A Time-Traveling Mishap: I Became an Ancient Nobleman

Chapter 108 Has your father been away recently?

At Zhou Hanzhang's insistence, Madam Zhou finally agreed to let Xiao Ba live in the courtyard next to Zhou Hanzhang's.

Zhou Hanzhang thought to himself that this should be Madam Zhou's bottom line, so he didn't say anything more.

After settling Xiao Ba in, it was nearly 9 PM when Madam Zhou remembered that Chen Moran was still at her residence. "Oh dear."

"What's wrong?" Zhou Hanzhang asked, looking at Madam Zhou.

“Your senior brother is still in our study. Is that alright? Should we arrange for him to stay overnight?” Madam Zhou asked Zhou Hanzhang.

Although Madam Zhou met two men today, both of whom seemed quite outstanding, she still felt that her daughter was more exceptional and that neither of them was good enough for her. She decided to look around some more.

“Mother, you don’t need to worry about him, I’ll go take a look.”

Zhou Hanzhang was about to leave when Madam Zhou stopped him, saying, "It's so late, isn't it inappropriate for you to go?"

“There’s nothing wrong with that. I’ll be right back and see if he wants to read in our study or take the books home.”

"Okay, then you make the arrangements."

Seeing that she had a plan, Madam Zhou didn't interfere any further, only instructing her, "Then be careful and make sure no one notices anything amiss when you're interacting with others."

Although her daughter had been dressed as a man for so many years without being discovered, as long as her daughter had not returned to wearing women's clothing, Madam Zhou felt as if a sword was hanging over her head, ready to fall at any moment.

The emperor himself had spoken, saying that Hanzhang's true gender must not be known to outsiders.

After Madam Zhou finished speaking, she went back, and Zhou Hanzhang went directly to his study.

When Zhou Hanzhang arrived at the study, the room was brightly lit. He Shizheng was waiting outside and quickly bowed to her upon seeing her.

Just as he was about to speak, Zhou Hanzhang said first, "Keep your voice down, is Senior Brother Chen still reading inside?"

"That's right. I didn't dare to bother him. I was just about to ask you and your wife what to do."

"It's alright, you can go back now."

Zhou Hanzhang knew that the people here usually went to bed before ten o'clock unless they needed to keep watch at night.

He Shi did not immediately take his leave, but looked at Zhou Hanzhang and said, "Young Master, why don't you go and see what Young Master Chen's plans are? If he wants to leave or stay, I will be there when you call me, so that I can make arrangements."

Zhou Hanzhang thought about it and agreed, "Then you wait here for a while, I'll go in and ask."

As Zhou Hanzhang spoke, he stepped into the study and saw Chen Moran standing by the window with a book in his hand, the moonlight shining on him.

He held the book in one hand and gestured repeatedly towards the sky with the other, muttering to himself, "Something's not right, why can't I see clearly? Strange..."

Zhou Hanzhang walked to his side, and just as she was about to speak, he saw her, pulled her over, and handed her the book he was holding.

Have you read this book?

Zhou Hanzhang looked at the book, which was titled "The Starry Sky Divination Manual," but he had no recollection of it at all.

Seeing her staring blankly at the book, Chen Moran assumed she was reminiscing and handed her another book that was by the window. "Why don't you take a look at this one too?"

Without waiting for Zhou Hanzhang's reaction, he placed the book in her hands.

Zhou Hanzhang shifted his attention from "Xingxuan Budian" to this book, "Tianyan Zhanshu".

She gave a wry smile and said to Chen Moran, "Senior Brother Chen, I'm really sorry. I'm not particularly interested in this kind of book, and I don't know much about it. These two books must have been collected by my father sometime ago, and I haven't read them yet."

Chen Moran's eyes widened. "Do you know how precious these two books are?"

"Very precious?"

"Very precious!"

Chen Moran said earnestly and with emotion, "These two books are ancient secret manuals. I've been searching for them for a long time without success. I never expected to find them here."

"To be honest, Senior Brother Chen, no matter how precious these two books are, I just can't understand them. Besides my daily studies, I usually enjoy reading miscellaneous books. Such profound books are truly beyond my capabilities."

Hearing Zhou Hanzhang say this, Chen Moran showed a regretful expression, "I was thinking that after you read these two books, you could share your insights with me."

When I saw these two books, I knew I had come to the right place, but my current level seems to be a bit lacking.

I had hoped to use these two books to see things I couldn't see before, but for some reason, there was still a layer of fog obscuring my view. I wondered if something was wrong with me lately.

Chen Moran became more talkative when discussing this.

Zhou Hanzhang actually knew what was going on, but he couldn't tell him directly, so he could only laugh it off, "The world is full of all sorts of things, and things are constantly changing. It's not the same every day. You could see things clearly before, but you can't see them clearly now. Maybe the atmosphere in this world has changed?"

Chen Moran suddenly laughed, "You know how to comfort people. But I know it must be because I'm not good enough, otherwise I would have seen it long ago. Look at my master, he can see it all."

"Cough... How can you compare them? Master Xuan is already quite old. If you were as old as him, you'd probably be more successful than him. At that time, everything in the world would be nothing more than..."

Zhou Hanzhang thought for a moment and finally came up with a suitable adjective: "In the end, you can see through the tricks in a shadow puppet show."

After she finished speaking, she handed the two books back to him. "It's getting late. Senior Brother Chen, are you planning to stay here and continue reading, or take the books back to study them at your leisure?"

Chen Moran then realized that it was indeed late, and a hint of embarrassment appeared on his usually indifferent face. "I'm really sorry, these two books were just too captivating, and I lost track of time."

He looked at the book in his hands, somewhat conflicted. "This book is so precious, can I take it back to read?"

Zhou Hanzhang is still able to make decisions on these matters. Although his father likes to collect these things, he never looks at them himself, so even if they are lent out, he doesn't know it.

She nodded to Chen Moran, "Of course, Senior Brother, take it back first and look at it slowly. There's no rush to return it."

Chen Moran suddenly became excited, "Then I'll go back and copy it, and return it to you as soon as I've finished copying it."

He put down the book and grabbed Zhou Hanzhang's hands. At first, he felt he could see things more clearly when he touched Zhou Hanzhang, but in an instant, his vision was obscured by the fog.

He shook his head. "Strange."

Zhou Hanzhang naturally knew what he was talking about, but he didn't respond directly. He just smiled and said, "Then I'll arrange a carriage to send Senior Brother Chen back?"

Chen Moran nodded, but after thinking for a moment, he still said to Zhou Hanzhang, "The moment I caught you, I saw something, but I can never see clearly anything related to you, and I'm not sure, but I still think I should tell you."

I saw your father; it seems something happened, but I don't know the specifics. Has your father been away recently?