coobybook Chapter 202 Recognition
Chapter 202 Recognition
Chapter 202 202 Recognition
Shi Zhenghan and Chunyu Jing are respectively the Right Chancellor and the Prince in charge of the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Rites. Normally, people would notice that the two were getting along too closely and cause gossip. Unless there was something important, Shi Zhenghan would not come to the Prince of Nanping's mansion easily.
Upon hearing the guard's report, Chunyu Jing was taken aback at first, then his expression hardened, and he said, "Let him in."
Shi Zhenghan wore a dark brown outer robe and a veil on his head, concealing his identity.
After he entered the room, the guards immediately closed the door, blocking out the three people inside.
Shi Zhenghan removed the gauze hat from his head, his eyes fixed on Ye Yingrou beside Chunyu Jing, his intention to expel her was particularly clear.
However, Chunyu Jing did not dismiss Ye Yingrou as he had expected, but instead asked directly, "Why are you here?"
Shi Zhenghan's gaze remained fixed on Ye Yingrou as he asked in a deep voice, "And who is this?"
Chunyu Jing glanced at Ye Yingrou and smiled, "Why don't you, Right Prime Minister, guess this young lady's identity?"
Shi Zhenghan's gaze swept over Ye Yingrou's face, half of which was covered in scars, and he said:
"This young lady looks somewhat familiar; I feel like I've seen her somewhere before."
Ye Yingrou bowed slightly to Shi Zhenghan and said with a light smile, "Prime Minister, my daughter once performed a dance for His Majesty at the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet in Qionglin Garden."
"Hmm..." Shi Zhenghan vaguely remembered something like this, "You are the granddaughter of Xu Huanshan, a tea merchant from Fuzhou?"
“That is my maternal grandfather. I am grateful that the Prime Minister still remembers him. I thank the Prime Minister on behalf of my grandfather,” Ye Yingrou said.
The difference between her grandfather and maternal grandfather was immense; she must have deliberately misrepresented them to attend the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet. Shi Zhenghan nodded knowingly.
Chunyu Jing said, "Besides that, she has another identity, which is very advantageous to our plan. With her and the power behind her, we can say that we have victory in our grasp." As he said this, his eyes were full of barely suppressed excitement.
"Oh?" Shi Zhenghan became curious. "Just who is this young lady?"
"Two days ago, Father Emperor entrusted me with the Golden Lotus Case, which my third brother was in charge of. Do you remember the name of the organization behind the black-clad assassin that my third brother personally captured?"
“Of course I remember, it’s an organization called ‘Ronghua Tower’.” Shi Zhenghan’s heart skipped a beat, “Could it be…”
Ye Yingrou stopped keeping Shi Zhenghan in suspense, raised her eyebrows, and said with a hint of pride, "I am Ye Yingrou, the owner of Ronghua Tower."
"How could a little girl like you be..." Shi Zhenghan was shocked, then suddenly realized, "Wait a minute, your surname is Ye? There aren't many families with the surname Ye in the capital, you could be..."
Chunyu Jing smiled meaningfully, turned around and faced the cabinet behind him that displayed various porcelain items. He twisted one of the vases, and the cabinet immediately moved aside, revealing a secret room hidden behind it.
After all three entered the secret chamber, the shelf automatically returned to its original position. Chunyu Jing, with his hands behind his back, led the other two inside and said:
"Rou'er is one of our own, so the Prime Minister can speak his mind without worry and need not be wary of her."
Shi Zhenghan knew Chunyu Jing well. In his heart, there was never anyone "trustworthy," including himself. He had been supporting Chunyu Jing for nearly seven years, and in those seven years, he had never seen Chunyu Jing trust any subordinate, let alone keep someone who didn't belong to the Prince's Mansion by his side. This Ye Yingrou had greatly exceeded his expectations.
Countless guesses flashed through Shi Zhenghan's mind, and his gaze became increasingly profound.
