The Princess Smells So Good (GL) - Chapter 48

Judith felt a little anxious.

Of course, it was just a little. After all, she had been through a lot. But as she looked at Wei Zhao, her expression became a bit strange. She had long suspected that the person in front of her wasn’t simple. Although the Treasure Pavilion itself was a symbol of wealth, there were some things that money alone couldn’t buy.

Judith suppressed the thoughts in her mind and became even more cautious. “I’m just a foreign merchant, so I only deal in profits that can be measured by money.”

As for selling her life, that was out of the question. She thought to herself, glancing subtly at Fa Yilian. But Fa Yilian didn’t even glance at her.

It was… really frustrating.

Wei Zhao nodded. “Of course, I’ll offer you enough sincerity.”

At this point, Fa Yilian stepped aside and opened a silver chest. It was full to the brim with gold bars. Judith’s breath paused for a moment. As a merchant, one always needed a lot of money. Coming to Da Zhou, whether it was through smuggling or slave trading, there was a lot of money to be made. But these gold bars had an unparalleled impact on Judith. In that moment, she even thought that if Fa Yilian really was the person she had found, she could understand why the other person didn’t leave the young lady in front of her.

There was simply too much money.

If it were her, she wouldn’t want to leave either.

Judith clenched her fists, forcing herself to pull away from the shining gold and spoke with a voice that was a bit hoarse and strained. “What can I do?”

“Business,” Fa Yilian replied smoothly. Her calm attitude surprised Judith. Wei Zhao didn’t seem unhappy with Fa Yilian’s taking charge, only sitting there upright. So Fa Yilian continued speaking with a certain decisiveness, “There are many businesses in Haizhou City, of course, and many ships. We want to know the destinations of some businesses and ships, as well as the locations of certain pirates.”

Judith slowly raised an eyebrow, while Fa Yilian continued, as though she didn’t notice Judith’s reaction. “My master wants to build his own fleet, so naturally, we need a safe and secure route.”

“Pirates rob ships, but if they were really this rampant and dangerous, there wouldn’t be so many ships at the docks.”

Judith didn’t know whether to believe it or not, but she nodded slightly. Fa Yilian then glanced at Wei Zhao, who said, “We’ve just arrived, and while we understand the basics, the official ships have been robbed three times recently…”

“It’s actually five times,” Judith interrupted. She looked up and stared into Wei Zhao’s eyes.

There was a brief flash of surprise in Wei Zhao’s eyes, and then she frowned and thought for a moment. “The first three times were months ago. Did the fourth and fifth happen recently?”

“Recently, in the past two months,” Judith replied. Then she chuckled, “It seems the young lady’s information is a bit outdated.”

Whether it was mocking Wei Zhao’s outdated information or sowing discord, it was hard to say.

But Wei Zhao wasn’t bothered by people playing tricks. Sometimes, not playing tricks at all could be more troublesome. She pressed her forehead and said, “Two months, two times.”

“Exactly. I’m also a merchant, so naturally, I care about the safety of the shipping routes. However, now that the city is thriving, us small merchants feel a lot more at ease.”

Judith smiled, but Wei Zhao’s expression darkened a little. She had been indulging in food, drink, and entertainment, and was somewhat familiar with Haizhou City. She naturally knew that commerce here was flourishing day and night. If pirates were really as rampant as claimed, trade would have been the first thing to be affected. But the thriving trade only meant one thing: the merchants had someone backing them up.

But who was providing that support? The officials? Or the pirates?

Wei Zhao gently pressed her finger against her temple, her face becoming more somber.

Fa Yilian spoke up again. “Since you have support for the shipping routes, could you recommend some to us?”

“To be honest, I have some armed forces on my ship, so it won’t be a problem to run faster,” Judith replied, her expression calm, as if she were entirely innocent.

Fa Yilian smiled. “The sea is different from the land. Small ships are fast, but large ships with sails and cannons—if two armies were to meet, the small ships would never be able to outrun them.”

Judith then turned her gaze back to Fa Yilian. Fa Yilian pretended not to notice Judith’s look and continued, “I’ve been at the docks for several days now. The number of ships doesn’t match the capacity of the docks, so there must be another dock. We merchants naturally take whatever profitable opportunities we can. So, could you tell me, Ms. Judith, what is the most profitable business in Haizhou City?”

Judith tapped her chin thoughtfully. “As for what’s the most profitable… with your wealth, if I tell you, wouldn’t I be cutting off my own business?”

Fa Yilian’s expression remained indifferent as she smiled. “If Ms. Judith doesn’t answer, then it won’t be your business that’s cut off, but your life.”

“You’re threatening me?” Judith’s expression changed.

Fa Yilian shook her head with ease. “Not at all. Today, I’ll lend you A Zong to protect you for the night. If Ms. Judith decides tomorrow, you can come to find my master.”

