No matter what Huangfu Shaozong and Bao Qin thought, Tang Wanzhuang and Rosefinch, who were watching from a distance, both smiled at the corners of their mouths.

The capital is like a big stage, and no one will easily reveal their true intentions. Acting naive and innocent like that won't get you far.

Their invitation needed a grand reason, and Zhao Changhe understood it even more clearly, pretending not to know anyone and not giving face to anyone. It was normal, but everyone played their part.

Of course, in Rosefinch's eyes, Zhao Changhe really didn't know the Empress, so it was even more normal.

They weren't laughing at that, they were laughing at the Empress.

Where did she get the confidence that Zhao Changhe would pay attention to her? It wasn't the time for you to make a move, being so anxious only made you look bad. If Zhao Changhe refused you to your face, what could you do? Assassinate him?

The two old women pondered for a moment, then quietly instructed their trusted aides, "Follow that eunuch. He might not really be the Empress's man."

Both aides were shocked.

It's possible... if Zhao Changhe "followed the Empress's man" and was suddenly found dead in the palace at midnight, the Empress would be blamed. Unless Zhao Changhe was stupid, there was no way he would follow him.

Tang Wanzhuang whispered, "If he really is the Empress's man, then fine. If not, this feels like something Huangfu Qing would do."

Rosefinch also said, "If he is the Empress's man, then fine. If not, then someone is trying to frame me."

After speaking, she muttered to herself, "If he also thinks of this, he wouldn't think that the Noble Consort wants to harm him, right?"

With that, her beautiful eyes turned, full of amusement. After thinking for a moment, she turned and entered the room, saying, "This palace is tired, you all go busy yourselves."

The aides responded and withdrew.

Rosefinch peeked out, quickly changed out of her palace attire, put on a set of fiery red sacrificial robes, and put on a piggy mask. Then she suddenly flew out the window and disappeared into the rainy night streets and alleys.

Meanwhile, Zhao Changhe was in the VIP room of the gambling house. The room not only had all the gambling tables and equipment, but also a private room. Inside was an inn room, warm and fragrant, and someone was pouring hot water into a wooden tub.

Zhao Changhe had looked quite dashing when he was walking alone in the rain, but the fact was that there was a price to pay for showing off. At this moment, he looked like a wet chicken.

The manager of the gambling house sat across from him at the gambling table, rubbing a Pai Gow tile and looking at Zhao Changhe with a smile in his eyes. "Master Zhao..."

"Huh?" Zhao Changhe's hair was still dripping with water, and he seemed to be absentmindedly studying the Pai Gow tile. "How do you play this thing?"

"....You still want to play cards in this state?"

"Why not?" Zhao Changhe secretly circulated his energy, and the moisture evaporated. He couldn't dry his clothes and face to the level of Miss Yehuo, so he just let them stay wet. "I came to the gambling house to play cards, didn't I?"

"It's not necessarily the case. When you went to the gambling house in Jianhu City, you were playing with Shaqi's neck."

"Hey, your gambling house's name is so similar, isn't it just a chain store? Why not just use one name? Why is Weizicai still pretending not to know who's behind the scenes of the Kangle Gambling House?"

"Who said that having similar names means it's a chain store? So, are you and Wang Dashan brothers?"

Zhao Changhe: "....I suggest using Pang Dahai next time."

A quick look at "pawread.com" will leave you more fulfilled.

The man couldn't help but laugh and cry, "We don't even know why you think that finding a gambling house means it's ours, and it just so happens that you're right. But that's not important. Since Master Zhao has come to find us, it can only be fate."

"It's not necessarily." Zhao Changhe said leisurely, "Since the young marquis is so determined not to enter the gambling house, but the first thing he thought of was the name, it must be the most famous one in the capital, not just because it's close... there was a closer gambling house on the way, why didn't he mention that? It can only prove that this gambling house is different from the others and has a special place in the young marquis's heart."

The man nodded, "Makes sense. I am Jin Jiu, the manager of the Anle Gambling House in the capital. I have seen Master Zhao."

Zhao Changhe pondered, "Are you all named with a surname and a ranking? You are a middle-aged man, managing an important place in the capital, and Shaqi is a young master, managing Jianhu City. How are these rankings determined?"

"We inherit the titles."

Zhao Changhe thought for a moment, "So, the Ying Five once had a group of brothers, and now some of them have withered... what about the first four..."

"The first four have been gone for a long time, and no one has inherited their titles." Jin Jiu sighed, "In the storms of the world, who knows how many of Zhao Gongzi's former brothers are left to look back on."

Zhao Changhe fell silent. He felt that although he didn't have many friends, each of them had a strong protagonist vibe and didn't feel like they would die young. Of course, this was hard to explain, and even he didn't know when he would end up in a place where no one knew.

