At noon, just after the meal time, there were few pedestrians on the streets of Tianshui Bridge.
The second floor of the Pei Family Cloth Store was the general accounting office of Tianshui Bridge, which was equivalent to the president's office. It was quite spacious. The outer side was a living room for receiving guests, and the inner room was a study.
In the study, there was a large mahogany desk, with writing brushes, inkstones, paper, and ink placed on it. There was also a golden toad holding a copper coin at the corner of the desk.
Behind the grand master's chair was a multi-treasure cabinet. On the left and right were placed artworks such as jade cabbages and porcelain. In the middle was a sword used to safeguard the house.
Pei Xiangjun was wearing a light summer dress, sitting on the grand master's chair, wearing the apricot flower hairpin given by Ye Jingtang. She held a pen in her right hand and propped up her side face with her left hand, absent-mindedly drawing small circles on the white paper.
Her quite eye-catching chest was directly resting on the edge of the desk, paired with a dazed look in her eyes. She didn't look like a female sect leader at all, but more like a charming little secretary slacking off during the noon break.
She had莫名其妙 (inexplicably) lost completely last night and still hadn't recovered. There were all sorts of emotions in her eyes, and it was unclear what she was thinking.
While she was lost in her thoughts, the sound of horse hooves and a conversation between two people came from the street:
"Old Yang, ask Chen Biao to find a shopkeeper who knows the ropes and help buy some pieces of furniture..."
"Okay, Young Master. What kind of furniture do you want?"
"Something sturdy. The old bed at home shakes when I sleep, and I can't sleep soundly on it."
"Ji?"
...
Pei Xiangjun came back to her senses, got up and walked to the window facing the street, pushed open the casement and looked out. She could see Ye Jingtang carrying Niaoniao standing at the entrance of the escort agency, talking to the old escort master Yang Chao. Niaoniao was bumping its head against Ye Jingtang's face.
Buying a bed... shaking...
Pei Xiangjun blinked her eyes. She felt that there was a lot of meaning behind these two words, but she didn't interrupt. When Ye Jingtang passed below the cloth store, she moved her hand slightly and pushed the branch down.
Whoosh~
Ye Jingtang, who was leading the horse and passing below, reached out and caught the branch without looking up. It seemed that his martial arts skills had indeed improved a lot compared to when he first entered the capital.
Pei Xiangjun didn't say anything either. She returned to the desk, assumed the demeanor a female sect leader should have, and seriously started calculating with the abacus.
Tap tap tap~~
Soon, the conversation sounded from downstairs:
"Master Ye is here. Third Lady is upstairs. I'll hold Niaoniao for you."
"Hehe..."
Ye Jingtang walked up the stairs and knocked on the door. Pei Xiangjun didn't look up and was carefully looking at the account book:
"Jingtang, why are you here so early?"
"I've finished the matters in the palace and came here to ask Yang Chao to help buy some pieces of furniture."
Ye Jingtang put the window prop rod back on the windowsill and sat down behind the tea table. Seeing Third Lady's capable appearance, he asked:
"Are there a lot of things to do? I learned how to do accounting in the escort agency. Do you want me to help?"
After scribbling on the account book for a while, Pei Xiangjun closed the account book. There was a bit of a sorrowful look on her face as if "a night's worry has brought more white hair":
"Yes. The matters related to the Zhou family are temporarily over, but we still can't make up for the money we lost in the past few years. Look at the street outside. There's not a single customer. Hundreds of shopkeepers and clerks are dozing off, and I still have to pay them their monthly wages..."
"It's such a big sun at noon, and it's just after the meal time. It's normal to have no customers. Moreover, isn't there a lady downstairs buying cloth? Xiuhe is right beside her. It seems to be a big order..."
Pei Xiangjun got up and directly sat down beside Ye Jingtang. She skillfully started making tea:
"Sigh~ That's a lady from Wendu Bridge. She wants to follow the example of the Marquis's Mansion next door and buy several nice pieces of clothing for her maids and servants. But she's also stingy with her money. She's been bargaining since this morning until now. Her verbal skills are on par with the Dragon-Slaying Order. She wishes she could directly cut me down with a single strike..."
The seat behind the tea table was quite large, but no matter how large it was, it was still a single-person seat. When Pei Xiangjun sat down, she was directly next to him.
Ye Jingtang felt it was inappropriate. There was no room to move aside, and it wasn't right to stand up either. So he could only look straight at the tea set without looking sideways:
"I know a bit about the ways of the escort agency, but I really don't know much about the cloth business... By the way, I have something to ask you, Third Lady."
Pei Xiangjun used a bamboo-leaf-shaped tea knife to cut open the tea brick and asked:
"What is it?"
"Do you also sell women's clothes here?"
Pei Xiangjun blinked her almond-shaped eyes and looked at Ye Jingtang: "Are you planning to buy some new clothes for Miss Ning?"
Ye Jingtang shook his head: "Not really. You know... It's quite hot to wear a skirt with a pair of pants inside in summer. Is there any kind of..."
Pei Xiangjun understood what he meant, and her eyes showed a slightly strange look: "Pants that are rather immoral?"
?
Ye Jingtang still couldn't figure out how the palace maid Yuhu was dressed. He had nowhere to ask either. Since Third Lady managed the cloth store, he casually asked. Third Lady's straightforward words made it a bit difficult for him to respond. He just said casually:
"On the way here just now, I heard some idle men chatting nonsense. I was just curious and asking casually."
