Chapter 36: Mysterious and Secretive

“Why are you here today?” Qin Zhao asked as he entered, finding Cao Xi busy with accounting books.

Qin Zhao: “I saw you look pretty good, so I thought we could go to the night market tonight.” Summer night markets were always bustling, with all sorts of things being sold.

Cao Xi: “Sure, wait for me. I’ll be done soon.”

Seeing that Cao Xi agreed to his invitation, Qin Zhao smiled brightly and walked with light steps toward the courtyard.

Shui Niu watched enviously as the two of them walked away. He was supposed to go with Xiao Rui to the night market too.

“I didn’t know they had a marriage arrangement. At first, I thought they were siblings, but now that I know, it feels so sweet,” he muttered.

Just as he finished speaking, a sharp, cold glare hit him. When he turned around, he saw Li Feng glaring at him. Shui Niu swallowed nervously.

Li Feng turned his gaze away, looking at the sunny Qin Zhao with a sneer, muttering, “Silly and sweet.”

“Big Brother Zhao is here!”

Xiao Rui, who was in the kitchen getting something, bumped into Qin Zhao. When she saw the sparkle in Qin Zhao’s eyes, she couldn’t help but notice it wasn’t the usual look. She casually greeted him but didn’t linger.

---

By the time night fell and the shops were closing, Cao Xi finally called Qin Zhao, “Let’s go, let’s go to the night market.”

Qin Zhao, who had been waiting eagerly, jumped up like a child waiting for candy. He quickly walked over to Cao Xi. “Let’s go!”

The two of them strolled through the night market side by side. The array of stalls dazzled Cao Xi, but he was so captivated by the calligraphy and paintings that Qin Zhao had already bought a meat pie.

Qin Zhao cheerfully held up the meat pie and motioned for Cao Xi to take a bite.

Cao Xi lowered his head and took a big bite. “When did you buy this? I didn’t see it.”

Qin Zhao pointed to a stall nearby, and Cao Xi quickly realized that Qin Zhao never strayed more than five meters from him when they went shopping.

Qin Zhao took a bite of the meat pie too. A calligraphy seller nearby looked at them in surprise. What were they doing?

Cao Xi didn’t think it was odd. He had gotten used to buying street food during their outings. They were so accustomed to it by now.

After finishing the meat pie, they bought a bowl of sour plum soup. Once they finished it, they continued leisurely strolling around the night market.

---

Later that night, as they lay in bed, Cao Xi began reading Romance of the Three Kingdoms to Qin Zhao. Tonight’s story was about the Battle of Hefei. Qin Zhao’s perspective was so unique that it was hard to predict. He actually thought that Sun Quan and Sun Ce were the more impressive characters because, unlike other leaders who had strong support from their fathers, the Sun brothers held up the whole kingdom on their own.

Cao Xi struggled a bit, as they were nearing the part where Sun Ce’s death was about to be told.

---

The next day, as Qin Zhao entered the academy, he walked over to Qi Qige and mysteriously asked, “Do you know where I can buy some good timber?”

Qi Qige was caught off guard by Qin Zhao’s sudden question and subtly moved a little to the side. “What are you asking that for?”

When Qin Zhao saw Qi Qige’s wary expression, he couldn’t help but feel a little disdain. “I just want to buy a piece of wood,” he said.

Qi Qige raised an eyebrow. “How big of a piece?”

Qin Zhao pointed at the ink stone on Qi Qige’s desk. “About half the size of this.”

Qi Qige looked confused. “What’s that for?”

“Do you know or not?” Qin Zhao pressed, getting a little impatient with all of Qi Qige’s rambling.

“Never mind, I’ll go back and look for it myself.”

Qi Qige’s things were scattered all over the storage room, but he vaguely remembered a piece of dark wood tucked away in a corner.

Qin Zhao insisted, “You go look for it. I’ll wait here.”

Qi Qige, still confused, asked, “Is this really urgent?”

Qin Zhao shot him a cold glare, and Qi Qige immediately understood. “Alright, I’ll go. I’m just at the academy waiting for you.”

---

After a while, Qi Qige finally found the wood he was looking for. It was a dense, high-quality piece of timber with a rich reddish-brown color and attractive grain.

Qin Zhao’s eyes lit up as soon as he saw it, and he started inspecting the wood carefully. “Is this wood real? How much is it?”

Qi Qige, caught off guard by the question, asked, “What do you mean?”

Qin Zhao gave him an exasperated look, confirming that Qi Qige hadn’t heard him properly.

Qi Qige was now suspicious. Was this a trick? Why would Qin Zhao suddenly want to buy this wood? Had he run into some kind of scheme?

After a moment of hesitation, Qi Qige cautiously asked, “So, are you really giving me money for it?”

Qin Zhao nodded. “Yes, it has to be paid for.”

Qi Qige was shocked. “What? Are you out of your mind? When did I ever take money for something I gave you? What’s going on today?”

Qin Zhao replied firmly, “This piece of wood must be paid for.”

He wasn’t going to let Cao Xi receive anything from other men for free.

“Really?” Qi Qige was left speechless and started doubting whether Qin Zhao was trying to cut ties with him.

Qin Zhao reached into his bag and pulled out fifty taels of silver. “Here, this should be enough.”

Qi Qige, seeing the silver, quickly took it and smiled. “This was money I won from a bet. It wasn’t my original capital, so I’ll accept it. But make sure you tell my grandsons how hard I worked to earn this from your family’s Qin Zhao!”

