Chapter 53 The Stubborn Woman's Lament (Part 3) The Absurd Night of Combing

"The girl's face is covered, are you guys supposed to take pictures blindly of her shadow?" someone in the audience jeered in dissatisfaction. "If the boss is going to do things like this, I wouldn't be willing to pay even ten copper coins, let alone one tael of silver."

"Please calm down, everyone," Luo Qingyu said unhurriedly. "The young lady is naturally very beautiful, but after all, she is a young lady getting into a bridal sedan chair for the first time, so it is understandable that she is shy. You are all so impatient, as if you want to devour her."

As soon as she finished speaking, she swept her angry gaze across the audience, and the guests, seeing this, were indeed quite pleased.

"Whatever the master says goes." The man who had been dissatisfied earlier was instantly swayed by Luo Qingyu's gaze and became elated. He raised his hand and shouted, "I'll offer one tael of silver."

"Two taels of silver!"

"..."

Seeing the audience erupt in cheers, Song Qiling bit her tongue, forcing herself to come back to her senses.

Luo Qingyu dragged her here, probably to watch her sink into depravity as an orchid, suffer all kinds of bitterness, and then commit suicide.

But since it is an illusion, there must be a way to break it.

Jumping ship wouldn't work, so what if she managed to ruin the business?

As the bidding below the stage subsided, Luo Qingyu clapped her hands and announced loudly, "Three hundred taels, are there any more patrons willing to compete?"

Before anyone could respond, Song Qiling used all her strength to wriggle and roll off the bed.

Hearing the strange noise, Luo Qingyu turned around in surprise and saw Song Qiling rolling around on the ground like a stiff worm until she rolled to her feet. She grabbed her clothes and began to kick wildly. Her hair came loose in the violent movement and mixed with the dust. She also heard strange "woo-woo" sounds coming from her mouth, like a mad beast.

Luo Qingyu: "..."

Those in the audience had never seen anything like it before, and they couldn't sit still any longer.

"Could she be suffering from epilepsy?"

"No wonder he was in such a hurry to act; it turns out he's suffering from a serious illness and is quite sickly!"

"What a disaster! How could they put this kind of stuff up for sale? The three hundred taels of silver from earlier are completely worthless."

"Exactly, it doesn't count!"

Song Qiling simply closed his eyes and kicked even harder.

Since they don't treat her like a human being, she'll stop being human today!

Luo Qingyu was shocked that this person would do such an absurd thing and took a step back... unable to move.

"Waaaaah, waaaaah—"

Although she couldn't understand what Song Qiling was saying, Luo Qingyu inexplicably felt that the person was using very vulgar language.

"Master, quickly carry this person away for treatment! What kind of mess is this?"

"This is pointless. If I had known this would happen, I wouldn't have come. Pingkangfang is treating us like fools!"

The sounds of complaints echoed in her ears. Luo Qingyu's temples bulged slightly as she glared hatefully at Song Qiling on the ground.

"Master, will you sell it for one tael of silver?" A sudden voice broke the cacophony of voices.

Luo Qingyu assumed someone was causing trouble and impatiently turned to look around the table, quickly scanning the area but not finding the person who had spoken.

Right now, she would be willing to get rid of Song Qiling, this scourge, even if it were just a single copper coin, let alone a tael of silver.

"Here." The man seemed to sense something and stretched out his arm to wave at her.

Both the stage and the audience remained completely silent.

Luo Qingyu looked at that person and narrowed her eyes.

The person who 'spoke outrageously' was not a distinguished guest seated at the table, but a ragged young man huddled in a corner of the southwest.

Looking down, you can see that the man is holding a sparsely branched broom.

Were they the cleaning and chores workers on the pleasure boat?

“Master, I am willing to offer one tael of silver.” The young man stared intently at Luo Qingyu, his words brooking no argument.

This person was actually serious.

After a moment of silence, and until Song Qiling tore a tassel from the hem of her dress, Luo Qingyu finally couldn't bear it any longer and raised her hand, saying, "Deal."

As soon as he finished speaking, bursts of laughter erupted from the audience, as if mocking the dim-witted janitor.

"The boss is in such a hurry to make a move. It seems I was right. This woman is just a dead-end commodity. This fool thinks he got a bargain, but he's probably going to end up with nothing."

"What an idiot! Does he not even know what 'combing the night' means, yet he spends a tael of silver to buy a sickly person, and is not afraid of ending up losing both his money and his person?"

Luo Qingyu ignored everything else, waved his hand and ordered several strong thugs to tie up Song Qiling, who was on the verge of madness, and send her to the side room. He then turned to the servant holding a broom and gave him a stiff smile: "Congratulations, sir, on winning the heart of your beauty."

The young man pursed his lips slightly and nodded at her.

The farce ended abruptly.

-

Despite all her calculations, Song Qiling never anticipated that even her feigned madness would not save her from this absurd night of combing her hair.

Looking through the heavy crimson veil, she saw her bound hands and a dazzlingly bright wedding dress, and couldn't help but frown.

Luo Qingyu must have gone mad, resorting to such unscrupulous means to get her into the bridal chamber.

She wondered what kind of madman had bought the orchid. Just now, she was so busy wriggling on the ground that she hadn't seen the other person's face clearly. She only thought that this person was taking advantage of her misfortune and was extremely stingy.

If it weren't for this person interfering, she might have already escaped to safety.

