Another World: Book I

Chapter Twenty Three

In the story, the Emperor assigned two prime ministers to balance the power in court. One of them was Shu Man. But I don't remember writing anything about his daughter, Shu Ming An, so I have no idea what her role is. Her existence is a big question to me and my curiosity won't let me rest so I sent Xiao Yu on the streets to collect some information about her.

I was left alone inside a private room at a famous restaurant. There were two guards standing outside the door for my protection. The rest of the guards were stationed outside the restaurant as to not cause inconvenience to other costumers.

"Miss, the food is here." One of the guards announced. They were instructed to call me 'miss' while we are out to avoid getting unnecessary attention.

"Come in."

The door opened. The waiter came in and my eyes were glued on the platter of various desserts. He arranged it in front of me then stood behind me.

My dampened mood caused by the earlier incident started to rise up after eating the sweet treats. I closed my eyes to savor the sugary goodness that was melting inside my mouth. I couldn't help but let out a moan of satisfaction.

The waiter cleared his throat but I ignored him as I was enjoying the delightful feast in front of me. After a few seconds, the waiter once again made noises by coughing loudly. This time he caught my attention.

"Water." I passed him my glass of water which I haven't touched yet. I looked at the waiter's face and that's when it registered to me.

"Yu Lang!"

"Miss, I thought you were going to ignore me the whole day." He cheekily grinned as he took the glass out of my hand.

"What are you doing here? Aren't you at the Western Border?" I questioned him and motioned for him to sit in the empty chair in front of me.

He did as he was told. He took the extra chopsticks and picked a thick piece of osmanthus cake and plopped it in his mouth.

"Miss, I've arrived here a month ago." He answered.

If Yu Lang is here, does that mean that his master is also here?

"Is your master here as well?" I cautiously inquired, watching his facial expression for any changes but my query didn't seem to bother him as he nodded and continued eating.

Is Chen Mu the Dark Shadow?

"Do you know Chen Mu?" I asked once more, grabbing the chance to gather more information about the mysterious Dark Shadow.

He stopped eating and gave me a puzzled look, "Chen Mu?"

"Isn't he your master?" I prodded.

"Miss, my master is the Dark Shadow and not Chen Mu whoever he is." He reminded me.

I sighed in defeat.

It seems like he doesn't have any idea about his master's real identity.

Seeing that Yu Lang is clueless, I changed the topic, "Nevermind. You haven't told me yet why you are here."

"My master brought me here to work and to earn money," he smiled, " he owns this restaurant."

"The Dark Shadow owns this restaurant?" I gasped in amazement.

Ying Yi is a very famous restaurant not only in the imperial capital but also in the entire empire. Everyone knows of its legacy and everyone had dreamed of eating here at least once. Just looking at the full tables and the line of costumers outside, you can tell that the business is booming.

Xiao Yu raised his hands and gestured for me to come closer to him. I did and he whispered, "Since I know that I can trust Miss, I'll let you in on some secret."

I raised my hand and vowed an oath of secrecy.

"The Dark Shadow owns more than half of the business establishments here in the imperial capital," he pointed at the boxes of clothes stack in the corner with the red print of Fu Zhuang, "he also owns the new clothing store."

Wow, is the Dark Shadow really that rich? I was only joking about him competing with the Emperor's treasury but turns out, its true.

"How was he able to acquire so many businesses?"

If I can remember it correctly, the empire has a law which states that a family cannot own more than three businesses. How much more a single person?

Yu Lang shrugged in response, "I only know that my master is a powerful man. He has a lot of connections too."

I know that now.

"Miss, I have to go now. I just escaped from my work to come see you. Come visit me again!" Yu Lang waved his hand and I said goodbye before he left the private room.

If my hunch about Chen Mu being the Dark Shadow is correct, did I just bring more trouble to myself?

Still overwhelmed with my new discovery, my appetite has dropped and I no longer find the food pleasing so I told the guard to have someone come and empty the table. I was sitting there dazed and lost in thought while a waitress cleaned up.

How did a powerful character besides the male lead appear in the story?

Is this a good thing? Or a bad thing?

Just then, Xiao Yu entered the room. She was sweaty and exhausted from running up the streets under the blaze of the sun.

"Miss!" She waved her hand in front of me, trying to get my attention which she successfully did.

"Sorry, my mind was somewhere else," I smiled at her, "were you able to ask about Shu Ming An?"

"Miss, Shu Ming An is truly the left prime minister's only daughter. Her mother died when she was born so the prime minister spoiled her too much."

She reminds me of myself. My mother also died after giving birth to me and as a result, my father also spoiled me.

"What else?"

"She grew up in the imperial capital and is well-versed in arts and music. She won the Emperor's calligraphy and guqin playing contest just last year." Xiao Yu continued.

"A talented young lady."

Xiao Yu nodded in agreement.

"What about me?" I pouted.

"Miss is still better." Xiao Yu assured me.

My lips perked up with Xiao Yu's answer. She truly knows how to boost my already big ego.

"Oh Miss, I also heard some rumors." Ming Shu was a little hesitant.

"Tell me."

"I heard from some folks that the Emperor will surely choose Miss Shu Ming An as the most likely candidate for the crown princess status."

My jaw dropped in surprise.

"Miss, don't worry. Its only rumors."

They said, rumors are half true.

Considering that Shu Ming An is the only daughter of the left prime minister and the Shu Clan still has a strong hold in the imperial capital, it really is possible for her to take the position beside Chen Heng Li.

But what about Ming Shu?