After they arrived, before Jiang Jie could speak, the young maid curtsied to Princess Calia and relayed his request.
"What? You want to put herbs in a bathtub and soak in it? That method isn't unheard of, but it's generally used to treat illnesses. I've never heard of using it to strengthen the body. Nicholas, could you tell me where you learned this method?" Princess Calia leaned forward slightly, her eyes shining like a curious child's.
Obviously you've never heard of it! This came from the life sciences of the thirty-fifth-century Galactic Federation, okay? It was specifically designed to aid the practice of Chinese martial arts!
According to the intelligent computer Xiao Feng, thanks to rapid advances in life sciences and the rise of ancient Chinese martial arts, human life expectancy in the thirty-fifth century had reached its theoretical limit. Almost everyone could live past a hundred and twenty, living to a hundred and fifty or two hundred was perfectly normal for Xiantian experts, and there were even people who had lived for over a thousand years!
Medicinal baths had played a major role!
Of course, Jiang Jie wasn't going to roll his eyes at such a beautiful princess. This was a very, very substantial golden thigh, and he had to cling to it. He hurriedly explained, "I'm an alchemy apprentice. My teacher once met a Pandaren from a distant land and learned about medicinal baths from him. After more than a decade and over a thousand experiments, he finally developed several medicinal bath formulas. They work very well."
Princess Calia nodded thoughtfully. "Pandaren? I've heard of that race. They're said to be peaceful by nature, use a special energy called 'Chi,' and live relatively long lives. If it came from them, that makes sense. I've heard that Pandaren have rather unusual names? Nicholas, your surname is rather unusual too, isn't it? Jiang? I've never heard of that surname."
Jiang Jie blinked.
Princess Calia actually knew about Pandaren?
Then again, although Pandaria had cut itself off from the world ten thousand years ago, the Wandering Isle had been drifting around the planet for hundreds, even thousands of years. Pandaren from the island had appeared in various parts of the world over that time. There ought to be plenty of legends about them, so it was perfectly normal for Princess Calia to have heard of them.
Jiang Jie hurriedly gave her a thumbs-up. "Your Highness truly is learned! That's right, my family has a long history, stretching back to the days of the Empire of Arathor. My ancestor once knew a Pandaren heroine named Jiang and received her help. To commemorate that heroine, our family took 'Jiang' as our surname."
He was making it all up anyway. Andorhal didn't have detailed census records, and Lordaeron's royal palace didn't have backup household registers. There was no need to worry about being exposed.
"Nicholas, I have bathtubs here. I'll have Daphne find you a room in a little while. You can live here from now on. It's safer here. From this moment onward, you're my personal guard." Princess Calia winked mischievously and said with a smile, "Even Baron Soroson couldn't send someone here to assassinate you. You're safe! Now, how are you going to repay me?"
The smile on Jiang Jie's face stiffened.
Repay you?
You're a princess, and you're actually asking a commoner like me to repay you?
Jiang Jie was no fool. When he saw the teasing smile on Princess Calia's face, he immediately understood: she was teasing him, while also keeping that novel he was copying in mind!
Otherwise, why would she casually let a commoner like him move into her residence? And give him so much help besides?
He simply hadn't expected this princess, whose actual age was already twenty-six, to be a literature enthusiast!
Of course, his status as a "once-in-a-century, one-in-ten-thousand rogue genius" had played a part too.
"Your Highness, give me some paper and a pen. I'll write right now!" Jiang Jie smiled.
Princess Calia pointed somewhere nearby. "Mm, they're already prepared."
Prepared?
Already prepared?
Did she have to set such an elaborate trap?
Jiang Jie turned to look.
There was actually a half-meter-high stack of white paper on the table! There had to be several hundred sheets, right?
How long would it take to write all that?
Jiang Jie wanted to cry but had no tears. Was he going to become Her Highness's personal writer?
No wonder she wanted me to live here. So she wanted me writing novels for her day and night?
This isn't what I'm after!
He looked up and saw Princess Calia's expectant face, then shook his head and sighed.
There was no helping it. It seemed Her Highness wouldn't let him go unless he copied out a few chapters first.
Jiang Jie shrugged helplessly, walked over, and began writing, with the young maid standing behind him.
Whenever he finished a sheet, the young maid took it to Her Highness.
Soon, however, Her Highness grew impatient. Even if Jiang Jie was only copying, he couldn't possibly write faster than she could read. She simply abandoned her reserve, lifted her skirts, and jogged over to stand behind him. Then she bent slightly at the waist, her beautiful, large eyes fixed on the pen in his hand, reading each word as he wrote it. Every so often, she repeatedly urged him, "Quick, write faster!"
Jiang Jie caught a faint fragrance. He didn't know whether Her Highness had put on perfume or whether it was her natural scent. If he remembered correctly, apart from Lord Prestor, whom she had barely met a few times, Her Highness had never had anyone in her heart. So this was a virgin's natural fragrance...
It really smelled lovely!
And her golden hair fell down, brushing lightly against Jiang Jie's face. It tickled a little but felt very pleasant, a sensation that truly made him want to linger!
As a result, Jiang Jie's face reddened slightly, and he had to hunch over a little to conceal a certain inappropriate reaction. His wandering thoughts made his writing slower and sloppier, and he even wrote several words incorrectly in a row, drawing a round of complaints from the two ladies.
Time passed amid this torment until lunchtime finally arrived.
Only then did Princess Calia remember her status as a princess. She reluctantly straightened up, then graciously invited Jiang Jie to join her for lunch.
This was an exceedingly rare honor!
In fact, apart from King Terenas and Prince Arthas, only a very few nobles of extremely high standing were qualified to dine with Her Highness, such as dukes, marquises, or important figures like Uther the Lightbringer. Nobles at Baron Soroson's level fell far short.
Even Jiang Jie was taken aback!
He knew this was entirely thanks to Tides of Darkness. Otherwise, he could never have received such an honor!
The royal lunch was naturally quite lavish. After satisfying his appetite, Jiang Jie saw Princess Calia's expectant face and hurriedly explained that he had been short of money lately. Even the herbs he had bought for his medicinal bath were the poorest quality, and he hoped to earn some money by writing novels-copying novels.
"I knew you were up to something." Princess Calia blinked her large eyes at Jiang Jie, her face full of smiles. "Early this morning, I consulted the royal scholars and several famous bards, showing them what you'd written. They all thought it was excellent, even better than Master Trouvere's writing. Nicholas, I can help you arrange the printing, publication, and sales. It's bound to sell very well, but I want twenty percent of the net profit. What do you think?"
Princess Calia was a little excited too, because this really could make a great deal of money!
The Kingdom of Lordaeron belonged to her family, yet it didn't. At the very least, it didn't belong to her family alone. It also belonged to a great many nobles, and, even more so, to the countless people of Lordaeron.
The royal family was certainly wealthy, but there were expenses everywhere. Especially after the Second War, Lordaeron had suffered heavy losses too. On top of that, vast quantities of resources had been spent building Orc internment camps in recent years, leaving little money in the royal treasury.
Princess Calia held an exalted position, but the money she could actually use was nowhere near as much as one might imagine. She couldn't even compare to some of the wealthier nobles.
After all, she was only a princess, a princess who would eventually be married off, not a prince-not Prince Arthas, who was destined to inherit Lordaeron's throne.
King Terenas could indulge Arthas and let him choose whom he loved and married, but he kept her under strict discipline. Her marriage was arranged, and she had no choice.
Their standing differed greatly.
Jiang Jie shook his head. "Princess Calia, never mind twenty percent-even thirty or fifty percent would be fine. But I don't intend to have it printed and published. At least, not for now."