Shen Tang’s grip on the wine glass tightened slightly.

Ripples spread through the wine, one circle after another. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

She should have answered, "I don’t know," or "What does that have to do with me?"

But what she asked was, "So, what happened afterward?"

Shen Tang didn’t know why she asked this question, instinctively blurting it out, perhaps out of curiosity.

Fu Ying shook his head, with a bit of a regretful tone as if he hadn’t finished gossiping, "I also don’t know what happened afterward. It’s a private matter of His Majesty, and I’m just a small servant with no guts to ask His Majesty! Still, according to the attendants in the palace, since that night when His Majesty was critically injured and went into a coma from the assassination attempt, they’ve never seen His Majesty carry that jade carving again."

"I guess~ maybe it got lost! Besides, with so many treasures presented to His Majesty every year, perhaps he wore it for two days and got tired of it; who knows."

"Ah, speaking of the assassins, those pesky assassins are really endless! Being an Emperor is indeed not easy. If I were to become an Emperor someday, I probably wouldn’t even last two days; if I weren’t killed by them, I’d be scared to death alive!"

"But it’s been so long, and they still haven’t found out who the culprit was that night. Isn’t it said that the Hidden Guards around His Majesty are very formidable? Seems like their skills aren’t all that great!"

"..."

Listening to Fu Ying’s incessant gossiping, Shen Tang’s mind stirred with a hint of complexity; perhaps Shen Li’s activities behind the scenes exceeded her expectations.

Shen Tang poured a cup of flower tea, stuffing it into the chatty little butterfly’s mouth, "The flavor is indeed quite good, you should try it too."

"Thank you, my lady!" Fu Ying sipped happily from the wine cup, drunkenly squinting his eyes, "The craftsmanship of the Imperial Chef in the palace is really the best in the world. I’ve never had flower wine this delicious in my life."

Seeing the young girl’s happy expression, Shen Tang couldn’t help but smile, thinking: The fruit wine she brews is even better, it’s a pity there’s none available now, otherwise, she’d definitely let Fu Ying taste what true delicacies are in this world!

"You seem to really like beverages brewed with floral and fruit honey, and coincidentally I have some flower tea bags in my space, I’ll give them to you to try." Shen Tang handed them over.

Fu Ying exclaimed in surprise, "Thank you, my lady, you’re truly the kindest and gentlest female I’ve ever met! I will surely work like a horse for you—"

"Stop, stop, stop, there’s no need for pleasantries. I actually have a small favor to ask of you," Shen Tang said, "Can you take me to a place in the city where I can shop for jade material?"

"Hehe, my lady has asked the right person; there’s not an alley in this Imperial City that I, Fu Ying, haven’t visited!"

Fu Ying led Shen Tang through the city to a bustling and lively street.

On both sides of the road were many vendors selling various strange and curious items, all at once dazzling to the eyes.

Seeing Shen Tang’s attention being caught, Fu Ying quickly pulled her back, "My lady, you must not buy anything from these roadside stalls, there are many unscrupulous vendors here. Even as a local, many people get swindled badly. The goods they sell are all poor quality and cheap, or fake high-end replicas. Come, come, I’ll take you to a good place!"

Shen Tang followed Fu Ying to a very luxurious shopping mall, about seven or eight stories high, with architecture leaning towards an ancient style, and its advertisements rotating on the big screen, exuding a cyberpunk ancient charm.

"This is Linlang Pavilion, the place in the Imperial City specialized in selling jade products. Nobles and dignitaries all come here to shop, and the jade material they offer has the best reputation in the Empire!"

As soon as they entered, a handsome young waiter with rabbit ears greeted them, "Welcome."

The male beast of the Rabbit Clan, dressed in uniform, showcased an excellent physique, with a fluffy white bunny tail hanging from his waist, his face adorned with a perfectly polite smile, "What might the two beautiful and noble females wish to purchase?"

Fu Ying said, "I remember you guys previously launched a jade carving called ’Blessing Cat,’ it was quite popular, and we’d like to buy one."

