Chapter 89
Chapter 89
“Granny Gorgeous, is something troubling you?” Xiyuan asked as she carefully examined a strand of agate beads.
Shengsheng rested her chin in her hands and stared blankly out the window.
Zhiyu turned at the question. “Is something bothering you, Shengsheng?”
Meiren Liu, who was trying on a new hairpin, looked over as well. “Is something troubling you, Chief?”
Shengsheng blinked. “If I tell you my troubles, will that solve them?”
All three fell silent.
“Xiaoyu, why don’t you come try this hairpin? It seems perfect for you,” Meiren said.
Xiyuan walked over too. “Oh, it does! Eldest daughter, come try it on.”
The bewildered Zhiyu was dragged away by the pair.
Shengsheng turned coldly back to the window.
“Women.”
“You’re the only one who knows how to care for me.” She raised the bird in her hands, pursed her lips, and kissed him.
Pecky squirmed in distaste, but Shengsheng had anticipated his escape. She pinned him in place and smothered him with kisses.
Fusheng was speechless.
He wanted to go back and bathe.
In the middle of Shengsheng’s passionate reunion with Pecky, someone suddenly knocked on the door.
Shengsheng glanced at the three women in the inner room and had no choice but to answer it herself.
A black-clad man stood outside, his expression grave.
Shengsheng cried delightedly, “Jiaaan Zhang!”
Jian Zhang fell silent.
What was that strange singsong tone? He could barely keep a straight face.
“Miss Shengsheng, a certain lord wishes to see you. Would you come with this subordinate?”
Realizing that her voice had strayed rather far from her usual poised persona, Shengsheng immediately composed herself and smiled with perfect gentleness.
“Certainly.”
*Weiqing Song, Weiqing Song, Weiqing Song! You sly dog, you finally came!*
Shengsheng rejoiced inwardly.
Duan-Bird shifted his wings.
What was Weiqing Song doing here?
“Guard Zhang, please give me a moment.”
She closed the door.
“Concubine Duanmu, this servant has business outside. May I leave for a while?”
Xiyuan glanced at her and waved a hand. “Go, go… Wait. You mean outside the estate?”
Shengsheng nodded.
Xiyuan did not find that strange at all.
She had no idea who Shengsheng truly was, but the girl had to be some formidable figure hiding her depths.
Should she ask for a favor?
Xiyuan pressed her lips together, sorrow touching her exquisite features.
Shengsheng offered, “Does Concubine Duanmu have some difficulty she cannot speak of?”
Xiyuan nodded. Gritting her teeth, she leaned close and whispered, “Granny Gorgeous, you know I used to be a real man. Now I’m a married woman and can’t leave the estate whenever I please. Could you bring me something?”
Shengsheng nodded. “Of course. What would you like?”
Xiyuan squirmed, then pulled her aside and whispered, “Storybooks.”
Shengsheng reflected that an astonishing number of people around her loved storybooks.
“I buy those all the time. Which one do you want?”
“The recently popular *The Rakish Prince and the Pretty Nun*? Or *The Tyrant Crown Prince’s Darling*?” she asked with the confidence of an expert.
Xiyuan awkwardly scratched her cheek, immediately leaving a red mark on her pale skin.
“Neither.”
Shengsheng’s interest rose. There were storybooks even she had never heard of?
Impossible. She was a woman who had devoured every storybook in Weiqing Song’s study.
Xiyuan leaned in again.
“The… spicy sort. You understand?”
Shengsheng fell silent.
No. She did not.
Why hadn’t she simply turned around and left?
If the storybooks had known this would happen, they would have preferred to rot in their author’s hands.
Thus, when Shengsheng emerged, Jian had the subtle impression that something had gone wrong with her mood.
“Guard Zhang, we can’t use the Jiang estate’s main gate. How are we getting out?” Shengsheng asked.
From some mysterious place behind him, Jian produced an enormous cloak.
“Miss Shengsheng, put this on first.”
“To keep out the wind?” How considerate, she thought.
“No. It is to prevent you from suddenly flying away before this subordinate can catch you.”
Jian’s face was completely serious.
Shengsheng fell silent.
Honestly, was that not meant as a jab at her?
The right-hand man of the Crown Prince of Zhen entered a Zhu general’s estate empty-handed.
Yet when he left, he carried a “silkworm cocoon” wrapped from head to toe in his arms.
Was this the collapse of morality–or the corruption of human nature?
“Guard Zhang, please stop for a moment when we pass a certain shop.” Shengsheng’s muffled voice emerged from the heavy cloak.
Jian agreed.
When they reached the shop she had named, he set her down in a narrow alley nearby.
“Would you like this subordinate to accompany you inside?”
Shengsheng waved him off. “No. Wait here for me.”
Jian nodded.
Before he could even empty his thoughts and begin staring into space, Shengsheng came back.
That fast?
She gave him an awkward smile. “Guard Zhang, did you bring money?”
Jian fell silent.
His gaze landed on the bookstore sign across the road, and enlightenment struck.
Miss Shengsheng was obviously choosing a gift for his master.
With that thought, Jian boldly untied his money pouch and tossed her the whole thing.
“Take it, Miss Shengsheng. Spend as much as you like.”
Shengsheng was genuinely surprised. Who knew this fellow could be so generous?
“Many thanks, Guard Zhang.”
She entered the shop and beckoned over an assistant.
Seeing her maid’s clothing, the assistant assumed she was running an errand for some wealthy household and greeted her warmly.
“What would you like, miss? Our shop has an excellent selection.”
Shengsheng coughed lightly.
It did not matter. No one here knew her.
As she always said, a lifetime passed quickly.
She leaned close to the assistant and whispered, “Do you have… that sort?”
He understood instantly.
“Of course. Which title would you like?” He winked suggestively.
“Just give me any two.”
She slipped him a little silver.
The assistant’s eyes narrowed into delighted slits. Before leaving, he thoughtfully asked, “Are they for a woman or a man?”
Shengsheng lowered her head. “A woman.”
After an uncomfortable wait, the assistant returned and slipped her an object wrapped tightly in black cloth.
Shengsheng snatched it. “Thanks.”
Then she hurried out.
The moment she emerged, Jian picked her up and continued onward.
“You seem very familiar with this area, Guard Zhang,” Shengsheng said curiously.
Jian nodded. “To tell you the truth, Miss Shengsheng, I often visit this street.”
After all, it had many bookstores.
Shengsheng immediately understood. She patted him and praised, “Devoted to your duty unto death.”
Jian modestly lowered his head.
The pair entered an inn called Jucui House.
Jian exchanged a few words with an attendant, who led them straight to a private room on the third floor.
The door opened. Following Jian inside, Shengsheng immediately spotted a man in green seated by the window, his back perfectly straight as he poured himself wine.
She noticed that his seat commanded a clear view of the inn’s entrance.
In other words, he had watched their entire approach.
While she stood dazed, a clear and pleasant voice sounded like a cold mountain spring.
“You’re here.”