I am a prince in Zhutian Films

Chapter 355 Regret
The next morning, Zhao Pan'er woke up from the inn. Thinking back to what happened last night, she was still in shock.

Thinking about it carefully, if it weren't for Zhao Wei last night, she really didn't know what would be waiting for her, and her heart was naturally filled with gratitude.

She originally wanted to thank him in person, but she didn't expect to learn from Shuangxi that Zhao Wei had just gone to bed, so she had to go back to the teahouse first.

Then she saw an old servant wearing a hat and carrying a bag standing outside the teahouse.

When he saw who it was, he was instantly overjoyed.

"Uncle De?"

When the old servant saw Zhao Pan'er, he immediately bowed and said, "This old servant greets Madam Zhao."

Zhao Pan'er hurriedly helped him up and said with a friendly smile, "Uncle De, why are you here?"

Seeing Zhao Pan'er looking rather embarrassed, Uncle De asked, "What happened to you, madam?"

"Hey, it's okay, I just fell down. Where's Ouyang? Is he okay? Did he fail the exam again?"

Zhao Pan'er thought that Ouyang Xu had failed the exam again and was too embarrassed to come back to see her, so she let Uncle De come back alone.

Uncle De sighed in an unlucky tone, "How could that be possible? I came back to announce the good news. My master has been chosen by the Emperor of the Jiying Palace as the third place in this year's imperial examination."

As soon as these words came out, Zhao Pan'er suddenly became excited, so excited that tears welled up in her eyes. She covered her mouth and said happily, "Tanhua? Did you really win?"

Uncle De nodded repeatedly, also very excited: "Yes, ah, it's true, it's true, the third place in this year's imperial examination, the master is now the third place in this year's imperial examination."

"Great, come in quickly and tell me what happened to him in Tokyo."

At this moment, Zhao Pan'er's heart and mind were filled with joy and excitement. She pushed open the door and pulled Uncle De towards the tea shop.

"You're just being a bitch. Why didn't you just write a letter? I asked you to travel thousands of miles to pick me up. But he is also a bitch. There are so many books and boxes. I can't carry them all by myself. It's great to have you to help me."

The excited Zhao Pan'er wanted nothing more than to see Ouyang Xu. She didn't notice Uncle De's expression at all and asked impatiently, "Uncle De, are we going to Tokyo by sea or by land this time?"

Uncle De heard this and hurriedly advised: "My lady, don't be anxious, let's take a long-term view. The official asked me to bring you a message, saying that since he is now an official, then..."

Before he could finish, Zhao Paner interrupted and said, "Okay, let me make you a cup of tea first."

Then, Zhao Pan'er hurried into the tea shop.

Uncle De hurriedly chased after him. Just as he called out "wife", he heard Zhao Pan'er say happily, "I know what he is worried about. He thinks I shouldn't do business. It just so happens that something happened in the teahouse, so I closed it. Hey, Uncle De, have you had breakfast?"

Her retort had already made Uncle De impatient, and he said with a sad face, "No, my lady, I have something to tell you, you..."

Before he could finish his words, Sun Sanniang ran in from the door and interrupted him again.

"Pan'er, you're finally back. I've been worried about you all night."

After saying that, Sun Sanniang noticed Uncle De beside her and asked with some surprise: "Hey, Uncle De, you're back?"

Before Uncle De could speak, Zhao Pan'er couldn't wait to show off, "Sanniang, Ouyang won the third place."

"Tanhua?"

Sun Sanniang was instantly overjoyed and saluted Zhao Pan'er: "That's great, congratulations, congratulations to Madam Tanhua, you are wearing the phoenix crown and bridal robe before me, that's great."

She was truly happy for her friend, because she knew very well how long Zhao Pan'er had waited for this day, and how much Zhao Pan'er had paid for this day, and now she was finally getting rewarded.

"Pan'er, do you have to go to Beijing in two days? Then I will help you pack."

Seeing the two of them happily discussing, Uncle De became even more impatient and could no longer bear it, shouting, "Madam Zhao, Madam Sun is not an outsider either, I might as well be frank, I am not here to take you to Beijing."

This one sentence instantly froze the smiles on Zhao Pan'er and Sun Sanniang's faces, but something more fatal was yet to come.

"My master is lucky to have been granted marriage by the virtuous concubine in the palace. After the Grain Rain, she will marry the daughter of Observer Gao."

For a moment, Zhao Pan'er was stunned.

He stared at Uncle De with dull eyes, unable to believe his ears.

Sun Sanniang was furious and rushed to Uncle De and asked, "What do you mean by high observation?"

Uncle De looked very proud: "The governor of Guangji Army, Gao Hu, the deputy commander of the infantry army."

Sun Sanniang didn't know what kind of official this was, but she could tell that he was a high-ranking official, not someone ordinary people like them could compare with.

For a moment, she didn't know what to say, and couldn't help but sigh in her heart: "Alas, Mr. Zhao really got it right."

Zhao Pan'er stood there, motionless, staring at Uncle De in despair: "Say it again."

Uncle De said again: "Mr. Ouyang is going to marry Gao Hu's daughter."