Seeing that Qi Qige accepted the silver with a grin, Qin Zhao let out a quiet sigh of relief. Qi Qige might be a notorious troublemaker, but he was honest enough to never charge for something he didn’t sell.

---

Later that evening, Qin Zhao prepared a simple dinner for Cao Xi before beginning his work on the timber. He sketched and reworked his plans for the wood, trying to come up with a clear idea before Cao Xi came home.

“Qin Zhao, I’m back!” Cao Xi called out as he entered the room.

He looked around, but didn’t see Qin Zhao right away. This was unusual, considering Qin Zhao was always waiting for him by now.

Qin Zhao hurried over. “Cao Xi, you’re back! We’re about to have dinner.”

After setting the table, Cao Xi immediately noticed that something was off with Qin Zhao’s behavior.

During dinner, Cao Xi couldn’t help but ask, “Qin Zhao, is there something you’re hiding from me?”

The sudden question made Qin Zhao tense up, but he tried to play it cool. “No, there’s nothing.”

Cao Xi narrowed his eyes, but it seemed like he wasn’t completely convinced. After dinner, Qin Zhao rushed off into the bedroom, avoiding further conversation.

Cao Xi stood in the empty courtyard, puzzled. There had been something off about Qin Zhao. He might have been too familiar with him, but this felt like something was being kept from him.

Sighing, Cao Xi shook his head and returned to the bedroom to prepare for a hotpot dinner, figuring it was better to let things go for now.

---

As the days went on, Qin Zhao continued acting strangely. Cao Xi started observing him more closely, but Qin Zhao’s routine hadn’t changed. However, on one occasion, Cao Xi noticed a small, fresh cut on Qin Zhao’s finger.

“What’s this?” Cao Xi tugged at Qin Zhao’s hand, inspecting it carefully before Qin Zhao quickly pulled it away.

Qin Zhao: “It’s nothing, I just cut myself while cooking.”

“You think I’m stupid? You’ve been cooking since you were seven, and you still cut yourself?” Cao Xi tugged at Qin Zhao’s hand again, revealing a mess of old and new scars, some of which were still fresh.

Cao Xi’s eyes turned red with worry, his voice trembling. “How did this happen?”

“It really is nothing.” Qin Zhao’s face showed a trace of guilt, though he tried to hide it.

Cao Xi, seeing Qin Zhao’s reluctance to share, sighed and began applying medicine to the wounds one by one.

Cao Xi: “No matter what you’re doing, try not to hurt yourself again.”

Qin Zhao lowered his head slightly and murmured, “You were the one who took care of me back then, so seriously this time.”

The memories of their escape seemed like they happened just yesterday. Qin Zhao absentmindedly ruffled Cao Xi’s hair.

Cao Xi: “Shut up. Stop trying to make me feel sorry for you. Let’s just go on.”

Qin Zhao chuckled softly, his laugh lighthearted and carefree.

Later, Qin Zhao’s new wounds began to heal slowly, while the old ones were gradually fading. Everything was returning to normal.

---

Qi Qige, who had been tagging along with Qin Zhao, accompanied him to go shopping.

“Don’t you want to go to a jewelry shop?” Qi Qige asked.

“We’ll figure it out when we get there,” Qin Zhao responded indifferently, causing Qi Qige to stumble.

Once inside the shop, the clerk greeted them warmly, “Young masters, what can I help you with? Let me show you around.”

“Not yet, just looking around first,” Qin Zhao replied as he started inspecting the store, finally spotting a set of pearl jewelry.

The clerk: “Master, you’ve got a good eye. These pearls are new in our shop, and they’re very fine.”

“Do you have single pearls?” Qin Zhao asked, not interested in jewelry but rather the pearls themselves.

“Sure, we can sell individual pearls. Just need to have them processed.” The clerk realized he was dealing with a customer who wanted something unique.

Qin Zhao: “Show me one. I’ll buy a single pearl.”

The clerk, after consulting with the shopkeeper, returned with a tray of various pearls. Qi Qige jokingly held up a pearl and said, “Why bother? Just take mine, no need to go through all this trouble.”

Qin Zhao smiled and said, “I chose it myself because I liked it.”

He picked up a round, full pearl and asked, “How much is this one?”

The clerk smiled and replied, “Twenty liang of silver for this one.”

“Are you robbing me? How can a pearl the size of a fingernail cost twenty liang?” Qi Qige protested, appalled by the price.

The clerk turned red, and his eyes shifted nervously towards the shopkeeper.

The shopkeeper, sensing the tension, came over and said, “I apologize, Qi Young Master. My clerk made a mistake. Let me offer a discount.”

Qi Qige raised an eyebrow at Qin Zhao, signaling his approval, and Qin Zhao agreed, “Give me a better price.”

The shopkeeper lowered the price to fifteen liang of silver, and Qin Zhao accepted. “Alright, I’ll take it.”

After leaving the shop, Qi Qige, still curious, asked, “Why did you buy just that one pearl?”

Qin Zhao smiled, “It’s for a special project.”

---

Later, the three of them went to a hotpot restaurant. Cao Xi, who wasn’t too hungry, suggested, “We can just have hotpot instead of the usual spicy skewers.”

“Hotpot? What’s that?” Qi Qige asked, tired but intrigued.

“It’s similar to spicy skewers, but it’s more filling,” Cao Xi explained, bluntly.

The three of them went to the market to pick up ingredients for the hotpot and returned with a custom-made dual-pot hotpot set from the blacksmith shop.