Your Majesty said that my life is worthless, so why are you crying when I increase my troops?

Xia Mingyuan looked up and down at the girl Shuiyue in front of him.

After a long while, he slowly said, "How long have you been in Cuiwei Tower?"

Miss Shuiyue lowered her head, not daring to meet Xia Mingyuan's gaze, and whispered, "Sir, I have been in Cuiwei Tower for less than a month..."

"Less than a month?" Xia Mingyuan tapped the table lightly, calculating secretly in his mind.

He didn't ask any more irrelevant questions, but just stared into Shuiyue's eyes and asked, "Miss Shuiyue, do you want me to redeem you from here and become a good woman?"

Hearing this, Xu Shuiyue couldn't help but shudder all over and forced a smile towards Xia Mingyuan, "Young Master, you're joking. I was sold to this brothel to pay off a debt. My uncle took 800 taels of silver from Cuiwei Tower. If he wants to redeem me, I'm afraid it will cost at least 8,000 taels."

Having said this, a hint of desolation flashed across Xu Shuiyue's eyes.

With eight thousand taels of silver, she wanted to escape from this brothel, but she was afraid that she would never have the slightest hope in her life.

Besides, in a few days, she would have been reserved by someone and would have lost her virginity, and no man would be interested in her anymore.

Xia Mingyuan shook his head and said in a deep voice, "I'm not kidding. As long as you help me accomplish one thing, I will give Cuiwei Tower eight thousand taels of silver to buy out your indenture."

"When the time comes, I will open a shop, and you can work as a helper in it. From then on, even if your life becomes harder, you won't have to live in this brothel anymore."

Xia Mingyuan's words made Xu Shuiyue's expression change slightly.

She forced a smile and looked Xia Mingyuan up and down.

There are countless guests coming and going in Cuiwei Tower every day, and many of them are attracted by her beauty.

But Xu Shuiyue still has some self-awareness in her heart.

At least, it is impossible for a man like Xia Mingyuan to pay eight thousand taels of silver to redeem her just because he was attracted by her beauty.

This is a full eight thousand taels of silver, enough to buy a three-story house in Hanyang City.

Rich people are not fools. How could they do such a stupid thing for a prostitute?

Despite this, Xu Shuiyue was still unwilling to give up the last glimmer of hope. She raised her head and asked Xia Mingyuan weakly, "I wonder what you want me to do, Mr. Xia?"

Xia Mingyuan said calmly, "I need you to get close to Geng Ruhuai and make him obsessed with you, and then get entangled with County Magistrate Sun Yaozu and instigate a quarrel between the two."

Xu Shuiyue was shocked all over, raised her head in disbelief, and stared at Xia Mingyuan in a daze.

"Do you understand what I mean?"

Seeing that she didn't speak, Xia Mingyuan frowned slightly, "If you don't understand, or don't want to agree, you can leave now."

"Let's pretend what happened today never happened."

Xia Mingyuan was a little hesitant at this moment. As a modern man, he couldn't help but feel that using a young woman as a tool was too inhumane and too cruel to Xu Shuiyue.

But now is not the time to be soft-hearted. In this life-and-death struggle, if he is not ruthless, he will eventually be suppressed by Geng Ruhuai and Sun Yaozu.

For this reason, the only thing Xia Mingyuan could do was to guarantee that if Xu Shuiyue could help him, he would help this woman escape from suffering and live a worry-free life for the rest of her life.

Xu Shuiyue hesitated for a moment, stood up from her seat, and did not dare to look at Xia Mingyuan.

"Sir, I understand what you are going to do. I think this is what is often referred to in operas as the honey trap and the alienation strategy, right?"

"But in the plays I've heard, regardless of whether the honey trap or the alienation strategy succeeds or fails, the women who use these strategies will not end up well in the end."

"My family has fallen on hard times, and I've always had a miserable life. Now I'm trapped in this city brothel, like a weed blown by the wind. I dare not hope for good fortune anymore. I'm sorry, I can't obey your will."

As she spoke, Xu Shuiyue bowed to Xia Mingyuan and was about to leave.

Xia Mingyuan frowned and couldn't help but feel that it was a pity.

This Miss Shuiyue is indeed smart enough, but if she is unwilling to agree, he cannot force her.

"Wait a moment."

Xia Mingyuan finally couldn't hold back anymore and called out to Xu Shuiyue.

Xu Shuiyue shuddered all over and looked at Xia Mingyuan nervously.

Xia Mingyuan forced a smile at her and said, "Miss Shuiyue, you still have time to think about it. There are not many opportunities in a person's life to change their destiny. Once you miss it, you may regret it for the rest of your life."

"I am from the Princess's Mansion. If you change your mind these days, you can ask He Sanniang to come to the Princess's Mansion to find me."

Xu Shuiyue nodded slightly without saying anything.

"By the way, if you often experience menstrual pain, you can try pressing these acupoints. Drinking some red dates, ginger tea, and motherwort might help."

As Xia Mingyuan spoke, he walked quickly forward and rubbed Xu Shuiyue's uterus, Taichong, and other acupoints several times.

In his previous life, he had dated several girlfriends. Although they had broken up long ago, he still had some knowledge about this kind of thing.

Xu Shuiyue was startled by Xia Mingyuan's sudden move. She wanted to dodge, but was afraid of offending the distinguished guest, so she could only stand still carefully.

But soon, Xu Shuiyue was surprised to find that the pain in her lower abdomen, which had been shaking with pain, had actually eased a lot.

"Have you memorized all the acupuncture points? When you go back, try them yourself according to my acupuncture points. If you can't reach any, ask the maid to help you."

Xia Mingyuan stopped there, pressed the button a few times for Xu Shuiyue, then returned to his seat and continued drinking tea.

Xu Shuiyue's eyes widened as she looked at Xia Mingyuan in surprise, tears welling up in her eyes.

Since my mother passed away, no one has ever cared so much about her health.

A few days ago, she was staying at her uncle's house. Even though she was rolling around in pain due to her menstrual period, she had to work in the cold weather. If she took a break, she would be beaten and scolded by her aunt, who would even tell her about the menstrual pain and accuse her of being shameless.

"Thank you, sir."

Xu Shuiyue wiped her tears, looked at Xia Mingyuan deeply, turned around and ran out.

"This woman, why is she crying for no reason? I didn't force her." Xia Mingyuan looked somewhat helpless. Seeing that this ready-made beauty trap didn't work, he could only give up for the time being.

After leaving Cuiwei Tower, Xia Mingyuan went straight back to the princess's mansion.

Zhao Hongying was busy in the kitchen at the moment, and there was a burning smell coming from the house.

Seeing Xia Mingyuan coming back, he quickly covered the pot with a flustered look.

"Husband, why did you come back so soon..."

Xia Mingyuan frowned slightly and sniffed hard, "Hongying, what are you doing in the kitchen? Is something burnt?"

As he spoke, Xia Mingyuan looked at the pot lid that was already emitting black smoke and walked forward quickly.

"Husband, let me come!"

Zhao Hongying's pretty face flushed, and she hurriedly tried to stop Xia Mingyuan, but she was a step too late. She saw Xia Mingyuan lift the lid of the pot.

In an instant, the smell of burnt food rushed into my nose.