Throughout the entire exchange, Wei Zhao had remained silent, letting Fa Yilian take charge. When Fa Yilian mentioned lending A Zong, the previously indifferent A Zong suddenly widened her eyes and stared at Fa Yilian. Fa Yilian didn’t react, and Wei Zhao, though hiding it, glanced at Fa Yilian subtly. Of course, Wei Zhao’s careful attention couldn’t escape A Zong’s sharp eyes.

A Zong realized that Wei Zhao clearly didn’t care about her at all. She quietly sniffed, then glanced at Judith. Judith was frowning, clearly not happy. Hmph, she wasn’t happy either! A Zong thought to herself, then raised her chin. Just as Judith turned to look at her, she caught A Zong’s dissatisfaction and met her eyes with a kind smile.

A Zong: “!!” She quickly lowered her chin and pretended to be indifferent. At that moment, Judith smiled at her again. A Zong felt a bit lost. The other woman was showing kindness, something rare in her life. She hesitated, and then awkwardly smiled back at Judith. Judith smiled even more happily.

The young girl was so easy to fool. She could probably get a lot of information out of her.

Judith stood up to leave, and before she did, she glanced at the chest of gold and said, “I’ll send someone to take the silver away later.”

That greedy nature!

Wei Zhao nodded but didn’t say much. This was the reward she had promised, and she wouldn’t take it back. Only after Judith and A Zong left did Wei Zhao turn to Fa Yilian, sighing. “Such good quality, precious jade. It’s a shame to keep you by my side.”

Fa Yilian turned and showed a look of sorrow. “Has A Xian grown tired of me and plans to abandon me?”

“What are you talking about!” Wei Zhao said in surprise, moving closer and waving at Fa Yilian. Fa Yilian came a bit closer. Wei Zhao reached out and gently traced Fa Yilian’s jawline with her fingers, stopping at her chin and lightly scratching.

Her movements were tender, like a spark drifting over a meadow, stirring a ripple wherever she touched. But the way she did it was so casual, as if playing with a little cat. Fa Yilian’s eyes darkened, and she held Wei Zhao’s hand, looking into her eyes as though she were teasing.

Wei Zhao raised an eyebrow, leaning in even closer. If she got any closer, they might just touch. In fact, she had been thinking about this. What did it matter if there were no official concubine status? This person in front of her was clearly willing to indulge in bliss with her. They had already been intimate once, and Wei Zhao had experienced the intoxicating pleasure. So what would one more time matter? Fa Yilian hadn’t rejected her before, and it was even less likely now.

“A Xian…” Fa Yilian whispered.

When Wei Zhao heard the hoarseness in Fa Yilian’s voice, she raised her brows triumphantly and grinned. But then, she saw Fa Yilian close her eyes and open them again. “Your Highness.”

Wei Zhao’s smile slowly faded.

She now understood the meaning behind the name change.

Fa Yilian was rejecting her again.

She was rejecting her once more!

Why?!

Was she playing with her, the eldest princess, her master?

Wei Zhao suddenly yanked her hand away, her gaze cold as she looked at Fa Yilian. Fa Yilian remained silent, then stood up and lightly dusted off her clothes. Today, she was meeting guests, and with Wei Zhao’s favor, she was dressed in something more elegant than a typical servant’s attire—men’s clothing with a flowing collar, embroidered with flowers, and a gilded leather belt, giving her the appearance of a handsome young man from Da Zhou, exuding a refreshing charm unique to their people. She looked at Wei Zhao, bowed slightly, and turned to leave.

“Stop!” Wei Zhao shouted.

Fa Yilian paused but didn’t turn around.

“What do you want?” Wei Zhao’s voice grew more agitated. “You don’t want to be a concubine, fine. You don’t want to be an official, fine. You deliberately seduce me, and then humiliate me like this. What do you want? You don’t want this, you don’t want that—do you want to be my prince consort?”

Fa Yilian remained silent and didn’t look back, but Wei Zhao saw her head tilt slightly, clearly in a proud gesture.

Fa Yilian spoke softly, “What I want, you’ve already known. It’s simple, yet complicated. Whether you’re a commoner or a princess, you can give it to me. But it has to come from you.”

“…” Wei Zhao’s body trembled slightly. She raised her arm and swiped at the desk, knocking over the pen holders and trinkets, the sound of chaos echoing through the room.

Fa Yilian paused, then took a step forward.

Wei Zhao moved her lips but didn’t speak. She clenched her teeth and bit her lower lip, unable to say anything. Finally, when Fa Yilian had left the room and disappeared from view…

“Damn it!” Wei Zhao couldn’t hold back anymore. She lost all strength and collapsed onto her seat.

“Where in the world… is there such a luxurious thing…”