The drunken old man, Qin Weixi, looked at the old man and smiled, "Uncle,..."
The drunken old man was carelessly tossed onto the street by the servants of Woxue Pavilion. The old man didn't care about the whispers and stares of the people around him. He still held his wine gourd and rolled around on the ground once, then staggered to his feet and disappeared into the night.
Songyang followed him for two streets before discovering that the old man had entered a slightly dilapidated house in Zhuyu Lane.
Inside the Snow Pavilion, Chu Yening, carrying his "beauty," descended the wooden steps and headed out. His actions had drawn the attention of many people in the hall and the stands. The theater manager, seeing him about to leave, hurriedly chased after him: "Is this gentleman leaving? The performance on stage isn't over yet, why not listen a little longer?" He still wore a friendly smile and bowed slightly to show respect. However, the sharp glint in his eyes and the six or seven burly servants who gradually surrounded him revealed his true attitude.
Hidden in the darkness, Qin Weixi watched the indistinct but gradually approaching figures, yet felt a strange sense of peace in their embrace.
Song Zijin and Song Yang had been hiding in the shadows. Song Yang had already left to chase the drunken old man, leaving Song Zijin alone. To avoid alerting the enemy, both she and Song Yang unfastened their swords before leaving, keeping only a short dagger in their sleeves. Seeing the servants who had been serving tea and water suddenly surround the wooden steps, she drew her dagger and was about to step forward when she was suddenly pulled back by a strong force from both sides.
Sparrow Tongue and Nine Bends pulled her to a corner together. Sparrow Tongue whispered, "Calm down."
Chu Yening lowered his eyes to look at the girl in his arms whose face he couldn't see, his eyes full of tenderness. But that tenderness vanished the moment he turned his head away, leaving only a sharp look in his eyes.
He gave a chilling smile: "A moment of bliss... you dog, how dare you stop me!" As he spoke, Chu Yening had already kicked him viciously.
Because the walk from the lobby to the second-floor stands required passing through an indoor corridor with screens on both sides, and since the two men had already descended from the stands and were hidden behind these screens, the spectators in the lobby had no idea what had happened.
The leader was kicked so suddenly that he staggered back several steps. Several servants behind him rolled up their sleeves and stepped forward with fierce expressions, but the leader stopped them with a low shout. He straightened his disheveled clothes and stepped forward with a fawning smile, saying, "Sir, let's talk this out. Everyone in the stands is a distinguished guest. I find you very familiar, which is why I came forward to inquire. If you are not satisfied with this performance, I will change it. Or you can come with me to the back hall for drinks."
Chu Yening sneered: "You do have a good memory, but no one in this world can stop me."
Several colorful lights shone from the corridor, casting a halo that half-illuminated his body. Qin Weixi listened silently to everything in the darkness, and vaguely heard a few people walking down from the stands behind him. At that moment, without thinking, Qin Weixi broke free from the darkness, climbed up his neck, and pressed his head tightly against his chest.
Chu Yening's eyelashes suddenly trembled slightly.
"Fourth Brother..." It was a soft and coquettish tone she had never used before.
Chu Yening's heart skipped a beat again. The wine they had just drunk was Gu Zhu Zi Sun, not the strong liquor that would make people drunk and unable to control themselves in a state of confusion.
The girl in his arms cried out again in a sweet voice, "Fourth Brother... let's go home..."
Chu Yening curled the corners of her lips into a smile, then gave a mischievous grin and whispered close to her, "Very good."
The leader opposite could only vaguely see the profile of the person in his arms. Recalling the scene from the stands earlier, he realized it was a woman. His eyes flashed, then he feigned further conversation with the "distinguished guest" in the stands, casually taking a step forward. However, Chu Yening's gaze swept over him coldly, then he chuckled: "You think you can look at my people!"
