The madam got angry and yelled, "You even kept Young Master Li with you that night..." She swallowed the word "all night" before she could finish it. "How could you go to sleep so early? It's so noisy outside, how could you possibly sleep? Quickly open the door and let the guest in."
With a loud bang, the door actually opened, but it wasn't the maid who served Chu Nian who opened it, but Zhao Feiyan.
"Yanyan, you're here too! Where's Niannian? Hurry up and get her out to greet the guests," the madam said irritably.
Zhao Feiyan said, "My sister has already gone to sleep." As she spoke, she glanced at the "distinguished guest" behind the madam. It was the man on horseback she had met outside the city when she returned from her outing, accompanied by his former follower.
The man had sword-like eyebrows that reached his temples, and his features were as if carved by a knife. He exuded an aura just by standing there, which made Zhao Feiyan feel a little uneasy after just one glance. So she quickly looked away and said to the madam, "Granny, you know my sister's habits. Please don't make things difficult for her."
The madam said, "What's her habit? I've never seen her have this habit before. It's a bad habit I've spoiled her with. If I didn't indulge her, she'd be just like the other girls." Seeing that the lights in the room were all off, she urged, "Hurry up and make her get up..."
The man behind her interrupted her, saying, "Never mind, Granny. Since Miss Niannian is already resting, I'll come another day. Consider the money I gave you earlier as a thank you for your hard work."
The madam's face lit up with joy, but she quickly feigned embarrassment, saying, "How could I possibly accept this?!" As she said this, she clutched the money pouch hanging at her waist.
Zhao Feiyan, who was standing to the side, rolled her eyes.
The man laughed and said, "I can't let the old lady work for nothing! Alright, I'll come again another day." With that, he turned and strode away with his little follower.
As Zhao Feiyan watched his departing figure, she still couldn't shake the feeling that this man wasn't the type to frequent brothels. She sensed that he was a shrewd and capable individual who had everything under control.
A man like this doesn't need to go to a brothel, no matter what kind of woman he wants.
Chu Nian listened intently to what was happening outside. She had assumed the man would ask Zhao Feiyan to dance or something; after all, the male lead was supposed to be entangled with the female lead. She hadn't expected him to just leave like that. Could it be that she had guessed wrong, and this person wasn't the male lead, but some random nobody unrelated to the female lead?
However, whether he is the male lead or not is irrelevant to her; her current task is simply to sleep.
So she fell asleep quickly. Being young and healthy is great; you can sleep soundly until dawn, which made Chu Nian feel very energetic when she woke up.
Li Wenzhuang still arrived on time, but left immediately when it was Chu Nian's break time, never delaying for even a moment. However, the handsome man never came to Cuihonglou again, which made the madam miss him terribly. She wondered how much money she had gotten from him that day, leading her to believe he was a big client.
Before we knew it, the day of the Confucian Guild Hall auction arrived.
Because a painting by Zuo An Shan Ren titled "Lone Chrysanthemum on a Cliff" was the final item up for auction, it attracted many celebrities and nobles from the capital, with various families vying to send representatives to participate in the auction.
Li Wenzhuang and his father also came, mainly to see the excitement. When they saw it, they were shocked: quite a few high-ranking officials had come in person, including the prime minister, generals, censors... even the emperor's uncle had come.
Master Li whispered in his ear, "There are quite a few distinguished guests here today. You better behave yourself and don't embarrass yourself." Then he found his precious son staring blankly in one direction. Out of curiosity, he followed his gaze and saw two fair-skinned young scholars sitting among the many photographers.
Master Li clicked his tongue and secretly pinched his son's thigh in the shadows.
"Father, what are you doing?" Li Wenzhuang asked helplessly, wincing in pain.
Master Li said, "Don't look around like that. They might be some famous young master from a prominent family. It wouldn't be good if we offended them." Seeing his son's dazed look just now, practically drooling, Master Li was furious. It was one thing to act like that when looking at a beautiful woman, but how could he behave like that when he saw two handsome young scholars?! It was so embarrassing!
Li Wenzhuang remained silent, but glanced furtively at the two young scholars again. He immediately recognized them as Chu Nian and Zhao Feiyan. He hadn't expected them to be at the auction; Nian probably wanted to see for herself just how popular her paintings were!
Meanwhile, Zhao Feiyan saw a familiar, tall figure walk in through the door. He was respectfully led up to the second-floor private hall by the people from the Confucian Academy. She gently tugged at Chu Nian's sleeve and whispered in her ear, "Sister, look! It's that person we met at the city gate the other day!"
Chu Nian glanced over and saw that the person being led upstairs was also scanning the lobby on the first floor. Presumably noticing someone looking this way, the person turned to look in that direction and spotted Chu Nian.
The man paused for a moment, then smiled faintly at Chu Nian. Unexpectedly, Chu Nian turned her head away indifferently, as if she didn't recognize him at all, leaving him slightly disappointed.
His gaze shifted and landed on Zhao Feiyan beside Chu Nian. He saw that the girl was whispering with Chu Nian, occasionally showing a look of excitement, which made her look exceptionally charming and cute. The man couldn't help but smile again.
Chu Nian was also paying attention to the entire auction house when she noticed Li Wenzhuang making a gesture to her. She looked in the direction of the gesture and saw a voluptuous, fair-skinned, veiled noblewoman walking in surrounded by maids and servants. She was then led by the people from the guild to the elegant hall on the second floor.
The moment this noblewoman appeared, Chu Nian's heart felt like it was on fire, just like the original owner's emotions.
She was Yang Jie's wife, Madam Li. Although she was wearing a veil, some family clothing had very conspicuous markings, and the Yang family was one of them, so it was easy for people to recognize her.
Upon seeing Li arrive, Chu Nian slightly raised her lips, revealing a subtle smile: the fish is about to take the bait.
The auction featured several items, mostly paintings and calligraphy by famous artists, as well as some jade and stone carvings and precious stones. It lasted for over two hours before finally coming to an end, with the highlight being Zuo An Shan Ren's small painting, "Lone Chrysanthemum on a Cliff."
Zuoan Shanren also has five other paintings in his collection at the Confucian Guild Hall, all slightly larger than this one. Because they are only exhibited and not for sale, they have not been priced. This painting, "Lone Chrysanthemum on a Cliff," will be auctioned starting at only one tael of silver. It is said that Zuoan Shanren himself set the price, as it was just a playful work that he did not consider worthy of serious consideration.
However, what Zuoan Shanren himself considered a playful work is regarded as a masterpiece by many. As Zhao Feiyan said, the artistic conception of this painting has already transcended the paper.
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