gnovel Chapter 68, Part 1: The thought of doing something naughty makes me want to laugh.
Chapter 68, Part 1: The thought of doing something naughty makes me want to laugh.
The air inside the warm pavilion was filled with the fragrance of sandalwood. A group of guests sat around a sandalwood table, some sipping tea, others pondering over chess pieces. A man in a blue robe stood before the steps, his face refined and handsome. He held no stringed instrument or wind instrument, but simply nodded slightly and said in a clear voice, "Since there are no stringed instruments to accompany us today, I will use my humble skills to enhance your refined enjoyment."
As soon as he finished speaking, the room fell silent, except for the occasional slight trembling of the copper bells on the eaves.
Suddenly, a clear, melodious sound was heard, like fingertips striking a string. Among the guests, those who were knowledgeable about the zither leaned forward to listen closely. The tone was exactly the same as the century-old paulownia wood zither on the table, and even the slight pause in the fingertips when pressing the strings was exactly the same.
Before anyone could react, a rustling sound was added, like dewdrops condensing on bamboo leaves and rolling down the veins of the leaves—one soft, one crisp, a rhythmic cadence. Occasionally, birdsong would break the silence: sparrows chattering under the eaves, thrushes chirping sweetly in the woods, initially timid, but gradually growing louder, their calls rising and falling, so melodious and varied that it seemed as if a real kingfisher was circling outside the window of the warm pavilion.
"Holy crap, it's this kind of ventriloquism."
Lin Zhou cursed under his breath, then glanced at Yang Ti and saw the military officer showing off his pastries. The crisp red royal pastries were chewing on him like a cow chewing on a peony, making a loud slurping sound.
Are you hungry?
"I'm starving! I came looking for you to have a meal. I was planning to go for roast lamb, but you tricked me into coming here for this awful stuff. I'm still not full after eating this whole table of food."
Lin Zhou was also stuffing something into his mouth at this moment. The performance above drew cheers from the surrounding scholars, but he really couldn't appreciate it. He just felt that his mouth was full of saliva and it would be dirty when he spat it out.
If he had known it was this kind of ventriloquism, he wouldn't have bothered. He'd rather go out and get some food to go back and bully Brother Ying.
The two of them quickly devoured the snacks on the table, but the performance on stage had only just reached the point where the toddler accidentally fell while catching a bird, crying and making people laugh.
He leaned back and fiddled with the jade pendant Xiao'e had given him, looking quite idle.
He was somewhat lucky; thankfully, Yangti also came today. Otherwise, if he were the only one listening to this stuff, he would have gone crazy. It was boring, tedious, and they didn't even give him anything to eat.
"Hey, how are we going to rescue Hongliu tonight?"
"Really going?" Yangti turned around. "If you ask me, I'd rather take you... Hey! Look at that woman in white up ahead, isn't she pretty?"
"Where?"
Lin Zhou looked in the direction he was pointing and saw a beautiful young woman sitting in front of him. Although he couldn't see her face, her profile and smile were already stunning. In addition, her figure was alluring, and the two of them couldn't take their eyes off her.
"That girl is nice! She's just a little small, right?"
"Who cares about her age? She has such a pretty face."
"That's true..."
Lin Zhou then leaned closer to Lu You and pointed to the woman in white in front of him: "Who is that? She's so beautiful."
"Him? He's the Celestial Fairy," Lu You said to Lin Zhou in a low voice. "He's quite famous for monopolizing the title of a ci poem."
Do you know him or not? Introduce him!
"Introduce me?" Lu You frowned. "I do know him, but Brother Lin... do you really want to get to know him?"
"What? What's with that look? Don't you understand the principle that a gentleman seeks out a beautiful and virtuous woman?"
"But he's a man..."
Lin Zhou immediately fell silent and retreated quietly to Yang Ti's side: "A man."
"Damn it!" Yang Ti roared in fury, slamming his hand on the table. "Absolutely outrageous!"
His shout shattered the silence, like someone standing up and making a loud phone call during a musical performance.
All eyes turned to him, their gazes filled with the disgust of cultured people for a country bumpkin.
"What are you looking at me for?" Yangti raised his chin, showing absolutely no fear. "Aren't people allowed to speak?"
His interruption directly cut off the ventriloquism performance, and even Lin Zhou found such rude behavior extremely embarrassing.
"I wonder if you have any dissatisfaction with my ventriloquism?"
