Pampered Poisonous Royal Wife Chapter 226

~ THE INJURY RECURRED ~ 

Hearing Yue Wang’s words, Mu Yunyao frowned, “Fourth Master, Jingling City is quite a distance away from Western Guangdong, and the wounds on your body are extremely severe. If you were to depart now, would you still want your life?”

“I have left Western Guangdong for a long time. I received a message earlier that Yunnu and Northern Xinjiang are about to take action. After the days are set, They will return in a few days. Time was pressing, and there was no time to delay.”

“No way!” Mu Yunyao retorted, “You brought a body full of wounds back to Western Guangdong. Not only you won’t be able to help, but you will also make your subordinates worry about you. If the news were accidental to leak, then Yunnu and the people in Northern Xinjiang will know. Whether or not you can return safely, I will help you recuperate as soon as possible. No matter what, you have to heal your injuries by at least fifty percent before leaving.”

Yue Wang raised his eyes and looked at Mu Yunyao carefully. He frowned and said, “I had an injury worse than this before, and in the end, there was nothing serious...”

“That was previously due to the irresponsible actions of the doctor by your side. Now, I am the one who is treating your wounds. Whether you can travel a long journey or not is up to me.”

“But the situation in Western Guangdong is urgent …”

“Western Guangdong has a lot of friction all year round. You’ve been in Western Guangdong for so many years. Don’t tell me that without you, those people under you wouldn’t know how to fight?”

Yue Wang pursed his lips and lowered his head slightly, not saying another word as he silently assented to Mu Yunyao’s decision. Steward Qin quietly left the room, closing the study door behind him. He sighed, “Wang Ye is stubborn, and no one can change anything as long as he makes up his mind. Furthermore, Western Guangdong is a bitter and cold place and frequent wars on the border. I don’t know how many times Wang Ye has done such a dangerous thing, and no one can persuade him. But someone can manage it now.”

Mu Yunyao cleaned the blood off her hands. Looking at her sleeves that were also stained with blood, she frowned. “The Fourth Master should take good care of it first. I’ll go back and change my clothes first. I’ll write the prescription later and get someone to boil it and send it over.”

Seeing that Mu Yunyao was about to leave, Yue Wang could not help but speak, “I’ve arranged for someone to hide the stolen salt for the time being according to the plan we discussed before. We can only wait until the news has passed before thinking of a way to transport it to other places.”

Mu Yunyao turned around and saw that Yue Wang was staring at her with a clear and cold gaze. There was an undetectable trace of wariness in his eyes, which made her heart go soft. She hurriedly withdrew her sight and said, “Now that we are in the limelight, we can slowly plan for these matters. Fourth Master, please rest first.”

Mu Yunyao passed through a side door and returned home. Jin Lan and Qin Qiao hurriedly greeted her. Seeing the bloodstains on her sleeves, they were instantly alarmed. “Miss, are you injured?”

“No, it was left by dressing someone else’s wound.” Returning to her room, Mu Yunyao finished bathing and changed into a new set of clothes. The little Snow Fox jumped onto the soft couch next to her and closed its eyes. Mu Yunyao caressed the Snow Fox’s smooth fur as her thoughts drifted away. After a long while, she let out a heavy sigh, “If this had happened before, when she heard that Yue Wang was rushing back to Western Guangdong with a body covered in wounds, even though she disapproves it, wouldn’t have said anything more. But now, hearing that he was going to do this, her first reaction was to stop him ...”

Although she did not want to admit it, her subconscious reaction could not fool people. In her heart, Yue Wang was different from before.

Jin Lan walked in with the box. “Miss, the medicine has been prepared.”

Mu Yunyao stopped touching Snow Fox. She stood up, opened the lid of the food box, and checked the soup carefully, “Have Liu Liang to deliver to Shopkeeper Qin.”

“Yes, Miss.”

That night, Su Qing came back from Ni Yun Fang and couldn’t help but talk about the recently reported salt tax case. “I really don’t know who had the guts to rob the salt ship from Linjiang. Today, someone came to Ni Yun Fang to buy clothes and talk about it. They said that a lot of people died on Linjiang that day, and many people have caused a huge commotion...”

When Mu Yunyao heard this, the looks in her eyes slightly shifted. Many people were killed or injured ..., even Yue Wang had been wounded by the arrow. It must be extremely dangerous to be able to snatch the salt boat.

“Yao’er, what happened to you?” Seeing Mu Yunyao in a daze, she couldn’t help but calling her out, “Blame me. It’s all because Mother talks about this with you. After listening to it, it looked so frightening. I can see that you’re not that spirited in the last two days. After dinner, you should go back and rest early.”

“I’m fine. It’s just that after listening to Mother’s words, I wonder who is so capable of taking all the salt boats?”

“The Imperial Court will naturally find out about these matters. How can ordinary citizens like us keep our mouths shut? Alright, stop thinking so much about it. Hurry to eat something, and rest early.”

After accompanying Su Qing and finishing her meal, Mu Yunyao had already gone back to her room. She was tossing and turning on the bed, unable to sleep soundly. At midnight, she suddenly heard a sound from the window, “Miss Mu …”

Mu Yunyao abruptly opened her eyes and sat up. Her hand subconsciously felt for the dagger under her pillow. “Who is it?”

“Miss Mu, it’s Yu Heng. Master’s body is burning. Steward Qin wants me to invite you over to have a look.”

“I understand. I’ll be there shortly.” Mu Yunyao quickly got up and put on her clothes, afterward followed Yu Heng to Yue Wang’s residence.

When Steward Qin saw Mu Yunyao, he hurriedly came over to welcome her. “I’m really sorry for disturbing Miss Mu at such a late hour!”

“There’s no need to be courteous, Steward Qin. How is the Fourth Master?”

Steward Qin led Mu Yunyao to the bedside. “It’s been two hours since Wang Ye had a fever. He’s been in a state of confusion all the time, and I can’t wake him up.”

Mu Yunyao hurriedly went forward to take a look at Yue Wang’s pulse, then removed the gauze to look at the wound on his back. “The poison in Wang Ye’s body mostly cured, and the wounds on his body have done treated properly. It’s normal to feel a little hot right now, but you should be able to wake him up, right?”

“That’s right. I really couldn’t make up my mind, so I invited Miss Mu over.”

“First of all, try to think of a way to remove the heat from Master Fourth’s body, and then we’ll see if we can wake him up.” As she said that, Mu Yunyao smoothed out Yue Wang’s sleeves and was about to stand up to write the prescription on the table, but just as she was about to move, her wrist abruptly grabbed.

Mu Yunyao hurriedly turned her head to look at Yue Wang, who was grabbing onto her wrist, “Fourth Master, are you awake?”

Yue Wang’s eyes were still tightly shut, but the hand that holding Mu Yunyao was so forceful, causing her to wrinkle her brows in pain.

Steward Qin hurriedly stepped forward and tried to pry away Yue Wang’s hand, but he realized that the more he tried to pry away Yue Wang’s hand, the more strength he exerted: “Miss Mu, look at this …”

“I’ll say it. Write down the prescription and have someone boil the medicine.”

Steward Qin hurriedly nodded his head, and after writing the prescription, he left the room.

There were only two people left in the room, Yue Wang and Mu Yunyao. The candle flame on the table flickered for a bit before exploding into a flower. Mu Yunyao sat on the side of the bed, her wrist being tightly grasped by Yue Wang, causing her bones to ache from the pain. However, when she slightly moved, Yue Wang’s grip tightened, and she could only give up and let him hold her hand.

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Continue reading Pampered Poisonous Royal Wife Chapter 226

Pampered Poisonous Royal Wife Chapter 225

~ RUMOURS ARE SPREADING ALL OVER THE PLACE ~ 

When Mu Yunyao returned home, she instructed Jin Lan to place the jewelry box given by Yue Wang into the storage room. She probably wouldn’t be able to wear these things for the rest of her life. In the following days, Mu Yunyao would occasionally come to Jin Xiu Garden to discuss with Yue Wang about the batch of salt and how to deal with salt merchants in Jiangnan. Their expressions looked as if they were normal, and their relationship seemed to return to how it was before. They tacitly understood that they had never mentioned the previous unhappiness. However, some things that happened, such as crossing the ground with the water, eventually leave behind some traces. 

In Yangzhou City, Li Yuanyi looked at the shipment of salt, and a smile flashed across his eyes. He initially thought that when he came to Jiangnan to inspect the salt tax, he would pretend to be a kind person and accept some bribes at most. Unexpectedly, there were ready-made contributions to the door. Those officials in Yangzhou City were also tired of living. They even wanted to make a move on the salt tax at this moment and let him pick up a bargain in vain. The salt merchants also heaved a heavy sigh of relief. Although things went through twists and turns, they were able to get through it safely. They had also sold Li Yuanyi for the benefit, making the First Prince owe them a favor. In the future, perhaps this would be of great use. As for the lost silver, we can always earn it after years of hard work. 

Just as they were feeling proud for a few days, a shocking piece of news directly shocked Li Yuanyi and the salt merchants in Jiangnan. After the investigation, the salt pile that had initially been carried north had an accident while passing through Linjiang City. The salt ship sank into the water, and all the salt was gone!

When Li Yuanyi first heard the news, he almost fell to the ground, “What’s going on? Didn’t they already send additional people to make them extra careful? Why did something go wrong?”

The guard who came to report the news knelt on the ground, trembling without a sound. “At that time, a fog rose up over Jingling City. The fog was so thick that I couldn’t clearly see when someone was digging a boat from under the water. By the time I reacted, the hole was too big, and there was no hope of saving it …”

Li Yuanyi was like an ant on a hot pan as he paced back and forth on the spot, “Quickly, go and send a letter to Li Munian. No, send a letter to Prime Minister Li Qingzhou, tell him the whole story of the matter, and let him make the decision.” This time, the matter is too big for him to handle on his own. He had to let Li Qingzhou make his decision. At first, Li Yuanyi wanted to suppress the news and wait for Li Qingzhou’s reply. Unfortunately, because of the salt tax case, all the forces were paying attention to it. Now, as soon as something happened, the news spread like wildfire throughout the entire Dali Dynasty. Before his letter even reached the Capital, the Emperor had already got the news.

