After being reborn, I became the apple of my enemy's eye.

Yan Yun found it strange, but while listening to the chattering of the people next to him, the two arrived at Baozhai Tower together, and Yan Yun prepared to go in and take a look.

Yan Yun glanced at the words on the signboard and recognized them at a glance, but Yu Zhi, standing to the side, looked at the word "Zhai" on it but did not say anything.

This does somewhat confirm what Yan Yun thought.

Upon entering Baozhailou, the manager immediately came out to greet them warmly.

Yu Zhi told the shopkeeper that she was just there to take a look and that he didn't need to entertain her.

The shopkeeper said that he had everything related to literature, and if I needed anything, I could just tell him to find it.

Yu Zhi nodded.

She showed Yan Yun the hanging paintings and calligraphy, and he seemed quite interested.

She looked at Yan Yun and said, "I heard the maids talking about you when I was at home."

This also shows that after Yan Yun arrived in Yuanjing, there were quite a few people gossiping about him behind his back.

Yu Zhi asked, "Are you studying at Baima Academy now?"

Yan Yun nodded. That was true; after all, it wasn't something that needed to be hidden.

Upon hearing Yan Yun's confirmation, Yu Zhi's face immediately showed an expression of envy.

"I also want to learn to read and write, but my parents say that a woman's virtue lies in her lack of talent. I suppose you would just laugh at me for writing those words for you earlier."

She shook her head at herself.

"Although I am older than you, I am no match for you at all."

She launched into another round of self-deprecating remarks.

Yan Yun naturally knew some of this as well. She knew that women had very little education and that she was only enjoying Zheng Jihua's favor.

Yu Zhi hesitated for a moment, then finally asked Yan Yun, "Sister Ning'er, what do you learn at the academy? What do the teachers talk about?"

She asked about the academy with great curiosity, but when she saw that Yan Yun couldn't answer, she didn't seem too surprised, because she felt she had been impolite.

She immediately changed her question and asked some questions that Yan Yun was able to answer.

"At White Horse Academy, did Sister Ning'er see any other women?"

Yan Yun shook his head.

She has not seen any women since she went to the academy.

Seeing Yan Yun shake her head, Yu Zhi was even happier: "I finally feel closer to my sister." Yu Zhi was overjoyed to receive a response, as if she had received a treasure. She was very happy that Yan Yun responded to her, just as the two of them were looking at each other.

Someone else came in from outside.

I heard a man's voice.

Yu Zhi pulled Yan Yun along and went up to the second floor from the stairwell.

Upon reaching the second floor, one finds a vast library filled with all sorts of books.

"Ning'er, look around, is there anything you like? I'll buy it for you."

There are many books that Yan Yun hasn't read.

She just looked at it and said she wouldn't buy it for herself if she asked someone she was meeting for the first time.

Yu Zhi was more excited than Yan Yun.

Thinking back to the time when she never had the chance to come alone, she was very excited to have someone with her now.

Just as Yu Zhi picked up a book to read, the person opposite her also reached out and took the book.

Yan Yun saw Yu Zhi first take the book, but when she realized there was someone else there, she let go of it.

Yan Yun turned to look and saw a man in blue robes.

Yu Zhi noticed the person who had arrived, turned around, and took her hand.

"Let's go, Ning'er."

Yan Yun looked at her, somewhat puzzled.

Upon hearing the voice, the man spoke to Yu Zhi and Yan Yun across the bookshelf, saying, "This is not a place for young ladies like you."

Yu Zhi's face flushed red. "Let's go now."

go?

Why leave?

Yan Yun looked at the man. Why be so domineering? It's not like we're in his own residence.

Yan Yun walked over from beside the bookshelf and met the man in blue.

The man in blue looked at Yan Yun's face with utter disdain, took the scroll and went to the other side. He no longer had the same arrogant attitude he had towards Yu Zhi.

"Brother Jingning, take a look at this."

The tone was completely different.

Yu Zhi didn't want to cause trouble. "Sister Ning'er, let's go."

Yu Zhi grabbed Yan Yun's hand and hurriedly went downstairs. They encountered a group of men coming up, and Yu Zhi covered her face with a handkerchief.

Yan Yun looked directly at them.

They deliberately blocked Yu Zhi's way, asking, "Since when can women come to Baozhai Tower?"

Upon hearing the commotion, the shopkeeper immediately came over to smooth things over, "Gentlemen, this is the daughter of the Grand Commandant."

"Oh?"

Upon hearing that it was the Grand Commandant's residence, they obediently stepped aside.

Yu Zhi and Yan Yun immediately went downstairs.

