After My System Went Bankrupt, I Found My Happy Ending with the General - Chapter 24

The others then withdrew from the hall. As Liang Jue passed by Luo Chuchen, he tilted his head slightly and winked at him.

Still in the mood to wink?

Luo Chuchen secretly rolled his eyes in response.

Liang Jue caught the eye-roll, shrugged, and curled the corner of his mouth into a faint smile before disappearing behind the screen.

Once the palace doors were closed again by the attendants, the Emperor tapped his desk and said, “Minister Luo, it has been over a month since you arrived in the capital, hasn’t it?”

Luo Chuchen quickly rose from his chair and bowed in response, “Almost a month, Your Majesty.”

The Emperor nodded. “When I summoned you to the capital, it was for the matter of inheriting the Pingyang Marquis title. Unfortunately, I’ve been too busy these past days and had to set it aside for a while. Now is the perfect opportunity. Xiao Dezi”

An attendant stepped forward.

“Go to the back and fetch the items from the Marquis’s estate stored in the inner treasury,” the Emperor waved his hand dismissively.

“After your parents passed away, the possessions of the Marquis’s estate were kept under my supervision, and the gold and silver were stored in my treasury. Most of the other matters requiring attention were handled by Minister Chu. If you have any questions, feel free to ask him,” the Emperor said gently. “The imperial decree will be delivered along with the appropriate court attire and other items. Considering that the Marquis’s estate has been sealed for several years, the palace will send people to clean it thoroughly. For now, you will have to continue staying at Minister Chu’s residence. Servants will also need to be newly hired. Once the cleaning and hiring are complete, you may move into the Pingyang Marquis’s estate.”

Luo Chuchen hadn’t expected the Emperor to give such detailed instructions and promptly expressed his gratitude and understanding.

After the attendant retrieved the keys to the Marquis’s estate and other important items and handed them to Luo Chuchen, the Emperor inquired once more about his studies before allowing the two to leave.

Upon returning, Chu Yuanzhu said little about the day’s events. He simply instructed the steward to take Luo Chuchen to inventory the people and items that had been separated from the Marquis’s estate earlier. After receiving the imperial decree and arranging the delivered items, they were kept quite busy.

By evening, Luo Chuchen finally managed to catch a breath from the hectic and tense day. He collapsed onto his bed, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep.

His mind kept replaying the events of his first day at the palace. On one hand, it all felt as light and easy as a dream; on the other, he sensed that the underlying currents ran much deeper than they appeared.

This led to him staying up late once again.

The next day, while Luo Chuchen was still deep in sleep, Shechuan came to quietly wake him.

Luo Chuchen groggily opened his eyes, his voice hoarse. “Shechuan isn’t today free? Let me sleep a little longer.”

“No, young master,” Shechuan said, watching as he tried to roll over and go back to sleep. “The Rong Prince’s heir is here.”

“…” Luo Chuchen squinted, drowsy for a moment, then suddenly jolted awake. “Qin Yu?”

Shechuan nodded repeatedly. “He’s waiting in the front hall. The steward thought you were already awake at this hour, so he had the heir brought over directly. He’ll be here any moment.”

Luo Chuchen: “…”

All traces of sleepiness vanished in an instant. He sat up, wiped his face, and asked again in disbelief, “He’s here?”

Shechuan hummed in affirmation and brought over the basin and towel. Luo Chuchen, no longer caring about the cold, sat by the bed and washed his face himself, then hurriedly asked Shechuan to fetch his clothes. After finally getting dressed and hastily tying up his hair, there was a knock on the door.

“Chuchen? Are you up?”

“I’m up, I’m up!” Luo Chuchen quickly checked his attire in the bronze mirror, making sure nothing was amiss, before following Shechuan out the door.

Qin Yu stood outside the door with a beaming smile. Today, he wasn’t wearing his usual red robe but was instead dressed in dark blue, which, set against the snowy backdrop, made him appear exceptionally refined and elegant.