The Emperor was furious, and the officials were as silent as cicadas in winter. Just as the Emperor gave the order to investigate, another piece of news was quickly spread.

From the very beginning, the salt tax case in Yangzhou City was a conspiracy between salt merchants and officials. First, the salt merchants had secretly ordered the officials to buy salt to make up for the deficit in salt tax, and later they had falsely claimed that the salt had sunk on the Xijiang River and replaced the salt ship with a boat loaded with sand. After the matter was almost exposed, the salt merchants bribed Li Yuanyi, the Governor of Liangjiang, who had checked the salt tax. They framed the Salt Transport Envoy of Yangzhou City, Su Tong, saying that he was the one who had secretly exchanged the salt and was caught by Li Yuanyi. But in reality, the salt merchants themselves had handed the hidden salt to Li Yuanyi. Otherwise, Li Yuanyi would not be able to pinch and count. Why did he go straight to the abandoned wharf when he arrived in Yangzhou City and searched for that batch of salt?

After that, to gain merits, Li Yuanyi made up a fake to deceive the Emperor and allowed the officials who bought the salt and the government servants and other insignificant people to bear the blame, protecting the various salt merchants in Jiangnan. They also heard that the salt merchants had given him gifts after the event, and the exact amount of silver was unknown.

As soon as the news spread, Prime Minister Li Qingzhou hurriedly entered the Palace to face the Emperor. However, after kneeling outside the Palace for a long time, the Emperor didn’t see him. The First Prince hurriedly entered the Palace to plead as well, and the Emperor avoided him too.

The salt merchants, who had initially thought that they could sleep peacefully, were now quite flustered. They did not expect that the matter had resolved satisfactorily. Now, there was actually someone who had exposed all of their secrets.

In Wu Minzhi’s residence, the salt merchants in the main hall were flustered. “Chief Wu, you have to think of something. If this goes on, how are we going to survive?”

Wu Minzhi’s expression was dispirited as his relaxed and gentle aura had already disappeared without a trace. “You don’t have to make noise here. If you have the time, why don’t you go home and arrange the aftermath?”

The salt merchants were all dumbfounded, their faces all pale. “Arrange the aftermath?”

“Could it be that we are really hopeless?”

“We have evidence! Didn’t we get someone to send all the evidence into the Capital? When we present the evidence, maybe we can get lenient treatment?”

“That’s right, Chief Wu, we can’t delay any longer. No matter who wants to get rid of us, we can’t just sit there and wait for death. We have to find a way to survive!” Wu Minzhi slowly raised his head, “Alright, since all of you want to do this, why don’t we may as well draw more cushions before we die? The development of this matter is always complicated and confusing and has developed to this point in time. It doesn’t matter whether the First Prince has turned hostile or has been set up by someone else. It is no longer important if we can’t find the real mastermind behind it, we can only think of a way to implicate the First Prince into this. If we have him on top of us, our crimes might be a little less serious.”

“This is the only way ….”

In Jin Xiu Garden, Mu Yunyao’s eyebrows furrowed tightly, and her fingers and sleeves covered with blood: “Fourth Master, please endure it with me. Although I used a silver needle to seal your blood, the arrow sticks very deep, and it will still hurt to pull it out.”

Yue Wang took off his clothes on his shoulder, revealing the smooth muscles of his shoulder. Half of the arrow on his back was deeply embedded in one side of his scapula, and the blood kept flowing out.

“No worries, go ahead.” Yue Wang frowned slightly, beads of sweat forming on his forehead. However, his eyes remained calm and collected and only occasionally flashed with a hint of coldness.

Mu Yunyao washed the dagger with strong liquor, then placed it on fire and roasted the blade once more. She held the exposed half of the arrow firmly in her hand, and with her other hand, she quickly cut open some of the wound on the back of Yue Wang, then decisively pulled out the arrow.

Yue Wang groaned in pain, but his body remained motionless.

The bloodstains continued to flow down the wound, and the color was dark, with a faint smell. Mu Yunyao wasn’t in a hurry to help Yue Wang stop bleeding. Instead, she continuously squeezed the wound to the side, causing the black blood to flow a little more. Only when the blood that flowed out turned a bright red did she begin to bandage the wound.

Steward Qin, who was standing by the side, looked on worriedly. “Miss Mu, how are Wang Ye’s injuries?”

Mu Yunyao bandaged the wound before letting out a sigh of relief, “The arrow had poisoned. Fortunately, the poison wasn’t strong enough, so after taking the decoction for a few days, the medicine will eliminate the poison completely. It’s just that the wound is too close to the heart. If you don’t take care of it carefully, I’m afraid that the diseases will remain. During this period, the Fourth Master must pay more attention to rest, and do your best not move your left arm, to avoid damaging the wound.” 

Yue Wang looked at Mu Yunyao and shook his head slightly. “Tomorrow, I will set off to Western Guangdong.”

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Continue reading Pampered Poisonous Royal Wife Chapter 225

Pampered Poisonous Royal Wife Chapter 224

~ THERE IS A LONG WAY TO GO ~ 

In the afternoon, there wasn’t much work to do at Ni Yun Fang. Thus, Su Qing told Mu Yunyao to come home early to rest.

Not long after Mu Yunyao returned home, she heard Jin Lan come over to report, “Miss, Shopkeeper Qin invites you to visit Jin Xiu Garden.”

The Snow Fox jumped onto Mu Yunyao’s knees and used its head to rub against her fingers lightly. It let out a “wuu wuu” sound from its mouth, appearing to be very aggrieved.

Mu Yunyao lowered her head to caress the Snow Fox’s head. A soft and warm feeling came from her fingertips. She pondered for a moment before nodding and saying, “I understand.”

Right now, the silver in her hand is enough, so it’s not impossible to separate from Yue Wang, but Ni Yun Fang and Bu Xian Luo are intertwined, and it’s too much to break off easily. It’s better to have a look again. If Yue Wang continues to investigate, then even if it would hurt, she has to make a clear decision with him as soon as possible.

In Jin Xiu Garden, Yue Wang was a little nervous.

It had already been four days since they parted on bad terms. Yue Wang thought about it carefully, and at that time, he was indeed too impulsive. After being in contact with her for so long, he already knew that Mu Yunyao was over-preventive, and with him forcing her to ask that question, it was clear that he had pushed her further away.

Not long after, Steward Qin walked into the study, “Your Highness, Miss Mu has come.”

Yue Wang perked up and immediately sat upright: “Let Miss Mu in.”

Mu Yunyao walked into the study with a gentle smile on her face. Her expression didn’t change in the slightest, “Greetings, Fourth Master.”

Initially, he thought that Mu Yunyao wouldn’t come to see him, and even if she did, she would definitely be upset over what had happened. However, he didn’t expect that not only had she come, but her expression also didn’t even change in the slightest.

Yue Wang’s heart sank a little. He had been worried for so long, but she had not taken it to heart.

“No need to be so courteous. I invited you over because I have something that I need to discuss with you.”

“If there is anything that Fourth Master orders, I will try my best to do If there is anything that I can do.” Mu Yunyao raised her head and looked straight at Yue Wang, repeatedly chanting in her heart that this life was the real source. Her mind actually calmed down a bit, and the fear and suspicion she had towards Yue Wang dissipated bit by bit, and she finally was able to face him with a normal heart.

It seems that there are some advantages to having a conflict. At the very least, Mu Yunyao didn’t have to feel a chill every time she met him.

Yue Wang acutely sensed that something was wrong with Mu Yunyao’s mood, but when he tried to distinguish the difference carefully, he couldn’t found about it. “You asked me before if I had any thoughts on the batch of salt that Li Yuanyi is currently transporting. I want to hear what you have in mind.”

Afraid that his words would cause Mu Yunyao to recall her displeasure from before, Yue Wang looked carefully at Mu Yunyao’s expression, and his tone unconsciously became a little calmer.

Mu Yunyao didn’t have the slightest trace of abnormality in her expression, and her smile still remained on her face. “I initially also wanted to talk to Fourth Master again, but since you just so happened to ask, can you please listen for a bit and see if it’s feasible?”

He couldn’t say that he was relieved, but he was still disappointed. He nodded his head slightly after hearing what she said: “Tell me about it.”

“Fourth Master, you also know that the high price of salt nowadays is because of the particular salt that is operated by the government. However, the system that existed in place was not perfect, and therefore, private salt was rampant. Now because of the salt tax investigation and coupled with the rumors that official salt is sinking in the Xijiang River, the price of salt has risen quite a lot. It is not easy for the people to live, and the high price of salt is bound to add to their burden.”

“That’s true.”

“Then, is Your Highness willing to seek some welfare for the people?”

Yue Wang squinted his eyes slightly as he quickly thought in his heart: “You want me to send someone to cut off that batch of salt again?”

Mu Yunyao smiled and nodded, “We have already earned enough silver from those salt merchants, but we have already formed a grudge with them. Right now, the salt merchants and Li Yuanyi were busy protecting themselves, so they naturally didn’t do anything to deal with us. But once they react, they will try to do everything possible to retaliate. Therefore, the best policy is to eliminate future trouble forever.”

“You want to eliminate Li Yuanyi and those salt merchants?”

