“Same to you.” Feng Jiu’er looked at how Gong Xinyue was dressed, her smile widening further.

“Jiu’er here has looks fit to topple a city — no, an entire nation. How could I possibly compare to you?” Gong Xinyue said, picking up another piece of meat.

“Still, when it comes down to it, the most beautiful one is Prince A’Jiu.”

Gong Xinyue thought of Di Wuya and shook her head.

She only knew that Di Wuya was some kind of prince, and having heard Feng Jiu’er call him A’Jiu, she’d taken to calling him “Prince A’Jiu” herself.

As for exactly what territory this devastatingly handsome man was a prince of, she’d never once asked.

“Tsk, tsk…” Qiao Mu glanced sideways at Gong Xinyue. “You’d better not fall for a trap!”

“A trap?” Gong Xinyue looked up, cheeks puffed out, utterly baffled.

“That gorgeous man you’re going on about is just a pawn in Jiu’er’s hand,” Qiao Mu said, raising an eyebrow.

“What do you mean by that?” The words had barely left her mouth before Gong Xinyue started chewing her food again.

“Qiao Mu.” Feng Jiu’er shot her a look. “How can you say that about my A’Jiu?”

Qiao Mu returned a look that said, “Isn’t it true, though?” and turned her attention back to Gong Xinyue.

“Back in the day, she used this gorgeous man to lure me in, so I’d end up working for her willingly.” Qiao Mu rolled her eyes and sighed dramatically on purpose.

“Qiao Mu, so you admit yourself it was willing?” Feng Jiu’er said, her crescent brows furrowing slightly.

Even now, this one still played the victim — was that really necessary?

“If it weren’t for me, how would you have ever met the love of your life, huh?” Feng Jiu’er wasn’t holding back either.

She and Qiao Mu had long since become the kind of friends who held nothing back from each other — if this one wanted to act up, Feng Jiu’er was more than happy to play along.

At that, Qiao Mu raised an eyebrow but fell silent.

Gong Xinyue looked between the two of them, covered her mouth, and laughed.

“Jiu’er.” She turned to look at Feng Jiu’er again. “I want a man like Xiao Jiang too.”

“One is quite enough. Thirty would be more than I could handle — just the one will do.”

“Mm.” Feng Jiu’er gave her a look that said “leave it to me,” then turned her gaze to Qiao Mu.

“Qiao Mu, if you’re really not satisfied with Xiao Jiang, why not hand him over to Xinyue? I’ll find you thirty more.”

“You wouldn’t dare,” Qiao Mu spat out, and went back to eating without another word.

Even she wasn’t sure whether those two words had been meant for Feng Jiu’er or for Gong Xinyue.

But even so, neither Feng Jiu’er nor Gong Xinyue dared push any further.

Once Qiao Mu turned fierce, there was no telling what chaos might follow — how could they possibly risk it?

“Qiao Mu, I was only joking,” Gong Xinyue said with a smile.

Qiao Mu said nothing, but glanced up at Gong Xinyue as if to say: as if you’d dare.

Feng Jiu’er looked at her, lips curving slightly. “I wouldn’t dare either!”

“Do you think I’m not worried that you and Xiao Jiang, so devoted to each other, might team up and do me in with one move?”

Just as Qiao Mu looked up, about to say something, her brow suddenly furrowed.

Feng Jiu’er and Gong Xinyue noticed something at the same moment and immediately dropped their playful expressions.

When the knock came at the private room’s door, a woman’s hushed voice called from outside.

The woman knocking glanced sideways at the more elaborately dressed woman beside her, raised an eyebrow, then turned back.

“My lords, our madam is here. We’re coming in now.”

If they hadn’t been certain this was fine merchandise, the woman wouldn’t have lowered herself to speak so deferentially.

“Come in!” Qiao Mu’s voice carried out.

The woman pushed open the door and walked in alongside another woman, followed by two men.

The two men stopped just inside and took up positions on either side of the door.

The woman in black-and-red and the woman in pink entered one after the other.

“Madam.” The woman in pink looked at the one in black-and-red and gave a small wave.

“This little girl is these two lords’ cousin. I hear her mother wronged their family, which is why they’ve brought her out here.”

“Heh heh…” The woman in pink lifted a silk handkerchief to cover her mouth.

“No, no, little sister, don’t be afraid. I promise your two cousins brought you out here so you could live a good life.”

From the moment she’d entered, the woman in black-and-red hadn’t taken her eyes off Feng Jiu’er.

The table was low, and everyone sat on the floor to eat.

Feng Jiu’er kept both hands beneath the table now, her head hanging low, like a frightened little bird.

Once the woman in black-and-red had taken her seat, Gong Xinyue looked at her coolly. “You’re the owner, I take it?”

“She’s our madam,” the woman in pink answered.

“Our madam owns this establishment. Everything here is her call.”

The woman in black-and-red studied Feng Jiu’er carefully for a moment, then let her gaze fall on Qiao Mu and Gong Xinyue, whose skin looked similarly sallow.

“Are you certain, with skin that color, she’ll fetch a high price?”

The woman in pink knew the madam had also taken a liking to the girl — this was just an attempt to knock them down a peg and drive the price lower.

So even though the woman in pink knew full well Feng Jiu’er’s dark skin wasn’t natural, she said nothing at all.

“Madam, is it?” Qiao Mu patted Gong Xinyue, who looked ready to explode.

Gong Xinyue gave a cold snort and poured herself a cup of wine, saying nothing.

“And you?” The woman in black-and-red looked at Qiao Mu.

“I’m the eldest brother. I handle matters here.” Qiao Mu’s smile came out a little forced.

She turned her head toward Feng Jiu’er and gave a small wave.

“My little sister wasn’t always this dark. She’s been working the fields too much — that’s the only reason she looks like this now.”

“Rest assured, she took after her mother as a child, fair and radiant. Give her a few days and her skin will recover just fine.”

“Is that so?” The woman in black-and-red looked at Feng Jiu’er once more.

“One thousand taels of silver. Not a coin less,” Gong Xinyue said, looking up and downing a cup of wine.

“A thousand taels?” The woman in pink frowned at once. “Sir, you should know — even our top courtesan only cost three hundred taels when we bought her.”

“And frankly, this girl’s coloring really puts her at a disadvantage. That price just isn’t fair.”

“What courtesan could possibly compare to my little sister?” Gong Xinyue set her cup down with a bang. “Take it or leave it!”

“Sir, I don’t care for that tone. Who’s to say…” The woman in black-and-red hadn’t expected this man to show her so little respect, even to her face.

Gong Xinyue pulled out the silver, set it down, grabbed hold of Feng Jiu’er’s hand, and hauled her up.

“Let’s go!” Her low voice echoed through the room.

Seeing this, the woman in pink stood at once and rushed over to grab Gong Xinyue’s arm.

“My lord, there’s no need to fly into a temper over every little thing. It’s bad for your health, isn’t it?”

The woman reached to pat Gong Xinyue’s chest, but Gong Xinyue shoved her hand away. “What do you take yourself for?”

“Get out!”