No sooner had Chu Yening finished speaking than Sparrow Tongue and Nine Bends, who had been hiding in the shadows, rushed across the corridor and surrounded him. Holding their swords, they stepped forward respectfully and said, "Lord Marquis!" Then, Nine Bends held up a token with the character "Chu" on it and displayed it in front of everyone, saying coldly, "Open your dog eyes and take a good look at who this esteemed master is!"
The leader was startled and hurriedly knelt down, trembling. The servants behind him followed suit. Everyone knew of the valiant General Chu Lanzhe, and no one was unaware of the immense glory the Chu, Qin, and Luo families enjoyed when Emperor Taizu was still alive.
However, Chu Yening didn't look at the crowd again. Her voice remained lazy, but it was filled with displeasure: "Annoying. Don't follow me. This Woxue Pavilion is far inferior to the Royal Opera House. I won't come here again."
"I still want to enjoy this spring night..." He stopped there, laughed, and slowly walked out of the corridor with the girl in his arms, heading towards the gate of Woxue Pavilion.
Songyang and Zijin were already waiting not far from Woxue Pavilion, beside four identical carriages. Songyang stepped forward and whispered, "Master, in Zhuyu Lane."
He gently placed Qin Weixi inside the carriage and quickly lowered the curtain. Therefore, Songyang and his companion could only see a figure shrouded in a black cloak; nothing else. Sparrow Tongue and Nine Bends arrived one after the other.
Chu Yening said, "We should not delay, let's go to Zhuyu Lane." He then spread out his palm: "Knife."
Songyang immediately understood and handed over the short dagger. The four men surrounding him watched as he drew the sharp curved blade from its sheath and, without hesitation, slashed his own clothes, revealing a thin strip of cloth in his palm. He then leaped onto the carriage and headed inside.
Inside the carriage, Qin Weixi saw that light again, surrounded by the faint fragrance lingering from the cloak and his scent. She reached into her hair, suddenly remembering the jade crown that he had carelessly knocked off and left on the ground. Just as she was about to speak, the person outside the curtain seemed to sense something, lifting a corner of the curtain and handing her a strip of black cloth.
Inside the carriage, Jiuqu chuckled, "There are quite a few little tails around today. Let's play with them for a bit before shaking them off, otherwise it'll be no fun." He then raised an eyebrow at Zijin, "Miss Song, why don't you sit with me?"
Song Zijin couldn't help but twitch her lips as she looked at his "mask" of naivety.
Sparrow Tongue raised an eyebrow and sneered, "Fool, watch out when Wooden Child comes back and beats you up."
Jiuqu laughed heartily: "But he hasn't come back yet, has he?" He then looked at Zijin: "Miss Song, is he alright?"
Song Zijin, as if he hadn't heard anything, boarded one of the carriages first, and Queshe quickly followed, sitting on the deck of another carriage. Looking back at Songyang, he saw him sitting expressionlessly in the Marquis's carriage, preparing to leave.
Jiuqu: "..."
He felt wronged to himself, "Am I really that unpopular?"
Inside the carriage, Qin Weixi was wrapping her hair, which was gathered together, with a strip of cloth when Chu Yening suddenly reached out and said slyly, "Seventh Sister, why don't you use this ready-made helper?"
Qin Weixi looked up at him: "You know how to tie your hair? I can do it myself."
However, Chu Yening got up and sat down next to her without saying a word. Just as she was about to speak, he turned her body around, indicating that she should turn her back to him, and said gently, "Don't move."
"Why are you being so distant with me now? Hey, can you let me stay in this sweet dream a little longer?" He smiled as he tied her hair up, watching her back, and then tied the strip of cloth in a knot when she noticed it.
Qin Weixi was beside him and couldn't see his expression, but she could hear the faint, drawn-out tone in his voice.
She suddenly turned around, moving closer to him little by little until their eyes met: "Otherwise what?"
Chu Yening smiled again, his captivating eyes fixed intently on her: "You've touched me, you've hugged me. Fourth Brother wants you to take responsibility, is that alright?"
Qin Weixi: "..."
