Jinli was like the Shuo Ren of an ancient poem, except she had used an Illusion Technique to conceal her peerless beauty.
Her true appearance was no less stunning than Yin Ni's, and Yin Ni was one of the Ten Beauties of Haoran, famed alongside Song Pin and Nie Cui'e.
From imperial relatives and capital-city magnates to local gentry, the Great Shou Dynasty was steeped in romantic excess. Whenever they acquired one or two beautiful concubines or maidservants, they took it as a point of pride. Not only would they not hide their beauties away in golden houses, they feared the world might not hear of them.
Earlier, after leaving the mountains and circling around the imperial city, they had chosen this tavern amid the bustling wards. They often saw flushed, drunken men in the streets with arms around one another's shoulders, calling each other brothers. The ladies of official households were likewise unfettered by any boudoir etiquette, strolling the streets openly in all their finery, carrying colorful silk fans and flower lanterns. Vendors who had already packed up their stalls pushed their carts along, their faces faintly weary. Catching the fragrance of wine or braised meat, their eyes showed a touch of conflict, but they could only lower their heads and hurry past with their carts. A horse did not grow fat without night grass. The languid clerks in government offices earned some illicit side money, then found time to enjoy themselves with secret prostitutes on their own turf. Tightening their belts as they headed into alleys where business was being solicited, they would complain to the madams at the doors that there had not been any fresh faces in ages... The Great Shou Dynasty might have been an empty shell, but it was still a shell. By and