NoGift

"MEI REN is really glad that Your Highness returned safely," the courtesan named Mei Ren said in her soft voice while pouring wine on the fourth prince's cup. "If something were to happen to Your Highness, Mei Ren will definitely be sad."

Li Jun drank the cup of wine. He knew it was just lip service but Li Jun still played along. "How can I dare make you sad? Of course, I'll come back."

"Mei Ren is happy to hear that," she said, sweetly smiling. "In the time that Your Highness was away, Mei Ren has learned a new dance. Would Your Highness want to see it?"

"Mei Ren's dance is always beautiful, so of course I would love to see it," Li Jun said.

"Then if Your Highness doesn't mind, Ying Yue would play guqin as an accompaniment to Mei Ren," the young man wearing white robe suggested. Then he shyly glanced at the young general. "Ying Yue would also want General Zhang to hear my music."

But unfortunately for him, the young general just ignored him. Li Jun sighed. Ever since the two courtesans entered the room, Lei Feng hadn't given them a speck of his attention. He was just silently eating the dishes on the table and glancing at the door from time to time. Probably waiting for the duke to come back. Heck, he probably didn't even notice that the one beside him was a male courtesan.

Li Jun shook his head. What's the use of calling a male courtesan when this guy wouldn't even look at him? Much less noticed his existence? Especially when the male courtesan just happened to be the younger brother of Madame Ying Hua.

He told the manager to get the brothel's best male courtesan. Li Jun just didn't expect that the younger brother of the brothel owner would come himself. Especially since he heard that both siblings no longer accept customers. Such luck and Lei Feng was just wasting it.

"I think hearing you play would be a pleasure," Li Jun said to Ying Yue before turning to Lei Feng. "Don't you think so as well, Lei Feng?"

Lei Feng just nodded but it was fairly obvious that he wasn't listening to their conversation. But Ying Yue still smiled shyly, stood up and walked towards the guqin - a seven-string musical instrument widely popular in Xing. Almost all the ladies of noble birth, even some men from scholastic families, learned to play one. Ying Yue sat behind the guqin and waited for Mei Ren. Once Mei Ren was in position, he started plucking the strings.

And beautiful, melodious notes filled the room.

Mei Ran started dancing with the music. Her pink skirt was swishing like the ocean's wave while her body swayed beautifully along with each notes. If the one playing the guqin was not Ying Yue, then all the attention would no doubt be focused on the young woman skillfully dancing. But one couldn't really ignore the presence of Ying Yue. Especially with that serene expression on his face. It just made his beauty more prominent.

Li Jun listened and watched in pleasure. After the performance, he couldn't help but applaud the two. "What a wonderful performance."

"Mei Ren is happy that Your Highness enjoyed it," she said in a delighted voice.

"Ying Yue as well." Then he looked hopefully at the young general, but to his dismay, the general was looking at the door instead of him or even Mei Ren.

Of course, Li Jun also noticed that. So when the two courtesans went back to their seats and Ying Yue tried to offer a drink to Lei Feng and Lei Feng just ignored him, Li Jun just couldn't hold it in anymore. Especially after he saw the pitiful expression on Ying Yue's face.

Li Jun pushed the cup of wine in front of Lei Feng. "I know you don't notice anyone right now, but at least be polite and drink this wine he poured."

Lei Feng looked down at the cup of wine, didn't think too much about it and drank its content. If he refused, he knew that this prince would just argue with him. He was just not in the mood for one of his tantrums. After that, he went back looking at the door.

Li Jun naturally saw it. This guy was probably, perhaps, already hopeless. But maybe if he was left here alone with Ying Yue, then he would have no choice but to notice him.

Li Jun turned to Mei Ren. "I heard that there's a new viewing platform in Zhi Qing Hua. Why don't you take me there, Mei Ren?"

"Mei Ren would love to."

Li Jun stood up and looked at Lei Feng. "You're going to stay here, right?"

Lei Feng nodded. He still had to wait for Argent's return.

The prince and the girl went out of the private room.

"Leave," he said to the person who had been sitting beside him.

"I can't do that. Not when we haven't even played yet," said a playful voice. If Li Jun was there he would be surprised because the shy expression on Ying Yue's face could no longer be found. Because now that shy smile was replaced by a flirtatious one.

