Chapter 8 Chapter 8 She simply liked handsome men...

The roosters crowed loudly.

Biezhi, accustomed to rising early, kept her eyes closed. Her mind gradually cleared, but suddenly, the pain from the hangover and the throbbing pain in the back of her neck tore at her.

She struggled to open her eyes, only to be greeted by a profoundly unfamiliar scene.

Biezhi abruptly stood up and glanced around. The small room contained only a single-sized bed and a simple, aged table and chairs. A worn kettle sat on the table, and the few cups were chipped at several corners.

A glimpse of brown cloth neatly arranged at the foot of the bed caught Biezhi's eye. Despite the pain, she crawled over to it, and what caught her eye was the crooked words "Jiran."

Biezhi breathed a sigh of relief.

It looked like this must be Jiran's residence.

She once again surveyed the scene before her. Even the cramped little room made her feel awkward. With Jiran's size, he certainly couldn't move around.

But -

why is she here?

Biezhi only remembered that she was drunk last night and wanted to send Ji Ran back before she passed out.

She couldn't remember anything that happened afterwards.

Biezhi folded the cloth and put it back in its place, then stood up and walked out. The moment she pressed her palm against the creaking door, the door was pushed open from the outside, and Ji Ran, holding a bowl of plain porridge, suddenly appeared in her sight.

When he saw her, Ji Ran was also stunned and stopped moving.

Biezhi raised her hand and waved it in front of his eyes, then pointed at the back of her neck, "I was hit?"

Ji Ran took a long time to react, then turned around and looked at the big tree in the open plain. He pointed at the trunk and patted the back of his neck, gesturing for a long time.

Biezhi, who understood a little, was stunned: "You mean, I hit the tree?"

Ji Ran looked at her confusedly, not understanding what she was talking about.

Seeing that she didn't explain for a long time, he handed the porridge in his hand to her.

Biezhi took the porridge in disbelief.

How could she hit the tree!?

Ji Ran looked up at the rising sun and made a gesture to go out.

Bie Zhi collected her thoughts and remembered what the owner of the Wuwei Shop had said to her yesterday. She nodded and said, "You go. I have something to go back to the building for." She was going to find her master to talk to the master on her behalf. If she was any later, the task might be assigned to someone else.

Bie Zhi found a place to wash up, drank the porridge that Ji Ran brought, washed it up, and returned it to him. "Thanks to you for taking me in last night. I will come to see you in two days."

She waved her hand and left the small bamboo house in a hurry.

Ji Ran stood there, watching her figure getting smaller and smaller until she disappeared. He turned around and looked at the bamboo house, but in a moment, a figure appeared beside the bamboo house. He bowed to the person who came.

Cheng Jin glanced past his figure at the deserted path, and said to the secret guard who had come with him, "Tell him to go to the West Market later."

Upon hearing this, the secret guard raised his hand and gestured a few times.

Ji Ran watched and nodded.

Cheng Jin watched the man leave, glanced at the secret guard who followed him, and said, "Send a message to Qing Shan, telling Ling Feng to wait at Sanqing Hall at 3:00 PM, and bring Biezhi with him." The secret

guard took the order and left, and he immediately returned to the palace.

The master was attending the morning court, and the palace was quiet and silent.

Cheng Jin returned to the palace and secretly entered the palace through the narrow path. He walked quickly towards the Xuanzheng Hall, nodded to Jiang Yue who was guarding the palace, and stood beside him.

"Are you ready?" Jiang Yue asked.

"At 3:00 PM, Ji Ran will appear in the southeast corner of the West Market. You can see him by looking down from the second floor of Sanqing Hall." Cheng Jin lowered his voice deliberately.

Jiang Yue nodded. "Just lead Biezhi to him then."

The Ji Ran they were talking about wasn't that Ji Ran, but the real Ji Ran.

"Although Biezhi doesn't doubt Ji Ran's identity, we still have to prevent others from getting suspicious." Jiang Yue tilted his head slightly, glancing at the prince high up in the hall of Xuanzheng Hall. "Just don't let people suspect that the prince is impersonating Ji Ran."

