The companion left behind to pour drinks was named Xuemei. Judging by her appearance, she was around seventeen or eighteen, with a round face carrying a hint of baby fat, and arched eyebrows that curved into a smile, making her look exceptionally approachable.
Li Jian raised a hand to invite her to sit beside him. With quick reflexes, the young woman noticed that Li Jian’s wine cup was empty, picked up the wine jar, and filled it to the brim.
Taken aback for a fleeting second, Li Jian nodded and expressed his gratitude: “You look quite young, Miss, yet your attentiveness is remarkable.”
“The young master jests. All the maidens here at the Changle House are trained this way; without cultivating a few practical skills, how could we properly serve all the young masters? Though Xuemei is young, I’ve actually spent quite a fair amount of time in this establishment.”
With those words, Xuemei directly raised her wine cup to toast Li Jian, then downed the contents in a single gulp.
Since the young woman before him had finished her drink in one go, Li Jian suddenly found it rather embarrassing to leave his own cup untouched; letting her drink alone while he abstained simply wouldn’t do.
Glancing sideways at Xuan Lang, Li Jian realized he couldn’t drag the boy into this he had to leave at least one of them sober, otherwise they might not even manage to find their way home later.
Consequently, he reached out to pick up the blue-and-white porcelain wine cup belonging to Xuan Lang. Raising his outer eye corners slightly, he toasted Xuemei in return: “My younger brother is still too young and unaccustomed to drinking. The two of us can share the cup.”
Imitating the swaggering mannerisms of the wealthy young prodigals, Li Jian draped one arm casually across Xuemei’s shoulder as the two engaged in idle chatter.
“I hear today’s performance is personally led by the courtesan Qiushui. Why hasn’t it started yet?”
With the handsome man’s lean profile resting so close beside her, accompanied by a subtle, clean scent of pine, Xuemei’s heart fluttered wildly, causing her cheeks to flush with shyness.
She pitched her voice into a soft coo: “Do not be impatient, young master. Miss Qiushui is still finishing her cosmetics; I presume she will arrive shortly.”
Moments earlier, she had merely thought Li Jian looked striking like an ethereal immortal whom ordinary mortals wouldn’t dare approach. Yet as he leaned in closely just now, the man’s slender side profile came into view, his expression calm with a clear, crystalline light shining within his eyes that she had never witnessed before.
Unlike the lecherous gazes and naked desires exposed in the eyes of other men, he merely looked at her quietly with gentle warmth.
For a brief, fleeting instant, Xuemei found herself entertaining the thought that her humble status rendered her unworthy of such gentle proximity.
Li Jian remained entirely oblivious to her inner musings. Noticing the young woman’s reddened cheeks, he assumed the alcohol was already taking effect and pressed on with his questioning: “You mentioned earlier that you’ve been in the Changle House for a long time?”
“Mn,” she murmured softly.
“Although this is my first time visiting, I’ve previously heard that the dances performed by the maidens here are peerless throughout the world. However… others claim that while the dances are indeed breathtaking, they are all entirely uniform, even down to the courtesan herself possessing the exact same posture and choreography. Naturally, my curiosity was piqued, which is why I wished to witness it with my own eyes.”
As he spoke, Li Jian topped off Xuemei’s cup with another three rounds of drinks.
Seated right beside him and pressing against his arm, Xuemei drained three consecutive cups without changing her complexion in the slightest.
Smiling, she replied: “Where on earth did the young master hear such nonsense? Every single maiden in our Changle House is well-versed in song and dance, having received instruction from the finest dance instructors available. Though the instructors are undeniably strict, they certainly wouldn’t mold every single person into an identical copy.”
“Besides…” She paused momentarily. “How could two identical people possibly exist in this world?”
As Xuemei accepted yet another cup poured by Li Jian, she raised her long sleeves to shield her face, lifting her gaze to cast a sideways glance toward the black-robed youth seated opposite. She noticed him staring unblinkingly in her direction with a dark, gloomy expression, his eyes seemingly radiating flames of hostility, as if he bore a personal grudge against her.
