Chapter 87: It Seems I Will Break My Word Again

At the sight of that form of address, Cheng Chengxuan broke out in gooseflesh, a sudden chill crawling over him.

He flung the note into the indoor tea-boiling stove with a look of utter disgust, then washed his hands for good measure.

"That Chu Yuan really knows how to disgust people!"

"What 'old haunt' do I share with him?!"

Afterwards he returned to the window and looked outside.

It seemed there was news of that person.

……

Modern Era, the top floor of the Cheng Group building.

"Boss, the hot search has already been taken down."

Cheng Sitao gave a slight nod.

"There's one more thing."

Assistant Chen's voice carried a hint of hesitation.

"Xia Ke came to me and said Miss An asked him to help find out who took down the hot search. How should we respond to her?"

Cheng Sitao sighed and leaned back against his chair.

"Tell Xia Ke to stall her for a few days. Let me think about it."

After Assistant Chen left the office, he pulled a photograph from the drawer. The little child in it had rosy lips and white teeth, a tiny mouth stretched in a beaming smile, looking just like a blessed baby from a New Year painting.

This photo had been secretly snapped by Assistant Chen on the very day An Luo said she was taking Yu'an to buy a little car.

Cheng Sitao traced the little one's cheek in the photo with his index finger.

"I wonder if the time here flows the same as in Da Yin. I had even promised to keep Yu'an company for his birthday."

Then he shook his head with a wry smile.

"This year, I've broken my word again…"

——

At night, Yu'an was lying on the warm kang, watching an animated classical-poetry show playing in mid-air.

After a short story of a few minutes, it began to recite classical poetry.

The little one opened and closed his tiny mouth, afraid of disturbing the guards keeping watch outside, and quietly followed along.

"Good rain knows the season…"

Meanwhile, on the other side, the cadence of the recitation's broadcaster voice from the tablet was mingled with Zaituan's soft, milky little voice.

An Luo heard it and smiled knowingly, turned over onto the bed, and slowly closed her eyes.

Accompanying Zaituan as he grew day by day like this—it really was quite nice.

……

And over a dozen li away, in Beihuang City, inside the City Lord's Manor.

It was already past his usual bedtime, but tonight Yi Jiang, after washing up, had not obediently gone to sleep. Instead, he had rummaged through his travel bundle until it was a complete mess.

"How can it not be here?"

The little servant attending him dared not say a word, nor dared disturb Old Master and the adults, so he could only summon the steward.

The moment Steward Zhao stepped inside, he saw the floor in utter disarray and Yi Jiang sitting on the ground sorting through clothes. His eyelid twitched at once.

"Oh my, my little ancestor, what on earth is the matter with you?"

Yi Jiang turned his head to look, with an undergarment still perched on top of it.

"Steward Zhao, my toy is missing."

Steward Zhao first took the garment off his head, then hurriedly helped him to his feet.

"It's just a toy, isn't it? Steward Zhao will have someone buy a new one for the little young master tomorrow."

"You can't buy it!"

Yi Jiang was so anxious he kept stamping his feet.

"It was a gift from Yu'an to me!"

Steward Zhao thought for a moment, then asked tentatively.

"Could it still be at the Cheng Family? Perhaps you forgot to bring it back?"

"Oh, right."

Yi Jiang scratched the back of his head.

"It was Gu Shang who packed my luggage for me."

Steward Zhao turned his head and ordered the little servant to have Gu Shang summoned.

Until this matter was sorted out, this little ancestor would not settle down tonight.

Soon, Gu Shang was brought over.

"Gu Shang, when you packed my luggage for me today, did you see a little box with a little figure painted on it, in very bright colors?"

Gu Shang lowered his eyes, hiding a strange glint deep within.

"That little box? Subordinate saw it beside the small square table, a fair distance from your bundle, and assumed it belonged to that little child of the Cheng Family, so I did not place it in the bundle."

Yi Jiang knit his brow tightly, his cheeks puffed out, and he exhaled heavily through his nose.

