"Help him? Why would Miss Gu think so?" Xie Jiuan continued to play dumb, but Gu Jiangyue didn't seem to intend to dig deeper into this matter. She simply waved her hand.
"I'll decide this matter on my own. And tell Xie Jiuan not to worry. I won't set him up."
Since things had been going badly for Xie Chengrui lately, this was just the right opportunity. She might as well add fuel to the fire.
As long as she could make Xie Chengrui uncomfortable, her goal would be achieved. As for Xie Jiuan, Gu Jiangyue frowned and thought for a while. She couldn't tell Xie Jiuan's true capabilities for the time being, nor did she know if his feelings for her were genuine.
Gu Jiangyue guessed that Xie Jiuan was probably just acting on a whim, looking for some fun. After all, Xie Jiuan's deeds were widely spread in the capital. He was a playboy who flirted with many women but never got seriously involved. How could a man like him stay with her for long?
The two had almost finished discussing. The black - clothed man said that he would mobilize the power of the Qianyin Pavilion, and the rouge shop would open soon.
It was getting late at night. After saying that, the black - clothed man left. In this huge courtyard, only Gu Jiangyue was left. She had no intention of going to rest. Instead, she sat in front of the table, picked up a pen and paper under the candlelight, and wanted to draw something.
All the things that had happened since her rebirth flashed before her eyes, but the most unforgettable was the figure in white. Gu Jiangyue didn't know why, but she always inexplicably thought of Xie Jiuan's figure.
Maybe for a moment, Gu Jiangyue didn't want such lofty ideals. She just wanted to live a stable life with her family and lover, retreat to the mountains, and calmly appreciate the country.
The moon was gradually setting, and the candle had gone out. Gu Jiangyue lay on the desk, breathing steadily. Beside her hand was a painting. The person in the painting was dressed in snow - white clothes. His long black hair was casually tied up. A pair of beautiful peach - blossom eyes were extremely alluring. He was so stunning that he didn't seem like an ordinary person, yet he was hard to approach. This person was Xie Jiuan.
She didn't know what she was thinking, but she just wanted to draw him.
The black - clothed man didn't break his promise. Before people realized it, there was a new rouge building named Huayan in the capital. Although no one knew who owned this building, everyone had witnessed how Qin Anjie had given it away at Gu Jiangyue's coming - of - age ceremony.
Moreover, the manager of the Huayan Building wore the jade token of the Ninth Prince, Xie Jiuan. So naturally, everyone thought that this was Xie Jiuan's property.
After all, the Ninth Prince's temperament was hard to fathom. If you really thought about it, it didn't seem strange for him to open a rouge building.
The secret beauty - keeping technique handed down in Xiyun's family was extremely effective. In her previous life, it had helped Gu Jiangyue solve many troubles. Now, with Xie Jiuan and the Qianyin Pavilion behind her, the materials for making rouge that Gu Jiangyue found were all of the highest quality.
Therefore, many ladies and young misses from wealthy and official families in the capital were particularly fond of the Huayan Building. Even some imperial concubines in the palace had come after hearing the news, and they all praised it highly after using the products.
This was undoubtedly a good thing, but it kept Gu Jiangyue extremely busy. Gu Jiangyue had been working in the shop for several days. Although she had earned a lot of silver, she had to rack her brains every day to come up with an excuse to hide it from the Grand Dowager and keep her from getting suspicious.
Gu Jiangyue had just used the excuse of being unwell to skip the morning greeting and was now busy in the shop. She was wearing a white dress, and a veil covered most of her face, making it hard to see what kind of a girl she was. However, her overall demeanor was extraordinary, cold and aloof.
Gu Jiangyue was wearing a gentle and proper smile on her face as she continuously introduced the products to the customers in the shop.
After much thought, Gu Jiangyue spread the news about Xie Chengrui giving her the guqin. Coupled with Xie Jiuan's instigation in front of the emperor, Xie Chengrui, who was already out of favor with the emperor, was having an even harder time. So in the past few days, Gu Jiangyue had enjoyed a rare period of peace.
Xie Chengrui was in such a difficult situation that he had no time to save the Lin family. On the day the Lin family was exiled, Gu Jiangyue didn't go to watch. She only heard that Lin Yeran had cried hoarsely and had never looked so embarrassed. This scene didn't arouse anyone's sympathy. Instead, the common people felt really satisfied.
As for Liu Yunyan, she had cleared the name of the unjustly - killed souls of the He family. Xie Jiuan had also protected her at a critical moment, so she didn't end up in the same situation as the Lin family. And she finally got back her real name, He Yunyan.
He Yunyan had nowhere to go alone. Since she had helped Gu Jiangyue after all, Gu Jiangyue simply kept her in the Huayan Building to help Xiyun.
Gu Jiangyue didn't open the rouge building just to make a profit. Another purpose was to gather all kinds of information in the capital. On the surface, she was still the just - of - age eldest miss of the Gu family, and it wasn't convenient for her to get directly involved in some matters. He Yunyan could just fill this gap.
Actually, with Xiyun and He Yunyan there, normally Gu Jiangyue didn't need to come. But the business of the Huayan Building was really booming. Since the opening day until now, every morning, the entrance of the Huayan Building had been crowded with people. That's why Gu Jiangyue came to help.
Gu Jiangyue had just finished introducing the rouge to a customer and then trotted non - stop to introduce it to another customer. She didn't know that all her actions had fallen into the eyes of two people sitting on the second floor of the restaurant opposite the Huayan Building.
"If I'm not mistaken, this is the imperial concubine of the Ninth Brother?"
A voice sounded, pulling Xie Jiuan out of his thoughts. He squinted his eyes slightly and looked at the man in a light - blue robe in front of him. This man was the Sixth Prince, Xie Yuwen.
Xie Jiuan examined the clarity in Xie Yuwen's dark - brown eyes, then drank up the wine in his hand in one gulp, and lowered his head with a soft laugh.
"Is it that obvious?"
"I'm afraid there's no second girl in the whole world who can make you care so much."
Xie Yuwen closed the folding fan in his hand, smiled, and poured another glass of wine for Xie Jiuan.
Xie Yuwen wasn't stupid. Since the opening of the Huayan Building, Xie Jiuan had been dragging him to this restaurant every day, saying it was for drinking, but in fact, Xie Jiuan's eyes were almost glued to the little girl in the Huayan Building.
He had also recently heard that Xie Jiuan had personally mentioned his engagement with the Gu family's young miss to the emperor. Xie Yuwen immediately guessed that this little girl should be Gu Jiangyue, the eldest miss of the Gu family.
Xie Jiuan subconsciously wanted to refute, but he just opened his mouth and didn't know what to say, so he gave up.
Xie Jiuan and Xie Yuwen were in a similar situation. Xie Yuwen's mother - concubine had a humble background. She had just been a maid in the palace before and had tried her best to gain the emperor's attention. But she had passed away early, leaving only Xie Yuwen.
Xie Yuwen and Xie Jiuan had lost their mother - concubines since childhood. In the huge imperial palace, only they two could talk to each other, so they had become friends.
The emperor was quite kind to Xie Yuwen. Different from Xie Chengrui, he didn't like the struggle for imperial power. He was a rare gentleman. That's why Xie Jiuan liked to stay by his side.
Xie Jiuan drank another glass of wine. When he looked at Gu Jiangyue again, he noticed a commotion at the entrance of the Huayan Building.
"Is this how your Huayan Building treats human lives carelessly? Look at my face!"