Chapter 18 I'd like to formally become your disciple. May I ask your name, young master? (A small token of respect) ...

Upon hearing this, Wang Yan quickly took the handkerchief and gently wiped her face. "My cousin and I often live here, and occasionally we return to the capital for a while."

Shen Minghuai looked down at the bowl of porridge beside him and said out of the blue, "Bai Baidao is one of your people."

Wang Yan was startled upon hearing this. Luckily, he hadn't eaten anything, or he would have choked. He could only force a smile and asked, "Why does the young master consider him one of ours?"

Shen Minghuai recalled Shen Dingchen's words.

"Wang Fuzhi, that old fox."

He then realized that the Wang family was a den of foxes.

"How could a lady who rarely leaves the capital know about Bai Baidao?"

Wang Yan slowly tucked the handkerchief into his sleeve. "Young Master Shen has good hearing. You must have overheard His Highness Prince Wei talking to me that day, right? Then you should know that he got my portrait from Bai Baidao."

"My hearing is far inferior to yours, Madam." The mask that appeared instantly made Shen Minghuai unfathomable. "I was just asking casually. In your eyes, am I merely your eyes and ears?"

She didn't want him to think that her denial was due to her fear of Prince Wei. Wang Yan remained noncommittal, "If he asks, you cannot disobey him, after all, he is a prince."

Shen Minghuai's gaze fell on her face. "Is Madam Wang afraid of him?"

Wang Yan stared at Mingzhou in a daze. "It's not that I'm afraid, it's that I don't want to get too involved with that place. I told you before, I'd abandon it as soon as possible."

The image of the young woman who smiled at him as she left that day resurfaced in his mind. Shen Minghuai changed the subject, "What brings you here?"

"I'll wash the handkerchief and return it to you." Wang Yan stood up first. "Zhu Yao and that young lady are going to see a variety show today, so I need to go and meet her."

"Brother Li, aren't you going?"

"My cousin went to the prefectural office to look for the prefect."

"It turns out that Brother Li has something to attend to."

Wang Yan sensed something was off about what he was saying, but couldn't quite put her finger on it. Shen Minghuai then pointedly remarked that she seemed to have ulterior motives every time she went to see a play. In fact, the first time Wang Yan found theater interesting was when she saw the puppet show with the drug-infused puppets.

“I don’t really like watching plays. I prefer making little things like kites, paper cuttings, incense, and flower lanterns… A long time ago, I wanted to learn tea ceremony, but I couldn’t find a teacher.”

"Tea?" Shen Minghuai's eyes flickered slightly. "Why?"

"I was curious. At first I thought, it's just painting on tea, why are people in Dai Viet so eager to do it, and why are people so proud of such a boring skill?"

Wang Yan, unaware that Shen Minghuai was about to speak, continued indifferently, "Later, I still found it boring, so I gave up."

Shen Minghuai said without changing his expression, "Since it's so boring, my wife's decision must be very correct."

"Look, someone's already started the tea-tasting contest." Wang Yan was drawn to the people shouting and hawking their tea nearby. Suddenly noticing something, he quickly stepped forward. "The prize is a set of glass cups!"

Those seated at the table were also acquaintances.

"Young master, your tea-making skills are becoming more and more exquisite!"

"If no one else fights, this glass lamp will—"

"Wait a minute!"

When Wang Yan called out, everyone looked over.

The "young master" at the table scoffed disdainfully, "Wang Yan, your brother isn't here, what are you doing here?"

Wang Yan ignored him and looked at the "host" of the tea competition, "Would this young master like to give it a try?"

Xie Yu clearly didn't take Shen Minghuai seriously either. "What, you know to call for reinforcements this time? Your lover looks like she'll cry if she loses."

Wang Yan gritted her teeth and said, "Xie Yu, you're asking for death—"

Shen Minghuai stopped her, sat down at another table, and began to order tea.