Mu Yunyao slightly tilted her head and looked at Yue Wang, “Don’t tell me that Fourth Master Ning doesn’t want to interfere in Jiangnan’s salt tax? If that batch of salt merchants didn’t fall, then there wouldn’t be any new salt merchants rising. Especially the Wu, Wei, and Cao families had been suppressing Jiangnan for a long time now, and they have already lacked the previous caution and restraint in their temperament. If a new batch of people were to go up, it would also be able to quiet down the salt tax in Jiangnan for a while.”

Yue Wang pondered for a moment, and his eyes gradually became deeper: “Alright.” Although this incident was dangerous, there were countless opportunities in it. Once he succeeded, his power would change tremendously.

Mu Yunyao smiled. “Then, Fourth Master Ning has to hurry and prepare. After a while, the salt ship will pass through the Xijiang River, then Jingling City, and afterward proceed to the north of Linjiang City. These three places have opportunities to fight. Each has its own advantages and disadvantages, depending on how Fourth Master Ning plan it.”

“Do you have any suggestions?” Yue Wang subconsciously asked Mu Yunyao.

“I don’t know about it very well. It’s just that when I came with my mother to Jingling City, I heard from the old boatman that there was a period of extreme fog in Linjiang City during the summer, which is very strange in the local area. So Fourth Master might as well ask the old boatmen carefully about it. They have the ability to predict the weather, and if they can make it in time for a foggy day, that would be Heaven’s help.”

Yue Wang looked deeply at Mu Yunyao, then nodded and said, “Alright, I will immediately send people to investigate.”

After they finished discussing business, the study room instantly quietened down. Mu Yunyao waited for a moment but didn’t hear any other instructions from Yue Wang, so she got up and said her goodbyes, “I won’t disturb Fourth Master any longer …”

“Wait a minute,” Yue Wang stood up and took out an exquisite wooden box from the side. It was made of sandalwood and inlaid with precious stones, so it was obviously worth a lot of money, “It was all thanks to you giving me advice that I was able to earn so much money. These are a thank you gift that I prepared, and I hope you can accept them.”

Mu Yunyao’s fingertips trembled as she raised her hand to receive the box. She opened it and took a look, then her heart suddenly moved. It was full of jewelry and was too precious and beautiful. The jewelry bought from Yi Bao Xuan today was not as impressive as the one in the box.

“Fourth Master, these jewels are too precious …”

“Take them. In fact, these things have been with me for a long time. I can’t bear to part with them, so I left them empty and dusty. It’s just right to give them to you...” These pieces of jewelry were left behind by his mother and had been with him for a long time. Now that he finally found someone he wanted to give it to, it could be considered a blessing.

Mu Yunyao thought for a moment before bowing to Yue Wang. “Since that’s the case, then I’ll thank Fourth Master for the reward. If there’s nothing else, then I’ll take my leave first.”

“Alright.”

After Mu Yunyao left, Steward Qin hurriedly walked into the study: “Wang Ye, did Miss Mu accept the jewelry?”

Yue Wang nodded, but there was a wrinkle between his brows.

“Then why do you look so unhappy?”

“Nothing.” Just now, Mu Yunyao didn’t show any abnormal expressions and even brought the gift he gave her when he left. However, he was acutely aware that something had changed, but he still couldn’t tell if this change was good or bad, which only made him worried.

“This little footwork can’t achieve the goal of a thousand miles. There is a long way to go, the path is long, and the water drops through the stone...” Yue Wang couldn’t help but laugh softly: “Uncle Qin, I understand.”

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Continue reading Pampered Poisonous Royal Wife Chapter 224

Pampered Poisonous Royal Wife Chapter 223

~ THIS LIFE IS THE ORIGIN ~ 

Mu Yunyao thought about what her mother said and couldn’t help but compare with Yue Wang: In her previous life, she would die and had a strange relationship with him. Now that she knows it, should she choose to continue to get along with him?

“Yao’er?” When Su Qing finished speaking, she couldn’t help but remind Mu Yunyao when she saw her dazed look.

“Mother, I am fine. I am just envious of the relationship between you and Father.”

“You’re still young now, so you don’t need to think about all those useless things. When you reach the age where you should marry, you can have a lot of time to think about it slowly. It’s enough to live happily every day now.” Su Qing felt a stabbing pain in her heart. Even if it was her previous life, Yao’er had left the world at the age of a teenager and was still a child in the end.

Mu Yunyao came back to her senses. When she saw Su Qing’s expression, she could not help but secretly blame herself for actually thinking so much to make her mother worry like this. “Alright, I’ll listen to Mother. Now it’s time to live my life well.”

Su Qing couldn’t help but rub Mu Yunyao’s head and pull her into her embrace, “Yao’er, I know that your experience is extraordinary and that your thoughts are exceptionally meticulous. Your mother is useless. Not only can’t help you share the burden but also often ask you to worry about me.”

Mu Yunyao promptly sat up straight and anxiously tried to explain, “Mother …”

Su Qing held her hand, indicating that she should listen to her words until finished, “Yao’er, the current you are quite different from your previous life. Because Mother is still alive, and the Emperor bestowed you many rewards. With our business now, no matter how strong and domineering the Su family are, we still have the resources to compete. Mother will work hard to adapt to the intrigues in the Capital. So, what you need to do is to relax your mind and enjoy your current life. The past lives are for reference, but in this life, you are the source. Don’t let what has happened to affect your current decision!”

Mu Yunyao slightly widened her eyes. Her clear and watery eyes couldn’t help but tremble, and in an instant, a myriad of emotions seemed to surge through them. “Mother, I understand.”

The mother and daughter chatted for a while longer. After dinner, Mu Yunyao pestered Su Qing to sleep with her.

Su Qing couldn’t help but raise her hand and point at Mu Yunyao’s forehead, “When did this little boss become such a pampered girl?”

Mu Yunyao’s expression was unique, her charming face revealing a pink luster like peach blossoms: “In front of Mother, Yao’er is just a pampered girl!”

“Aiyo, to think that she would actually act so righteously. Such a delicate face …”

“Mother!”

After a good night’s sleep, Mu Yunyao got up early with Su Qing the next day. After washing her face and rinsing her mouth, she looked at the rising sun and couldn’t help but let out a long sigh of relief at the morning sun. No matter what Yue Wang was thinking, she did not have the time and energy to accompany him. Time passed day by day, the Su family was about to come knocking on her door to find her. She still had many things that she had not arranged properly. How could she have time to think about her feelings? Moreover, who knows whether Yue Wang will become the next Emperor? She had already walked the road of death once, and she didn’t want to repeat the same mistake!

After breakfast, Mu Yunyao and Su Qing arrived at Ni Yun Fang. During this time, she was busy with Yangzhou City’s salt tax matters and had not been in Ni Yun Fang for several days. Now that she was free, she naturally had to pay more attention to it.

The 10 million taels of silver that she had extracted from the salt merchants was more than enough for Mu Yunyao and her mother to spend for the rest of their lives. However, none of them thought that it was too much silver. What’s more, Ni Yun Fang can also help her develop her contacts, so it’s absolutely not easy to give up.

After personally entertaining Ladies and helping them to change some clothes, the morning passed.

Seeing that Mu Yunyao was spirited, Su Qing’s worried heart was finally at ease. “Yao’er, did you see Yi Bao Xuan on the opposite side? The jewelry inside is so beautiful. If we have nothing to do in the afternoon, why don’t we go out there and see it together?”

Only then did Mu Yunyao look at Yi Bao Xuan across the street. All Ladies and Young Ladies who had come to Ni Yun Fang would go to Yi Bao Xuan to take a look too. After all, no matter how much clothes and jewelry they have, they always feel that it is not enough.

“Alright, if Mother likes it, then we’ll go there to buy some.” Mu Yunyao did not plan to tell Su Qing that Yi Bao Xuan was also her business. The fewer people who knew about this matter, the better. Keeping it secret is a perfect way out.

To prevent any investigation by anyone who had been interested in her, this was Mu Yunyao’s first time coming to Yi Bao Xuan. The decorations here were very exquisite and beautiful, even a step higher than Ni Yun Fang. As soon as she entered, a maid came to greet her: “Greetings, Madam Su, Miss Mu.”

“Miss, there’s no need to be so polite. We’re just here to take a look. Do you have any favorite jewelry?” Su Qing replied with a smile.

“Madam, you’ve finally arrived. A new batch of jewelry has come out today. It’s an extremely fresh and beautiful design that matches Madam’s elegant and luxurious aura.” The maid spoke in a sweet tone.

Su Qing felt a little embarrassed by the praise. She took Mu Yunyao to the side and looked at the jewelry cabinet, “The jewelry here is indeed quite beautiful.” As she spoke, she took a crystal hairpin and lightly inserted it into Mu Yunyao’s hair.

Mu Yunyao’s smile was sweet. After Su Qing finished inserting the pearl hairpin, she gently turned around and asked, “What does Mother think?”

“It looks good. Yao’er looks really good on it.”

“Then we’ll buy it.”

Not long after, the shopkeeper of Yi Bao Xuan came out. “Greetings, Madam Su, Miss Mu. I am Wei Jun, the shopkeeper of Yi Bao Xuan, and we will be neighbors in the future. I hope that Madam Su and Miss Mu will take care of me.”

With that, he bowed to the two of them once again. If anyone were to observe his gesture carefully, they would notice that the shopkeeper in front of them was exceptionally respectful and totally different from the way he greeted others in the past.

Mu Yunyao nodded slightly at Wei Jun. She didn’t reveal the slightest bit of oddity, and then she concentrated again on picking up jewelry with Su Qing.

There were many boxes on the counter. When Mu Yunyao settled the bill, Su Qing realized that she had chosen many of them unconsciously. “Yao’er, did Mother buy too many?”

“Mother, you only picked out two simple hairpins. You bought the rest for me. How can there be so many?”

Su Qing thought about it carefully and realized that it was true. She couldn’t help laughing and said, “Mother saw that those pieces of jewelry were extremely compatible with you, and I unknowingly picked a lot.”

