The First Lackey Under The Empress

Zhao Pan felt like the sun had risen in the west today.

Although this wolf gave money with an arrogant and unpleasant attitude,

the benefits she received were real.

Perhaps it was because he had been rewarded for his merits and was in a good mood?

This was the most reasonable guess she could think of.

"No… no problem," You Jinhua hurriedly replied, carefully taking the stack of silver notes and putting them into her shriveled purse, her voice slightly hoarse:

"Don't worry, Master Lang, the money will definitely not be spent recklessly."

It doesn't matter if you spend it recklessly… Zhao Du'an muttered to himself.

However, a change in persona should not be too rapid, so he only gave a cold "En" sound.

Then, as if remembering something, he added:

"When I came back, I ordered a batch of rouge and powder from Rouge Zhai. Later, a shop assistant will deliver it to your door. Take it and use it."

Rouge Zhai… This is one of the largest powder shops in the capital, a century-old brand with expensive prices and delivery service.

Customers are generally noble ladies in the capital.

Of course, it is only the circle of noble ladies.

The real royal nobles have special small circle channels for procurement, and the rouge they use is unbranded.

He even bought rouge and powder… Zhao Pan's eyes were puzzled, both highly vigilant and with her little heart pounding, unable to hide her anticipation—

After all, she was at an age where she loved beauty and could not resist this kind of temptation.

"Master Lang…"

You Jinhua's eyes were even redder, covering her mouth with her hand, deeply moved.

In her memory, this was the first time her stepson had given her a gift.

Old Master Zhao was kind-hearted and couldn't bear to see women crying. He hurriedly filled his stomach, dropped a sentence of "I'm full," and turned to go to the courtyard to practice martial arts.

Playing with the newly acquired treasure, the flying knife.

…

After the meal.

You Jinhua and her daughter put away the silk fabrics and returned to the girl's boudoir to reapply wound medicine.

Zhao Pan lay on the bed, hugging an embroidered pillow with both hands, unable to figure it out:

"Mother, why do you think his face changed today, giving this and that? What bad intentions does he have?"

You Jinhua sat sideways on the edge of the bed, her skirt, which had been washed many times and was a little small and ill-fitting, was stretched tightly, and her beautiful flesh was about to burst out.

Hearing this, she gently patted Zhao Pan's bottom and scolded:

"What are you saying? Why must he have bad intentions?"

Pia… Zhao Pan pouted and said:

"Otherwise? In my opinion, it's just the fox greeting the chicken for the New Year."

"Perhaps your elder brother regretted treating you like that yesterday and wanted to compensate you," You Jinhua used her own knowledge to find a reasonable explanation for her stepson's unusual behavior.

Zhao Pan retorted:

"A slap and then a sweet date? Mother, you are too good to him. He just gives you a little smile, and you are so moved."

You Jinhua was silent, knowing that what her daughter said was probably right.

The beautiful woman sighed and said softly:

"Although your elder brother has a bad temper, he always protects his own people if outsiders come to bully us. Didn't he put that soldier in jail? He must have been trying to vent our anger."

She had been trying to repair the relationship between her daughter and her stepson, but with little success.

Zhao Pan said:

"He did that for his own face, not for us. He's good to you today, and you're overjoyed, but who knows, if he's in a bad mood tomorrow, he might take back everything he gave you and even beat you."

The scars all over her body were the most powerful evidence.

You Jinhua was unable to refute in the face of ironclad facts.

The room was silent for a moment.

"Knock, knock, knock." A knock sounded on the door, and Zhao Du'an's voice came from outside:

"Zhao Pan, come out for a moment."

The mother and daughter in the room were startled. Zhao Pan hurriedly burrowed into the quilt, her hand reaching for the short dagger that had no practical use, only psychological comfort.

You Jinhua hurriedly got up:

"Master Lang, this concubine is applying medicine to Pan'er, it's inconvenient…"

"Applying medicine?" From behind the door came Zhao Du'an's mocking voice:

"How can you learn a lesson if you don't get beaten? Do you really think that you can step into cultivation and become a warrior by picking up a broken book I threw away and studying it on your own? Utterly stupid.

When you've completely ruined yourself, your blood will block your meridians, and you'll be paralyzed at home, then I'll have to feed you for the rest of my life."

