Daqian Dynasty, Shengjing City.
Qingfeng Teahouse.
The usual spot by the window.
With a plate of pastries and a pot of fragrant tea, Pei Cijing had been sitting there for half the day.
Sunlight filtered through the carved wooden window lattice, casting mottled shadows on his moon-white brocade robe. He lightly pinched a white porcelain teacup with his fingertips, sipping slowly, his eyes filled with absolute laziness.
On the surface, he looked like nothing more than an idle young nobleman visiting the teahouse.
Eating pastries.
Tasting tea.
Killing time.
But in reality, his ears were perked up sharper than the stone lions at the teahouse entrance.
"Hey! Hey! Have you heard? Old Master Li just celebrated his eightieth birthday, and he actually took an eighteen-year-old girl as his seventh concubine!"
"Hiss, Old Master Li is truly going strong in his old age!"
"Hehe! The craziest part is yet to come! I heard that girl was originally the lover of Old Master Li's great-grandson, the Third Young Master Li who loves visiting brothels the most! Somehow, she caught the Old Master's eye! Now that the grandfather and grandson have bumped into each other in the estate, their expressions... tsk tsk!"
[Ding! Successfully consumed gossip 'Eighty-year-old man takes great-grandson's lover, Li family grandfather and grandson fight for beauty', Gossip Points plus 10]
"If you ask me, the Li family's affair is nothing. The truly bizarre thing is the old widow of the Wang family in the east of the city. She is sixty years old this year, but a few days ago, she actually gave birth to a pair of twins!"
"Are you for real?"
"Hasn't her husband been dead for ten years?"
"Exactly! But the entire Wang family is keeping a unified story, saying that the old madam was sincere in her Buddhist worship, moving the heavens to grant her this blessing. As for how this blessing actually came about... well, only the Buddha knows. Anyway, the Wang family is now decorated with lanterns and streamers, claiming it is a heaven-sent gift of sons, and they are going to hold a grand banquet!"
"..."
[Ding! Successfully consumed gossip 'Old Wang widow gives birth to pearls, suspected to be a personal blessing from the Buddha', Gossip Points plus 20]
In his mind.
Another crisp chime rang out.
Pei Cijing contentedly picked up his teacup and downed the tea in one gulp. This trip to the teahouse today was not in vain; he had finally reaped some rewards.
He! Pei Cijing!
A transmigrator.
In his previous life, he died in such a frustrating way!
He didn't collapse from working a grueling 996 overtime schedule, nor did he contract an incurable disease, and he didn't even get sent off by a car crash. Instead, on a sweltering summer day, while happily gorging on half an iced watermelon, he ate too fast and choked on a tiny watermelon seed that went down his windpipe.
His vision went black.
When he opened his eyes again.
He had arrived in this alternate history Daqian Dynasty, becoming the only son of the Second Branch of the Weiyuan Marquis Household.
Now, eighteen leisurely years had passed.
Perhaps because his previous cause of death was too bizarre, his transmigrator golden finger arrived very early. He successfully bound to a system called Gossip Number One. As long as he successfully gathered gossip and watched drama, he could earn Gossip Points, which could be spent in the system shop.
[Host: Pei Cijing]
[Current Gossip Points: 4399]
[Skills: Divine Physician, Martial Arts Master]
[Items: Body Fortifying Pill x3, Antidote Pill x1, Premium Wound Ointment x1]
Pei Cijing called up the system panel that only he could see and could not help but sigh. His gossip system was a bit different from his peers; it never actively provided sources of gossip. All intelligence required him to go out and listen and see for himself.
All the gossip.
Had to be collected personally.
Therefore, his speed of accumulating Gossip Points was not considered fast. Over the past eighteen years, the points he had gradually saved up were reduced to this meager balance after exchanging them for medical skills, self-defense methods, and some practical items.
There were many good things in the system.
It was just that the prices were exorbitant.
There was also an ultimate item, though he didn't know what it was, that cost a whopping one hundred thousand Gossip Points. Although Pei Cijing was curious, looking at the price and then at his pitiful balance, he could only sigh in despair.