“Forget it, Mother. I’ll merely buy it and slowly wear it.”

She initially thought that so much jewelry would cost a lot of silver taels, but when she paid the bill, Yi Bao Xuan’s shopkeeper only collected two hundred taels and even sent them out of the store in a courteous manner.

Su Qing felt that something wasn’t right, “Yao’er, do you think the beads and gems inlaid on these pieces of jewelry are all fake?”

“Why would Mother think that?”

“We bought so much, but the total we put out was only two hundred taels of silver. No matter how you look at it, it doesn’t seem normal. The price of clothes in the neon market was at least a thousand taels.”

Mu Yunyao couldn’t hold in her laughter. “I think those jewelry are excellent. It seems like because Yi Bao Xuan has just opened and is currently trying to recruit new customers at a low price. In the future, they won’t be this cheap.”

“Good.” Hearing Mu Yunyao’s words, Su Qing immediately calmed down.

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Continue reading Pampered Poisonous Royal Wife Chapter 223

Pampered Poisonous Royal Wife Chapter 222

~ THE FIERCE WOMAN IS AFRAID OF BULLYING OTHERS ~ 

Yue Wang suppressed his emotions for a while before the coldness around his body subsided a little bit. “It’s nothing. Uncle Qin, have you cleaned up all the jewelry that I picked previously?”

“It’s all been cleaned up.”

“Then you can have someone send it over to Yunyao.”

“This …” Steward Qin blinked his eyes doubtfully, “Aren’t Wang Ye going to deliver it personally?”

Yue Wang fell silent. The fire that had been burning in his heart seemed to be thrown down by a basin of ice water, and he felt his entire body turn cold: “Uncle Qin, I seemed to have done something wrong.”

Looking at the look of Yue Wang, Steward Qin felt a little emotional. It seems that Miss Mu and Wang Ye are at odds. Who wouldn’t be troubled by love when they are young: “Wang Ye, there are many things that this old servant doesn’t understand, but I have listened to the words in the book and said that this fierce woman is afraid of bullying others. Now that Miss Mu and Madam Su are dependent on each other, and it really isn’t easy for Miss Mu to make a family business in Jingling City. Besides, there is a big gap between her identity and Wang Ye. She should inevitably be more cautious. If Your Highness really cares about Miss Mu, you should be extra patient.”

Are fierce girls afraid of being pestered?

A trace of unease flashed through Yue Wang’s eyes: “Uncle Qin is usually very busy, and he actually has the time to read the book?”

A trace of uncomfortableness flashed in Wang Yue’s eyes very quickly: “Uncle Qin is very busy on weekdays, so is there still have time to read the notebook?”

“If you take a look at this occasionally, you can learn a lot from it.” Steward Qin replied quickly with a smile.

“Yes.” Yue Wang nodded his head noncommittally.

Steward Qin sent someone to bring the box of jewelry: “Wang Ye, I’ll leave this jewelry here. If you have time, please deliver it to Miss Mu personally.” With that, he did not wait for Yue Wang to reply and turned to leave.

Yue Wang opened the box and looked at the neatly placed accessories inside. He couldn’t help but to reach out and pick up a White Jade Orchid Flower hairpin. The hairpin was white and glossy without blemish. It made him feel that this hairpin was compatible with Mu Yunyao flawlessly.

In the next few days, news of Yangzhou City came one after another. With orders of the Emperor, Li Yuanyi finished investigating the case of Yangzhou City’s salt tax and began to check Yangzhou City’s salt tax without any rest. At this time, Qi Ming naturally pushed right in front of Li Yuan’s eyes.

When Mu Yunyao heard the news about Yangzhou City from Liu Liang, she instructed coldly, “Have Qi Ming take out the letter I gave him and show it to Li Yuanyi. That letter contained the First Prince’s handwriting, so he will naturally think of a way to erase Qi Ming’s trace of the salt tax case and protect him.”

Since she dared to let Qi Ming continue to stay in Yangzhou City, she naturally had a way to protect him. After all, losing someone like him was too much of a waste.

“Yes, I’ll send a message to Qi Ming right away.”

Mu Yunyao nodded, and she can hear Su Qing’s voice came from the door. She quickly looked at Liu Liang and said, “You can go now, and don’t let Mother see you or else she’ll worry.”

After Liu Liang left, Su Qing walked into the room. Mu Yunyao hurriedly stood up to welcome her. “Mother, why have you come back so early today?” Ever since Su Qing sensed that Mu Yunyao’s mood wasn’t right the last time, she had spent less time in New Ni Yun Fang and did her best to find more time to accompany Mu Yunyao. “Yunyao, Mother originally didn’t want to ask too much, but looking at your expression, you seem to have a heavy heart. Just what exactly happened here?”

“Where is something? Mother, you are just thinking too serious.”

“Don’t try to hide anything from me. If you don’t know your daughter very well, don’t tell me you’re a mother. Mother has seen you grow up, so naturally, I can tell whether you have worries or not.” Su Qing looked at Mu Yunyao worriedly, “You were so upset for a while before, but the next time was much better, and it started to be like this again two days ago. Your expression was more solemn than the last time. What happened?”

Mu Yunyao couldn’t help but bite her lips. “Mother, I don’t know how to say it, but my heart feels very stuffy. What do you think of Fourth Master Ning?”

“Fourth Master Ning?” Su Qing’s heart skipped a beat. She suddenly thought of the cloak Mu Yunyao was wearing when she came back last time. “You …. could it be that … you like Fourth Master Ning?”

Mu Yunyao hurriedly shook her head, “Mother, what are you thinking? There is no such thing!”

Seeing Mu Yunyao retort so urgently, Su Qing’s heart sunk even more. “If that’s not the case, then so be it. Why are your reactions so big?”

Mu Yunyao clenched her fist as a sharp pain came from her palm. Only then did she remember that her previous wound hadn’t healed at all. “I was just scared by what Mother said. That Fourth Master Ning is so much older than me, how could I like him …”

Su Qing couldn’t help but nod her head, “That’s true … … Although I don’t know the true identity of that Fourth Master Ning, I think it’s much more valuable than us. Furthermore, with his age, he should already have a wife in his family. Yao’er, don’t think about it. You should refrain yourself.”

Mu Yunyao couldn’t help but chuckle. She didn’t know how Yue Wang would react if he knew that Mother was thinking about him this way. “Mother, don’t worry. I won’t. I’m prepared to guard you for the rest of my life.”

After carefully looking at Mu Yunyao’s look and seeing no trace of abnormality in her expression, Su Qing couldn’t help but let out a sigh of relief, “Yao’er, you’re speaking nonsense. How could Mother possibly accompany you for a lifetime? It’s better to find someone you can rely on.”

Mu Yunyao leaned on Su Qing’s shoulder. A light slowly flickered in her eyes. “Mother, how did you marry Father back then?”

“Your father and I got to know each other by chance. When I went up the mountain to chop firewood, I accidentally sprained my foot and coincidentally met your father, who searched for medicinal herbs in the back mountain. He sent me home, and we got to know each other that way. Later, he invited a matchmaker to my house to propose marriage. The betrothal gift was quite rich, which naturally became..., and there’s nothing to say.”

Mu Yunyao raised her head to look at Su Qing’s expression. With a puzzled expression, she asked, “Since Mother feels that there’s nothing to say, why is it that when you mention father, the corners of her lips are all smiling?”

Su Qing was stunned. She couldn’t help but raise her hand to touch the corner of her lips before realizing the smile on her lips. “Mother can’t say it, but when I think about your father, I can’t help but want to laugh. Although he isn’t in this world anymore, he is still in Mother’s heart.”

Mu Yunyao didn’t understand. “Mother, if you don’t marry Father, perhaps you will find a better place to stay, and there won’t be any embarrassment and torture from Grandmother over the years. Haven’t you ever regretted it?”

Su Qing couldn’t help but caress Mu Yunyao’s hair. Her eyes filled with love as she said, “You silly girl, how can there be anything perfect in this world? Although I’ve been troubled by my mother-in-law for many years because I married your father, your father treats me very well. Moreover, we have such a precious daughter like you. What is there to be unsatisfied about it?”

“Mother, if you knew that there would be a mother-in-law who would make things difficult for you before you got married, would you still choose to marry Father?”

“Mother actually has heard of it a long time ago.”

“You’ve heard of it a long time ago?” Mu Yunyao couldn’t help but be shocked.

“Yes, your grandmother’s reputation spread far and wide, and before I got married, there were quite a few people who advised me. But seeing that your father spent so much effort only to see me and even worked hard for months to save more money to buy a silver hairpin for me, I felt like it was nothing.” Su Qing said with a smile.

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Continue reading Pampered Poisonous Royal Wife Chapter 222

Incurable Chapter 10 Part 2

Chapter 10 (2/2)

There were no ingredients Liu Qianxiu especially disliked, which gave Mu Wan plenty of room to work with. She picked up several vegetables, and when they passed the seafood section, she added a fish at the last minute.

Once they got back to Liu Qianxiu’s apartment and checked on the kittens, Mu Wan slipped away to the kitchen while he was mixing formula.

He came in afterward carrying the bags and set the ingredients in the sink beneath the kitchen window. Mu Wan stepped up, tied her long hair into a low ponytail, and got to work washing the vegetables.

Two vegetable dishes.

Tomato scrambled eggs.

Stir-fried lotus root.

And one meat dish:

Red-braised fish.

The fish had already been cleaned by the supermarket staff. Mu Wan put it on a plate, washed the tomatoes and lotus root, and arranged them separately.

Red tomatoes.

Tender pale lotus root.

One whole fish.

All laid out in order on the counter.

Mu Wan looked over the ingredients and took out her phone.

By the time Liu Qianxiu came into the kitchen after feeding the three little ones, Mu Wan had already completed the prep work.

