Chapter 68: Beauty Trap

## Volume One: First Foray into Another World

Zheng Dan smiled slightly. "We are about to become a family, so your concerns are naturally my concerns. Feel free to speak your mind."

Sang Qian grumbled inwardly, thinking she talked a good game but wouldn't even let him hold her hand. "Doesn't that guy Zu'an have an IOU for 7.5 million taels now? But he's protected by the Chu family when he's with them, and he's at the academy the rest of the time. You know I can't interfere with academy matters, so can you get close to him and 'retrieve' the IOU from him?"

"How would I get close to him?" Zheng Dan frowned, a vague sense of unease already forming in her heart.

"All heroes fall for beauties, let alone a good-for-nothing like him. With someone as beautiful as you, if you take the initiative to approach him, you're sure to charm him completely and get him right where you want him." Sang Qian made a 'piece of cake' gesture, a cold sneer playing on his lips.

Zheng Dan's face turned cold. She stood up abruptly and said icily, "What kind of person do you take me for?"

"I know this is asking a lot of you, but you're the person I trust most right now, which is why I came to you," Sang Qian quickly explained.

Zheng Dan was so angry she laughed instead. "So you're asking your fiancée to seduce another man?"

Sang Qian frowned. "Don't put it so harshly. It's just an opportunity to get close to him, not to sleep with him. What does that guy know? With your beauty, a few soft words will be enough to make him follow your every command."

Zheng Dan said coldly, "His wife is Chu Chuyan, the most beautiful woman in Brightmoon City. How can a man who spends all his days with her be considered unsophisticated?"

Sang Qian's eyes darted, and an idea struck him. "In my heart, I've never thought you were inferior to Chu Chuyan. In terms of looks, you both excel, and it's hard to say who's better. The only reason she's considered the most beautiful, surpassing you, is probably because she's the Duke's daughter. Don't you want to take her man and get some revenge for all these years?"

He knew that although his fiancée was usually gentle and quiet, she secretly compared herself to Chu Chuyan. Anything involving Chu Chuyan would inevitably make her lose her usual composure.

Sure enough, Zheng Dan's eyes visibly brightened upon hearing his words; she was clearly swayed. "Since you don't mind, then I can try to get close to that Zu'an. But if he takes advantage of me, you'll be the one who loses out."

Sang Qian burst out laughing. "Others might not know, but don't I know you? Although you're always gentle, at heart you're incredibly proud. How could a good-for-nothing like Zu'an ever catch your eye? There's no way he'll take advantage of you."

Zheng Dan said calmly, "You can't be sure. Since you're asking me to use a honey trap, if he doesn't get any benefit at all, he might not truly fall for it. So, we need to prepare for the worst. What's the maximum you can accept?"

"At most a hug... no, wait, at most a brush of hands," Sang Qian quickly corrected himself, his facial muscles twitching uncontrollably at the thought of his fiancée being taken advantage of by Zu'an. "Afterward, I will definitely chop off his hand."

Zheng Dan chuckled softly, thinking, *What's the big deal about touching hands? Just wash them afterward. Ultimately, it's just these men's possessiveness at work.*

"By the way, what do you plan to do with that IOU? You don't actually think the Plum Blossom Gang can pay back 7.5 million taels, do you?" Zheng Dan asked curiously.

"They can't pay it back, but the master behind him can." Sang Qian let out a few cold chuckles. "Although we're currently in a cooperative relationship, we're not truly aligned. There's no guarantee we won't turn against each other someday. Keeping this will be useful then."

Zheng Dan nodded slightly, not bothering to inquire about the sinister schemes behind it all. The higher one's status, the more contemptible and dirty the underlying machinations. "Tell me about Zu'an. I've only heard rumors before, but you've seen him in person today, so your information should be more accurate."

Recalling what he had seen in the gambling den, Sang Qian said bitterly, "He's just a shameless lowlife who acts arrogant because of the Chu family's backing. Utterly shameless..."

Zu'an sneezed, rubbing his nose as he wondered who was badmouthing him behind his back.

Chu Chuyan, standing beside him, glanced at him. "Are you feeling very smug right now?"

Zu'an chuckled, "Anyone who wins 7.5 million taels would inevitably feel smug, wouldn't they?"

Chu Chuyan snorted, "Today's events caused such a stir, my parents must surely know about it by now. We'll see how you deal with it."

Zu'an was surprised. "Is it a problem that I won money?"

Chu Chuyan said indifferently, "Money isn't the point. My parents value the Chu family's reputation above all else. It's well-known that our family strictly forbids gambling. You caused such a huge commotion this time, almost leading to a conflict between the family's private army and the local troops. They'll definitely punish you."

Zu'an looked annoyed. "7.5 million taels! Does your family even make that much profit in a year? And I'm still going to be punished for this?"

"The key is, have you actually received that 7.5 million taels?" Chu Chuyan's single question silenced him. "Everyone knows they can't possibly pay back that 7.5 million taels, yet our Chu family has to take such a huge risk for this IOU. My parents will naturally be displeased."

"Can't you just collect interest every year if they don't pay?" Zu'an retorted weakly.

"That's just talk; there will inevitably be complications later." Chu Chuyan sighed. It was unavoidable. She couldn't actually order the Red-Robed Army to massacre the Plum Blossom Gang; that would give political enemies an excuse, and the imperial court would have a legitimate reason to deal with the Chu family.

