Chapter 40: Chapter 26

Pei Jin and Yan Shi Ning stood in front of Fu Qing’s three entrances.

Fu Qing was separated into three terraces and each terrace had three floors.

‘Why does Fu Qing have more than one entrance?’ Yan Shi Ning asked. ‘Which entrance do we walk through?’

‘Wife, which entrance do you want to walk through?’ Pei Jin asked.

Yan Shi Ning heard lively songs and the sounds of instruments from the left terrace. ‘I want to walk through the left entrance.’

‘Wife, it’s not suitable for you to walk through the left entrance,’ Pei Jin said.

‘Why?’ Yan Shi Ning asked.

Pei Jin whispered something in Yan Shi Ning’s ear and she blushed. ‘That kind of place exists?’

Pei Jin nodded his head innocently like he heard that place existed but never been inside.

‘What about the middle entrance?’ Yan Shi Ning asked.

‘It’s where proper food is served,’ Pei Jin said.

Yan Shi Ning looked at the right door and she smiled playfully. ‘Then there must be handsome food behind the right entrance.’

Pei Jin had a strange feeling.

Indeed Pei Jin followed Yan Shi Ning through the right entrance. He silently asked the heavens to not let him meet anyone that knew him. If people found out gentle ninth prince visited those kind of places, he feared everyone would be shocked enough for their chins to fall.

‘I’m here to play with handsome beauties,’ Yan Shi Ning said.

A man dressed in black clothes embroidered with flowers greeted Yan Shi Ning and Pei Jin then the man escorted them to the stairs.

Yan Shi Ning was happy to be surrounded by beauties. The beauties were all young men who had pink lips, white teeth and were friendly.

Pei Jin pinched Yan Shi Ning’s waist. ‘Have you leered enough?’

Yan Shi Ning glared at Pei Jin, pulled out a fan and she waved it in front of her face. ‘Of course I haven’t.’

Yan Shi Ning looked at her surroundings and she noticed most of the guests walked to the second floor. So she walked to the second floor too.

A man who greeted guests on the second floor thought Yan Shi Ning was a regular guest by the way Yan Shi Ning confidently walked to the second floor.

‘Master, are you looking for someone familiar?’ the man asked.

Yan Shi Ning thought the handsome man looked about thirty years old who had a soothing voice.

‘Someone familiar?’ Yan Shi Ning asked.

The man saw Yan Shi Ning looked confusedly at Pei Jin. He realised they were new guests and assumed Pei Jin was the guest who carried a heavy pouch.

Pei Jin draped an arm over Yan Shi Ning’s shoulder.

‘No need, take us to a free room,’ Pei Jin said.

A guest interrupted them and passed the man a paper note worth fifty silver taels. ‘Gentleman Chen, tonight I want Yue Feng to serve me.’

Gentleman Chen accepted the paper note and gave the guest Yue Feng’s plaque.

Yan Shi Ning saw the guest and Gentleman Chen’s exchange and she understood what someone familiar meant.

Yan Shi Ning took out one of the ten paper notes worth one hundred silver taels that she exchanged earlier at a pawn shop and gave it to Gentleman Chen. ‘I... we... Gentleman Chen make arrangements for us.’

Pei Jin thought Yan Shi Ning learned bad habits fast.

Gentleman Chen accepted Yan Shi Ning’s paper note, gave Feng Su and Yu Lu’s plaques to Yan Shi Ning and escorted Yan Shi Ning and Pei Jin to a room.

Inside the room was two beds, paintings of handsome men and a marble table. On the table was a vase, a small fragrant pouch, a tea pot and cups.

Yan Shi Ning stared at a painting of a handsome man for too long, Pei Jin pulled the painting off the wall and threw it on the ground.

‘What are you doing?’ Yan Shi Ning asked.

‘Wife, can’t you see your husband is more handsome?’ Pei Jin asked.

Yan Shi Ning looked at Pei Jin from the top of his head to his feet. ‘I can’t see.’

Pei Jin regretted taking Yan Shi Ning outside the manor.

Yan Shi Ning was amused to see Pei Jin was frustrated to death.

Yan Shi Ning and Pei Jin were drinking tea on a bed when Feng Su and Yu Lu entered the room.

Yan Shi Ning put her cup of tea on the nearby marble table. She thought the two young men looked sixteen years old. Their long hair were straight and smooth like a thin fabric, a red flower was painted in the middle of their foreheads and their steps were dainty.