Well, at least the ingredients were washed.

At the moment, she was holding a pale, freshly cut lotus root and trying to slice it.

Several pieces already lay on the chopping board. They were uneven, some thick, some thin. Then—

Thunk.

The knife came down through the lotus root and struck the board with a heavy thud, more like chopping through bone than slicing vegetables.

The woman’s back was slim and fine.

Liu Qianxiu looked at the bright knife in her hand, then at the large remaining half of the lotus root. His mouth tightened slightly before he stepped forward.

Mu Wan’s next chop never landed.

A cool current of air brushed up behind her, and she heard a quiet sigh.

Her eyes flickered.

She turned.

The back of her hand cooled as the knife was taken gently from her grip.

Behind her, within her line of sight, Liu Qianxiu’s lashes were lowered, and his voice sounded as though it had just been lifted out of a mountain spring from one of her dreams.

“I’ll do it.”

Not everything about him was cold.

At the very least, standing behind her now, the breath of his words brushed her ear like wind over grassland at night—warm, even, light, and faintly numbing.

Mu Wan kept looking at him, not yet turning away.

He sensed that something was off, and his gaze shifted from the chopping board to her face.

It was only a light, passing look.

And yet it felt as though it had closed around her heart.

Something she had never felt before was beginning to grow, quietly and without warning.

Mu Wan stepped away from the board.

Liu Qianxiu placed one hand against the lotus root, his long fingers bending slightly around it, the joints clean and elegant. The pale coolness of his skin looked nearly the same color as the lotus root itself.

The knife rose and fell.

Even slices bloomed beneath the blade.

The chopping board filled with the fine, rapid rhythm of cutting.

It sounded exactly like Mu Wan’s heartbeat.

She was not watching him cut vegetables.

She was watching him.

The six o’clock sunlight was the loveliest sort.

Not harsh. Not blazing. Never oppressive.

It was the kind of light that existed only to be gentle—falling quietly over the earth, over every place left uncovered, accompanying you, soothing you.

He and the sunlight seemed to become one.

He was the six o’clock sun.

Liu Qianxiu set the chopped tomatoes onto a plate. Then, without turning, he asked, “Everything’s ready. Are you cooking now?”

Mu Wan came back to herself and looked at him blankly.

“Cooking what?”

Clearly, she had already forgotten that tonight was supposed to be her turn to cook.

Liu Qianxiu pressed his lips together once, but did not remind her.

Instead, he looked at the cleaned fish and asked for her opinion.

“How do you want to do the fish?”

He had spent years eating light, restrained food. The things he cooked did not always suit an ordinary palate. Since Mu Wan had chosen a fish tonight, she had obviously wanted to do something with it.

Mu Wan did find very light food a bit hard to get used to, but knowing Liu Qianxiu preferred cleaner flavors, she looked at the fish and began, “Steamed—”

“Let’s braise it,” Liu Qianxiu said.

Mu Wan’s eyes lit instantly, like lamps in the dark.

Liu Qianxiu looked at them.

In those black pupils, delight glowed too openly to hide.

She was not really a fox spirit after all. What she showed the world was just a dark shadow cast on the wall—posturing, nothing more. Her true form was only a small cat who could be made happy by something as simple as a single fish.

Liu Qianxiu looked away again, toward the fish on the plate.

A smile touched the corner of his mouth.

It was the first time Mu Wan had ever seen him smile.

She froze, unsure for a second whether she had imagined it, then leaned one shoulder against the counter and studied the line of his face in the evening light. But by the time she tilted closer, he had already resumed that usual ascetic, restrained expression of his.

“You looked beautiful when you smiled just now,” Mu Wan said.

Liu Qianxiu lifted his eyes and asked, “How beautiful?”

Mu Wan thought about it for a moment.

Then she said,

“Beautiful enough to make my heart move.”

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Continue reading Incurable Chapter 10 Part 2

Incurable Chapter 10 Part 1

Chapter 10 (1/2)

She did not call him Dr. Liu.

She called him directly by name—Liu Qianxiu.

Xiao Yun glanced at Mu Wan and found her faintly familiar. Beautiful women were always hard to forget, and after only a moment, she remembered exactly who Mu Wan was.

The woman who had slipped in the bathroom, stabbed herself in the chest, escaped the hospital that same night to go drinking, and was later brought back by Liu Qianxiu.

She had been drunk then, hanging off him like some seductress. To this day, some of the hospital staff still talk about what a scene it had been.

Everyone said she was obviously pursuing Liu Qianxiu. Yet nothing much had seemed to come of it when she was discharged. Xiao Yun had not expected her to chase him all the way to the hospital now.

Xiao Yun disliked women who were too forward.

To her, a woman who relied on getting drunk, throwing herself at a man, and refusing to let go seemed far too casual.

The smile at the corners of her mouth faded slightly, and she withdrew her gaze from Mu Wan.

Mu Wan stood one step lower than Liu Qianxiu.

She was not short—she was one meter sixty-eight—but next to Liu Qianxiu, who stood nearly one meter ninety, she still came up short by a fair margin. Especially now, standing on the lower step, she had to tip her face up just to look at him.

“What time do you get off?” Mu Wan asked, after only the briefest glance at Xiao Yun.

She lifted her chin as she spoke, showing the fine line of her pale throat. Liu Qianxiu answered simply, “Very soon.”

Mu Wan’s smile deepened.

“I’ll wait for you,” she said lightly.

At those words, the female doctor’s expression shifted almost imperceptibly. Mu Wan caught it from the corner of her eye.

The smile that had just faded returned to Xiao Yun’s face, though this time it was more restrained, more proper.

“In that case, another time,” she said.

Liu Qianxiu gave a slight nod and offered an apology in a tone that was both polite and unmistakably distant.

If Xiao Yun had not said it first, he would still have refused her.

She was simply cutting her losses.

She smiled faintly, turned her gaze toward Mu Wan, and Mu Wan, out of courtesy, gave her a small nod. Xiao Yun returned it with equal politeness before turning and heading back into the emergency hall.

Mu Wan watched her leave.

In that brief exchange of glances, she had felt the woman’s disdain.

Xiao Yun clearly wanted something from Liu Qianxiu. If so, the sight of Mu Wan should have provoked hostility. Instead, what Mu Wan had seen was something else entirely—a kind of blind, effortless superiority.

If you wanted something and refused to move, choosing instead to stand still, maintain your posture, and wait with dignified restraint, then even if you were closest to the moon, you still would not get to keep it.

Mu Wan gave a quiet laugh.

By the time Liu Qianxiu had changed clothes, Mu Wan had followed him into the car and fastened her seat belt. She glanced once toward the emergency building.

The female doctor had come back out again. Her gaze was directed toward the car.

The seat belt clicked into place. Mu Wan turned and looked at Liu Qianxiu.

“What did that doctor want with you just now?”

Liu Qianxiu did not look toward the building. He drove out through the hospital gate after swiping his card and said only, “Work-related. She was thanking me. Nothing important.”

From what Xiao Yun had said before leaving, she had probably wanted to invite him to dinner. He must have been about to refuse her, but before he could, she had gracefully created a way out for herself in front of Mu Wan.

After sorting through that much in her mind, Mu Wan suddenly thought of something else.

Even the female doctor knew to thank Liu Qianxiu for helping her. Yet Liu Qianxiu had done much more for Mu Wan, and apart from a bouquet of flowers, she still had not properly repaid him in any practical way.

Mu Wan rested one arm against the car window. The glass was cool. Ahead, the sign for Jinze Tower came into view, and she remembered the vegetarian restaurant there that she and Lin Wei had once gone to while helping Lin Wei through one of her diet phases. It had been quite good.

Before she could say anything, the car rolled over a speed bump, dipped once, and came to a stop.

Beside her, Liu Qianxiu undid his seat belt and asked, “What do you want to eat?”

Mu Wan came back to herself and looked up to see the Mart sign.

They had stopped in front of a supermarket.

She laughed in disbelief.

“I get to order?”

“You can,” Liu Qianxiu said. “Though I don’t know many dishes.”

Whether he knew many or not was beside the point. The sentence itself already made her happy, because it meant they would be eating together again tonight, and Liu Qianxiu had accepted that as something natural.

Without either of them noticing, the distance between them had closed quite a bit.

And that growing ease was what pleased Mu Wan most.

She smiled, but did not actually name a dish.

Instead, thinking back to what she had just been considering, she turned to him and said, “How about I treat you to dinner tonight instead? You keep feeding me, and I really should treat you at least once. There’s a vegetarian restaurant in Jinze Tower that’s quite good.”

Courtesy ought to go both ways.

She could not keep taking advantage of him forever.

At her sudden proposal, Liu Qianxiu only looked at her once and said, “I don’t eat out.”

In truth, that answer did not surprise Mu Wan.

He was a Taoist. He valued discipline, quiet living, and self-cultivation. The food he cooked himself was light, clean, and careful. No matter how a restaurant advertised itself, its dishes still relied on processed seasonings and hidden additives. To someone like Liu Qianxiu, cooking for himself would always feel more reliable.

And gratitude, if it was sincere, should be tailored to the person receiving it.

Mu Wan did not insist.

She lifted her eyes to the supermarket sign, then turned back to Liu Qianxiu, her gaze clear and bright.

“In that case...” she said, “what if I cook for you?”

Liu Qianxiu looked back at her, his eyes dropping slightly.

“All right.”

He agreed.

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Continue reading Incurable Chapter 10 Part 1

Pampered Poisonous Royal Wife Chapter 221

~ TO PART IN DISPLEASURE ~ 

Mu Yunyao raised her head to look at Yue Wang. It was the first time since she was reborn that she was examining his appearance so seriously.

The first time they had met at the back mountain of Xiayan Village, she confirmed that the person in front of her was Yue Wang based on this person’s chilly aura with just one glance. After seeing each other many times, she kept her eyes slightly closed and unconsciously avoided facing him directly.

