Bai Li’s Dream – Chapter 24

Chapter 24: Hearsay

“Hua Xiaoxian. ”

In the upper room of the Changle Teahouse in the capital, Fourth Young Master Xue uttered the name, then spat.

“What bad luck！”

He patted his body as he spoke, then raised his sleeve to sniff.

“My grandmother made me sit in the Buddhist hall and be fumigated with incense ash for half a day. I stink. I’m going to see Little Mingzhu tonight, and she’s definitely not going to let me kiss her. ”

Little Mingzhu was a famous prostitute in the capital’s Huanxiang Brothel.

Fourth Young Master Xue wasn’t even qualified to see her before. It was only in the past few years that his grandmother had gained the status of an imperial relative that he was favored by the beauty.

There were seven or eight other young masters sitting in this teahouse. Li Shilang and Zhang Jiulang were among them. Because the incident was caused by them, and everyone had been troubled, they set up a table of wine and food to express their apologies.

Hearing these words, Li Shilang, with his swollen eyes, leaned back in his chair and waved his hand, saying, “Don’t worry, Little Brother Xue. I’ll let Ying’er accompany you for three days！”

Ying’er was also a famous prostitute, kept in Li Shilang’s pocket. It was rare for others to see her.

Fourth Young Master Xue was overjoyed. Not to mention being accompanied by a beauty, this was a gift from Li Shilang! Although his grandmother was an imperial relative, Fourth Young Master Xue knew that the weight of this imperial relative could not be compared to the powerful Li family.

Willing to give up the beauty, this was treating him as a brother!

“Shilang is so generous!” He praised.

Zhang Jiulang also clapped and laughed, then teased, “Shilang is truly a hero and a gentleman. No wonder Hua Xiaoxian would rather die than be with me. ”

Because of this woman, the Jingzhao Prefecture came knocking on their doors. Although nothing happened, both of them were reprimanded by their elders. However, the two did not hold a grudge. Instead, they cherished each other even more. Li Shilang, in order to apologize, even gave Zhang Jiulang two beautiful maidservants.

Hearing Zhang Jiulang’s words, Li Shilang spat, “That foolish woman! I originally thought she was well-behaved and clever, but I didn’t expect her to be so useless, ruining our brotherly fun. ” He waved his hand, “Today, I’ll be the host and treat everyone to get rid of this bad luck. ”

Everyone in the room cheered. Fourth Young Master Xue stood up, “You’re too kind, Shilang. It was just being summoned by the Jingzhao Prefecture. Who among us hasn’t dealt with the Jingzhao Prefecture since we were young? It’s not a big deal. It’s just that my family was hosting Madam of Dongyang and her new daughter-in-law at that time. It made the guests laugh…..”

Zhang Jiulang sighed, “Zhou Jingyun’s new wife went to your house? I heard she doesn’t go out?”

Ever since Zhou Jingyun brought his new wife back, countless invitation cards flew to the Marquis of Dongyang’s Residence, but all were rejected. The Madam of Dongyang didn’t even leave the house, and even the Duke of Ding’an’s Residence couldn’t see this new wife. Without seeing her, even gossip wasn’t interesting.

This sentence made everyone else perk up. “That newly married wife?”

Seeing all eyes on him, Fourth Young Master Xue became even more animated.

Compared to his grandmother’s status as an imperial relative, what made Fourth Young Master Xue even more proud was being related to Zhou Jingyun.

Although they disdained studying and practicing martial arts, they were both jealous and envious of Zhou Jingyun, such a talented and accomplished young master. Being able to associate with Zhou Jingyun, they secretly felt honored.

“Yes, he doesn’t go to other people’s houses, so how could he not go to ours?” Fourth Young Master Xue said, “He specially brought his new wife to pay respects to my grandmother…..”

Zhang Jiulang interrupted him and asked, “What does the new wife look like?”

Zhou Jingyun didn’t remarry, and the women all thought it was because he was deeply in love with his deceased wife. The men had different opinions.

Zhou Jingyun was either waiting to find a daughter of a powerful and influential family who would benefit his future, or he was looking for a stunning beauty.

“At least a beauty like Empress Jiang. ” Li Shilang said.

The reason why Empress Jiang was called the Demon Empress was not only because she was wicked and evil, but also because she was as beautiful as a demon. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been able to bewitch the late Emperor, not only making her the Empress, but also letting her act recklessly.

Everyone became even more interested, urging Fourth Young Master Xue, “Is the new wife really beautiful?”

Fourth Young Master Xue said awkwardly, “Well, I didn’t see her. ”

She was a female guest.

Although he could see her as a relative, he was out carousing too late at night and slept during the day to catch up on sleep. He didn’t go to his grandmother’s place at all.

Seeing everyone’s disappointed expressions, Fourth Young Master Xue hurriedly added, “But I asked my younger sister. ”

Actually, it wasn’t him who took the initiative to ask. It was Fifth Miss Xue who came to lecture him not to cause trouble outside and asked him to apologize to his aunt, lest the Marquis of Dongyang’s Residence be dissatisfied with him. Marquis Zhou’s Heir was coming back, and this time he would definitely be reused by the Emperor.

