Peach Blossom.

Tao Ye looked closely and said, "Empress?"

She thought she was not mistaken. The woman in front of her who had removed her veil... was Shen Hui, the queen of Emperor Xiaozong Si Yu!

"There is no queen here. You can call me Boss Shen." Shen Hui's expression was very serious, far from the frivolous look she had when she was the queen.

Tao Ye looked Shen Hui up and down. Shen Hui was still as slim as she was back then, and her dress was still bright red, just like the drunken queen dancing gracefully under the red plum tree when she first met her...

However, Si Yu had already passed away, so Shen Hui naturally could no longer be called the queen, but she did not become the empress dowager either.

Tao Ye vaguely remembered that she seemed to have heard that after Si Yu's death, Queen Shen suddenly disappeared, and no one in the palace tracked Queen Shen's whereabouts anymore. They just supported Concubine Zhou's son as the new emperor.

"Boss Shen?" Tao Ye found this title fresh and interesting. On a whim, she started gossiping again: "Which boss are you from?"

Shen Hui did not answer.

The sedan chair entered Meixiangxie in a flash, and Shen Hui was helped out of the sedan chair by a maid.

Tao Ye also jumped down and followed Shen Hui into the house.

Tao Ye glanced around the interior furnishings and realized that this was the Meixiangxie where she had visited last time.

Meixiangxie is much more spacious and lively than the Shihua Pavilion just now, and most importantly, its nature is a little different.

Although Tao Ye had not specifically asked, she was basically certain that, as both places were places for selling smiles, the girls in Meixiang Pavilion must be selling their skills instead of their bodies, while the Shihua Pavilion...

Tao Ye felt much more relieved. Suddenly, she remembered that she had not thanked Shen Hui yet. She hurriedly chased after Shen Hui, smiling: "Thank you, Boss Shen, for saving me! You are so kind. I will definitely repay you in the future..."

"You don't need to thank me." Shen Hui stopped and looked back at Tao Ye with a smile: "I am a businessman, I never "save" people, I just "bought" an extra girl. I paid a high price of three hundred taels of gold, you have to make back my money for me!"

Tao Ye was stunned.

Three hundred taels? Or gold?

She quickly converted it in her mind. Three hundred taels is thirty jin, fifteen kilograms, or 15 kilograms. Based on the market price of gold at 400 yuan per gram, it seems like... RMB?

Six million?

Tao Ye almost fainted! She felt that she would never be able to earn so much money to pay off her debts in her three lifetimes!

Moreover, this debt came out of nowhere...

"Before you earn back your investment, all the rewards you get belong to me. After you earn back your investment, we will split it 50-50." Shen Hui's words brought Tao Ye back to the reality.

Tao Ye smiled awkwardly: "Boss Shen, look at me... I'm basically a loser! I eat and drink for free everywhere I go... I can't do anything well... Besides, I'm definitely not young in your place..."

"You have a beautiful voice and beautiful appearance, how could you be a waste?" Shen Hui looked Tao Ye up and down, as if she was very optimistic about Tao Ye: "You are the most expensive girl I have ever bought. You will become the most outstanding girl here in the future."

Tao Ye's smile froze on her face. She didn't know how to face Shen Hui's respect and appreciation.

"In the future, don't tell others your age casually. That will damage my reputation!" Shen Hui's words sounded like a reminder as well as a warning.

As soon as he finished speaking, the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs was heard not far away.

Tao Ye looked up and saw a girl walking quickly down the stairs and running towards her.

The girl was dressed up in a gorgeous way, with fluttering sleeves, and she looked very familiar...

When she got closer, Tao Ye recognized her. The girl seemed to be - Caiwei?

"Tao Ye..." Cai Wei ran to Tao Ye and held her hand excitedly: "Do you know how worried I am about you? Many of the guests here today are stewards of the Princess's Mansion! Ever since you fell with Mr. Wang San, I knew they would definitely target you, so I begged Boss Shen to come forward... Now that I see you are safe, I feel relieved."

Tao Ye understood what was said.

It turns out that Si Yao was able to arrive at the princess's mansion so promptly and prepare everything in advance because of her and Wang Ao's trip out?

But what Tao Ye didn't understand was how Caiwei could be one of the performing girls here?

Shen Hui then told Cai Wei, "You came just in time. Take her to wash up properly. Starting tomorrow, she will also follow the masters to teach. I hope that in a month, or at the latest in two months, she will be able to perform on stage. You should take care of her more."

Caiwei glanced at Taoye and showed a worried look: "But... once Sister Taoye goes on stage, she will most likely be seen by the people in the princess's mansion! Otherwise... let Sister Taoye wear a veil, or change her name?"

"Wear a veil? Change your name?" Shen Hui smiled coldly, and suddenly her expression changed: "What for? You are not making money here?"

Seeing Shen Hui's reaction, Caiwei didn't dare to make any more suggestions.

"I don't even take the Empress Dowager seriously, so who is Princess Si Yao?" Shen Hui had a calm expression on her face. After saying this, she went straight to the back hall to rest.

Tao Ye looked at Shen Hui's back and was amazed. Boss Shen is no longer Queen Shen, but her aura seems to be even greater than when she was the queen?

Caiwei took Taoye's arm and went upstairs. In the corridor, they saw Xie Cheng.

