rubbing her waist and back with his hands, and placing kisses on her face.
Ye Mingzhu was initially embarrassed, but then she suddenly smelled a faint scent of blood, which immediately banished her sleepiness. She sat up and looked at the man in front of her: "Sheng Yunche, are you injured?"
Sheng Yunche paused.
He stopped his groping movements on her body, paused for a moment, then pinched her earlobe and asked in a hoarse voice, "Is there any result on what you asked me to investigate? Now I'll give it to you?"
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