Chapter 101: General Li Storms the Palace, Benefiting the Masses of Men (Seeking Monthly Votes)

Pei Shaoqing did not set out on his return journey until early the next morning.

The news that the Shu Prince had been executed for treason had already spread throughout Jingguan City, yet conspiracy theories were rampant.

"The Shu Prince offended the Baron of Pingyang one moment, and the next he was accused of treason and executed by the Baron's men. If there isn't some sort of story behind this, I'll be damned."

"Indeed, indeed. I heard that back at Furong Xuan, the Baron of Pingyang had already branded the Shu Prince with the charge of attempted treason. And now, the Shu Prince has actually been executed for treason. Tsk tsk tsk, what a coincidence, a truly remarkable coincidence!"

Early in the morning, a group of old men at a noodle stall discussed this in low voices, one after another, speaking as if it were all gospel truth.

A young scholar nearby couldn't help but put down his bowl and say, "Is it possible that the Baron of Pingyang dared to say that at Furong Xuan because he had long since obtained proof of the Shu Prince's treason? There aren't that many conspiracies."

"Young man, you are still too young. Some things, those who understand, understand; for those who don't, there's no point in explaining. When you reach my age, you'll naturally understand." An old man wiped his mouth and lectured him with an air of seniority.

The young scholar looked at them with disdain. "Instead of wasting time spouting nonsense here, have you saved up enough for the autumn taxes? You haven't read many books, yet you dare to lecture this Young Master? I think you lot are just like a toad's skin—bumpy and ugly!"

Although most intelligent people did not believe that the Shu Prince's execution for treason had anything to do with Pei Shaoqing, this theory was very popular among the lower classes, becoming more outlandish with every retelling.

On the other side, Liu Yuheng and Ye Hanshuang were riding their horses along the road when they suddenly heard the sound of hooves behind them.

Both of them turned their heads to look at the same time.

"Madam, Sister Shuang."

Pei Shaoqing rode up on Black General, arriving as swiftly as a gale.

"Big Brother!" Ye Hanshuang asked, pulling on the reins to stop in surprise, "How did you catch up so quickly?"

They had set off a full day earlier!

"Is the horse the Young Master is riding the legendary Dragon Blood Treasure Horse?" Liu Yuheng asked, staring at Black General.

Pei Shaoqing smiled smugly, stroking Black General's head, and said, "Madam has a sharp eye. This was bestowed by the Emperor; it is a Lower Grade Longxue Horse, capable of traveling a thousand miles a day."

Aside from liking to stroke his turtle's head, he now liked stroking his horse's head the most.

He just likes petting his horse's head the most.

"Congratulations to the Young Master on obtaining such a divine steed." Liu Yuheng smiled gracefully, her beautiful eyes wide as she sized up the magnificent Black General. "When I was traveling the Jiang Hu, I once caught a fleeting glimpse of one, but I have never seen a Dragon Blood Treasure Horse from such close range. It is truly a rare sight in this world."

"Madam, Sister Shuang, Black General is far more robust and sturdy than an ordinary horse. Why don't you make do and ride with me? That way, we can all reach home before dark; otherwise, you will have to spend two more days traveling and sleeping in the open." Pei Shaoqing extended the invitation to them both.

Ye Hanshuang naturally had no objections. "Mm."

"Then Young Master, please go ahead with Miss Ye. I shall ride one horse and lead the other; that way I can be faster and also bring her horse back," Liu Yuheng said in a soft, gentle voice.

"They are merely two horses; if we don't want them, we can just leave them." The wealthy and bold Pei Shaoqing frowned and said lightly, "Two horses aren't worth two days of your time. That's it, leave the horses here as a gift for whoever is fated to find them. Hurry up and get on."

"Aunt Liu, listen to Big Brother." Ye Hanshuang urged her. After spending these past few days alone in the cave, their relationship had grown much closer, to the point that even their forms of address had changed.

Unable to refuse such kindness, and since Liu Yuheng did indeed want to return quickly, she agreed. "Very well."

But she soon regretted it.

Ye Hanshuang had a large build, so she sat in the back.

Liu Yuheng was relatively petite, so she sat in the front.

As Black General galloped, her entire body fell back into Pei Shaoqing's embrace. The two were pressed tightly together, and she could even clearly feel the astonishing sensation between their thighs, which left her face burning red and her body stiff.

With the fragrant, soft beauty in his arms, Pei Shaoqing could likewise feel the springy softness and warmth of Liu Yuheng's buttocks, which collided and rubbed against him from time to time as the horse jolted.

