Chapter 9

Gao Fangping continued to wander around the mansion. The bird had already been confiscated by his father, so he could only hold his fan and act cool.

In the distance, a few beautiful maids were pointing at and discussing the young master. When Gao Fangping noticed them, he unfolded his folding fan and fanned himself a few times in a refined manner.

Seeing him resume his usual arrogant appearance, the maids scattered like birds and beasts, not a single one remaining. It seemed none of them had been with the young master. Gao Yane's peculiar taste was for married women from the common folk.

Suddenly, he encountered a little girl, and he grabbed her, saying, "Xiao Duo, how old am I?"

Xiao Duo, panicking, replied, "I am thirteen years old."

Gao Fangping gave her a slap on the back of the head, saying, "I asked about my age, not yours."

Xiao Duo was drenched in sweat, amazed that the young master didn't know his own age. She clutched her stomach and laughed, "Young Master, you are sixteen this year."

But Gao Fangping still felt this body was a bit small and not very useful. It wasn't surprising, as ancient people's fitness and nutrition were not as good as in modern times. So, at fifteen, he should still be able to grow.

"Master..." Xiao Duo bit her lip, looking a bit dejected.

"Has someone bullied you? Did you report it using my name?" Gao Fangping asked.

Xiao Duo's eyes suddenly turned red, and she said, "My money was stolen, and I don't know who took it. It was the money I had saved up since I started serving in the Gao household. I usually didn't spend it, but now it's been stolen. Can you help me report it? I don't know how to do it."

Gao Fangping said, "Repeat after me: I, Gao Fangping, am the official."

The little girl thought he was clearly boasting. She had heard that one had to sing their name at the Donghua Gate to be an official.

"How much was stolen?" Gao Fangping asked curiously.

"123 coins. Xiao Duo had a total of over 300 coins," she answered obediently. "My mother said not to put all the eggs in one basket, so I put some in the corner, some by the bed, in three places. One place was lost."

"Sounds not bad. Keep it up, I believe in you," Gao Fangping said and then slipped away. Who had time to find her 100 coins? He was a playboy, not a detective.

Xiao Duo, tears streaming down her face, didn't dare to hold onto the young master but followed him like a little tail, unwilling to give up.

"Alright, what do I need to do to make you happy?" Gao Fangping asked. "To be honest, this case can't be solved. There are always such people in any place. I encountered them when I was in college too."

"Xiao Duo knows it can't be found back. It's a huge loss, enough to buy a lot of rice for my mother. Master, can you keep the remaining money for me? Xiao Duo can pay a certain storage fee."

Gao Fangping said, "Sure. No storage fee, and I'll even give you interest. For every 100 coins stored with me for a year, you get 5 coins in interest. How does that sound?"

Xiao Duo was excited, "So if Xiao Duo earns 50 guan and stores it with Master, my mother won't lack rice?"

Gao Fangping chuckled, "Yes, isn't happiness simple?"

"Yes, yes," the little girl clapped her hands in joy. Then she said, "But won't Master lose money by not charging a storage fee? If there are many people like this, you'll be in trouble."

Gao Fangping said mysteriously, "You're wrong. The more people like this, the richer I'll get. If everyone in the world stores money with me, I'll be richer than the government. Go spread the word, get everyone to store money with me, and there will be extra rewards. For each new depositor, you get 5 coins, and for every 100 coins deposited, you get 1 coin. How does that sound?"

"That way, Xiao Duo can quickly make up for the loss of over 100 coins," she clapped her hands in joy again.

"Isn't making money simple?" Gao Fangping smiled.

"Uh-huh," Xiao Duo finally extended her hand from behind, handing Gao Fangping a jar.

"What's this?" Gao Fangping was surprised.

"Soy sauce. I've heard Master often say he's going to buy soy sauce, so Xiao Duo has already bought it for you."

"Little sister, tell big brother where you bought the soy sauce?"

...

Lu Qian, sent by his treacherous father, had already set off. The book said Fu An also went.

But now Fu An hadn't disappeared. He was leading a group of lackeys, bullying people in the streets with Gao Yane. The reason was simple: Gao Fangping had warned him to stay away from Lu Qian. So when Lu Qian, holding a secret order from the high commander, came to find him, Fu An cunningly claimed he had a wound on his buttocks.

People value moderation. Fu An's cautious thoughts inadvertently saved his life. Otherwise, how many lives would he have to face Lin Chong?

At the Zhang family's place, Gao Fangping said he was thinking, but he was actually considering whether to kill Lu Qian and how to do it.

