Chapter 59 Guild (Part 2) Boarding the "thief's" ship named Qingduo...

About half an hour ago.

Zhu Yi hurriedly returned with one person. Upon arriving at the agreed-upon place, he couldn't find Qingduo. As he looked around, searching everywhere, he heard someone calling his name:

"Hey! Brother Zhu! I'm here!"

Zhu Yi looked toward the source of the sound, his eyes widened suddenly, and he stood rooted to the spot, completely still.

When he was looking around, he either didn't see the figure in theatrical costume, or he never expected that it was actually Tang Qingduo!

When she left, wasn't she just wearing a veil?

Seeing that he was standing still, Qingduo had no choice but to jog over. Zhu Yi looked her up and down and said in surprise, "I'm just going to find someone, why are you dressed like this?"

"I had no choice," she said, but her eyes sparkled with barely concealed eagerness. "Among so many people, it's so strange to be the only one wearing a veil! I might as well go all the way and buy a costume. Once you have clothes, you can't be without matching shoes. Once you have clothes on your body and feet, you can't be without something on your head. In the end, you can't be without something in your hand, right? So I bought a riding crop."

But what does all this have to do with helping Lu Nong?

Zhu Yi had seen through her; this girl just wanted to stir up trouble!

Look at her smug expression: "With this set, I can finally look like a chivalrous heroine who helps those in distress and upholds justice!"

Zhu Yi's expression was one of indescribable disbelief.

How can I tell her that the costumes of a female knight-errant in real life are completely different from those of a female martial arts performer on stage?

Qingduo was completely unaware that her attire was a far cry from her original intention. She handed a set of clothes to Zhu Yi and the middle-aged man beside him, saying, "You two should change into these too, and dress up as swordsmen like me. Standing in the group dressed like this is too suspicious!"

Zhu Yi unfolded the clothes and saw that, thankfully, she had prepared proper clothes for them. It was probably because she had seen her own attire when she roamed the world before, so she didn't need to use her imagination.

Doesn't the mere presence of three "knights-errant" in the group raise suspicion?

Moreover, in reality, only two of them were knights-errant, and the other was a female martial arts performer on stage.

There couldn't be a more chaotic and glaring combination.

Zhu Yi's mind was in a mess. He instinctively wanted to refuse this absurd arrangement, but then he heard Qing Duo's annoyed voice: "Oh dear, what a blunder! Look at this line! Most of the people watching 'Hua Tang Chun' are women. We should have given you two sets of women's clothing!"

He'll wear it, he'll wear it right now!

*

Sure enough, as the three of them stood in the line, everyone around them kept glancing at them.

Zhu Yi felt it wasn't their fault. Everyone around them was dressed casually in plain clothes, with ordinary attire. In the group, only Qing Duo was dressed in brightly colored clothes—even an exaggerated stage outfit. If he were an observer, he would also be unable to help but take a few more glances.

When he was a wandering knight-errant, he never felt anything amiss wearing this outfit as he roamed the streets. Now, however, with so many eyes watching him, even knowing they weren't looking at him, he felt incredibly uncomfortable. He raised a hand to half-cover his face, as if that would shield him from the embarrassment.

Qingduo also noticed everyone's curious gazes, and Zhu Yi heard her muttering to herself, "They should both dress up as women."

...My little darling, is that the reason? Why don't you take a look down at your clothes?

Zhu Yi regretted his actions. Although he wouldn't admit it, he knew in his heart that Qing Duo was much smarter than him. Although she always did things in a strange and unconventional way, she was still better than him, who couldn't think of any solutions.

But now he felt like he was on a pirate ship.

He should have gone directly to Zeng Zhengqing and Lu Nong! He wouldn't have had to beg his brother-in-law!

Ah—I regret it so much!

Unaware of Zhu Yi's inner turmoil, Qingduo idly flipped through the newly bought copy of "Huatang Chun." Although the last book wasn't written by Sister Lu Nong, she had read it several times with Lu Nong while she was searching for flaws in the book.

She appeared to be reading a book, but in reality, she was listening intently to the girls behind her discussing the plot.

"Chen Siyao and Xie Jingming are a match made in heaven!"

"But I prefer her to be with the young marquis. After all, it turns out that Shen Siyao is actually a princess, raised in the Shen family, so she and the young marquis are a better match!"

"The young marquis is a womanizer. Before meeting the female lead, he was quite the ladies' man and had a history of promiscuity!"

"But the female lead made him turn over a new leaf. In the end, he even refused his family's arranged marriage for her. In the end, he only had one concubine, reserving the position of wife for her. Such a devoted man, sigh, I wish I had one by my side."

"But he still has other women! What kind of devotion is that!"

"In his position, he could have as many women as he wanted with ease! Having only one concubine is already a sign of a good man!"

Qingduo couldn't help but purse her lips as she listened to their discussion of the plot.

If that's the case, she has one such devoted man by her side.

That was her father, Tang Li. Although he frequented brothels, he never remarried. By the young girl's standards, let's see if he was a truly devoted man!

Tsk tsk tsk!

"It's so good to be a man!" Qingduo rolled her eyes. If a woman did this, she would be condemned as "indecent." But when a man does it, he is praised as "devoted."

Does word usage also have gender distinctions?

Judging from Zi Pian's ending, the male protagonist Xie Jingming is truly fortunate. He marries a princess, which gives him a high social standing, and at home, Shen Siyao manages the household and ensures the continuation of their lineage.

It's so similar to the plot of "The Golden Branch"! In the end, they both marry a princess and reach the pinnacle of life.

In an instant, she understood why she loved reading storybooks.

After all, one can dream.

Finally, it was Qingduo and the others' turn. Zipian looked at her attire with a hint of surprise, but still asked, "What would you like to write, young lady?"

Qingduo said solemnly, "I will marry a prince and reach the pinnacle of my life."

Dream on!

The two people behind her: ...

Zi Pian: "...Okay, fine."

After she finished writing, Qingduo eagerly took it and was about to leave when she suddenly remembered what Sister Lu Nong had said last night. She turned back to the table and asked, "Why are the etiquette rules different for the first and third books at the same palace banquet?"

Zi Pian paused for a moment, then said, "Is there a difference?"

"Yes, it was the banquet when she finally regained her princess status and the emperor betrothed her to Xie Jingming again. It was quite different from the banquet when the emperor first bestowed the marriage upon the two of them."

Zi Pian said sheepishly, "Ah, I guess I wrote too much of a jumble of things, and for a moment I couldn't remember the details from before. Thanks to your reminder, I will definitely correct this part when it is revised and republished later."

Qingduo nodded. Since she had already said that, there was no point in asking any more questions. She turned to leave, but suddenly stopped.

etc!

She got them mixed up!

Shen Siyao and Xie Jingming's marriage was clearly arranged by the Shen family through a public search for a son-in-law, not by the emperor himself! It's all my fault for thinking about "The Golden Branch" earlier and unintentionally mixing up the plot of that book with this one.

However, why didn't Zi Pian correct her?

Did she get it mixed up too?

Qingduo turned around and tentatively said, "But in the end, I was deeply moved by them. They became husband and wife because of the emperor's decree. They stumbled along the way, but eventually understood each other. Finally, a new imperial decree brought them a brand new beginning."

"Everything forms a closed loop, going around in circles, yet still loving the person in front of you. No wonder it's Sister Zipian, able to write such a deeply moving work."

"Thank you for liking my story," Zi Pian said with a smile.

Wait, she hasn't corrected it yet?

What's going on?

Qingduo tilted her head and looked at her, completely puzzled. A reader overheard their conversation and couldn't help but say, "Have you even read 'Huatang Chun'? Xie Jingming and Shen Siyao only got together because of the Shen family!"

"That's right, it wasn't because of an imperial edict at all! They can't even remember the details, what a waste of such a good spot!"

Someone sarcastically remarked, "They're rich! A mere three hundred coins is nothing compared to us, who can't even afford to drink much water while waiting in line."

"You wouldn't take Zi Pian's autograph and sell it for money, would you?"

"The discussion of the marriage between the two families is an important plot point; it's the first time the male and female protagonists meet. How could a true reader of 'Huatang Chun' not remember it?"

Listening to their doubts and ridicule, Qingduo calmly retorted, "Just because I misspoke about a key plot point, you say I'm not a reader of 'Huatang Chun'?"

She pointed at Zi Pian: "I've said it twice, but she hasn't pointed out my mistakes. She can't even remember the major plot points she wrote. Can someone like that really be the author of 'Hua Tang Chun'?"

In an instant, the scene fell into dead silence, followed by an uproar.

Is Zi Pian not the author of "Hua Tang Chun"?

Zhu Yi seized the opportunity to say, "No wonder there are rumors that she didn't write this book. She can't even remember the important plot points she wrote herself, so how could she be the real author?"

"I signed so many today that my head is spinning, that's why I didn't notice. It's definitely not because I can't remember the plot!" Zi Pian hurriedly explained, beads of sweat forming on her forehead. She looked around at the readers below, "Please don't believe them, everyone. They're clearly here to cause trouble!"

Immediately, some of her supporters started arguing: "They're just afraid of making Zipian famous, so they're deliberately trying to smear her!"

"Zipian is renowned for his talent, which has attracted jealousy and resentment, leading some to deliberately sabotage him!"

"Zipian is so pitiful! She's just too talented, what did she do wrong?"

The supporters were menacing, glaring at Qingduo, looking ready to pounce. If Zhu Yi hadn't shouted, "Anyone who steps forward, regardless of gender, will be met with my fists!" they probably would have rushed forward and surrounded Qingduo, giving her a beating.

With Zhu Yi and others guarding her, Qingduo remained calm and shouted:

"Tell me! Why did the male and female leads initially have a falling out? How was the female lead's true identity revealed? How did the two eventually reconcile? If you can really explain these key plot points one by one, then you can prove that you are indeed familiar with the story. If so, I will apologize to you in public right now!"

Zi Pian's face flushed red: "You think I'll just tell you to talk? Who do you think you are?" Although she spoke with a tough tone, her voice trembled involuntarily.

Qingduo scoffed, "You've become addicted to stealing books, haven't you? Not only did you copy two of Lu Nong's books completely, but I thought you wrote the third one yourself. I didn't expect it to be someone else's work again! Even I read the book thoroughly to do my homework, but you're so lazy! You just occupy the author's name without even reading it!"

"It's kind of Serinpoche to have prepared a manuscript for you! But with a lazybones like you, even a manuscript is useless!"

"You! You! You're spouting nonsense! I just didn't want to argue with you! Guards! Guards! They're here to cause trouble, get them out of here!" Zi Pian shouted.

Immediately, several men wielding wooden sticks emerged from Shouzhen Hall, shouting, "Which blind fool dares to cause trouble at Grandpa Sai's door? Don't they want to live?"

Zhu Yi shouted loudly, "Brothers, what are we waiting for? Let's show him what our patrol team is all about!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the scattered laborers and merchants suddenly jumped up, ripped off their disguises, drew their hidden weapons, and stood in front of Qingduo and her companion. It turned out that Zhu Yi had deliberately deployed men in advance to protect Qingduo and her companion, knowing that Sailinfu secretly kept thugs and was a vicious person.

Qingduo said slowly, "You don't need to explain to me. If you have something to say, go to the yamen and say it!"

She looked at the middle-aged man beside Zhu Yi and asked:

"Registrar Shen, how about it? Now we finally know who is telling the truth and who is lying, right?"

*

At the booksellers' meeting, Qingduo finished recounting what happened at the calligraphy event.

"...After all, both families submitted manuscripts, and the county government couldn't determine who the real author was for the time being. Shouzhentang also took advantage of the loophole to hold the calligraphy gathering. Of course, thanks to the calligraphy gathering, we were able to get a straightforward result." Qingduo looked at Sailinfu's gloomy face and said with a smile.

"Therefore, we specifically asked Registrar Shen to act as a notary. Just now, through handwriting comparison and questioning, we have confirmed that Zi Pian is a genuine imposter!"

She watched as Serin's face gradually slumped down, and she had no intention of letting him off the hook.

"Oh dear! Manager Sai, I'm so sorry! The calligraphy event you painstakingly organized has fallen apart right away! Not only could the event not be held, but many deceived readers are also crowding the door demanding refunds! Even your precious author, Zi Pian, has been taken to the county government office, waiting for you to bring money to rescue her!"

Qingduo sighed with feigned sympathy and patted his shoulder: "Old Sai! You can't do this! Next time you want to promote someone, you have to find someone more diligent, at least someone who will read the manuscript you gave her carefully. Oh, and you have to find someone with thick skin, at least someone like you, who can withstand questioning and deny everything!"

"Zipian admitted it as soon as she was frightened in front of Registrar Shen. Sigh, really, you only cared about giving her the manuscript, why didn't you teach her the art of being shameless?"

The business owners present, by seniority, were her uncles, some even her grandfathers. Even the younger ones like Zeng Zhengqing and Lu Nong were her older brothers and sisters. Hearing the young woman's pretentious words, they couldn't help but laugh. Those who privately disliked Sailinfu couldn't help but gloat at his current misfortune.

A flash of anger crossed Serinfu's eyes, but it vanished in an instant. He suddenly slapped his thigh and sighed, "My dear niece, how could you stoop so low! Even if you want to get ahead and make more money, you shouldn't have harmed your uncle! I trusted you wholeheartedly and tried to explain things to you at every turn! Alas! Isn't this putting me in an unjust position?"

Sailinfu was indeed hiding something! Qingduo became even more certain.

Look at that brilliant "golden cicada shedding its shell" move, he didn't teach it to Zi Pian!