Before Xuemei could ponder the reason, Li Jian’s voice successfully drew her attention back: “I was wondering about Miss Qiushui and the previous courtesan… what was her name again…”
“Are you referring to Hongxiu?”
“Yes, exactly, Hongxiu.” Li Jian slapped his thigh in affirmation. “I heard that Miss Qiushui’s dancing style bears an uncanny resemblance to former courtesan Hongxiu’s, making them terribly difficult to tell apart.”
With a sigh of mild lament, Li Jian added, “During that recent pleasure boat cruise, I was fortunate enough to catch a distant glimpse of Miss Qiushui’s exquisite dancing, but unfortunately never had the opportunity to witness Miss Hongxiu’s, leaving me unable to compare them in person.”
Xuemei shook her head. “Qiushui and Hongxiu were trained by the same instructor, so slight similarities are entirely normal. However, I was personally acquainted with Hongxiu and am intimately familiar with her dancing style; if one observes closely, subtle distinctions remain discernible.”
Mentioning Hongxiu caused Xuemei to lower her eyelashes, her expression momentarily clouded by a trace of imperceptible desolation.
In truth, quite a bit of time had elapsed since Hongxiu’s departure, and the various maidens of the Changle House had long since ceased to dwell on her constantly. Yet life within the establishment flowed with relentless momentum; a maiden who called you sister today might completely vanish by tomorrow, a reality they had all long since grown accustomed to.
Surviving securely within a pleasure quarter was already an arduous struggle, let alone standing out and enjoying a temporary moment of glory the ultimate outcome was something none of them dared to imagine.
Xuemei happened to belong to the same training batch as Hongxiu. Back then, both of them were merely junior dancing girls within the establishment, earning meager tips by performing background accompaniment for the top courtesan.
Hongxiu possessed exceptional natural talent and striking beauty, frequently earning high praise from the dance instructor, who predicted that such aptitude would sooner or later catch the madam’s eye and earn her a promotion to lead dancer, and perhaps even the position of top courtesan in due time.
As for herself, her aptitude was thoroughly mediocre; her features were refined yet unexceptional. It wasn’t until a brand-new batch of dancing girls debuted on stage that the madam finally reassigned her to accompany visiting guests for drinks.
Such was the harsh reality of the pleasure quarters: beautiful maidens were constantly cycled out in batches, capable individuals climbed step by step toward prominence, while the incompetent could only drift downward into ruin.
The one absolute constant was that none of them possessed the right to determine their own destinies.
In truth, Xuemei had long been aware of Hongxiu’s burning desire to leave, and had even taken it upon herself to help the other girl dodge the madam’s watchful eyes on multiple occasions so she could meet secretly with Liang Xiucai.
Yet Xuemei knew all too well that Hongxiu could never truly leave; the madam would never willingly let go of a golden goose she had nurtured herself. Even if Liang Xiucai managed to gather the required funds, the madam would undoubtedly fleece him dry to squeeze out Hongxiu’s final ounce of utility before letting her go.
Weren’t all the maidens who mysteriously vanished from this establishment subjected to that very same fate?
“You were acquainted with Hongxiu?” Li Jian’s voice successfully pulled her back from her reverie.
“Yes,” she nodded.
“Then do you happen to know the reason behind Hongxiu’s departure from the Changle House?”
Xuemei parted her lips, preparing to reply, when a sudden commotion erupted outside the entrance. A boisterous crowd thronged the doors, instantly drawing the gaze of everyone present.
Less than the time it took to burn two incense sticks after Zhao Chengyu dispatched his messenger, Song Zhiyuan had already arrived at the Changle House.
Recognizing the distinguished guest’s arrival, the madam personally hurried to the entrance to greet him, only to be blocked and held at bay by the Song family’s guards. Eager to ingratiate herself, she strained to push forward, yet failed to brush even the hem of Song Zhiyuan’s robes.
“Song Zhiyuan! He actually came!” exclaimed one of Zhao Chengyu’s companions in stunned disbelief.
