Spoiled Eldest Miss x Two-faced Madman

CHAPTER 17: Isn't It Only Natural To Follow An Jiu?

　

　　As Pei Ji had said, they arrived in Pinglan City two days later. 

　　The carriage traveled through the city, and An Jiu lifted the curtain to look out. 

　　Pinglan City was much larger than Jiufang City. It was the county seat of Luo'an County, bordering Qingyang County. The entire city was divided into eight main avenues, with countless neighborhoods.

　　Everywhere you walked, there were people, vendors, merchants, commoners, and nobles coming and going in an orderly fashion, creating a bustling scene. 

　　Especially since Pinglan City was located at the foot of Huashan Mountain, where the Huashan Sword Sect resided, there were many martial arts practitioners in the city. 

　　From time to time, you could see people walking down the street with swords and daggers. An Jiu even saw two young men in green robes chasing after a thief. The three of them ran through the streets, causing pedestrians to scatter in fear. Finally, they were stopped by a group of constables who had heard the commotion and were all fined a sum of money.

　　An Jiu's eyes lit up. It was like watching a wuxia movie, a live-action one at that! 

　　After a while, the carriage stopped in front of an inn. An Jiu got out and looked up. The sign read ‘Fulai Inn’ (Prosperity Arriving Inn) in four large characters. 

　　“Are we staying here?” 

　　Lin Qingyan nodded. “Yes.” 

　　An Jiu pointed to a more luxurious-looking inn next door. “Why not stay there?” 

　　That inn was called ‘Yunlai Inn’ (Cloud Arriving Inn). Fulai Inn looked ordinary, but Yunlai Inn was elaborately decorated. From the open door, you could see gleaming floors and freshly painted red doors; it looked very high-class and upscale! 

　　Of course, there weren't many high-spending guests. Fulai Inn was bustling with people, while Yunlai Inn was practically empty. 

　　Hearing An Jiu's question, He Ziqing honestly said, “Yunlai Inn is too expensive; we can't afford it.” 

　　An Jiu looked at Lin Qingyan. “Aren't you the young miss of the Zhùjiàn Villa?” 

　　A blush rose on Lin Qingyan's cheeks, and she said awkwardly, “Zhùjiàn Villa just does a little business…”

　　As for Pei Ji, the young man in white clothes fanned himself, smiling. “Pei is merely a physician.” 

　　An Jiu thought for a moment and understood. 

　　Although Zhùjiàn Villa was famous, they still had to run a shop selling pots and kitchen knives to make a living. The Lin family's ability to manufacture ironware was due to leasing a small iron mine from the court, and they had to pay a considerable rent every year. 

　　Pei Ji, as the heir of the Medicine King Valley, spent a lot of money on medicinal herbs for his medical research, which was a huge expense. He also frequently provided free medical treatment, earning little money. 

　　Not to mention He Ziqing. This guy had been practicing martial arts in the deep mountains and forests with his master, and he had no money when he left the mountains. Whenever he arrived in a city, he had to rely on taking on bounty-hunting missions to survive. 

　　In other words, they were only outwardly glamorous; they were actually a bunch of poor guys? 

　　After a moment of silence, Miss An, with a grand gesture, said, “Let's not stay here. Let's go to Yunlai Inn. I'll pay!”

　　At these words, four pairs of eyes fell upon her. 

　　An Jiu said, “What are you all looking at me like that for? Afraid I can't afford it? Don't worry, this young miss has money!” 

　　Saying this, she reached into her sleeve and pulled out a thick stack of silver notes. Upon closer inspection, each one was worth one thousand taels! 

　　These were all bills she had specifically withdrawn from the bank before leaving, using the token her father had given her. 

　　“Hiss!” 

　　An Jiu blinked, clearly hearing a gasp. It wasn't just from the people around her; at this moment, it seemed like everyone on the street was looking at her. 

　　As the focus of everyone's attention, An Jiu once again felt the joy of being a wealthy young lady! 