However, their haste caused the young masters to burst into laughter, which sounded jarring to Yan Yun, who had no idea what they were laughing at.

Yu Zhi was about to leave with Yan Yun when Yan Yun grabbed her hand. "Why are you walking like this, so timid and hesitant?"

Yan Yun pointed to the box behind the shopkeeper, and then pointed to himself.

The shopkeeper didn't understand, but Yu Zhi guessed it.

"Shopkeeper, bring out those pens so I can choose one."

The shopkeeper immediately took out the boxes and arranged them neatly.

"Miss, please take a look."

Yu Zhi said to Yan Yun, "Little sister, look, which one do you want? I'll buy it for you."

Yan Yun waved his hand, saying that he would buy it for her if she wanted it.

She gestured to the shopkeeper.

The shopkeeper still didn't understand and looked at Yu Zhi.

Yu Zhi guessed as well, "Sister, do you need ink?"

Yan Yun nodded.

The shopkeeper said, "The two young ladies are coming over here, and we happen to have some here."

Following him over, there was some ink left on the old wooden table. Yan Yun picked up the brush and wrote what he wanted to say on the paper: "I have something to do, so I won't be with you. Farewell."

Yu Zhi recognized the words, and her expression turned somewhat unpleasant. She rarely had the chance to come out, so she quickly tried to persuade Yan Yun to stay, "Sister Ning'er, what do you need to do? I can go with you."

Yan Yun couldn't tell Yu Zhi what he wanted to do.

Jing said that the pawnshops wouldn't accept the things Zheng Jihua gave him, and even if they did, Zheng Jihua would find out soon enough.

She decided to check out the black market.

Lu Yan had told Ru Qing before that no matter where you are, there will always be some dark places, and the black market in Yuanjing is no exception. Things that cannot be sold through legitimate channels can be sold through the black market.

Yan Yun planned to exchange the things Zheng Jihua had given him for silver on the black market.

If Miss Yu Zhi were with him, he would naturally be exposed very quickly.

Yan Yun had already accompanied her for a while, and she also had to go about her own business.

Yu Zhi was the kind of person who would pester someone relentlessly, and she pleaded with Yan Yun, "Ning'er, just tell your sister where you want to go, and I'll take you there. I'll do my best to give you whatever you want."

Yan Yun wrote down a single line.

What do you want by following me?

Yu Zhi frankly said that firstly, she wanted to get closer to Ning'er, and secondly, since it was a rare opportunity, she wanted to wander around and follow Ning'er so she wouldn't be scolded by the people in the manor.

The words were a mix of truth and falsehood, and Yan Yun didn't want to verify them.

She wouldn't approach me for no reason. A rich young lady who hides herself from men would certainly not know where the black market is.

Yan Yun explained that the two of them would be going their separate ways.

Yu Zhi, however, still followed behind.

Yan Yun let her be; he couldn't get rid of her.

She looked around, but there were no women, not only at the academy, but also among the street vendors.

Yan Yun thought that if women could also go out and set up stalls, it would definitely change the lives of many more people.

But just thinking about it made Yan Yun want to laugh at his own idea.

Whether in the past or present, women are taught daily not to show their faces in public and are kept hidden away in their chambers until they are married.

She looked into Yu Zhi's bright eyes.

She seemed much more cheerful than when I met her in the yard the day before.

She was even happier than Yan Yun, and kept introducing the place to him.

She was born and raised in the far capital, so she knows more.

She also bought hairpins for Yan Yun.

Yan Yun didn't want it.

Yu Zhi said it was a small token of her appreciation, and not expensive at all; the wooden hairpin was simply a matter of craftsmanship.

Yan Yun originally wanted to return the gift.

The only unfortunate thing was that just as they were about to go for another stroll, they found a woman in black linen clothes kneeling on the ground by the roadside, with a corpse covered in a white sheet next to her.

A bundle of straw lay in front of the corpse.

Right in front of her, the man on horseback looked down at her with disdain.

"Look up and see?"

Yan Yun and Yu Zhi recognized the person who was speaking.

Yu Zhi grabbed Yan Yun and tried to leave.

The woman on the ground still kept her head down.

Shi Yunjun impatiently looked the woman dressed in mourning clothes over again and said once more, "Lift your head up."

The woman did not listen.

Shi Yunjun's entourage immediately stepped forward, grabbed the woman's face, and forced her to raise her head.

The woman clenched her teeth; it wasn't voluntary.

Shi Yunjun smiled the moment he saw that face, as if he had discovered something good. He pointed his riding crop at the woman and said with a smile, "Not bad, not bad. How much silver do you want? I'll give it to you directly."