Liu Si was as stunned as his master, never expecting the middle-aged woman he had mistaken her for to be so young and beautiful.
Gu Yu Chen had also just seen Song Shiyue’s true appearance. No wonder the Crazy Old Taoist said they were a perfect match—she truly wasn’t inferior to himself.
Uncle Da gave a light cough, pulling Gu Yu Chen back to his senses. He cleared his throat somewhat awkwardly.
“This outfit suits you well. You should dress like this from now on.”
Song Shiyue knew he meant she should stop wearing those gender-neutral clothes. She smiled at him and said, “Now that I have Wanguan jiacai, of course I should wear fine clothes and accessories.”
Gu Yu Chen choked slightly, then straightened his expression. “I have a favor to ask of you.”
Seeing his serious demeanor, Song Shiyue knew it was important business and immediately became earnest as well. Coincidentally, she also had something to discuss—this could be mutual assistance.
Uncle Da shot Liu Si a meaningful look, but noticing his dazed expression and realizing he hadn’t yet recovered his wits, simply pulled him out of the room.
“I…”
Gu Yu Chen pondered how to phrase his request to make this girl agree readily.
Song Shiyue waited leisurely for his appeal, feeling that him speaking first would work to her advantage.
“I am the grandson of Gu Feng, a wealthy merchant of Da Chu. The emperor has suddenly fallen ill, and the princes are becoming restless, each trying to win over the Gu residence. Someone has proposed a marriage alliance…”
“You want me to be your shield.”
Song Shiyue was clever enough to understand his request from just that one sentence.
As it happened, she had her own thoughts on the matter. “I can help you, but you must help me with something in return.”
“Name it.”
Seeing Song Shiyue’s straightforwardness, Gu Yu Chen didn’t hesitate either.
Outside, Uncle Da thought to himself, Young Master is even willing to give up his inheritance—what is there to hesitate about?
“Help me watch for people in Jing City who resemble me.”
Gu Yu Chen immediately understood. “You’re looking for your family. Are they in Jing City?”
“Uncertain.”
She only knew that a residence referred to as Qianjin should have substantial family wealth. But whether they were wealthy or noble? She had no idea.
“In that case, let me draw your portrait to facilitate the search.”
“No need. I don’t want the whole city to know, making it difficult to identify my true relatives later.”
There were many people with similar appearances, but not necessarily blood relations. The commonly used blood-testing method in this era was also unreliable.
Song Shiyue didn’t want numerous relatives popping up. Her main concern was her master—she would search for him personally.
As for family, the reason she would ask Gu Yu Chen to help search was to discover who had harmed her back then. She wouldn’t miss any chance for revenge that was due.
Uncle Da carefully studied her appearance and cautiously asked, “Does Young Madam have any keepsakes or useful clues?”
“My master found me on Niujiao Mountain in the Jing suburbs. Based on the material of the swaddling clothes I was wrapped in, I was likely born into a wealthy family.”
Gu Yu Chen and Uncle Da exchanged glances—she must have been a victim of some inner household conflict.
Both simultaneously felt sympathy for Song Shiyue. Gu Yu Chen promised, “I will definitely help you find them. However, whether they will genuinely accept you after finding them is hard to say.”
“Heh! It doesn’t matter. I just want to find whoever abandoned me and take revenge.”
Song Shiyue took out several portraits and the original swaddling clothes from her bundle.
“My master drew these. He encountered this person on the night he found me and suspected he was the one who abandoned me. But he didn’t notice the face shape clearly.”
Gu Yu Chen unfolded the drawings—some showed round faces, some long faces, and others triangular faces.
No matter how the face shape changed, the positions of the freckles and the mole remained the same.
Actually, this was something Song Shiyue had drawn based on her imagination, as she wasn’t clear whether the man’s face was round or long.
The man was called Freckle Face, so he must have had freckles on his face. As for that disgusting large mole, although her vision had been blurry at the time, the feature was too distinct for her to mistake.
Gu Yu Chen looked at the portrait of the man covered in freckles with a large mole and immediately thought of her disguise during the journey.
“You didn’t start looking for someone along the way, did you?”