He became impatient and changed the subject, asking how Marquis Zhou’s Heir’s new wife was.

“My younger sister said. ” Fourth Young Master Xue recalled, “She’s quite an interesting person. ”

The young masters around him booed. “What does that mean?” “Just tell us if she’s pretty or not. ”

But there was also a young master who laughed and waved his hand, signaling everyone to stop asking, “Since a woman doesn’t praise another woman’s appearance, it means she’s not worth praising. ”

“Right, right. Not talking about appearance, but talking about demeanor, means there’s nothing to say about her appearance. ” Another person nodded and said.

Fourth Young Master Xue nodded, “Yes, my younger sister didn’t mention her appearance at all. Also, that little wife of Zhou Jingyun even lectured my grandmother about classics. ”

✿✿✿

Classics? Lecturing about classics in front of a group of women from inner chambers? It’s not like scholars reciting poems and composing couplets. Everyone was puzzled, “What classics?”

“Lao Dan mourning his mother. ” Fourth Young Master Xue said.

His younger sister said a lot, but he didn’t remember it, and he didn’t understand it either.

The young masters present were more familiar with madams. They were about to ask who Lao Dan was when a laugh rang out first.

“Whoa—”

“So she’s a Taoist. ”

Everyone in the room followed the sound and saw a young man in a white robe lying on a folding stool in the tea room. He was originally facing inward, but now he turned around, stretching his arms and legs as he did so. His eyes were a little lazy, a little tired.

Seeing him, Fourth Young Master Xue hurriedly greeted him.

“Shangguan Yue, you’re awake. ”

He was also puzzled by Shangguan Yue’s words. Taoist? Taoist temple?

Li Shilang followed up with a question, “Tao? Is this little lady a female Taoist priest? Female Taoist priests do like to lecture people, but that’s not right either. Why is she married then?”

Shangguan Yue sat up. At this time, the sunlight was bright, making his face white and radiant. He was only eighteen or nineteen years old, with handsome and lively features, but his eyes were a little frivolous. There was a smile in his eyes, seemingly friendly, yet seemingly still drunk.

The young master of the Shangguan family, who had returned to his surname but still couldn’t be entered into the family genealogy, seemed unaccustomed to appearing in the daytime. He raised his sleeve and held it above his head, creating a shadow for himself.

“I was half asleep and heard you talking about Lao Dan. Weren’t you discussing the Tao?” He yawned, diverting the conversation from a topic that these prodigal sons neither understood nor were interested in. “Just because a little lady was infatuated and jumped into the river, you’re starting to discuss the Tao and abandoning the mortal world? Then I’ll dispose of the wine, meat, and beauties on my pleasure boat myself. ”

Everyone in the room burst into laughter, chattering, “You’re really sleepy. ” “We’re talking about Zhou Jingyun’s new wife. ” “Don’t even think about scheming against my wine and beauties. ”

Shangguan Yue smiled, “It’s so boring to talk about a new wife who lectures about Lao Dan and Zhuangzi. She’s not someone from our world, so let’s not talk about her. ” Without waiting for anyone to say anything else, he put his sleeve back over his head. “Walking around in broad daylight really makes me uncomfortable. Shilang, your tea and wine, wait until we’re on the pleasure boat to treat me. ”

Shangguan Yue, like his pleasure boat, only appeared at night, wandering on the Jinshui River. He never appeared during the day. This time, he was first summoned by the Jingzhao Prefecture and then dragged here by Li Shilang to apologize.

Everyone laughed again. Li Shilang waved his sleeve and promised a boatload of drinks. Just as they were laughing and making noise, a servant knocked on the door.

“Young Master, your father wants you to go home. ” A voice said from outside the door.

Hearing this, several young masters in the hall were about to curse.

They thought it was their own servants. It was just a little prostitute who died, and their elders actually wanted to interrupt their socializing! It was truly a loss of face. When the door was opened and they took a closer look at the person who came, they all fell silent.

This was Shangguan Yue’s servant, almost fifty years old, called Ruibo.

Shangguan Yue let out an “oh” and stood up.

Zhang Jiulang, Li Shilang, and the others also stood up.

“Young Master, I’m afraid you’re going to be scolded by the Imperial Consort’s Husband. ” Zhang Jiulang said.

Shangguan Yue chuckled, “That’s a good thing. Otherwise, how could I see my father?” He paused, his eyes twinkling, and he giggled, “I should thank that little lady. What was that little lady’s name again?”

Zhang Jiulang and the others burst into laughter.

Although this illegitimate son had been recognized by the Shangguan family, because of the Princess’s fury, he still couldn’t be entered into the family genealogy and wasn’t qualified to live in the Princess’s Residence. The Imperial Consort’s Husband also couldn’t easily see his son.

Now that his son was involved in a murder case, as a father, he had to see him and ask him about it. The Princess couldn’t stop him.

“Who cares what her name is. ” Li Shilang laughed and pushed Shangguan Yue, “Go quickly, go quickly. Go early and return early, don’t delay the sailing tonight. ”

Shangguan Yue laughed heartily, “Don’t worry, don’t worry. ” With that, he walked out, Ruibo bowing and opening the door in front of him.

“Is my father still waiting for me at the back door?”

“Yes. ”