“Fan An, we are no longer involved with each other. From now on, let us be strangers. We have nothing to say to one another.”
Feng Wangge looked at the young man with undisguised disgust in her eyes.
The marriage had been arranged by both sets of parents, and they had never had much interaction. Later, after learning that she was not the Chu family’s biological daughter, Fan An had been the first to come to her door, claiming that the one he should marry was Chu Mingzhu.
Feng Wangge had never cared much about the engagement, but Fan An, in order to curry favor with Chu Mingzhu, had actually slandered her, claiming that she was the one who had pursued him unrequitedly.
“After all, we grew up together since childhood. Why must you be so cold? By the way, aren’t your biological parents’ family in the mountains of Qishan? Why are you here in Jingcheng?”
Fan An had come to visit his uncle’s family, and while he was at it, he wanted to see if he could get his father transferred back to Jingcheng.
Unexpectedly, he ran into Feng Wangge. Looking at the cold, stunningly beautiful woman before him, ripples stirred in Fan An’s heart.
Feng Wangge was becoming more and more beautiful—far more so than Chu Mingzhu. If only she were the Chu family’s biological daughter and hadn’t been cast out by them, how wonderful that would be.
What a pity. She was the daughter of poor hunters from a remote mountain valley, able to offer him no assistance whatsoever, and unworthy of him.
“I have nothing to say to you.”
Feng Wangge didn’t want to bother with Fan An and tried to walk into Zhenbaoge, but Fan An stepped forward again to block her way.
Her fists clenched tightly; Feng Wangge wanted to punch someone.
“Wangge, do you know what kind of place this is? This is Zhenbaoge. Without a thousand gold pieces, you can’t buy anything in here. I think you should just come in with me.”
Fan An smiled with a dashing, carefree air.
Feng Wangge must have been unable to endure her hunter parents in that mountain valley, unable to bear such a poor life. She must have come to Jingcheng to scrape by.
If that were the case, wouldn’t he have his chance? He could marry Chu Mingzhu as his lawful wife, then buy a courtyard outside and keep Feng Wangge as his mistress.
Just thinking about it filled him with immense excitement.
“What do you want to buy? I’ll get it for you.” Fan An was utterly confident. Feng Wangge had probably come here just to see what the place was like.
He would take Feng Wangge for a casual stroll on the first floor, just to broaden her horizons.
As for the second floor, where the items were even more precious, he had no intention of taking her there.
“Get out of my way. I’m going to the third floor.”
Feng Wangge shoved Fan An aside and said coldly.
It seemed she would need to find an opportunity to give Fan An a good beating later.
“Wangge, don’t joke around. The third floor of Zhenbaoge has never been open to the public—it only receives special guests. Even if you want to brag, you should at least know the facts first.”
Fan An found it ridiculous and spoke to Feng Wangge in a gentle tone.
Yet the condescension and arrogance in his voice were on full display before her.
But just as he was about to lecture Feng Wangge further, two people walked up to her and spoke in a courteous manner.
“Miss Wangge, our master invites you to the third floor.”
“Much obliged.”
Feng Wangge didn’t even glance at Fan An again, simply following the two men directly up to the third floor.
Fan An stared blankly. Not only did the third-floor guards make no attempt to stop her, they even bowed respectfully to her.
Unable to resist, he tried to follow Feng Wangge up to the third floor but was blocked by someone.
“This guest, please stop. The third floor of Zhenbaoge is not open to the public. Please go back down.”
Watching Feng Wangge’s retreating figure, Fan An’s face was filled with shame and indignation.
“Why can they go up, but I can’t?”
“We have nothing to say on the matter. If you insist on causing trouble, don’t blame us for being impolite.”
The guard’s attitude was firm.
Fan An was the second young master of the prefect’s household in Jiangzhou, but in Jingcheng, he was nothing. He didn’t dare make a scene in Zhenbaoge.
He could only glare hatefully at the third floor, where Feng Wangge had already disappeared from sight.
Feng Wangge’s biological parents were both mountain hunters—where would they get any money? She was used to a life of fine clothes and good food.
Perhaps she had used her beauty to latch onto some powerful person this time.
She truly had no self-respect or dignity, doing something so disgraceful to her family’s reputation.
“No, I must tell Brother Chu about Feng Wangge’s doings and have him discipline his own sister.”
His heart burned with jealousy. Why could Feng Wangge attach herself to other men, yet treat him with such cold indifference?
If it could be someone else, why couldn’t it be him?
Feng Wangge, however, couldn’t care less about what he was thinking. She went straight into a large room at the back of the third floor.
In this room were all kinds of weapons—axes, halberds, hooks, spears, swords, staves, bows, arrows, and armor—everything one could imagine. Most people had no idea that Zhenbaoge housed such an arsenal.
“Wangge, my girl, I’ve been waiting for you for so long. Why did you take so long to get here? I was starting to feel heartbroken.”
A spirited old man spoke with a hint of playful reproach, but Feng Wangge only smiled lightly and pulled out a stack of papers.
“Elder Qin, everything you asked for is right here. Are you still heartbroken now?”
The corners of Elder Qin’s mouth immediately spread into a wide smile the moment he saw the paper in Feng Wangge’s hand, and once he could clearly see what was drawn on it, his smile grew even wider.
“I knew it—you girl always know how to surprise people. Don’t worry, I’ll give you an extra ten percent of the profits this time.”
Feng Wangge never did things for nothing, but when it came to drawing weapon blueprints for Elder Qin, she charged the least, because these weapons were meant for the nation.
“No need to give me extra. I have several boatloads of goods docked at the ferry that have been seized—they claim there are contraband items among them. But I’m certain my cargo is completely clean. Find a way to resolve this.”
Hearing Feng Wangge’s words, Elder Qin’s expression immediately turned serious.
“I naturally believe your word. Don’t worry—your goods will be released by tomorrow.”
Elder Qin’s unquestioning trust moved Feng Wangge deeply.
“So, since I trust you that much, how about you forge a few more weapons for me?”
But then, Elder Qin added with a mischievous grin.
“No problem. As long as you’re happy, Elder. Since we’ve finished our business, I’ll go check the herbs in the room over there. You can keep looking at the blueprints.”
Feng Wangge had also come to Zhenbaoge partly to search for medicine for Old Master Chu.
“Alright, alright, go ahead—don’t worry about me.” Elder Qin was now completely absorbed in the blueprints Feng Wangge had drawn.
Shaking her head helplessly, Feng Wangge turned and walked out, entering another very large room. She searched for a long time until her gaze suddenly stopped upon spotting a certain stone.
Xunfengyu—this item would be of great benefit to her grandfather.
But just as she was about to speak, a hand snatched the jade away faster than she could react.
“This jade—I’ll take it.”