Tangli Fried Snow

At this moment, Chu Beitang's beautiful eyes were filled with worry, tenderness, and a thoughtful expression. She sat on his bed, put the tray aside, helped the prince up and helped him sit properly, then picked up the medicine bowl, blew on it to cool it down, and brought it to his lips.

Zhao Hehua couldn't refuse the beautiful woman's tenderness. While drinking the medicine she fed him, he put his arm around her alluring waist and softly said, "Were you frightened today?"

Chu Beitang's beautiful eyes flashed with a complex light, and she softly agreed, "Mmm."

The medicine was both bitter and sour, making him frown as he ate it.

Chu Beitang put down the bowl, looked at his scrunched-up face, smiled slightly, and kissed him with her red lips. Just as she was about to sit up straight, Zhao Hehua was not about to let her leave so easily. He immediately grabbed her shoulders and kissed her hard. But her delicate tongue flicked out and brought a piece of honey into his mouth.

The prince was overjoyed and held her in his arms, his chest heaving as he laughed continuously.

The beautiful woman whispered in his ear, "He Hua, you know I love you madly. My greatest wish is for you to ascend to the throne... I am willing to follow you for the rest of my life."

“You can trust me completely, you don’t need to hide anything from me. I can guarantee with my own life that I will help He Hua achieve his wish.”

The Crown Prince was greatly shocked and said, "Do you think I'm hiding many things from you?"

Chu Beitang knew that if she didn't use some tricks, she would never be able to make him completely trust her. She said softly, "I am originally a member of the Goryeo royal family and have always been close to the Qi people. The person in the cold palace is about to make a move."

The crown prince's expression changed, and he exclaimed, "What?"

Chu Beitang knew, of course, that he had lived in the shadow of Consort Huang since childhood; his birth mother, the former Empress, had been brought down by that very Consort Huang in the Cold Palace. The Crown Prince's face flushed and paled in turns, the bloody intrigues and schemes seeming as if they had happened just yesterday. His breathing was rapid; he had clearly lost his composure. She grabbed the man's arm, lifted his hand, and slipped an antique-style ring from her thumb onto his index finger.

"You'll find out in a few days. You must trust me completely; if you keep hesitating, the consequences will be unpredictable."

"What you need to do most right now is to observe the fight from a distance, and make sure you have capable people by your side when it matters most."

"..."

"There is a medicine in here that can cure the dead and restore flesh to bones. He Hua, you must keep it safe."

…………

Zhao Wuji tied Aunt Bai to a pillar. Aunt Bai's hair was disheveled, and her well-maintained face was covered with scars. Her mouth and hands were swollen, and her body was covered with deep and shallow scars. There wasn't a single unscathed spot on her body.

“Mother Bai, think about it again. From which human trafficker did you buy Lin Jiaojiao?”

"Don't make things difficult for yourself. Think carefully again. When Miss Jiaojiao came, did she bring anything with her? Clothes, jewelry, jade pendants, or anything like that? Think it through before you speak. If you still can't remember, this red-hot coal will be slapped in your face."

Aunt Bai trembled and hurriedly said, "Sir, I've told you everything I need to say. I bought that girl, Jiaojiao, from a broker I know well, Wang Fengyi. She has a lover named Zhang the Cripple, who does business near the Baihua Tower I used to run. He's a legitimate broker, so you'll definitely find her if you go to the old town."

"Jiaojiao came when she was 13 years old. She was sick when she arrived and it took her more than a month to recover. It cost me a lot of money. I heard from Zhang the Cripple that he bought those girls from the south. They were originally being raised on some kind of estate. The owner of the estate sold his servants, and he took them all at once. He saw that she was pretty and sold her to my brothel. Ordinary little girls are only worth two taels of silver, but Jiaojiao is literate and beautiful, so I spent twenty taels of silver to buy her."

"I have never mistreated her, nor have I ever forced her to take clients. Her first client was Captain Wen, who redeemed her on the spot..."

"Alright, alright, haven't we already said all that? I asked if you had anything with you, like clothes or jewelry from a wealthy family," Zhao Wuji said fiercely.

"Sir, you've misunderstood. When she came, she was dressed in rags and was delirious with illness. Anything of value she had was stolen. What valuable things did she have? Everything she had was provided by me after she came here."

"Please, have mercy and let me go. I've really told you everything. I don't know anything else."

Zhao Wuji picked up the trembling girl from the ground and began questioning her again, "Tell me, you've served her for several years, do you remember if she brought any personal belongings, jewelry, jade pendants, or anything like that when she came?"

