Chapter 114: Denied Boarding

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Xiao Jian realized that apart from being somewhat malicious, Xue Jiaoyue was also rather stupid. Considering the way she had tried to harm Xue Fanzhi, she was both foolish and wicked, and spoke without thinking.

If she knew perfectly well that he had not written it, why had she asked aloud?

How was he supposed to answer?

Was he meant to say, “Yes, I didn’t write it”? Would anyone involved retain any dignity then?

His only option was to lie and say that Jin Buhuan had failed to keep his promise. But would she really believe that? Since she had suddenly asked the question, she clearly trusted Jin Buhuan’s character more.

Besides, if the truth were discovered, it would be utterly disgraceful.

At that moment, Wang Weiwei suddenly said, “His Highness certainly wrote it. Someone simply refuses to admit it!”

Afraid Jin Buhuan might hear her and make the matter worse, Xiao Jian shot Wang Weiwei a warning glance, then hurriedly turned toward Jin Buhuan.

“Mr. Jin, I am Xiao Jian. I would like to board the ship and speak with you.”

That was right. Their true purpose was to board the ship and obtain the medicinal ingredients.

Xue Jiaoyue spoke with an air of great pride. “Uncle, this is the Eighth Prince!”

The people around them had been listening all along. The moment they heard the words “Eighth Prince,” the river erupted into excitement. So a prince had come as well!

It was not that a prince venturing outside was especially astonishing. Rather, if they had known earlier that a prince was present, they would have rushed over to see him. After all, there were few opportunities to catch sight of a prince in the city, let alone on the Qinhuai River. Though the emperor had many sons, seeing a prince was still a rare occasion.

Sensing the envy in the gazes and voices around her, Xue Jiaoyue looked toward the large ship with even greater arrogance.

Jin Buhuan secretly sneered. His family had managed to build an enterprise of such scale. Why should they fear a prince who was not even the Crown Prince?

He asked, “So you are the Eighth Prince. Have Your Highness answered the question?”

Everyone fell silent.

What did he mean? Even if the prince could not answer, did he truly dare refuse him entry?

Jin Buhuan had indeed meant exactly that, and he intended to act on it.

“Rules are rules. I said that only those who answer correctly may board the ship. The rule cannot be broken. Surely His Highness the Eighth Prince has no urgent business and would not force me to break my word?”

In other words, if Xiao Jian insisted on boarding, he would be forcing Jin Buhuan into dishonesty.

Xiao Jian’s smile froze. He stared at Jin Buhuan in disbelief. This man truly refused to yield to anyone?

He was a prince, after all!

Xiao Jian would never allow Jin Buhuan to lead him by the nose. With an apologetic smile, he said, “But I do have something rather urgent to attend to aboard the ship.”

This time, it was Jin Buhuan who regretted speaking. Why had he asked that question in the first place? He did not possess the thick skin of the imperial family. How was he supposed to bring this to a proper conclusion?

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“Is Your Highness saying that you intend to force me to break my word?” Jin Buhuan asked with a smile that did not reach his eyes.

Xiao Jian did not dare do that. Although he was a prince, he was not favored.

And for Jin Buhuan to have swallowed up so many businesses and become the richest man in the realm, he must have some powerful support behind him—support Xiao Jian likely could not contend with.

He hurriedly said, “How could I dare? I merely wish to board the ship and speak with Mr. Jin.”

Jin Buhuan waved his hand. “The rule remains the same. Only those who answer the question correctly may board.”

When he had finished speaking, he turned toward the crowd.

“Now do you believe that I did not cheat?”

If he had truly cheated, he would never have ignored a prince. That was a prince they were talking about.

The crowd below was filled with admiration, though most of the voices were also shouting and jeering in excitement.

After saying his piece, Jin Buhuan shook his head, took Xue Fanzhi by the hand, and led her into the cabin without sparing another glance for those behind them.

Only after entering the cabin did Xue Fanzhi remember that Xiao Yi was still there.

He was waiting for them near the entrance.

