Jiang Xuening called Liu Yang inside and, lowering her voice, gave him a series of instructions.

Liu Yang was dumbstruck.

Jiang Xuening only smiled faintly and said: “Even if someone wants to gamble everything on one throw, I suspect others won’t let her have her wish. Just do as I say.”

After Lu Xian threw out ten thousand shares, the Ren family salt field immediately collapsed, with the share price dropping off a cliff.

Eight hundred wen, seven hundred wen…

By the sixth day, it had simply fallen below even the initial five hundred wen, leaving only four hundred wen.

The Earl’s wife in the estate had practically washed her face with tears: “I told you long ago, a proper young lady from a good family—what couldn’t you do instead of messing with this worthless thing? When trouble arose, you wouldn’t listen to advice. If you’d earned enough and thrown out those shares early, how would things have come to such a state! Yue’er, you’ve made the Earl so angry he fell ill. Just listen to your mother this once. The time for the princess consort selection is approaching—don’t keep tormenting yourself like this…”

Inside the room, You Yue sat rigidly.

Her eyes stared fixedly at the several share trading contracts and certificates in the box before her. These days she couldn’t sleep at all, causing her eyes to fill with bloodshot veins, making her look somewhat ferocious and frightening.

The Earl’s wife’s words fell on deaf ears.

She only asked the maid beside her for who knows how many times: “Is there new news yet?”

The serving maid had also been quite panicked these days. People in the estate saw that You Yue hadn’t been quite right these past days and didn’t dare go against her wishes, sending someone to the Shuxiang Inn to inquire about the latest news almost every half shichen.

But right now, new news hadn’t arrived yet.

The maid trembled, her voice thin as a mosquito: “No, not yet for now.”

You Yue’s expression immediately became fierce. She stood up and actually slapped the maid across the face, rebuking her: “It’s already been over a shichen and they’re still not back—what use are you all?”

Half the maid’s face immediately turned red.

The Earl’s wife cried out in alarm: “Are you mad? What are you doing now? Whether others return or not—what does it have to do with the maids in the inner quarters? You’ve truly been possessed, Yue’er. It’s merely a few thousand taels of silver—just let it go, won’t you? If you’re selected as Prince Linzi’s consort, won’t glory and wealth be within easy reach in the future?”

This position—the You Yue of the past wasn’t without ambitions toward it, but now the Earl’s wife’s words sounded particularly grating to her ears, further stimulating her heart that had suffered blow after blow these days, making her feel extremely repulsed.

She actually sneered coldly: “Is it that easy?”

The Earl’s wife froze.

You Yue spoke viciously: “Noble young ladies from throughout the capital will all go for selection. Above there’s Xiao Shu, below there’s Jiang Xuehui! How well-off are other estates, and what state is ours in? If I lose even this bit of silver, I won’t even be able to afford decent jewelry and accessories to present. Even if I go for selection, won’t others just laugh at me?”

Seeing that the person from the estate sent to gather news still hadn’t returned, she couldn’t wait any longer. Disregarding the Earl’s wife’s attempts to stop her, she took the box containing the contracts from the table, locked it with a lock, but tucked the key personally into her bosom, then called out loudly: “Prepare a carriage for me!”

The Earl’s wife asked: “Where are you going?”

You Yue didn’t look back as she said: “I’m going to the inn myself to see. You’re deliberately keeping news from me—don’t even think about it!”

She had always been domineering in the estate. Ever since being selected to study in Yangzhi Studio as a companion reader, even her elder sister You Shuang had to defer to her in the estate. So although the servants found it difficult, they had no choice but to prepare a carriage for her, fearing they’d suffer her beatings.

Behind her, the Earl’s wife called for her but she simply didn’t listen.

When the carriage left the estate, a tall and robust young man came riding up and stopped at the estate gate. If it were normal times, You Yue would definitely inquire about this person’s identity. But now her entire being was possessed as if by demons. After just one glance her gaze swept past, and she urged the driver to hurry the carriage to the Shuxiang Inn.

These past days, as the Ren family salt field share price dropped steadily downward—nine oxen couldn’t pull it back—at first many people came to watch the excitement. But after it fell for so long, people became accustomed to it, simply assuming the salt field was finished and those who bought shares had taken a loss.

So You Yue had originally thought there wouldn’t be many people when she arrived today.

But unexpectedly, having just stepped down from the carriage, she heard a chorus of voices inside the inn—it was actually quite lively.

“Really didn’t expect it—at this critical juncture, who would have the audacity to take over those ten thousand shares?”

“It’s dropped to three hundred wen with no one interested!”

