The madam left, and the sound of silk and bamboo instruments filled the air.
Shen Mingzhu suddenly thought of Xie Lang. On his wedding day, the place he went to, some kind of brothel, seemed vulgar compared to this place.
The smell of makeup there was too strong, gaudy and boring. In contrast, this place, with its unknown layout, had a touch of elegance.
Tsk.
Realizing that she had thought of Xie Lang out of the blue, a strange feeling flashed through Shen Mingzhu's heart. She quickly masked it and turned to Chun Tao, asking, "Have you informed those people when they'll arrive?"
"Your Highness,"
Chun Tao replied seriously, "The gentlemen are on their way and will be here soon."
Shen Mingzhu nodded and started daydreaming.
If she bought this place, it could be a new stronghold. It seemed more unexpected than other places.
...
In just a short moment, Qing Zhu had changed into a moon - white robe, which made him look like a slender bamboo, elegant in posture.
The madam took a hasty glance at him and felt a pity. If the noble guest preferred Qing Zhu's type, she could surely make a fortune. Qing Zhu was also a sensible one and would surely help her earn the most.
Just as the madam was in a hurry to leave, Qing Zhu called her to a stop as they passed by. He asked gently, "Grandma, I wonder what kind of people the noble guest inside likes?"
The madam stopped in her tracks upon hearing this.
Qing Zhu was the top performer in her place. He always sold his art but not his body, which only piqued people's curiosity. Every time he came out to play a tune, he would attract a fortune. He was also extremely intelligent. When the madam saved him, he was lying in a mass grave for unknown reasons.
He had no parents and had even lost his memory. Looking at his delicate face, the madam had brought him back without hesitation. Sure enough, Qing Zhu was easy to control. His identity was unknown, but the fact that he could appear in such a place and the clothes he wore were not ordinary suggested that he might have enemies. If he left the brothel, his fate...
"Grandma," Qing Zhu pulled at her sleeve and led her to a corner. He pleaded, "Please just give me a chance."
The madam suddenly snapped out of her memories. Looking at Qing Zhu's handsome profile, she warned, "Don't even think about leaving. I saved you a few years ago, not for you to fall in love at first sight with someone like those cheap girls and go after them."
Hearing this, Qing Zhu remained calm on the surface, showing no sign of humiliation. He just leaned close to her ear and whispered, "Grandma, do you know the identity of that noble guest?"
Without waiting for the madam to answer, Qing Zhu continued calmly, "I once accidentally saw the maid beside the noble guest. She was shopping in the biggest pastry shop in the capital at that time."
"She is the maid of the Princess Royal."
This sentence was like a thunderbolt, instantly changing the madam's face. She grabbed Qing Zhu's collar and asked, "Are you sure?"
"Grandma," Qing Zhu said indifferently, "I wouldn't have said such a thing if I wasn't sure."
The madam recalled Shen Mingzhu's elegant demeanor and generous spending just now. The people around her didn't look like ordinary servants either. She immediately believed most of what Qing Zhu said.
"Grandma," Qing Zhu continued to plead, "Please let me go. Besides me, who else in the brothel is better - looking and more capable of dealing with the noble guest?"
"But..."
"Grandma, don't worry," Qing Zhu took a step back imperceptibly, with a hint of sadness in his eyes. "The Princess Royal just got married. If I followed her back, I don't know how much trouble I would get from the princess consort. I know what's more important."
"I'm unknown about my origin now. I just want to earn more money for myself."
The madam looked at Qing Zhu and was silent for a long time. Then she just said, "I'll give you one chance. If you displease the noble guest inside, you'll have to figure out a way to end it yourself."
"I won't be able to keep you here either."
Qing Zhu wasn't afraid after hearing this. Instead, he suddenly felt relaxed. Then he raised his face and smiled, "Of course. Thank you, Grandma, for giving me this chance."
"Good. Go and tidy up your clothes. I'll give you half a cup of tea's time. I'll find two more people."
"Remember, the noble guest likes obedient ones."
"Yes," Qing Zhu lowered his eyes. Only after the sound of the madam's footsteps faded away did he look up, with a mysterious smile on his lips.
...
The obedient ones hadn't arrived yet, but several shadow guards wearing black robes and with strong builds, yet somehow looking timid, came.
Seeing Shen Mingzhu's expression, they restrained their uneasiness and bowed respectfully, saying, "Greetings, Your Highness."
"Okay, rise,"
Shen Mingzhu glanced at Chun Tao. The latter immediately offered seats and said to them, "Gentlemen, please be seated."
The three of them sat down. Their expressions relaxed a bit, but they all stiffened for a moment when they heard the sound of silk and bamboo instruments from outside.
Seeing her three capable subordinates showing such expressions, Shen Mingzhu felt as if she had been influenced by Xie Lang's mischief. She couldn't help but let out a soft laugh.
"Your Highness," it was the most steady, Xiao Feng, who broke the silence. He said, "This time, we all found some problems. But due to the shortage of manpower, we first sent people to keep an eye on the situation and then came back for your decision."
Since they were sitting close, Shen Mingzhu was worried that someone might eavesdrop. So she directly rented out the whole floor and had the guards stand outside the door.
"Continue,"
Seeing Xiao Feng's caution, Shen Mingzhu explained, "Now the whole building is under my control."
"Yes," Xiao Feng came back to his senses and then said, "Your servant and the other gentlemen searched all the way to Qingzhou, the place where the former Crown Prince passed away."
"Your servant was about to leave, but the night before leaving, I noticed something strange about a teahouse not far from the place where the Crown Prince died."
"After investigation, the owner of the teahouse was originally from the capital. It was said that some of his relatives in the capital became officials. Coincidentally, five months after the Crown Prince's death, when all the searchers had left, several people left Qingzhou and headed north to the capital."
Shen Mingzhu lowered her eyes, and her gaze fell on a red - string bracelet on her wrist. The bracelet was woven crookedly, but it was woven by the Crown Prince himself.
"Your servant instinctively felt something was wrong and immediately sent people to search for the traces of those people in the capital. But those people disappeared after leaving Qingzhou."
"Please forgive your servant's incompetence!" Xiao Feng knelt down, and the two beside him quickly followed suit. "Your servant and the other gentlemen haven't found any solid evidence. We just vaguely felt something was wrong. So we came back to the capital to report to Your Highness and ask if we should continue the investigation."
The matter of the Crown Prince shocked the court. The Crown Prince, who went south to inspect on behalf of the sick emperor, suddenly died of an illness. The late emperor investigated for several years but found nothing. He could only accept it as fate and died with regret.
If Shen Mingzhu hadn't noticed something wrong with Shen Mingyuan, she probably wouldn't have thought in this direction.
"Investigate,"
This was the only clue. Even if it was a wild - goose chase, Shen Mingzhu didn't want to miss it.
"Yes,"
Before they could get up, there was a soft knock on the door.
Shen Mingzhu looked up and saw a handsome young man in a moon - white robe walking in slowly with a guqin in his arms. Two others followed behind him. They were also good - looking, but compared to him, they seemed ordinary.
The shadow guards were shocked and almost fell to the ground.
Didn't His Highness say they were here to discuss matters? Why did such a strikingly good - looking gigolo suddenly appear! Could this be His Highness's future lover?