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Xiao Liulang's heart felt as though someone had firmly squeezed it. He stared at Gu Jiao with a mixture of disbelief and complexity on his face.
Why?
Why treat him so well?
He didn’t deserve it.
Gu Jiao continued chopping wood and said, "I've heated up the water. You should go wash up and get to sleep. I'll be done soon."
Just as she finished speaking and set down the saw, she added, "Or maybe I'll go fetch the water instead."
Xiao Liulang grabbed her arm, his gaze deep as he looked at her, "JiaoJiao."
"Yeah?"
"Don't be so kind to me."
I will find it hard to let go.
If there comes a day when you regret all this, I might resort to any means to keep you by my side.
I'm not a good person. I’m not as harmless as you perceive me to be.
Gu Jiao met his complex gaze and said candidly, "You're very kind to me too."
Xiao Liulang's heart suddenly became a mess.
He took a deep breath, slowly lifted his hand, and lightly touched her cheek with his fingertips, "Silly girl, you'll regret it."
Gu Jiao thought about this possibility seriously and then shook her head firmly, "I won't... At worst, I'll divorce you."
Xiao Liulang: "..."
——He wasn’t exactly comforted.
Xiao Liulang looked at her intently, then suddenly let out a quiet laugh.
Gu Jiao looked puzzled and asked, "What are you laughing at?"
He answered truthfully, "Laughing at you."
He had initially intended to indulge in a moment of melancholy, being clearly affected by that deep undercurrent of sorrow within him. However, this young lady's interruption disrupted his mood, preventing his emotions from sinking further.
Xiao Liulang couldn't help but stifle a laugh. He pinched her little cheek and said, "You, how can you ruin the atmosphere like that?"
Gu Jiao had no idea how she had ruined any atmosphere and looked at him with confusion.
Amused by her reaction, Xiao Liulang placed a hand on the back of her neck, tilted his head slightly, and leaned toward her.
This… Was he going to kiss her?
Gu Jiao's eyes swirled for a moment, and she closed her eyes in anticipation.
However, after waiting for a while, she didn't feel his kiss. Instead, she heard a muffled chuckle near her ear.
When Gu Jiao opened her eyes and turned her head, she saw him holding a piece of wood shavings between his fingertips. He then stood up straight and suppressed a smile as he looked at her, "You have this on your head."
Gu Jiao's face darkened, "Oh."
Xiao Liulang understood what she wanted. He also desired it, as thoughts of her filled his dreams at night. He wished he could disregard everything else and press her beneath him, treating her just like he did in his dreams.
But he couldn't do that.
She had just learned of his background and hadn't truly come to terms with it yet. She didn't understand what it meant to be the son of a female slave.
He would give her time, whether she would regret it or not.
But he wouldn't give her too long.
......
Over the next few days, Xiao Liulang stayed at Bishui Alley to recover from his injuries, while Gu Jiao began investigating the mastermind behind the scenes.
On the fourth day, Yuan Tang showed up at the medical hall.
Gu Jiao thought he had come to get medicine for Liu Yisheng. The stitches from Liu Yisheng's severed finger had been removed, and the healing progress was good, though continuous medication was still needed, along with rehabilitation depending on the situation.
"Ten taels." Gu Jiao said.
Yuan Tang's sturdy body trembled, "Your medicine is so expensive! How can my cousin afford this?"
Gu Jiao responded calmly, "You're the one buying, not your cousin."
Yuan Tang asked, "What do you mean?"
Gu Jiao explained, "Different people, different prices."
Yuan Tang grumbled, "...What a profiteer you are."
Yuan Tang resignedly handed over ten taels of silver.
Gu Jiao took the money and, noticing he wasn't leaving, looked at him strangely, "What's the matter? Do you have more to say? If you're thinking of selling information to me, I advise you to give up."
The smug smile that had appeared on Yuan Tang's face instantly faded, "Are you a worm inside this prince’s stomach? How come you know everything this prince does?"
Heh, there was Fei Shuang’s example.
Gu Jiao sat back in her chair, burying her head in organizing today's medical records.
Forget it, he was just messing with her. He wanted to save face for losing those ten taels of silver, but it wasn’t like he would really drop the matter if he couldn't get the money.
Yuan Tang opened his folding fan and lazily said, "I heard your husband is missing. Do you know who's behind it?"
"Who?" Gu Jiao asked.
Yuan Tang said with a smirk, "Ning Wang."
Surprisingly, Gu Jiao wasn't very shocked by this answer. She placed a medical record back on the shelf and looked up at Yuan Tang, "Are you sure?"
Yuan Tang clicked his tongue and raised three fingers, "As the future Crown Prince of the State of Chen, this prince solemnly swears to the heavens that I'm absolutely not mistaken and definitely not fabricating anything! However——"
He lowered his hand from taking the oath and lightly tapped his palm with the folding fan, saying, "Isn't Ning Wang part of Empress Dowager Zhuang's faction? Why would he abduct your husband? Is he seeking revenge for your involvement in killing so many of his skilled experts? Though those experts were after me, you intervened, so does he hold a grudge against you for that?"
Ning Wang's grudge wasn't about that incident, but rather what happened afterward when she went to find Ning Wangfei.
But even so, all he did was burn down one of her workshops.
After that, she emptied his secret treasury.
To be honest, Gu Jiao didn't believe that Ning Wang would go after Xiao Liulang over a treasury.
Gu Jiao's thoughts turned to the Crown Princess's guilty expression.
She was definitely involved in this matter.
Could it be——
Had she already guessed Xiao Liulang's true identity? And had informed Ning Wang about it?
References
1. — "肚子里的虫" a worm in the stomach: used metaphorically to refer to someone who seems to know everything that's going on or has inside information about a situation.
Raz P.'s Thoughts
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