After a moment, Wang Yanle held up the glass cup with great relish and thanked him, saying, "My brother told me that your tea-making skills were superb, but I didn't expect you to be this good. Just now you said you only 'knew a little bit,' you are too modest."

Shen Minghuai ignored her flattery and asked, "Who is he?"

“Young Master of Mingyue Tower,” Wang Yan suddenly stopped, “I’ve changed my mind.”

Shen Minghuai turned around in confusion, only to see Wang Yan tear off the jade pendant and hand it over.

"I want to become your disciple. This will serve as my tuition fee. How about it?"

"Using this as a gift?" Shen Minghuai seemed unsurprised that she carried this jade pendant, and bent down to tie it back around her waist.

As he leaned closer, a faint scent of ambergris wafted through him. Wang Yan froze on the spot, looking down at his jade crown, somewhat at a loss for words. As if possessed, he blurted out, "What kind of incense do you usually burn?"

“No incense was burned.” After finishing, Shen Minghuai lifted his sleeve and sniffed. “This is the scent of ambergris; I’ve picked up some.”

Wang Yan then returned to the matter of becoming a disciple, speaking very seriously.

Shen Minghuai walked ahead by himself, saying, "This matter needs to be considered carefully."

The two arrived early and waited inside the tent. Perhaps because the sun was too strong, Wang Yan suddenly became much quieter. Shen Minghuai glanced at him several times, but Wang Yan pretended not to notice, only craning his neck to look around for the two men.

Before long, Zhu Yao and the woman appeared together. They deliberately stood in a conspicuous position, and Zhu Yao spotted them immediately.

"Madam Wang? You've come to see the play too."

Shaking off the scattered pieces, Wang Yan smiled without a trace of sarcasm, "This kind of variety show is quite famous, so I came to take a look."

Zhu Yao pulled Wang Yan aside and whispered, "Last time when we went to Linjiangxian, there was a huge feast. I thought you, the host, were taking advantage of me to cheat me out of a meal, but I was wrong. I will definitely enjoy those two jars of Qionghua Dew!" As he spoke, he became emotional and couldn't help but pat his shoulder to express his gratitude.

Wang Yan chuckled twice, then was pulled back to Shen Minghuai's side.

Zhu Yao noticed the handsome man beside her early on. "This young master was also at Linjiangxian that day, wasn't he? He must be a good friend of yours, Madam."

"He also came because of its reputation." Wang Yan had been observing Shangguan Yu for a while. "Does this lady also enjoy watching variety shows?"

Zhu Yao replied on her behalf, "Yes. I met Lady Shangguan here a year ago."

Wang Yan's peach blossom eyes widened slightly as she exclaimed in surprise, "What a coincidence! I never imagined that Brother Zhu and Lady Shangguan, like me, would enjoy watching these variety shows."

Shangguan Yu simply smiled indifferently, clearly displeased with the cold-faced young man's scrutinizing gaze beside Wang Yan.

Zhu Yao unfurled his fan. "Not only is Madam Wang an excellent drinker, but we also share a similar taste in wine. It's truly a case of 'we met too late.' Madam, take a look at my folding fan today. Is it better than the last one?"

Wang Yan's tone carried a hint of apology, "Brother Zhu, you are too kind. Qingyue doesn't have your ability to identify calligraphy and paintings, and doesn't understand these things."

"Indeed. But I still remember your Falling Flower Sword Technique, my lady. It was so skillful, it was indistinguishable from the real thing." Zhu Yao gestured with his fingers, then his attention was drawn to the jade pendants at Wang Yan's waist.

"I didn't see Lady Wang's jade pendant last time... Could it be made of mutton-fat jade?"

Wang Yan glanced at Shen Minghuai out of the corner of his eye, "Brother Zhu has a good eye. This gift from a friend is truly precious. I hadn't worn it before because of the long journey."

