Time Travel: Pampered by the Aloof Prince
Chapter 289: Lord Shen Brought a Beautiful Girl With Him

Chapter 289: Chapter 289: Lord Shen Brought a Beautiful Girl With Him

While Qi Yu was staring blankly at the storybook, on the other side, Shen Xiheng had already taken Shi Zhou to the busiest part of Ten-mile Street in the capital city.

In recent days, Shi Zhou had followed him around many places in the capital, gaining a deeper understanding of the local customs and culture.

But when she followed Shen Xiheng past the most crowded and bustling bookstore and into a narrow alleyway, she was still somewhat surprised.

Shen Xiheng, as if familiar with the route, walked up to a sealed red wooden door and knocked on it.

Soon, a young boy came to open the door for him and, seeing him, made a very familiar bow before turning his head to shout into the house, "Lord Shen is here!"

It was clear that Shen Xiheng was a regular visitor here.

Quickly, a voice that seemed to have just woken up, hoarse and somewhat lazy, came from within the house, "Lord Shen has arrived?"

Before Shen Xiheng could speak, the boy took a glance at Shi Zhou behind him, and crisply shouted, "Lord Shen has brought a beautiful girl too!"

This time, the person inside instantly became fully alert, and his voice rose a few notches, "What? And a beautiful girl too!"

Shen Xiheng was momentarily at a loss for words.

He said to Shi Zhou, "Don’t be afraid, this man may not be very respectable, but he’s not a rogue either."

Shi Zhou nodded, then asked, "Is he the owner here?"

Shen Xiheng replied with a smile, "Yes, he is the owner of Fengya Hall, his name is Yuan Huan. You can also call him the Free Wanderer, which is his pen name."

"Pen name?" Shi Zhou asked.

Shen Xiheng lowered his voice and whispered in her ear, "The storybooks that the Princess reads are all written by him."

Shi Zhou understood and let out an "oh" of realization.

While they were talking, the Free Wanderer had already hurried out.

As he walked, he tidied up the floating white garment on his body, and said to Shen Xiheng, "Lord Shen hasn’t visited for some days, perhaps the affairs of state kept you busy, making you forget about this old friend."

Shen Xiheng did not respond to his words but said to Shi Zhou, "This man is quite improper, if he offends you with his words, just beat him hard and don’t worry about losing face for me."

Shi Zhou obediently nodded, and the sword in her hand glittered in the sunlight.

Yuan Huan paused in his steps and quickly said, "No, no, no, I am frail and cannot endure being beaten."

After speaking, he noticed Shi Zhou’s face, as white as snow, with peach blossom eyes that looked somewhat indifferent but also exuded a touch of soft beauty.

Yuan Huan was taken aback and then said with a profound feeling, "I wonder where Lord Shen found this fairy."

Shi Zhou, seeing his humorous manner, arched an eyebrow.

Sure enough, an artistic creator, he himself is an act.

Yuan Huan invited them into the house, and the young boy poured tea for them, filling a room similar to a study with the fragrance of tea.

However, the room was a mess with books scattered all over the floor, reaching a point of extreme chaos.

It was rather impressive that Yuan Huan had managed to carve out a space for tea-drinking amidst the disorder of this room.

"The aroma of books accompanied by the scent of tea, truly one of life’s greatest pleasures!" Yuan Huan, seemingly oblivious to the unspeakable meanings in their eyes, drained the cup of tea in his hand and spoke with a casual air.

Shen Xiheng, well-acquainted with his friend’s style of nonsensical talk, just twitched the corner of his mouth.

After some idle chatter, Yuan Huan quickly got to the point. His eyes sparkling, he said to them, "Lord Shen’s visit today surely isn’t just to drink tea, is it?"

After speaking, he couldn’t help rubbing his hands together with anticipation.

Every time Shen Xiheng visited, it meant he could make a handsome profit.

After all, who wouldn’t give Shen, a man both wealthy and generous, what he wants?

Shen Xiheng nearly couldn’t resist rolling his eyes. But since he truly needed a favor, he had to suppress the urge to punch the man. He addressed Yuan Huan, "Do you have any new scripts here?"

Yuan Huan’s eyes lit up, his lips curling into a smile as he spoke shrewdly, "Scripts? However many you need, that’s how many I have. But you know, writing a script is no easy feat. My eyes are nearly blind from toiling every day, and my hand is shaking so badly I can barely hold a pen!"

As he reached the end of his statement, his tone shifted to one of misery, painting a pitiful scene.

If Shen Xiheng hadn’t seen for himself how this man created those scripts, he might have actually believed him.

Yuan Huan was a master at using his surroundings to his advantage.

All the inspiration for his scripts came from the secular world. For that reason, Yuan Huan often frequented brothels.

Of course, he wasn’t at all moved by the women whose bosoms exuded the fragrance of powder; he simply viewed them as walking source material.

After prying fantastic and moving stories from the lips of those ladies, he’d just smack his buttocks and leave, paying only for the tea, which infuriated the madams enough that they’d considered sending assassins after him.

Yuan Huan was incredibly adept at observing life; wherever there was excitement in the capital city, he was there.

Once he had gathered sufficient material, he would close his doors and begin to create. Though the process was somewhat dull and tedious, it was not nearly as bad as he claimed.

Shen Xiheng knew well enough that this fellow spent no more than two hours a day locked in his study writing scripts. Sometimes that was even shorter than the time he spent in court; how could he possibly ruin his eyes from that?

At the very most, he was too fond of gossip and unafraid to include other people’s scandalous affairs in his scripts, which could lead to potential threats on his life from the subjects of such tales.

Shen Xiheng didn’t waste words, "Five silvers."

Yuan Huan smacked his lips, ready to haggle, when he saw Shen Xiheng continue, "These scripts are not for my own asking."

After saying that, he fell silent.

Yuan Huan caught the scent of gossip, his eyes widening and shining brilliantly as he eagerly asked, "Who is it?"

He knew anyone who was of noble rank and associated with Shen Xiheng had to be either wealthy or of high status.

And those who could trouble him were even scarcer.

As Yuan Huan waited for him to speak, he couldn’t help but swallow his saliva in anticipation.

He was certain the name Shen Xiheng would mention would startle him.

Indeed, the very next second, he heard a name from Shen Xiheng’s mouth that genuinely made him shudder.

"Princess Consort of Qi."

Yuan Huan immediately jumped to his feet, excitedly pacing and rubbing his hands together, "Are you telling me the Princess Consort of Qi has taken a liking to the scripts I’ve written?"

She was the most mysterious and intriguing Princess Consort of Qi in the capital city.

Yuan Huan had always wanted to delve into the enigmatic mysteries surrounding the Princess Consort, but as a poor scholar with no connections, he’d had no way in.

Upon hearing Shen Xiheng say this, the gossip-hungry soul within him blazed alight.

Shen Xiheng leisurely sipped his tea before saying, "The Princess Consort of Qi is quite fond of those scripts you wrote before. She specifically asked me to inquire today."

Yuan Huan immediately dug out a few books from a messy pile and presented them before Shen Xiheng, very generously offering, "For the sake of our acquaintanceship, Shen, I won’t take your silver for these!"

Upon hearing his noble-sounding words, Shen Xiheng slightly raised his eyebrow.

Had he reformed?

But in the next second, Yuan Huan added, "However, I have one condition."