"Miss Ye, you once performed with the son of Marquis Anshi in the Qionglin Garden. May I ask what your relationship is with the Marquis Anshi's family?"
“My father is Marquis Anshi, and my elder brother Ye Yanxun is also related to me by blood,” Ye Yingrou replied.
Shi Zhenghan knew that Chunyu Jing wanted to win over Anshihou. He paused for a moment, then asked casually, "I see. I am ignorant and have never been involved in the affairs of the martial world. May I ask what Ronghua Tower, Miss, does?"
Ye Yingrou replied, "As long as the Prime Minister needs it, and as long as there is sufficient payment, Ronghua Tower can do anything."
In other words, Ronghua Tower is a completely organized assassin organization? She's just a young girl, how could she have such great abilities? Or is Ronghua Tower actually controlled by Marquis Anshi?
"To have built such a large organization single-handedly and gained the Prince's favor, you must have extraordinary abilities," Shi Zhenghan probed casually. "What is your greatest strength, young lady?"
Ye Yingrou smiled so brightly that everyone momentarily forgot the scars on her face. Even Shi Zhenghan, who was over fifty, couldn't help but be mesmerized. In that brief moment, when he came to his senses, he suddenly felt his body become extremely hot, his heart was beating faster than usual, and he felt as if ants were crawling in his lower abdomen, making him feel itchy and short of breath.
If Shi Zhenghan still didn't know what was going on, then he had lived all these years in vain. When he looked up at Ye Yingrou again, the fervor in his eyes seemed to burn.
"You poisoned me?"
"As expected of Prime Minister Shi." Ye Yingrou smiled gracefully, flicked her sleeve, and a gentle breeze brushed against Shi Zhenghan's face, causing the strange phenomenon in his body to disappear without a trace.
"You didn't even touch my body, so when did you poison me?" Shi Zhenghan asked urgently, but he wasn't afraid; he was excited.
"It was just a little trickery," Ye Yingrou said.
"It's fate, it's fate!" Shi Zhenghan's gaze towards Ye Yingrou had completely changed. If his attitude towards Ye Yingrou before was one of wariness, now it was as warm and familiar as if they were family.
Chunyu Jing was very satisfied to see that Ye Yingrou had gained Shi Zhenghan's trust with just a few tricks.
The most direct benefit for Ye Yingrou in gaining their approval is the increase in their favorability rating!
[Target's favorability +10, affection +10, good/evil value +5. Target's current favorability is 45, affection is 41. Host's current good/evil value is 252.]
[Shi Zhenghan's favorability +20, good/evil value +5, target's current favorability value 20, host's current good/evil value 257.]
[Beep—Host's current morality score is 257, experience points are 30160, and skill proficiency is 100. You meet the upgrade requirements and are about to upgrade to Intermediate Drug Maker. Please prepare for the upgrade!]
The system within Ye Yingrou's body kept emitting pleasant notification sounds. Since that time when she was demoted to a junior poison maker due to losing a lot of favorability points to Marquis Anshi, Ye Yanxun, and Chunyu Jing in the Marquis's mansion because of Ye Pianran, she finally managed to raise her level back to senior poison maker in a short period of time with the help of the Heart Gu.
Ah, the Heart Gu is truly a wonderful thing. With the Heart Gu, no matter what she does, Chunyu Jing will no longer lose any favor or affection points towards her. Furthermore, if Chunyu Jing ever becomes interested in another woman, the Heart Gu will make him experience the agony of a thousand Gu devouring his heart, ensuring he never dares to have any more thoughts and will forever remain loyal only to her!
The system quickly brought Ye Yingrou the rewards after the upgrade. This time, the system not only rewarded her with a new poison-making formula, but she also obtained new poisonous herbs and gu worms. The scars on her face that had not healed for a long time were also completely healed at this moment.
In the eyes of Chunyu Jing and Shi Zhenghan, Ye Yingrou seemed to have completely changed her appearance in the blink of an eye, which made them even more convinced that she, the owner of "Ronghua Tower", was indeed very capable.