Arriving In Jingshan City

Glancing outside of the carriage's window and at the towering city walls which were getting closer by the second, Xie Mei nervously took a few deep breaths, attempting to get her act together–quite literally at that.

For the past seven days, Theodore had been spending most of his time in 'teaching mode'. First, he got Li Shuying properly acquainted with her new role as a charioteer, then he focused on improving both Xie Mei's and Han Junqiao's acting skills. Recalling what she had been told, Xie Mei went over everything once more.

"I don't expect you to be able to achieve this state immediately, as it takes a lot of practice. But to act means to 'live' as the role that you are playing. You become that person, your thoughts changing alongside to fit into the image which you're supposed to portray as well. There are even some actors who become too absorbed into their characters, losing their minds in the process."

Of course, the two young women had been worried about that outcome, which was why he had confidently reassured them.

"There are many ways to avoid this outcome, of course! For one, you can try to partition your mind in a way such as to birth a separate, secondary personality within. That one will then be morphed perfectly into the role that you're trying to play. However, you cannot allow it to take over your mind–instead, you have to put it in a subsidiary position, which your main consciousness is constantly overlooking. Once the role isn't needed any longer, simply put the subordinate personality 'on standby' until you require it again."

At that point, he had shown an awkward smile.

"Well, none of that is easy to achieve, though. Still, I recommend trying to create this second personality as soon as possible. With both of your Mind Attributes, you should be more than capable of handling this. There is no easy way to reach the point of the 'split'–you just have to continue acting. It might take you days, weeks, months or even years. But eventually, with enough effort and time, you will succeed. We all will have to act many times before I become the Heavenly Emperor, so this skill will come in handy, for sure."

After confronting them with their long-term goal, he gave them some more general acting advice which was far simpler to understand and make use of. They spent at least five whole days worth of carriage rides playing out various scenarios between the three of them, with Theodore critiquing them whenever they finished a particular scene. To be honest, it had been a lot of fun!

'We probably looked like an acting troupe, huh?'

Giggling to herself, Xie Mei hastily dispersed these distracting thoughts, then refocused on the role which she would be playing for at least the next few days: A confidant and servant of Han Junqiao, who would be the 'owner' of her and Theodore–he had assigned himself the same character as well.

Before long, they finally arrived in front of one of the city gates, where the guards ushered their carriage over, their expressions polite due to the Imperial Han Family crest clearly emblazoned outside.

"Excuse the disturbance, Miss, but may we inquire which Lord or Lady is visiting?"

Dismissively glancing at the guard captain who had sidled up next to the opened window, she turned to face Han Junqiao, her expression a fawning one.

"My Lady, we've arrived at Jingshan City. Do I have permission to announce your illustrious name?"

Dutifully reporting their current status in a servile manner, she bowed to Han Junqiao, who shot her a cold glare and nodded, before burrowing her face in the book which she had been focused on reading.

"Listen closely, because I won't repeat myself: My Lady's name is Han Junqiao. She is the daughter of Han Junming, and true heir to the Jun branch! Send a notice to the City Lord's Mansion, informing them that my Lady will be reporting intel of vital importance early on the morrow. But for today, we shall be settling in first."

Her tone haughty and overbearing, her air arrogant, she looked down upon the leader of the guards, who hastily took note of everything which she had said, not daring to make a peep or question anything at all. He nodded his head, before darting off into the distance to fulfil her command, telling his subordinates to escort them all the way to the Inner City.

Once they arrived there, they inquired about the nearest real estate agency and headed there, buying a beautiful mansion without a fuss. Due to the extreme amounts of wealth which they had acquired, such expenses weren't even worth thinking about, and this action of theirs enhanced their prestigious image in the eyes of the lackeys as well as the Hans who learned of this incident too.

"Please watch your step, my Lady. Do not worry, the carpet has already been laid out. Your shoes will not get besmirched by the filth below."

Holding the carriage door open, his back bowed and his hand stretched out, Theodore's visage was filled with respect and worship. Not a hint of insincerity could be made out.

"Well done. Now, you two. Follow me to inspect my new home. I will have you note down everything that we are still missing. And you, charioteer, park the carriage next to our new stables, then take care of the horses. They better be in perfect condition tomorrow!"

With her nose held high, Han Junqiao stepped outside, graciously allowing her lowly servant to stabilize her with his hand. Immediately after her instructions, she swaggered into their new home, Theodore and Xie Mei following behind her obediently.

To any outside observer, they appeared to be perfectly normal, with nothing to nitpick. If there was one thing which was slightly unusual about them, then it was that Han Junqiao's entourage was relatively small. However, not everyone liked to drag along vast swathes of people wherever they went.