But now, even though Yue Wang’s tone was gentle, the aura around him was prominently oppressive, causing her to be unable to dodge.

His facial features were handsome, revealing a sharp and solemn aura. His forehead was full, and his eyebrows were long and slender. His pair of eyes, like the night sky in winter, carried a light mist of light. The bridge of his nose was high and perfect. His thin lips below are slightly puckering, revealing a steady and calm air. 

It was unknown how many women this face could enchant, but when she saw it, she felt a chill that rose from the soles of her feet to the depths of her heart, causing her fingers in her sleeves to tremble slightly.

At this point, she had no choice but to admit that the shadow from her previous life had always been affecting her, causing her to feel fear and dread towards Yue Wang.

Yue Wang had focused on Mu Yunyao’s expression the entire time. When he noticed her eyes trembling and her face turning pale, he hurriedly asked, “Yunyao, what’s wrong with you?”

Mu Yunyao abruptly closed her eyes and suddenly regained her senses. “It’s nothing.”

The crease between Yue Wang’s brows grew tighter and tighter. Just now, he had clearly felt the fear emitted from Mu Yunyao’s body. It was as if he was a ferocious beast that surged towards her, causing her to be unable to avoid him. “Are you afraid of me?”

“No. If you truly afraid of my dignity and feared my identity, you would not choose to cooperate with me, nor would you bargain with me in future cooperation. What exactly are you afraid of me?”

His first meeting with Mu Yunyao was indeed not a pleasant one. After meeting her again in Jingling City, he had used his sword to threaten her earlier. But as he gradually got more familiar with her, he realized his intentions and tried his best to transmit his feelings to Mu Yunyao. However, Mu Yunyao did not show any strangeness. If it weren’t for him suddenly asking her about it on a whim, he probably wouldn’t have been able to figure out what Mu Yunyao was really thinking.

“Fourth Master, shall we say something about this batch of salt?” Mu Yunyao didn’t want to talk more about it. She just wanted to maintain the current situation.

However, Yue Wang didn’t want to take it lightly. “I want to know what are you afraid of me?”

Mu Yunyao unconsciously clenched her fist tightly and silently sat at the side. After a while, she seemed to have made up her mind. She suddenly sneered and said, “Fourth Master, do you really want to know? If you know it, you won’t regret it?”

“I want to know.”

“Alright, then I’ll tell you.” Mu Yunyao looked straight at Yue Wang, not allowing herself to look away, “I am indeed afraid of you, a and it’s not just you, but Steward Qin, Cao Yunnian, Lady Jin, Governor Zhang … I’m even feared of Yu Heng and Yu Yi. As for a reason, isn’t it obvious? Because you people can kill my mother and me with ease! You all have your own identities, and especially so for you, His Royal Highness Yue Wang, the prince of the current dynasty!”

“I have never suppressed you with my identity …”

“Heh, without using identity, does your situation not exist? If you are just an ordinary person, why should I give you 30% of Ni Yun Fang’s profit? Why do I speak carefully in front of you? I am just a commoner. I don’t have anything to support me. As far as you are concerned, my existence could easily be crushed to death by you. Why am I not afraid of such an unequal situation?”

Yue Wang frowned as he looked at Mu Yunyao, a complicated expression appeared in his eyes, and it was difficult to distinguish.

Mu Yunyao sneered before continuing, “Fourth Master, our identities are already set. The sky and the earth are worlds apart. We are different. If I had to say that I wasn’t afraid of you at all, it would deceive you. Why would you care about such a small matter?”

Yue Wang slowly retracted his gaze, “If you don’t want to say it, then so be it. Why make up these excuses to deceive me? Even though my identity is the prince of the current dynasty, everyone knows about the Royal Father’s attitude about me. With your intelligence, you would definitely know. Seriously speaking, my identity is not as noble as the Su family in the Capital. You actually dared to scheme against the Su family, and you don’t have the slightest fear, let alone me.”

Mu Yunyao bit down on her tongue, trying her best to keep her expression the same as ever. Since Yue Wang was able to arrange a group of men in Jiangnan, it was likely that he could also organize them in the Capital. She knew that her small actions before were understandable, so she didn’t need to be overly surprised, “Fourth Master Ning …” 

Yue Wang did not wait for her to finish speaking and continued: “I have checked on you, you were previously a coward, but after a severe illness, your wrist suddenly became tough. Your grandmother Li and Master Zhang Caizhu ended up in a miserable state. You know how to embroider, the art of brewing tea, have the medical skills, the flower breeding skills that you demonstrated recently, and teach Ming Yin charming skills too. These things were definitely incomprehensible to a young girl who was raised in an ordinary family. You are full of mysteries!”

Mu Yunyao clenched her fist as her fingertip pierced through her palm. A faint smell of blood spread out, but she did not seem to notice it as she raised her eyes and smiled at Yue WAng, “So? Since His Royal Highness Yue Wang has detected so many anomalies, how do you want to deal with me? You’re going to lock me up like a demon and torture me slowly, hoping to get more secrets? Or do you want to draw your sword and kill me off?”

Looking at Mu Yunyao, who had her guard up utterly, Yue Wang couldn’t help but feel a little annoyed. “No, I didn’t mean to hurt you. I just wanted to tell you that I can help you share your burden and protect your mother and you. I …”

“His Royal Highness Yue Wang!” Mu Yunyao interrupted him with a cold voice, “Aren’t you going to kill me?”

“Why would I kill you?”

“Since you’ve decided not to kill me, then I’ll take my leave.” After Mu Yunyao finished speaking, she immediately turned around and walked towards the door.

“Yunyao ….” Yue Wang felt a little at a loss in his heart. He intended wanted to get closer to Mu Yunyao, but he didn’t expect that he would totally push her away.

Mu Yunyao turned around with a smile still on her face, “Fourth Master has changed his mind, or do you think it’s better to kill me?”

“No, I just …”

“Then I’ll thank Fourth Master for not killing me. Yunyao will take leave.”

Yue Wang’s whole body suddenly gushed out, and the turbulent emotions in his eyes resembled a tide. If he pounced down, he would destroy heaven and earth! He never took the initiative to approach a person, repeatedly told himself that he would be slower and more passive. Mu Yunyao gradually showed her differences in front of him. He thought that the time was ripe, and he finally able to enter into her own circle, and that’s why he asked those words impulsively, but it turned out...,

After Mu Yunyao left, Steward Qin walked in. When he saw Yue Wang’s appearance, he was so shocked that his heart trembled: “Wang Ye, Miss Mu just left with a terribly bad complexion, is she feeling unwell?” Wasn’t she fine just now? What happened?

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Continue reading Pampered Poisonous Royal Wife Chapter 221

Pampered Poisonous Royal Wife Chapter 220

~ YUNYAO, YOU CAN ASK ME ~ 

When Wu Minzhi heard that Li Yuanyi was willing to see him, he suddenly began to feel a sense of relief. It seemed that the First Prince and Li Yuanyi were planning on letting them off the hook!

“Greetings, Lord Li.” 

Li Yuanyi looked at Wu Minzhi with a smile in his eyes, “Chief Wu, no need to be overly polite. These days, the salt tax in Jiangnan has been in turmoil, and I have been making full use of my time to investigate. Because of this, I did not see Chief Wu last time, so you should not be too concerned.”

Wu Minzhi immediately stood up, “Lord Li, you don’t have to say that. Lord Li has so much to do in here. It’s already a blessing that you can find time to see me. We, the salt merchant, have also heard about what happened in Yangzhou City. We know that Lord Li has worked hard at the trial. Therefore, we send some small gifts to you, hoping that you can accept them.”

As he spoke, he handed over the box in his hand.

Li Yuanyi opened the box and took a quick glance. The smile in his eyes deepened, “Thankfully, we have Chief Wu is in charge in Jiangnan. Only in this way can the salt transportation be stable and smooth all the time.”

“I cannot accept the praise of my lord. This time I still need to thank Lord Li for finding out about this matter. Otherwise, the Emperor would be furious and say that we, salt merchants, will be implicated as well. “ Wu Minzhi’s face filled with gratitude.

The two chatted merrily for half an hour before Wu Minzhi got up to leave.

Li Yuanyi had received a tip-off letter from someone else in a hurry, which led him to find the hidden salt. He had not investigated the cause of the problem yet, so he didn’t say much about it and only briefly dealt with it.

Wu Minzhi, on the other hand, was deeply involved in the trouble of making misfortune and planting stolen goods. He was afraid that the wall would have ears, so he dare not say much. Each of them had their own secrets, so they only chose words that were pleasant to hear. Neither of them mentioned the crux of the matter, allowing both of them to be at ease and has left Qi Ming protected and unharmed. 

The matter in Jiangnan proceeded like wildfire, and within a few days, news had already reached Jingling City.

As soon as Yue Wang received the news, he had Steward Qin invite Mu Yunyao over. After Mu Yunyao finished reading the letter sent over from Jiangnan, she couldn’t help but smile slightly, “This Lord Li is really decisive in his handling of the matter. It’s only been a few days, yet the Jiangnan Salt Transportation Envoy has already committed suicide out of fear of his crimes, and the officials responsible for transporting salt loosened their mouths and confessed. Only the salt transportation envoys did not open his mouths, but one person could not make a big storm.” 

“None of these people are clean, and they deserved to die. “ Yue Wang’s eyes turned slightly cold. After he finished speaking, he was afraid that Mu Yunyao would feel uncomfortable seeing so many people involved, so he started to explain, “What they transported was white salt, but what they earned was blood silver. There were a lot of bloodstains on their hand. They deserved to die.”