Inside the room.

Zhao Pan's face flushed red with anger as she listened to the ridicule, but when she heard the last sentence, she was stunned.

She was most clearly aware of her body's condition. She had previously felt refreshed and light all over after being beaten, and mistakenly thought that she had made progress in martial arts.

Now, listening to Zhao Du'an's words, it seemed that she had misunderstood.

"Paralyzed?" You Jinhua paled in fright, "Pan'er will be paralyzed?"

"Heh, that might have been possible before," Outside the door, Zhao Du'an took something out of his arms and placed it on the ground:

"If you want to strengthen your body in the future, use this to practice. If you keep holding on to my broken book, I'll beat you every time I see you."

After speaking, he turned and left.

You Jinhua was stunned for a few breaths before hurriedly pushing open the door, looking around, but Zhao Du'an's figure was no longer visible.

"Mother, what did he leave behind?" Zhao Pan wrapped herself in a small quilt, not daring to get out of bed because she wasn't wearing clothes, and stretched her neck to ask.

She saw You Jinhua holding two things, returning to the room in a daze.

Zhao Pan took a closer look. One was a martial arts classic called "Jade Heart Sutra," which seemed to be a method specially suitable for women to strengthen their bodies.

The other was a bottle of black ointment, wrapped with the words "Shenlong Temple," which was a precious wound medicine specially supplied to martial arts practitioners.

Zhao Pan was stunned. Her autumn-like eyes looked in the direction her elder brother had left, and she bit her lip, suddenly feeling a little shaken:

"Has he… really changed?"

…

…

On the other side.

Zhao Du'an returned to his room, pushed open the door, and found a bathtub already placed inside, filled with warm water.

This was what he had ordered the servants to prepare earlier. He had been busy all day and night, and his whole body was sticky and dirty.

At this moment, he stripped off his clothes, jumped into the bathtub, rested his arms on the edge of the bathtub, and sighed comfortably as he felt the warm water soaking him.

"The initial reshaping of my persona at home is complete…"

"Well, according to my experience during this period, the correct way to use a persona is to become better in front of friendly units and maintain a bad reputation to the outside world, so that the benefits can be maximized."

"Bringing down the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice… It's difficult, I have no idea… Well, there's always a way out, I'll think about it tomorrow."

Zhao Du'an's thoughts drifted away, his gaze falling on the crisscrossing beams above his head.

Suddenly, the air above the beams twisted slightly, and a figure slowly emerged:

Wearing a dark robe with gold thread outlining it, a divine official's robe, with slightly curly black hair, pale skin, and a mysterious temperament, "Zhu Dian Tong Zi" Jin Jian sat on the beams, her legs hanging down, her boots swaying.

At this moment, the girl was locking onto Zhao Du'an in the bathtub directly below, her gaze focusing little by little…

Zhao Du'an: "… ?"

Jin Jian: "…!"

Brief silence.

In the bathtub, water splashed up violently, Zhao Du'an shuddered, manually activated the mosaic, and widened his eyes:

"Divine Official Jin Jian?! Why are you in my room?!"

The cute girl Jin Jian blinked her eyes, her voice ethereal and empty:

"I said before, I would come to find you when I was done."

Zhao Du'an opened his mouth: "When did you come over?"

Jin Jian answered every question: "When you went to the powder shop."

"…" A herd of alpacas galloped through Zhao Du'an's heart.

So, this little disciple of Zhang Tianshi definitely has a voyeuristic tendency!

She had been following him all along, until now.

"Does the Divine Official know that it is very inappropriate to enter someone's room without knocking?" Zhao Du'an sat in the bathtub and launched a serious protest.

Jin Jian thought for a while, felt that it made sense, and looked apologetic:

"I'm sorry, then I'll go out and come in again from the front door."

Saying that, she made a gesture to float down.

"Wait!" Zhao Du'an hurriedly stopped her, and said helplessly: "Just say what you have to say."

She's already seen it… It would cause a lot of trouble if I alarmed the servants at home.

Speaking of which, why is this girl so dull…

"Okay." Jin Jian followed suit and sat back down.

Zhao Du'an exhaled and asked in a deep voice: "May I ask the Divine Official, how is the situation?"

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