Within half a day, Theodore and Xie Mei had already made multiple trips outside, buying various kinds of furniture and having them delivered straight to their doorstep. Because they had acquired the appropriate attire for their roles on the way to Jingshan City and had used various kinds of make-up to worsen their appearance considerably, they managed to blend in perfectly with the generally good-looking personal servants of the other Hans.

Their status also provided them with significant protection here in the Inner City. Generally, Imperial Han Family members were very possessive of those who they had claimed as their own. Therefore, it was frowned upon for anyone to attempt to make a move on those who were already the 'property' of others. With Han Junqiao playing the role of their 'owner', they would not have to worry about anyone trying to bother them. Not that they would be able to threaten them, obviously. Still, giving up their act this early definitely would have been a shame.

Towards the evening, Theodore finally finished setting up all required Arrays around their mansion and activated them immediately. From the outside, it didn't seem like anything had changed. However, the advanced Concealment Array that he had created caused their home to be easily overlooked, yet not suspiciously imperceptible, while simultaneously hiding everything which occurred within.

Naturally, an Isolation Array and an advanced Energy Gathering Array had also been arranged. Siphoning off Energy without being caught was pure child's play for him, even in a bigger city like this. Heck, he could attempt to pull off this stunt in the capital of the entire Han Empire!

Feeling the rapidly increasing Energy concentration, a small smile played across Theodore's lips. Right as he was about to call over the others to inform them, they had already taken note of the changes themselves, making their way to his side with hurried steps.

"You're done now, right?"

In response to Xie Mei's cautious inquiry, he smirked and walked up to her, pulling her into a gentle embrace. This action of his alone was more than enough to answer her question, as none of the three of them would have dared to showcase such a relationship dynamic–even in private–here in this city otherwise.

"Phew, that's great! We can finally breathe easy for a while!"

Beaming happily, she interlocked her fingers with his, leaning against his chest with her eyes closed. Yet, next to the two lovebirds, Han Junqiao showed a conflicted, awkward expression, a slight blush on her cheeks.

"Ahem! Master, would it be possible to erect an Isolation Array around your room as well?"

Shooting her an amused glance, a teasing smirk stole itself on his face. While eyeing Xie Mei, who did her best to pretend to not exist, he replied honestly.

"It's definitely doable, I still have enough materials on hand. However, a certain someone around here gets really excited whenever she realizes that her friends can hear her..."

Ignoring the embarrassed elbow strike to his gut, he remained completely unabashed as Han Junqiao unpacked his statement, her expression flickering between shock, befuddlement and shyness. Eventually, she simply stared at the pervert in question, an accusatory, yet flustered look in her eyes.

"D-Don't do that! Don't stare at me like that! I can't help it, okay?!"

Not daring to meet her gaze out of guilt and shame, Xie Mei's head figuratively transformed into a tomato. There had been an unspoken understanding between her and Theodore with regards to this matter, as it was something which she had realized very early on, back when only Li Shuying was staying with them. Because of this, he had not bothered to create any Isolation Arrays to shield the two of them in particular.

"..."

Still speechless at Theodore's revelation, Han Junqiao scrutinized her friend from top to bottom, as if meeting her for the first time. Never once had she thought that this cheerful girl would be into that sort of play. She had always done her best to ignore most of what she had been exposed to, as listening too closely would make her feel far too 'hot and bothered' to be able to rest.

"H-Hey! Stop it already! No judging, alright? You just don't know how good it feels yet! I bet you'd be the exact same as me if you were in my shoes!"

Freezing up awkwardly as soon as she realized what she had just said, Xie Mei looked away again, this time nervously peeking at Theodore from the corner of her eye. Fortunately, her 'husband' didn't seem all too bothered by her slip-up.

Han Junqiao, however, had inadvertently imagined what she had shamelessly alluded to, her cheeks taking on a redder hue than before. She couldn't help but recall her initial worry right after first entering her Master's service: That she would have to engage in acts of reproductive nature with him against her will.

'To be fair, the two of them did sound like they were having fun... No, no! What am I thinking?! I really shouldn't...! But maybe I could... consider it...?'

Her mind a complete mess, she didn't manage to formulate any sort of comeback to Xie Mei's words, instead remaining silent for minutes to come, sheepishly glancing at the couple all the while.

"Alright, alright. That's enough of this for today. Now that we're here, why don't we spend some time cultivating? Qiao'er, you might even be able to advance to the Core Formation Stage! So get your mind out of the gutter for now, you two, and focus."

Clapping his hands and snapping the girls out of their awkwardness, he reminded them of the next matters on their to-do list. Still, his words had not fully dissolved the ambiguous mood which had overcome the two.

'For now? What do you mean by that? Do you plan to return to this topic later, Master? Hmph, it looks like you're just as much of a pervert as Mei'er!'

Inwardly complaining, Han Junqiao rolled her eyes, a small part deep inside of her harbouring certain expectations for the future. However, now was definitely not the time for that.

'Core Formation Stage, here I come!'