If he had known, he would have only brought Ye Hanshuang.

Perhaps they could have even traveled a thousand miles in a day.

"Apologies, Madam. It was not intentional; I will move back a bit." Pei Shaoqing still wanted to maintain the appearance of a gentleman in front of her, so he said in a low voice.

Liu Yuheng replied in a voice as thin as a mosquito's. "Mm."

Pei Shaoqing shifted his body backward.

Liu Yuheng had just breathed a sigh of relief when Black General suddenly leaped, causing her to slide and sit further back. She let out a soft moan, her pretty face burning hot.

"Madam." Pei Shaoqing drew a sharp breath and whispered, "Shall we just stop moving around?"

With a large carriage behind and a beautiful woman in front, he was also suffering in the middle.

He is also suffering in the middle.

"Mm, mm, mm." Liu Yuheng nodded like a chick pecking at rice, her face flushed. The more they moved, the more agonizing it became.

It was better to just endure it.

Just endure until they got home at dark.

As soon as they arrived at the gate, Liu Yuheng couldn't wait to dismount, but she didn't stand steady the moment her feet touched the ground. Her calves went soft, and she nearly fell to the ground on the spot.

"Madam, are you alright?" Pei Shaoqing was quick-handed and caught her, asking with a face full of concern.

Liu Yuheng's cheeks were crimson. She bit her red lip and cast a glance at him that was half-reproachful and half-resentful, but she just shook her head, said nothing, shook him off, and stumbled inside.

Watching her disheveled back, Pei Shaoqing knew she was in a hurry to bathe and change. He couldn't help but feel a bit emotional; Madam Gongsun was quite old, yet she was even more sensitive than a young girl. What kind of dolphin constitution was this?

"Big Brother, I'm going to bathe and change first. I'm covered in sweat." Ye Hanshuang dismounted and said.

Pei Shaoqing nodded. "Go ahead."

"Young Master, you're back." Zhao Zhilan came out to greet him happily, then said with confusion, "I just ran into the Mistress, but she didn't respond when I greeted her."

"Madam might have been in a hurry to use the latrine." Pei Shaoqing casually made up an excuse, then handed the reins to her. "Go take Black General to Xiao Douzi."

"Mm, mm, mm." Zhao Zhilan nodded and stroked Black General's nose. "Let's go, Black General."

Black General snorted twice, held its head high, and followed behind Zhao Zhilan toward the Pei Mansion stables.

Pei Shaoqing headed straight for the bedroom.

"Halt! Stop right there!" As soon as he entered the courtyard, Li Jiangjun, dressed in Golden Armor, jumped down from the rockery to block his path. Standing on its hind legs, it questioned him, "This subject has heard that the Lord has conferred the title of Black General? What skills does this newcomer have to be on equal footing with this veteran general?"

It was clearly me who came first!

"He has the ability; he can travel a thousand miles a day. Plus, he has a background—he's a royal horse and possesses the bloodline of the dragon clan." Pei Shaoqing brushed it off casually.

Li Jiangjun was heartbroken. "So what if he has a background! Don't you know that kings and nobles are not born to their status? Regardless, I am not convinced. I ask the Lord to appoint me as Grand Marshal of the Armed Forces."

"Get out of my way!" Pei Shaoqing had also been stirred into a real fire by Liu Yuheng and was in a hurry to find Xie Qingwu to give her a stern warning; he had no time to promote Li Jiangjun.

"I won't!" Li Jiangjun held its head high and used a claw to straighten its helmet. "If the Lord doesn't promote me, this subject won't move."

"Presumptuous! You are forcing the Emperor! Be careful, or I shall have your nine generations executed!" Pei Shaoqing warned with a stern and severe expression.

Li Jiangjun blinked, "I don't have nine generations."

"Then hurry up and reproduce." Pei Shaoqing kicked it flying with one foot, "You are still my military advisor; your status here remains higher than Black General's."

"Oh, right!" Li Jiangjun scrambled up, tilted its head to crawl into the helmet that had fallen nearby, stood straight, straightened the helmet, and laughed, "This cat is still the military advisor!"

Pei Shaoqing stormed into the room and, without waiting for Xie Qingwu to finish speaking, pressed him onto the bed and blocked his mouth.

"Husband, why are you so lustful? Can you even get aroused from riding a horse?" After a long while, Xie Qingwu finally managed to catch his breath, his face flushed, and he asked with suspicion and uncertainty.

Could it be that the horse the Emperor bestowed was a mare?

Pei Shaoqing did not speak, only working hard with all his might.