Cheng Jin nodded. "It's tough on him, though. He has to hide here and there when Biezhi is around. And when she shows up unexpectedly, he has to find a way to avoid

her so the prince can show up." "When the prince was impersonating Ji Ran, he never thought he'd run into her," Jiang Yue said. "But it was a lucky coincidence. Everyone in Xianyun Tower dotes on this little sister, so using her to lure out the traitor is perfect."

Wuweipu was ostensibly a tavern where people could eat and drink, but in reality it was the residence of the prince's secret guards, and the real Ji Ran was one of them. Born deaf, he had a keener sense of smell than most people, and he could smell even the slightest bit of something amiss.

Two years ago, a foreign envoy arrived for an audience.

Because Ji Ran was deaf, the people in the tavern wouldn't avoid him when they spoke, which was one of the reasons their prince disguised himself as Ji Ran.

Among the secret guards, there were experts in disguise, and they arranged for the prince to appear as Ji Ran. Unexpectedly

, on the first day of their prince's appearance as Ji Ran, he encountered Bie Zhi. It was clear that Bie Zhi's round, almond-shaped eyes sparkled when she saw Ji Ran.

Their prince had been pretending to be Ji Ran for seven days, and Bie Zhi had been there for seven days.

On Bie Zhi's first day, her life story was laid out on the desk in the prince's study. After the seventh day, Jiang Yue and the others thought the prince's impersonation of Ji Ran had ended. Who would have thought that after the eighth day, after court, the prince would still be pretending to be Ji Ran and go to the Wuwei Shop?

Jiang Yue later realized that this was the true beginning.

From then on, the Ji Ran in Biezhi's eyes and the Ji Ran in theirs were two completely different people. This deception was possible precisely because Ji Ran was one of their prince's four or five stand-ins.

Fortunately, Biezhi wasn't always free to come. She'd periodically be out of the capital on missions, sometimes not being available for two or three months. But whenever she was free, she'd definitely come to the shop.

To this day, Jiang Yue couldn't understand what it was about Ji Ran that attracted Biezhi. As he pondered, the voice of "Dismissing the court" rang in his ears, and he suddenly collected his thoughts.

Fu Huaiqing walked down the hall.

The ministers in Xuanzheng Hall all stepped back three or four steps, bowing to await his departure. When he reached the center, the man standing in front of the group straightened and followed.

He quickly approached Fu Huaiqing, his pace quickening as he exited the Xuanzheng Hall gate. He approached his side and asked, "Are you free today?"

Fu Huaiqing glanced at him sideways, then glanced slightly back.

The man looked back, confused, following his gaze. He immediately saw Qin Xiao, who had a clear goal in mind, walking towards them.

Qin Xiao bowed to Fu Huaiqing and said, "Your Highness."

Fu Huaiqing continued walking, "What's the matter?"

"I heard that Your Highness sent secret guards to escort me out of the capital. Now I'm back safely. Thank you for your concern." Qin Xiao lowered his eyelids and said calmly.

Fu Huaiqing said nothing. The man next to him spoke first, "Did you take the wrong medicine today? You're so pretentious. What's more, you're going out of the capital to handle a case with only one person. It's too reckless. If you get into trouble, it will be hard for the Qin family."

"Brother Su, you're too kind." Qin Xiao said to Su Ci, who was also a court official. However, he couldn't help but think of his mother who cried with joy after seeing his safe return yesterday. He said, "I only learned last night that it was Wan'er who specifically asked the prince for help. I just had time to come and thank you today."

Upon hearing this, Fu Huaiqing glanced at him indifferently and said, "Just say it directly."

"Then I won't be polite with you." Qin Xiao, who had been respectful and polite for a long time, straightened his slightly bent back, and the smile in his eyes deepened a little. They were still toddlers when they met. In the court, they had to address each other as superiors and subordinates, but in private, they were much more casual. "I want to borrow the secret guard you sent with me out of the capital."

Fu Huaiqing stopped and looked at him: "What for?"

"Find someone for me," Qin Xiao told them. "I met a woman the other day. I wanted to ask if they remember me and ask them to go back and look for her for me."

She appeared sweet and charming, her smile captivating, but in reality, her eyes were filled with indifference. She was like a cactus unique to the desert, striking in the wind until closer, its palms covered in thorns, making it even more unique.

