Early the next morning, when Gu Ci appeared before everyone wearing a haggard and handsome face, they were all startled, assuming Lord Gu had been attacked the previous night.
It wasn’t until they saw Master Chen beside Lord Gu looking full of vitality and nothing like someone who had suffered a great ordeal that everyone finally realized their Lord Gu simply hadn’t rested well.
Mowu secretly shot a glance at his master, then cast his gaze toward Gu Ci. Could it be…
At this moment, Gu Ci kept yawning, having no heart for breakfast, and felt all the more awkward inside. Who could have imagined that he would dream the entire night of… the Seventh Prince? And even more horrifyingly, he had dreamt of the Seventh Prince transforming into an unearthly, stunning beauty.
That was truly absurd to the extreme.
Wu Chuan was of an impatient temperament; seeing Gu Ci’s half-asleep appearance, he couldn’t help asking with concern, “My Lord, are we still going to check out several brothels in the city today to investigate the case?” The few of them had been looking forward to it since last night; please let them still go.
Hearing this, Gu Ci instantly had an idea in his mind. It must be because he hadn’t visited a brothel to appreciate beauties recently that he had such a horrifying dream.
“We’re going! Of course we’re going. You and Wang Peng go to Fragrance Pavilion, and I and…” Gu Ci suddenly remembered that Jun Yichen was an imperial prince; would going to such a place cause him to lose his status? Besides, what if someone with ulterior motives discovered this and made a big issue out of it wouldn’t that be extremely dangerous?
Reflecting on this, the words on the tip of his tongue took a detour.
“I’ll go to Spring Welcome Pavilion alone. This trip is primarily to find out what kind of people the victim, Plum Blossom, interacted with during her lifetime, what her reputation in Fragrance Pavilion was like, and if she had any enemies.”
“Disguise yourselves, and don’t draw too much attention, so as not to invite unnecessary trouble.”
The two acknowledged the order and hurried upstairs to tidy up.
Jun Yichen was twirling a top-quality white jade folding fan in his hand, his eyes filled with probing inquiry. He reached out to block Gu Ci’s path and smiled as he asked, “Ah Ci, why aren’t you taking me with you?”
Because of the bizarre dream from last night, Gu Ci never dared to meet Jun Yichen’s gaze directly, and felt somewhat guilty at the moment.
He let out a long breath and repeated his previous considerations to Jun Yichen.
Hearing this, Jun Yichen froze slightly; he hadn’t expected Gu Ci to leave him behind for this reason.
A trace of softness welled up in his heart, and even his tone softened considerably as he spoke, “It doesn’t matter. We’re just going to investigate a case, aren’t we?”
Hearing that phrase “aren’t we?”, Gu Ci gradually grew a layer of goosebumps, as if all his little schemes had been seen through completely.
He hurriedly nodded with a fawning smile and said yes.
For convenience in investigating, they had both been wearing tight-waisted riding attire. Now that they were going to conduct a covert investigation in a brothel, in order not to attract attention, they naturally had to change into a different set of outfits.
The madam of Spring Welcome Pavilion was a well-preserved middle-aged woman. Having mingled in this trade for over thirty years, reading people and observing expressions was her signature skill.
When she saw the two handsome young masters approaching head-on, her heart was filled with boundless joy. If her eyes weren’t playing tricks on her, judging by the attire and styling of these two, they were definitely scions of immense wealth or nobility.
Beaming all over her face, she swayed her water-snake waist, flicked a silk handkerchief in one hand, and pinched her voice into an exaggerated cry, “Oh my, you two young lords look unfamiliar! Is this your first time coming to our place?” While speaking, she didn’t forget to cast one flirtatious glance after another toward the two of them.
A flash of murderous intent flickered across Jun Yichen’s handsome face as his brows locked tightly onto the hand the madam had placed on Gu Ci’s shoulder.
Sensing the murderous aura he was emitting, Gu Ci immediately pulled on the fingers hidden beneath Jun Yichen’s wide sleeve without a sound.
Assuming the other wasn’t accustomed to this kind of occasion, Gu Ci gently pulled him slightly behind himself.
Then, smiling, he fished a gold ingot from his bosom and dropped it into the madam’s hand, his tone frivolous and arrogant, “We two brothers came here from Jingzhou to do business, and I heard that the maidens in our Spring Welcome Pavilion are all drop-dead gorgeous. How about it? Madam, can you arrange something for us?” That ruffian-like demeanor vividly portrayed a dissolute young master idling his life away.
At this moment, the smile on the madam’s face was so forced that it resembled a blooming chrysanthemum, with wrinkles covering her entire face.
“Oh my, Young Lord, you are too polite! Come on! Yan Niang, come out and receive guests; honored visitors have arrived!”
As for two men asking for a single maiden, it wasn’t something she hadn’t seen before; wealthy young masters all had some unique quirks to varying degrees.
Swaying her water-snake waist, she walked in front, personally leading the two all the way into an exquisite private room on the second floor. She instructed the servants to prepare top-grade wine and water for the two of them, and then giggled teasingly, “Two honored guests, this Yan Niang is the premier beauty of our house; her appearance and figure are peerless, and she is thoroughly versed in zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting. Most importantly, in bed…”
Hearing this, Gu Ci hurriedly spoke up to interrupt her, “Alright… that’s enough, we don’t need you here anymore. You go… attend to your busywork.” The madam assumed the young lad was simply thin-skinned and embarrassed, so she didn’t linger to disturb them any further and retreated with an apologetic smile, gently pulling the door shut behind her.
At this moment, Gu Ci was so embarrassed he wished he could dig a hole in the ground and crawl inside; had he known it would turn out like this, he would have dressed more low-profile.
He touched the tip of his nose with a guilty conscience and muttered, “Uhm, the brothel madam is really enthusiastic, hehe.” Alright, he might as well not have spoken.
At this moment, Gu Ci’s brain was spinning at high speed: If Jun Yichen found a girl he liked and formed an attachment to this world, would he avoid undergoing a dark corruption arc in the later stages?
“System, System…” Gu Ci felt from the bottom of his heart that this idea was quite good.
“Host, your idea is very nice, but if that person is a courtesan… are you certain that won’t accelerate the villainous big shot’s corruption arc?”
Hearing this, Gu Ci froze as well, trying to imagine it in his mind: a seductive courtesan and a peerless imperial prince going through trial after trial, only for the royal family to ultimately reject the woman’s background, leading to… the imperial prince turning dark and going crazy? He hurriedly shook his head to banish this terrifying notion from his mind.
Watching the shifting expressions on Gu Ci’s face, Jun Yichen’s fingers gripping his folding fan turned slightly pale. He forced out a stiff smile and asked with casual nonchalance, “Is Ah Ci really this eager to see this premier beauty?”
Gu Ci was still immersed in his terrifying fantasy just moments ago, and when asked like this, he looked distinctly bewildered. He met Jun Yichen’s mesmerizing, bewitching eyes: “Huh? What?”
Jun Yichen was amused by his dazed appearance and prepared to tease him further.
However, the door was gently pushed open by a delicate hand, and a beautiful woman dressed in transparent, gossamer-thin gauze resembling cicada wings walked in slowly, stepping forward like a fairy descending to the mortal realm.
Both of them froze slightly; Jun Yichen merely glanced toward the doorway before unperturbedly shifting his gaze back to rest steadily upon Gu Ci.
“This maid, Yan Niang, pays her respects to the two young masters.”
A natural, innate charm permeated the woman’s voice, her figure graceful and her steps light.