He really wanted to throw a tantrum!

The steward and the little servant nearby stole glances at his appearance.

One silently moved the nearby cups and porcelain out of reach, the other quietly stepped a little farther away.

Yet the next moment, Yi Jiang deflated like a punctured ball, his shoulders drooping.

Uncle Gu Shang had saved him before, and besides, this was his own fault to begin with—he had not put his own things away properly. He could not blame anyone else.

Gu Shang's eyes flickered, and he said.

"Otherwise, should this Subordinate make another trip to the Cheng Family to retrieve it for you?"

Yi Jiang instinctively wanted to nod, but shook her head instead.

"It's too late. Yu'an and the others must have already gone to sleep. It wouldn't be proper to disturb them in the middle of the night."

"How about this — take my token, and you can leave the city first thing tomorrow morning to fetch it."

Gu Shang took the waist token and cupped his fist in salute.

"Yes."

The young servant nearby saw that the little Young Master had not lost his temper, but instead spoke with Gu Shang so calmly, and his eyes were full of envy.

He had heard that this Gu Shang was originally a relative of a convicted criminal, but because he had saved the little Young Master twice, he was arranged to serve as a guard at the City Lord's Manor.

And ordinarily, whether it was the Old Master and Lord Chen, or Steward Zhao, they were all very polite and very tolerant toward him.

Even the biggest tyrant of this City Lord's Manor, the little Young Master, who used to listen most to the Old Master and the lords, as well as Steward Zhao, now had to add Gu Shang to that list.

Such a good opportunity — why hadn't it fallen to him?

He wasn't greedy either; once would do.

……

In the Study of the front courtyard of the City Lord's Manor.

Recalling what had happened during the day, Chen Ying's expression grew increasingly dark, and the cold aura around him grew more and more obvious.

Standing before him was a man of medium build, ordinary looks, and apparently around thirty years old.

Seeing his manner, the man was so nervous that cold sweat streamed down his face.

"Lord Chen, you sent for this one — what are your orders?"

Chen Ying swept a glance at him.

"Previously entrusting the matter of buying grain to you was indeed this official's oversight."

"But I didn't expect you did a fine job, and truly managed to buy so much grain. Moreover, this official has inspected it, and the quality of that batch of grain is not bad."

Zhao Kuan nervously swallowed, raised his sleeve to wipe the cold sweat from his brow, and gave him a simple, fawning smile.

"Lord Chen truly flatters this one — it's all just what this one ought to do."

Chen Ying narrowed his eyes and glanced at his cloak.

"That garment you're wearing is newly made, isn't it? I don't recall seeing you wear it before."

Hearing these words, the hair on the back of Zhao Kuan's neck stood on end.

"This……"

"This collar looks like it's snow fox fur. If this official recalls correctly, this Snow Cloud Fox is a species unique within Muyuan Kingdom's borders, active around the Snow Mountain region, extremely difficult to catch, and its pelt is exceedingly expensive."

With nearly every sentence he spoke, Zhao Kuan's body trembled.

Chen Ying watched it all, but continued speaking.

"It seems the fur coat business has truly been doing well lately."

"Still, now that you have silver, you ought to plan well for your own future. After all, Steward Zhao is the only family you have. If he were to see you settle down and start a family, he would surely be very pleased."

Suddenly, Zhao Kuan dropped to his knees with a thud.

"This one has erred, this one knows his fault, please Lord, atone for the crime!"

"Oh?"

Chen Ying asked, his tone unreadable.

"Then why don't you tell me — what fault have you committed?"

Zhao Kuan knelt on the ground and haltingly confessed everything.

"At first, this one was ordered to go to Muyuan Kingdom to sell fur coats, and met a wealthy merchant. They say his connections were very wide. This one thought, having just arrived, having connections would make things easier, so I got to know him."

"He tried more than once to sound this one out, wanting to worm the method of making fur coats out of this one's mouth."

Chen Ying's gaze darkened, and the hand resting on the table suddenly clenched tight.

"You told him?!"