Shen Mingzhu looked at the haughty Shen Jiaojiao and said with a smile,
"As long as Consort Shen is happy, that's all that matters."
After eating and drinking their fill, Shen Mingzhu and her entourage left the Xuanwang Mansion and returned to the Hanlin Academy.
Upon arriving at the Hanlin Academy, Prince An and Su Huaiyuan exchanged a glance and, with great tact, returned to their respective offices. Crown Prince Yan Beichen followed Shen Mingzhu into her office.
Shen Mingzhu brewed a pot of top-grade Da Hong Pao tea and then served a plate of pastries, enjoying a rare moment of leisure.
"Mingzhu, are you free tonight?"
[Guagua, why is the Crown Prince asking if I'm free tonight? I want to watch Lord Ye battle the flower thief tonight!]
"Brother Crown Prince, I'm sorry, I have something to do tonight."
Crown Prince Yan Beichen feigned a disappointed expression.
"Oh, I was thinking of taking you with me to catch the flower thief! I heard that the Dali Temple is about to crack down, and Lord Ye volunteered to risk his life as bait!"
Shen Mingzhu was still quite looking forward to seeing Lord Ye dressed as a woman.
I'm also very interested in catching the flower thief.
Thinking back to the TV dramas she watched before, the flower thieves were all very cool, leaping across rooftops and walls, but unfortunately they were all caught and imprisoned in the end.
I wonder what this flower thief is like?
[Host, the Crown Prince has extended an invitation, so just accept. It'll be perfect for protecting you while you two enjoy romantic moments together, gazing at the moon, the stars, and the beauty of the world!]
[Guagua!]
She glanced at the prince opposite her, then took a piece of pastry and ate it.
[Guagua, what does this womanizer look like? How old is he? If he's an old man, I won't go see him!]
[Host, why are you judging people by their appearance?]
[Guagua, why are should i go to see an old man so late at night instead of sleeping? Am i bored out of my mind?]
Prince An next door: That's absolutely right! Young people are definitely more pleasing to the eye!
Su Huaiyuan next door chuckled softly, "That's true."
Crown Prince Yan Beichen glanced at Shen Mingzhu several times. She's a sucker for good looks!
He touched his face several times, thinking, "I think I'm pretty good-looking, right?"
At this moment, when Shen Mingzhu asked about the appearance of the flower thief, the colleagues in the Hanlin Academy all pricked up their ears to listen. If they knew what the flower thief looked like, wouldn't it be easier to catch him?
A colleague with superb painting skills has already laid out the Xuan paper and ground the ink, ready to paint the portrait of the flower thief!
The system paused for a moment, then the sound resumed.
[Host, this womanizer is twenty-two years old this year. He's fairly good-looking, on the thin side, and because of his superb lightness skills and mastery of disguise, he hasn't been caught yet.]
Sigh...he is just an unfortunate soul!
[Guagua, what happened?]
At this moment, Yan Beichen was also curious about what could have caused a perfectly good person to embark on such a path of no return.
Twenty-two, the prime of life.
With such excellent lightness skills and the ability to disguise himself, he could easily support himself and his family!
[Host, this womanizer is an orphan who grew up on the charity of many families. He was originally a very honest man, and after learning his skills, he lived on his own. Because of his martial arts, he could often hunt in the mountains, so his life was actually quite good.]
Until he turned eighteen, he got engaged! He thought he was about to have a happy family, a wife, and children. But on their wedding night, his wife, Ruyi, knocked him unconscious, had an affair with her lover, slashed his face, and ultimately framed him for abducting another man's bride!
Because her lover was powerful and influential, he was powerless to resist. He eventually learned that it was all a scheme orchestrated by the bride and her lover. In this wealthy and powerful family with its strict rules, the matriarch was intolerant of any wrongdoing. Upon learning of her husband's affair with Ruyi, she wanted to kill her! She escaped, then seized the opportunity to marry him, becoming his concubine, and slowly plotted her revenge! He became the most innocent victim in all of this.
He survived, but his mind became twisted! He preferred to prey on girls who looked happy and content; he hated seeing their smiling faces!
Uh... this womanizer is definitely a psychopath!
The crowd sympathized with the flower thief's plight, but scorned his actions.
To derive pleasure from harming innocent girls as revenge is utterly inhuman.
Does he realize that by doing this, he is ruining a girl's life?
[Guagua, he's skilled in disguise. Does he have ugly scars on his face?]
[Yes, host! His face is ruined! That's why he's extremely skilled in disguise, and he loves to disguise himself as an incomparably handsome young master—it's probably a kind of solace for him.]
Upon thinking of the art of disguise, several colleagues from the Hanlin Academy put down their pens.
They shook their head helplessly.
Shen Mingzhu looked at Yan Beichen and made up her mind to bring this womanizer to justice that night, so that he would not be allowed to harm other girls anymore!
She said with a smile,
"Brother Crown Prince, I'll be waiting for you to come to the Marquis's residence tonight to pick me up."
"Good."
Yan Beichen finished his tea and then left the Hanlin Academy.
Knowing that Shen Mingzhu was going to catch the flower thief with the Crown Prince tonight, everyone was eager to get involved.
Prince An, in particular, insisted on going there at night.
What Shen Mingzhu didn't know was that many ministers had been planning to catch the flower thief together that evening.
That evening, Ye Rongyi looked charming and lovely in a pink silk dress, which made many ministers stare in admiration!
My goodness, I never would have guessed that Lord Ye is so beautiful and charming!
Many colleagues winked at Ye Tianming, as if to say, "Look! Minister Ye! Your big son has turned into a big daughter!"
Ye Tianming: This is called using your body to lure the enemy and then killing them on your own!
What do you know!
Emperor Jingyuan looked at General Tian Xuezhou on his right and the distinguished officials of the Hanlin Academy on his left.
Let's take a look at Shen Mingzhu and Crown Prince Yan Beichen at the very front.
Behind him were his ministers, including Gu Ci, the Minister of Personnel.
Even his father-in-law came!
It can be said that the entire court, both civil and military, came out in force...
Chief Steward Wang Defu swallowed hard.
"Your Highness, everyone's here!"
"Um."
You don't need to tell me, I've already seen it!
His ministers are in high spirits!
Shen Changyuan was at the very back with his three sons.
"My God, Father, are all the ministers in Shengjing working this hard these days?"
Shen Qinglan looked at those familiar faces and asked directly.
Shh~ Just watch.
Shen Qinglan: ...
[Guagua, why isn't the flower thief here yet? I think Lord Ye has been waiting so long the flowers have all withered!]
[Host, don't rush things! There are too many people here tonight. Young Master Ye will probably be gone for a while. Let's keep our distance.]
Upon hearing this, everyone immediately slowed down considerably, putting distance between themselves and Ye Rongyi.
Suddenly, a white shadow floated down from the sky; anyone who didn't know better would have thought they'd seen a ghost!
[Host, he has arrived!]
Upon hearing this, Shen Mingzhu immediately became extremely attentive.
The officers lying in ambush nearby received the order, and upon seeing the target, they all stood ready.
"Ah! What are you doing! Who are you? Let me go, waaaaah~~~"
All the people heard was Lord Ye's high-pitched shouting.
"Help!!"