Zhu Yao then looked at the man beside Wang Yan and immediately understood. However, it seemed that he kept glancing at Shangguan Yu.

"May I ask how you are addressed, sir?"

Shen Minghuai then looked away, "One coin."

Wang Yan couldn't help but lower his head and cover his mouth with a smile.

Zhu Yao was taken aback. How could such a gentle and refined young man have such a vulgar name? What a pity, what a pity.

Shangguan Yu unexpectedly spoke up: "Young Master Zhu and I are not people of unknown origin, Young Master Shen can rest assured."

Zhu Yao immediately chimed in, "Brother Chen, you're being too polite. You won't even tell me your real name; do you look down on me?"

"How could that be?" Shen Minghuai chuckled. "Brother Zhu, please forgive me. It was my rudeness. My name is Shen Minghuai."

Wang Yan stepped forward and explained on his behalf, "I told him not to reveal his real name to others casually. Brother Zhu, to tell you the truth, my friend has offended quite a few people because of his outspokenness, so it's best to avoid him."

"Is that so—" Zhu Yao expressed his understanding, "When you're traveling the world, it's inevitable to make enemies."

"Indeed. He loves listening to music and watching plays. He wouldn't have come to Yangzhou if I hadn't invited him. I heard that Meng Shuyue from Xianggu Pavilion will be performing again at the beginning of the month. I'll go with him to see it."

Upon hearing Wang Yan mention Meng Shu, Shangguan Yu's expression changed drastically.

Zhu Yao was extremely surprised. "Madam Wang... is going to the Elephant Pavilion? Most women would avoid such a place like the plague, let alone women from noble families."

As they spoke, Zhu Yao frequently observed Shen Minghuai's expression, which remained completely unmoved. This man was truly... magnanimous.

Wang Yan looked at Shangguan Yu and said, "We haven't done anything out of line, so why should we care? Lady Shangguan has also heard about it, hasn't she? I think she shares the same opinion as me."

Shangguan Yu snapped out of her daze, calmly raised her eyes, but her hands involuntarily clenched her sleeves. "What makes you say such a thing, Madam Wang?"

Wang Yan said with distress, "Wasn't the one with Lady He that day Lady Shangguan? Could it be that Qingyue saw wrong..."

Shangguan Yu vehemently denied it, saying, "It seems my wife has mistaken me for someone else."

Wang Yan expressed deep regret, "I heard that Madam He passed away not long ago. She had helped me several times, and I wanted to go and pay my respects. However, the He family doesn't trust outsiders and didn't inform me, and even treated me coldly. I originally thought that Madam Shangguan and Madam He were close friends, so I thought I'd ask you about it..."

Seeing this, Shen Minghuai quickly comforted her, "It's alright, Madam He has many friends. We can always find out more by asking around."

Shangguan Yu pressed her lips together tightly and did not look at her again.

"Which Lady He?" Zhu Yao asked.

"He Jia Li Niang".

"He Jia Li Niang... does her hair usually hang down to the left side?"

"Ai."

Zhu Yao turned to Shangguan Yu and said, "That woman, isn't she your friend? I've seen the two of you together before."

Shangguan Yu avoided eye contact, and said hesitantly, "She was someone I knew... but I don't know where she is buried."

Shen Minghuai suddenly became serious. "What did He Li threaten you about?"

Shangguan Yu said urgently, "How could that be! Sister Li—she wouldn't threaten me..."

Wang Yan vaguely knew what she was afraid of. "That's the He family, isn't it?"

Shangguan Yu raised her head in alarm, then quickly lowered it again. "No, no... I don't know anything."

Zhu Yao's gaze towards the two of them was no longer friendly; he turned and comforted Shangguan Yu.

"She's not in a good mood right now, so we'll take our leave."

As the two figures disappeared into the distance, Wang Yan's gaze sharpened. "She clearly knows something."

Shen Minghuai glanced at her sideways. "It might be the whole truth."