“Gu Wangchen, as for what happened last night, let’s just pretend it never happened, understood?”
At these words, Gu Wangchen raised an eyebrow, genuinely surprised in his heart.
After pondering for a moment, he smiled and said, “Miss Su, although I’d very much like to follow your wishes, may I ask what meaning there is in deceiving yourself like this?”
Su Qianhua straightened her waist, instinctively tucking a lock of hair behind her ear, and replied coldly, “Last night, you seduced me. It was a complete accident, not part of the cooperation we agreed upon.”
“That’s true,” Gu Wangchen nodded in agreement, “but business is business. Aside from our cooperation, don’t we have another kind of relationship between us?”
“Besides, the news that I spent the night in your boudoir and only left just now has probably already been spread by Wang Lingniang and the other girls. What do you think… the outside world will make of our relationship?”
Su Qianhua pressed her rosy lips tightly together, turned her delicate head slightly, and said in a low voice, “I don’t care what the outside world thinks of me.”
Gu Wangchen placed his hand on the table, his index finger tapping lightly on the surface as he continued, “Of course, Miss Su can disregard public opinion. After all, whatever they say won’t cost you a piece of flesh, and this is exactly what I planned from the start.”
“Your original plan?” Su Qianhua immediately turned her head back, her beautiful violet eyes scanning him up and down, her gaze complicated.
“Of course. Did you forget what I told you last night, about us sleeping in our clothes?” Gu Wangchen stood up, gazing into the distance, and spoke calmly:
“According to my original plan, you and I would indeed keep a healthy business partnership as you said, and use a layer of fake relations to mislead the outside world.”
“It’s just, who could have expected Miss Su to be so… forward last night?”
“You still have the face to say that!” Su Qianhua suddenly slapped the stone table, her ears flushing red, “It was your so-called special constitution that seduced me!”
“Su Qianhua, it’s not good to falsely accuse others.” Gu Wangchen abruptly walked to her side, bending down to look straight at her.
Su Qianhua instinctively pressed her legs together, her body shrinking back, trying to escape him, only to find she had no way out, and could only turn her face aside.
“As for whose fault last night was, I trust you know in your heart.” Gu Wangchen straightened up and returned to his seat.
“I don’t want to argue with you about this right now. Regardless of whose reason it was, what we need to discuss is how to define our relationship going forward.”
He paused, making sure the fox-girl in front of him was no longer making trouble, then continued, “Indeed, we’ve already crossed that line, and the outside world thinks so too. We ourselves are keenly aware of it. Under such circumstances, what is the point of lying to yourself?”
“Can you really pretend nothing happened just by refusing to admit it?”
Su Qianhua lowered her head, lost in thought for a moment, and softly replied, “I-I already said, it was just an accident, I don’t want that accident to affect our future…”
“Of course it won’t affect our cooperation.”
Gu Wangchen understood her concern and assured her, “When the time comes, I’ll still ask Crown Princess Li Zhaoning for the Jade of Bilu on your behalf, and all you need to do is bring me with you when you return to the Cangwu Secret Realm after getting the jade. That’s all—no strings attached.”
“Is that really true?”
“Absolutely.”
“Then… that’s good,” Su Qianhua took a deep breath, let it out slowly, blinked her beautiful eyes, and declared, “Let’s treat last night as a misunderstanding and move on. I hope it doesn’t affect our cooperation.”
“Naturally. I’m not some villain, I would never use the ‘You wouldn’t want…’ line to threaten anyone, least of all a partner.”
“‘You wouldn’t want…’ line?” Su Qianhua repeated in confusion.
“It’s nothing,” Gu Wangchen waved it off, then changed the subject, “So, Miss Su, will you be returning to the Prime Minister’s Manor with me, or do you wish to stay here at Jingfang Pavilion?”
“I…”
Su Qianhua hesitated. She remembered what Wang Lingniang had told her last night: regardless of whether Gu Wangchen redeemed her or not, she would no longer have to appear in public.
In other words, if she stayed at Jingfang Pavilion, she could have plenty of time to do whatever she wanted. But if Gu Wangchen “redeemed” her and took her to the Prime Minister’s Manor, would she still be free?
With that thought, she spoke frankly, “Gu Wangchen, I want to stay at Jingfang Pavilion.”
“Tsk,” Gu Wangchen frowned slightly, “Staying at Jingfang Pavilion to continue flirting with other scholars and poets, and perhaps looking for a second partner?”
Not knowing why, hearing the slight displeasure in Gu Wangchen’s tone made Su Qianhua feel a little happier.
Was he angry because she might be seeing other men, or because she might find another partner?
“Both,” Gu Wangchen read her thoughts and answered.
“How are you so sharp…” Su Qianhua shivered, nearly letting her fox ears pop out.
After a moment, her lips curled in a smile and she switched back to her coquettish tone, “To be able to serve Young Master Gu is a blessing earned over three lifetimes. In this life, I only wish to give my heart to you~”
Gu Wangchen looked at the clearly-pretending woman, thought for a moment, and suddenly realized, “Oh, it’s because Wang Lingniang told you that you don’t need to show your face anymore and only have to serve me from now on, right?”
Su Qianhua’s expression froze instantly, then she quickly dropped the act, grumbling under her breath.
“If that’s the case, then staying at Jingfang Pavilion is indeed better—more freedom.” Gu Wangchen agreed.
“You’re not worried?”
“Worried about what? We’ve shared a night, but you’re neither my wife nor my concubine. There’s no reason for me to restrict your freedom.”
“Alright, since Miss Su has decided, I won’t linger. Tonight… I need to enter the palace to see the Empress Dowager.”
With that, Gu Wangchen stood up, ready to take his leave.
“…Gu Wangchen.”
“Is there something else, Miss Su?”
“How should I contact you?” Su Qianhua pressed.
“When there’s news, I’ll come to Jingfang Pavilion to find you.”
Back at the Prime Minister’s Manor, Gu Wangchen immediately spotted An Li waiting for him at the main gate.
He instinctively raised his arm to his nose and sniffed, making sure he’d already rubbed away the scent with orange peels, before stepping over to An Li.
“Young Master, you’re back!” An Li’s pretty face lit up with delight as she hurried over on lotus-like steps to help straighten his robe.
Gu Wangchen nodded and smiled, “Xiao Li, waiting here for me? Didn’t I tell you I was staying out last night? No need to worry.”
An Li circled around Gu Wangchen, her delicate nose twitching as if searching for something.
After a moment, she looked up again, her almond-shaped eyes bright as usual, her voice soft, “I just couldn’t help worrying, Young Master. It’s nearly noon. Would you like to eat now?”
“Hmm… Let’s eat as usual. Though I’ll have to attend a banquet with the Empress Dowager tonight, I doubt I’ll get a full meal there. It’ll probably be all business talk.”
“Alright then, Young Master, please wait in Wangchen Pavilion for now. I’ll hurry the kitchen—they’ll prepare two flavors of Golden Phoenix-wing Shrimp for you this time!”
“You’re thoughtful, Xiao Li.” Gu Wangchen smiled lightly and headed for Wangchen Pavilion.
Once the Young Master had left, An Li’s smile faded. She took a small notebook and charcoal pencil from her sleeve, her gaze growing somber as she began to write:
[Sister Qinghan, the Young Master stayed overnight at Jingfang Pavilion last night.]
[I could smell it. There’s a new fox-demon scent on the Young Master.]
[Sister Qinghan, I’ll investigate this fox-demon first. When you return, we can discuss in person how to deal with those who have designs on the Young Master.]
[Your ally, An Li.]
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