NOVPUBNo one expected Li Yuan to be the one to perish in the end.
Naturally, this caused the popularity of Jade Sound Pavilion to skyrocket, and many nobles’ children wanted to see what kind of place "Jade Sound Pavilion" really was to have brought about Li Yuan’s downfall, inadvertently benefitting others with the title of Second-class Marquis.
Ordinary music workshops would need several years to attract such clientele.
Yet, Jade Sound Pavilion achieved this in just three days.
Inside a room on the second floor of Jade Sound Pavilion, a young girl rushed in excitedly, saying, "Phoenix, all our musicians are booked up to half a month later, and some are even paying ten times the price to jump the queue. We’ve made a fortune!"
In contrast to the girl’s excitement, the beautiful woman remained very calm.
She stood by the window, meticulously pruning a white peony, snipping off excess branches and leaves before placing it into a tall vase.
The girl stepped forward slowly, smiling and said, "Phoenix, these flowers are so beautiful; your skill in arranging them is getting more impressive!"
The beautiful woman placed the vase on a nearby cabinet, and the girl spoke again, "By the way, downstairs earlier, two young masters fought over a musician and broke a table. Nightingale asked me to consult with you on how to handle it ..."
The beautiful woman replied, "If it’s broken, then it’s broken. Jade Sound Pavilion isn’t lacking the money for a table. Tell Nightingale to be polite to the guests; her bad temper can’t even be corrected in Daxia."
After the girl had run off, a figure slowly walked in and said, "With more guests, such incidents are likely to happen more often. Some guests leave unhappy when they can’t book a musician."
While adjusting the flowers in the vase, the beautiful woman said, "No worries, this situation can’t last forever, it’ll probably lessen in a month. Then, it won’t be as tense."
The business of Jade Sound Pavilion was booming, not only because of their efforts from behind the scenes but also mainly due to Li Yuan’s death.
The beautiful woman still found it hard to believe that the gentle and agreeable young master had actually dared to kill Li Yuan.
She didn’t have to do it herself in the end.
Being in a foreign land, one couldn’t act as recklessly as before.
She had never faced such humiliation before and was so angry that she couldn’t sleep well for two nights.
She had just bought some sleeping aids when she heard of Li Yuan’s death.
She slept especially well last night.
Worry appeared on Yuan Yang’s face, saying, "The son of Marquis Yunyang has died, will they vent their anger on us? We just arrived and haven’t secured our footing yet; we can’t compete with a first-class marquis ..."
The beautiful woman’s face showed contemplation.
Yuan Yang’s worry was not without reason.
This type of music workshop is actually a highly profitable business. Every such place established in Chang’an must have a significant backing, or they would frequently encounter situations like that with Li Yuan.
Chang’an is filled with nobles, and ladies raised with substantial investment; if pressured into losing their honor, all initial investments would turn into bubbles.
But refusing could incur the displeasure of powerful figures, making it difficult to operate peacefully.
Besides those pressures, some peers would also try to sabotage them subtly.
As early as this morning, strange figures had started loitering around the outside of the music workshop.
The more famous Jade Sound Pavilion became, the more precarious their situation would be in the future.
It was time to find a strong support for these vulnerable ladies of the pavilion.
Suddenly, the young girl from earlier burst in again and said, "Yuan Yang, Young Master Song has come to see you again!"
Yuan Yang grinned slightly and replied, "Tell Young Master Song to wait a moment, I’ll be right there."
Moments later, the beautiful woman watched her leave, her expression thoughtful.
...
After returning to the Song Residence from the Ministry of Justice, Li Nuo hadn’t left the house for three consecutive days.
Although he had killed the assassin, his body was drained, needing some time to recuperate.
Regardless of the reason, there was no use in him going out.
After killing Li Yuan, he could never go to the Chang’an County Government again.
Repeatedly humiliating the court in such a manner, those in power, unable to do anything to him personally, might very likely target people like County Magistrate Pei.
Going to the Chang’an County Government and embarrassing them further would be quite impolite.
The same was true for the Ministry of Justice.
Openly defying the imperial decree issued by the three provinces might further escalate the conflict, possibly implicating the Princess.