Perhaps because Zhao Wei had taken precautions in advance, Zhao Pan'er did not faint as in the plot, but her body could not help but shake three times.

This frightened Sun Sanniang, and she quickly ran back to support her: "Pan'er, are you okay?"

Zhao Pan'er shook her head and said bitterly, "Sanniang, I'm fine."

Sun Sanniang looked concerned and angrily cursed: "I used to think that General Zhao... Mr. Zhao was exaggerating. People can't be so heartless. Now it seems that what Mr. Zhao said is right. Some people are really incompetent. Once they become successful, they turn against you. Ouyang Xu is just a despicable and shameless villain..."

Hearing Sun Sanniang's angry scolding, Uncle De was unhappy. He changed his previous humbleness and pointed at Sun Sanniang and scolded:

"Madam Sun, how can you say that? My master is now an official. If you dare to insult my master, that's insulting the official. If you report it to the government, you will be punished."

Sun Sanniang turned around and started scolding.

"Then go ahead and sue me. Your master is a mean person, and you are no good either. Why weren't you arrogant when you were supported by Pan'er? Now that you have won the third place in the imperial examination, you are arrogant. Don't say that Ouyang Xu only won the third place. Even if he won the first place, I would still scold him. Go ahead and sue me if you have the guts."

The reason why Sun Sanniang was so confident was related to Zhao Wei.

Because she heard early this morning that their county magistrate was arrested last night and Qiantang County is now taken over by a man named Zhao.

When Sun Sanniang saw the surname Zhao, she immediately thought of Zhao Wei.

Given Zhao Wei's relationship with them, he would definitely help them.

"You, you are unreasonable, unreasonable, Madam Zhao, look at the kind of people you associate with. Fortunately, my master is going to marry the daughter of the Gao family. If he married you, I don't know how much trouble you guys would cause for my master."

Because Ouyang Xu won the third place in the imperial examination, Uncle De is now very confident. After all, as the saying goes, a seventh-rank official is better than a prime minister. Although his master Ouyang Xu is not a prime minister, as Ouyang Xu's old servant and housekeeper, she is definitely much better than country women like Zhao Pan'er.

Sun Sanniang was so angry that she cursed again: "As expected, most unfaithful people are scholars. Ouyang Xu really changes his attitude faster than turning the pages of a book. Pan'er's sincerity has really been thrown away."

"Okay, Sanniang, stop talking."

Zhao Pan'er recovered, stopped Sun Sanniang, and looked at Uncle De again, but her eyes were different now.

"Is this really what Ouyang meant?" Uncle De's attitude towards Zhao Pan'er was still a little better.

"Madam Zhao, the master has no choice. This is the will of the virtuous concubine in the palace, and the master cannot disobey it at all."

"Can't disobey?"

Zhao Paner chuckled, her smile containing both self-mockery and sarcasm towards Uncle De's words.

"Even if she is the virtuous concubine, it is not right for her to preside over a wedding casually. Before this, didn't she ask Ouyang if he had an engagement?"

Uncle De replied, "I did ask, but the relationship between the master and Lady Zhao was not arranged by either the parents or the matchmaker, so it doesn't count at all..."

Zhao Pan'er didn't say anything, but Sun Sanniang couldn't stand it anymore and said angrily, "Shut up. You, Yinzhang, and our family of three all know that Pan'er and Ouyang Xu are engaged."

Uncle De said with disdain: "Ah, that's just a verbal agreement. Without three written documents and six certificates, how can it be called an engagement? Besides, Madam Zhao is not from a good family after all."

"I bother."

Sun Sanniang pointed at Uncle De and cursed, "How dare you say that Pan'er's background is bad, but yours is good? You are just an old servant, what qualifications do you have to say this? If it weren't for Pan'er raising you, you would probably have been sold out by Ouyang Xu now."

Uncle De argued, "This is the truth. Madam Zhao is a lowly woman. If the master marries a lowly woman, how will others see him? If Concubine Xian knew that the master rejected her daughter for a lowly woman, the consequences would be..."

"Who do you say is cheap? I think you are the real cheap one, as cheap as your master. If I didn't see that you are already old, I really want to beat you up." Sun Sanniang was so angry that her teeth were itching, as if she was going to beat you up if you keep talking nonsense.

Seeing Sun Sanniang getting ready to fight, Uncle De was so scared that he took several steps back. In the end, it was Zhao Pan'er who stopped Sun Sanniang.

"Okay, Sanniang."

Zhao Pan'er looked at Uncle De coldly, and said calmly: "Even if he is an official, he will not condone relatives to seize the wives of officials. When I met him, I had already left the family. I am from a good family."

Uncle De didn't take it seriously at all: "Madam Zhao, why do you have to be like this? Even if you have been freed from the status of a lowly person, you are still a businessman. Everyone knows that among the four classes of scholars, farmers, merchants and artisans, the word "merchant" comes last. In the eyes of the nobles, as long as you are doing business, no matter how rich you are, you are still not in the mainstream."

