Chapter 7
The lights are shining brightly on the shore of Yu Lake.
After the carriage stopped, Zhao Congyun took Yue Mingming's hand and walked calmly to the main seat in the middle.
Yue Mingming looked calm, but he was actually very panicked inside.
Where had she ever seen such a scene...
The banquet stretched as far as the eye could see, with exquisite lanterns lighting up every table. The tables were filled with a dazzling array of delicacies, the jade plates shone brightly, and the aroma of wine filled the air. I heard that it was the finest wine sent as tribute from foreign countries.
The guests present included both officials and dignitaries with their families, as well as famous literati. At this moment, without exception, they all locked their eyes on her and whispered to each other.
No need to ask, it's definitely not good.
Zhao Congyun brought his concubine around so ostentatiously that he gained a reputation as a carefree and playboy, while she became a pariah.
It’s so unfair!
Yue Mingming raised her head in anger, acting like a fighting cock, looking like a domineering concubine.
The buzzing below grew louder.
Zhao Congyun just happened to pull her into his arms at this moment and gave her a light kiss on the cheek.
…………
Yue Mingming's face turned red instantly.
It's not shame, it's anger!
Zhao Congyun had clearly not drunk a single glass of wine, but he seemed already drunk... The light fell on his handsome profile, and Yue Mingming suddenly found it difficult to recognize him.
When I saw him in the past, he was either noble and unruly, or cold and mean. Even when he was furious, he still maintained the demeanor of a gentleman, and never showed the slightest bit of frivolity.
But now, he seems not to be himself...
After such a frivolous gesture, his eyes were full of teasing, and he laughed with everyone else, which made her very uncomfortable.
Yue Mingming forced himself to maintain his composure and followed him to sit down.
Zhao Congyun waved his hand casually, and accompanied by the melodious sound of stringed instruments, a group of dancers entered the venue. Leading the group was a graceful woman with a veil covering her face. She bowed gracefully, then sang and danced, and the banquet officially began.
"Pour the wine."
Zhao Congyun leaned against the jade table and gave a low order.
Yue Mingming remembered that in addition to being a good vase, this was also her important responsibility tonight.
After Uncle Dong's training, Yue Mingming has mastered the basic etiquette. At this moment, Yue Mingming holds the jade pot in his bare hands, and the slender line of wine falls steadily into the cup. The whole set of movements is smooth and flowing, which is very pleasing to the eye.
There were some playboys in the audience who were so fascinated by the show that they cheered without any hesitation!
The corners of Zhao Congyun's lips curled up slightly, his eyes fell on the filled wine glass, the meaning should not be too obvious -
She needed to feed him this glass of wine.
Ambiguous instigation gradually sounded around, and Yue Mingming's fake smile was about to disappear.
"Why are you shy? Didn't we agree on this at home?" Zhao Congyun laughed out loud.
This is a hint to her!
Yue Mingming was helpless. He picked up the wine glass and handed it to Zhao Congyun's lips. He gritted his teeth and whispered, "Don't go too far!"
Zhao Congyun lazily held the wine glass and drank it all in one gulp. He heard loud cheers from the table below. He seemed to be encouraged by something. He rolled up his long sleeves and pulled Yue Mingming over again.
Yue Mingming struggled secretly, but Zhao Congyun's grip was so strong that he held her tightly, making her unable to move at all.
"Are you crazy? Why are you doing this?" Yue Mingming said angrily.
"Didn't you see that they liked it very much?" Zhao Congyun's warm breath was obviously drunk.
Yue Mingming's body stiffened——
She suddenly remembered the sedan bearer who jumped on her that day.
Zhao Congyun noticed that the person in his arms was trembling slightly.
Looking down, the normally sharp-tongued, aggressive girl now had a mist in her eyes. The anger on her face vanished, replaced by a deep fear of him... and disgust.
Zhao Congyun's smile suddenly froze and he unconsciously let go of his hand.
Just at this moment, the leading dancer in the center of the dance floor played the pipa in her arms, which immediately attracted everyone's attention.
No one noticed their embarrassment at the moment.
Zhao Congyun was silent for a moment, poured himself a drink, and said lightly: "Are you... okay?"
"Um."
Yue Mingming's voice was muffled, and his body instinctively moved away. When he saw this, Zhao Congyun's eyes dimmed.
“…What should we do next?”
Yue Mingming thought, if she and Zhao Congyun had such cold faces, wouldn’t the big show be ruined?
"You don't have to worry about it."
It was hard to tell whether Zhao Congyun's tone was anger or depression. He suddenly stood up, picked up the wine jug, and by the time the guests reacted, he was already in the center of the dance floor.
The dancer holding the pipa's eyes flickered and plucked a few strings with her delicate hands, with a naked teasing tone.
Zhao Congyun drank a pot of wine and flirted with the dancer in public.
Some busybodies looked at Yue Mingming with ill intentions.
Zhao Congyun found a new love in public, and his delicate concubine was neglected in the blink of an eye. It would be a huge joke if this were to be made public!
Yue Mingming's face did not look good indeed - she didn't understand what Zhao Congyun was up to. He said he would clear up the misunderstanding, but why did he make the rumors true?
Just because she didn't let him hug her, he got angry?
She hadn't said anything yet, but he gave up first!
Yue Mingming was speechless. Just as he was thinking about how to explain himself back, a man walked over from the end of the banquet.
People just thought he was a drunk young man, but they didn't expect that this person would rush into the dance floor and punch Zhao Congyun.
Zhao Congyun was caught completely off guard and took the blow, leaving a bruise on his cheek. The man still refused to give up and swung his fist again, but Uncle Dong had already dodged and subdued him.