His life had about one hundred and fifty days left, and without being able to take on cases, he would lose the daily replenishment.
His hope now rested on Li Anning.
Chang’an sees its fair share of cases each month, and with Li Anning’s capabilities, there were certainly some he couldn’t crack. Just three homicide cases a month were enough for him to break even.
These past three days, he had done nothing but sleep and read. The elderly scholars at Qingfeng Academy, seeing him in such a state, firmly refused to let him teach anymore.
This morning, Mumu wanted to stroll around the streets, and Li Nuo, feeling much better, decided it would be a good opportunity to get some fresh air.
Of course, his wife was with them.
Having been here for so long, this was the first time Li Nuo had been so idle.
During these past three days, he was still adjusting, and in a couple of days, it would be time to start preparing for the Imperial Examination.
Before heading out, Li Nuo asked Housekeeper Wu to prepare a conical hat for him.
He had previously mingled among the common folks, and given the huge uproar he had caused this time, he wouldn’t be able to leave home without covering his face.
It turned out his preparations were justified.
Even after three days, the people of Chang’an were still discussing the incident.
"That man deserved to die. Last winter, a beggar merely dirtied the hem of his robe by accident, and he had the beggar’s limbs broken and left him to freeze to death on the street."
"It’s been a long time since someone dared to lay hands on those nobles..."
"Well, the killer is none other than the son of the Minister of Justice. His methods are just as ruthless as his father’s!"
"Such matters can indeed only be resolved through their internal conflicts!"
"Even if it’s internal strife, it’s still ridding the people of a menace. I heard it all started when the Marquis Yunyang’s son forcibly took a girl from the people, and another young man could not stand the sight..."
The common people’s sense of right and wrong was still quite primitive.
Under his conical hat, Li Nuo’s face revealed a slight smile.
At a roadside tea stall, the people continued their discussions.
"I heard the son of the Minister of Justice and Princess Anning are in love. During a court session, it was Princess Anning who credited him with her own major achievement, which saved him from punishment..."
"No way, I heard that the girl from Jade Sound Pavilion, Phoenix, is actually that young man’s woman. Otherwise, why would he go so far as to kill a first-class marquis’ eldest son over a mere music workshop?"
"A moment of anger for a beauty is nothing unusual..."
"Princess Anning defending her husband in the Golden Hall is also a fine story."
"So, is he really with Princess Anning, or is it the girl from Jade Sound Pavilion, Phoenix?"
"Why choose just one? Can’t he have them all? Becoming the prince consort of a princess, secretly keeping a few beauties on the side—doesn’t every prince consort in Daxia do this?"
"But I heard he has a wife."
"So what if he has a wife? I heard they’re planning to divorce!"
...
Li Nuo’s smile froze on his face.
Where on earth did these people get such wild bits of gossip?
What nonsense about defending a husband in the Golden Hall, a moment of anger for a beauty, preparing for divorce!
Divorce my foot, his relationship with his wife was progressing steadily and improving every day!
Li Nuo immediately turned to Song Jiaren, who stood beside Mumu and was listening with keen interest, and explained, "All these are just rumors, don’t believe them..."
A teahouse customer heard his words, turned around, and said with dissatisfaction, "What rumors? The affair of Princess Anning was witnessed by everyone at court. I heard that once, they spent a whole night together in a room at the Four Directions Hall. A man and a woman alone together all night—it couldn’t have been just chatting..."
Li Nuo testified—they really were just chatting!
Don’t use their dirty thoughts to tarnish his and the princess’s pure friendship!
Another person also spoke up, "And about that Phoenix lady, that day at the Jade Sound Pavilion, my friend personally saw him stay in Phoenix’s room for a long time, and when Phoenix came out, she had even changed clothes..."
"Why change clothes?" 𝙣𝒐𝙫𝙥𝙪𝙗.𝙘𝙤𝙢
"Hehehe, obviously because they were torn..."
"Wow..."
"Nobles sure know how to play..."
...
Song Mu’er looked up at Li Nuo and curiously asked, "Brother Li Nuo, what kind of game involves tearing up clothes?"