…………………………

The next day, during breakfast, Liu Yuheng still dared not meet Pei Shaoqing's eyes, silently lowering her head to eat.

Pei Shaoqing could understand her embarrassment.

Therefore, he deliberately did not speak to her.

After the meal, he went to the Hundred-Household Office to work.

Just as he arrived at the office, he learned that Shopkeeper Qian had come to visit.

Pei Shaoqing guessed that the raw materials and craftsmen for the Ice Silkworm Silk must have been found, so he immediately invited him in.

"Commoner Qian Wanguan pays respects to the Hundred-Household official."

The kind-faced Shopkeeper Qian bowed as soon as he entered the door.

"Shopkeeper Qian, no need for formalities," Pei Shaoqing said.

"Thank you, my lord." Shopkeeper Qian stood up, stood obediently with his hands hanging down, and said with a smile, "Thanks to your blessing, I have already purchased a batch of Ice Silkworm Silk raw materials from Yangzhou and hired several skilled craftsmen at a high price. We can start work in a few days. Since you own fifty percent, do you have any instructions?"

"Shopkeeper Qian, please sit for a moment." Pei Shaoqing said this to him first, then turned to Ye Hanshuang and said, "Go back and bring the wooden box from the desk in my study."

"Yes." Ye Hanshuang nodded and strode out.

Pei Shaoqing called out, "Someone, serve tea."

"Thank you, my lord, for the tea." After the tea was served, Shopkeeper Qian thanked him first, then picked it up and took a shallow sip.

Pei Shaoqing asked him about Yangzhou, a place he had never been to, "I have always heard that Yangzhou is prosperous. Just how prosperous is it? Could Shopkeeper Qian tell me about it?"

"No matter how prosperous, it certainly cannot compare to the Capital where you reside; it is merely far superior to Shuzhou. The most famous thing is the 'slender horses' of Yangzhou..." Shopkeeper Qian focused on explaining the pleasure quarters of Yangzhou to Pei Shaoqing.

Not until Ye Hanshuang returned did he close his mouth, still feeling unsatisfied, and silently took a sip of tea to moisten his throat.

"Hand the box to Shopkeeper Qian," Pei Shaoqing instructed Ye Hanshuang, then said to Shopkeeper Qian, "Inside are the clothing design drafts I made in my spare time. If you manufacture clothes according to these, you will never worry about sales. I guarantee that the more prominent the officials and nobles are, the more they will love them."

"Oh?" Upon hearing this, Shopkeeper Qian could not help but open the wooden box on the spot and take out a design draft to look at.

But even for an old lecher like him, he was shocked at first glance. He suddenly raised his head to look at Pei Shaoqing and said, "This, this, this... My lord, is this not a bit too scandalous? Can it be sold?"

These were not clothes at all; they were clearly just a few pieces of fabric.

"Shopkeeper Qian, do you not want your wives and concubines to wear them for you to see?" Pei Shaoqing asked calmly.

Shopkeeper Qian was stunned. He imagined what his wives and concubines would look like wearing them, and suddenly he could not help but feel his mouth go dry. He said excitedly, "I understand!"

Such clothes might indeed be attacked by some pedantic scholars, but they would definitely be loved by the vast majority of men, and women would also buy them to compete for favor.

"I name such clothing 'flirty lingerie'. These drafts are just to throw out a brick to attract jade; Shopkeeper Qian can find specialists to design more styles based on the ideas I provided," Pei Shaoqing said with a slight smile.

"Clothing worn underneath to increase the intimacy between husband and wife—what an apt name! I thank you, my lord, for bestowing the name!" Shopkeeper Qian seemed to have already seen the day he would make a fortune, and he said excitedly with a flushed face, "When the first batch of clothes is finished, I will definitely send them to your mansion first for you to test the goods."

"Hahahaha, easily done, easily done." Pei Shaoqing beamed and added, "I have ten bolts of top-quality Ice Silkworm Silk bestowed by the Emperor. I will give you one, and have the rest made into women's stockings for me."

Things like silk stockings.

To him, they had always been disposable items.

So, like Han Xin commanding troops—the more, the better.

"Thank you, my lord, for the reward!" Shopkeeper Qian knelt down on the spot. The Ice Silkworm Silk bestowed by the Emperor was of a different quality than what he bought; he actually had the good fortune to use tribute items.

"Young Master!" At this moment, Liu Yuheng walked in with a grave expression, her brows filled with anxiety.

Seeing this, Shopkeeper Qian tactfully took his leave.

Pei Shaoqing asked, "Madam, has something happened? Don't be anxious; sit down and tell me slowly."

(End of chapter)