Lan Ruoting's original intention was to find a way to squeeze some money out of other expenses, but since Shang Shuqing was certain that Daoye would not have any objections, he didn't say anything more.
In truth, Shang Chaozong felt a little guilty about giving out ten thousand gold coins, afraid that it would be awkward if he took it out. However, there were many things waiting to be done in Qingshan County, and there were too many things to spend money on. Since his sister had taken the initiative to take over this matter, Shang Chaozong couldn't be more eager. He nodded and said, "Qing 'er is right. It's more convenient for you women to speak, so you go ahead."
Lan Ruoting glanced at Shang Chaozong with a slightly strange expression. He muttered to himself, 'An unmarried maiden always running to a man's side, and you call that convenient? Aren't you afraid of stirring up some gossip and ruining your sister's innocence? '
In truth, Shang Chaozong wasn't worried about this at all. The reason was that his sister was frighteningly ugly, and no man would have any crooked thoughts about her. He also didn't think that Daoye had such a heavy appetite!
Of course, his confidence in this aspect was also due to his trust in Niu Youdao's character. After interacting with Daoye for so long, he had never seen Daoye make any demands on a woman, unlike some cultivators from the Heavenly Jade School!
After settling on ten thousand gold coins, Lan Ruoting immediately ordered someone to fetch the money.
It wasn't that they only had ten thousand gold coins at the moment, they could still fork out a hundred thousand gold coins in cash. However, many of the expenses had been planned out, and the expenses were tight. If they could squeeze out some money here, they would have to reduce other urgent expenses.
Peng You was waiting for the arrival of the higher-ups of the Heavenly Jade School, as well as the arrival of the higher-ups of the Immortal Retaining Sect and the other three sects. He had to entertain them well. He had already squeezed out a lot of expenses once, and now he had to squeeze out another ten thousand gold coins.
The person in charge of the accounts came and presented the account book.
Shang Chaozong and Lan Ruoting discussed the ten thousand gold coins for a long time. It wasn't a good feeling to have a hero stumped by a single copper coin. After much discussion, they finally decided to reduce the military expenditure and temporarily withhold a portion of the soldiers' salaries.
The other pressing expenses were not easy to deal with. It was related to the hearts of the people of Qingshan County, and it might cause trouble.
Currently, the military was controllable, but the local officials had to spend money for every meal. If the local officials and their families went hungry, how could they help to govern the region? There was no need for the soldiers to fork out their own money. Since they had already occupied the territory of Green Mountain County, they could see the benefits in the future. They could talk to their generals about it and they would definitely pay them back. They could only let the generals appease their subordinates.
Shang Chaozong personally signed his name on the military supplies column and deducted ten thousand gold coins!
A gold note with a face value of 10,000 was handed to Lan Ruoting. Lan Ruoting then handed it to Shang Shuqing.
After receiving the gold notes, Shang Shuqing guessed that Niu Youdao would not rest so early since he had just returned. Furthermore, he did not manage to have a proper conversation with Niu Youdao when they met previously. With these thoughts in mind, he carried the gold notes and returned to the garden behind the Prefectural Governor's Manor.
Niu Youdao was indeed not resting and was taking a bath.
"Princess, why don't you take a seat in the hall first? When Daoye is done bathing, I will inform him. What do you think?"
Yuan Fang, who was guarding outside, tried to ask. There was a hint of guilt in his words.
He did not understand why Black Peony was with Daoye. In any case, he had seen Black Peony and Daoye bathing together. They had not come out for so long. What good could it be for a man and a woman to bathe together?
He was also afraid that others would see something bad. After all, Black Peony was much older than Daoye.
He had been sighing in his heart. With Daoye's qualifications, he could find any woman. Why did he fool around with Black Peony?
Shang Shuqing smiled and said, "No need. I will wait here for Daoye."
Even if he could not take out a lot of money, he should at least show some sincerity.
"Uh …" Yuan Fang was speechless. With Shang Shuqing's status here, it was not good for him to chase him away.
Just as he was thinking of a way to get Shang Shuqing out of the hall, to prevent him from being seen, the door to the bathroom suddenly opened with a creak.
The voluptuous and graceful Black Peony walked out first. She was wearing casual clothes after bathing, and her wet hair draped over her shoulders.
After bathing, Niu Youdao, who was also dressed in casual clothes, also walked out slowly.
Standing in the courtyard, Shang Shuqing stared at this scene in a daze. He stared blankly at the man and woman who had obviously walked out together after bathing. His eyes were wide open.
In an instant! After coming back to her senses, Shang Shuqing's heart suddenly twisted. Her heart ached so much that it was difficult to add to the pain.
At this moment, it was as if something had struck her heart fiercely. That kind of feeling that pervaded her body and mind was something she had never experienced before. This sudden attack this time was actually so unforgettable!
She did not know why she had such a big reaction after seeing this scene. For a moment, she, who had always been intelligent, was actually a little flustered. It could be said that she was at a loss of what to do. She actually turned around and left.
Niu Youdao, who had walked to the side of the stairs and was about to go down, was also stunned. What did this woman mean? He hurriedly shouted, "Is something the matter, Princess?"
Shang Shuqing replied as he walked, "Nothing, it was Qing-er who was presumptuous." Without even looking back, he turned and disappeared outside the Moon Gate.
Black Peony, who was standing beside Niu Youdao, looked pensive.
Niu Youdao slowly walked down the stairs and asked Yuan Fang, "Is there something the matter, Princess?"