Mu Yunyao chuckled. She did not put those people’s lives in her heart at all, but since Yue Wang was willing to misunderstand, she was too lazy to explain, “Fourth Master, right now Lord Li can be said to be enjoying his spring day. I think that the salt will be shipped to the north again soon. What do you think about it?”

Yue Wang’s eyes fiercely moved, raised the eyes to focus on looking at Mu Yunyao: “Are you still thinking about this batch of salt?”

Mu Yunyao tilted her head and laughed, “I was just asking Fourth Master, but there’s nothing more I can say?” On one side, the steward Qin couldn’t help but be shocked: First of all, Miss Mu extorted more than 10 million taels of salt from the salt merchants, and then Wang Ye sold this batch of salt for over fifteen million taels of silver. Now, it is nearly 30 million taels of silver. If it were replaced with silver ingots and piled up, it was as if it could soar into the clouds. Miss Mu was actually still harboring thoughts on this salt. Could it be that she wanted to snatch it and sell it again?

Yue Wang’s eyes lit up as he looked at Mu Yunyao, who was smiling without saying a word. “Then, do you have anything else that you want to ask?”

The smile in Mu Yunyao’s eyes intensified as she said half-jokingly, “Since Fourth Master has spoken, then I’ll ask him everything I want to know?”

Unexpectedly, when Yue Wang heard this, he had a solemn expression on his face. He turned his head to look at Steward Qin: “Uncle Qin, don’t let the fifth ear appear around you!.”

Steward Qin nodded with a grave expression. Then, he walked out of the door and ordered Yu Heng and Yu Yi, “Clean up the area around the study. Even if there are mice, you should be able to block the hole for me!”

A moment later, the surroundings of the study became completely quiet. Yue Wang looked at Mu Yunyao and said, “If you have anything to ask, feel free to ask.”

“With Fourth Master being so formal, I don’t know what to ask.” Mu Yunyao slightly blinked her eyes as if she was in a daze. She had just casually mentioned because she wanted to see if Yue Wang was still thinking about earning some money. Unexpectedly, he paid so much attention to it, which made her unable to respond for a while.

“You can say whatever you want to say. When you had done ask, I also have some things I want to ask you.”

Mu Yunyao’s eyes moved as she looked at the somewhat solemn expression on Yue Wang’s face. Her heart slightly tightened, “Fourth Master, you can ask whatever you want to ask.”

“You ask first.”

“Then if I ask, would Fourth Master can guarantee that what you’ve told me is the truth?” The smile on Mu Yunyao’s face was slightly cold, and her gaze was so cold as she stared at Yue Wang.

Yue Wang frowned but did not reply.

Mu Yunyao coldly pursed her lips, her heart full of unspeakable mockery. “Fourth Master, you can pretend I didn’t say anything just now. It’s getting late. I’m going back to accompany my mother, so I will not stay here any longer.”

He was testing himself with all his heart, yet he wished that she could be honest with him. Where in the world could there be such a thing?

“Halt!” Yue Wang stood up and slowly walked to Mu Yunyao’s side. He lowered his eyes to look at her incomparably beautiful face, and the flowing light in his eyes gradually stabilized. “Ask me!”

Mu Yunyao’s heart trembled, as she was unable to grasp Yue Wang’s meaning, “Does Fourth Master will say anything that I wanted to know?”

“That’s right.”

“Can you guarantee that what you said was the truth?”

“Speak whatever you want to know!”

Yue Wang’s entire body emitted a cold and piercing demeanor, which made his tall figure seemed to envelop Mu Yunyao. An aura filled with aggression directly assaulted Mu Yunyao’s heart, causing her to feel frightened, and she couldn’t help but take two steps back.

Yue Wang’s eyes were burning, and his expression was unprecedentedly focused. The things that he had done were extremely secretive. If another person, who wanted to pry into the secrets within, the moment he opened his mouth, he would cause their blood to splatter all over the place.

But now that the one who had questioned him was Mu Yunyao, he actually didn’t feel the slightest bit of resistance in his heart. Instead, he wanted to spill out all the secrets accumulated in his heart for a long time. Looking at Mu Yunyao’s clear eyes, an impulse surged up from within his heart. He wanted Mu Yunyao to understand him, to understand his character, to understand his ways of doing things, to understand the beautiful expectations in his heart, and understand the cold-blooded brutality in his heart. As long as Mu Yunyao wanted to know, he was willing to take off all his defenses and fully display it in front of her.

His heart had always been cold and firm in nature, he would never rashly make decisions, but this thought made it difficult for him to resist once he thought of it. In his heart, a crazy idea screamed, so he decided to make a bet and send the softest place in his heart to Mu Yunyao!

If he won the bet, he could use this softness to embrace Mu Yunyao and fill up his heart, which had always been empty. If he lost it, he could solely insert a steel knife into his heart. Anyway, he is already bleeding. Why should he fear more scars? “Yunyao, you can ask me.”

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Continue reading Pampered Poisonous Royal Wife Chapter 220

Pampered Poisonous Royal Wife Chapter 219

~ JIANGNAN SALT MERCHANTS FERTILIZER ~ 

“Alright!” Wei Qi and Cao Bing both nodded their heads in agreement. Since they were competent to reach this step and become the winners in a deep pool of salt tax in Jiangnan, they naturally had their own strategies and courage. If the First Prince really wanted to kill them, they would have to throw a huge rock at him. Even if they can’t break the First Prince’s and the Li family’s backbone, they would still have to broke a few of their bones! 

Wu Minzhi nodded his head heavily, “There is no other way. The First Prince has tried to rope us in so many times before. Judging from his attitude, he is more afraid of us and would not force us to the last step. Now, we should raise the silver taels as soon as possible to buy the salt and place the blame on the officials who bought the salt.”

“Yes, we will do it immediately.”

If the other small salt merchants wanted to collect all the silver, they would have to spend some effort. However, for them, it was just a slight headache. There were plenty of ways to deal with it.

Soon, Qi Ming received a letter from Mu Yunyao. “Mistress asked me to gather some of the properties that the salt merchants have sold?” After pondering for a moment, Qi Ming couldn’t help but secretly chuckle. The admiration he had for Mu Yunyao in his heart deepened. Miss’ foresight is really like a god!

Nowadays, the salt merchants must have sold their property in a hurry, and the prices must have been much lower than standard. Moreover, these salt merchants had very unusual properties in their hands. For example, the gardens under the salt merchants’ hands, it was even comparable to the Royal Gardens, which are somewhat different in terms of specifications and style. 

In Qi Ming’s hand was the silver banknote that Liu Liang had brought at Mu Yunyao’s orders. With that silver banknote, he bought the best gardens, land, storefront directly from them, and he had saved several hundred thousand taels of silver. 

The salt merchants finally managed to gather the fifteen million silver taels. Yue Wang estimated that it was about time, so he sent someone to inform them where he hides the salt.

In just a few short days, 15 million taels of silver had arrived, and Yue Wang could not help but feel excited.

Mu Yunyao counted the house deeds and land deeds in her hands. Her eyes similarly couldn’t stop a smile from appearing on them. After a while, she tidied up her things and locked them in the cupboard.

Jin Lan walked in slowly. “Miss, someone came by the door with a gift. He said that he is the subordinate of the governor of Liangjiang, Lord Li.”

Mu Yunyao’s smile faded slightly, “You say that I’ve been feeling unwell for the past two days and that it was inconvenient for me to see an outsider. Let that person go back wherever he came from.”

“Yes, Miss.” Two days ago, after the salt tax’s verification in Jingling City had ended, Li Yuanyi had no choice but to head towards Yangzhou City. Initially, he had wanted to come to Jin Xiu Garden to see Mu Yunyao, but he did not expect as soon as his dizziness was getting better, the rumors of sand replaced salt came out, which shocked half of his soul. 

If the rumors were true, then this matter would shake the entire Imperial Court and the public. Once it reached the ears of the Emperor, it would definitely arouse the Emperor’s anger. At that time, not even the Li family would be able to protect him. Thus, as soon as he heard the news, he hurriedly left for Yangzhou City.

On his way to Yangzhou City, he suddenly received a letter. The letter clearly stated how the officials who bought salt planned to use sand instead of salt to make huge profits. It also clearly stated the hiding location of the stolen salt. 

The letter was like a charcoal fire in his hand, which made him uneasy at all times. Once he disembarked at Yangzhou City, he directly dispatched his officers and soldiers to the hiding place mentioned in the letter. He had thought that it would be empty. But he never expected that he would actually find a large amount of salt in the warehouse. The officials of Yangzhou City have already become frightened. When they heard that Li Yuanyi had left the boat, they all went up to greet him. However, before they could even say a word, they saw him heading straight to the abandoned warehouse at the south dock of the city and found a large amount of salt inside. Many of the officials were all shaking so much that they couldn’t even stand properly.

Li Yuanyi looked at the mountain of salt, and his eyes were full of complex emotions. Finally, it turned into a total indifferent look, as he turned around and angrily shouted at Yangzhou City Salt Transport Envoy’s Su Tong, “Salt Transport Envoy, Su Tong, do you know your crime?”

Yangzhou City Salt Transport Envoy, Sun Tong, knelt down abruptly and asked, “Lord Li, may I ask what crime I have committed?”

“You took advantage of the opportunity of the imperial court to check the salt tax, purchase a large amount of official salt, and also falsely claim that the salt ship sank on the Xijiang River on the way of transportation. You also put a large amount of sand on the ship as salt and hide the real salt here secretly, hoping to make a huge profit from it after the storm has passed. Fortunately, I got the news in advance, which did not make your plan succeed!”

“Lord Li, this official definitely wouldn’t dare to have such a thought. Lord Li, please investigate this clearly!”