Tao Ye widened her eyes. It was Xie Cheng, the eunuch who served Emperor Xiaozong Si Yu most closely during his lifetime!

Xie Cheng was sweeping the floor in the corridor. When he saw Caiwei and Taoye, he nodded and smiled.

"Butler Xie? Is it Butler Xie?" Tao Ye seemed unsure, but she already understood why Cai Wei was here...

That year, Si Yu suddenly died in Fangle Palace under mysterious circumstances. Caiwei and Xie Cheng were supposed to stay by Si Yu's bedside, but they left Fangle Palace in a hurry and disappeared in the palace together. Soon after, everyone discovered that Queen Shen was also missing.

Now, these three people are all together. Could it be a coincidence?

In the following days, Caiwei slowly told Taoye the inside story of Si Yu's death, which she had witnessed and Xie Cheng had experienced personally.

"Xiaozong was suffocated to death by Master Chen! Manager Xie, Zhang Shuyuan, and my sister were all watching! I never knew before that my sister had been working for Master Chen.

Steward Xie said that Emperor Xiaozong seemed to have lost something very important that day, and he ran into Fangle Palace like crazy, and suddenly caught Master Chen and Zhang Shuyuan in bed... They were afraid of being punished by Emperor Xiaozong, so they had evil intentions!

I saw it by accident, and was implicated. I listened to the analysis of Xie Zongguan, who believed that the insider was most likely to be the scapegoat. I was very scared, so I followed him and fled. Later I learned that Xie Zongguan was originally sent by Empress Shen to be with Emperor Xiaozong.

When Empress Shen got the news, she immediately took us out of the palace to avoid the power struggle for the new emperor's accession to the throne. Later, Empress Shen, like most of the Shen family, went into business and became the owner of Meixiangxie.

In recent years, Meixiangxie has been doing very well and is one of the best brothels in Jiankang. Many dignitaries are regular customers here. It is impossible for the Empress Dowager to not know where Empress Shen is, but she turned a blind eye to it, probably because Qi's financial resources have always relied on the Shen family.

Now Princess Si Yao sees you as a thorn in her side, I'm afraid you are safest staying in Meixiangxie. Besides, you owe money to Boss Shen now, she won't allow you to go anywhere else. So, you'd better not run away easily. " Caiwei recalled the past, still worried about Taoye.

Tao Ye finally confirmed the truth: "Was it really Chen Ji who strangled Emperor Xiaozong to death? Was Xiao Wan also an accomplice?"

Caiwei nodded.

Tao Ye couldn't express how shocked she was. She couldn't help but ask Xie Cheng for more details about Si Yu's murder. After that, she couldn't sleep for several nights.

This belated truth not only made her realize again how ruthless Chen Ji was and how selfish Xiao Wan was, but also made her remember Si Yu's helplessness and despair before his death.

Late at night, Tao Ye seemed to hear again the two sentences Si Yu had said to her before his death:

"Even if he had something with you, in his eyes, you are nothing but a shadow. Are you willing to be a shadow forever?"

"Just wait and see. One day, I will be an emperor who stands tall and proud! When that day comes, if you are willing to come to my side, I will... wait for you anytime."

She felt so guilty. Si Yu had protected her many times, but she forgot about his death so quickly and only cared about following Wang Jing's footsteps. In the end, all she got in return was just wishful thinking!

In order to save his father, Wang Jing had to work for Prince Yongchang and plan to go to the capital together, with the intention of usurping the throne in the future.

Tao Ye was entrusted by the Wang family father and son to go to Jiankang to report the news, which was equivalent to doing things for King Yongchang.

However, the young emperor Si De is, after all, the son of Si Yu. If he were really driven off the throne by Prince Yongchang, how would Si Yu feel if he knew about it?

Thinking about it this way, Tao Ye felt that she seemed to be even more sorry for Si Yu. She shouldn't have stood on the side of Prince Yongchang just for Wang Jing...

When Tao Ye was learning skills from Mei Xiangxie's master, the Situ Mansion had already followed the routine and announced to the public that Wang Yi had passed away, set up a mourning hall, and at the same time sent someone to notify Wang Jing and Yu'er to return to attend the funeral at an urgent speed of 800 miles.

Before Wang Jing left Yongchang, he sent his father Wang Yi and Chongqiu to live in Yongchang Palace, and repeatedly told his father that if he had the chance, he must find a way to escape to the State of Wei.

Then, Wang Jing, Yu'er, Xiuping and Qiongju drove a carriage back to the long-lost Jiankang City.

Upon receiving the news that Wang Jing and Yu'er's carriage had entered the city, Wang Dun was still entertaining guests in the mourning hall. Wang Ao came outside the door to greet his brother.

Wang Ao was still wearing mourning clothes, but he made a special trip to the street. In fact, his purpose was not to welcome him. He wanted to see what the first thing Wang Jing would be concerned about when he got home.

Tao Ye disappeared without a trace after being kidnapped by the princess. He worried about Tao Ye's safety every day, but he couldn't find her.

He always remembered what Tao Ye said about Wang Jing, and he really wanted to ask Wang Jing: Since you married her, why don’t you cherish her?

As he was thinking about it, Wang Ao looked up and saw a carriage approaching and stopping in front of the door.