Later that day.
Chu Youning was drinking hot tea and listening to music with Qing Qianxue at the Cloud Fragrance House.
That was right.
After learning that Qing Qianxue had never set foot in the Cloud Fragrance House, Chu Youning had brought him there without hesitation.
"National Preceptor, life is short, so seize the pleasure while you can. Look how beautifully these girls dance~"
As she spoke, Chu Youning's eyes sparkled.
When Qing Qianxue's gaze fell on those beauties, his eyes remained clear, without a trace of desire.
"Beauty is merely a sack of skin, and years later, nothing but dry bones. If you like looking, what difference is there between looking at me and looking at these beauties?"
"Well... perhaps flowers at home aren't as fragrant as wildflowers, and what you get for free doesn't leave as deep an impression as what you pay for?"
Chu Youning could not help grinning, though her gaze remained on the girls.
"But I've spent my entire fortune on you, Elder Princess~"
Qing Qianxue's voice was plaintive as he said this.
Only then did Chu Youning finally spare Qing Qianxue a glance.
She put on a coy, bashful expression. "So, since you've spent quite a lot on me, I must leave an especially deep impression on you. What an honor."
"..."
Wonderful.
Another heap of bizarre, twisted logic.
Before he could decide what to say, Qian Yan interrupted their time alone.
Qian Yan knocked on the door, then entered.
"Master, Elder Princess, while following the Marquis of Wuyang, the Shadow Pavilion intercepted a carrier pigeon outside a courtyard."
The Marquis of Wuyang was the middle-aged man leading the Flourishing Kingdom's delegation on this trip.
"Coo, coo~"
The gray-feathered pigeon held in Qian Yan's hand let out low coos from its throat.
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