Young Master Gao? Call me Little Grand Secretary!

Gao Zhao was just about to fall asleep when he was woken up, and he was naturally annoyed. "I was busy all night yesterday and barely slept. Don't you guys know how to be considerate of me?"

He kicked Gao Yi before heading towards Gao Qiu's study, wondering what the old scoundrel wanted from him!

He looked exhausted and walked with his head down. But the moment he pushed open the door to the study, his expression changed instantly.

The previous irritability and lethargy vanished, replaced by a well-behaved, obedient, and smiling demeanor.

He stood upright, a broad smile on his face, and was about to bow in greeting. He had only completed half the formalities when Gao Qiu, seated above, raised his eyes, his gaze sharp as a knife, and stared directly at him, cutting to the chase: "Did you steal my money?"

Caught off guard by the question, Gao Zhao froze, abruptly stopping his half-finished bow.

He suddenly remembered that he had been in a great mood after successfully obtaining his official position two days ago, and had rewarded his servants. Remembering that his money was hard-earned, he had taken some from Gao Qiu...

He lowered his head and stole a glance at Gao Qiu, then stammered, "What you're saying, sir... Can a scholar's actions be called stealing...? Heh... As the old saying goes, a son stealing from his father isn't considered stealing..."

"When the servants learned that I had been appointed to an official post through hereditary privilege, they all came to congratulate me and ask for reward money. I was short of money... so I had no choice but to come to you, sir, to get some..."

"You're short of money?" Gao Qiu laughed angrily upon hearing this, pointing at him and saying, "Don't pretend to be poor with me. Do you think I don't know how much money you have? You kept 10,000 strings of cash from Guo Weize last time, and you still have at least several thousand strings left."

"That's different!" Gao Zhao quickly raised his head and argued earnestly, "My money is useful!"

Gao Qiu was amused by his self-righteous attitude, but he was too lazy to argue with him. He waved his hand and scolded, "I'm too lazy to waste words with you. I have important business to discuss with you today."

Seeing that the topic had been dropped, Gao Zhao quickly stood up straight, bowed respectfully with a serious expression, and said, "What are your orders, my lord? I am all ears!"

"Stop acting strangely!" Gao Qiu glared at him and said irritably, "Your official appointment has already been sent to the Imperial Palace. The people there contacted me yesterday, and you can take up your post in the next day or two!"

Gao Zhao was taken aback, and hesitated before saying, "Didn't we say we should pick an auspicious day?"

Upon hearing this, Gao Qiu narrowed his eyes, looking at him with a half-smile, and said calmly, "Oh? Then which day do you think is an auspicious day?"

Gao Zhao hurriedly said, "I think August 28th is a good date; it sounds auspicious! What does Your Excellency think?"

Gao Qiu almost laughed out of anger. Good heavens, he pushed back his appointment date by a month with just one sentence. You're really too ambitious!

Without bothering with further words, she slammed her teacup down on the table, her face full of exasperation, and roared, "August 28th? Do you think this is your wedding date? Entering the palace to serve is always better done sooner rather than later, how can you be so negligent!"

Gao Zhao shrank back and chuckled awkwardly, "What you're saying, sir... doesn't it just make me seem like I value this job? Hehe... it's all in accordance with propriety..."

"Nonsense!" Gao Zhao slammed his cup down again, scolding, "Avoid the grand court ceremony on the first day of the month for the next day or two, then choose another day to report for duty!"

"Ah! This is inappropriate!" Gao Zhao quickly refused. He hadn't had enough fun these past few days! Naturally, he didn't want to go to work so soon. He immediately said firmly, "Sir, this concerns my career, it cannot be taken lightly. This is my first time entering officialdom, how can I be so careless? I must make a good start!"

Gao Qiu stared at him coldly, without saying a word.

Gao Zhao had no choice but to change his tune, saying, "If you think twenty-eight is too long, then I'll compromise and eighteen days will do!"

Gao Qiu snorted coldly and said unhappily, "You think I'm bargaining with you?!"

Seeing this, Gao Zhao gritted his teeth and said, "Then it's the eighth day. If that doesn't work, I won't go! I'll just write a resignation letter and submit it, whatever!"

Gao Qiu's face darkened, and he shouted, "You're about to become an official, yet you still act like a rogue! Get out! If you cause trouble again in the next few days, don't blame me for being impolite!"

Upon hearing that the old scoundrel had agreed, Gao Zhao was overjoyed, bowed repeatedly, and ran out happily.

On the way back, they ran into Qian Bao'er. The little girl blushed as soon as she saw Gao Zhao, and tried to run away with her head down. But after running a couple of steps, she found that there was no movement, so she stopped and turned her head to look. She saw Gao Zhao walking past her with a calm expression, without even glancing at her once.

What does this mean?

Qian Bao'er was puzzled. In the past, when Gao Zhao saw her, he either teased her with words or touched her inappropriately. Why was he so indifferent today?

Was he reprimanded by the Grand Commandant? Serves him right!

Qian Bao'er snorted inwardly, turned her head and continued walking forward. She couldn't help but look back a few times, but Gao Zhao showed no intention of stopping or turning back. She could only stomp her feet, pout, and walk away angrily!

Little did she know that Gao Zhao hadn't slept a wink all night and had fought two battles, leaving him utterly exhausted. He felt completely drained and just wanted to get some sleep; he had no desire to flirt with her at all!

Gao Zhao went straight to his bed as soon as he returned to his room. He didn't feel lonely or cold anymore and fell asleep immediately!

She slept soundly for days and nights, and didn't even eat lunch. Feng San Niang and Gao Yi didn't dare to disturb her, and they even worked very quietly.

It wasn't until dusk that Gao Zhao slowly woke up. He rubbed his eyes, looked at the dim light outside the window, and stared blankly into space.

At that moment, a wave of sadness welled up in his heart for no apparent reason. He didn't know why or what the cause was, but he just felt very sad and had an urge to cry.

After finally calming down and regaining much of his composure, Gao Yi stepped forward and said, "Young Master, Fu An has arrived!"

Gao Zhao turned her head and stared at him blankly for a long while before asking, "When did you arrive?"

Gao Yi replied softly, "I arrived in the afternoon. Since the young master has been resting, I didn't dare to disturb him and waited outside."

"Okay, let him in." Gao Zhao instructed. After Gao Yi left, he stood up, washed his face with water from the basin, and felt refreshed and clear-headed.

Fu An strode over and bowed deeply upon entering, saying, "Your Excellency, I pay my respects!"

Gao Zhao turned around, smiled slightly, and said, "No need for formalities. Speak, what is it?"

Fu An laughed and said, "I was ordered by you, sir, to keep an eye on Wang Qing, but the scoundrel has run into trouble. He was caught stealing last night and has been taken to Kaifeng Prefecture and imprisoned!"

Upon hearing this, Gao Zhao immediately thought of the alluring and seductive girl from last night. It seemed she was indeed very obedient!

His heart warmed, and he decided to go see her again tonight. Such obedience was truly a rare beauty!

"Well done, you put your heart into it!" Gao Zhao tossed a money pouch over to Fu An, then sent him away and ordered someone to quickly bring him food.

Tonight is sure to be a big battle, so I need to replenish my energy and get plenty of rest.