Unaware of their reaction, Young Master Mu, who had greeted Xin Jiuwei first, smiled and asked her.
"Cousin, you've come from Yingzhou, you must have heard of the reputation of Panyue Tower, right? These songstresses were all invited from Panyue Tower, and I've heard their skills are excellent. Cousin, please listen to what they have to say."
Qi Xinghui ate several kinds of exquisite fruits and said upon hearing this, "What are you shouting about? Who is your cousin?"
Young Master Mu unfolded his fan and waved it, "Brother Huaihe and I are half-brothers, and Brother Huaihe's cousin is my cousin."
Qi Xinghui rolled her eyes. "You wish! There are plenty of people who want to be Jiuwei's cousin."
The group started chatting and laughing again. Xin Jiuwei chatted with them for a while, and then the songstresses began to perform in an orderly fashion.
The songstress playing the zither was the first to sing. She seemed somewhat restless, her gaze frequently drifting towards Xin Jiuwei.
Later on, I even played a few wrong notes and injured my fingernails.
"Ah." Her face was a little pale, and she quickly knelt down to apologize, "Please forgive me, gentlemen."
Young Master Mu stepped forward and helped her up, saying, "It was just an accident, don't panic."
The songstress looked at him gratefully, and was about to speak when she saw Xin Jiuwei stand up and slowly walk towards her.
"Your nail is broken, you should get it fixed," Xin Jiuwei said gently. "I have some medicine here, I'll go with you."
The songstress seemed flattered, and then glanced hesitantly at the others present.
Qi Huaihe didn't pay attention to her, but said to Xin Jiuwei, "Call the people from the restaurant. Awei, stay here and don't wander around."
"It's alright," Xin Jiuwei said obediently. "Cousin Huaihe, the people at the restaurant might not care about them. Her finger was bleeding, and it pained me to see it. Anyway, it's just a small favor, I'll be right back."
Qi Huaihe felt that she was kind-hearted, so he said, "Then be careful and come back quickly, and take your maid with you."
Xin Jiuwei bowed, took Wang Qing with her, and personally led the songstress to a secluded spot.
Once everyone was alone, Xin Jiuwei asked Wang Qing to bring out some medicine for external injuries. "Take care of it first, then we can talk about what you want to say to me."
The songstress's face had lost its previous tension and panic, and she was now completely calm.
"I didn't expect that the Third Miss would also come to Yuncheng."
Xin Jiuwei frowned, "You're working for Qi Huaiyu, but he didn't tell you I was also in Yuncheng?"
The heavily made-up songstress in front of him was Qi Huaiyu's subordinate, the one who almost framed his brother at Panyue Tower that day.
The songstress looked surprised, as if she wanted to say something.
But then Xin Jiuwei said, "You don't need to deny it, nor do you need to ask me how I know. But you are a smart person, and you should also know that I already knew your intentions that day at Panyue Tower."
The songstress pursed her lips and asked, "Then what brings the Third Miss to see me today?"
"What did Qi Huaiyu send you here for?" Xin Jiuwei asked directly. "Is it related to me, or anyone close to me?"
The songstress remained silent.
After a while, she asked an unrelated question, "I heard the other day that Young Master Xin took on a master. How has he been lately?"
Xin Jiuwei was a little surprised, but then she realized what was wrong and laughed, "What could be wrong with him? Are you worried that he's indulging in a life of debauchery somewhere because he hasn't been to a karaoke bar for several days?"
“I didn’t think that way,” the songstress said. “Third Miss, I was summoned by Qi Huaiyu. I was originally here to help him gather some information, but yesterday, he asked me to do something else for him.”
Xin Jiuwei frowned. "What is it?"
The songstress paused, then whispered, "He wants me to seduce that young master Qi and make it known to everyone."
The surroundings fell silent for a few moments.
A surge of anger rose within Xin Jiuwei.
She knew Qi Huaiyu too well; the songstress only said one sentence, and Xin Jiuwei guessed Qi Huaiyu's intention.
It seems that these days he saw her getting closer to Qi Huaihe, and fearing that the Qi family would try to match them up, he wanted to sabotage the relationship and damage Qi Huaihe's reputation!
Sure enough, it was the kind of insidious scheme he could come up with!
Xin Jiuwei suppressed her anger, but her anger gave her a cold smile.
"Cousin Huaihe is highly skilled in martial arts and also very intelligent. How can you be so sure you can succeed?"
The songstress lowered her eyes. "Qi Huaiyu... gave me a fragrance and a medicine."
Xin Jiuwei laughed angrily, "He really will use any means necessary."
She then looked at the courtesan, "Since you're helping her, why are you telling me? I saw through your intentions at the brothel that day. You listened to him and deliberately framed my brother. Why are you concerned about him now?"
The songstress remained silent for a moment, then suddenly knelt down slowly.
Xin Jiuwei was taken aback, and Wang Qing rushed over to help the person up.
"You're not planning to use the same trick again, are you?"
The songstress shook her head and took out a small porcelain bottle from her wide sleeve.
"This is the ointment that Young Master Xin gave me the other day. I didn't finish using it, so please help me return it to its rightful owner, Miss San."
Xin Jiuwei frowned as she looked at the small blue porcelain bottle in her hand.
“Since it was given to you by my brother, he won’t think of taking it back. You can keep it.”
"It's just a medicated ointment, why make such a fuss?"
The songstress shook her head, her expression solemn. "To me, it's not just a medicated ointment."
Seeing that Xin Jiuwei and Wang Qing did not make a move, she withdrew her hand, holding the small porcelain bottle tightly in her palm.
"The Third Miss is a noble lady from a prestigious family, so naturally she doesn't understand the hardships of our lowly lives. I wasn't born to perform in a brothel either."
"Miss San must also be wondering why I listened to Qi Huaiyu and why I risked my life for him?"
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