　　Indeed, what in this world could be more joyful than spending money! Especially the envious, jealous, and hateful gazes from others greatly enhanced Eldest Miss An's sense of satisfaction. 

　　Ah Qi blurted out, “Is Minister An that rich?” 

　　An Jiu had also considered this question. Judging from the original owner's memories, her Minister father didn't seem like a good official... Minister An had been favored by the previous Emperor and had been entrusted with the young Emperor's upbringing before his death. In recent years, the young Emperor had gradually matured and seemed to place great trust in Minister An. 

　　However, from An Jiu's perspective as an outsider, Minister An was at the peak of his power and influence. He controlled the government in the Emperor's name; a large portion of the court officials were appointed by him, and they even had a specific name: the An Party.

　　This situation couldn't last forever. Once the young Emperor was firmly established, it would be the downfall of the An family. 

　　An Jiu wasn't surprised. In novels, bad people always come in groups. How could the family of a malicious female supporting character be good people? 

　　An Jiu stopped thinking about it. She felt she might not even live to see the An family's downfall. 

　　“Are you guys coming or not?” she looked sideways at the others.

　　He Ziqing and Lin Qingyan had been hesitant, feeling uncomfortable about taking advantage of someone, but now... 

　　“Yes!” The two exchanged a glance and said in unison. 

　　As for Pei Ji and Ah Qi, the master and servant, their opinions didn't matter. (T/N: LoL, poor them!😂)

　　The four swaggered into Yunlai Inn. The inn lived up to its high price tag. Before they even entered, several waiters greeted them with smiles. Some led their horses, others showed them the way, and others eloquently introduced the inn's services. 

　　The four had never experienced such treatment before, especially the country bumpkin He Ziqing. When the waiter brought in a copper basin of warm water, he instinctively picked it up to drink from! 

　　Only after being stopped by the waiter did he realize it was for washing his face and hands, causing him to blush deeply. 

　　The waiter smiled, “Guests must be tired and dusty from your journey. Washing your face with warm water will make you feel refreshed and comfortable.” 

　　“Tsk tsk, this place isn't for ordinary people,” Ah Qi muttered softly. 

　　The only one who behaved naturally among them was An Jiu. The young miss was used to being served and didn't find anything unusual. 

　　It was just noon when An Jiu booked four top-tier rooms. She asked the attendant to bring their luggage up one by one, then sat down in the main hall downstairs to order food.

　　The four sat around a table, with Ah Qi standing by Pei Ji's side.

　　An Jiu held the menu, looked at it for a while, and then suffered from decision paralysis. She directly told the waiter, “Bring us all your signature dishes.” 

　　The waiter grinned, revealing his teeth, and immediately agreed. 

　　In a short while, the dishes arrived, enough to fill an entire table! 

　　Lin Qingyan exclaimed, “So much! Can the four of us finish all this?” 

　　An Jiu thought, Of course we can finish it. Someone's coming. 

　　Sure enough, as soon as she had this thought, three people walked into the inn. 

　　The three were two men and a woman, all dressed in matching moon-white and light blue uniforms. Their postures were straight, their sleeves tightly bound, and long swords hung from their waists – the attire of martial artists. 

　　“Oh! Aren’t you heroes from the Huashan Sect? Are you here for a meal or to stay the night?” the waiter enthusiastically greeted them. 

　　The three waved their hands. The girl among them said, “We're looking for someone.” 

　　Their gazes swept across the room, and when they saw An Jiu's group, they immediately walked towards them without hesitation. 

　　“Young Valley Master Pei,” the three arrived at the table and bowed together. The leader, a man with a serious expression and a hint of anxiety in his brows, said, “We apologize for not greeting you properly. I am Zhou Yuli, a disciple of the Huashan Sect Master. These two are my junior brothers Xi Guangyuan and my junior sister Zhou Yihuan. We have been sent by our master to seek your help. I wonder if you have time…” 

　　Before he could finish, An Jiu interrupted, “Hey hey hey, we've just arrived, and we haven't even eaten yet!”