Four identical carriages, indistinguishable from one another, gradually drove away from the alley. The theater's leader, seeing the carriages had gone far, led a group of servants in pursuit. One of them couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement: "Sir, these... these carriages all look the same! This Marquis Jingning, sir, could he be the person that Consort Cai, who came to the theater a few days ago, mentioned after drinking? Look at his terrifying face... should we still chase after him?"
The leader narrowed his eyes upon seeing this: "Stop wasting so much time! Chase them! Send more men! See where they went."
Songyang drove the carriage around the city again and again, with Queshe, Song Zijin, and Jiuqu assisting. The group began to play a trick on him, and it wasn't until the time it takes for an incense stick to burn that Songyang stopped the carriage not far from Zhuyu Lane, at the end of an inconspicuous alley.
Qin Weixi felt dizzy and disoriented after getting off the carriage, which reminded her of the dizzying moment she experienced at Jingyun Temple that day. Chu Yening supported her from the side, his handsome brows furrowing slightly: "How are you?"
Qin Weixi waved her hand: "It's nothing." She pointed to the old man's residence: "Go quickly, important business is at hand."
Chu Yening raised his eyelids and glanced at Song Yang. Song Yang, understanding the situation, jumped onto the wall and quickly opened the locked wooden door from the inside. Qin Weixi, one hand on the carriage wall, assumed he and Song Yang had already entered the house. Suddenly, a large hand reached out and stroked her head, seemingly massaging her acupoints.
Qin Weixi was quite surprised, but gradually relaxed and asked him, "Fourth Brother, did you secretly study medicine behind our backs?" But the person behind her didn't answer. Then she heard a soft chuckle. After a long while, he asked, "Feeling better?"
Qin Weixi nodded: "It's much better now."
Behind a weathered old wooden door, vegetables and colorful flowers grew in abundance. The courtyard was also very clean and well-maintained, showing that it was tended by someone who took great care of things. But the drunken old man who had just appeared in the Snow Pavilion was clearly out of place in this garden.
The old man, still clutching the jade gourd, lay slumped in a flowerbed, seemingly unconscious from drunkenness. Seeing this, Chu Yening plucked a blade of grass, squatted down, and gently waved it near the old man's nose.
The old man wrinkled his nose at this, then sneezed and opened his eyes.
The old man suddenly swayed to his feet, looking at his flowerbed and sighing repeatedly, "Ah... my flowers, my flowers!" As he spoke, he let out a drunken hiccup, then laughed as if he hadn't seen the group of people and was about to go into the house: "A sip of wine, a bite of meat... life is truly wonderful!"
Chu Yening murmured from behind, "Old man, stop pretending."
The drunken old man, seemingly oblivious, walked into the house. Then he heard someone behind him say again, "I have the finest Fragrant Snow Wine in my mansion. One sip and you'll be dreaming for three days straight."
Upon hearing this, the old man abruptly stamped his foot, then turned around. Only then did he seem to notice the three people, and he drunkenly said, "Where did these young ladies and gentlemen come from!"
Qin Weixi stepped forward and helped him to a wicker chair by the flower bushes. The old man chuckled and said, "Little girl, do you have any wine?"
Qin Weixi looked at the old man and smiled, "Uncle, a jar of wine for a story."
Chu Yening smiled upon hearing this and stepped forward, saying, "Old man, we didn't come here to cause you any trouble! We just heard you call out 'Third Master Fang' at the theater earlier, and we wanted to ask if you are very familiar with this Third Master Fang?"
The old man's hazy, weathered eyes flickered briefly, then returned to their drunken state, and he murmured, "Third Master, who is Third Master?"
Chu Yening glanced at the Zhuyu Lane and this small space behind him again, and laughed, "Old man, it seems you were kicked out?" He then looked up at the drunken old man, "I wonder if you are an old friend of that tea merchant from back then, or someone who worked in that teahouse!"
Upon hearing this, the old man's clear and sharp eyes swept over the scene, and he quickly stood up from the rattan chair.
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