Pei Xiangjun blinked her almond-shaped eyes and was quite straightforward: "No matter how hot the weather is, one can't not wear anything under the skirt. It's just a matter of the length of the lower garment. According to the lady from Wendu Bridge, the imperial tailors in the palace have developed a kind of lower garment. It's very daring. Probably..."
Pei Xiangjun put down the tea set and gestured beside her leg with her hand: "Such short pants that can be folded up and put into a rouge box. Wearing them is almost like not wearing anything, and it's extremely cool."
Ye Jingtang looked at the position Third Lady gestured to. Combining it with the scene he saw when sparring with Miss Yuhu today, he suddenly understood - Red panties...
The women in this world are hotter than he imagined...
Seeing the strange look in Ye Jingtang's eyes, Pei Xiangjun said softly:
"Ordinary women don't dare to wear them like this. When I wear them, I have to put on another pair of pants outside."
?!
Ye Jingtang sat up a bit straighter and felt that Third Lady was acting strangely:
"Third Lady, there's no need to tell me this."
Pei Xiangjun calmly made tea: "I'm just explaining it to you. It's not that I don't wear pants. However, my clothes are all made by your aunt. Her craftsmanship is definitely not as good as that of the imperial tailors in the palace. According to the lady from Wendu Bridge, the imperial tailors in the palace weave it all at once without any seams. It fits tightly when worn and is very close-fitting. Unfortunately, ordinary people can't see it at all..."
Fitting tightly...
Ye Jingtang felt that this topic was really inappropriate and it was really difficult to continue the conversation. So he changed the subject:
"Didn't Third Lady say you would teach me boxing techniques? How about practicing now?"
Pei Xiangjun first finished making the tea and handed the small tea cup to Ye Jingtang. Then she put down the tea set, got up and went to the inner room on the side where she took a nap, and changed into a white short combat outfit.
Ye Jingtang took a sip of tea, untied his saber and placed it aside. He came to the middle of the room and carefully observed. He saw Third Lady stand still in front of him and assume a proper boxing stance:
"Song Chi's 'Lei Gong Ba Ji' is extremely masculine and powerful, with moves that are fierce and violent..."
As she spoke, she shook her shoulders and elbows.
Whoosh whoosh——
Bang!
A loud sound suddenly came from the room, and the water in the tea cup rippled.
This boxing technique was really fierce, and Third Lady had a strong air of a master. However, with her plump figure, when she clenched her fists and assumed such a fierce-looking stance, it didn't look intimidating at all.
Ye Jingtang's eyes showed a slightly strange look, and he nodded slightly:
"Good boxing technique."
Since returning from Xiwang Town, Pei Xiangjun had been secretly practicing boxing. She had put in a lot of effort to be a good teacher. Seeing that Ye Jingtang was a bit casual, she was quite dissatisfied and beckoned with her hand:
"Boxing skills are a great学问 (knowledge). Practicing the moves directly is meaningless. We have to start from the basics. Come and try to hit me."
Ye Jingtang didn't say much when he saw this. He honestly served as a training partner. He clenched his fists, slowly lowered his body, and launched a simple and unadorned straight punch towards the middle.
Tap~
The floor on the second floor trembled slightly.
When the straight punch came, Pei Xiangjun rushed out at the same time. She blocked the punch with her left hand and directly rammed her right shoulder into Ye Jingtang's chest.
Bang——
If this were for real, it was estimated that Ye Jingtang would be seriously injured.
But obviously Pei Xiangjun didn't use her full strength either. After hitting him, she held up her right arm and gave him a shoulder throw.
Dong——
The floor shook.
Ye Jingtang was cleanly thrown to the floor by the petite Third Lady. He thought it was over, but he found that Third Lady immediately locked him up.
The way she locked him up was probably a rear naked choke. She hugged him from behind and choked his neck with her left arm.
After falling to the ground, Ye Jingtang was leaning against Third Lady's arms. His back was tightly pressed against two soft mounds, like leaning against an air cushion. Through the fabric, he could feel that indescribable smoothness...
?!
Ye Jingtang tried to break free, but Third Lady hugged him even tighter. He could only raise his hands:
"Third Lady?"
Pei Xiangjun had a slightly fierce expression and choked Ye Jingtang's neck as she said in a deep voice:
"I'm teaching you martial arts. Do you think I'm joking and playing house with you? If you encounter an opponent and are casually subdued like this, do you know what the consequences will be?"
If Ye Jingtang could get into such a situation with an enemy during a fight, his neck would definitely be broken. But in a fight above the level of a master, there was basically no possibility of exposing one's back in actual combat. Leaning against Third Lady's arms, he quickly said:
"I was wrong. Third Lady, this move is not right..."
"What's not right about it?"
Pei Xiangjun slightly furrowed her delicate eyebrows and admonished: "Try to break free?"
Leaning against the "soft pillow", Ye Jingtang didn't know where to put his hands. Seeing that Third Lady didn't let go, he assumed a serious expression:
"Okay, okay. I was careless and didn't have the right attitude. I'll study seriously."
"Hmph~..."
When Pei Xiangjun saw that Ye Jingtang had corrected his attitude, she let go of the arm that was hugging him, stood up, and assumed the boxing stance again.
Ye Jingtang turned over and stood up. He no longer dared to be careless. He stared at Third Lady intently and started to practice the boxing techniques by sparring...