Jin Jiu said, "Let's not chat idly. If Master Zhao has come to find us, what is it for?"

"If I'm not mistaken, you are actually a professional intelligence organization... I even suspect that the Tingxuelou is your subordinate organization, similar to the Blood God Sect and the Four Elephant Sect."

"You've guessed half of it. We are indeed a professional intelligence organization, but the Tingxuelou is just a long-term collaborator. When they can't find where the target is, they ask for information from us. There is no subordinate relationship between the two, and we have no interest in the business of killing." Jin Jiu smiled, "So, there is really no enmity between us and Master Zhao.""I reckon you folks originally set out to find clues about the ancient epoch, but gradually evolved into mastering all sorts of intelligence, developing into an organization for profit, right?" Zhao Changhe said, "I refuse to believe that the top dogs on the Heavenly List are just specialized in spying."

"Indeed." Jin Jiu did not deny it: "We not only sell information but also buy it. The most important intelligence is about ancient secret realms, various lost alternate spaces; everything else is just incidental gains in the search for these. To put it bluntly, worldly affairs are none of our business... So, your identity, to us, is merely a piece of information for trade, and it won't affect our stance in any way."

"So if I don't give them a bit of face and enter your door, you'd really dare to take me in."

Jin Jiu clapped his hands and laughed: "Of course. In a world of martial arts and divine pursuits, those who laugh at kings and lords are not limited to just you, are they?"

Zhao Changhe nodded: "If that's the case... then I'm here to buy information. Are you willing to do this business?"

"If it's information about the emperor's current situation, we don't know, and we can't make that deal," Jin Jiu sighed. "We value our reputation and wouldn't just fabricate some plausible-sounding intelligence to swindle a client's money."

"What about the situation on the surface? That shouldn't be a problem, right? How much?"

"That's common knowledge in the capital; such information isn't worth much. I'll give it to you for free, as a way to make a friend."

"Thanks, then."

Common knowledge isn't something you can just ask anyone about... And the information from your side can be cross-verified with what others know, so having a dedicated place to provide intelligence is quite good.

Jin Jiu said: "On the surface, the emperor spends most of his time in seclusion, emerging only to attend to some matters at court, looking normal. What makes people feel something is off is his somewhat listless spirit and the lack of strength in his voice, not at all like the demeanor of the world's foremost person. Coupled with the frequent poor decisions, he lacks the great talent and grand strategy of earlier years, so everyone guesses something has gone wrong. It's not like the rumors that he's not seen in public; that's not the case."

This matched exactly with the information from Tang Wanzhuang's side, nothing special.

Zhao Changhe stroked his chin and thought for a moment, then suddenly asked: "Do you know the inside story of the crown prince's death?"

Jin Jiu smiled: "We only have speculations, and speculations aren't worth money. Just listen and let it be."

"I believe your speculations are quite valuable."

"We guess that it was the emperor himself who killed him."

Even after considering countless possibilities, Zhao Changhe had never thought of this one, and he was so shocked that his eyes widened.

Damn, if Xia Longyuan would kill his own son, then sitting here is like being an old general on stage, coming to deliver himself?

Seeing Zhao Changhe, who had always been calm, finally showing a change of expression, Jin Jiu felt oddly pleased and chuckled: "I said it's just a guess. As for why we guess this, it's not convenient to tell you, unless you pay more... Oh right, this kind of thing isn't about money."

Zhao Changhe glared at him without saying a word.

"Alright." Jin Jiu leisurely looked towards the inner door, where a beautiful dealer clad only in a light gauze and chest wrap had been standing for a long time. Seeing Jin Jiu look over, the dealer softly said: "The bathwater is ready, this servant awaits to serve the master in his bath..."

Before Zhao Changhe could speak, the door was suddenly pushed open, and a pig's head, having knocked out two guards, walked in clapping his hands: "Serve, serve vigorously, let me see how you bathe."

Jin Jiu looked at Zhao Changhe with a smile that wasn't quite a smile: "I heard that you were with a pig's head in Jianhu City, is it this one? If not, we'll have to deal with it as a provocation and disturbance."

The pig's head looked up at the ceiling, with an expression too disdainful to speak to you.

Zhao Changhe was sweating: "Um, it should be, this is the one."

Jin Jiu leisurely stood up: "So it seems the master has his own attendant, then we won't disturb you. May the guest find peace and joy in the Anle Gambling House."

————

PS: I see some brothers are confused about the description "迷离" (mysterious). Well, when we say 'the doe's eyes are mysterious,' it doesn't imply a state of infatuation, but rather a description that's as elusive as smoke and fog, hard to decipher. Don't misunderstand.