After all, information was closed off in this ancient era.
Noble families and large households.
They valued their faces above all else, keeping their private matters sealed tighter than an iron barrel.
Marketplace rumors were mostly false reports spread by word of mouth. Often, after he went through the trouble of listening to them, the system would judge them as false rumors and not give him a single point.
Although Shengjing was large.
Wanting to eat fresh, hot, and juicy good gossip every day.
Was hard!
"Gathering gossip is not easy, little Pei sighs!"
Pei Cijing picked up a pastry and sighed in his heart. He somewhat missed the information explosion era of his previous life, where all kinds of trending topics emerged one after another, leaving people overwhelmed.
That was a true melon field of gossip.
You simply couldn't finish eating it all!
Forget it, even mosquito legs are meat; it adds up over time.
He would just save up slowly!
Just at the moment the pastry was about to enter his mouth, a series of urgent footsteps echoed from the top of the stairs.
A young servant boy wearing the green clothes and small hat of the Marquis Household, about sixteen or seventeen years old, rushed up with a red face and a thick neck, panting like a bull. His eyes frantically scanned the room and instantly locked onto Pei Cijing, almost tripping and falling forward against the table. "Sec... Sec, Second Young Master!"
"Catch your breath, straighten out your tongue, and then speak." Pei Cijing's face instantly darkened. His tone was calm, but it revealed a hint of helplessness. "Although your young master is the second child, there's no need to call out to me with such dramatic ups and downs."
He knew he was a bit of a fool sometimes.
But there was no need to remind him like this.
Yuanbao took a few deep breaths of air, holding onto the edge of the table, and finally managed to speak coherently. "Second Young Master, I've finally found you. The household wants you to go to the Shen Estate immediately, it's extremely urgent! The Marquis, the Marquis's Wife, the Second Master, and the Second Madam have all gone! It must be to discuss a matter of great importance!"
Pei Cijing put the pastry into his mouth, picked up a warm, damp cloth nearby, and wiped his hands. His movements were unhurried as he asked, "Oh? Did they say what this important matter is?"
Yuanbao shook his head like a rattle. "This lowly one does not know. The person who passed the message kept their mouth shut tight, only saying it was extremely urgent!"
Looking at the foolish servant scratching his head, Pei Cijing already had a guess in his heart about what the matter at the Shen Estate was. It was most likely related to his marriage.
The Shen Estate.
Was the residence of Shen Zhongcheng, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel.
The Shen family and the Weiyuan Marquis Household were family friends for generations. The late Old Master Shen and the old Weiyuan Marquis had a bond forged in life and death. Back in the day, when the two old men were flushed with wine, they arranged a marriage between their grandchildren.
The Shen family had two daughters.
The Marquis Household also had two young masters.
The legitimate daughter, Shen Ninghuan, was betrothed to the Marquis Household's heir, Pei Ciling, while the illegitimate daughter, Shen Ningyue, was betrothed to him, the son of the Second Branch, Pei Cijing. It was considered a well-matched and suitable arrangement.
Calculating the days, the wedding date was approaching.
If there were no accidents.
Next month would be the lively day when two bridal sedan chairs entered the gates at the same time.
The Shen family were upright civil officials, and the Marquis Household were noble military generals. Their social statuses matched, and everyone in the world said it was a match made in heaven. This marriage should have been a matter of course. Now that the entire Marquis Household had mobilized and rushed to the Shen Estate...
A major unforeseen event must have occurred!
Pei Cijing stood up, the hem of his moon-white robe drawing a smooth arc. His gaze swept over the still-bustling street scene outside the window, the usual lazy smile on his lips fading, and his eyes deepening a few shades.
"Let's go, to the Shen Estate." He tossed the cloth back onto the plate. His voice was calm and unruffled, but ripples were stirring in his heart. He had a bad premonition.
He, who spent his days watching drama.
Could it be that he was about to become the center of the drama himself!!!
