Free Web NovelChapter 469: The Governor Was Invited to Be an Impartial Witness
"It seems the people searching on the main roads have been wasting their time," Helian Chen said with a laugh.
"What are you so happy about?"
"I just think those people are ridiculous. They’ll believe any rumor they hear. Penglai has always been a great mystery across the four nations. Some say the immortal mountain is in the East Sea, while others rumor it’s in the South Sea. No one can say for sure which body of water it’s in. Rumors are the last thing you should trust. The Yi-Qi Symbiosis you found must have just looked very similar and was mistaken for something from Penglai. For all you know, it’s just a deformed fruit." People all over the world are obsessed with anything from Penglai. The slightest resemblance is enough for them to make a connection.
’It’s all baseless nonsense!’
"...Maybe... perhaps... you’re right."
"If things from Penglai really appeared that easily, it wouldn’t be hailed as an immortal mountain. I heard that booklet has been passed down for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. The rumors must have completely changed by now." When a story passes through ten people, you get ten different versions. Imagine what happens over hundreds of years.
’It must be completely wrong by now, yet Uncle still believes it.’
Ye Qianning nodded slightly.
Helian Chen placed the guqin on the table and sat beside her. "I’ll be leaving the city in a few days. Will you come see me off?"
"I’m busy."
"But don’t you have nothing to do at home? How could you be busy?"
"I sleep until noon every day. You all are leaving early in the morning, so there’s no way I can make it. Besides, why would I go see you off?" Ye Qianning rested her arm on the table, propping her chin on her small hand.
"We’re friends now. Next year, when Lou Mountain Academy is recruiting, I’m going to apply. We’ll be fellow students then, so of course you have to come see me off," Helian Chen said in all seriousness.
"Still not going. I can’t wake up that early."
Helian Chen’s brow furrowed slightly, his young face looking a little displeased.
Ye Qianning glanced at him. "We’ll see. If I happen to wake up early, I’ll go take a look."
A glint appeared in Helian Chen’s eyes. He said solemnly, "Then you have to wake up early. It’s not good to sleep until noon every day. Morning exercise can even help you lose weight."
"I earned this chubbiness fair and square. It’d be a waste to lose it."
"..."
’She’s so chubby. When she grows up, she’ll probably weigh two hundred pounds.’
Ye Qianning hopped down from her chair, smoothed her clothes with her small hands, and headed for the door.
"Where are you going?"
"To eat."
Helian Chen turned and scooped up the guqin. "Wait for me!"
「In the main hall.」
Zhan Yi had cordially invited Prince Yu to the residence precisely to find out what had happened at Immortal’s Drunkenness. Zhan Chi and Qian Fanji had the same idea, which was why they had followed them into the main hall.
Prince Yu had come to the General’s residence under the pretext of retrieving the guqin. His two goals were to have Helian Chen inquire about the Yi-Qi Symbiosis before his departure, and to leverage the General’s relationship with the Gu family to ask for an introduction.
Who would have known that from the moment he entered the hall, every time he tried to ask, he was cut off by the three men before him, who relentlessly questioned him about the incident at Immortal’s Drunkenness.
The scene felt just like a courtroom interrogation. Helpless, he had no choice but to recount every last detail of what happened at Immortal’s Drunkenness.
Zhan Yi was both shocked and thrilled after hearing the story. ’Our family’s treasure is so clever! She left the Princess of East Shu utterly speechless, and most importantly, she swindled two hundred thousand taels out of her!’
Good heavens, two hundred thousand was comparable to a bounty of gold and silver from the Emperor himself.
’The money she made in just a short time was enough to match several lifetimes of another person’s official salary.’
Admiration filled Qian Fanji’s eyes. ’As expected of a child from the Qian family. Smart from the very beginning.’
’She wants to ban child trafficking and establish her own sect, both of which will require a huge amount of money in the future. No wonder she didn’t look the least bit troubled that day.’
’If she puts her mind to making money, it won’t be long before she becomes one of the wealthiest people in all of Beili.’
