Chapter 370 Zheng Mansion?

With that, he turned and went inside.

As he strode back, he didn’t forget to shout, "Big Brother, someone is looking for you!"

「...」

Today happened to be Xia Tingfeng’s day off. He returned to their new residence here after finishing his duties in the evening. The small courtyard they had previously bought was sold. Xia Tingfeng then pooled all his salary, the reward silver from Champion Warrior ’The Tiger’, and the Silver Tael they had accumulated from performing along the way. Altogether, it amounted to three to four hundred Silver. They had acquired this residence in a less bustling area of the Capital City.

Though not large and located in an unbustling area, it was clean, tidy, and rather spacious—a proper mansion nonetheless. The Tiger was an official now, after all, so they’d given the place a name: ’Zheng Mansion!’

Xia Tingfeng had been on duty last night and was still sleeping. The moment Monster entered, he called out to wake him.

"Big Brother, someone is looking for you!"

Xia Tingfeng opened his bloodshot, dry eyes, feeling somewhat impatient. "I don’t know anyone in the Capital City. Who would come looking for me?"

Despite saying this, he got up and put on his clothes. After a quick wash with cold water from the basin stand, he strode out.

Meanwhile, Zhao Junyao and Xia Ruqing were strolling in, admiring the sights.

Xia Tingfeng hadn’t initially looked, but a glance was enough to shock him. "Emperor... Emperor..."

Just as he was about to drop to one knee in salute, Zhao Junyao interrupted him with a smile. "Brother Xia, you’re really living it up! What a nice courtyard you have here."

Without too many fripperies, it was simple, elegant, and tidy. This made the moderately sized courtyard seem quite spacious.

Xia Tingfeng understood the Emperor’s intent, so he refrained from kneeling and merely gave a dry affirmative. Cold sweat was already beading on his forehead.

Why would the Emperor come here? This is so sudden!

Zhao Junyao glanced around, then said with a laugh, "I had no pressing matters today, so I decided to take a stroll. Brother Xia, surely you welcome me?"

Xia Tingfeng couldn’t say no, nor could he quite say yes. He could only play along with the Emperor’s mood, responding as if to a close friend. "Of course, I welcome you! On normal days I wish for your visit, but you don’t come. Yet today, here you are, uninvited! You’ve caught your brother here completely off guard!"

Zhao Junyao was quite pleased. He chuckled, patted Xia Tingfeng’s shoulder, and said, "Come on, let’s take a walk and talk!"

With that, the three of them stepped out of the house.

Monster watched them leave, feeling a bit annoyed.

Since when did Big Brother get involved with these people? That woman is attractive, sure, but she’s heavily pregnant and has a man with her. What’s that all about?!

Thinking this, he spat towards Xia Ruqing’s retreating figure.

She’s definitely one of those scheming women, not satisfied with seducing one man, she has to go for two. A cheap tramp!

「Meanwhile,」

Xia Tingfeng was leading the other two on a stroll along the paths in the small courtyard.

Xia Ruqing was excited. "Brother, when did you buy this residence?"

"Brother, who was that beautiful woman just now?"

"Brother, are you going to marry a sister-in-law soon?"

The string of questions caught Xia Tingfeng off guard.

However, he was somewhat puzzled. "We don’t have any women in our courtyard, do we?"

"No?!" Xia Ruqing and Zhao Junyao exchanged a surprised glance.

"Then who was the one who opened the door for us just now...?"

Zhao Junyao also nodded, his expression shocked. "Indeed, I clearly saw a woman just now!"

Xia Tingfeng didn’t even need to think before he laughed and said, "You must be mistaken. He’s a man!"

Besides Monster, who else could cause such a misunderstanding?

Dark lines seemed to appear on Xia Ruqing’s and Zhao Junyao’s foreheads. "A man? Brother, are you really sure? He’s a man?"

But he clearly had a woman’s face!

Xia Tingfeng finally nodded in confirmation. "His name is Monster. He’s been my close buddy since childhood! A genuine, bona fide man!"

They had grown up playing together and had seen each other’s... well, everything. How could there be any doubt about that?

Xia Ruqing couldn’t help but exclaim, "So, the legends about men more beautiful than women are actually true!"

Zhao Junyao also found it somewhat unbelievable. However, after a moment’s shock, he dismissed it.

I didn’t bring Qingqing out today to investigate someone’s gender.

With that thought, he said, "Let’s go, Qingqing. You’ve seen the residence. Didn’t you want to go out for a walk?"

Xia Ruqing’s eyes lit up. "Really? Can I really go?"

Zhao Junyao looked at Xia Tingfeng, then said to her, "What, you don’t want to go anymore?"

"I do, I do, I do!" As she spoke, Xia Ruqing nearly jumped up in excitement.

Zhao Junyao and Xia Tingfeng both broke out in a cold sweat. Zi Yue, standing nearby, was also anxious, terrified her master might stumble and hurt herself in the blink of an eye.

Speaking of which, Zi Yue truly couldn’t understand.

How can she be so far along in her pregnancy and not feel tired at all, or be more careful! According to what those Sisters in the palace taught, by nearly eight months, she should be resting in bed! But when it comes to Master, all that is just nonsense to her. Not only did she refuse to rest in bed, but she also loved to run around constantly. I had considered asking Imperial Doctor Zhang to take her pulse, perhaps to scare Master a little. But who would have thought Imperial Doctor Zhang would be so cheerful every time he checked her pulse? He would simply say, ’Xia Jieyu is healthy, and both mother and child are safe,’ and that would be the end of it. He even said there was no need for any fetus-preserving medicine. Just eat and drink as usual; no changes are necessary. With that, Master became even more confident in her ways.

Zi Yue couldn’t say anything more and could only let her be.

「...」

Once they left the house, the three took a carriage to the busiest street in the Capital City. All sorts of shops lined the street: jewelry shops, Rouge Shops, cooked food shops, Cloth Shops, and Money Shops—everything one could wish for was there.

Xia Ruqing was dazzled before she even stepped out of the carriage. "There are so many people!"

Zi Yue, beside her, also frowned. "Yes, there are so many people. Master, it’s not advisable for you to get out of the carriage; it’s too dangerous!"

Xia Ruqing cradled her belly, her face a picture of disappointment. "But... I came here to go shopping! If I don’t get out, what’s the point of even coming to shop!"

With that, Xia Ruqing looked pitifully at Zhao Junyao.

Zhao Junyao thought for a moment, then said, "Alright, you can get out, but no running off!"

Then, he turned to Xia Tingfeng. "Have your Hidden Guards provide extra protection!"

This meant he was agreeing to let her get out and have fun.

Xia Ruqing was so happy she impulsively kissed Zhao Junyao on the cheek.

Xia Tingfeng, standing to the side, was speechless.

Ahem, mind the PDA!

Once the Hidden Guards had mostly assembled, Xia Ruqing alighted from the carriage. Zhao Junyao was on one side of her, Xia Tingfeng on the other. Walking side by side along the street, the three of them were exceptionally eye-catching.

At that moment, Xia Ruqing felt she was the happiest person in the world. Two incredibly handsome men accompanying her on a shopping trip—the number of heads turning their way was off the charts.

Moreover, she noticed something interesting. When other women looked back at the handsome men, they invariably shot her a glare too.

It’s pure, unadulterated jealousy!

Xia Ruqing felt rather pleased, thinking smugly,

Hmph! You’re only jealous because you don’t have what I have!