Sure enough. Once Jingzhe saw the man lose his vitality, she suddenly realized what had happened. She slightly concealed the surprise on her face and quietly stood aside.
"Take care of it," Song Huaizhi said, turning around to Li Ergou and the others standing behind him. "Make sure no one sees it, and there must be no traces left."
"Yes," Li Ergou replied. He signaled to his subordinates, rolled up his sleeves, and prepared to dispose of the body.
[AAAAAA! Seriously! Why is it a crime scene again! I told you Song Huaizhi was acting suspiciously!]
[!!!!! Really. I said so. Wuwuwuwu. Song Huaizhi is definitely up to something. I'd rather believe he killed someone on a whim than believe he'd save someone for no reason.]
[Actually... Suddenly remembered, didn't you guys forget that Song Huaizhi is the villain?]
[...... Cough cough. Indeed forgot.]
The punctuation marks on the bullet screen hurt Meng Ruyi's eyes. She couldn't help but blink before looking at Jingzhe, who was standing aside with a long sword in her hand.
Jingzhe's face was calm. When she noticed Meng Ruyi looking at her, she gently curved her lips and gave the girl a gentle smile. It was a rare smile on her face, which made Zheng Yuanqing beside her purse her lips.
It seemed that Jingzhe could come back. Meng Ruyi returned her smile and then looked at Song Huaizhi. "Brother Song, can Jingzhe come back?"
"Yes." Just as Meng Ruyi was about to look at Jingzhe, she heard Song Huaizhi hesitate slightly.
"Hmm?"
"It's okay. I'll just send someone else," Song Huaizhi said and was about to turn around to give instructions to the people behind him.
Hearing this, Zheng Yuanqing blurted out to Song Huaizhi, "M...Mr. Song, could you let Jingzhe stay with me for a while longer? Then..."
Song Huaizhi stopped turning around and looked at Meng Ruyi, slightly pursing his lips.
"Sure, as long as Jingzhe is willing," Meng Ruyi said. Seeing Song Huaizhi looking at her, she gave Jingzhe a somewhat regretful look. "So, Jingzhe, are you willing?"
The courtyard fell silent. The only sound was the rustling of Li Ergou and the others moving the body. Zheng Yuanqing looked at Jingzhe uneasily, with a hint of uneasiness and dependence on his face, like a fledgling bird.
Jingzhe wanted to leave and return to Meng Ruyi's side. But when she met the gaze of the person in front of her, she inexplicably felt that he was a bit pitiful. So the refusal on her lips was swallowed back.
Zheng Yuanqing could hear his own heartbeat.
"Then I'll stay here for a while," Jingzhe said to Meng Ruyi gently. "I'll come back to serve you after some time."
"Don't rush," Meng Ruyi said gently. "You can stay with His Highness the Third Prince for now. If there's anything inconvenient, just tell me."
"Thank you, Miss," Jingzhe said, nodding to Meng Ruyi with a gentle smile on her lips.
It was so amazing.
Seeing the change in Jingzhe, Meng Ruyi was a bit surprised and also felt an indescribable joy. Jingzhe was gradually separating from the character in the book. Did it mean that Jingzhe, one of the seven male leads, was no longer on the opposite side of her?
Thinking like this, a smile appeared on her face involuntarily. She winked at Lianqiao outside the door, took a small brocade bag from her hand, and handed it to Jingzhe. "There's silver in it. If you want something, just go and buy it."
Jingzhe widened her eyes in surprise. She pointed at herself and asked Meng Ruyi, "Is this for me?"
Meng Ruyi nodded with a smile.
It was the first time in Jingzhe's life that she got money, so she couldn't help but feel a bit excited. Although she had heard that one could earn money by working for others, she was too special. She was captured by Song Huaizhi himself, so she surely couldn't compare with those hired people. Therefore, Jingzhe always thought she had no reward.
This was simply a pleasant surprise.
Seeing the smile on Meng Ruyi's face, Jingzhe involuntarily reached out her hand and took the small brocade bag Meng Ruyi handed her. She looked at it curiously for a long time.
"Thank you," she said seriously to Meng Ruyi. "With this, I can buy pastries again."
"Okay," Meng Ruyi saw the excitement on Jingzhe's face that couldn't be concealed. She controlled the impulse to reach out and touch her head and just gave her a gentle smile.
Zheng Yuanqing didn't expect Jingzhe to like this. He looked at her in surprise, and there was a strange sense of regret in his heart.
What was he regretting? Zheng Yuanqing suppressed the inexplicable emotion in his heart and looked at Song Huaizhi, who was standing aside with a calm expression and a somewhat gloomy look in his eyes.
...
After Song Huaizhi and the others left, Zheng Yuanqing looked at the small courtyard in a mess that hadn't been cleaned up yet. He couldn't help but sigh. He turned to Jingzhe and said, "If you want to buy something, you can go now. Just come back before it gets dark."
"Okay."
Hearing this, Jingzhe turned around without any hesitation, which made Zheng Yuanqing feel a bit depressed.
Was his place so unwelcoming?
He subconsciously looked at the courtyard. There had just been a fight in the courtyard, so it was a bit messy. But the most prominent were the bloodstains. The servants beside were fetching water from the well to wash them away.
It was good to live in a remote place. Zheng Yuanqing somehow felt a bit of bitterness with a touch of self - comfort. He thought luckily that at least he didn't have to worry about being discovered while disposing of the body.
He scanned the small courtyard reluctantly and had to admit that it was really small and shabby, almost shoddy. But it was safe, and he couldn't find a better place.
The only bright spot was an unknown flower climbing half of the wall by the side.
When he returned to the capital, he must show Jingzhe how luxurious his prince's mansion was. It would surely impress her!
With this beautiful fantasy in mind, Zheng Yuanqing took a deep breath and returned to the room to continue dealing with his affairs.
Jingzhe came back on time. There was still a hint of joy on her face when she returned, and she didn't look tired at all.
"Back?" Zheng Yuanqing looked up at the person standing at the door and asked, "Have you eaten?"
Jingzhe nodded and touched the oil - paper bag in her hand with satisfaction.
Zheng Yuanqing pursed his lips, said a few words, and then went to have dinner.
When it was almost time to go to bed, Zheng Yuanqing couldn't help but sit at the desk and look at Jingzhe on the couch, who was holding a storybook.
Jingzhe felt his gaze and looked up at him with a hint of confusion in her eyes.
"Do you want some?"
Jingzhe couldn't figure out what Zheng Yuanqing wanted to say, so she reluctantly pointed at the oil - paper bag beside her.
"No," he pursed his lips and looked at her intently. "From tomorrow on, go to my guard every five days to get your salary."
Jingzhe was originally a bit uninterested. Hearing this, she couldn't help but widen her eyes and asked, "How much?"
"Forget it," Jingzhe said as soon as the words came out. Thinking of Song Huaizhi's cold gaze, she sighed regretfully and said to him, "Don't be so polite."
Zheng Yuanqing could naturally see that she was being insincere.