"She..." Zhan Chi stood up, momentarily at a loss for words.
’No wonder the Emperor issued a decree with so many rewards and made her a role model for the children of the Capital City.’
’Forget a child—even officials at the imperial court would have steered clear of such a situation. Who would want to invite unnecessary trouble?’
’Many people in the court live by the motto "if it doesn’t concern me, I couldn’t care less." The Emperor knows this, which is why he issued such an edict to send a message to everyone.’
’I have to admit, our little girl’s words struck a chord right in the Emperor’s heart.’
’Even he felt his blood stir just hearing about it.’
"You what? Look at you, and then look at Pangtuan!" Zhan Yi seethed at the sight of his own son’s perpetually lazy demeanor. "It’s atavism! The little one’s intelligence definitely skipped a generation."
"I’m very smart too."
"In your twenties with nothing to show for it, and you call that smart?"
"That’s not..."
"Stop talking back. You don’t act like a father at all." Zhan Yi couldn’t even be bothered to criticize him further.
"There’s a high probability she inherited the Qian family’s brains," Qian Fanji stated calmly.
"..."
Zhan Yi looked over and saw him sitting there, unflappably calm. His fingers instantly clutched at his chest. ’So frustrating!’ He couldn’t think of a single thing to say in rebuttal.
The intelligence of the Qian family was undeniable. Both Qian Fu and Qian Fanji seemed to have an extra brain compared to everyone else. And their Pangtuan was far too clever to be a normal child.
Zhan Chi glared at Qian Fanji, wishing he could devour him whole.
Prince Yu was utterly baffled. What had he just heard?
’How could Xiang Minghou’s daughter take after this family and that family?’
’It was so bizarre. It felt like he understood, and yet he didn’t understand at all.’
"Hmph," Zhan Yi snorted, turning to Prince Yu. "The General is not at the residence, and it is inconvenient for us to host outsiders. If Your Highness has no other business, please see yourself out."
Prince Yu was stunned. ’Is this what they call burning the bridge after you’ve crossed it?’
’He hadn’t hidden a single detail about the Immortal’s Drunkenness incident. Kicking him out right after they got what they wanted was just too shameless!’
’Inconvenient to host outsiders?’
’He was an outsider, but weren’t they outsiders here too?’
"Chenchen went to retrieve the guqin and hasn’t returned yet," he said with a smile, secretly pondering how to bring up the matter of an introduction to the Gu family.
"Butler, send someone to the concubine’s courtyard to check," Zhan Yi called out toward the door.
"Yes, sir."
"..."
Prince Yu was speechless. It was almost noon, yet they hadn’t even offered to let him stay for a meal.
"Old Master Zhan, the young Prince and the Young Miss have arrived together." The butler, who had been about to turn away, looked up and saw the two children walking in one after the other.
When Zhan Yi heard that his granddaughter had also arrived, his face lit up with joy.
His gaze was fixed on the doorway, and in the blink of an eye, the chubby little girl appeared in his line of sight. It was impossible to describe how proud he felt.
’His granddaughter was brave, resourceful, and exceptionally bold. Truly number one in the Capital City.’
"Grandpa." Ye Qianning walked to the center of the room and curtsied slightly.
"No need for formalities. Come over here, next to Grandpa," Zhan Yi said with a smile, beckoning her over.
Ye Qianning obliged, toddling over to Zhan Yi’s side on her short legs.
Zhan Chi stared up at them, green with envy.
Qian Fanji, however, remained relatively calm.
Helian Chen came huffing and puffing into the hall, struggling with the heavy guqin. "Uncle!"
Prince Yu saw his young nephew’s face was red with exertion. He stood up to meet him, took the guqin from his hands, and was surprised by its weight.
’And not a single servant in the residence came to help him carry it...’
"Uncle, be careful! This is a top-quality guqin," Helian Chen reminded him.
Prince Yu didn’t pay it much mind. ’How good could a guqin made by a mere concubine possibly be?’