But the moment he opened his mouth, the illusion shattered. “Long time no see. Have you missed this prince?”

Luo Chuchen had rushed through his morning wash in a flurry, and now, seeing Qin Yu’s carefree demeanor, he felt both annoyed and amused. Just as he was about to say something, Qin Yu let out an exaggerated exclamation.

“Oh, how careless of me! I should address you as Marquis now.”

He grinned, clasping his hands in a playful, exaggerated bow that was oddly amusing. “Greetings, Marquis.”

Hearing this, Luo Chuchen’s irritation melted away, and he couldn’t help but laugh, giving Qin Yu a light shove. “Stop with the theatrics.”

“As you wish.” Qin Yu straightened up.

It had snowed the night before, and after chatting outside for just a few moments, the cold became unbearable. Shechuan had already gone ahead to light the charcoal in the guest room. The two of them entered and settled into their chairs.

Luo Chuchen asked curiously, “Why are you here so early? Is something the matter?”

Qin Yu took a leisurely sip of tea before replying, “The Marquis truly has a short memory.”

“…” Luo Chuchen’s cheeks flushed at the repeated teasing with the title “Marquis.” He raised his voice slightly, “Don’t call me Marquis.”

Qin Yu asked, “Should I go back to the old way, then?”

“Obviously!” Luo Chuchen feigned a threatening tone. “You were perfectly fine calling me by name through the door earlier, but as soon as we meet face to face, you start acting up. If you keep this up, don’t expect to drink another drop of tea here.”

Qin Yu chuckled, raising his teacup in a gesture of surrender. “My mistake, my mistake.”

Turning serious, Qin Yu said, “I figured you’d forgotten. I came today, first, to congratulate you on officially inheriting the title of Marquis of Pingyang.”

“And second.” He paused for dramatic effect, waiting until Luo Chuchen’s curiosity was piqued before continuing, “Chuchen, have you forgotten that today is the fifteenth?”

“What’s special about the fifteenth?” Luo Chuchen asked, puzzled.

Qin Yu didn’t rush to answer. Instead, he took another sip of tea, smiling as he watched Luo Chuchen.

After a moment of thought, Luo Chuchen slapped his forehead. “Ah, I’ve been so scatterbrained! The Wenxing Temple!”

“Exactly. Are you free to go today?” Qin Yu extended the invitation warmly.

Luo Chuchen replied, “Since you’re already here, how could I refuse? When should we leave?”

Qin Yu said, “No need to rush. The temple isn’t crowded in the morning, and it’s less than a quarter of an hour’s ride from here. There’s no hurry.”

Relieved, Luo Chuchen realized he was hungry and asked proactively, “Do you mind if I have breakfast?”

Qin Yu laughed heartily. “Before I answer that, let me ask were you just getting up when I arrived?”

Luo Chuchen looked embarrassed. “Since you already guessed, why bother asking?”

Qin Yu grinned. “Ah, but you don’t understand. There’s a world of difference between guessing and having it confirmed.”

Breakfast had already been prepared in the small kitchen and was quickly served. Eager about the upcoming trip to Wenxing Temple, Luo Chuchen ate quickly, and before long, they were seated in Qin Yu’s carriage.

Unlike Qin Yu’s flamboyant personality, his carriage was surprisingly simple, with no elaborate decorations inside—no different from an ordinary household’s.

Sitting side by side, Qin Yu pulled out a folding fan from who-knows-where and waved it gracefully, asking, “Do I look dashing?”

Luo Chuchen: “…”

He glanced at Qin Yu’s folding fan, then at the small hand warmer he was holding himself, and against his conscience said, “Mm.”

Qin Yu praised, “Good taste.”

Wenxing Temple was already bustling with people, and a long row of stalls was crowded with a dense mass of visitors.

Luo Chuchen hadn’t expected this and turned back to ask, “And this is what you call ‘not many people’?”

