The Male Lead's Harem Belongs to Me (GL) - Chapter 19.3
One late night, the sound of “Cuckoo, cuckoo” suddenly came from the back courtyard of the Prince mansion. Jiang Han, who was enjoying the coolness in the courtyard, heard it. Initially, she thought of staying silent, but then she reconsidered and thought that maybe going out for a stroll would be better, so she also responded with two “Cuckoo, cuckoo.”
This is a secret signal between her and Gu Hanyun. Whenever one of them wants to sneak out at midnight, they use this signal to notify the other. Jiang Han had already refused many times before, but this time she responded.
After receiving the signal from the other side, a rustling sound came from the wall. Soon, another person appeared in Jiang Han’s courtyard. Jiang Han changed into a different outfit and, along with Gu Hanyun, stealthily slipped out of the gate without anyone noticing.
The two of them strolled towards the center of the city. The cool night breeze felt unexpectedly comfortable on their faces. Jiang Han felt her mood improve significantly and glanced sideways at Gu Hanyun, asking her, “Why have you been coming out so often these days? Are you eager to see Kui’er?”
Gu Hanyun chuckled twice and said, “Of course not. I saw that you, Princess, were in a bad mood, so I thought I’d come out with you for a stroll and find some fun.”
Jiang Han looked at her distrustfully: “Where are we going to have fun?”
Gu Hanyun: “Hehe, going to Kui’er.”
Jiang Han: “……” I knew it.
Gu Hanyun started talking to herself: “Princess, you must believe me, in this capital, if I say Kui’er’s guqin skills are second to none, no one would dare claim first. Kui’er’s guqin skills not only make people forget their troubles but also help them regain their joy. If you go today, you’ll see for yourself, it will surely make all your worries of these days disappear.”
“So amazing?” Jiang Han raised an eyebrow. “Then I must see for myself today.”
“By the way, the Prince has gone to bed now, right?”
“Of course, I saw the lights in her room go out before I came out.”
“That’s good.”
A moment later, two well-dressed men appeared at the Seven Treasures Pavilion. Having learned from their previous experience, they moved with great skill, pushing through the crowd to get in front of the brothel owner, and finally managed to secure a spot in the front row with their substantial banknotes.
Whenever someone came down from upstairs, Jiang Han and Gu Hanyun would pretend to be discussing some nonsensical issues with their backs turned. After confirming that the last person to come out of Kui’er room was not the male lead, both of them let out a long sigh of relief.
Unlike last time, this time the two were dressed to the nines, looking very different from their previous attire. They both felt that even if Qi Ze were standing in front of them now, he definitely wouldn’t recognize them.
Jiang Han and Gu Hanyun confidently followed the brothel owner upstairs. The brothel owner enthusiastically introduced the girls in the building to them along the way, even offering a 20% discount for their next visit. Jiang Han and Gu Hanyun pretended to be knowledgeable and nodded.
As they were about to reach a door, Jiang Han heard a familiar voice. Before she could think it over, the door in front of them opened, and a rather handsome man walked out, saying, “Looking forward to our next collaboration.”
The moment she saw this person, Jiang Han was completely stunned, her bl00d felt like it was freezing. Damn it! Can someone tell her why her third brother Jiang Mai is here!
In that moment, Jiang Han considered many possibilities. She reacted in just 0.01 seconds, decisively lowered her head, pulled over Gu Hanyun from the side, and said in a rough voice, “Hey, Brother Gu, we won’t go home until we’re drunk tonight.”
Gu Hanyun still didn’t know what had happened, but seeing Jiang Han’s expression, she knew it wasn’t anything good, so she immediately reacted: “Alright, Brother Jiang, we won’t go home until we’re drunk.”
The brothel owner looked at the two with confusion, puzzled but not saying anything, and continued to lead the way. One step, two steps, the two walked out a few steps in succession, and Jiang Mai didn’t stop them. Just as they were starting to relax, another youthful male voice called out to them, “Excuse me, have we met somewhere before?”
Another familiar voice, Jiang Han suddenly remembered. This distinctive tone of voice was none other than the boy who had kicked him when she last encountered Qi Ze, right?
She remembered him; the original story had mentioned this young man, the current emperor’s fourth son, who was Qi Ze’s nephew. This young man came from a good background but had no desire for the throne. He was devoted to commerce, opening many shops in the capital and was an excellent businessman. It was precisely because his mind was not on seizing the throne and he paid a considerable amount of silver each year that he lived until the end in the original story.
Jiang Han recognized him and immediately said, “You have mistaken us for someone else. Our status is too lowly to know you. My friend and I have urgent matters to attend to, so we won’t disturb you two.”
After finishing speaking, he grabbed Gu Hanyun and walked quickly.