"A woman?" Su Ci asked meaningfully. "Are you feeling aroused?"

Qin Xiao remained

silent. Fu Huaiqing frowned at this.

His voice grew colder. "My secret guards aren't for you to use to find your soulmate."

Qin Xiao wasn't surprised by the rejection. Otherwise, upon returning to Beijing yesterday, he wouldn't have considered going to Xianyun Tower, but instead headed straight for Prince Su's Mansion. Today, he was simply unwilling to give up and decided to try again. "Never mind, I'll think of another way."

"Finding a needle in a haystack is no easy task," Su Ci said.

Jiang Yue, who was following Fu Huaiqing, couldn't help but murmur in his heart when he heard this. In fact, it wasn't difficult. After

all, Biezhi hadn't disguised herself when she left the capital this time. Maybe they could meet her around the corner in the capital. When his peripheral vision caught the prince's light glance, his body straightened a little, but he immediately understood what his master meant.

Fu Huaiqing's eyes darkened slightly.

He had forgotten that Biezhi liked men with elegant looks and was extremely bold and lustful. If she were to meet Qin Xiao, she would probably pester him every day, making him busy and eventually making his eardrums swell.

Fu Huaiqing pulled the corners of his mouth slightly and laughed coldly.

Su Ci, who was standing closest to him, shuddered when he heard this and asked, "Which blind

man has offended you again?" He looked as if he was going to take advantage of him.

Fu Huaiqing glanced at him and said nothing.

"I heard Wan'er say that you and her have agreed to meet in the evening?" Qin Xiao asked.

Fu Huaiqing hummed, "Wanghe Tower."

"What is she going to do?" Su Ci wondered.

Qin Xiao said, "Fortune. The Imperial College is short on cash lately."

"Those veteran officials at the Imperial College are really making the most of everything. They knew they'd be rejected if they rashly proposed, so they sent for Qin Wan." Su Ci's faint smile grew colder. "If the Imperial College was short of money, the six ministries would be out of money too."

"Wan'er, under someone's roof, has to bow her head." Qin Xiao naturally spoke up for his twin sister. As a tutor at the Imperial College, Qin Wan also had the responsibility to contribute to the institution. He said helplessly, "Who told everyone to think she was the unmarried wife of our Prince Su?"

Su Ci shook his head.

Currently, the Imperial College had only one female tutor: Qin Wan.

Qin Wan's admission to the Imperial College was approved by Fu Huaiqing against all odds four years ago. Ever since then, rumors have circulated in the capital that she secured her wish thanks to the support of Prince Su, completely forgetting the earlier tales of her as a woman of rare talent.

As the saying goes, "Three people make a tiger," the rumors gradually took on a new meaning.

It was unknown when, but the capital's narrative began to spread that Qin Wan and Prince Su were childhood sweethearts, deeply in love. Prince Su, driven to anger by his beloved, first erupted in anger at court when the ministers petitioned to protest Qin Wan's admission. While Prince Su defended Qin Wan against all odds, he inevitably had to consider the ministers' dignity, and thus, the marriage remained uncontested.

This rumor was further fueled by the fact that neither Fu Huaiqing nor Qin Wan had married to this day. Denials by the palace's steward and the Qin family's mistress were futile.

Mentioning this matter, Qin Xiao was also very helpless. They had done what they could, but the world just didn't believe it. "I'm afraid that only if you get married can the rumors stop."

Fu Huaiqing's expression was cold, and it was hard to tell what he was thinking.

He took a step forward without saying a word.

"Where are you going?" Su Ci asked.

Fu Huaiqing ignored him and walked away.

Biezhi returned to Xianyun Tower early in the morning and was brought to Sanqingtang by Ling Feng. The master and apprentice waited in Sanqingtang until noon, but no one showed up.

Biezhi was so tired of waiting, "Master, will you change your mind again?"

God knows when she rushed back to Xianyun Tower early in the morning and heard the master say that the master was going to give her the task, she was so excited that she almost fainted. Now she had been in Sanqingtang for half a day and didn't see the master, and her heart sank again.

Biezhi suddenly realized that the old man also changed his mind halfway last time, and this time might be the same!

She widened her eyes slightly, looked at her master, and asked, "Master, do I look like someone who is easy to bully?