Having many handsome men means no worries; pampering them all keeps me in good spirits.

Xuan Ye had only seen Jiang Qingyan standing with the Third Prince, so he assumed she must be some important person. He planned to use bedroom arts to seduce her first, and then find an opportunity to escape from Qingfeng Pavilion.

Unexpectedly, he had chosen the right person today. Not only could he leave Qingfeng Pavilion so quickly, but he also preserved his chastity.

A hint of surprise flashed across Xuan Ye's eyes, and he quickly kowtowed to express his gratitude: "Young Master's great kindness and virtue, Xuan Ye will repay you with his life!"

He was never gay to begin with, and now that he's free, he can live a normal life with dignity. To him, the young master's kindness is like a second life...

Jiang Qingyan waved her hand, signaling the servant in the hall to call over Father Xu, and then sat back down in her previous seat.

Lu Nian and Yi Luo were also very satisfied with Jiang Qingyan's decision, and they diligently peeled melon seeds for her on either side. Xuan Ye sat opposite Jiang Qingyan.

A moment later, Old Man Xu walked over with a smile, fanning himself, and said in a high-pitched voice, "Young master, is there anything you need me to do?"

Jiang Qingyan slightly curled her lips, her tone very casual: "This young master is quite fond of Xuan Ye and wants to take him as a concubine. Father Xu, just name your price."

Old Man Xu glanced at Xuan Ye, hesitated slightly, and said with a hint of difficulty, "As you know, young master, Xuan Ye is a rare beauty. I originally intended to make him the next courtesan..."

Jiang Qingyan, unwilling to listen to such nonsense, said impatiently, "Uncle Xu, there's no need for all that beating around the bush. Just name your price."

After considering his options, Old Man Xu was about to speak when Jiang Qingyan interrupted him, "Old Man Xu, you should think carefully about your price. If you're going to ask for an exorbitant amount, I'm not a fool. Besides, during the auction today, your guests struggled to even scrape together five hundred taels!"

Jiang Qingyan took a sip of tea and said, "A virgin's first time can barely fetch this price. Once Xuan Ye loses his virginity today, no matter how beautiful he is, he'll probably only be worth thirty taels at most. Besides... how many people can afford to take out thirty taels every day?"

Old Man Xu blinked, pondering in his heart: What this young master said wasn't wrong. The current courtesan was only worth ten taels of silver a night, and a wealthy young master would only come to him every two or three days. Moreover, most of the rich young masters in the city had wives at home, and they would only come once every ten days or half a month...

Jiang Qingyan curled her lips, presumably because she had hit the nail on the head, and quickly added, "Father Xu, don't just look at the present. Even if I redeem Xuan Ye today, I will still patronize your Qingfeng Pavilion often. If there are any better ones, I am willing to pay a high price for their first night."

Upon hearing this, Old Man Xu's eyes flashed, and he put on a smirk again. "Since you say so, young master, then I will give you a patron's price, ten thousand taels."

"Ten thousand taels..." Jiang Qingyan's tone revealed a hint of dissatisfaction.

Xuan Ye hadn't expected Old Man Xu to be so outrageous; when he was sold here by a villain, he'd only been sold for a hundred taels of silver...

Xuan Ye stared intently at Jiang Qingyan's face, his fists clenched tightly. His heart was pounding in his chest. Would the young master give up on redeeming him because the price was too high?

Seeing that Jiang Qingyan remained silent, Old Man Xu grew anxious. He hadn't intended to quote such a high price, thinking there was still room for negotiation. But the young master was actually bargaining with him! Hurry up and negotiate a price; if he does, he'll agree…

Jiang Qingyan took a sip of tea and said with a serious expression, "Ten thousand and one taels, it's auspicious, meaning that Xuan Ye is the one in ten thousand in my heart."

Xuan Ye immediately breathed a sigh of relief, and his gaze toward Jiang Qingyan became somewhat strange. Was someone as disheveled as him one in a million in the young master's heart?

Lu Nian and Yi Luo remained silent. The Emperor clearly said he had no feelings for Xuan Ye, yet he always did things that led to misunderstandings…

Old Master Xu was stunned for a moment, not quite understanding why the young master had bargained down by an extra tael.

Then, seeing the hint of affection in Xuan Ye's eyes as he gazed at Jiang Qingyan, Old Man Xu, with his experience, immediately understood. The young master was spending a fortune to win the beauty's heart! In truth, he too had once encountered such a fine young man, but due to unforeseen circumstances… alas…

After a moment of reflection, Grandpa Xu quickly agreed, ran back to his room, found Xuan Ye's indenture, and handed it to Jiang Qingyan with both hands.

Jiang Qingyan took the indenture, carefully examined it to confirm that it was indeed Xuan Ye's, then took out a 10,000-tael silver note from her sleeve and a 1-tael piece of loose silver from her pocket, and tossed it to Father Xu.

Old Man Xu quickly put the silver notes away and tucked them into his chest. He bowed to Jiang Qingyan and then ran back to his room to carefully hide the silver notes. He had never seen such a large amount of silver notes before!

Jiang Qingyan placed the indenture on the table, glanced at Xuan Ye, and said in a calm tone, "Alright, you are free from now on."

After saying that, he left Qingfeng Pavilion with Lu Nian and Yi Luo.

Xuan Ye picked up his indenture and stared at it for a long time, his eyes reddening as he murmured, "Eight years... Am I... really... free...?"

Seeing that Jiang Qingyan and the other two had completely disappeared from Qingfeng Pavilion, Xuan Ye was unwilling to stay there any longer. He tore the indenture to shreds and strode out of Qingfeng Pavilion with his head held high.

“Husband…” Lu Nian took Jiang Qingyan’s hand, as if he had something to say.

Jiang Qingyan was nearly stunned by the word "husband," her voice trembling slightly as she asked, "Um... what's wrong..."

Lu Nian shook his head and didn't continue. He really wanted to ask, if Xuan Ye was one in a thousand, one in ten thousand, then what about him?

Jiang Qingyan seemed to see through her, squeezed Lu Nian's palm, and said softly, "Don't think nonsense. No matter what, your place in my heart is irreplaceable by anyone."

Hearing this, Lu Nian felt a warmth in her heart. He must have lost his mind to compare himself to that male prostitute. She couldn't help but smile slightly.

Knowing that Yi Luo was about to cause trouble, before he could even speak, Jiang Qingyan immediately took his hand with her other hand and said with a smile, "You are the same, there's no need to compare yourself to others."

Yi Luo's words were abruptly cut off, but he still smiled with satisfaction.

Seeing that the two men were so easily appeased, Jiang Qingyan narrowed her almond-shaped eyes, took one of them by the hand, and strode back to the inn.

A figure in black followed closely behind the three at a distance...

Back in her room at the inn, after making sure no one was eavesdropping, Yi Luo whispered, "That Third Prince seems a bit strange today."

Jiang Qingyan raised an eyebrow. "What's so strange about it? He's just pretending to be weak to take advantage of others."

Yi Luo asked, puzzled, "You mean... the Third Prince went to Qingfeng Pavilion pretending to be infatuated with beautiful women?"

Lu Nian nodded. "Indeed, during the newcomers' performance just now, the Third Prince's expression didn't seem interested in them at all. Moreover, when he heard that Yan Qing was going to give Xuan Ye to him, he even seemed a little flustered."

Jiang Qingyan gave Lu Nian a thumbs up and praised, "Bingo! As expected of my man, so smart!"

Yi Luo pouted and gave a jealous "tsk".

Jiang Qingyan stroked her chin, pondered for a moment, and said, "I'm going to Qingfeng Pavilion again in three days. You two don't need to come with me."