“Isn’t there a rumor that news came from Shu saying the salt field is being rebuilt? It’s just that Ren Weizhi figured out this zhuotong well thing, which made surrounding salt fields quite envious. They’re taking advantage of his misfortune, forcing him to teach other salt fields how to drill zhuotong wells before they’ll lend aid—otherwise they’ll obstruct him at every turn. I think the Ren family salt field isn’t worth much anymore, but this zhuotong well is probably still worth something. Buying this for three hundred wen per share isn’t really a loss!”

“But once this method is told to others, it won’t be worth anything anymore…”

“Right, so who has such big guts after all?”

“Maybe someone with money and nowhere to spend it?”

When You Yue heard these words outside, her heart suddenly jumped. For a moment she completely forgot she was supposed to be a reserved young lady from a great family. Walking in, she asked one of the men who had been speaking: “Someone bought Boss Lu’s ten thousand shares?”

Inside the inn were mostly grown men who hadn’t expected a young lady to burst in.

However, when they looked up, though this young lady had delicate features, her expression carried a somewhat obsessive fierceness. A pair of reddish eyes glared, her jaw visibly clenched tight, making people feel chills just looking at her.

That person, seeing her attire indicated she wasn’t from an ordinary family, didn’t dare slight her.

He immediately answered: “Yes, someone bought them, but we still don’t know who’s behind it—this happened just a shichen ago. However, shares that were worth fifteen thousand taels a while back only sold for three thousand taels now. Boss Lu’s business deal certainly took a huge loss.”

You Yue’s heartbeat suddenly accelerated.

A thread of secret hope rose up: As long as someone was willing to buy, the share price had the possibility of stabilizing, maybe even rising!

“Innkeeper, prepare a private room upstairs.”

She had roughly calculated that according to the Ren family salt field’s previous habits, by today at the latest there should be definite news from the salt field side. She absolutely had no way to stay in the estate listening—better to come wait in person.

So she frowned and spoke to the innkeeper by the counter.

The innkeeper couldn’t help but freeze: “Miss, many people came today—the private rooms upstairs are all taken.”

You Yue immediately frowned. Seeing that upstairs there was clearly still a private room with its door and window open, as if unoccupied, she sneered coldly: “I am the legitimate young lady of the Earl of Qingyuan’s estate. Can’t you make even one private room available here?”

Commoners fear officials—how much more so when the innkeeper was a merchant?

He also looked up at that empty private room, but was extremely troubled: “Miss, that private room upstairs was reserved long ago by another young lady. Business is built on integrity—I really cannot take that liberty.”

You Yue swept a glance around, lightly raising her chin, saying disdainfully: “Everyone coming and going here are mere peddlers and laborers. This young lady’s presence honors your establishment! Whoever reserved it can just give it up—surely they wouldn’t dare have any complaints.”

The surrounding “peddlers and laborers” couldn’t help but change expression.

Even the innkeeper’s face darkened somewhat.

Just at this moment, a clear, cold laugh suddenly came from outside: “How is it that Miss You now wants to seize even the private room I reserved?”

This voice…

You Yue’s expression suddenly changed, her entire body tensing up.

Though utterly unwilling, when she turned her head, she still saw that face she deeply loathed—Jiang Xuening!

Recently in the palace, what with preparations for the princess consort selection and the marriage alliance, the companion readers no longer needed to enter the palace, so You Yue hadn’t seen Jiang Xuening for quite some days.

Seeing her again now truly gave a dazzling, disorienting feeling.

As the weather began warming, she wore a goose-yellow pleated skirt. Her spring shirt was thin and transparent, further accentuating her slender waist. Her hair was black and lustrous like crow feathers, her figure slender and voluptuous in perfect measure. On her palm-sized face, her features were bright and beautiful, her gaze flowing—simply making one feel ashamed of one’s own inadequacy.

Behind her a bit actually followed another person—none other than that Prince Consort Dingfei they’d met once in the palace.

An air of wealth and romantic charm, a pair of roguish, alluring peach blossom eyes.

Standing beside Jiang Xuening, if one ignored the faint trace of playful mischief at the corners of his lips, one felt they were a talented man and beautiful woman—extremely pleasing to the eye.

The two of them entered the inn one after the other, so others didn’t know they were acquainted.

However, You Yue immediately cursed in her heart: Lecherous man and promiscuous woman!

Her enmity with Jiang Xuening ran deep—this was nothing new—but she had heard of Xiao Dingfei’s various behaviors since returning to the capital and didn’t quite dare act presumptuously.

Today, however, Jiang Xuening was acting contrary to her norm, smiling at her with a pleasant expression, as if they had no grievances whatsoever between them. She actually said: “How rare to meet in such a place. I’m also on good terms with Fangying and am somewhat worried about her situation in Shu, so I also came to wait for news. Since Miss You didn’t find a private room, if you don’t mind, why not join me?”

Had Jiang Xuening eaten something wrong today?

This was the first thought that popped into You Yue’s mind.

