“Also?” Chu Dingjiang instantly grasped the key point.
Just as An Jiu had never imagined Chu Dingjiang would think of her, Chu Dingjiang hadn’t dared to hope either. So An Jiu’s reaction was truly a pleasant surprise to him.
“I’m…” An Jiu began but abruptly stopped mid-sentence.
“What is it?” Chu Dingjiang encouraged her to continue with his gaze.
Thinking of her recent changes, An Jiu felt uneasy and changed the subject. “I’ve taken on a job these past few days.”
Slightly disappointed, Chu Dingjiang still followed her lead and asked, “What kind of job?”
“There’s a bounty board in Bianjing. I accepted a white-level bounty from there. The target is a bandit leader, worth 6,000 taels of silver,” An Jiu explained.
Chu Dingjiang had heard of the bounty board. White-level bounties were the least dangerous. Although An Jiu lacked internal energy, she had held her own against several eighth and ninth-rank experts during the battle at Piaomiao Mountain Villa. Even taking on a red-level bounty shouldn’t be a problem for her. Still, he wondered, “Why did you suddenly decide to take on a bounty?”
“When I used the Sky-Shaking Thunder to blast those birds, Zhu Pianpian said it was worth 50,000 taels of silver. I didn’t have any other way to make money, so I inquired about the bounty board,” An Jiu said excitedly. “Besides, I had nothing else to do. Killing mountain bandits can be considered a service to the people.”
Her feelings now were completely different from before when she killed indiscriminately, sometimes even targeting officials with notable achievements.
“If you enjoy it, go ahead. Just prepare carefully and don’t underestimate your opponents. Many have failed by being careless in seemingly easy situations,” Chu Dingjiang advised, while mentally noting to have a thorough “chat” with Zhu Pianpian later.
“Mm-hmm.” An Jiu nodded, then asked, “Have you met the Second Prince? How was it?”
Unconsciously, she had begun to integrate into the Song Dynasty. Seeing the Emperor and Crown Prince’s private debauchery, she worried about the country’s future. It wasn’t out of patriotism, but concern for her welfare if the regime collapsed.
Having experienced localized wars and unrest, she knew regime changes were never simple.
“It was as expected. For the current situation in Song, if he were to rule, he might do better than the Crown Prince. However, he still lacks refinement. Ascending to the throne hastily might not be ideal,” Chu Dingjiang, seeing her interest, explained in detail. “Growing up without favor and his mother’s influence has made him strong-willed and somewhat cunning, but he’s overly ambitious.”
“Overly ambitious?” An Jiu didn’t quite understand.
“He’s too arrogant, believing his abilities far surpass his father and brother. Additionally, he hasn’t faced significant setbacks in recent years, making him prone to underestimating others and lacking patience,” Chu Dingjiang pondered, then added, “He’s still too young, his thinking is naive.”
“Aren’t you being too harsh?” An Jiu felt it was already impressive for a teenager to have the mentality of someone in their twenties, yet Chu Dingjiang seemed dissatisfied.
“He’s meant to be emperor. We can’t judge him by ordinary standards,” Chu Dingjiang squeezed her hand and smiled. “Besides, everything is already urgent. Fortunately, the Crown Prince’s handling of the Ling Ziyue incident has somewhat sobered him up.”
The Crown Prince, seeing through the Second Prince’s intention to save Ling Ziyue, had made a feint. This caused the Second Prince to prematurely expose his preparations. Not only did he fail to save Ling Ziyue, but he also lost some of his power. If not for Chu Dingjiang secretly helping to erase all related traces, this move might have ruined him.
“Are you his advisor now?” An Jiu asked.