join patreon.com/worldoffanfiction for advanced chapters and to support the daily update
Qi Shan knew Shen Tang well enough. Seeing her eyes dart around, he knew she was brewing mischief: "That's ancient history now. Perhaps I'll tell you if there's an opportunity in the future." The implication was that he could talk about it, but Shen Tang couldn't ask.
Shen Tang scoffed, took down the prop holding the window open, and the vertically opening window snapped shut with a bang. Faintly, Young Master Shen could still be heard muttering, "If you're not going to talk, then don't. Who's curious about your old affairs?" Qi Shan could only shake his head, amused.
"Young Master Shen... still has the heart of a child." Qi Shan sighed wistfully, opening his travel bag. He had barely packed half when the figure of the old woman appeared in the doorway. She knocked lightly three times, and Qi Shan called out: "Come in."
The old woman pushed open the door, bringing in a low-legged dining table laden with dinner and lamp oil for the evening. Seeing this, Qi Shan quickly rose and stepped forward: "How can I let you do these things? Let me do it." The old woman smiled and stepped aside: "Young Master Qi just sit. This old woman's hands and feet are still nimble; why can't I do it?" She set down the dining table and then made the bed.
Once she was done, Qi Shan took out a few large pieces of broken silver from his money pouch and handed them to the old woman, saying, "This is for our expenses staying at your esteemed residence. Please accept it, old madam."
"This won't do—" The old woman pushed the silver back without thinking. If it weren't for this young man, their old bones would have been cold for four or five years by now. How could they still live here peacefully? Not only that—this young master's future was also ruined. She said: "These coins absolutely cannot be accepted."
However, Qi Shan's attitude was firm. He pushed the money back, saying, "One thing is one thing. If the old madam doesn't accept it, we both won't feel comfortable continuing to stay here with a clear conscience." As he spoke, he even prepared to repack their scattered luggage. After much persuasion, the old woman finally accepted the money. She looked at the young man's silhouette imprinted on the wooden door and let out a long, quiet sigh.
Having traveled all day, Shen Tang was a bit tired. She fell asleep as soon as her head hit the wooden pillow, dreaming nothing, unaware that the oil lamp next door burned all night.
The next day, as the sun rose in the east, Shen Tang opened her eyes punctually, summoned by her biological clock. She pulled out her homemade bamboo tube, fetched clean water from the courtyard, and sat down on the veranda to take care of her personal hygiene. Qi Shan had just returned to see Young Master Shen sitting in a bold posture, bending over to brush her teeth and rinse her mouth.
He handed her a package. "Here, breakfast. Eat it while it's hot, it's still warm."
"Thank you." Shen Tang splashed cold water on her face, and the remaining sleepiness vanished in a jolt. She bit into a steaming flatbread, her peripheral vision catching Qi Shan sitting beside her. She opened her mouth and asked, "Yuan Liang, do you know where Xiaocheng's pleasure quarter is?"
Qi Shan, who was about to speak: "...???"
He almost choked on his breath. He asked with a dark face, "How old is Young Master Shen, to be thinking of seeking pleasure in the pleasure quarter? That's not a place you should go." Playing with frivolous things leads to neglecting serious matters, not advisable!
"What unhealthy thoughts are you having, Yuan Liang? I just want to go to the pleasure quarter to find someone and check on her situation." Shen Tang said with a grin, "After all, without her, I probably wouldn't have risked escaping so early. But thanks to her, I met Yuan Liang."
Qi Shan understood Shen Tang's meaning after a moment of thought. "You're looking for trouble with someone?" Most likely still trouble with that group of exiled Gong family women. He warned her, lest Shen Tang recklessly stumble into trouble: "As far as I know, there's still a Gong family Wudaifu at large. As long as he hasn't been captured, the exiled Gong family criminals will be under surveillance. Aren't you afraid of bringing trouble upon yourself by carelessly approaching?" Don't fail to bring trouble to someone else and get caught yourself instead.
"But it's not my style to not repay a grudge." Shen Tang frowned deeply. She asked herself, she wasn't someone who held grudges to the point of exacting revenge for every small slight, but neither was she a foolish elder sister who would smile indifferently after being pushed into a fire pit—that wasn't broad-mindedness, that was stupidity!
Qi Shan offered advice: "You can approach it indirectly."
Shen Tang asked: "For example?"
Qi Shan: "You figure it out yourself." It was Shen Tang seeking revenge, not him. If she needed someone else to plot her revenge, even if successful, it wouldn't be satisfying.
Shen Tang thought for a moment, then shook her head, muttering. "No, no, this method won't work..."
"What method won't work?" Qi Shan's curiosity was piqued in turn. He wanted to know how Young Master Shen would retaliate.
Shen Tang awkwardly shifted her gaze, refusing to say. It wasn't that the method wasn't vicious enough, but that it wasn't suitable. Especially in these times where the rule of law was absent, giving others a taste of their own medicine and seeking justice for oneself was entirely reasonable—for the same act, there was no reason why the perpetrator could do it to the victim, but the victim couldn't use the same means to retaliate. It wasn't legal, but it was satisfying! However, the enemy was female, and Shen Tang herself was female; retaliating with the same methods would be rather low.
What method? Naturally, it was to pay someone to patronize that business. But there was still a problem with this operation—Shen Tang was penniless. Pleasure quarters were also different from ordinary entertainment districts; the average prices were not low. So, this idea was nipped in the bud as soon as it arose.
She sighed: "Forget it—let her live for a few more days. Once that Gong family Wudaifu is captured, I'll pay her a visit and ask for her advice."
Qi Shan smiled and shook his head. A Wudaifu belonged to the ninth rank of Martial Courage. How could he be so easily caught?
An entire morning passed in a flash. Shen Tang had nothing to do. She had memorized all of Qi Shan's scrolls back and forth; looking at them again wouldn't reveal anything new. Having nothing to do was painful for her, who had a bit of ADHD. In fact, not only was she suffering, but Qi Shan was also suffering.
"If Young Master Shen is bored, go for a walk in the street." Don't keep wandering in front of him, sighing. All morning, he had been so distracted that he couldn't read a single word.
Shen Tang's eyes lit up at his words. That's right, the entire Xiaocheng was still new to her. She could always find fun ways to pass the time. What was the point of being cooped up in one place? She slipped into her room, took out her small stash of money—she had saved a small amount from selling green plums, cakes, and malt candies along the way.
Qi Shan only had time to warn her to be careful of the constables and not to get lost before Young Master Shen had already vanished like a gust of wind.
"Tsk, still has the heart of a child."
Qi Shan sat down again, once more lost in thought before the desk—on the desk lay a scroll filled with notes and insights, faintly showing words like "National Seal" and "The Way of Feudal Lords," as well as the entire city defense layout near Xiaocheng.
Meanwhile, Shen Tang also led her mule onto the street. Beyond the city walls lay thousands of miles of barren land, but within, smoke curled up, lively and bustling. Along the street, vendors shouted their wares every few steps. Shen Tang was curious about everything, successively buying many small trinkets, her money pouch unconsciously nearing empty.
"I still need to find a way to make some money..." Shen Tang wailed internally. Being so utterly poor, I'm embarrassing for a transmigrator. Shame, shame (:з」∠) But after browsing around, there really weren't any good ways to make a living. Cakes, green plums, malt candies—Xiaocheng had no shortage of these. Competition was high, and business wasn't easy to do. Shen Tang walked her mule around once, then caught sight of something from the corner of her eye and scurried back.
"Zhengguang Bookstore? Buying manuscripts?"