"Yes, among the four classes of scholars, farmers, merchants and artisans, the word 'merchant' comes last. The nobles do look down on the merchants who do business, but that doesn't mean all the nobles are like that. At least some of them are not like that."

For some reason, at this saddest and most heartbreaking moment, Zhao Wei's groans suddenly emerged in her mind, and she remembered the topic about businessmen that Zhao Wei had talked to her about not long ago.

Zhao Pan'er was different from Zhao Wei before, and now when compared with Uncle De, a mere old servant, Zhao Wei's uniqueness is even more evident.

Sun Sanniang didn't have so many emotions. She first scolded Uncle De a few words and said directly: "Pan'er, let's go to the authorities now. I heard that Qiantang County is now..."

Uncle De interrupted her before she finished speaking: "Madam Zhao, do you want this to be known to the world? Do you want everyone to know that you are a courtesan?"

"Stop talking, you know I care about this the most, right?"

Zhao Paner exploded all of a sudden, making Uncle De afraid to speak for a while.

"Okay, I accept my fate."

Hearing what Zhao Pan'er said, Uncle De hurried forward, took down the bundle, opened it, and took out the gold while saying, "Madam Zhao, the master knows that he has let you down, so he can only use these eighty taels of gold to express his gratitude. The master also has a heart-shaped pendant with you, please return it to me, Madam Zhao."

In fact, Uncle De said so much and did so much just to get the Heart-Shaping Pendant. As long as he got the Heart-Shaping Pendant, even if Zhao Pan'er wanted to make trouble in the future, she wouldn't be able to do so without evidence.

Originally, I thought Zhao Pan'er would accept the gold and return the Tongxin Pei, but I didn't expect Zhao Pan'er to push the gold away in anger, and it scattered all over the floor.

"Madam Zhao, what are you doing? Do you think it's too little?"

"few?"

Zhao Pan'er's face was full of contempt. De Hu, who used to be quite good in her eyes, now made her feel disgusted at the sight of him.

"Back then, Ouyang failed the imperial examination and ended up wandering in Hangzhou. I bought him some land so that he could become a civilian and take the imperial examination again in Liangzhe. Unfortunately... three years of love cannot compare to eighty taels of gold."

Uncle De remained silent, but Sun Sanniang burst into tears as she listened.

Of all things in the world, love is the most moving.

Zhao Pan'er's eyes were full of tears as she slowly said, "You can bribe me with money, but you have to tell him that eighty taels of gold is not enough. If he wants the Tongxin pendant, he has to bring five hundred taels of gold."

"Five... five hundred taels?" Uncle De's eyes widened: "Isn't that too much?"

Zhao Pan'er looked at him, and the tears in her eyes finally couldn't help but fall down, shattering into pieces on the ground.

"As long as the money and goods are settled, I will end all ties with him."

Uncle De hesitated for a while, and finally picked up the scattered gold on the ground: "Madam Zhao, take care."

After saying this, he slowly left the teahouse and fled.

Sun Sanniang looked at Zhao Pan'er and felt sad for a moment.

Noticing blood on Zhao Pan'er's shoulder, he changed the subject and said, "Pan'er, I'll go get you some medicine."

Zhao Pan'er nodded, and when Sun Sanniang passed by, she said faintly, "Sanniang, close the store."

Sun Sanniang resisted the urge to cry and replied, "Okay."

As soon as Sun Sanniang left, Zhao Pan'er seemed to have lost all her strength and fell down to sit down.

She just sat there blankly, scenes between her and Ouyang Xu emerging in her mind. Thinking about the promise Ouyang Xu had made to her, tears rolled down her cheeks like pearls from a broken string.

On the other side, Sun Sanniang had not walked far out of the tea shop when she met Shuangxi who was yawning.

"Madam Sun, is Madam Zhao in the teahouse?"

Sun Sanniang forced a smile and nodded: "Yes, Mr. Song is here to see Pan'er?"

Because Shuangxi's real surname was Song, and he used the name Song Shuangxi when he was outside, that's why Sun Sanniang called him Mr. Song.

Shuangxi explained, "Madam Zhao was injured last night. When she left this morning, we were all still asleep, so I came to bring her medicine. I'd like to trouble you to give Madam Zhao the medicine."

"What medicine?"

Shuangxi took out a porcelain bottle and handed it to Sun Sanniang: "Golden wound medicine, made by my son, it will not even leave scars on minor wounds. This small bottle would sell for more than ten strings of cash in Tokyo."

Sun Sanniang glanced at the small porcelain bottle in her hand and asked in surprise, "Ah, so expensive?"

"Of course, and the expensiveness is not the point. The point is that most of the time, you can't buy it even if you have money." Shuangxi looked proud and complacent, and then took out a purse and handed it to Sun Sanniang: "Madam Sun, please make fifty portions of fruit. We will come to pick them up in the afternoon. I have something else to do at the government office, so I'll take my leave first."

Although Zhao Pan'er said that the tea shop was closed, there was no reason to refuse the money that was delivered to her door. At worst, she could just go home and do it.

So, Sun Sanniang agreed.

"Okay, Mr. Song, take care. I'll thank General Zhao on behalf of Pan'er."

(End of this chapter)