“I had the idea, but no one came up to say the face looked familiar.”
Song Shiyue had applied the makeup hastily in a moment of urgency. That freckled face had often surfaced in her mind, so she drew it effortlessly without thinking much about it at the time.
Gu Yu Chen secretly complained: With that kind of appearance, who would take a closer look? Better to avoid ruining one’s appetite.
He handed the portrait to Uncle Da, saying, “Have more copies made.”
Uncle Da glanced at Liu Si, who was still in a daze, and directly shoved it into his hands. “Go now.”
“Oh, okay.”
Liu Si responded foolishly and walked out in a stupor, unable to process the transformation from an auntie to a beauty.
Uncle Da shook his head. “Please forgive Liu Si’s rudeness, Young Madam.”
“It’s fine. He probably hasn’t seen many beauties.”
Liu Si’s stunned reaction gave her more confidence in her own appearance. She hoped that after entering the capital, she would attract more attention and draw out the relevant person to appear before her voluntarily.
With Song Shiyue’s permission, Gu Yu Chen wrote a letter to his grandfather in Qingzhou, informing him that he had already married outside. Afraid that it might be seen by prying eyes, he didn’t explain the truth.
After staying at the farmstead for over ten days, the subordinates who had been out searching for Gu Yu Chen gradually returned. They were immensely grateful to Song Shiyue for saving their master.
Without needing Uncle Da’s instruction, upon hearing that they already had a marriage certificate, they automatically addressed Song Shiyue as “Young Madam.Gu Yu Chen wanted to explain, but Uncle Da advised him against it. “Since Young Madam doesn’t mind, there’s no need for you to make a fuss, Young Master. Let’s avoid complicating matters.”
“Hmph! Of course she doesn’t mind.”
He noticed that the girl seemed quite pleased to hear it, really acting as if she were the mistress of the house. She knew all about his wealth, down to the last detail.
She claimed they should act the part thoroughly, but why was she only willing to manage the money and not share the bed?
Gu Yu Chen felt as if he had let a wolf into his house—a greedy wolf.
“The people you’ve been waiting for have mostly returned, right?”
Song Shiyue closed the account book brought by Uncle Da and smiled at the resentful Gu Yu Chen.
“Yes, we’ll enter the capital the day after tomorrow.”
“Why do you need to wait for so many people to enter the capital together?”
“I forgot to tell you—I’m famously known as a playboy in the capital. Wherever I go, I must have a crowd of servants following me to flaunt the Gu family’s wealth and influence.”
Song Shiyue was surprised, finding it hard to imagine that the spirited, righteous person before her could be a playboy.
Seeing her disbelief, Gu Yu Chen didn’t elaborate, figuring she would find out for herself by the day after tomorrow.
“What are you trying to hide?”
Song Shiyue hadn’t intended to ask, but her mouth was faster than her brain.
Noticing her regretful expression, Gu Yu Chen teased her on purpose. “Actually, I’m a cold-blooded assassin.”
“Oh, that’s nothing to boast about.”
Song Shiyue’s expression remained calm. Gu Yu Chen asked her, “Aren’t you afraid?”
“Afraid of what? That you might assassinate me someday? You can’t beat me now, and even if your Inner Force recovers, you still won’t have what it takes.”
Gu Yu Chen was being looked down upon, yet he had no strength to retaliate. For now, everything Song Shiyue said was the truth.
Song Shiyue watched the disheartened Gu Yu Chen and delivered another heavy blow.
“Let me tell you a secret—I’m an elder of the Ziyan Alliance.”
Gu Yu Chen chuckled at her teasing expression. “You say it as if it’s real, but I don’t believe you.”
“Believe it or not, as long as we’re happy with ourselves, that’s all that matters.”
Gu Yu Chen understood—she was mocking him for claiming to be an assassin.
“Believe it or not, there’s one thing you must believe: staying by my side comes with many dangers. Although your martial arts aren’t weak, you must remain vigilant at all times and protect yourself.”
“Don’t worry, I value my life dearly.”
She still had to uncover the mystery of her origins, seek revenge, and find her master.
Her life was far too precious.