"Miss! Miss!" Just then, Xue'er came running over, panting heavily and looking quite exhausted.

"Where have you been? Why did it take you so long to come back?" Chu Chuyan asked with a frown.

Xue'er quickly explained, "I don't know why, but my stomach felt a bit unwell today..."

Zu'an, standing nearby, heard this and waved a hand in front of his nose with a look of disgust. "You just went to poop, didn't you? You took so long, did you fill up the latrine?"

Xue'er: "..."

Anger value from Qiao Xueying: 444!

She had just come from Mei Chaofeng, and her excuse was merely to deal with Chu Chuyan. Usually, no one would pry into such matters, but who knew Zu'an would dig so deeply? His disgusted expression made it seem as if she genuinely smelled bad.

"Miss, look at him!" Xue'er stomped her foot, tugging on Chu Chuyan's sleeve and whining playfully.

She would go and kill this hateful fellow tonight; for now, she couldn't afford a conflict, lest she arouse suspicion later.

Chu Chuyan glared fiercely at Zu'an. "Can you stop being so disgusting!" Despite scolding Zu'an, she unconsciously and subtly pulled her hand away from Xue'er's; clearly, Zu'an's words had made her subconsciously feel Xue'er's hands weren't quite clean.

This small gesture inflicted tons of damage on Xue'er, and the culprit behind it all was that scoundrel!

Anger value from Qiao Xueying: 300!

Zu'an shrugged. "You don't find this 'feces-making machine' disgusting, but you find me disgusting?"

"Feces-making machine?" Xue'er felt a rush of blood to her head, nearly fainting from anger. She even had the urge to disregard everything and eliminate this scoundrel on the spot. She had never detested anyone so much; every inch of the person before her, from head to toe, made her want to tear him to shreds.

Anger value from Xue'er: 888!

Yue Shan, who had been silently walking ahead, also shivered slightly. He thought, *Although this young master is useless in other aspects, his ability to provoke people is unmatched in all of Brightmoon City. I must never provoke him in the future.*

"Alright, alright, stop bickering, both of you. Aren't you afraid of making a spectacle of yourselves in public?" Chu Chuyan seemed to vaguely see smoke coming from Xue'er's head and quickly separated her from Zu'an.

Xue'er let out a disgruntled huff, thinking, *If I don't make this scoundrel wish he were dead tonight, I'll take his surname from now on!*

They returned to the Chu estate, where an old man stood guard at the main gate. His clothes were impeccably neat, without a single wrinkle, and though his hair was somewhat gray, each strand was meticulously combed, clearly indicating a fastidious person.

Zu'an recognized him: it was none other than Steward Hong Zhong of the Chu Manor.

Upon seeing Chu Chuyan, Hong Zhong bowed to her. Chu Chuyan, not daring to be disrespectful, quickly returned the greeting. The man had served the Chu family tirelessly and loyally for decades, earning the respect of everyone in the household.

Only then did Hong Zhong continue, "The master has ordered that the young master-in-law be brought to the study as soon as he returns." He then turned and began to lead the way. Chu Chuyan gave Zu'an an "I told you so" look, and they followed behind him.

Zu'an was startled. Hong Zhong's demeanor and tone hadn't changed at all from before, which was somewhat unexpected. After all, the conflict with his son at the academy earlier in the day must have reached his ears, so why was there no ripple of emotion?

As if guessing his thoughts, Hong Zhong suddenly spoke, "Miss, Young Master-in-law, I've already heard about Hong Xingying's incident earlier today. That child is young and hot-headed, arrogant and imprudent, and offended the young master-in-law. On his behalf, I apologize. I hope Miss and Young Master-in-law will not take it to heart. I will teach him a good lesson."

"Uncle Zhong, you speak too seriously. Zu'an also had his faults in this matter," Chu Chuyan quickly replied.

Zu'an, standing beside her, looked disgruntled, thinking, *What does this have to do with me? That arrogant jerk started it first.* Just as he was about to say something, Chu Chuyan glared at him, forcing him to swallow his words. It seemed Hong Zhong held an unusual position in the manor.

*Fine, you're beautiful, so you're right. I'll just listen to my wife.*

Hong Zhong shook his head. "I understand that rebellious son. That child has had some improper thoughts, so his mindset is inevitably a bit unbalanced. He provoked this incident. Although the Master and Madam haven't said anything, I've felt very guilty..."

Hearing his extremely sincere tone, which didn't seem feigned, Zu'an sighed inwardly. *How could such an upright and honest father raise such a narrow-minded son?* *Never mind,* he thought, *given his sincerity, as long as that guy doesn't provoke me again, I won't seek revenge.*

Chu Chuyan quickly took over the conversation, skillfully dispelling Hong Zhong's awkwardness with a few words. She naturally shifted the topic to some business matters of the Chu family, and the conversation became very harmonious.

Zu'an had previously wondered how such an icy woman could manage the Chu family so perfectly. Now, he finally began to understand.

Before long, the group arrived at the study, where Chu Zhongtian and Qin Wanru were already waiting.

"Zu'an, how dare you! How could you go gambling in a casino in broad daylight, and take Chuyan with you?" Qin Wanru slammed the table heavily, glaring at him furiously.

Anger value from Qin Wanru: 77!

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