TSNCWEM Chapter 24

“Wait!”

“Hold on!”

Song Yunzhao saw the Helan siblings speaking in unison to stop her, and she felt a slight sense of relief. Those who have nothing to lose aren’t afraid of those who do. If she could wear shoes, she wouldn’t choose to go barefoot

Although her Father’s official position wasn’t high, her ancestors had some reputation. But the Xie family wasn’t in the same situation. The Prince of Zhenbei’s household wouldn’t openly oppress the Song family but would certainly target the Xie family.

She couldn’t let the Xie family suffer because of her. The only way was to force the Helan siblings to compromise.

How to force them?

Of course, it’s about taking advantage of the fear children have when they misbehave and worry about teachers calling their parents. The Prince of Zhenbei’s household is renowned, but provoking both the Qin and Ji families at once isn’t a trivial matter, especially over such scandalous, romantic, private matters.

At this moment, Helan Yue finally looked at Song Yunzhao seriously, suppressing his anger, and said, “Young lady, reporting to the authorities seems a bit excessive.”

“Calling me a bumpkin and threatening to bind people, we common folk are terrified. Only the authorities can give us a sense of security.”

The man with the folding fan, hiding in the shadows, twitched his lips. So this is what full of lies looks like.

Helan Yun was pulled behind her brother and forbidden to speak. She couldn’t help but poke her head out and angrily said, “If you hadn’t meddled, who would want to trouble you?”

“Did I make the teacup fly out of nowhere and almost ruin my face? Did I cause Miss Qin to almost fall on me? Your brain is meant for thinking, not for listening to the ebb and flow of the tide.”

“What does that mean?” Helan Yun didn’t understand and looked suspiciously at her brother.

Helan Yue, with a dark expression, remained silent.

 

Isn’t that just saying his sister’s brain is full of water?

Helan Yue didn’t want his sister to embarrass herself further. He looked at Ji Yunting and Qin Xiyue and said, “Let’s put today’s incident behind us. It was my sister’s fault, and I apologize on her behalf.”

Ji Yunting smiled but said nothing.

Qin Xiyue remained cold-faced and silent.

Helan Yue dismissed his guards and forcibly dragged Helan Yun away.

Helan Yun, unwilling to leave, angrily said, “Brother, what are you doing? This isn’t over yet.”

“Shut up!”

Song Yunzhao maintained a calm exterior, but internally she thought that if the Helan siblings insisted on pushing further, she would have been in a tough spot. This outcome was just right.

Power is a good thing, but unfortunately, she didn’t have it. She could only put on a brave face and bluff, while feeling fearful inside.

It was rather dull.

Xie Jinshu’s back was drenched in cold sweat. Seeing that Third Miss had scared away the Helan siblings, he finally felt his legs go weak and wanted to leave this troublesome place immediately. “Third Miss, let’s go.”

Song Yunzhao nodded. It was time to leave.

She had barely taken a step when Qin Xiyue called out to her.

“Young lady, please wait.”

Song Yunzhao grabbed Xie Linlang with one hand and waved goodbye to Qin Xiyue with the other, fleeing like she was chased by a vicious dog.

What a joke—today’s unwarranted disaster was clearly caused by the heroine’s aura!

Given the universal law that the heroine will never be harmed, she definitely didn’t want to be the unlucky supporting character who got caught in the crossfire.

Earlier, she had teamed up with the heroine solely because their enemy was the same.

Once they were outside Sanyuan Tower, Song Yunzhao breathed a sigh of relief and thanked Xie Jinshu, “Thank you, Second Young Master, for righteously speaking up today.”

Xie Jinshu felt a bit ashamed and said, “Third Miss, you jest. Unfortunately, I’m of little importance and couldn’t be of much help.”

Song Yunzhao smiled and shook her head, “That’s not true. Today, the Second Young Master truly showed the spirit of a great man, earning my admiration.”

Not everyone could challeng high-ranking officials and nobility.

Xie Linlang, having finally calmed down, said, “It scared me to death. How can there be such unreasonable and overbearing people?”

Song Yunzhao smiled, “There are all kinds of people in this world.”

As she spoke, she looked at Xie Linlang and realized something. In the book, Xie Linlang became Ji Yunting`s concubine, but today, she seemed to have no reaction to seeing Ji Yunting.

Ji Yunting’s handsome face was exactly Xie Linlang’s favorite type.

This shouldn’t be happening.

“Linlang, what do you think of Young Master Ji?” Song Yunzhao felt a bit strange and decided to probe.

Xie Linlang thought for a moment and then remembered which one was Young Master Ji. Her expression turned complicated as she frankly said to Song Yunzhao, “The Princess of Ming’an is interested in him, and I can see that Miss Qin also has feelings towards him. His indifferent attitude today, acting like it has nothing to do with him, is not impressive.”

Song Yunzhao fell silent for a moment. Well, there goes the fangirl filter.

In the book, it was written that Xie Linlang insisted on entering the Prime Minister’s residence as a concubine. Not just to support her family by marrying into a high-status family, but also because she was captivated by Ji Yunting’s demeanor.

Xie Jinshu nodded in agreement, “Linlang is right. If Young Master Ji had a clear attitude and explained things properly, there wouldn’t be so much trouble. Acting this way is not the behavior of a gentleman.”

The famous scholar in the book has now turned into a villain in the eyes of the Xie siblings.

“Let’s not talk about this; it’s really a downer. Today, I originally wanted to take you out to have fun, but we encountered such an unpleasant event,” Xie Linlang said, feeling a bit embarrassed. “Yunzhao, let’s visit the jewelry shop ahead. I’ll buy you something you like as a token of apology.”

“That’s not necessary,” Song Yunzhao shook her head. “A gentleman loves wealth but acquires it in a proper manner. While she may not be a gentleman, she also doesn’t want to take advantage of others without reason.”

“Are you still being polite with me?”

“It’s not politeness; I really don’t need it.”

“Alright.” Xie Linlang knew Song Yunzhao’s personality and didn’t insist further.

Xie Jinshu, who had been listening, then suggested, “How about we go to the tea house for a cup of tea? There’s also a female storyteller there who is quite famous in the capital.”

Song Yunzhao perked up at the mention of storytelling. The book hadn’t covered much about the livelihoods of ordinary people, focusing entirely on the heroine, so she wasn’t very familiar with the world beyond the main characters.

“Second Young Master, is storytelling very popular in the capital?” Song Yunzhao asked curiously. “It wasn’t very prevalent in Nanyu.”

Xie Jinshu explained, “It has become popular only in the past two years, sparked by a failed scholar who wrote captivating story scripts. His writings were so engaging that they drew widespread acclaim, leading to a rise in storytelling in the capital.”

Song Yunzhao understood. Looking at Xie Jinshu, she asked, “I heard from Linlang that the Xie family also owns tea houses and restaurants. Why not hire someone to write story scripts?”

Xie Jinshu smiled bitterly, “Third Miss, not every scholar can write stories that people will love.”

 

Song Yunzhao understood. It’s like how hundreds of TV shows and movies are produced every year, but not all of them become blockbuster hits.

Blockbuster hits are money-making machines.

Song Yunzhao’s hands itched; she was really short of money.

If she had money, she wouldn’t have declined Xie Linlang’s invitation to look at jewelry today.

Shopping as she pleased was every woman’s dream.

She decided that her first bucket of gold in life would come from writing stories.

Although the starting point was low, her dreams were high.