“Xue Jiaoyue is here! And the Eighth Prince is here too,” Xue Fanzhi said. She had already known that the Eighth Prince was present, but she had not expected Xue Jiaoyue to be there as well.

Xiao Yi wanted to ruffle Xue Fanzhi’s hair and tell her not to worry because he was there. Unfortunately, a man was watching him with the wary gaze of someone guarding against a thief.

Xiao Yi fell silent.

Then he hurriedly called out, “Uncle, where are you planning to take me and the Eighth Lady?”

Jin Buhuan looked Xiao Yi up and down. The more he looked, the less satisfied he became. Was this young man an idiot? Who was his uncle? He had called him uncle the moment he opened his mouth, as though they were close.

“You answered correctly too?” Jin Buhuan asked suspiciously. “You copied A-Zhi’s answer, didn’t you?”

Xiao Yi did not deny it. There was no need. Everyone understood the truth. If he had not benefited from Xue Fanzhi, who would have known that the day was her birthday? It was an ordinary day, nothing more.

Of course, precisely because it was an ordinary day, today had become extraordinary.

Xiao Yi had no intention of arguing with Jin Buhuan over the matter.

When he saw that Xue Fanzhi was not going to speak on his behalf, he could only change the subject.

“Uncle, where are we going next?”

Jin Buhuan clearly had no intention of dwelling on Xiao Yi’s “cheating” either. He gave a cold snort.

“Somewhere good, of course. If it were not somewhere good, would I have gone to all this trouble to bring you here?”

Hearing that, Xue Fanzhi nearly burst into tears.

In her previous life, she had never come here. She had no idea what her uncle had felt at the time, or whether he had waited for her with hope in his heart.

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…

Xue Jiaoyue watched Jin Buhuan disappear completely into the cabin. No matter how she called out to him, he refused to come back. She was utterly bewildered. Was her own uncle truly going to abandon her like this?

Although he was not actually her blood uncle, Jin Buhuan himself did not know that, did he?

Jin Buhuan was simply a muddlehead. A muddlehead did muddleheaded things, and now he had caused her to lose face.

As luck would have it, Feng Ling seemed to know exactly what she was thinking and said with a smile, “Seventh Lady, is that wealthy Mr. Jin truly your uncle? He certainly does not look like it. Could he be some ruffian, while you remain unaware?”

Her tone was unmistakably gleeful.

Xue Jiaoyue thought these people were terribly shallow. What did they know? No matter what Jin Buhuan was like, he was still a man of immense wealth and status. It was not as though their own uncles could compare with him.

If they could not compare, then none of them had the right to laugh at her.

But while she thought that way, Xiao Jian did not.

He was not a fool. It was obvious at a glance that Jin Buhuan did not care about Xue Jiaoyue, his niece. There was no need for argument on that point.

Thus, he had to reconsider the matter. If he married Xue Jiaoyue but could not obtain Jin Buhuan’s support, he would suffer a tremendous loss. He could find a more outstanding consort.

But what if Jin Buhuan was merely single-minded, rather than truly indifferent to Xue Jiaoyue? In that case, he could not afford to lose faith in her.

What was he to do? It was a choice between two possibilities, and an exceedingly difficult one at that. Why could he not have both? Why was he forced to choose?

Fortunately, he did not have to decide at once.

Xiao Jian looked toward Xue Jiaoyue and asked, “Can we board the ship?”

Xue Jiaoyue had no confidence whatsoever. She shook her head.

Xiao Jian straightened, looking rather regretful. He had come in search of medicinal ingredients. If he could not even board the ship, then he had essentially lost his chance. He might as well return to his residence directly.

Just then, someone suddenly burst out of the cabin.

The newcomer had a handsome, delicate face, but her complexion was deathly pale, as though she were suffering from a serious illness.

Of course, she was not ill. She was merely in great discomfort because she had swallowed water.

Her voice was somewhat hoarse as she looked toward Xiao Jian.

“Who says we cannot board? I have a way. We will simply overwhelm him with money. I refuse to believe there is anyone in this world who would turn down money!”

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