Chunliu trembled with fear at his fierce appearance. After listening for a while, she finally understood that this man from the Western Regions wanted to investigate the background of Miss Jiaojiao.

Chunliu tried to recall for a while and said, "When she, Miss Jiaojiao, came, she was twelve or thirteen years old. She was sick and had a fever for three days. She didn't have anything of value on her."

Zhao Wuji patiently guided her, "Think again carefully, does she have any birthmarks, six fingers, moles, or any other special marks?"

"No, no, Miss doesn't have any special markings. It's just that, it's just that she naturally has less body hair, under her armpits and genitals than normal. There's nothing else special about her," Chunliu stammered.

"She has a great memory and a talent for languages. When she first came, she spoke with a soft Wu dialect, which often made her the girls in the building laugh at and ostracize her. She studied Northern languages ​​diligently and was able to communicate normally in just a few months. Later, she gradually lost all her accent."

Zhao Wuji looked at the little girl with satisfaction. She was quite clever, able to say key information such as having little body hair and speaking soft Wu dialect. This was a great gain.

Seeing that she was honest and docile, he didn't torture the girl. He simply locked the two of them in the room and went out to send messages to others by carrier pigeon.

Jin Qingyan had arrived at the former site of Baihualou. After it was occupied by the Southern Army, it was turned into an inn. The brokerage firm was gone, and the human traffickers were now wandering around, doing business wherever they went. It was impossible to trace them for the time being. He could only try to see Wen Xiangli first, and hopefully get Lin Jiaojiao's indenture. The proper indenture contained the person's basic information, household registration, family members, physical characteristics, etc. He could see if there were any clues on it.

It was already noon, so he chose a nearby restaurant to eat at. Although there was fighting everywhere, people were still able to get by. The business of taverns and restaurants was even better than before due to the increased flow of people. There was a lot of delicious food in this era, and the service was also very attentive. As long as you had money, the restaurant could provide any service.

As soon as Jin Qingyan sat down, a thought popped into his head, and he took out a gleaming silver ingot, which he played with in his hand. A sharp-eyed, quick-footed, and sweet-talking waiter immediately ran over.

With a beaming smile, he stared intently at the silver ingot, and said obsequiously, "Sir, what are your orders?"

Jin Qingyan said leisurely, "I heard this place used to be called Baihualou, and the top courtesan there was called...? What?..."

"Bai Yun, the top courtesan at Baihua Tower is named Bai Yun," the waiter immediately interjected.

Jin Qingyan tossed the silver ingot into the air, where it spun around once before the waiter could catch it, and Jin Qingyan snatched it back into his own hand.

"Where is Miss Bai Yun now? I've been running around for two whole days just to see her."

The waiter replied, "Young master, unfortunately, the Hundred Flowers Pavilion has been gone for more than half a year. Miss Baiyun went to Jiyue City with her mother. You can go to Jiyue City to inquire about her."

His eyes were fixed on the silver in Jin Qingyan's hand, not blinking.

Jin Qingyan said slowly and deliberately, "There used to be a famous human trafficker here, who was also a little disabled in his leg. His name was, Zhang something..."

The waiter's eyes darted around as he said, "His name is Zhang the Cripple. He used to live in Pear Blossom Lane. As for now, we'll have to ask around."

Jin Qingyan tossed the silver in front of him, who caught it, smelled it under his nose, and said, "What would you like to eat, sir?"

Jin Qingyan casually ordered a few dishes.

"Alright, please come in. I'll serve you the food right away." With that, she happily turned to leave.

Jin Qingyan took out another silver ingot, and the waiter bowed and scraped as he approached, "Is there anything else you need, sir?"

"I need Zhang the Cripple's exact address. If I could find him here..."

"Please eat first. After you finish eating, I will bring the person to you."

Jin Qingyan smiled with satisfaction, and the waiter happily pocketed the two silver ingots and left.

After he finished his meal, drank a few more cups of wine, and listened to the storyteller for a while, the waiter returned.

He looked troubled and said, "Sir, I'm sorry, but the city is in chaos right now. I've searched for an hour, looking everywhere in the city and his house, but I still can't find him. Some people say he was killed by the rebels, and some say that the cripple Zhang ran off to the north to do business. What do you think...? Why don't you go to the Tianji Pavilion, which specializes in buying and selling information, and take a look?"

Tianji Pavilion, a place specializing in buying and selling information, he had completely forgotten about it.

Jin Qingyan waved his hand, and the waiter immediately left.