The Flourishing Era of Female Merchants

Jin Qiaoyu was unaware that Yu Fangfei was thinking exactly the same thing as her at that moment—a disdain and malice that was even more intense. Seeing her eldest daughter, An Xinlian, walk in, Yu Fangfei immediately strode forward and whispered, "Have you done what I asked you to do?"

An Xinlian raised her lips, her smile as radiant as a flower. "When has Xinlian ever failed to handle anything Mother has asked of her? Don't worry, today, the prefectural magistrate will be coming, and Xinlian has already bribed the head constable. They will be waiting near the An residence early in the morning. As soon as there is any movement here, they will rush in, and then..."

An Xinlian stopped there, but didn't continue. She met Yu Fangfei's eyes meaningfully, and the two exchanged a knowing glance, the meaning of which was self-evident.

"Where is Xinhe?" Yu Fangfei asked. Before An Xinlian could answer, her sharp eyes spotted the person being led in by the servant, and she hurriedly went to greet him warmly, "Your Excellency, welcome, welcome..."

In the main hall, the atmosphere was unusually lively, while in another part of the An residence, the rooms were also bustling with activity.

"You'd better hurry up and get to work. Today is a big day for me. If there's even the slightest flaw in your makeup or attire, I'll make sure you regret it."

An Mi carried the snacks into the room and heard An Xinhe harshly reprimanding the servants. She secretly twitched the corners of her mouth. This An Xinhe, with her arrogant and domineering attitude, would probably be even more lively if she married into the Liu family.

"What are you doing here?" An Mi was just thinking when An Xinhe's displeased voice rang out again, drawing An Mi's attention back.

Thinking of the purpose of her visit, An Mi frowned and said, "Fifth Miss, Miss Xianglan asked me to send some pastries. Did you buy them from your favorite pastry shop, or did Miss Xianglan go to buy them herself?"

An Mi subtly observed An Xinhe's expression, and as she expected, when she heard the name "Xiang Lan," her eyebrows furrowed, and even her exquisite makeup could not hide the displeasure on her face.

An Xinhe glanced at the pastries in An Mi's hand and sneered, "What good intentions could she possibly have? That bitch went to buy them herself, could she have poisoned them?"

An Mi trembled slightly and hurriedly said, "Fifth Miss, please don't speak nonsense, Miss Xianglan, she..."

"Hmph, you eat, but I'll watch you eat." An Xinhe interrupted An Mi, her sharp eyes narrowing as she looked at An Mi with ill intent.

“This…this was given to the Fifth Miss by Miss Xianglan…” An Mi looked troubled, but she was not flustered at all.

"Eat what I'm telling you to eat, what are you dawdling for? If you don't want to eat, I'll have someone feed you." Seeing An Mi's reaction, An Xinhe felt even more that something was amiss.

An Mi frowned, unable to resist An Xinhe's domineering presence. She reluctantly took a piece of pastry, glanced at An Xinhe, and under her glaring gaze, finally put the pastry in her mouth, chewing it carefully. She sighed inwardly, thinking that it was indeed a pastry that those young ladies were eager to have; the taste was really good.

Under An Xinhe's gaze, An Mi swallowed the entire pastry. An Xinhe kept staring at An Mi, as if waiting for something. What was she waiting for? An Mi gave a cold laugh without leaving a trace. She was waiting for An Mi to die from poisoning!

Hehe... Then she'll have to disappoint An Xinhe. Looking at the pastries in front of her, and thinking about what she had done early in the morning, her eyes flickered slightly.

After waiting for a while, An Xinhe still didn't see any signs of poisoning from An Mi. She frowned and waved her hand at An Mi in disappointment, "Put the things down and go down, so you won't be an eyesore here."

Anmi didn't say anything, put down the remaining snacks, then turned and left the room. As she turned, the smile on her lips widened slightly.

Poisoned? Apart from An Mi, no one knew that the pastries she had just sent in looked no different from those sent by Feng Xianglan last night, but in reality, they were no longer the same pastries.

Given An Mi's carefree nature, she wouldn't feel comfortable eating anything, whether it was sent by her or by Feng Xianglan. The fact that she was asked to taste it was exactly what An Mi had anticipated. How could she allow herself to be poisoned by Feng Xianglan?

Even if she herself is not poisoned, if An Xinhe gets into trouble, An Mi will not be able to escape the consequences!

Feng Xianglan, you're really good at scheming!

She was serene, but not one to be manipulated at will.

She took out a porcelain bottle from her bosom. It was given to her by An Xinlian last night. Thinking of An Xinlian's instructions last night, the depth in An Mi's eyes gradually gathered. She didn't notice at all that, at this moment, a pair of shrewd eyes were watching her with a half-smile by the rockery not far away.

"What is this?" A deep, cheerful voice rang in An Mi's ear. As he spoke, he swiftly snatched the porcelain bottle from An Mi's hand and examined it carefully, as if studying something.

Caught off guard, An Mi's hand went empty. Startled, she saw the newcomer and a hint of surprise flashed in her eyes. But then she saw the man open the lid of the porcelain bottle and realized something was wrong. She quickly stopped him, saying, "Your Highness, that's not something to be trifled with."

Bai Yi paused, his hand still holding the porcelain bottle, before closing it again. He smiled at An Mi, "Not something fun? I thought it was some top-grade elixir. Or is it poison?"

An Mi frowned, ignoring Bai Yi's words, and reached out to take back the porcelain bottle. However, An Mi was, after all, a woman, and how could she compare to the tall and imposing King Bohai? When Bai Yi saw her hand reaching out, he quickly raised the hand holding the porcelain bottle, lifting it high, and his smile deepened.

Anmi jumped twice and unknowingly clung to Bai Yi's broad chest, but still couldn't reach him.

"Seeing how anxious you are, it really is poison. However, looking at us now, people who don't know the situation might think that the second young lady of the An family has always been so fierce and impatient."

A low laugh came from above, and An Mi then saw the mischievous glint in Bai Yi's eyes. His handsome face was so close, with a half-smile that was quite captivating.

An Mi shook her head, only then realizing that the two of them were actually too close, almost touching body to body...

An Mi quickly took a step back to create distance between them. When she met Bai Yi's smile, An Mi frowned. This Bai Yi, he was doing it on purpose!

With a furrowed brow, An Mi regained her composure almost instantly, forcing a smile that was calm and aloof. "Your Highness, this joke is not funny. Please return the item to An Mi."

Bai Yi was taken aback. Just a moment ago, her face was slightly flushed, clearly showing her shyness and embarrassment. How could she have changed so quickly...? A smile spread across his eyes as he stroked the porcelain bottle in his hand, his gaze shifting slightly. "I can give it back to you, but could you let me know what's inside?"

An Mi glanced at Bai Yi, but didn't intend to hide it from him. "Didn't Your Highness say that there's poison in this?"