The Princess Smells So Good (GL) - Chapter 20

The county office was typically divided into two sections: the front part for official business, and the back for the officials’ living quarters. Naturally, the backyard had a door for easy access.

At this moment, a small beggar stood at the gate, nervously eyeing the stone lion statues outside. His heart was racing. He gathered his courage, about to knock on the door, when a man’s voice suddenly called out, “Hold on. Who are you? Do you know whose residence this is? Aren’t you afraid of being kicked out?”

The beggar turned around and saw a middle-aged man dressed in plain blue clothes. He instinctively glanced at the man’s shoes and socks. Noticing they were clean and the shoes had thick soles, he instinctively took a step back and cautiously replied, “Answering the lord, I…”

The man smiled upon hearing the word “lord” but didn’t interrupt. The beggar continued, “Someone asked me to deliver something here.”

“What is it?” the man asked. When the beggar hesitated, the man chuckled and said, “Do you think I would want to steal from you?”

“No, no,” the beggar quickly replied. He fumbled through his filthy clothes and pulled out a golden hairpin, handing it over. The man looked at the hairpin. Under the sunlight, it gleamed brightly, its color pure and lustrous. His expression became serious. He took it and flipped it over, seeing a small “Imperial” character engraved on the pin. His face immediately changed. He grabbed the beggar by the neck and snarled, “Where did you get this?”

“It… it was a woman who gave it to me…” The beggar struggled, his face turning red as he gasped.

“A woman?” The man narrowed his eyes, his gaze turning cold. “Take me to her.”

With a sharp whistle, several burly men dressed as servants appeared, surrounding the beggar.

This scene was witnessed by someone in a nearby alley. She lifted her bamboo hat and coldly observed the situation for a moment before silently leaving.

The man, who had just given the orders, was murmuring instructions to his subordinates. He felt something shift and glanced up, seeing an ordinary-looking man wearing a bamboo hat, slowly blending into the crowd. Assuming it was just a man, the man dismissed the thought and turned his attention back to the matter at hand.

Meanwhile, the harbor was bustling with activity.

Ships were coming and going, and many laborers from the outer city were working here. In addition, there were many travelers making business deals. The water routes in Ganzhou were intricate, and boat travel was especially popular. Many people preferred traveling by ship. Thus, merchant ships also provided space for passengers, adding to their income.

Wei Zhao stood beside a merchant ship.

It was noisy around her.

Perhaps because she had spent so much time in the forest, Wei Zhao found herself feeling uncomfortable with the noise. She stood there silently, observing the comings and goings at the dock.

“Half an hour until the ship leaves! Please board soon; we cannot wait for anyone!”

The clerk called out loudly.

No one paid attention to the clerk. Such sights were so common that only those who needed to hurry increased their pace a little.

Wei Zhao scanned the merchant ship, her face darkening, then turned her gaze to the entrance of the dock again.

“Are you waiting for a lover, sister?”

A voice suddenly came from beside Wei Zhao’s ear. The voice seemed somewhat familiar. She turned her head and saw a young girl. The girl was dressed in pale pink, but her face was very pale, bearing a sickly look. Beside her stood a tall woman with black hair and blue eyes, carefully supporting the girl.

“It’s you…” Wei Zhao murmured. She immediately recognized them, especially the cold, icy look the tall woman had given her earlier. Wei Zhao instinctively didn’t like them, so she frowned and turned her head away, ignoring them.

“Ah, this sister is truly cold-hearted,” the girl said softly. Her voice had a lively youthful tone, but it was weak, showing a frailness. Wei Zhao’s expression soured as she found the girl’s chatter quite annoying.

But the girl smiled brightly. “It’s rare that we’re on the same ship, and we’re both from different lands. This must be a special fate, right?”

Wei Zhao’s eyes narrowed. She understood what the girl meant. Just as she had noticed the girl and the woman, the girl had noticed her and Fa Yilian.

Wei Zhao frowned, feeling a hint of frustration. She didn’t like being noticed, especially in such a way. With the situation unclear, she wanted to keep a low profile. Any attention was unwelcome.

“Don’t worry, sister,” the girl continued, seemingly talking to herself but also reading the situation. She smiled sweetly and said, “If it weren’t for my relationship with A Zong, I wouldn’t have noticed you. Your servant cares for you, so she won’t abandon you.”

Wei Zhao: “…”

She didn’t understand what the girl was talking about, so she coldly replied, “I don’t know what you mean.”

“I understand, I understand,” the girl giggled, before coughing weakly a few times.

