The Princess and Her Rough-Rider Khan
Chapter 377 - 376 He deserves a good reward (first update)

Chapter 377: 376 He deserves a good reward (first update)

After Li Xianyun settled down at Ruyi Square, she planned to take a walk around the street to rent a storefront for opening a medical clinic.

She greeted a few acquaintances and then went out with Youlan and Bater.

The shops she had previously taken an interest in were now impossible to acquire, so she had no choice but to look for second-best options—any reasonably suitable storefront or estate would do. Even at a high price, as long as there was a place where she could open a clinic to treat and save people, it would suffice.

Upon reaching a certain spot, Bater pointed not far away and said, "Master, it looks like someone is renting out a place there."

Li Xianyun followed the direction he pointed, and saw a very large courtyard located in the center of West Market.

Land here was worth its weight in gold, and those who could afford to live here were either rich or noble.

The rent would certainly be steep.

Li Xianyun, holding a look-see attitude, walked over.

The ochre-colored doors were tightly closed, and a young servant was dozing off in a chair at the entrance.

Bater walked over and pushed him forcefully without any courtesy.

Li Xianyun raised an eyebrow.

By their manner, it seemed as if the two knew each other.

The young servant woke up and, upon seeing the visitors, quickly greeted them with a smile, "Are you here to rent the room?"

"Yes," Bater said.

The young servant laughed, "Please come in. I will show you around."

It was a large estate with five courtyards, each with its main hall, Erfang, and east and west side-rooms, and the courtyards were spacious with gardens.

There were enough rooms and all were sizable.

Li Xianyun calculated that at first, they could just open one courtyard, which would be more than enough to start the medical clinic; if they decided to open a school in the future, they could make use of the remaining four courtyards.

Having a clinic in the front and a school in the back would ensure their apprentices learned not merely through theories on paper.

According to the young servant, the master of the house wanted to settle elsewhere and was eager to rent out the estate.

After taking a look, Li Xianyun was satisfied, yet the situation felt eerily suspicious.

If the "For Rent" sign at the door was so conspicuous, why hadn’t she noticed it before? Unless it had appeared out of nowhere.

Furthermore, Bater’s attitude towards the young servant earlier was quite telling.

After a full tour, Li Xianyun inquired about the rent.

The young servant said, "One thousand two hundred silver notes a year."

Youlan, in disbelief, said, "One thousand two?"

Such a large estate only requiring one thousand two silver notes for rent was unbelievably cheap.

Hearing this, the young servant thought they found it expensive and hurriedly said, "Eight hundred will do."

Youlan covered her mouth in shock.

The young servant had taken it upon himself to make decisions on behalf of his master.

Seeing this, Li Xianyun was quite sure of her suspicion and knew what was going on.

The young servant, seeing that Li Xianyun remained unperturbed, said, "Five hundred will also do."

Bater became anxious at the side, making urgent eye gestures at him.

The young servant misinterpreted the signs and said, "Or perhaps you can name a price, master, and if it’s suitable, we will rent it to you."

Li Xianyun looked at Bater and smiled, "Speak, what’s going on?"

Bater appeared somewhat unnatural and said, "Master, if you feel there’s something fishy, I can go investigate right away."

"Still not telling the truth?"

Although Li Xianyun was smiling, her eyes were compelling, making it difficult for anyone to resist her.

Bater had no choice but to bow and apologize, "Please forgive me, master. This estate originally belonged to a criminal of the former dynasty. When it was confiscated by the Imperial Court, the Khan planned to reward it to a meritorious subject, but it had not been decided yet. After learning that you needed a place to open a medical clinic, we staged this play. The Khan was afraid that you would not use this estate, and specifically instructed us not to mess up the act. Still, it was discovered by you."

The deception was riddled with holes, and it was hard not to notice.

Youlan watched Li Xianyun with a smiling face, "Master, the Khan really cares about you."

Li Xianyun smiled without speaking.

Bater tentatively asked, "My lord, do you plan to use this mansion to open a medical clinic?"

"Yes."

Yelu Yan had taken the trouble to prepare everything to this extent; if she didn’t use it, wouldn’t that be ungrateful?

Upon hearing this, Bater and the Palace Servant disguised as a Young Servant laughed and said, "Thank you, my lord."

Li Xianyun pressed her lips together in a smile. What was there to thank her for?

Instead, it was she who needed to properly reward Yelu Yan.

Li Xianyun looked at the Young Servant.

He was around twenty years old, with a round face and big eyes, looking honest and solid.

"What is your name?"

"Ge Lei."

Li Xianyun asked, "Were you the one guarding this mansion before?"

"Yes, in addition to me, there were more than ten male servants taking care of the mansion."

"Were they all managed by you?"

"Yes."

"Alright, continue to manage them from now on."

Being in charge of the mansion at a little over twenty, he must be a capable person.

Having said that, Li Xianyun took him for a tour around the courtyard.

She instructed Ge Lei to move the superfluous furniture to another courtyard and explained in detail and thoroughly what furniture should be arranged. where, which items they still needed to purchase, and how to set them up.

Ji Shi Tang had developed slowly through small clinics, so in terms of opening medical clinics, Li Xianyun had a lot of experience.

Ge Lei was very diligent; he took out paper and pen to take careful notes as Li Xianyun gave her instructions.

As the mansion’s guardian, Ge Lei’s daily life had been dull and mundane, with no prospects for the future—almost like a person exiled to the outskirts.

But now, not only did he have something to do, but he was also following the princess, which instantly changed his status and identity.

If he did well, he might even secure a good future for himself.

After giving her instructions, Li Xianyun handed Ge Lei two hundred taels worth of silver notes for him to purchase desks and medicine cabinets. They would return what was extra and make up for any shortfall later on.

Next, Li Xianyun visited various pharmacies, inquired about the price of each medicinal herb, and prepared for future purchases.

This process went rather smoothly; although the Khitan citizens had some complaints about her, a Han princess, they dared not cause too much trouble due to her status.

-

In the dimly lit secret chamber, the light from a lantern filtered through bleakly, and the pitiful wails emanated from the room. The smell of blood was thick, almost suffocating.

This was truly a hell on earth.

Zhang Er, covered in blood, was dragged out and taken to an adjacent room.

Zhang Er’s face was swollen like a pig’s, making it difficult to open his eyes.

He strained to open his eyes and saw a robust and extremely handsome Khitan man seated on a Taishi Chair in front of him, a table beside him with tea and water on it.

The man’s body was tall and burly, his profound tiger eyes were intimidating, and the inherent majesty of his presence made it hard for anyone to look directly at him.

Although Zhang Er didn’t recognize the man, it was clear that this man held an extremely noble status.

Someone pushed him harshly on the back of his knees, making him kneel heavily on the cold stone floor.

It felt like his kneecaps were about to split open.

He didn’t know where he was; he had been talking with a few Khitan citizens when he was suddenly subdued by several tall men who beat him unconscious.

When he woke up, he found himself in this dreadful and terrifying secret chamber.

A cold voice from behind him commanded, "Repeat the confession you just made."

Zhang Er quickly uttered several "yes" responses and said, "The Ninth Princess instructed us to spread rumors about Princess Hehui, to tarnish her reputation, to make the Khitan Khan despise her and the citizens spurn her."