Although the man in the blue robe looked somewhat displeased, he was, after all, an actor invited to perform, so apart from asking a question, he had nothing else to say. But at this moment, someone recognized Lin Zhou and Yang Ti. Although Lin Zhou was on the list of talented scholars, he was now the appointed son-in-law of the Jin Dynasty, a major traitor among traitors. He had previously represented the Jin Dynasty in a battle against the Song Dynasty at the Dangan Villa.
Beside him was Wanyan Shizi of the Jin Dynasty, and their companion was none other than Lu You, who always claimed to be loyal to the emperor and patriotic!
That's strange.
But young people don't care about that. They easily get worked up when they see these annoying people. But since the Imperial City Guard suffered from hunger and cold, many people here have learned to be smarter.
We can't afford to offend the Jin people or the traitors, but we certainly can't afford to offend Lu Wuguan.
Soon enough, someone stood up and mocked, "Oh, isn't this Lu Wuguan? A self-proclaimed patriot has actually stooped to this level? Ah, I miss that spirited young man."
"That's right, that's right, they call him an iron-willed prodigy, but it's no wonder, since they're so generous. These days, you can't even get an official position without taking advantage of the Jin people." The others naturally began to chime in.
Lu You turned his head and glanced at Lin Zhou. He was still the same Lu You with a strong backbone, but today he didn't say a word. It wasn't because his weakness had been exposed, but because he knew about Lin Zhou and had personally witnessed his actions. A bowl of hot porridge was worth more than ten heartfelt words. Now, more than half of the people in Nancheng depended on him for food and clothing, yet he still bore the name of a traitor. What did it matter if he was criticized a few times?
"Fuck your mother."
Lin Zhou threw the cup on the table to the ground: "You can call me a traitor if you want, but you call me a bastard! Damn it! Go get him!"
Yangti wiped his mouth, let out a strange cry, and charged forward with Lin Zhou, howling as well.
Lu You stood there, his face flushed red, while Tang Wan pulled a wooden stick from a broom and handed it to her husband.
"Hold!"
Lu You took the stick and replaced Wanyan Hongliu, who was absent. The three of them plunged into the crowd and once again fought with great force.
Not being in the Prince's mansion today, with Yang Ti no longer restrained and no risk of being suddenly whipped by his sister, the three of them staged a bloodbath at Cuiyuan Tower, back to back.
There were many women today, and their screams blended together. This place was only fifty steps away from the palace. When the first girl screamed and shouted "Murder!" in the street, the Six Commanders of the Imperial City had already led their men to attack from all directions.
The person in the lead was none other than Cheng'er, who was on duty today.
"Tsk..."
After his subordinate Si Gouping was taken down, Xu Cheng rolled his eyes at Lin Zhou, who was wiping his nosebleed, and said, "You're like a military strategist with twelve scrolls, each one bearing my name."
"He did too," Lin Zhou said, pointing to the sheep's hoof. "He took on twelve."
"Isn't that impressive? You're such a loser." The sheep hoof tilted its head back: "A bunch of useless trash!"
"Let's go, Your Highness. We'll be inviting you all to tea at the Imperial City Guard again."
They were brought to the Imperial City Guard once again. The last battle was evenly matched because there were both Jurchen sons and Song military officers' sons. But this time it was three against twenty-seven, nine for each man. One Jurchen man with two traitors managed to defeat all twenty-seven of them.
Although all three of them were injured to some extent, they were really humiliated.
Lin Zhou and the other two were locked in a room. There was tea and food in front of them. Yang Ti and Lin Zhou ate their food with gusto, while Lu You held his rice bowl with a solemn expression.
He knew in his heart that after this battle, his patriotic image would be ruined, and he would never be able to re-enter that noble circle.
It's said that falling in love with the person you hate most is the most devastating kind of relationship. But isn't it also a form of torture for someone who hates the Jurchens and traitors the most to become a traitor in other people's eyes?
But suddenly, he burst out laughing. He glanced back at the two heartless fools and laughed heartily.
"What are you laughing at?"
Lin Zhou looked up: "Eat up, who knows how long we'll be locked up later, you'll starve to death if you don't eat, you coward."
The fact that Mei had won twice was laughable even when it reached the Imperial City Guard, but they were well aware that the grudges between the Song and Jin dynasties ran deep and that fighting was commonplace.
But Xu Ping never expected that it would be Lin Zhou again this time.
"He's truly a brave and violent man," Xu Ping sighed. "Send their respective family members to come and collect them. Let's leave it at that."
"Lord Si, this... such a brawl under the walls of the capital, are we just going to let it go like this?"
"To be beaten twenty-seven times in three attacks, what's so honorable about that?" Si Hou glared. "It's utterly shameful! Let their parents take care of them, that'll save them the trouble."