Madmen don't keep diaries

Chapter 293, Section 292: Gu Zhili's Grief and Indignation
In the end, Shunzi carried two boxes of money home, and Feng Xiuhu refused to mention it again.

As she entered, Slim Waist had just finished counting the money she had brought back earlier, and now she was ready to get back to work.

For Slim Waist, even the last time the Holy Temple was looted was not as impactful as this one, since this time it was real gold and silver.

She was overjoyed. As soon as Feng Xiuhu came in, she couldn't help but hug his neck and give him a big kiss on the cheek.

"My good sir, I've never seen anyone who makes more money than you! At this rate, our family will probably become the richest family in Fancheng in no time, right?"

Feng Xiuhu wiped the drool off his face and said calmly, "You're making a fuss over nothing. You've never been to the Duke's mansion. That's where true luxury is."

Just then, Gu Zhili came down from upstairs.

She continued, "It's probably even more luxurious than you imagine. You only see what you think is valuable, but little do you know that the Duke has arranged many magical artifacts in the Duke's mansion, you just can't recognize them—those are the most valuable things."

Feng Xiuhu glanced at her, his face remaining expressionless: "I learned from the Duke of Daguo today that Wei Su'e has been sent back to Taijing by him."

Gu Zhili was taken aback: "How could that be?"

The surprise on her face seemed genuine.

Feng Xiuhu continued, "The Duke of Daguo's explanation was that Wei Su'e had made a mistake and was sent back to the President for discipline—perhaps he wanted to express his dissatisfaction to the President in this way?"

Having stayed in the Duke's mansion long enough, Gu Zhili knew Wei Jin and Wei Su'e far better than outsiders. She shook her head and said, "What kind of explanation is this? The Duke knew that Madam's previous actions were helping the President, so why would he still send Madam to the President's side?"

"Besides, the Duke of Daguo knows that the lady has been in contact with the Barefoot Temple and the Marriage Temple. Shouldn't he keep her by his side and keep a close eye on her? Sending her away now would only give her another opportunity."

Feng Xiuhu thought for a moment and said, "Perhaps that's why the Duke of Daguo simply threw Wei Su'e out to prevent her from causing trouble for him in Fancheng."

Now even Gu Zhili was unsure, and she couldn't figure it out as she rested her chin on her hand.

Feng Xiuhu silently observed Gu Zhili, but failed to detect anything unusual in her expression.

Taking advantage of Gu Zhili's deep thought, Feng Xiuhu walked over, put his arm around her waist, and asked in a low voice, "Ali, don't you have anything to say to me?"

Gu Zhili jumped back like a startled rabbit, both embarrassed and anxious: "What did you say? Didn't we agree that I would think it through myself?"

Feng Xiuhu replied matter-of-factly, "Of course it's a work report, what else did you think it was?"

Gu Zhili realized she had been tricked. Her face turned red, and she bit her lower lip as she glared at Feng Xiuhu. After a moment, she stomped her foot and ran upstairs.

With her back to them, the slender woman rolled her eyes and quipped sarcastically, "Ah Li, Ah Li~ Is there anything you want to say to me~"

Feng Xiuhu turned to her and said, "If you don't want to manage the accounts, I'll let Guiyuan do it."

Slender Waist quickly put on a smiling face: "It's alright, it's alright, sir, please don't be angry, I was just joking."

Feng Xiuhu ignored him and turned to chase after him upstairs.

Gu Zhili's door was open, and Feng Xiuhu craned his neck to peek inside, but couldn't find Gu Zhili.

What about people?

Just as she was wondering, Gu Zhili came out of the study door. With a cold and pretty face, she said to Feng Xiuhu, "Weren't you supposed to be reporting on your work? What are you doing there?"

Feng Xiuhu laughed and said, "I'm afraid you'll hide under the covers and cry your eyes out."

Gu Zhili snorted: "It's perfectly natural for the master to flirt with his servants, what do I have to cry about?"

After saying that, she didn't wait for Feng Xiuhu and turned to go into the study.

Feng Xiuhu quickly followed him inside.

Gu Zhili stood expressionless across the desk. She seemed genuinely angry. Feng Xiuhu stopped trying to break through her defenses and adopted a serious attitude.

"Tell me, how did things go? Did anything go wrong?" Gu Zhili replied coldly, "You've already seen how well it went. Not a single family member on the list was missed, and the matter was handled discreetly, without any outsiders noticing anything amiss."

Feng Xiuhu then asked, "Then tell me what you did, so I can reward you accordingly."

Gu Zhili shook her head: "It was all your brothers who did the hard work and running around. I didn't even break a sweat, so I don't need your reward. Just reimburse me for the medicinal herbs I used up."

"Reimbursement is definitely in the works; I can't let you suffer a loss..."

Gu Zhili's words were watertight. After a moment's thought, Feng Xiuhu asked, "So you were in charge from the rear the whole time, issuing orders and having the brothers do all the work?"

Gu Zhili replied matter-of-factly, "Otherwise what? I'm a cultivator from the Barefoot Temple, am I supposed to personally do something like kidnapping?"

Feng Xiuhu's face darkened: "But I heard that you went out alone during that time?"

Gu Zhili was stunned when she heard this, but she immediately realized what was happening and her expression gradually became incredulous.

She felt a pang of heartache, her eyes filled with grief and indignation, and questioned Feng Xiuhu, "You actually don't trust me?"

Stared at like that by Gu Zhili, Feng Xiuhu felt inexplicably guilty: "It's not that I don't trust you..."

Before she could finish speaking, Gu Zhili reached into her bosom, pulled something out, and threw it at Feng Xiuhu's face: "Take it!"

Feng Xiuhu looked down and saw that it was an embroidered sachet. He could faintly smell a fresh medicinal scent.

"I should have given it to you a long time ago!"

Gu Zhili cried out in anguish, "Wake up and use your brain!"

After saying that, she turned around, slammed the door, and left.

Feng Xiuhu picked up the sachet and examined it closely; the stitching at the seams was still brand new.

Hearing the commotion downstairs, the girl with the slender waist cautiously peeked in from outside the door: "Master?"

Feng Xiuhu held up the sachet and asked her, "Do you recognize this?"

Slender Waist nodded and walked in: "I recognize it, Ali brought it back."

"She also brought back a bag of medicinal herbs. As soon as she got home, she rushed to the kitchen to work on them. She dried them, chopped them into small pieces, sealed them with gauze, and then put them into a sachet and sewed them up."

“I wanted to help, but she thought I didn’t understand pharmacology and wouldn’t let me get involved, saying it was for the master.”

"She also said..."

Slender Waist glanced at Feng Xiuhu's face and said, "Master's condition is most likely due to a hidden brain ailment. The fragrance of this sachet has the effect of refreshing the mind. If Master continues to wear it, it may improve his condition."

Feng Xiuhu picked up the sachet, brought it close to his nose, and indeed felt a cool sensation between his eyebrows.

This is a huge misunderstanding.

"Alright, you can go ahead and get busy."

Feng Xiuhu drove away Xiyao'er because he cared about his reputation.

Only after hearing Xiyao'er's footsteps going downstairs did Feng Xiuhu quietly get up and go to Gu Zhili's door.

The door was tightly closed. Feng Xiuhu tried to push it, but couldn't open it; it must have been locked from the inside.

He knocked gently.

"Ah Li, look at the mess this has made—how about the master apologizes to you again?"

(End of this chapter)