Chapter 4 We Are Spoiled, We Are Spoiled

  Blindfolded and on a hired carriage, when Ye Zhaowei removed the black cloth covering his eyes after getting off the carriage, he couldn't help but smile wryly. He had arrived at Yanchun Courtyard again.

  Under the morning sun, the courtyard is shaded by lush green trees, and the four-sided building's railings are half-hidden. The beauty of the fragrant chambers and jade pavilions is beyond words.

  Most of the guests had not yet risen, so Su Hongniang and Ye Zhaoyi went straight up to the west wing's main room. Luo Ajiu became their new attendant and followed behind them. On the stairs, they met Da Chahuzi who stood aside and greeted Ye Zhao with a hint of surprise in his eyes, seemingly unaware that this young master and lady had gone out at some point.

  She walked into the house and closed the door behind her. Su Hongniang looked at Ye Zhao a few times and said, "If you want to write a letter to anyone, it's up to you, and Ajiu will help you deliver it. Do you want to write a letter to the mansion to report your safety?" Until now, she still didn't know the identity of this young master, and the words of this little scoundrel were even more unreliable. Being in a dangerous situation, she had to be cautious everywhere.

  Ye Zhao hastily shook his head and thought to himself, "Forget it, the letter has been delivered, and I'm probably going to lose my life anyway."

  It seems that Su Hongniang is determined to stay by her side, and it's understandable. After all, her brother's identity has been revealed to her, and if she were to escape, his life would be forfeit.

  As for the pills that Luo Aojiu stuffed into his own mouth, he said that if he didn't take the antidote within seven days, the poison would break out. It seems that Su Hongniang saw that he was not convinced and had no intimidating power at all, so she followed him personally.

  Ye Zhao didn't believe that such a poisonous medicine existed. Even if he had really been poisoned, if the imperial physician couldn't cure him, where would he find an antidote? However, this quack's method might be quite popular in this era.

  Under Su Hongniang's eyelids, Ye Zhaoyang was somewhat at a loss for what to do. In fact, saving some of the Hung Men disciples didn't matter much. Although the Taiping Army, the Hung Men, and the Qing army wouldn't bring a bright future to the Chinese land, Ye Zhaoyang had no good feelings towards these forces either. However, if one didn't consider their historical limitations, there were always some righteous men among these groups who would sacrifice themselves for their ideals, and such people were still worthy of respect.

  At the very least, Su's siblings should be this kind of person. It is said that they are from a Hakka aristocratic family in Guangxi and are not refugees who rebelled because they couldn't eat or were forced to take the road of resisting the government after being injured by brutal fighting.

  Ye Zhaoming is quite depressed that everything he does now seems to be forced, being manipulated by a little girl two years younger than him, especially when he is still a modern person with knowledge from over a hundred years later. Ye Zhaoming may be lazy, but he won't let people bully him, let alone a little girl.

  However, Ye Zhaoye also knew that although Su Hongniang was young, to be honest, her experience and knowledge were vast, and the ups and downs of her life were astonishing. Compared to herself, she was far inferior. The burden on Su Hongniang's shoulders was the lives of thousands of people, but if it weren't for the past hundred years, at 17 years old, she would just be a naive and ignorant student.

  Ye Shao couldn't help but feel a mix of emotions - admiration and pity. What was the point of all this?

  "Sister Su, I'll make a deal with you in three clauses. Do you agree? From now on, no matter who I write letters to or meet with, even if they're your arch-nemesis, you're not allowed to attack them. Once we rescue your brother, we'll call it quits, and if you see me again in the future, you can kill or torture me as you please."

  Su Hongniang thought for a moment and nodded slightly: "This is natural."

  Ye Zhao then asked Luo Ajiu to call Da Chahuzi to prepare the four treasures of the study, although a red wood window frame footstep desk was placed by the window, Ye Zhao thought that Dachun's place would not be associated with books, ink, paper and brushes.

  "Don't write in Manchu." Just as Ye Zhaoyu was about to start writing, Su Hongniang also arrived at the desk, clearly not trusting Ye Zhaoyu and fearing that this little scamp would play tricks.

  Ye Zhao smiled: "Miss, can you read?"

  Su Hongniang thought to herself, "This little slippery one's brain works fast," and slightly raised an eyebrow: "Recognize a few."

  Ye Zhao stopped talking, his brush fell lightly, and with a few swift strokes, it seemed like the pen was dancing, but in reality, what he wrote out was crooked and twisted. There was no way around it, Ye Zhao just didn't have the talent for wielding a brush.

  "A simple note: 'Da Chun: Come quickly to Yan Chun Yuan, it's urgent. Brother: Ye Zhao.' After finishing writing, Ye Zhao handed the note to Su Hongniang for review, just now he said that Da Chun wouldn't come even if they shouted."

  Su Hongniang didn't say much, she just nodded lightly.

  Ye Zhao handed the folded pass to Luo Ajiu and said: "I don't know where he is now, whether he's on duty or not. You can go to the Front Gate Guard first, if he's not there, then go to the Donggao House Xiang Auxiliary Country Duke's Mansion."

  Da Chun is one of the eight iron hat princes, a descendant of Rui Xiang Wang De Sheng, the third son of Yi Qin Wang Sa Ha Er. However, he had little to do with his original family, who had inherited the title, after all, it had been over two hundred years and ten generations apart. Although they were of the same clan, they were already separated by birth and could not be reunited again.

  This lineage of the ancestors had been deprived of their titles, and it wasn't until the generation of Dachun's grandfather that they were able to recover. Thanks to the recommendation of the late Prince Zheng, who had passed away, he was able to serve Emperor Jiaqing and gain his favor, which led to him being granted the title of Auxiliary Country Duke, a sixth-rank noble title. Among the tens of thousands of imperial clansmen in Beijing, there were twelve ranks of noble titles, but those without titles were too numerous to count. Dachun was considered to be making progress, knowing how to scheme and get ahead, with hopes of being favored by those above him. The majority of imperial clansmen simply relied on the fourth-rank salary and grain provided to idle clansmen for their livelihood.