She became wary, not believing it in the slightest. Instead, she lost interest in the private room, sneering coldly: “Who doesn’t know Second Miss Jiang has a thousand and one methods to harm people? I couldn’t possibly bear such favor.”

Jiang Xuening calculated that right now Liu Yang was at the Earl’s estate persuading the Earl of Qingyuan to scheme those four thousand shares from You Yue’s hands. She absolutely couldn’t let her return now and ruin things there.

So turning her thoughts, she wanted to use provocation.

But just as she was about to speak, from the corner of her eye something flashed. She suddenly glimpsed that figure walking in from outside. The words about to leave her mouth were immediately forgotten completely, and for a moment she actually felt somewhat removed from reality.

He seemed not to favor wearing official robes, dressed only in a dull, rigid ink-blue long robe. His gaze, even when not passing over people’s faces, revealed a stillness and solemnity several degrees more intense than ordinary people.

Cold as bedrock, silent as a frigid pool.

His knife-carved long eyebrows slightly lowered, a bony long finger emerged somewhat from the simple, wide sleeve of his robe, holding a roll of paper.

Upon seeing Jiang Xuening, he then also saw Xiao Dingfei standing quite close to her. His footsteps paused briefly, but he still walked in, two constables following behind him.

The innkeeper was startled.

He hurriedly came out from behind the counter, bowing with cupped hands: “My goodness, what matter brings you officers personally here?”

Common people rarely saw officials, so naturally the innkeeper didn’t recognize Zhang Zhe.

He didn’t reveal his identity either, only unrolling the paper in his hand, asking the innkeeper to look carefully: “Has the person in this portrait come to your establishment recently?”

The innkeeper concentrated on looking, then shook his head: “If someone looked like this, I would definitely remember if they’d come—I have no impression whatsoever.”

Zhang Zhe’s brow thus furrowed slightly more.

The two constables both spoke to him in low voices about something.

He remained silent, only putting away that portrait, thanking the innkeeper with a word, then walking toward the outside of the inn.

In that moment, though the distance was clearly not far, Jiang Xuening actually felt this person seemed as if at the horizon. She became somewhat distracted, only thinking: He clearly saw me, yet acted as if he didn’t recognize me.

You Yue remembered clearly that her initial feud with Jiang Xuening began precisely because of an argument related to Zhang Zhe. Seeing Zhang Zhe enter, she first froze, then instinctively looked at Jiang Xuening’s expression.

Seeing that Zhang Zhe came in acting completely as if he didn’t know Jiang Xuening, she almost immediately covered her mouth and laughed.

Mocking words, amid schadenfreude, blurted out: “Tsk, and I thought Second Miss Jiang and that Lord Zhang were mutually in love—turns out it’s shameless one-sided infatuation, throwing yourself at him! No wonder—I heard this Lord Zhang is no lecher. Why would he bother with certain fickle, wanton women!”

As she spoke, she even looked meaningfully toward Xiao Dingfei. The disdain and implications in her words were absolutely clear.

A surge of inexplicable irritation rose in Jiang Xuening’s heart.

Under everyone’s watching eyes, she directly slapped You Yue across the face without holding back in the slightest!

“Smack!”

A crisp sound.

The entire tea hall on the lower floor immediately fell silent. Everyone was dumbstruck, looking toward Jiang Xuening with more than a bit of shock.

Xiao Dingfei’s face even tensed hearing it. He absolutely hadn’t expected that the soft and beautiful beauty he’d been watching had such a chilling side to her, and couldn’t help but shudder.

You Yue covered her face, stunned for a moment before screaming: “Jiang Xuening, you wretched woman!”

Jiang Xuening looked at her coldly, but didn’t say a word. She turned and walked directly out of the inn.

If she hadn’t seen Zhang Zhe just now, encountering today’s special moment of closing the net, she might have endured and maneuvered with You Yue. But Zhang Zhe appeared for just that brief moment, stirring her thoughts into complete chaos.

She knew clearly that if she went out at this time, by tomorrow the capital would likely be filled with rumors and gossip.

But—

She had already done something like secretly scheming to force Xiao Shu into a marriage alliance. Those few idle rumors and gossip that could neither harm her life nor change her heart—what did they amount to?

Jiang Xuening didn’t care!

Her footsteps were hurried as she directly chased after Zhang Zhe. Drawing near, she called toward his back: “Lord Zhang!”

Zhang Zhe stopped and turned around.

The two constables beside him looked back in surprise. Seeing Jiang Xuening, they both couldn’t help but freeze, their hesitant gazes also turning toward Zhang Zhe.

Zhang Zhe remained silent.

Jiang Xuening completely disregarded others’ gazes. As if those two constables didn’t exist at all, she straightened her back, stood before him, no longer concealing her feelings, and asked directly: “The gift I sent on New Year’s Eve—did Lord Zhang receive it?”

The two constables’ gazes were immediately tremendously shocked.