“I can’t be bothered with him!” Henry Carter smiled and shook his head lightly. “Anyway, sister believes that I would never let you down in the end!”

“Believe? How could I not believe whatever Erlang says?” Alice Clark smiled at the corners of her eyes, her delicate hand tracing circles on Henry Carter’s chest. “If Erlang can respect your concubine mother, he surely won’t let us sisters down in the future. Little Grace just hasn’t seen the world, that’s why she doesn’t understand how good Erlang is!”

“You’re the one who truly understands me!” Henry Carter hugged the beauty in his arms even tighter, saying with satisfaction. Alice Clark’s skin was very smooth, cool and soft in his embrace. His chest, hardened from being forced to practice martial arts as a child, was as solid as a rock. Yet beneath that rock, his heart was now pounding “thump thump thump,” as if a flame was burning deep inside.

Feeling the heartbeat behind her, Alice Clark let out a faint sigh. Being held in someone’s arms felt so good, especially in such a strong embrace—it was almost impossible to pull herself out once she sank into it. But no matter how intoxicating the strong masculine aura behind her was, she had to do her best to stay a little clear-headed.

A courtesan is like the red leaves outside the window—no matter how dazzling, it’s only for a short autumn. If she couldn’t seize the chance to land in a good household, she might be blown by the autumn wind into the muddy ditch, rotting into compost. She dared not accept such an ending.

“Hmph!” Wronged and unable to voice her grievance, Little Grace stomped her foot hard, making a loud noise.

For the sake of the beauty in his arms, Henry Carter couldn’t be bothered to pay her any mind. Alice Clark, lost in her own thoughts, had no time for her either. All of Little Grace’s efforts were in vain, and she felt even more that her good intentions had gone unrewarded. She turned around and ran downstairs with a “thump thump thump thump.”

“Finally, some peace and quiet!” Henry Carter smiled without anger, gently turning the beauty’s body with his hand.

“Erlang, did you want to send her away from the start?” Alice Clark laughed, reaching out to tap Henry Carter’s forehead. “You, all your scheming is used on things like this—no wonder Aunt Yun nags you every day!”

“What does she know? What era is it now, and she’s still clinging to those old, trivial things?!” Henry Carter shook his head with a smile. Wanting to relive the intoxication from earlier, he couldn’t find the right moment for it, his gaze flickering, his brows furrowing and relaxing.

Seeing his impatient, youthful look, Alice Clark gently shook her head. After laughing, she pulled Henry Carter’s large hand over and slowly placed it over her own chest wrap. A gentle feeling immediately spread from his palm to his heart, and Henry Carter lowered his head, closing his eyes in satisfaction.

Just as their lips were about to meet, a sudden clamor of drums and gongs erupted outside the window. Immediately after, a wave of noise like a mountain flood followed. The tender, romantic atmosphere in the room was instantly shattered by the commotion outside. Henry Carter lifted his head, angrily going to close the window. But he saw a large procession swaggering past downstairs, with countless sachets and pouches being thrown from both sides of the road.

Alice Clark’s attention was also drawn by the noise outside. She turned around, poked half her head out from behind the curtain, and looked down. In the crowd outside, a few rogue youths soon spotted her, tiptoed, and whistled loudly at the window. But such noise couldn’t reach Alice Clark’s ears at all—a louder burst of drums and gongs drowned out all the commotion.

Amid the deafening drums and gongs, the man on horseback sat as straight as a flagpole. At the very front, in the center, and at the rear flanks of the procession, several different banners were carried in turn. Among them, the largest and most eye-catching one was boldly embroidered with a single, huge character: 高!

“It’s General Gao Xianzhi returning triumphant from the Western Regions, bringing his men to present captives to His Majesty!” Henry Carter watched for a moment, then said disinterestedly.

“The ones at the front all look like fourth-rank generals! They look so young!” Alice Clark’s cheeks flushed, her eyes sparkling with stars.

“What’s so special about that! That year, during the Lantern Festival in Chang’an, a fire broke out and at least twenty fourth-rank generals were burned to death!” A sudden wave of irritation rose in Henry Carter’s heart. He curled his lips and replied sourly.

“You! That mouth of yours is really sharp!” Alice Clark poked him with a finger. “Those men fought to expand the empire in the Western Regions—how can you compare them to those fancy-pants in the capital?”

“What’s wrong with the capital? Why are they all just fancy-pants?” Henry Carter himself was from Chang’an. He could mercilessly mock those nobles who gained their titles only by their parents’ influence, but he couldn’t stand others mocking his own kind to his face. He put on a stern face and retorted with a cold laugh.

“Silly, I wasn’t talking about you. Why are you so sensitive!” Alice Clark realized she’d misspoken and hurried to make amends. “Erlang is no fancy-pants. If Erlang were…”

Henry Carter smiled and bit down on the finger she’d stretched out. “Ouch!” Alice Clark cried out in pain, frowning. But her scream was quickly muffled, turning into indistinct giggles.

“Today I’ll show you just how ‘fancy’ I can be! Hmph…” Henry Carter teased, scooping Alice Clark up in his arms and, with a sweep of his arm, closed the window tight, shutting out the noise from outside.