Volume One, Chapter 12: Chief Manager Qi Jin Xiu

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When Gu Nanxiao heard this, the smile vanished from his face. For Yunxi to show signs of pregnancy, the fetus would have to be at least five or six months old. If she were forced to abort it then, would that not mean the death of two lives?

After spending all this time with Yunxi, he had long since realized that she was no ordinary sheltered young woman. In his heart, he no longer regarded her as a lowly concubine.

Besides, Yunxi was the legitimate daughter of an official family. To make her serve him namelessly as a chamber maid was already a grave injustice. How could he sacrifice her life merely to silence a rumor?

It was rare for Gu Nanxiao to show displeasure toward the Empress Dowager, but now he put on a solemn expression and said, “Grandmother, this method must not be used. A true man should establish himself through achievement and reputation. Why should I fear a mere rumor?

“If I truly followed your plan, I fear I would never know peace for the rest of my life. Grandmother, please do not bring this matter up again.”

As the Empress Dowager, who had fought her way through the treacherous inner palace to ascend to the highest position, she was naturally no softhearted woman. She did not care whether that chamber maid lived or died. Yet seeing how firmly Gu Nanxiao resisted, she could not press the matter further.

She merely assumed that he was young and inexperienced, and could not bear to witness the dark schemes of the inner households. Her thoughts, however, had not been dispelled. If she could not persuade Gu Nanxiao, she would leave the matter to his mother.

Since the Empress Dowager no longer forced the issue, Gu Nanxiao naturally did not continue discussing it. After chatting idly with her for a while, he asked the Empress Dowager for a box of Flawless Balm, then took his leave of the palace.

The moment he passed through the palace gates, Mo Yu came forward to report, “Miss Yun did not return to the residence. She is currently at the Auspicious Wish Restaurant, meeting with a man.”

Gu Nanxiao’s expression darkened at once. He untied one of the horses from the carriage, mounted it in a single fluid motion, dug his heels into its sides, and disappeared swiftly from before the palace gates.

At that moment, Yunxi was in a private room on the second floor of the Auspicious Wish Restaurant. Seated opposite her was a man in blue robes, whose eyes seemed to glimmer faintly with tears. The emotion lent a touch of worldly warmth to his otherwise cool and ethereally handsome face.

Qi Jinxiu had seen Yunxi’s corpse with his own eyes, and was therefore utterly certain that she had perished in the sea of flames.

Yet when he saw the familiar handwriting and coded message, he had still rushed over at the greatest speed possible.

When Qi Jinxiu staggered into the private room and pushed open the door, what he saw was a stunning face bearing only a three-part resemblance to the one in his memories. There was no way he could connect the two women in his mind.

Yunxi naturally knew how unbelievable the matter was. But Feng Xun, Que’er, and Qi Jinxiu had all spent three years with her. She had her own ways of making these old acquaintances recognize her.

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Yunxi placed the three packets of medicine she had purchased earlier at the apothecary on the table. Then she asked for paper and ink and wrote out a prescription before Qi Jinxiu’s eyes.

She slowly pushed both items toward him and said with a smile, “The old madam’s palpitations have improved considerably, so the previous prescription should be changed.

“This formula is milder and better suited for long-term treatment. I believe that after another three to five months, the old madam’s condition will be completely stabilized.”

Yunxi herself did not know medicine. She was able to produce these prescriptions through her prodigious memory, as well as the fact that her family’s businesses were involved in the medical trade and had preserved many secret formulas never passed on to the outside world. As the heir, she had naturally been required to commit them all to memory.

Qi Jinxiu picked up the prescription. When he saw the characters missing their usual radicals and the adjusted combination of medicinal ingredients, no matter how difficult it was to comprehend, he could now be absolutely certain that the woman before him was Yunxi.

Yunxi naturally understood that Qi Jinxiu had questions to ask. But she raised her eyes and cast a glance from the corner of them at Qian Yu, who stood behind her, signaling that he should ask nothing.

Qi Jinxiu was an exceptionally perceptive man. He understood her meaning at once and surmised that her current identity must be subject to some kind of restriction.

He was in no hurry, however. Having come all this way and learned that she was still alive, everything else was insignificant.

With Qian Yu present, Yunxi assigned Qi Jinxiu the task of withdrawing from the Shi family’s business. He was to gradually hand over the shops under his management to the second manager.

After that, he was to introduce the second manager to the several suppliers of questionable character with whom they had previously refused to cooperate. After operating in this manner for a month or so, he would withdraw from the Shi family’s shops entirely and become the chief manager of the businesses belonging to Prince Yong’s household.

Although Qi Jinxiu listened attentively to Yunxi’s plan, his eyes remained fixed on the woman opposite him. As he gazed at her lively, self-assured eyes, emotions he could not suppress surged beneath his own.

Just then, the door to the private room was pushed open, and Gu Nanxiao happened to take in the entirety of Qi Jinxiu’s expression.

With a dark face, he walked to Yunxi’s side and reached out to pull her from her chair. He then sat down himself and drew her onto his lap.

Throughout the entire sequence of movements, his eyes remained fixed on the man in blue, filled with anger. He was unmistakably proclaiming his possession.

When Qi Jinxiu had seen him manhandling Yunxi, the icy glint in his eyes had ceased to be concealed. He stared directly back at Gu Nanxiao and showed no intention whatsoever of rising to offer a formal greeting.

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Although Yunxi had never been in love in her modern life, her status, position, and beauty had naturally earned her countless admirers. She had seen enough scenes of romantic rivalry to perform one at a moment’s notice.

Thus, she immediately understood what was happening. Afraid that Gu Nanxiao might misunderstand, she raised her arms around his neck and leaned close to his ear, whispering, “He is one of the old retainers my sworn elder sister left behind in the Shi family. If we recruit him as chief manager, he will become the sharpest blade we can wield against the Shi family. Young Master, please do not ruin my revenge plan.”

As a modern woman, Yunxi naturally saw nothing unusual about embracing someone in public. Yet in the eyes of the two men, her gesture meant something entirely different.

Yunxi had guessed correctly. Gu Nanxiao’s earlier actions had indeed carried an element of proclaiming his possession, but they were nowhere near as effective as Yunxi taking the initiative to draw close to him.

Therefore, the moment she wrapped her arms around his neck, nine-tenths of Gu Nanxiao’s anger dissipated. The hand encircling her waist also grew gentler.

He breathed in the unique fragrance of the woman in his arms and felt the soft, warm breath brushing his ear. In an instant, even the last trace of his anger vanished.

Yunxi was wholly occupied with soothing Gu Nanxiao, and no one noticed that the moment she reached out to embrace him, Qi Jinxiu’s grip on the teacup suddenly tightened.

He immediately lowered his head, using the act of drinking tea to conceal the intense pain in his eyes. No matter how strong his self-control, he could no longer suppress the turmoil raging within him.

Although Yunxi had stayed beside Shi Qingchen for three years, the two of them had never shared such intimate contact. Their natural closeness just now clearly showed that physical affection of this kind was something they were accustomed to.

What did that signify?

Qi Jinxiu neither wished to understand nor dared to understand.

Seeing that Gu Nanxiao’s expression had completely softened, Yunxi began the introductions. “Young Master, this is Mr. Qi, a successful candidate in the provincial examinations. A month from now, he will come to help manage the businesses of Prince Yong’s household.

“Today, I am formally introducing the two of you. From now on, all the accounts concerning the shops will be handled directly between you. I will no longer interfere.”

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