In ancient times, the powerful and wealthy seized power step by step.

Gu Zhao never expected to meet her here. Although it was a dream, the scene was so vivid that the sudden encounter with her brought back a flood of memories from the previous night, which uncontrollably flashed through his mind.

Just thinking about it made Gu Zhao feel a bit hot, a feeling that had been plaguing him for almost a whole day since last night.

It is now the hour of Wei (1-3 PM), and there are still two hours until the hour of You (5-7 PM).

There are still two hours left before it will be legitimate.

His throat felt dry and itchy, but Gu Zhao endured the itch and studied her closely.

Perhaps because it was time to serve tea today, the manor finally provided her with some decent attire. Today, she wore a jade hairpin, a white fox fur cloak, and a light blue jacket and skirt underneath. Her face was lightly powdered, with her eyebrows drawn, powder applied, and lips painted.

Although still simple, it had some of the vibrant colors of a young girl, making her appear even more graceful and charming than that day.

The two hairpins she held in her hands were a gold-inlaid jade hairpin with rubies and a gold-inlaid jade hairpin with pearls and butterflies.

The two hairpins were somewhat out of place with her current outfit, but in Gu Zhao's opinion, the gold and jade colors actually complemented her bright and beautiful appearance, and she should have dressed more glamorously.

Gu Zhao coughed lightly to suppress the itch in his throat and said:

"The plum blossom ones are better."

When someone suddenly spoke to her from behind, Zhu Qingyu was startled. She turned around and was even more surprised to find that it was the young master of the Gu family.

Who is Vice Minister Gu talking to?

Surely he wasn't talking to her?

Why?

We're not familiar with each other.

She looked around and saw that, apart from herself and the young master of the Gu family, there were no other customers in the jewelry store.

Zhu Qingyu then looked at the shopkeeper behind the counter. The shopkeeper stared back at her with innocent, wide eyes, looking blankly at her.

Gu Zhao took two more steps closer to her. The closer he got, the taller he appeared, and his long shadow in the light loomed over her like a mountain.

Zhu Qingyu is 1.7 meters tall even without shoes, which is not the case for petite people. But the shadow looming over her made her feel weak and pressured for no reason. So she subconsciously took two steps back, left the area covered by the shadow, and walked into the light.

How tall is this young master? He must be over 1.9 meters tall, right?

Even in modern times, Zhu Qingyu rarely encounters a man this tall.

Gu Zhao stopped in his tracks, looked at the jade hairpin in her hand, then looked at her with a gentle expression, as if waiting for her to answer.

With such a clear and obvious look in his eyes, Zhu Qingyu was now certain that Prince Gu was indeed talking to her.

He stared at the jewelry on his hand and praised the plum blossoms, most likely because he was attracted to the hairpin on his hand.

Taking advantage of a rare free moment, Zhu Qingyu went to the jewelry shop to fulfill a request made by the third sister of the Zhang family: to bring back some fashionable jewelry from the capital for her.

She had already discussed it with Zhang Shen, and they would be setting off back to Yangzhou tomorrow.

Zhu Qingyu actually knew nothing about jewelry. She came from a family of doctors, with seven generations of her family practicing medicine. She had been accompanying her parents on house calls since she could sit up. The most taboo thing for her was to bring too much stuff when making house calls. She had never even had her ears pierced. Asking her to choose jewelry for a young lady was really a bit of a challenge for her.

However, even if you don't know what's good, you always know what's expensive. Judging from the way the third sister dresses, her aesthetic sense can be summarized as: she likes gold.

Anyway, Zhang Shen is rich, so he can afford to buy some jewelry for his younger sister.

So Zhu Qingyu went into the most bustling Zhuque Street in the capital, and went into several stores that looked the most luxurious and expensive, picking out some items for her third sister.

Zhu Qingyu had just taken hold of the two gold-inlaid jade hairpins in her hands. She didn't particularly like them, nor was she particularly reluctant to part with them, and there was no need for her to clash with the imperial relatives over a hairpin.

If he likes it, then let him have it.

So Zhu Qingyu respectfully placed the hairpins that the young master had just praised back on the counter, putting both of them back, gave him a curtsy to indicate her farewell, and replied:

"You're right, sir."

Feeling she had fulfilled her etiquette and gone through the motions, Zhu Qingyu didn't utter a single unnecessary word. She lifted her skirt and ran off.

She ran out of the jewelry store in one go, boarded the Zhang family's blue cloth carriage with ease, and disappeared without a trace in a moment with the clatter of hooves.

The jewelry store still carried the faint fragrance of the woman's skirt and hairpins from when she ran around, a fragrance that resembled flowers and herbs.

Left standing there, Gu Zhao looked at the empty street outside the door, then at the deserted jewelry shop, and finally met the eyes of the shopkeeper who had his business ruined but still had to greet people with a pitiful smile.

Did I scare people away with just one sentence?

Weren't you very daring that day?

Why are you suddenly shy today?

The sound is quite pleasant, crisp and melodious.

Forget it, she can't possibly run away. I'll interrogate her again tonight.

The more speechless a person is, the busier their mind becomes. Gu Zhao coughed lightly and said to the sullen-looking shopkeeper:

"Shopkeeper, wrap up these two jade hairpins for me. What else has she seen? Let me see them all."

After Gu Zhao returned to the mansion after buying the jewelry, his attendant was already arranging for him to bathe and change.

After taking a bath, changing clothes, and drying his hair, he was all ready, and there was still half an hour before dusk.

Not really interested in dealing with serious matters, Gu Zhao casually picked up a book to pass the time. Whether it was because the book was poorly written or what, the words on the page were clearly in front of him, but he couldn't get a single one into his brain.

Seeing that his young master hadn't turned a single page of his book for a long time and seemed restless, the attendant asked:

"Young Master, shall we go to Wanxiang Courtyard now?"

It's not about marrying a principal wife, it's just taking someone as a concubine. She's in my own house, in my own courtyard, and with my own people. I can go whenever I want.

It's just taking in a concubine; there aren't actually that many rules.

Gu Zhao finally turned a page and replied calmly:

"Go again at 5 PM."

You should wait until everyone is ready before going there. She might still be getting ready in a hurry, so you don't scare her again.

With about a quarter of an hour left before dusk, Gu Zhao finally got up, personally carrying a ruby-gilded filigree box, and headed to the backyard.

In the winter of Beijing, at the hour of You (5-7 PM), the sky was already dark.

When the servant saw that the young master was carrying the things himself, he hurriedly reached out to take them, but seeing that the young master had no intention of giving them to him, he withdrew his hand, picked up a lantern, and walked ahead to lead the way.

After walking for almost fifteen minutes, we finally arrived at the gate of Wanxiang Courtyard.

Upon seeing the young master arrive, the maids and servants of Wanxiang Courtyard all bowed their heads in greeting, and someone had already run inside to announce his arrival.

A nanny came out to greet him, lifted the thick curtain of the main room, and invited Gu Zhao inside.

Because Gu Zhao was coming today, the charcoal fire inside the house was especially plentiful, making it very warm.

The attendant helped Gu Zhao remove her cloak, but Gu Zhao still held the jeweled box as she went into the inner room.

Upon entering the inner room, the screen reflected the silhouette of a beautiful woman sitting gracefully by the bed.

A barely perceptible smile unconsciously appeared on Gu Zhao's face. He walked around the screen, and the beauty turned her head when she heard the sound.

The smile on her face vanished before it even reached her eyes. Gu Zhao looked at the completely unfamiliar face, her expression still calm, but her tone was already cold as she asked:

Who are you?