The guard rushed over and saw that Zhao Congyun's face was ashen and seemed to have scars. He was so scared that his knees went weak.
"Who dares to cause trouble? And even hurt the prince!"
Someone in the crowd recognized him: "Isn't this Li Si, the new censor?"
Li Si was pinned to the ground, cursing profusely. His words were filled with anger towards Zhao Congyun for his philandering ways and his betrayal of his wife. After hearing a few of his words, everyone suddenly became excited.
Is there a story between these three people?
Yue Mingming is overwhelmed. He hasn’t yet dealt with Zhao Congyun, so what’s going on with this big brother who suddenly appeared?
The system cheerfully reminded, "Li Si, a seventh-rank censor, has been a childhood sweetheart of the character you're playing. When he was eighteen, he proposed to your father, but was rejected. For so many years, he's been in a bittersweet relationship and vowed never to marry."
Yue Mingming: “…………”
Seeing the young man with fair skin and long arms and legs falling awkwardly to the ground, Yue Mingming felt a little touched.
"Let him go."
Zhao Congyun saw Li Si's face clearly and gave orders in a deep voice.
Yue Mingming was about to sigh, "This guy is quite magnanimous," but the next second, Zhao Congyun picked up a pot of wine from the table and poured it all over Li Si's face: "Master Censor, you've had too much to drink. Why don't you sober up?"
Li Si was startled by the water and stumbled to his feet. Regardless of his embarrassment, he pointed at Zhao Congyun's nose and said, "You are not worthy of her at all! Since you don't cherish her, I will take her away today!"
He looked at the stunned girl with a scorching gaze: "Mingming, come with me!"
Yue Mingming was stunned for a moment.
This was the first time someone called out her name in the gaming world.
Obviously.
It took her a long time to realize that Li Sihuan must have called her by her nickname.
But she was still very happy. Everyone here called her Mrs. Yue or Madam Yue. Finally, someone called her Yue Mingming.
Perhaps the joy in her eyes was too obvious, and people around her immediately misunderstood and thought that she and Li Si really had an affair.
Even Li Si was excited. "Mingming, you're willing, aren't you? You don't have to be afraid... Even if he's a royal relative, he's no match for etiquette and law. He was the one who wronged you first. Even if I have to sue him in the Imperial Palace, I will save you from this sea of suffering!"
Yue Mingming choked.
That's not what she meant!
Eloping while married is too exciting. Even in the game, she is not bold enough to do that.
"Master Censor... do you think I'm dead?"
Zhao Congyun spoke sinisterly, took a step forward, and forced their gazes apart.
He was taller than Li Si, and he stretched out his long arms, twisting them around Li Si's neck with an aggressive, oppressive air. "Who do you think you are? You came to my party and tried to steal my woman?"
Yue Mingming thought of Zhao Congyun's glorious record in fighting, and thought to himself that it was not good. If a weak scholar like Li Si got beaten up, he would probably lose half his life.
She hurried over to stop him: "Wait... Your Majesty, please show mercy!"
Zhao Congyun's eyes darkened when he heard this, and he exerted force with his hands. Li Si's face immediately turned red and he couldn't breathe.
Yue Mingming pried his hand away with all his strength: "Let go...let go! I won't leave!"
"What did you say?" Li Si said in a hoarse voice.
"I can't go with you... I've already married him, so I'm his... You'd better forget me." Yue Mingming said sourly with a stiff upper lip.
Zhao Congyun loosened his grip, glanced at Yue Mingming with a complicated expression, and said nothing.
"So what if you get married? You can divorce him, and I can ask him to write a letter of divorce... I don't care!" Li Si said with tears in his eyes.
Yue Mingming sighed inwardly. She had already received the divorce letter, but she still couldn't go with him.
If Li Si didn't have such deep feelings for her, she could have taken the opportunity to leave the palace and live a quiet life for the next six months.
But he liked her so much...if she agreed, she would be deceiving him.
She was not his childhood sweetheart at all, and more importantly, she was going to leave one day.
Yue Mingming ignored the pointing and talking of the people around him and Zhao Congyun's ambiguous gaze. He reached out and straightened Li Si's messy gown and patted him on the shoulder.
"Let's... just forget each other."
After she finished speaking, she took Zhao Congyun's cold hand and winked at him: "Let's go drink, as we agreed before!"
Zhao Congyun let her pull him without resisting.
"Yue Mingming!" Li Si called out to her, "Look who you married!"
He suddenly kicked the table over, breaking the dishes and bowls, cracking the jade pot, and spilling the fine wine all over the floor.
Li Si pointed at the mess on the ground and laughed heartily. "'The rich feast on the rich, while the poor freeze to death on the streets.' The words of the old Shaoling are still ringing in my ears. Zhao Congyun, let me ask you, what do the lives of hundreds of thousands of Jiangzhou citizens mean to you?"
"Right now, the floods in the south haven't subsided, and the wars in the north are ongoing. Who are you throwing a grand banquet here, singing and dancing for? Are you worthy of your teacher's years of teaching?"
Zhao Congyun froze in place.
Yue Mingming felt his body suddenly tense up and her hands were clenched so tightly that it hurt. She wanted to pull him away, but found that she couldn't pull him away at all.
"Am I wrong? Zhao Congyun, you've spent years reading sage books, and all that's been wasted! You had lofty ambitions when you were a student, but now you can only indulge in pleasure in the arms of a woman!"
There was complete silence all around, and everyone was staring at Zhao Congyun's back nervously.
Only Yue Mingming could clearly see his face hidden in the shadows.
Her heart sank.
That madman Li Si was talking about all sorts of things. Zhao Congyun felt so hurt that he wanted to kill someone!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
