Chapter 61 Don't Make Trouble

Pan Yueqing looked at the parrot that kept repeating, "You talk too much," and for a moment, she didn't know whether to laugh or cry. The Dowager Zhao also shook her head helplessly and said, "His Highness, Prince Xiangyang, is really too childish."

"You don't know," The Princess of Anbei also shook her head slightly with a sigh. "He's always been an unpredictable character, which is why he's always with that troublemaker Shen Ping'an!"

The maid at the door peeked in again. She hesitated and glanced into the room. The Princess of Anbei could tell at a glance that the maid had something difficult to say. She frowned slightly and said, "Just speak up. Everyone here is close, so there's no need to hold back."

The maid raised her eyes and looked back and forth between the Princess of Anbei and Qi Liulang. She said in a low voice, "Mr. Shen is here again."

"Please invite him in quickly." The Princess of Anbei was a bit confused but still instinctively spoke politely.

"He said he won't come in, but he wants to invite Miss Yue out for a talk." The maid mumbled, looking a bit为难.

The Dowager Zhao glanced sideways at Pan Yueqing and exclaimed in surprise, "How did you get to know that young man?"

Pan Yueqing smiled. In her heart, she cursed Shen Ping'an a hundred times over. But she still bowed slightly to her grandmother and the Princess of Anbei and said, "Grandmother, I previously recovered some money from Nanny Mei, Li Sier, and the others. Since I didn't dare to keep it with me, I asked someone to buy some real estate. Unexpectedly, the person I did business with turned out to be Mr. Shen. It was purely by chance."

Qi Liulang stepped forward and bowed deeply to the frowning Dowager Zhao. "Given Shen Ping'an's character, it must be something very important. Otherwise, he wouldn't have come back in such a situation. Don't worry, Dowager. I'll accompany Miss Yue."

Pan Yueqing blinked at the Dowager Zhao and gave a sweet smile. The Dowager Zhao pondered for a moment. After looking at her deeply, she relented and waved her hand with a sigh. "You young people go and have fun! Just one thing, don't play too wildly!"

Pan Yueqing nodded with a smile. She curtsied to the two elders and then took her leave. She and Qi Liulang went out. After walking three or five steps, they arrived at the garden of the Prince of Anbei's mansion. There, Shen Ping'an was holding a pot of extremely lovely 'Baozhu Jasmine' under a plum tree. When he saw Pan Yueqing, his eyes sparkled like stars. Before he could say "Miss Pan," he saw Qi Liulang walking side by side with Pan Yueqing, and his face instantly turned cold.

"What do you want with me?" Pan Yueqing gave Qi Liulang a look, indicating for him to step aside. After all, she also had some questions to ask Shen Ping'an, such as how to deal with the future revenge of the Prince of Dongzhu...

When Shen Ping'an saw Qi Liulang move away, he immediately stuffed the 'Baozhu Jasmine' in his arms into Pan Yueqing's hands. There was a faint smile in his eyes, but this smile seemed to be nothing more than perfunctory. He averted his gaze and said to Pan Yueqing, "When the Empress Dowager's birthday comes, you must present this 'Baozhu Jasmine' to her."

"Why? I've already prepared a birthday gift." Pan Yueqing's gaze was calm as she held the flower pot in her hands. Shen Ping'an had no intention of explaining. He took out the folding fan from his waist, leaned against the gray wall, and sneered at Pan Yueqing. "Miss Pan, as a pawn in play, isn't it better for you to just do as you're told?"

"It seems you didn't convey what I told you," Pan Yueqing bent down and carefully placed the 'Baozhu Jasmine' in the corner. Then she stepped forward, wrapped her arms around Shen Ping'an's neck, which was just half a head taller than hers. Using her strength, she grabbed his shoulder and threw him to the ground. She then spun around and sat on him, slowly pulled out a golden hairpin, twirled it a few times between her fingers, and then gently pressed the tip against the side of Shen Ping'an's neck. "I advise you not to take my words lightly. I've said that I've never belonged to him."

"On the contrary, if he continues to order me around, I'll tell everyone what happened in Cibei Temple. In fact, I'm also very curious. If the Emperor approved, why would there still be people daring to hunt him down?" Pan Yueqing squinted her eyes and smiled in Shen Ping'an's ear. "Don't you think so, Mr. Shen?"

She gently pinched Shen Ping'an's arm and was a bit surprised to find no signs of years of martial arts training.

Shen Ping'an's eyes darkened. Where Pan Yueqing couldn't see, a trace of murderous intent flashed briefly. But then he suddenly broke free from Pan Yueqing's slender hands, flipped over, grabbed her collar, and regardless of the cut on his neck from the golden hairpin during the struggle, he pressed her against the wall. "I don't know exactly what you know about His Highness, but I can tell you clearly that being His Highness's pawn is better than you blundering around in this ruthless capital city."

"Hmph, he just needs someone who can operate outside the notice of others." Pan Yueqing had her neck grabbed and sneered at Shen Ping'an with her back teeth clenched. "He wants to use me and treat me like a fool. He's dreaming! In Shangbei Fang, the Princess Pingning also wanted to obtain the land use rights. May I ask who leaked the news?"

She had always been very suspicious. There were so many houses in Shangbei Fang without any prior notice. Even someone like Qi Liulang, who was often by the side of the Prince of Anbei who managed the dark web, said he knew nothing about it. Why did the Princess Pingning also learn about this news almost at the same time? Since Qi Sian could keep the news of Shangbei Fang so well-hidden, why did he leak the news to the Princess Pingning?

When Shen Ping'an heard Pan Yueqing's words, his surprised expression at the first moment directly revealed the truth. Pan Yueqing's eyes darkened slightly, and she sneered in her heart. Shen Ping'an released her neck. "As expected, you're not the kind of woman who can be bought with a small profit..." Shen Ping'an took half a step back to avoid Pan Yueqing's attack, grabbed her hands, and frowned. "But since His Highness designed the dispute in Shangbei Fang, he also informed Master Hong to support you, didn't he?"

"Should I be grateful?" Pan Yueqing sneered. "With this move, he's tied me and Master Hong tightly together, just providing an excuse to the outside world that Shangbei Fang is just an industry that Master Hong is expanding in the capital. Asking me to present this 'Baozhu Jasmine' at the Empress Dowager's banquet is just to make me appear in front of the Emperor, isn't it?"

"Don't you want that?" Shen Ping'an's smile was filled with mockery. "You act like this in front of the Princess of Anbei, and you're even getting so close to her son. Isn't it because you want to show yourself off in front of the royal family and nobles step by step?"

"I do," Pan Yueqing raised her eyes and smiled lightly. "But I have my own ways, not to be led around by him step by step. I accepted the situation in Shangbei Fang, but in the future, please tell him not to disrupt my plans casually." With that, in the moment when Shen Ping'an was stunned, she broke free from his grip and left without looking back.