There is a god in the sky

Chapter 160 Jifeng Study 3

Shen Lan was initially unsure whether the book would be popular.

However, after two or three days, the bookstore's business improved, and nine out of ten customers came specifically for this book.

Shen Lan divided the story into two volumes, and what has been published so far is only the first volume. The plot is stuck at the point where a bloody boning knife and an arm are found in the slaughterhouse.

"Shopkeeper, when will the second volume be available?" a young scholar asked anxiously.

"Ten days later."

Ten days later, the day before Lunar New Year's Eve, it will give everyone some topics to talk about during the New Year.

Xiao Ji wrote this story down for the purpose of spreading it.

Ordinary scholars might not guess that the protagonist of the story is the Zheng family, but there are always discerning people in the imperial court who can see it.

"Ten more days! Shopkeeper, could you please tell me who the murderer is?"

Shen Lan looked up at him.

He was a stranger, visiting Jifeng Study for the first time; his request was truly unreasonable.

"I'm sorry, I don't know the ending either."

The young man ran away in a hurry.

After that, more and more customers came to inquire about the ending.

Shen Lan was a little confused, so Sui Feng came over and told her that someone had started a betting game about who the murderer was, and quite a few people were betting on it.

It has to be said that the games played by the rich can sometimes be quite boring.

Sui Feng whispered to her, "None of the bets are correct. I secretly bet one hundred taels, and we'll split the winnings."

Shen Lan narrowed her eyes and smiled slyly, "Won't the bookmakers find out we're cheating?"

"Anyway, nobody knows who wrote this story. If you don't tell me and I don't tell you, who will know?"

It really is so.

From then on, whenever anyone asked about the ending or who wrote the book, Shen Lan knew nothing.

Time passed quickly, and no one paid attention to Xiao Ji's injuries anymore.

The latest topic of conversation in the city is about the Marquis of Pingyang.

This marquis, who had retreated to the capital due to injury, quietly accomplished a great feat.

He accused the magistrate of Tongan County of privately manufacturing and selling gunpowder, and of being suspected of colluding with the enemy and betraying the country.

The people of Bianjing did not know where Tongan County was, let alone who the magistrate of Tongan County was.

However, the Marquis of Pingyang not only accused Magistrate Luo, but also Lai Bin, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of War.

Lai Bin is a familiar name to everyone.

Not only because he held a high position, but also because he had a good daughter who married the second son of Minister Tong.

The Lai family and the Tong family are related by marriage.

Minister Tong is the Empress's elder brother and the Crown Prince's maternal uncle.

The emperor ordered the Ministry of Justice to thoroughly investigate the case.

"Shopkeeper, I see some books about gunpowder on the book list. May I take a look?"

On this day, a young man came into the bookstore, dressed in a snow-white cotton robe, spotless.

"Yes, wait a moment."

Shen Lan climbed the ladder and found the book at the very top.

Historically, there are not many books about gunpowder. It was first recorded when a Taoist alchemist accidentally caused an explosion in his furnace.

The ladder was very high. When Shen Lan came down, she didn't step properly and slipped. She was about to fall from the height.

"Watch out!" many people shouted at her.

Realizing she had slipped, Shen Lan immediately grabbed the ladder, spun around in the air, placed one foot on the bookshelf, and hooked the other foot onto the ladder, readjusting her position.

Everyone held their breath, watching as the young female shopkeeper steadily pulled one leg back and climbed down the ladder.

She walked as if on flat ground, making one wonder: Is she not afraid of heights?

Shen Lan landed on her feet, turned around and handed the book out.

The one who received the book was not the young man in white robes, but his attendant.

The attendant was a few years older than him, dressed in a blue jacket and trousers, and with his head slightly bowed, he took the book with both hands.

He put the books away, took out his purse, and asked, "How much?"

Shen Lan recognized his voice; he was the loudest one when she shouted "Be careful!"

Coincidentally, she still remembered his voice; it was the voice she had overheard from the rooftop that night.

His name is Shen Qing.

They shared the same surname, Shen, which Shen Lan remembered very clearly.

A scene vaguely appeared in my mind.

My young cousin sat under the grape trellis writing, but he could never write his own name well.

Then she complained, "Why is my name so hard to write? Why didn't Daddy give me a simpler name?"

Shen Lan asked him at the time, "Isn't the name Shen Zhiyuan nice to hear?"

"It doesn't sound good. It sounds like a bearded old man. It's not as nice as Shen Lan's."

"So what name do you want to be called?"

My cousin thought for a moment, then exclaimed excitedly, "Let's name him Shen Qing! 'The student surpasses the master,' meaning I'll definitely be better than you in the future!"

"This is a unique copy left over from the previous dynasty. It costs twenty taels of silver. According to the rules of our shop, you can also bring your own pen and ink to copy the contents back with you."

Shen Lan's gaze fell on Shen Qing's face.

He was slightly hunched over, his head bowed, a habit he had developed after years of being a slave.

He counted out twenty taels of silver and handed it to her.

Shen Lan looked down and saw the deep grooves on the back of his hand, which were burns, and old ones at that.

She quickly looked away, reached out and took the book. "Do you need any other books?"

The young man in the white robe asked excitedly, "Recently, all the students in the academy have been reading a book called... something like 'Serial Murder Case.' Do you have it here?"

Shen Lan pointed to the display shelf in the center of the lobby and said, "This book is only available at Jifeng Study."

The young man in the white robe strode over and was immediately drawn to the Sleeping Beauty on the cover.

"Such a beauty, could she be a murderer?" The young man in white robes reached out and touched the beauty's face.

Shen Lan glanced at him subtly and said calmly, "The ugliness of human nature has nothing to do with appearance."

The white-robed youth's gaze shifted to Shen Lan's face, and he suddenly asked in a flippant tone, "Why would the Xiao family let a young girl like you come out to be the manager of this study? Could it be that they're planning to use your beauty to seduce you?"

Shen Lan replied neither humbly nor arrogantly, "Gender is not important beneath these layers upon layers of sacred books."

“Books of sages?” he scoffed. “But I’ve heard that the erotic paintings in your study are the best.”

"Even saints have emotions and desires." Shen Lan didn't think there was anything shameful about selling erotic books.

"Good! What a saint! He has emotions and desires too!" A handsome young man walked in from outside, fanning himself in the dead of winter.

"Young Master Liu, please don't make things difficult for this female shopkeeper. She's in the prime of her life, and she's starting a business. Her family must be struggling financially. Why do you have to reopen old wounds?"

Shen Lan glanced at the two men; their attire and demeanor clearly indicated that they were people of high status.

However, the two do not seem to get along.

Liu Xianyang clasped his hands in a fist and bowed, saying, "Lieutenant Lu has misunderstood. I was not trying to make things difficult for her; I was just joking."

Shen Lan didn't know who this Lieutenant Lu was, and only asked him, "What kind of book would this guest like to buy?"

"Of course, it's the best erotic pictures you have here."

He thought Shen Lan would blush with embarrassment and was waiting to help her out of the predicament.

Then she turned around, climbed the ladder, and took out a thick picture book from a wooden box.

She found this treasure in the corner while organizing the bookshelf.

The scholars only glanced at it before giving up. She herself had secretly looked at it and thought it was beautifully drawn; each picture depicted a different pose, with no two repetitions.