  After Luo Ao Jiu left, the room fell silent for a while. Ye Zhaosuddenly asked: "Su Niang, your foot still hurts, right?" After finishing speaking, she couldn't help but want to give herself a big slap in the face. Originally, others already thought you were a pervert, and yet you still didn't behave yourself, saying such a shameless thing. Why did you keep staring at her feet?

  Ye Zhaohad discovered that, according to the Guangxi Hakka customs, Su Hongniang did not have bound feet. However, when she first met her, in order to deceive the old procuress, she wore a pair of small and delicate bow shoes. After Ye Zhao was beaten unconscious and woke up, he realized this point. Wanting to chat with Su Hongniang, Ye Zhao didn't know how he asked such a question.

  It's actually not Ye Zhao's fault, although he has been in this world for 20 years, he really hasn't had much contact with young women of this era. The maids and servant girls in the mansion are all yes-men, like wooden puppets. He doesn't have a wife or concubine, and while there have been many proposals, he has declined them all. As for his legitimate wife, it would be arranged by the clan elders or even the Emperor himself.

  The king's wife had always been tolerant of him, but over the past year or two, she had begun to whisper in Ye Zhao's ear, and he too had started to have thoughts of having grandchildren. At twenty years old and still unmarried, as a member of the imperial family, he was considered to be at an advanced age.

  Always in such an environment, Ye Zhaos was the first time to get along with a strange woman, and he couldn't help but have the habits of his previous life. Being regarded as a lustful ghost was inevitable.

  As expected, Su Hongniang's pretty face sank slightly, and she picked up the green tea cup to taste the tea, giving Ye Zhao a soft nail. It seems that if Ye Zhao didn't still have "use value", having a few more transparent holes in her body wasn't impossible either.

  Ye Zhaurobbed his nose and reluctantly picked up his teacup as well.

  The two of them just sat there for over an hour, and just when Ye Zhaoyue was feeling more and more uncomfortable, their savior finally arrived.

  "Damn it, the one who dares to cross me is still in his mother's womb! But ask around in the 49th city, what kind of person am I? A righteous man! However, there's one thing, no one should think they can pee on my neck!" Before he even entered the house, Da Chun was already shouting at the top of his lungs, and then an old madam was softly trying to placate him, probably trying to calm down Da Liu.

  Ye Zhao smiled bitterly, Da Chun seemed uncomfortable whenever he didn't make some noise.

  The door was pushed open, and a young man with a consumptive appearance walked in. His clothes were bright and clean, but his face was sallow and smoke-filled, with tears streaming down his face as if he had just woken up from a permanent sleep. He walked with an exaggerated swagger, exuding an air of superiority.

  Just now, outside, Liu Ye beat someone again. Because the person didn't get out of the way quickly enough, he was kicked in the head and then mercilessly kicked several times in the face. The person being kicked had blood all over their face. Who among the regulars at Yan Chun Brothel doesn't know Liu Ye? And who dares to speak up against him? The madam tried her best to persuade Liu Ye to go inside, saying: "Liu Ye, you should rest first. Later I'll call that blind little rabbit over to kowtow to you. He's just a monkey, how can he jump out of your five-finger mountain? You're wasting your breath being angry with him!"

  Dachun didn't appreciate it at all, rolled his eyes and said: "Get out! Stop annoying me and ruining my mood!"

  Having scolded the old procuress, he felt relieved, knowing that the matter was now settled. His oily face beamed with a smile as he hastily apologized a few more times before retreating with a pleased expression.

  "Brother, you're auspicious." Da Chun enthusiastically approached Ye Zhao, and even wanted to shake hands, but was brushed off by Ye Zhao with a dry smile.

  He immediately caught sight of the charming Su Hongniang, and his eyes widened slightly, but he quickly thought of something and forcibly turned his head, no longer smiling. "Brother, are you planning to buy a house outside? Don't worry, I'll take care of it with Dachun, we'll make sure everything is perfect and your wife will be satisfied." Although he had also guessed that this beautiful woman was the Qing concubine he had given to his brother last night, he felt a twinge of regret in his heart. But since things were already set in motion, she was now his brother's woman, he couldn't harbor any more foolish thoughts or show any disrespect.

  Jian Da Chun misunderstood, Ye Zhao smiled wryly in his heart and made a gesture with his hand: "Lao Liu, you first drink some tea to refresh yourself, I have something else to ask you."

  Da Chun raised his neck and said: "Brother, you don't have to ask me to draw divination, if there's something on your mind, just tell me, I, Liu Zi, furrowed my brow, not a useless person!"

  Ye Zhaoheng thought for a moment and said in a low voice, "There was such a thing last month. You took someone from Guangxi, named Su Peilin. Do you remember?"

  "Is there such a thing?" Da Chun furrowed his brow, clearly unable to recall.

  This was within Ye Zhao's expectations. If Da Chun remembered, then he wouldn't be Da Chun anymore. "Regardless of whether you remember or not, this person is currently in the Ministry of Justice prison. Help me get him out."

  "Is it Su Peilin?" Da Chun muttered to himself, then stood up. He was a hot-headed person and immediately turned around and left, saying as he walked: "I'm going to get someone! What kind of world is this where the patrol camp dares to arrest someone in my name!" It seemed that he felt embarrassed about arresting someone familiar with Ye Zhao, and his loud shouting didn't even know what he was yelling about. Instead, it made Ye Zhao smile uncontrollably.