The woman beside her, the foreigner, looked worriedly at the girl and gently patted her back. “Miss, we should board the ship. It’s windy here.”

The girl sighed. Wei Zhao noticed her grip tightening on the woman’s hand. The fingers were turning pale, and the foreigner didn’t seem to feel the pressure. She didn’t even flinch.

What a loyal servant.

Wei Zhao felt a touch of envy. If it had been her own troublesome slave, they would have taken the opportunity to cause trouble. As the great princess of the Zhou Dynasty, she couldn’t even match a sickly little girl in terms of controlling her servant!

A twinge of sourness rose within her. But quickly, she comforted herself. It was probably due to Fa Yilian’s wild nature. She glanced at her slave, A Zong, who was much more obedient and docile compared to Fa Yilian.

Wei Zhao thought to herself, given the current situation, it was people like Fa Yilian who would be more useful. Those with talent always had their quirks. As a princess, she had to learn to tolerate others.

Lost in thought, she also felt a fire burning in her heart.

They had prepared for two possibilities. If something went wrong, Wei Zhao would board the merchant ship with Fa Yilian and head straight to Haizhou. Fa Yilian would stay behind, keeping an eye on things. If anything went awry…

“If I’m in danger or can’t make it to the dock in time, when the time comes, you board the ship without waiting for me. Once you reach Haizhou, you’ll be safe.”

Fa Yilian had said this to Wei Zhao.

Thinking back, Wei Zhao felt the same helplessness she had felt in the forest. Now, amidst the crowds, she realized she didn’t have much of a choice. As always, her servant would act first. She had no choice but to wait, and the only decision she could make was whether to abandon everything.

Wei Zhao knew that this wasn’t her fault. She was the great princess of Zhou, not a warrior with overwhelming strength, nor a strategist. Yet…

She turned her head toward the vast sky. The ships came and went, the sunlight shimmering on the water, as if gold was flowing. The Zhou Dynasty was vast and powerful, with tributary states all around. But she still felt as powerless as she had in the palace.

“Human strength is limited. Powerlessness is the feeling one faces most often. But, A Xian…”

The voice she had once hated echoed in her mind, mocking her like a curse.

“As the daughter of the Emperor, as the grand princess of the Zhou, you have such thoughts. This is the greatest joke.”

Wei Zhao lowered her gaze, her hands slowly tightening into fists.

“A Xian, you always disappoint your mother.”

Wei Zhao closed her eyes, feeling a pang in her forehead. The humiliation she had felt before rushed back to her. She had thought that once she held power, nothing could restrict her. But stepping out of the safety of the capital, looking around at the vast, empty world, she suddenly felt like she had been thrown into a lonely place. Everything she had seemed like a joke.

She gritted her teeth. She couldn’t let herself think like this.

She had a servant. Just a servant. A piece she could discard at any time. How could she let her failure to arrive on time make her feel like this? She took a deep breath and looked one last time toward the road ahead before decisively turning away.

The clerk at the dock looked at her. He had been standing there for a while and knew Wei Zhao was waiting for someone. But since she had bought a first-class ticket, he greeted her with a warm smile, tinged with pity. “Is your companion not here yet?”

“…”

Wei Zhao glanced at the clerk, handing over her ticket.

The clerk quickly clipped it, speaking in a comforting tone. “Don’t worry, we still have a quarter of an hour before we leave. Miss, you…”

“Shut up!”

The clerk quickly stopped talking, taken aback by the harsh tone.

Wei Zhao looked down at her ticket, holding back the urge to turn around, and stepped onto the gangway.

Behind her, she heard the sound of running footsteps. Before long, someone grabbed her hand.

“Hey! Ticket check!” the clerk called out in a panic.

“Let it pass,” came the foreigner’s strange accent.

Wei Zhao turned around and saw her slave, dressed in men’s clothes, pushing up her bamboo hat, revealing her sweaty face and a wide grin.

“The ship hasn’t left yet? And here you are, boarding already? How heartless, my master.”

The clerk, curious and nosy, looked at the two with a mix of interest and gossip.

Wei Zhao’s face remained cold. She quickly jerked her hand away and snapped, “You’re my slave. I’ll wait if I want to, and I won’t if I don’t. What’s the problem?” She turned to walk away, and Fa Yilian followed. The clerk rushed to stop them. “Hey, where’s your ticket?”

“It’s right here… Shopkeeper, we know each other, can’t you make an exception?”

“I don’t care if you know each other. I only care about the ticket!”