He had only heard Jiang Yanyi’s voice earlier, but with his years of experience with women, he could immediately tell she was a beauty.

Now that he saw her in person, his assumptions were confirmed.

As soon as Jiang Yanyi heard the flower shop manager address the man as “young master,” she guessed his identity.

She had originally intended to discuss renting space to grow peppers, but now all she wanted was to leave quickly.

She said, “Thank you for your kindness, young master, but I don’t see anything I wish to buy at the moment. I’ll take my leave.”

With that, she grabbed Qui Kui’s hand and quickly walked away.

Seeing that Hu Baiwan wanted to give chase, the manager hurriedly stopped him, saying, “Young master, that is a respectable lady, not a maid from the household!”

Hu Baiwan was so enamored he couldn’t hear the manager’s advice.

He tried to chase after her, but the manager blocked his way again.

Frustrated, Hu Baiwan grabbed the manager by his collar and demanded, “Who is that young lady? Where does she live?”

---

Meanwhile, Jiang Yanyi and Qui Kui, still shaken after leaving Hu’s flower estate, found a hidden spot to hide and relax.

Once they were sure no one was following them, they finally felt at ease.

The two wandered through other flower shops but only found small, poorly-run businesses.

Even the flowers grown in greenhouses were half-dead, nothing like the ones at the Hu family’s flower estate.

Jiang Yanyi had only one pepper plant to cultivate, and it was incredibly precious.

She couldn’t afford to be careless about building a greenhouse.

If the seedlings died, it would be a huge loss.

However, she didn’t have the funds to build a greenhouse, and after her encounter with the young master at the Hu family’s flower estate, she no longer dared to collaborate with them.

The manager had mentioned that the Protectorate had a greenhouse as well, but after considering the high status of the Protectorate and recalling Feng Shuo’s strange behavior that day, Jiang Yanyi didn’t have the courage to approach them about renting space.

She sighed.

If worst came to worst, she would have to wait until spring to start cultivating her seedlings.

After spending the entire afternoon browsing, Jiang Yanyi didn’t buy any flowers.

However, she did purchase a few vases for flower arrangements and struck a deal with the owner of a small flower shop.

The owner agreed to deliver fresh flower branches to her store every few days at a reasonable price.

At this time of year, hibiscus was in full bloom, and soon the flower shop would have plenty of winter plum blossoms.

It wouldn’t cost much to buy branches.

When the two returned to the store, they thought the unpleasant encounter at Hu’s flower estate was behind them.

But to their surprise, the next day, Hu Baiwan came to the store.

Hu Baiwan arrived with a rare white chrysanthemum in his hands, followed by seven or eight servants, each carrying a pot of chrysanthemums.

As soon as he saw Jiang Yanyi, his eyes glazed over, and he almost lost control. “I heard that the young lady loves chrysanthemums, so I brought some for you.”

Hu Baiwan was well-known in Xizhou City as a notorious playboy.

His flamboyant arrival had already attracted a crowd outside the shop.

Jiang Yanyi had opened the store that day because the sign she had ordered had arrived, and the carpenter was coming to deliver it.

She hadn’t expected Hu Baiwan to show up like this.

Unlike most respectable young women, who would be embarrassed or outraged by such an event, Jiang Yanyi remained calm.

She glanced at the crowd outside, her expression cool and composed.

She even said to Hu Baiwan, “Young Master Hu, could you do me a favor?”

Hu Baiwan had expected her to shyly refuse the flowers, but to his surprise, she asked for his help right away.

He thought to himself, This young lady really is different—bold and straightforward.

He responded eagerly, “Anything you need, just say the word.”

Jiang Yanyi said, “My shop is small, and there are too many people inside. Could you ask your men to step outside?”

Hu Baiwan thought the shop wasn’t that small, but he didn’t want to embarrass the beautiful young lady, so he gestured for his servants to step back.

The servants were about to set down the potted plants when Jiang Yanyi said, “Take the plants with you.”

The servants exchanged glances, waiting for Hu Baiwan’s orders.

Jiang Yanyi flashed him a charming smile. “Thank you.”

Hu Baiwan was so dazzled by her smile that he lost track of time and space.

He quickly ordered his servants, “Do as she says! Follow the young lady’s instructions!”

The servants, still holding the potted plants, stepped back outside.

Jiang Yanyi continued to smile gently at him. “Young Master Hu, could you also step outside?”

Hu Baiwan couldn’t figure out what game she was playing, but as a man used to throwing money around, he had never encountered a woman he couldn’t win over.

This young lady was refreshingly bold, and he was happy to play along.

He stood at the door and asked, “Like this?”

Jiang Yanyi replied, “Please step down from the stairs as well.”

Hu Baiwan, confused, asked, “Why down the stairs?”

Jiang Yanyi’s smile deepened. “You’ll understand in a moment, Young Master Hu.”

Hu Baiwan, completely captivated by her smile, obediently stepped down from the stairs and asked again, “Like this?”

Jiang Yanyi smiled and nodded.

Then, with both hands, she firmly shut the door.

With a loud “bang,” the shop’s door closed, and even the sound of the lock clicking could be heard from inside.

The crowd on the street erupted in laughter, and only then did Hu Baiwan realize he had been made a fool of, his face alternating between shades of green and red.

Today, Feng Shuo was returning home by carriage.

As he approached his house, he found the road blocked, forcing him to stop and witness the commotion.

He couldn’t help but curl the corners of his lips into a smile.

Ever since Xing Yao learned about Feng Shuo’s feelings for Jiang Yanyi, he had taken a greater interest in anything related to her.

Now, he casually asked some bystanders a few questions and quickly learned about Hu Baiwan’s identity.

He hurriedly reported back to Feng Shuo, “This rascal is the young master of the Hu family flower shop in the west of the city. Though the Hu family is in trade, they hold significant power in Xizhou. That pot of peppers earlier was a gift from the Hu family.”

Feng Shuo cast a faint glance at the tightly shut door of Jiang Yanyi’s shop, then paused briefly on Hu Baiwan before lowering the carriage curtain.

His clear voice finally emerged from the carriage: “Investigate how she got entangled with this rascal from the Hu family.”

Knowing he had embarrassed himself, Hu Baiwan was determined to regain his dignity in front of so many people.

He immediately shouted to his seven or eight followers, “Break down the door for me! This shameless woman is seeking trouble!”

In the backyard, Jiang Yanyi and Qiu Kui were hiding, listening to the banging on the shop door.

Qiu Kui was so scared that she clutched the corner of Jiang Yanyi’s clothing tightly.

With a trembling voice, she asked, “What if… what if they get in?”

Jiang Yanyi was frightened too, but she remained much calmer than Qiu Kui.

She replied, “It’s fine! If he breaks down my door, he’ll be in the wrong, and it will go to the authorities!”

If this weren’t on the street near the military governor’s mansion, Jiang Yanyi wouldn’t dare to be so bold.

But the area around the military governor’s mansion was where Xizhou’s powerful gathered, and the local government paid close attention to patrols here.

Officials would pass by roughly every half hour.

With so many people gathered outside, it wouldn’t be long before the officials were drawn over.

However, the first to arrive wasn’t the officials.

As Hu Baiwan commanded his followers to break down the door, a squad of armored soldiers suddenly burst into the crowd.

The common folk had never seen such a scene and quickly dispersed in panic.

One of Hu Baiwan’s followers attempted to kick the door down but was knocked to the ground by the soldiers.

“Do you know who you’re messing with?” In the scuffle, Hu Baiwan stumbled and fell, but when he saw that the people standing in front of him were armored soldiers, he quickly shut his mouth.

“It’s a misunderstanding! Officers, it’s all a misunderstanding!” Hu Baiwan’s expression changed faster than flipping a book, and he clasped his hands, trying to smile at Xing Yao.

Xing Yao coldly stared at him. “You’re causing trouble in front of the military governor’s mansion. Take them all to the Xizhou government office!”

Hu Baiwan and his followers were bound up like pigs being taken to the butcher, led away by Feng Shuo’s soldiers to the government office.

Xing Yao then returned to the side of the carriage, saying, “Your Highness, why bother sending him to the government office? Wouldn’t it be more convenient to have the soldiers teach this rascal a lesson right here?”

Military camps typically ignored these petty matters among the common folk, as was the rule.

But the palace guards could intervene.

Feng Shuo leaned against the carriage wall, flipping through a military book, and his eyelashes cast a cold shadow as he said, “Since the Hu family holds significant power, they likely have operations everywhere. Let’s see how the governor of Xizhou handles this matter.”

With Feng Shuo’s statement, Xing Yao immediately understood his meaning.

By observing how the governor punished the offenders, they could gauge the relationship between the Hu family and the Xizhou government office.

In less than half a month since he took office, Xing Yao had already restructured the military camp in Xizhou; now it was time to reorganize the government office.

Once Feng Shuo returned to the mansion, the people below had also gathered information about Jiang Yanyi’s visit to the Hu family flower shop yesterday.

Xing Yao looked at the person at the desk writing rapidly and relayed the news to Feng Shuo: “The cook… no, the legitimate daughter of the Jiang family went to the Hu family flower shop yesterday, apparently to buy flowers. But she hurriedly left in a rush.

She visited several flower shops but didn’t seem interested in many flowers; instead, she was asking if they had flower rooms, looking like she wanted to rent a room to grow something herself.”

Upon hearing this, Feng Shuo’s hand holding the brush paused slightly.