Chapter 53: Chapter 53: Search Me

“What are your terms? Speak!”

Xia Wenjin’s eyes shifted, and she said, “I want fifty thousand taels from Governor Wang’s treasury!”

“What?” Huangfu Jingchen frowned. “That’s illicit silver!”

“That’s why I only want fifty thousand taels. I’ve been to Governor Wang’s treasury before, fifty thousand is just a drop in the bucket!”

Huangfu Jingchen frowned and said, “I have no authority to dispose of it!”

Xia Wenjin’s eyebrows arched into a bright smile as she casually said, “I’m just informing you. I’ll take the silver myself when the time comes. Rest assured, I won’t put you in a difficult position, nor will I drag you into it!”

“You must agree, otherwise, I can’t be sure I won’t cause some minor trouble!”

“Are you threatening me?”

Xia Wenjin smiled even more brightly. “How can this be considered a threat? I’m just presenting the facts, reasoning, and analyzing the situation with you!”

Huangfu Jingchen sneered, “Didn’t you take a sum of silver at Hua Cheng Villa? What do you need so much silver for?”

“Who could ever have enough silver? Of course, the more, the better! Besides, fifty thousand taels is just a small stack, don’t be so stingy!” Xia Wenjin laughed heartily, as if she could already see piles of silver notes filling her pockets.

Looking at the young person before him with sparkling eyes, Huangfu Jingchen felt a bit disdainful, and said in a dismissive tone, “You’re indeed greedy for any money you can get.”

“You flatter me!” Xia Wenjin laughed.

“Hmph!” Huangfu Jingchen gave her a glare and turned to leave.

Being with this greedy little rascal made him feel stifled.

However, Huangfu Jingchen was still quite pleased to have obtained the accounts from Hua Cheng Villa. With these, Governor Wang would pay the price for his exploitation and disregard for human life.

Halfway through, Huangfu Jingchen came to his senses.

The joy of obtaining the accounts had blinded him so much that he forgot another important matter due to his anger at Xia Wenjin’s greed.

Seeing him turn back again, Xia Wenjin cautioned defensively, “You promised not to go back on your word!”

Huangfu Jingchen’s face turned cold. “Give me back my Jade Pendant!”

“What Jade Pendant?” Xia Wenjin spread her hands. “Do I look like a Jade Pendant to you?”

Huangfu Jingchen’s face grew stern. “Allowing you to take the fifty thousand taels is already my concession. That Jade Pendant is very important to me, you must return it!”

Xia Wenjin looked innocent. “I really don’t know about any Jade Pendant. Besides, such things aren’t worth much. Now that I’ve got money, once I’m out of the Governor Mansion, I’ll get you a dozen!”

She scoffed inwardly, knowing full well Huang Zheng, though clever and perceptive, lacked experience in the Jianghu. Claiming the Jade Pendant was important made returning it even less likely, unless she figured out its origins and whether its patterns were related to those she’d seen in a past life.

Huangfu Jingchen’s gaze was like a sharp blade, as if intending to slice her open.

However, facing his murderous stare, Xia Wenjin remained undisturbed, standing straight with righteous demeanor, showing no sign of lying.

Huangfu Jingchen was outraged.

Adopting a fearless stance, Xia Wenjin said, “If you don’t believe me, search me!”

Huangfu Jingchen took a deep breath. “If that’s the case, then I will search!” With that, he extended his hand.

Is he serious?

Faced with Huangfu Jingchen’s hand about to touch her, Xia Wenjin, who usually used this trick to scare him off, was momentarily dumbfounded. As his hand came closer, she plastered a roguish grin and leisurely declared, “No one searches Young Master casually. Not believing in Young Master makes me very angry. I’ll just destroy your account book, and what’s five thousand taels? Without the account book, the entire treasury is mine!”

Her threat was barefaced and blatant. Huangfu Jingchen’s hand halted upon touching her clothes.

He saw a streak of ruthlessness in Xia Wenjin’s eyes.

He believed that if Xia Wenjin wanted to do it, she definitely could. A gentleman is easier to guard against than a villain, and this greedy, brazen rascal was indeed a villain.

He had everything meticulously arranged; he couldn’t risk it all for one trifling matter.

Knowing the Jade Pendant was with Xia Wenjin, he could retrieve it eventually.

However, if the account book were ruined out of spite, it would be truly gone.

In comparing, bringing a corrupt dog official to justice obviously outweighed reclaiming the Jade Pendant. Once that dog official was convicted, he would not be too late to demand the Jade Pendant back.

With this in mind, Huangfu Jingchen gave her a sullen glare and withdrew his hand. However, even one more glance at this scoundrel made him feel suffocated; he held his breath and left in long strides.

Xia Wenjin sighed in relief. Despite her bold, rogue-like words, she would never actually follow through.

Huangfu Jingchen came and went like the wind.

In the empty room, Xia Wenjin looked contemplative. Always regarding her as a Long Yang, Huangfu Jingchen avoided any contact with her, yet for that Jade Pendant, he was prepared to search her!

That Jade Pendant was definitely not a random purchase; it must be something significant to him.

The other day at the inn, when she swept away his belongings, where did this Jade Pendant come from?

Unless, he had always worn it close, making it the only thing not taken when she grabbed his belongings that day.

No matter, the Jade Pendant was with her now.

Oh, how exhausting. Tonight had indeed been eventful; first handling two hidden assassins, then leaving the mansion to retrieve her hidden accounts and silver notes from Hua Cheng Villa, faking her own death to scare Huangfu Jingchen, and then engaging in mental duels with him.

She needed a good night’s sleep to recover her strength.

The next day at one o’clock, the maid responsible for caring for the ’precious one’ of the young lady rubbed her eyes, yawning as she unwillingly pushed the door open.

Even though it was merely the young lady’s favored plaything that needed special care, how delicate; did they deserve it?

The maid thought to herself with resentment, carrying a basin of water into the room.

Tasks like serving tea and attending to others depended on who they were for. Was there really a need to deliver water for washing one’s face? After all, the person lying limp on the bed couldn’t even move, yet they loved cleanliness, insisting on morning face wash and evening bath water with nothing spared. The only relief was that he knew how to wash himself, leaving them just to prepare the water without needing to serve.

Having brought the water, the maid took it to the bedside, about to wake Xia Wenjin, but a glance at the bed changed her expression drastically. Her hand slipped, spilling the entire basin of water on the floor while she let out a startled cry.

The noise disturbed the people outside the courtyard; upon entering, each of them trembled in fright. One hurriedly said, “There’s an incident, quickly notify the young lady!”

Hearing the commotion next door, where Huangfu Jingchen was using a warm towel to clean his hands, he glanced outside and asked, “What happened?”

The young servant beside him, still shaken, said, “The young lord living next door has been murdered. Someone’s already been sent to inform the young lady!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep