Chapter 669 Master Han
As Song Chunxue walked on the floor of the Zhao residence, her mouth never had a chance to close.
The artificial hills and flowing water, the covered walkways and painted boats exuding the fragrance of wood, the acacia trees adorned with lanterns, the neatly dressed and beautiful maids, the dazzling array of food, and the exquisite tables in the courtyard with various stones made Song Chunxue feel as if she were in a dream.
Walking through the expensive and exquisitely luxurious corridors, she even felt that the only flaw in the courtyard was the lack of flowers and beautiful women to adorn it.
But she kept her mouth tightly shut when they entered the garden.
Everywhere she looked were all sorts of exotic flowers and plants, and the soft glow of the lanterns made them look exceptionally beautiful. Song Chunxue could never have dreamed of such a beautiful scene.
Not to mention the people here, chatting and laughing in twos and threes, some playing the zither and others playing chess.
There was also a winding stream nearby, where several people drank and chatted across a table.
At this moment, Song Chunxue admitted that she felt somewhat resentful, somewhat jealous, and somewhat heartbroken.
In her past life, she was a peasant who met a tragic end and lived a miserable life. She had never seen such a scene before. When describing rich people, she would only say: "Their floor tiles are paved with gold."
But in the eyes of truly wealthy people, paving the floor with gold is so vulgar. Paving the floor with precious golden silk wood or priceless jade and emeralds is much more pleasing to the eye than using gold.
She and Liu Chunshu were like two naive dogs who had never seen the world. Eventually, they couldn't even marvel anymore; they just stared blankly, the smell of money wafting through their nostrils.
From the moment he entered until he sat down, Xie Zheng greeted many people, some of whom were his classmates and others were his former colleagues. After a few words, they would jokingly offer to send Xie Zheng a beautiful woman, but Xie Zheng declined them all.
The excuse he always used was that he didn't lack close confidants around him these days.
Then his old acquaintances smiled and nodded, saying that he should have done this a long time ago and shouldn't make things difficult for himself.
Some people mocked and ridiculed Xie Zheng for being ungrateful and pretentious, but Xie Zheng didn't back down. He used his own words to retaliate by pointing out the other party's predicament.
Those who are lustful say they can tell he's been drained of his resources over the years and advise him to be more restrained. Those who are gluttonous say they've eaten too many delicacies over the years and that occasionally eating vegetarian food will help them live longer. The group laughs and scolds him for being successful now, insulting him without using any vulgar language.
Song Chunxue listened quietly and deeply understood what it meant to speak human language to human beings and ghost language to ghosts.
It must be admitted that Xie Zheng, once he's figured things out, is quite charming. He can handle anyone with ease and resolve any kind of difficult situation with effortless skill.
But he would always turn back to look at her from time to time, which made her feel a strange sweetness in her heart.
Is this what it feels like to be constantly thought of?
Finally, after the clinking of glasses and the enjoyment of food and drink, the center of the large venue was filled with all kinds of gambling stones.
There were also several titans in the jade gambling industry nearby.
Xie Zheng turned to Song Chunxue behind him, "Which stone do you think is the most valuable?"
“I don’t understand these things, you know. My luck later on was rarely based on anything. Why don’t I just pick whoever I’m lucky with and take a gamble?” Song Chunxue started picking from the left, “Pick, pick, pick, pick the tiger, pick…”
Xie Zheng couldn't help but chuckle, "You're really too casual. If you lose, I'll have to pay out a large sum of money tonight."
"What is destined to be yours will be yours, and what is not, you cannot force. Relax, and wealth will come naturally." Song Chunxue stopped pointing and said, pointing to the second one on the left, "This one, you won't lose money betting on this one."
Xie Zheng nodded and told Liu Chunshu to place his sign in front of the second stone.
When he returned, Liu Chunshu frowned, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back.
"What's wrong?" Xie Zheng took a sip of tea. "Why do you look so worried?"
“That stone is too ugly, and it looks the smallest. There are the most stone plaques next to it. Even if it's imperial green inside, you won't be able to cut much out of it.” Liu Chunshu lowered his voice. “Should the Taoist priest check it again?”
"The worst thing about betting is wavering. If we lose, we lose. At worst, we can go to Hotan to collect stones tomorrow. It's a sure thing." Song Chunxue waved her hand dismissively. "I just heard someone say that there's also a bet on a beautiful woman later. If you win, can you take her home?"
Xie Zheng and Liu Chunshu suddenly looked at him.
"You want a beautiful woman?"
Song Chunxue quickly waved her hand, "How could that be? I was just curious."
She simply felt that this place of extravagance and debauchery, this absurd way of behaving, was not in a restaurant or a casino, but in the home of royalty. No wonder the court was unstable and beset by internal and external troubles.
Under the emperor's nose, such indulgence in frivolous pursuits and unrestrained pleasures is why their empire is in such a precarious state.
How tragic.
But what does this have to do with her being a farmer?
A few days ago, she saw a sentence.
When a dynasty prospers, the people suffer; when a dynasty falls, the people suffer.
Through countless changes of dynasties and the transformation of the world, the common people always suffer the most.
An old man who had studied Zhuangzi once said that the world does not belong to the emperor, but to the powerful clans.
"Lord Xie, how have you been? I didn't expect you to be here on such an occasion." Chang Jiang suddenly sat down in front of Xie Zheng in a sarcastic tone. "Lord Xie used to disdain such occasions the most. Are you here today to curry favor with Lord Zhao too?"
"Can't I come?" Xie Zheng glanced at him, not taking it to heart.
Song Chunxue moved to the side to avoid being noticed by him.
"I was wondering why the person next to you looked so familiar. Where did Lord Xie pick up this nun from? She's dressed as a man, aren't you afraid of being laughed at? Could it be that Lord Xie has some kind of shady hobby?"
Chang Jiang turned to look at the person next to him with a leisurely air. "I didn't realize that he was so decisive when he rejected your sister's marriage proposal, like a righteous gentleman who wouldn't compromise with worldly ways. Now it seems that he's gotten old and is just like us old mudskippers."
Song Chunxue stopped hiding and looked up at him openly.
"Is your wife cured?" She raised an eyebrow with a half-smile. "Aren't you afraid I'll reveal something else?"
Chang Jiang's face immediately turned ugly, a hint of viciousness flashed in his eyes, and he moved his back teeth, looking as if he was about to make a move.
But he quickly put on a smile, "Oh, I almost forgot, you Taoist priest, you have a foul mouth that caused my wife to fall ill. I haven't settled the score with you yet. Lord Han, why don't you let your Taoist priest Han take a look and see if this Taoist priest who pretends to be a ghost has other purposes in breaking up the marriage between the Chang and Xie families?"
Lord Han?
Master Han?
Song Chunxue couldn't help but look at Lord Han and noticed that his features bore a resemblance to those of the Taoist priest Han.
Was that Taoist priest Han someone who truly wanted to take Wuyou away?
Also, since my senior brother is close to Master Han, is he able to see through people's hearts and distinguish between their good and evil?
"Chang Jiang, the jade gambling has begun. Don't be afraid to block my view. As in-laws, it's clearly my Yun'er who's at a disadvantage. If you're still angry and want to settle things, why don't we set a time to settle our score once and for all?"
Xie Zheng's cold and calm voice sent a chill down Chang Jiang's spine.
"Hmph, no need. My Chang family will just consider it a dog bite." Chang Jiang flicked his sleeve and turned to leave.
Song Chunxue's gaze fell on Master Han, who was walking towards them. He was not wearing a Taoist robe today; he was tall and elegant, with an otherworldly air, just like he had been at the restaurant that day.
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