Lei Feng furrowed his brows. When he turned his head, the air was suddenly filled by a sickeningly sweet smell. His vision suddenly doubled and he felt an unprecedented heat rising up inside him. "What did you--?"

"I must say, I probably must thank the prince for letting you drink that wine. It helped me a great deal." Lei Feng felt his body being pushed down and someone straddling his waist. "Did you know, the drug in that wine combined with my Gift will result to a very potent aphrodisiac?"

Lei Feng's vision was still not clear but his breathing was already starting to get rough. It's like if he didn't release this heat he was feeling, he would sooner or later suffocate.

Ying Yue held the general's chin. "Now, how should I play with you, my handsome general?"

----------

Let's backtrack a bit in time.

Argent was led by the manager to the fifth floor. They walked towards a room triple the size of the private room she was just in earlier. The room probably took a quarter of the whole fifth floor. The decorations inside was obviously of the highest quality, even including the smallest ornaments. Showing that the owner of the room loved expensive things.

Near the window stood a woman. Her long black hair that almost reached the floor was facing towards Argent's direction.

"Madame, I've brought Lord Blackbourne," the manager said.

"You can leave now," said the woman's tantalizing voice.

The manager bowed and left the room. That's only when the woman turned around. The gorgeous red robe she was wearing was loose, showing the upper part of her ample breasts. She was not wearing any jewelries or ornaments on her hair, just her natural beauty. But that was enough to tempt any mortal man.

But sadly for her, the one in front of her was not a man. No matter how beautiful she was, Argent would never be tempted.

"Welcome, Lord Blackbourne," she greeted, a sensual smile appearing on her luscious red lips.

"I guess you didn't expect me this soon," Argent said.

"Oh? And why would I even expect the famous founder of Silver Corporation to visit my humble brothel?"

"Maybe because the Emperor told you that I would be coming," Argent answered. When she heard what the older general said about the Emperor going to that inspection with just this courtesan with him, she already figured that this Ying Hua was not an ordinary courtesan. Because there's no way that Emperor would bring a weak woman with him that would only drag his hind leg. Most likely, this woman was some sort of spy that the Emperor personally reared. Being a courtesan would be the perfect cover for a spy. "So, let's not go through with any boring mind games and just get straight to the point."

Ying Hua chuckled. This kid was definitely more than she expected. The Emperor just sent her a message this morning, telling her that she should expect a young silver-haired visitor in her brothel anytime soon. Asking her about that incident 15 years ago. She just didn't expect that the 'soon' he meant would be tonight. Ying Hua was confused at first by who he meant. But when the manager told her that the founder of Silver Corporation wanted to meet her, she immediately understood.

So, it was indeed true. That this genius came to Xing. That Li Wei, he could have just told her who she was expecting. But she guessed, finding out this way was also fun. "You mean what I would want in return for the information you wanted?"

"Precisely."

"Then I want one million gold coins for every question I will answer."

"Done," Argent didn't even hesitate. She then walked towards the woman and took a veritas stone fron her space ring. "Now if you could put your palm on this stone."

Ying Hua looked at the stone and chuckled once again. "Well, aren't you the careful one?"

"I just want to make sure that I'm not making a losing investment. Now, for the first question, what did that thief look like?"

Ying Hua raised her brow. She thought that this kid would first ask if there was really a thief. "Silver hair, purple eyes. To be more precise, a manlier version of you."

The stone glowed green. "Second, what did he took?"

"A map."

It still glowed green. "Last question, a map to what exactly?"

"A map towards the Temple of Tian Long that lies beneath the sea of Leng Jing."

After the stone turned green, Argent put it back in her space ring. Then she took three chests full of gold coins and put it on the floor. Good thing she always kept a large amount of gold coins in her space ring. "Your payment."

"You're not going to ask me how to get there?" Ying Hua curiously asked.

"If someone needed to steal a map in order to get there, then I doubt you would know its exact location."

Ying Hua was greatly amused by his answer. "You're right. I wouldn't know. Because that place doesn't exist."

That caught Argent's attention. "It doesn't exist?"

"Oops, that's the only free answer you would get." Ying Hua smiled playfully. "Now, don't you think it's time you let me see that pretty face of yours?"

She was about to raised her hand to take the mask from Argent's face, but before she could do that, they both heard a loud explosion-like sound. Probably coming from one or two floors below.