The rabbit waiter apologized, "Sorry, my dear ladies, that item stopped selling over a month ago. Would you consider something else?"

Fu Ying was surprised, "Ah? Why did it suddenly stop selling? Wasn’t ’Blessing Cat’ very popular? So many people couldn’t get it even after queuing, and its secondhand price has skyrocketed. How could it just stop being sold like that? Could it be a ploy to create artificial scarcity, making us order more goods?"

The rabbit waiter, seeing it was two females, became even more patient, lowering his voice to explain, "I’m truly sorry, it’s not about the price. This product has completely stopped production and is no longer available for sale... the Emperor forbade it!"

"Ah? Is there really such a thing?" Fu Ying was even more surprised.

Shen Tang was taken aback, curiously asking, "Why did His... Majesty forbid its sale?"

"Oh, who knows? His Majesty deals with numerous affairs daily; why would he bother with such trivial matters?" The rabbit beastman was just a waiter and didn’t know the intricacies, so he suggested, "But the higher-ups only prohibited this specific jade carving from being made. If you truly like this type of jade, we can also customize one based on your beast shape."

Shen Tang, "There’s no need for customization, just give me a piece of jade material."

"Alright, please follow me here for the reservation registration, leave your identity information and contact details, and in three months, when the material arrives, I’ll contact you via Light Computer immediately!"

Shen Tang, "Three months? That’s quite a while!"

"You may not know, dear female, but our store only sells high-end jade products. Every piece of raw material is one in a million; moreover, Yin Yang Jade’s material is too rare, so it requires advance booking."

"Is there no stock in the store? I can pay extra."

In such a large mall, there shouldn’t be no stock at all. It’s presumably just a marketing ploy to create artificial scarcity, and she can’t wait that long.

"I’m truly sorry; the store did have stock, but unfortunately, it was all purchased recently."

The rabbit beastman was also puzzled, "That esteemed guest didn’t reveal their identity, but they were very generous and bought everything—for a sky-high price! I really don’t know which noble or wealthy person bought it all."

Fu Ying also let out a sigh of a working person’s hardships: there are still many rich people in this world!

"Alright, that’s really a pity, but could you take me to see other jade materials? I want to personally carve something to give to someone." After all, it’s just a small item, whether she buys it or not doesn’t matter.

The rabbit waiter enthusiastically responded, "Of course, please follow me upstairs!"

The rabbit waiter was extremely perceptive and instantly saw Shen Tang’s extraordinary demeanor, recognizing her as someone of wealth or nobility. He led them to the top floors, where the store kept its treasures.

As soon as Shen Tang walked in, she saw a golden orange jade stone displayed in a glass case to her right. It was as big as a fist, warm and translucent, and appeared even more deep and dazzling gold under the sunlight, more intense than ordinary gold, instantly capturing her attention.

Shen Tang immediately thought of Xiao Jin and mused: This jade stone, if made into a little leopard jade carving, would surely be adorable~

Imagining further, the leftover material could be made into a cabochon, paired with gold and silver necklace accessories. That dog of a man already has a ridiculously good physique and that sexy tan skin. Wearing it would surely be so hot and sexy that it’d make people nosebleed!

"Wrap this jade stone for me," Shen Tang decided without a blink, purchasing it swiftly.

She was no longer the pauper of those years!

The rabbit waiter was thrilled, recognizing her as a generous patron, and responded with even more attentive service.

With white leather gloves on both hands, he took out the jade stone for her to inspect, and finding no flaws, packaged it in a gift box, "Would the esteemed female like anything else?"

"Hmm," Shen Tang said, "I’ll browse a bit more, no need to follow."

She planned to select a suitable jade stone for each of the Beast Husbands, personally crafting gifts for them.

Thinking about it, they’ve given her many things over time, yet she hasn’t given them any gifts in return.

Handmade small jade ornaments, worn by the Beast Husbands, could accompany them even when she wasn’t around, which would be very romantic~

She wanted to give them a surprise!