But the timing wasn't right. Xu Ning wasn't loyal yet, and Lu Qian's martial arts were not bad. All the soldiers present were under Lu Qian's command. It was hard to kill him in one strike. The best he could do was hand him over to the Kaifeng Prefecture, but it would be hard to prove that the death of the imperial guards was due to Lu Qian's scheme. If he couldn't eliminate Lu Qian, it would be hard to sleep.

Gao Fangping reluctantly held back. The one to kill Lu Qian must be Lin Chong. This would be a way to settle things with Lin Chong, a way for him to take revenge, and he would feel better.

There was no Lu Zhishen at the Xiangguo Temple. He had probably followed Lin Chong's path and would secretly take care of him.

Gao Fangping didn't particularly like Lu Zhishen, didn't want to catch him or harm him. Let him go. He wasn't a bad person, originally under the command of Xiao Zhong, and had served the country in the elite army. His fate could be sorted out later.

"Master, what are you thinking about? Look, that young lady is so beautiful, she's about to leave," Fu An nudged Gao Fangping.

"Where?"

Gao Fangping followed his finger and saw a slender, graceful figure just turning the corner. It was hard to imagine, but her back alone left a deep impression on Gao Fangping.

That was really strange, clearly related to her temperament and cultivation. Only something deeply ingrained could be called temperament, and it would show in her every move.

The impression the figure gave Gao Fangping was of a clear and elegant woman. So, her essence must be the same.

"Hurry, let's catch up and take a look," Gao Fangping waved his hand. "Front, left, right, and rear, go."

They formed an invincible formation, and the entire street was in chaos before they even started charging.

"The spoiled young master has gone mad!" It was more chaotic than when the city management came. The street was in chaos.

"Let's be low-key and walk slowly," Gao Fangping said, dispersing the formation, using his fan to cover his face, and walking with his head down.

Fu An and the others were extremely dejected. They had never experienced such "humiliation" in their lives, following the young master like rats in the street.

"Does Master want to eat beans today?" A beautiful young lady smiled and asked as they passed a stall.

Gao Fangping tapped Fu An's head with his fan, "Go buy beans."

Fu An strutted over, threw six coins on the stall, and took a bag of beans, looking very superior.

"..." The beautiful young lady was speechless. Where had she seen a servant more generous than the master? The young master Gao only used two coins to buy beans, but this guy used six?

"Ha ha."

A clear and elegant laugh came from the street corner. The graceful woman was watching Fu An buy beans and laughing.

Then, she turned to the handsome, noble young man beside her and smiled, "Did you see that? The servant is more generous than the master, how interesting. This could be a good story."

"Madam, just laugh. Don't waste your talent on such an ignorant young master. Remember, talent and money can both run out," the noble young man said, looking at Gao Fangping with a cold smile.

The graceful woman thought for a moment, "You're right."

Thus, the poem she had been brewing about Gao Yane buying beans was left unsaid, left to rot in her heart.

Seeing Gao Fangping eating beans and leading his group toward them, the graceful woman smiled, showing her white teeth, "Look, he's coming this way."

"Hmph, such a frivolous young man, if he didn't come to see you, that would be strange," the noble young man said.

The graceful woman turned, "Let's go, it's better not to see him. Avoid trouble."

"I want to see this fellow," the noble young man said, casually unfolding his fan, a much more graceful gesture than Gao Yane's.

As they approached, Gao Fangping waved his hand, "Surround them, let this young master take a look."

The noble young man was furious, thinking the young man's brain was broken, but he temporarily held back, watching the young master with a cold smile.

But Fu An was different this time. He led the lackeys forward, and when he saw the noble young man's waist plate, he changed his expression and retreated, bowing his head, "Master, let's go."

"Damn! I didn't ask you to steal. The love of beauty is universal. All the land under heaven belongs to the emperor. This young master is just admiring beauty, and you're standing on the emperor's land to cool off. What's wrong with that?"

Gao Fangping knew something was wrong, that they had encountered someone they couldn't provoke, but to save face, he threw out a few lines and then whispered, "Who is he, what kind of person?"

"The third son of the current Chancellor, Zhao Mingcheng," Fu An whispered, shrinking his head.

"Alright, let's pretend I didn't say that. Quickly, retreat," Gao Fangping said, very shamelessly, turning and walking away.

The Chancellor, of course, was the Chancellor. After Cai was dismissed, this young man's father became the Chancellor.

"Hold it!" Zhao Mingcheng called out, not giving him any face, planning to watch the young master's embarrassment.

"Indeed, indeed," the graceful woman beside him chimed in, "Young Master, don't leave so quickly. What you said is true. The love of beauty is universal. If you don't admire, it's disrespectful to Li Qingzhao. Since you've said it, why not stay and admire?"

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