Chapter 36: An Unexpected Encounter in the East Quarter

Pan Yueqing rested her chin in her hand with a smile on her lips. She raised her eyes and glanced at Luo Shui standing behind her. Luo Shui stepped forward and helped Li Rou sit back in her seat. Then Pan Yueqing said kindly with a smile, "It's a good thing for Concubine Li to give birth to Father's eldest son. But I'm an unmarried girl and don't know how to help you. However, I've heard that as long as a pregnant woman pays attention at all times during pregnancy, there won't be any major problems. Although Concubine Li is pregnant now, you've given birth before. Why are you still asking me?"

Li Rou was "helped" back to the mahogany chair by Luo Shui with a little force. She raised her eyes and looked at the smiling Pan Yueqing, and her face didn't look very good. "I'm not pregnant yet. I just want to have a child for the Pan Mansion while I'm in charge of the courtyard..."

"Then Concubine Li should work even harder," Pan Yueqing said, secretly heaving a sigh of relief. Before long, someone from Li Rou's courtyard said that the Fourth Miss was throwing a tantrum and needed Li Rou to go there. Li Rou stood up awkwardly and took her leave from Pan Yueqing.

"Miss was a bit hasty today," Nanny Zhao stood behind Pan Yueqing, loosened Pan Yueqing's hairpin, checked the wound, carefully applied some pearl nourishing cream, and looked at the beauty in the Linghua Goddess Mirror with a slight sigh. "We just drove Liu away earlier. Now with all this happening in the courtyard, I'm afraid the Prime Minister will think of you as someone who likes to stir up trouble."

"So what? Nanny Zhao, if I don't deal with her when she rebelled today, I don't know when I'll have another chance," Pan Yueqing let out a slight hiss. Nanny Zhao quickly stopped her hand. She bent down to carefully check if she had hurt Pan Yueqing. When she raised her eyes, she met the girl looking back and tilting her head, giving her a mischievous smile. Nanny Zhao patted the girl's shoulder. "You really don't feel pain, yet you still tease this old woman like this."

"Luo Shui..." Pan Yueqing glanced at Xia Yang, who lifted the curtain and was carrying a charcoal brazier, and then continued, "Where did she come from? She seems to be quite skilled. Promote her to be a first-class maid by my side."

"If the Miss thinks it's good, then it's good," Nanny Zhao gently put down the comb and nodded.

The next morning, Pan Yueqing got up very early. She changed into a long gown dyed with autumn incense color, depicting mountains and waters, put on a gray squirrel felt hat, and there was an eastern pearl set on a golden sparrow feather holder on her head. A multicolored tassel hung straight down from the feather holder. She called Luo Shui and Xia Yang and was about to go out.

She wanted to visit the East Quarter. In her previous life, when she went to the East Quarter, she always went with Pan Miaoqian and was just a foil to Pan Miaoqian, never having a good time. Moreover, the East Quarter was Mr. Hong's property. It would be a waste not to go.

The East Quarter was a long street, divided into the "White Sand Workshop" and the "Jade Wall Workshop". The White Sand Workshop was a market where ordinary people bought their daily necessities; while the Jade Wall Workshop was a place where the powerful and noble often gathered. The Jade Wall Workshop never closed at night and never allowed carriages to pass through. Even princes and princesses had to get off their carriages and take a sedan chair to enter.

Pan Yueqing stopped in the White Sand Workshop. Standing in front of the bustling crowd, the three of them looked extremely wealthy. Just standing there attracted a lot of attention. There were whispers around. At the nearest noodle stall, a man looking like a scholar put down his chopsticks in amazement and secretly sighed, "As the ancients said, the beauty of Luo Fu. I really understand it today."

After hearing this, Pan Yueqing frowned slightly. She came to the White Sand Workshop to find someone. Yang Lin lived in the White Sand Workshop. Xia Yang's eyebrows danced, and she whispered with a smile beside Pan Yueqing, "Miss, he's praising you for being beautiful!" But this flattery didn't bring Pan Yueqing any joy. Luo Shui gently pulled Xia Yang's sleeve and shook her head slightly.

How could a noble lady allow others to judge her appearance?

Pan Yueqing's eyes slightly narrowed as she looked at the scholar who praised her. She was so surprised that her eyes widened. She knew this person! The future champion of the imperial examination, and also the first person in the history of the Northern Qi Dynasty to achieve the rare feat of winning all six levels of imperial examinations - Shi Jiting! It was rumored that Shi Jiting was raised by a monk and won the first place all the way from being a child student to becoming the champion of the imperial examination. He was truly a talented person.

It was a good thing to make friends with a future talent. Pan Yueqing averted her gaze and said to Xia Yang, "Go and ask someone where the seventeenth household on Huangji Street is." Shi Jiting was handsome, and Xia Yang would definitely choose to ask him.

Sure enough, after Xia Yang went, she ran back to Pan Yueqing with a blushing face in small steps. "Miss, that young master said he's willing to lead the way for us." Pan Yueqing raised her eyes, and Shi Jiting stood up and bowed politely to Pan Yueqing. Pan Yueqing chuckled inwardly, nodded slightly, and said thank you.

They soon arrived at the seventeenth household on Huangji Street. Shi Jiting was really a gentleman. His face was very red along the way, but he didn't dare to chat casually. When they arrived, he took three steps back and bowed politely to Pan Yueqing again. "I'll take my leave now, Miss."

Pan Yueqing curled her fingers and knocked on the door three times. When she heard no answer, she knocked three more times. After getting no reply, she turned to leave. When she turned around, she saw Princess Pingning and her entourage blocking the alley. Princess Pingning had her arms crossed in front of her chest and smiled at Pan Yueqing with a forced smile. "Is Second Miss Pan here to have her fortune told?"

Fortune-telling? Pan Yueqing was puzzled. Didn't Yang Lin say that he had already given up his old business and was just working as a doctor? At the moment, she looked at Princess Pingning, nodded gently, and smiled. "It's said that there's a gentleman here who is very accurate at fortune-telling, so I came to give it a try. Is the Princess also here to have her fortune told today?"

"I'm here to settle accounts!" Princess Pingning took three steps forward, raised her chin slightly, and motioned for someone to break open the door.

Pan Yueqing quickly stepped aside. Yang Lin was a poison doctor, and his poison skills might be even better than his medical skills. People who didn't know his background would definitely suffer if they met him. But Princess Pingning was arrogant and had often teamed up with Pan Miaoqian to bully her in the past. She didn't have such a kind heart to help this arrogant princess.

Sure enough, as soon as the door opened, a thick pink smoke filled the air. Pan Yueqing and Luo Shui were prepared and covered their noses. In contrast, Princess Pingning and her entourage were choked by the chili powder. When she caught her breath, she angrily pulled out the whip from her waist and whipped it at the servant beside her, shouting angrily, "Go in and catch that charlatan who's playing tricks for me!!"

Pan Yueqing let out a slight sigh. It seemed that there was no need to look for Yang Lin today. According to that guy's temper, he had probably already run away. Unexpectedly, when she turned to leave, the servants who rushed in beside Princess Pingning were all sent flying out one by one. A figure suddenly appeared at the door, and it was the eldest prince, Qi Simeng.

He glared at Princess Pingning with a fierce look in his eyes. "What are you up to again?!"

Pan Yueqing felt a bit embarrassed at the moment, not knowing whether to curtsy or not. Princess Pingning pointed at Qi Simeng's nose and said arrogantly, "Just because you believed what this charlatan said, you don't want to marry me anymore, right?! We grew up together, and you've always taken care of me the most. Why did you suddenly go to propose to that girl surnamed Li?!"