　　“This... we were presumptuous.” Hearing this, the man realized his mistake and looked ashamed, repeatedly apologizing. 

　　However, An Jiu's interruption also drew the attention of the three Huashan disciples. 

　　The girl was already strikingly beautiful, but what was most striking was the confident and flamboyant expression in her eyes, like the scorching sun. When she saw them looking over, she didn't shy away but boldly looked back, her bright and alluring peach blossom eyes curiously assessing the three. 

　　As soon as their eyes met, two of them froze. 

　　It was the two brothers. 

　　A beautiful woman is a captivating sight for a gentleman. This was the first time they had seen such a stunningly beautiful girl; she looked like a celestial being. The fact that she was openly staring at them caused the two brothers to blush slightly. 

　　Seeing her two senior brothers seemingly mesmerized, Junior Sister Zhou Yihuan's face darkened. 

　　“Excuse me, but who is this young lady?” Zhou Yihuan spoke, startling her dazed senior brothers. 

　　Pei Ji softly introduced them, “This is Miss An.” 

　　He didn't say much more but turned to Zhou Yuli, “I presume you haven't eaten yet? Why don't you join us? You can tell me about the situation while we eat.” He paused, then turned to An Jiu, “Miss An, what do you think?”

　　Lin Qingyan also agreed, “Yes, let's eat together. We ordered a lot of dishes.” 

　　Then she realized that all the dishes were ordered by An Jiu, and her impulsive decision seemed inappropriate, so she also asked An Jiu, “Miss An, what do you think?” 

　　Lin Qingyan and Pei Ji were both famous second-generation figures in the martial arts world, one from Zhùjiàn Villa and the other from Medicine King Valley. But seeing them both seeking the opinion of the red-clothed girl, the three immediately elevated the importance of this mysterious Miss An to a higher level. 

　　Little did they know, their behavior was purely out of respect for their benefactor. 

　　An Jiu glanced at the three Huashan disciples, whose expressions had suddenly become tense for some reason. After pondering for a moment, she reluctantly agreed, “Fine.” 

　　So they moved to a larger table, with a total of eight people sitting down to eat. 

　　Zhou Yuli was about to tell Pei Ji about the plague that had broken out in Pinglan City when he heard Miss An say, “Pei Ji, I want to eat shrimp.” 

　　The divine doctor Pei Ji, who was sitting next to her, naturally picked up a shrimp, and just as naturally, used his hands—hands that were worth thousands of taels and had saved countless lives—to peel the shell, remove the shrimp meat, and place it in the girl's bowl. 

　　After peeling it, he asked, “Do you want more?” 

　　The Huashan trio: 👁️👄👁️

　　Lin Qingyan then called the waiter to bring Miss An a basin of water for washing her hands and a hand towel. The towel had to be made of cotton; other materials didn't absorb water well enough. 

　　Catching sight of their astonished expressions, He Ziqing lowered his voice and said solemnly, “Remember to use public chopsticks, and don't mix up the public and private chopsticks.” 

　　Zhou Yihuan asked blankly, “Why?” 

　　Ah Qi, who had already used public chopsticks to fill his bowl and was happily eating, looked up from his plate and mumbled, “Anyway, if you want to eat well, listen to us. Otherwise, if the young miss gets angry, none of us will have a good time.” 

　　In just two days of travel, having experienced countless of An Jiu's antics, the four had already fully understood the young miss's difficult nature. 

　　Now, the first principle they had learned was to do everything to please the young miss. 

　　Besides, wasn't serving An Jiu a matter of course?

 

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Author's Note:

I set the draft box incorrectly, and posted two chapters today qaq I won't update tomorrow~

......

(T/N: I'm not sure if I should post the author's rambling above. Haha, but I did anyway. I'll continue to update the novel translation daily, so please don't worry about any delays unless I announce otherwise.)

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