As the "groom" was about to arrive, a nameless anger rose in her heart.

"Creak—" A long, drawn-out sound rang out as the wooden door was opened from the outside. Instantly, a damp breeze lifted the veil, and the view became much brighter.

Not far away, a pair of faded white cloth shoes were seen stepping on the wooden floor, slowly approaching her.

Always mindful of her "serious illness," Song Qiling shrugged and was about to roll off the bed when she suddenly heard the other person say, "Don't be afraid, young lady. I won't do anything tonight."

Song Qiling paused, then looked up in confusion.

The veil was large enough that it took her a lot of effort to barely see the man's unusually pale chin, as if he were wearing a mannequin face...

The man added, "There are quite a few people guarding the door. Although I don't know how to do anything, I still have to make an appearance."

After saying that, the man took a few more steps forward and stopped in front of her.

Suddenly, she felt a gust of wind pass by her head. When she looked up again, the veil had been lifted, revealing the man's face in its entirety.

Song Qiling stared intently at the man before her, feeling a strange sense of familiarity.

This miserly fellow had an ordinary appearance, barely deserving of the title "pretty boy," except for his exceptionally beautiful, white, dark eyes, which seemed out of place with his rest of his face.

Could this person be Gu Lianzhou?

Song Qiling's heart skipped a beat. She instinctively looked away, her gaze returning to herself. Unfortunately, she was currently dressed in women's clothing.

Fortunately, she had a veil covering the lower half of her face, preventing the person in front of her from recognizing her immediately.

Sure enough, the man didn't notice anything amiss, assuming she was afraid of him. "Don't be afraid, I'll untie the ropes for you first."

After saying that, he lifted his clothes and squatted down in front of Song Qiling, found the knot and began to untie it.

The man untied the rope and tossed it aside. He didn't rush to get up, but stared at Song Qiling quietly, and hesitated before saying, "You... look a lot like someone I know."

Who is it?

Song Qiling was immediately terrified, breaking out in a cold sweat. She lowered her head even further, trying to find a hole in the ground to crawl into.

After a brief standoff, she suddenly raised her head and made "uh uh uh" sounds at Gu Lianzhou. Seeing that his face froze, she raised her right hand and pointed to her mouth and ears, then waved her hand.

I am deaf and mute, what can you do to me?

Thanks to her feigning madness at the auction, her ability to speak was not exposed.

Therefore, Gu Lianzhou accepted the fact that the other party was a disabled person with a tragic fate in just a few breaths. His eyes showed even more sympathy. He opened his mouth wide and said with gestures, "I am a good person. You can rest assured."

Song Qiling's eyes widened, and she saw him exaggerate as he said, "Save you, get out."

Get her out of here? He's come up with a plan?

After saying that, Gu Lianzhou stood up, supporting himself on his knees, and began to take off his clothes.

Song Qiling: ?

The man took off his outer robe, then his shoes and socks, and threw them on the ground. Not satisfied, he reached out to touch her wedding dress.

Song Qiling suspected that her junior brother had gone mad, so she leaned back on the bed, her eyes filled with disbelief.

Gu Lianzhou persisted, saying, "Make, make, a, example."

Even if it's just for show, there's no need to take off your clothes, right? Although she didn't understand, Song Qiling still obediently went to untie her waist sash. After she took off her outermost garment, Gu Lianzhou took it from her and carefully let it hang on the edge of the bed. Then he reached out and pulled down the thin gauze bed curtains.

The golden-red bed curtains fell, creating a small, enclosed space.

Looking at the man so close to her, Song Qiling took a deep breath, feeling rather uncomfortable, and then moved closer to the edge of the bed.

Suddenly, the creaking sound of the bed shaking filled my ears, one sound after another, rhythmic and distinct.

Song Qiling slowly turned her head and looked at her junior brother, who was like a hardworking old ox, shaking the bedpost with all his might. She felt as if the sky had collapsed.

Is this what acting is all about?

Junior brother, you seem to know far too much.

Perhaps it was because her gaze was too intense, Gu Lianzhou turned his head to look, then smiled shyly, his eyes clear and without a trace of impurity, but his hands kept moving, showing a keen interest in investigating things and seeking knowledge.

Suddenly, he opened his mouth wide again and said, word by word, "You, come, shake, I, go, open, the, window."

Now that things had come to this, Song Qiling finally understood her junior brother's plan.

Originally, it was to avoid being seen and to escape secretly through the window.

Therefore, she stopped being coy and picked up the nearby pillar, shaking it violently.

Gu Lianzhou loosened his arms, bent down to spread out the bedding, stuffed in two rattan pillows, and then lifted the bed curtains with satisfaction. Barefoot, he tiptoed to the window.

Song Qiling turned her head to look at his back, wanting to remind him that if they couldn't find the core of this illusory formation, jumping into the river would only be a temporary fix.

You can hide for a while, but you can't hide forever.

But there was no better way.

In the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea, Gu Lianzhou returned, his face beaming with joy: "Let's go!"

Song Qiling understood and loosened her grip on the bedpost, then walked towards the window with her junior brother.

Quietly pushing open the window, the night breeze carrying moisture brushed against her face. Looking at the pitch-black lake below the window, Song Qiling turned to her junior brother.

Shall we jump?

Before she could think, a strong arm suddenly appeared around her waist, carrying her out of the window.

"Go, don't look back."