Yuan Fang nodded, "It seems that there is something. She was waiting here for Daoye just now. I guess …" He glanced at Black Peony who was slowly following, "I guess she misunderstood something and was afraid of spoiling Daoye's matter."
Niu Youdao glanced at him coldly, "You are a monk, how can you have so many crooked thoughts?"
Yuan Fang muttered, "Isn't it obvious? Unless one is blind, otherwise no one would be able to see it. "
Niu Youdao turned back to look at the bathroom. He looked at Black Peony's appearance and then looked at himself. Combined with what Shang Shuqing said just now, it was indeed possible that there was a misunderstanding.
However, he did not care. If it was a misunderstanding, then it was a misunderstanding. There was nothing to explain.
He guessed that Shang Shuqing did not have anything urgent. Otherwise, with that woman's intelligence, she would be able to distinguish the severity of the matter. She would not have hurriedly avoided it just because of a small misunderstanding. Since it was not something urgent, there was no need to rush at night. He would just ask about it when they met another day.
Niu Youdao turned to leave. Black Peony, who was following beside him, smiled and asked, "Daoye, has this Princess taken a fancy to you?"
Niu Youdao glanced at her and could not be bothered to answer such a boring question.
He had no interest in Shang Shuqing. It had nothing to do with beauty or ugliness. Even if Shang Shuqing was as beautiful as a fairy, he would not have such a messy plan. Moreover, Shang Shuqing was frighteningly ugly. Even if he did not look at a person's appearance and only looked at their inner qualities, he would not have such a strong appetite.
After observing his reactions and using his words to probe, Black Peony finally understood. Daoye did not have any feelings for that woman. However, when she thought about it, it made sense. That woman's appearance was truly frightening. If her identity and background were excluded, there probably would not be any man who would take a fancy to her.
As an experienced person, Black Peony shook her head slightly and sighed in her heart. It had nothing to do with beauty or ugliness. Which woman did not have their first awakening of love? She was just another silly girl who wanted to pass this hurdle!
She could only hope that this silly girl could distinguish what she wanted and not be blinded by a momentary awakening of love. Otherwise, she would be the one who would be hurt in the end.
She more or less pitied and sympathized with Shang Shuqing. As a woman, she could empathize with him. She knew very well what a woman's appearance meant to a woman. He was so ugly, yet he could still come out and meet people calmly. How strong must he be to be able to do this?
It was not only her. Even Feng Ruonan, who had always been rude to those on Shang Chaozong's side, took the initiative to get close to Shang Shuqing when she saw him.
From the looks of it, there was basically no woman who would subconsciously view Shang Shuqing as a threat. It was difficult for them to develop feelings of jealousy.
Sometimes, being a little ugly wasn't necessarily a bad thing.
At this moment, Shang Shuqing had stopped at the foot of the wall in the shadow. He had one hand on the wall and his head was lowered.
She slowly raised her other hand and gently caressed her ugly face with her soft fingertips. Her fingertips trembled and her eyes were filled with a sense of inferiority.
However, he quickly calmed down and sobered up because he knew it was impossible!
He asked himself, what's wrong with me? How can I delay proper business? How am I going to explain to my brother and Mister Lan when I return? My brother is definitely waiting for my reply and will definitely ask about Daoye's attitude.
"Who's there?" A figure appeared from the corner of the wall in front of him and shouted. His voice was sonorous and forceful, full of vigor!
The newcomer was Yuan Gang, who had carefully inspected Niu Youdao's residence when he first arrived. When he walked over, he suddenly discovered someone hiding in the shadow of the corner of the wall.
"It's me!" Shang Shuqing stood up straight and asked.
Seeing her leaning against the wall, Yuan Gang walked over and asked in confusion, "Princess, why are you here? Are you not feeling well? "
Shang Shuqing thought for a while and thought of a way to save his errand. He replied, "I was looking for Daoye, but I didn't know that Daoye was bathing with Black Peony. I offended Daoye's interest and ran away in a hurry. Now that I think about it, I haven't finished the errand my brother gave me. I don't know what to do. "
Yuan Gang immediately knew that Black Peony's thick skin had caused a misunderstanding. He said, "There's no offending. Daoye doesn't have the interest either. Daoye and Black Peony are not what you think. Princess, you're thinking too much. Since there's proper business, Daoye shouldn't be resting now. Come with me. "
When she saw Niu Youdao again, they were in the living room. Shang Shuqing had regained her calmness and reason.
Noticing her reaction, Black Peony's bright eyes flashed twice.
Seeing that Yuan Gang had brought Shang Shuqing back, Niu Youdao, who was dressed casually, didn't care about the previous trivial matter. He smiled and said, "It seems that Princess really has something to do. What orders do you have for me?"
"Daoye must be joking." Shang Shuqing took out the gold note and placed it on the tea table. Her slender fingers gently pushed the gold note in front of Niu Youdao.
Niu Youdao looked at the face value of the gold note and asked suspiciously, "What do you mean by this, Princess? For me? "
It was reasonable to say that a poor man's ambition was stunted. Even though she was the daughter of a royal prince, Shang Shuqing was slightly embarrassed at this moment. "The people around Daoye also need expenses. Unfortunately, there are many things to do in Qingshan County. Don't think this money is too little. Keep it for now. When the various taxes come in, I'll make up for it."
It really was for him! Niu Youdao understood, but his gaze when he looked at the gold note was slightly strange.
His gaze made Shang Shuqing feel slightly uneasy. Could it be that her judgment was wrong? Did the other really dislike it?
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