Chapter 583: Chapter 5«3- Secretly Investigating
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
If she didn’t get a room, she would settle for the next best thing. As long as it was a private room, Su Qing said to the shopkeeper,
“Then book two rooms.”
■Tm sorry, there’s no private room. There’s only a shared bed left.”
The shopkeeper shook his head again. Today’s business was excellent.
Previously, a merchant group had come and booked two upper rooms and another two rooms. In addition to the scattered guests, they were full.
“Alright, then, let’s leave it open!”
Su Qing was not pretentious as long as there was a room to stay in. The guards, Little Ding and Zhong Yong felt that it was not polite. They were servants, so how could they stay in the same room as the Empress?
As they were about to speak, Su Qing’s gaze scared them back. Just as they were booking a room downstairs, a pair of eyes stared at them from upstairs.
Su Qing casually glanced upstairs, and those eyes disappeared in an instant. Su Qing calmly retracted her gaze. She was confident that the person staying in the private room upstairs was Lanting.
As long as they were still around, Su Qing was relieved.
The waiter came over to lead the way. Since it was a shared room, it was naturally the worst room. The upper room was on the second floor, and the shared room was on the first. It was dark and damp, and they could smell a moldy smell when they entered.
Su Qing walked into the room without a change in expression. Jiang Yuyan looked at Su Qing’s back with heartache. The Empress was pregnant and had to wander around. How heartbroken would the Emperor be if he knew?
“This smell, it’s unpleasant.”
Zhong Yong wanted to look for a window when he entered the room, but he realized that there were no windows. Once he entered, he faced a large bed that could sleep more than ten people. The bed was made of straw mats. Because the room was too damp, the straw mats emitted an unpleasant smell. It was comparable to the imperial prison in the capital.
Zhong Yong grabbed the waiter’s collar and scolded,
“How do we live here?”
“Why not? Even the bunk next door is full.”
The waiter argued with Zhong Yong unhappily. His house was not lacking in guests today. If you were willing to stay, you could stay. If you were not willing to stay, you could leave.
“Forget it; prepare some hot water for us!”
Su Qing stopped Zhong Yong. She still had important things to do, so she didn’t want any more trouble.
“There’s no hot water. This is the condition of our shop.
The waiter felt that they were swamped. They lived in a big shared room, but he had never heard of a shop owner who had to prepare hot water for them.
“We’ll pay.”
Su Qing needed a bath, so she didn’t waste any time talking to the waiter and handed over a tael of silver.
“Ah, okay. I’ll prepare hot water for you now.”
Money could make the world go round. When the waiter saw the money, his expression immediately changed. He nodded and bowed in a particularly flattering manner.
Su Qing asked the waiter calmly,
“When will the people in the upper room leave? Can you help transfer us over after they leave? The conditions here are too bad.”
She sounded like she was in a hurry to get a good room. The waiter did not doubt her at all. This customer was generous. If he served him well, he might even be rewarded with silver. He immediately smiled and replied,
-The guests in the superior room said they would stay for three days. I’ll keep an eye on them for you later. As soon as they leave, I’ll transfer you to the superior room immediately.”
“Thank you, buddy. Can you change some clean bedding for us?”
Su Qing asked for the information she wanted and changed her mind. She wanted to stay more comfortable tonight.
“This? I’m sorry, but I don’t have any extra bedding.
The shop assistant looked troubled. It was already good enough for their poor shop to have bedding. Where could they prepare spare ones?
“Alright, thank you.”
“Help us prepare some food.” Su Qing nodded.
She didn’t ask for a big meal. The eyes upstairs were still staring at them so she couldn’t arouse their suspicion.
“Alright, I’ll go and prepare it now.”
The shop assistant readily agreed and carefully hid the tael of silver in his pocket before walking out.
“Master, how do we stay?”
One could not call her Empress outside, so the guard Little Ding asked Su Qing. Su Qing didn’t answer. She looked around the room and saw only a large shared bed. There wasn’t even a table. The shared bed was only big enough for two people to walk side by side. There was no room for Zhong Yong and the guard, Little Ding, to sleep on the floor.
“Why don’t we go to the shared bed next door?”
Guard Ding thought of an idea. Su Qing glanced at him and said,
“The people next door are probably their people. If the two of you suddenly go over, it will arouse suspicion.”
“Aiya, why are you so slow? Isn’t there two rooms with a curtain in the middle?” Zhong Yong pushed away the guard, Little Ding. He often went out with his master. If he minded so much, he wouldn’t be able to do anything.
“It’S still the bell… Very thoughtful.”
Guard Little Ding praised Zhong Yong. He had also thought of it, but he did not dare to say it.
“Let’s do that, but we’ll talk about it at night when there’s no one around.”
Su Qing nodded and agreed to Zhong Yong’s suggestion, but he had to ensure
no one came.
The room was very stuffy, the kind that made it difficult to breathe. It was so humid that it made one feel uncomfortable after staying in the room for a while.
Su Qing asked Zhong Yong to open the door to let out some air and smell. It would also help her see what was going on outside.
Their room door faced the stairs on the first floor, so their line of sight was limited. However, they could see everyone coming down the stairs, which was enough.
They opened the door, and the door of the shared bed next door also opened. A thin man walked out. He was skinny. His skin was very dark like the skin often exposed to the sun. His eyes were small but bright.
When he left the house, he glanced at Su Qing’s room as if by accident. Seeing Su Qing looking out the door, he walked into the room with a smile. After entering the room, he scanned the situation in the room. Finally, his gaze fell on Su Qing’s stomach momentarily before moving away. He started chatting with them in a friendly manner,
“What business are you doing in Sea City?”
“I have a big belly disease. I heard that there is a divine doctor here, so I came because of his fame.”
Su Qing replied indifferently. She didn’t mention what business she was doing and only said that she was there to seek medical treatment. This also explained why her stomach was so big.
“May I know the name of the divine doctor? Brother, why don’t you tell me? Maybe I know him!”
Hearing Su Qing’s words, the man’s eyes moved slightly, and he continued to ask with a smile.
“Are you from Sea City Base?”
Su Qing didn’t answer and asked him instead. The man smiled and shook his head.
“No, I’m doing business here too. I have a brother who’s from Sea City Base. I can help you ask around.”
“There’s no need. I’ve contacted him, but he hasn’t been home for two days. I’ll wait for him here for a few days.”
Su Qing politely refused and only said that she would stay there for a few days, “is that so? My son also has a strange disease. Brother, can you call me when you go?”
The man continued to probe. Su Qing looked at him coldly.
“That divine doctor has a bad temper. I can help you ask if he’s willing to see you first. Brother, I’m sorry. We’re exhausted and want to rest!” The man had no choice but to go out. After he went out, he went upstairs. When he went upstairs, he glanced at Su Qing’s room from the corner of his eye..