“Really?” Qi Ru retorted, and the next moment, he suddenly appeared in front of the two, blocking their way.
The moment he saw the faces of the two, a hint of a smile clearly appeared in his eyes. He thought to himself, one with the surname Gu, the other with the surname Jiang, how could this combination be so familiar?
Jiang Han and Gu Hanyun panicked for a moment, but then suddenly remembered that they had changed their attire, so they let him look. Gu Hanyun even said, “What business do you have, esteemed guest? We’ve already said we don’t know you…”
However, before she could finish her sentence, Qi Ru’s light-hearted laughter interrupted her: “Brother Jiang, aren’t you coming to take a look?”
Jiang Han: “!” Why is there still off-field rescue?
Jiang Mai originally didn’t want to get involved, but seeing Qi Ru’s playful gaze, he inexplicably felt that there must be a problem. After responding, he stepped forward, only to find that the two suddenly wanted to leave urgently.
Jiang Mai squinted his eyes, took two steps forward to stand in front of the two, and fell silent when he saw Jiang Han’s face.
Seeing that he didn’t respond, Jiang Han mustered up the courage to say, “What are you two doing? Are you really planning to do this in front of so many people… ah! Ouch…”
Jiang Mai’s lips twitched slightly, and he directly reached out and precisely tore off the mustache Jiang Han had stuck on, forcing a smile and saying, “This brave man must have forgotten, I’m your dear brother!”
“Hey, hey, hey, don’t pull my ears, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts!”
Accompanied by Jiang Han’s tearful voice, Gu Hanyun and Jiang Han were taken to the adjacent room by two people.
Jiang Mai sat in his seat, looking at the two with disappointment, while Qi Ru beside him laughed like a fox, causing Jiang Han to give him a resentful glare.
Jiang Han touched his smooth lips and said, “Third Brother, why did you bring us here? We’ve already paid the silver. We can’t afford to delay; Kui’er is still waiting for us.”
Jiang Mai crossed his arms and looked at her: “I thought the prince was lying to me last time, but it turns out I misunderstood him.”
Jiang Han also crossed her arms and looked at him: “Do your parents know you’re here?”
The siblings glared at each other, their eyes sparking with tension. Jiang Mai suddenly squinted and smiled, saying, “It’s not a big deal for me to come here alone, at most I’ll get scolded by Mom and Dad, but you…”
Very well, Jiang Han was cornered. She fell silent for a moment, rolled her eyes, and said, “One hundred taels.”
Jiang Mai curled his lips: “One thousand taels.”
Jiang Han gritted her teeth: “Five hundred taels.”
Jiang Mai raised an eyebrow and pretended to leave: “One thousand taels.”
Seeing Jiang Mai about to walk out the door, Jiang Han painfully took out the last thousand taels of silver notes from her sleeve. This was her last bit of private savings. Before her marriage, her parents had spoiled her and she had never lacked pocket money. Before her wedding, they had given her a large sum, and she was about to squander it all in the next couple of days.
Jiang Mai earned a thousand taels and squinted his eyes with a smile, saying, “Actually, even if you didn’t give it to me, I wouldn’t say anything. After all, I’m your own brother. How could I bear to report you?”
Jiang Han chuckled, “I will never trust any man again.”
Jiang Mai nonchalantly blew on the banknote in his hand. At this moment, Qi Ru, who had been silent for a long time, spoke up: “Princess, actually, I’ve always wanted to partner with you on a business deal, but I’m afraid you won’t trust me…”
“I believe you!” Jiang Han suddenly pushed her brother aside, her eyes sparkling with laughter. “Why don’t you tell me what kind of business it is, Fourth Prince?”
Qi Ru showed a victorious smile towards Jiang Mai, who was twitching at the corner of his mouth, and then turned to Jiang Han and said, “No need to rush now, doesn’t the princess have something to attend to?”
Reminded by him, Jiang Han finally remembered that she had something to do. She looked at Gu Hanyun, who had been neglected for a long time, and said, “Okay, let’s talk about it next time.”
It’s not that Jiang Han doesn’t value this business deal; it’s just that every moment spent meeting the courtesan is worth money. Here, every minute wasted means their silver is being spent for nothing, so Jiang Han urgently pulled Gu Hanyun away.
After the two left, Qi Ru stared at their retreating figures with great interest and said to Jiang Mai, “Brother Jiang, your sister is quite interesting.”
Jiang Mai tucked away the silver note and laughed heartily, “Indeed interesting. However, when it comes to doing business, she has never dabbled in it. If Fourth Prince needs anything, you can come to me…”
When he said this, a glimmer flickered in his eyes. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Jiang Han, but that he didn’t trust the man in front of him.