Qin Yu didn’t seem embarrassed. “The imperial exams are approaching, and many candidates have already arrived in the capital ahead of time. That’s probably the reason.”

Luo Chuchen reluctantly accepted this explanation and, accompanied by Shechuan, followed Qin Yu inside. They drifted leisurely with the crowd, examining each stall one by one.

As Qin Yu had said, the Wenxing Temple fair not only featured many scholarly trinkets, calligraphy, and paintings but also numerous rare and exotic treasures, interspersed with vendors selling snacks. The stallkeepers cheerfully called out from behind their counters, creating a lively and amusing atmosphere.

Having just received a large sum of money the day before, Luo Chuchen was in the mood to spend. He wanted to buy everything he saw, so he lingered longer at each stall. Even if he was only mildly interested, he would ask all sorts of questions.

At first, Qin Yu stayed with Luo Chuchen, answering some of his questions and helping him avoid being cheated by the vendors.

After a while, Qin Yu sighed helplessly and said, “At the rate you’re going, even if the temple fair lasted seven days and seven nights, you wouldn’t finish browsing.”

Luo Chuchen wasn’t annoyed. “Qin Yu, you go ahead and look around on your own. I’ll be fine with Shechuan.”

Qin Yu still felt uneasy. “There are many tricks and pitfalls here. Don’t just buy anything you see, understand?”

“Got it,” Luo Chuchen nodded.

He wasn’t wandering aimlessly. Most of the time, he was just curious and asked a few more questions. In his heart, he knew he was more interested in calligraphy and paintings.

After a few more reminders, Qin Yu finally went along with the crowd.

Luo Chuchen strolled with Shechuan, thoroughly enjoying himself. He even spotted a few fair-haired, blue-eyed foreign merchants selling exotic goods.

He grew so excited that he almost stopped to try speaking with them in English but managed to restrain himself.

After a while, both he and Shechuan were carrying quite a few purchases.

Just as they were about to find a stall selling herbal tea to rest, Luo Chuchen’s attention was suddenly caught by a small booth.

It was an old man wearing a bamboo hat, sitting calmly behind a stall filled with scrolls, not saying a word. Compared to the smiling, eloquent vendors around him, the old man stood out and was even more eye-catching.

Curious, Luo Chuchen walked over. Only three scrolls were displayed on the stall. Checking the signatures, he found they were all by famous painters from the previous dynasty. One snowscape painting particularly captivated him.

With just a few strokes, some outlining and some coloring, the painting vividly captured the snowy mountain scenery.

Luo Chuchen’s eyes lit up instantly: this was exactly what he wanted to learn!

Yin Zikun knew that Luo Chuchen’s painting from Yanying Mountain had been damaged and had asked him to either restore it or repaint it before submitting it again.

Luo Chuchen had originally planned to simply restore it, but after seeing this painting, he suddenly became dissatisfied with his own work. This painting depicted a scene similar to his, but the technique and artistic conception were entirely different.

“Old sir, is this painting by Master Chang Hezheng from the previous dynasty?” Luo Chuchen bent down and pointed at the painting.

The old man slowly raised his head, gave him a casual glance, and nodded. “Yes.”

Seeing his demeanor, Luo Chuchen had no reason to doubt its authenticity. He examined it carefully, growing fonder of it the more he looked. Without hesitation, he asked, “How much does it cost?”

The old man replied, “Five taels of silver.”

Five taels of silver was already a considerable price, but Luo Chuchen didn’t find it unreasonable and motioned for Shechuan to take out the money pouch.

Luo Chuchen counted out five taels of broken silver and was about to hand it to the old man when someone lightly tapped his arm.

“Ah.”

Puzzled, Luo Chuchen turned around and saw a tall, elegant man standing beside him. Dressed in a simple dark green robe, he stood as straight and dignified as a bamboo stalk.

The man gave a slight nod, polite yet distant, and said, “I meant no offense, but this is a counterfeit.”