Throughout all of Zunyang City, who wasn’t well-acquainted with the name Song Zhiyuan? For a figure as radiant and untainted as the bright moon to actually grace a pleasure quarter like this was an utterly unexpected spectacle.
Even Zhao Chengyu himself widened his eyes in genuine shock upon witnessing Song Zhiyuan’s personal arrival.
Initially, he had merely intended to use Li Jian’s whereabouts as a harmless probe, never truly expecting his prediction to hit the mark so accurately.
Upon crossing the threshold, Li Jian was right in the middle of drinking and laughing merrily alongside the companion by his side, while Xuan Lang sat rigidly upright, staring intently at the two of them as they downed two entire jars of liquor in rapid succession.
Acting entirely oblivious to the surrounding onlookers, Song Zhiyuan strode directly toward Li Jian’s table. “Immortal Li, fancy meeting you here.”
“Young Master Song? You’ve come here as well to… seek amusement?”
Scanning the bustling room, Li Jian wore a hazy, drunken expression as he blinked up at Song Zhiyuan, his demeanor suggesting he found it rather incongruous for such a refined gentleman to appear in a place like this.
If not for the collective gazes of the patrons converging upon their location, Li Jian might have suspected the alcohol had clouded his vision entirely.
Disregarding the curious stares of the surrounding crowd, Song Zhiyuan pulled out a chair directly opposite Li Jian and seated himself with solemn composure, answering quite matter-of-factly:
“I heard Immortal Li was here enjoying some drinks, so I specifically came over to take a look.”
Hearing those words, Xuan Lang narrowed his eyes in an almost imperceptible frown, slowly raising his head with an expression that darkened further.
“Me? You came here because of me?”
Li Jian rubbed his brow, genuinely bewildered. He must have consumed far too much alcohol tonight; why on earth did simple sentences suddenly sound so convoluted?
Perhaps Song Zhiyuan’s dramatic entrance was simply too astonishing to the rest of the patrons, drawing every single pair of eyes toward their corner and completely overshadowing the anticipated performance on stage until someone finally called out:
“Miss Qiushui is coming out!”
That cry successfully drew the crowd’s attention away, redirecting all eyes toward the opulent central stage.
“Miss Qiushui is simply breathtaking—truly a celestial maiden descending to the mortal realm!”
Cries of awe echoed incessantly. Unable to resist, Li Jian glanced over as well.
A massive circular stage welcomed a procession of dancing maidens streaming outward, clad in pale pink silk robes that caused them to resemble blooming peach blossoms.
At that moment, the strains of zither music swelled. Countless flower petals drifted down from the ceiling like a fine spring drizzle, accompanied by an intoxicating fragrance, as a dazzling, radiant figure descended gracefully from above.
Qiushui’s attire tonight contrasted sharply with her outfit during the pleasure boat cruise—exhibiting the absolute pinnacle of luxury and allure. A vivid, striking crimson dress made her resemble a fully bloomed peony flower, her beauty heightened to an entirely new level.
Her graceful, swaying movements kept perfect rhythm with the zither’s tempo. Her elongated, upturned outer eye corners carried an enchanting charm, and her lips curved into a faint smile as the dangling tassels by her temples swayed gently, as if dancing straight into the depths of the onlookers’ hearts.
Every single pair of eyes remained glued to her stage presence, burning with raw greed, fervent longing, and a multitude of other desires, as if eager to devour her whole and claim her solely for themselves.
Li Jian cast a single, cursory glance before retracting his gaze entirely, turning his head sideways to discover Xuan Lang staring fixedly at him.
Lifting his chin slightly, Li Jian leaned in closer and lowered his voice: “Such a magnificent beauty aren’t you going to spare her a few more glances? You won’t get another opportunity like this later.”
Xuan Lang pressed his lips together in silence, his dark eyes locked unwaveringly onto Li Jian, looking like an exceptionally stubborn child.
Li Jian chuckled softly.
True enough what did mortal beauties matter to someone destined to walk the ruthless path of an immortal lord?