“Hmph, I’ll immediately report this to the Imperial Court and report your actions to the Emperor. The Emperor will naturally send people from the Ministry of Justice to come and take you into the Capital to investigate thoroughly.” The salt movement made Sun Tong suddenly realize that Li Yuanyi wanted him to be the scapegoat. In this way, not only did he suppress the trouble of the salt tax in Jiangnan, but he also took credit for it. More importantly, his action was to save Jiangnan’s salt merchants. Also, he wants to help the First Prince gather up a large number of people. “Lord Li, you can’t just frame me like this. You have to take out the evidence!” 

“I will naturally investigate this matter thoroughly, and the evidence will also be brought to the Emperor. There is no need to speak any further with you! Someone, hold Sun Tong in custody!”

Soon, Li Yuanyi’s actions in Yangzhou City reached the salt merchants’ ears, and everyone immediately let out a breath of relief. Seeing that the First Prince did not plan to take them all out, so it could be considered the luckiest thing in the world. 

Li Yuanyi first escorted Sun Tong, the envoy of salt transportation, into the prison and arrested him with his subordinates. He wrote a memorial to report the matter to the Emperor while sending people to interrogate them overnight to obtain testimony.

During that time, Wu Minzhi came to the government office to ask to see Li Yuanyi. But, unfortunately, Li Yuanyi did not see him. After the imperial report entered the Capital, delivered to the Emperor soon, and the Emperor was furious after reading it. Fortunately, the salt recovered in time, so it did not cause too much loss. He then ordered Li Yuanyi to investigate the salt tax case in Yangzhou City thoroughly and made that the case was judged clearly. 

After receiving the imperial edict from the Emperor, Li Yuanyi heaved a sigh of relief. No matter who delivered the letter to him secretly, on the whole, it was a great help to him. It was an admirable contribution to his door for nothing!

He settled down for a while, thinking about how to force Sun Tong to bear the responsibility of salt transportation. From his subordinates’ report, he heard that Wu Minzhi, the salt merchant’s leader, had come and wanted to see him. Last time, he had been worrying about writing a memorial to the Emperor, but upon hearing Wu Minzhi’s request, he didn’t have the mood to see him. Now that things had come to an end, he could finally free himself and think about how to squeeze some oil from these salt merchants. After all, it is a well-known matter for the salt merchants in Jiangnan. If we don’t make a good deception, how can we live up to his hard work?

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Incurable Chapter 9 Part 2

Chapter 9 (2/2)

The next morning, when Mu Wan arrived on set, Mi Yu had just finished filming a scene in the water. Pulled back out of it, Mi Yu looked pale. Li Nan handed her a towel, and after only a couple of swipes, her assistant helped her go change costumes.

The production kept costumes in a trailer, with a nearby changing room divided into men’s and women’s sections. All the actors changed there.

Naturally, when Mu Wan went in, she ran into Mi Yu.

Mi Yu had stripped off her wet costume. Her assistant was holding a large insulated thermos and pouring something into it for her. It was hot enough that scents spread quickly in the air, and Mu Wan caught the smell of red-date ginger tea.

Looking again at Mi Yu, she saw the way the other woman’s brows were tightly drawn, the way her face and lips had turned even paler.

A female actress shooting water scenes while on her period was nothing unusual. No matter how famous or important an actress might be, a production schedule was not going to be rearranged around one person’s cycle.

A heavy, dragging ache weighed in Mi Yu’s lower abdomen. The air was sticky with heat, yet inside her body, there was only cold. She drank some of the ginger tea, sweated from the heat of it, and still the pain remained icy.

Irritated, Mi Yu dumped the rest of the tea away.

Her assistant took the thermos cap from her hand and did not dare make any further move.

Fortunately, Mi Yu’s attention was not on her. Through the haze of pain, she had just noticed Mu Wan changing nearby.

“Did Li Nan tell you?” Mi Yu asked. “In a few days I’m going to Wencheng to film a television drama. I got a role reserved for you too. It’s that same project Director Zhang Chengze was preparing.”

Whenever Mi Yu filmed something, Mu Wan usually ended up with a supporting part as well. In a sense, they were packaged together; one actress brought in work, and the company used it to employ two people.

“Not yet,” Mu Wan said. Standing near the changing partition, she smiled at Mi Yu. “Thank you, Sister Yu.”

Mi Yu let out a short laugh.

She took a slim cigarette. Her assistant lit it for her, and smoke drifted around the woman’s face, touching the faint fine lines near her eyes.

In truth, Mu Wan did not need to thank her for this one.

The reason Mu Wan had been added to the production was that Director Zhang Chengze had contacted Li Nan personally. At the dinner before, Mu Wan had left a deep impression when she drank on Mi Yu’s behalf. Now that he had taken the initiative to bring her into the cast, his intentions were obvious.

The entertainment industry was deep water.

Unspoken rules were everywhere.

But with someone like Mu Wan—an actress with no great ambition—those rules would probably end up like a misfired shot.

Mu Wan understood the world clearly. In a place as driven by fame and profit as the entertainment industry, she still managed to keep hold of her own center. People like that never rose to the top.

Then again, she had never wanted to.

She might not gain much—but by the same logic, there was very little she would be forced to lose.

Mi Yu looked at Mu Wan’s face. The deepening pain in her lower abdomen had drawn her brows tight. She took a drag from the cigarette and said coolly, “I’m getting older. Sooner or later I won’t be able to get many roles. At that point, maybe it’ll be your turn to help me out.”

Mu Wan’s gaze paused.

She looked at Mi Yu once and then smiled again.

This was the first time Mi Yu had ever really started a conversation with her. It was also the first time they had spoken so much. They usually had very little contact, but Mu Wan knew enough to know that Mi Yu was proud. That last line did not sound like something Mi Yu would normally say.

So Mu Wan took it for what it seemed to be—a jab at the fact that she always ended up benefiting without fighting for it.

Smiling lightly, she said, “I’m not capable of much. I’m only meant to play small supporting roles. And anyway, those supporting roles all came through you, Sister Yu. Don’t joke with me like that.”

Mi Yu looked at her for a long moment.

With that face, Mu Wan already possessed half the qualifications needed to become famous.

As for the other half, fate was fought for, not given.

It just so happened Mu Wan did not want to fight for it.

The pain in Mi Yu’s abdomen worsened, and she did not continue the conversation. She lowered her eyes, glanced over Mu Wan’s legs, and left.

After filming wrapped, Li Nan told Mu Wan that she would indeed be going to Wencheng next week.

This time her role was slightly larger than usual, and she would need to film there for two weeks. Fortunately, Wencheng was very close to Xiacheng—only half an hour by high-speed rail. If her scenes ended early enough, she could still come back the same day.

In the past, whenever Mu Wan filmed out of town, she simply stayed with the production for as many days as needed.

This was the first time she found herself wanting to come back in between.

As for why, Mu Wan told herself it was because of the kittens.

By the time filming ended, it was already four-thirty in the afternoon. Zhongfen was being discharged that day, and Mu Wan wanted to go pick it up. She also wanted to ask Liu Qianxiu when he got off work. If she picked Zhongfen up and brought it home too early, she worried the kitten might get chilled again. It was still so small—another hospital stay would take too much out of it.

“You already picked Zhongfen up?” Mu Wan asked.

She stood at the entrance to the studio lot. Behind her were little food shops and the restless push of people coming and going, and yet all she could really hear was the voice on the other end of the line.

“Mm. Picked it up at noon,” the man said in his low voice, accompanied by the faint sound of paper turning.

Liu Qianxiu really was attentive when it came to the kittens.

Mu Wan checked the time on her phone.

Four-thirty.

If she went home now, she would probably arrive around five-fifteen, and by then Liu Qianxiu would be nearly out of work.

A taxi had pulled up nearby. Mu Wan met the driver’s eyes; he asked if she was getting in. She waved him off and looked away again.

“What time do you get off?”

There was no surgery today. Liu Qianxiu got off work on schedule.

“Five-thirty,” he answered.

Mu Wan quickly calculated the timing.

“All right. Got it. See you then.”

After hanging up, she waved again. Another taxi came over from farther off. Mu Wan opened the door and got in.

The door shut with a solid thud.

“To Tang’er Hospital,” she said.

Traffic was a little slow, and by the time Mu Wan arrived at Tang’er, it was already five-thirty.

She paid, got out, and hurried toward the emergency building. She had been through the ER before and was familiar with the area. Passing the parking section, she stepped onto the edge of a flower bed to take a shortcut.

Then she looked up toward the entrance.

And stopped.

After the final rain the night before, the sky had cleared that morning. The light at five-thirty was neither red nor harsh. It slanted in from the western horizon, drawing out the shadows of the hurrying crowds outside the emergency building.

And beside those hurried people, two doctors stood talking.

Liu Qianxiu had not gotten out of work yet.

He was still in his white coat, clear and light as water. Under the evening sun, his cool expression seemed a little softened. His eyes were lowered as he listened to the woman doctor standing beside him.

She was pretty in a fresh, elegant way, and even the white coat could not hide her good figure. She seemed to say something amusing and smiled up at him, gentle and composed.

Mu Wan’s gaze fixed on the stairs.

On the place where their shadows overlapped.

Something unfamiliar moved inside her.

“Liu Qianxiu!”

Her voice was neither loud nor soft, but it carried just enough.

Liu Qianxiu lifted his eyes and looked toward the flower bed.

Under the slanting evening light, the woman stood balanced on the planter’s edge, long-limbed and lovely, smiling like a flower in bloom.

She was slim, her frame narrow and graceful, and yet her figure curved in all the right places. Her legs were long and pale, and on her right knee was still the square dressing he had applied the night before. One corner of the gauze had begun to peel loose.

She was beautiful—small face, red lips lifting, dark, bright eyes full of fractured sunlight.

When she saw him look over, she jumped down from the flower bed, long hair flying loose behind her slender shoulders.

Then she said,

“Liu Qianxiu, I came to wait for you.”

Only people waited.

And she had come to wait for him.

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