Chapter 47

The noisy chaos of the Xia Manor, which lasted the whole night, finally quieted down amidst the flying chickens and barking dogs.

Xia Qingqing slept soundly, and in her dream, the original Xia Qingqing was kneeling and thanking her, grateful for helping her vent her anger.

Xia Qingqing waved her hand repeatedly, “It’s nothing! Since I’m borrowing your body, we are like one family, and I will return the favor! Hehe!”

Xia Qingqing chuckled to herself.

Xiao Suo, puzzled, lay by the bed, watching her young mistress laughing foolishly.

It seemed that the young mistress must have dreamed of something interesting to make her laugh so happily!

“Miss, the sun’s already up! It’s time to get up for breakfast and lunch!”

Xiao Suo whispered softly.

“Ah?”

Xia Qingqing rubbed her eyes, lazily getting up.

“I haven’t had enough sleep. Time really flies!”

“Miss, after all the ruckus last night, nearly everyone in the Xia Manor is just waking up, or some are still asleep. Didn’t you tell me to wake you up by 11 in the morning today? You said you were going out to sell something!”

Xia Qingqing was dizzy from the ancient time system. She had made her own clock and taught Xiao Suo how to read time.

Now, Xiao Suo used the system Xia Qingqing taught to communicate with her.

“It’s already eleven! I should indeed have breakfast and lunch. I’ll tidy up, then after lunch, I’ll take the jewelry that my scumbag father and sister gave me and sell it. The money I get from selling it should be enough to buy a small courtyard house in the city!”

Xia Qingqing got up to wash, and Xiao Suo busied herself in the kitchen preparing food.

After lunch, Xia Qingqing packed the jewelry into another bag. The original bag had already been taken by Xia Yuanxiu, and she feared it might have been burned. Luckily, Xiao Suo had made an extra one.

Xia Qingqing packed the jewelry and climbed over the back wall to sneak out. She worried that Xia Yuanxiu might have his guards search the bags again. Her small build couldn’t compete with those tall and strong guards, so she was being cautious.

At the Treasure Pavilion, Xia Qingqing sat in the VIP room while Liu Gongye carefully examined the four sets of jewelry on the table. He could immediately tell that the last three sets were from his shop’s regular stock.

But the first set, a pearl headpiece, shocked him so much that he nearly knelt down in surprise.

The pearls in this set were extraordinary—unlike anything he had seen before. This was the work of the top artisans in their store, made exclusively for the royal family.

Where did Xia Qingqing get this from?

Liu Gongye couldn’t figure it out.

“Miss, please wait here. I’ll consult the boss and see what he says. This pearl headpiece is too precious. We need to discuss a fair price for it.”

“Okay, go ahead and ask the young master what he thinks.”

Xia Qingqing waved her hand, and Liu Gongye left with a string of pearl necklaces.

In the study, Young Master Xie and Prince Xian were still playing cricket.

“Young Master, take a look at this!” Liu Gongye handed the pearl necklace to Young Master Xie.

“My heavens! These pearls are from the South Sea, brought back personally to honor our ancestors! How did you get them?”

Young Master Xie was shocked.

Prince Xian also looked over in surprise and took the necklace, inspecting it carefully.

“Hey, isn’t this the headpiece the queen mother was going to give to her future daughter-in-law?”

“Yes, it’s from Miss Xia of the Xia Manor. She plans to sell it.”

Liu Gongye answered truthfully.

“She wants to sell it?”

Young Master Xie and Prince Xian exchanged glances. Was this girl truly so desperate?

“Yes! She said she plans to sell the jewelry and use the money to buy a house, even if it’s just a small courtyard. She’d be satisfied with that!”

“Pfft! This silly girl, this pearl headpiece could buy one of the best houses in the capital! I’ll go see her and ask where she got it from.”

Young Master Xie left the study with the pearl necklace, and Prince Xian followed closely behind, both heading to the VIP room.

“Why are both of you here?”

Xia Qingqing looked at the two of them suspiciously.

“Miss, where did you get this pearl headpiece?” Young Master Xie asked directly.

“My father had the maid, Sister Sangye, give it to me.”

“You mean, Xia Jinxing, the Xia Minister?” Young Master Xie couldn’t believe it. How could such an expensive piece come from the Xia Minister? Even if it came from the Chief Minister, he wouldn’t believe it.

“Yes! What’s the problem? Are you saying this pearl headpiece is fake?”

Xia Qingqing was certain her scumbag father would never give her a good thing, so it must be fake.

Young Master Xie smiled and said, “Sister, this headpiece belongs to our royal ancestors. The Sister Sangye you mentioned must be a maid beside the royal family. She gave it to you because she wants you to become my wife! Hehehe!”

“What? The royal family sent it!”

Xia Qingqing froze in place.

What? The empress dowager sent this? Who would dare sell it?

“It seems that the empress dowager has taken a liking to you and wants you to be my princess!” Young Master Xie explained.

“I? A princess?”

Xia Qingqing nearly fell backward in shock.

“Sister, what’s wrong with being my princess? I’ll give you all the good things I have!” Prince Xian said, reaching out to hold Xia Qingqing’s hand.

“Alright, alright!” Xia Qingqing squeezed out a smile, nodding repeatedly.

She hadn’t expected this silly prince to fall for it so quickly. She had noticed his unusual background from the start, with the empress dowager and the emperor backing him.

She quickly realized that if she wanted to use someone, she might as well use this fool of a prince and the power of Young Master Xie behind him.

“Great! I’ll go back to the palace and tell the empress dowager this good news!”

Prince Xian was so excited that he started dancing around.

“Wait, I’m not yet fifteen. Can I wait until I’m fifteen before marrying you?”

Xia Qingqing thought of her older sisters—Second, Fourth, and Fifth—who hadn’t even been betrothed. She didn’t want to rush into a marriage and risk the envy of others.

“Of course! No problem! You’ll be fifteen in three months, and I’ll prepare everything—our residence and the dowry. By the way, what kind of dowry would you like?”

Prince Xian asked seriously.

“Money! The more, the better!”

Xia Qingqing said without hesitation.

No matter where you were, a woman needed to have money in her hands. Even if the man rejected her, she could bravely say no and slap him a few times!

“Money will be no problem! The Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Internal Affairs will prepare it!”

Young Master Xie added.

This miss and the old prince were both money-obsessed.

The only difference was the old prince wanted money to raise soldiers, while this miss likely had other plans for the money. It probably wasn’t just about buying a house.