Pei Jin noticed Yan Shi Ning’s mouth and eyes widened. He wondered why he didn’t discover she was a pervert long ago. Then he wondered why she didn’t perve at him in the past. He compared himself to the two young men and thought she must love to perve on handsome weaklings.

Feng Su knelt in front of Yan Shi Ning. ‘Master, Feng Su is here to serve you.’

Yu Lu knelt in front of Pei Jin. ‘Master, Yu Lu is here to serve you.’

Yan Shi Ning didn’t have experience in that kind of situation and felt uncomfortable. But she saw Pei Jin gave her a ‘coming here doesn’t suit you’ look so she straightened her back.

Yan Shi Ning used a fan to lift Feng Su’s chin. ‘How do you want to serve me?’

Pei Jin spatted tea out of his mouth.

Yu Lu quickly pulled out a handkerchief and wanted to wipe the tea off Pei Jin’s face. But Yu Lu’s body was too close to Pei Jin’s body and Pei Jin politely declined.

‘I can do it myself,’ Pei Jin said.

Pei Jin glared at Feng Su. If Feng Su dared to touch Yan Shi Ning’s body, he vowed to toss Feng Su out the window.

Luckily Feng Su didn’t touch Yan Shi Ning’s body. ‘Master, however you want me to serve you.’

Goose bumps rose on Yan Shi Ning’s whole body. ‘Alright.’

In that moment a fuwu brought a platter of food and wine jars into the room.

At the sight of food and wine Yan Shi Ning ignored the handsome beauties in the room. She was about to pick up a pair chopsticks but Feng Su was faster.

Feng Su held a prawn between chopsticks in front of Yan Shi Ning’s mouth. ‘Master, l’ll serve you.’

Yan Shi Ning glanced at Pei Jin. Although he was smiling at her, she knew his smile was a threat, ‘Wife, do you dare to eat?’

Yan Shi Ning smiled at Pei Jin and opened her mouth.

Pei Jin angrily picked up the cup of wine Yu Lu poured and drank it.

Yan Shi Ning sniffed the wine fragrance and thought it smelt sweeter than fruits.

‘Beauty, pour wine for your master,’ Yan Shi Ning said and touched Feng Su’s smooth hand.

Pei Jin’s heart wanted to cut off Yan Shi Ning’s hand after they returned to the manor. He drank another cup of wine.

Yu Lu noticed the cold deadly aura around Pei Jin and quickly poured more wine into Pei Jin’s cup.

Feng Su raised a cup of wine to Yan Shi Ning’s lips. ‘Master, this is Tan Hua Tu. It’s Fu Qing’s best wine.’

Yan Shi Ning drank the cup of wine and nodded her head. ‘It’s good wine.’

‘Master, drink slowly,’ Feng Su said.

Pei Jin gritted his teeth after he saw Feng Su’s chest nearly touched Yan Shi Ning’s chest.

Feng Su pulled out a handkerchief and was about to wipe wine off Yan Shi Ning’s lips but Pei Jin stood and pushed Feng Su away from Yan Shi Ning.

Pei Jin hugged Yan Shi Ning and he smiled at the shocked Feng Su and Yu Lu.

‘You’re both not needed here,’ Pei Jin said. ‘You can both leave and remember to close the door.’

Feng Su and Yu Lu immediately left the room.

Outside the room Yu Lu spoke softly with Feng Su. ‘What did we do wrong?’

‘Nothing, we served them well,’ Feng Su said. ‘The master I was serving liked me.’

‘But the master I was serving didn’t like me,’ Yu Lu said. ‘He didn’t even glance at me once. He only looked at the master you were serving.’

‘Perhaps... they are a pair of lovers,’ Feng Su said. ‘Or the master you were serving loves the master I was serving.’

‘I think that’s possible,’ Yu Lu said.

‘Do you think the master I was serving loves the master you were serving?’ Feng Su asked.

‘I’m not certain,’ Yu Lu said. ‘Even if there’s no love, love could grow later. The master I was serving asked us to close the door. I think he can’t control himself anymore.’

Feng Su nodded his head. ‘The Tan Hua Tu fragrance is an aphrodisiac. But if he’s too forceful it’ll hurt.’

‘It has no relation to us,’ Yu Lu said. ‘That’s between the guests. We need to report to Gentleman Chen. I’ve served many guests, but this is the first time I was asked to leave.’

***

End of Chapter Twenty-Six