Creak!
The window was casually shut.
The plaintive song was thus kept inside the room, no longer drifting farther away.
A pretty, charming young woman turned around, the silver bells on her wrist jingling softly. Her smile bloomed like a flower. "Music is forbidden in the city these days. It'd be troublesome if anyone heard."
She glanced at the songstress holding a pipa behind the screen and scolded her, "Who said you could sing at a time like this? Are you trying to get yourself killed?"
The songstress stilled her strings and said nothing.
Not far from the window sat a woman with a gentle, fragile air. A hint of sorrow clouded her eyes; her delicate beauty seemed like a wilting flower. She said nothing, yet already inspired pity.
At the sound of the voice, she said, "Miss Ling'er, don't blame her. I was unsettled, so I asked her to sing."
Xiang Ling'er looked at her, her eyes instantly lighting up with delight. "How could I blame you, little sister Xiuzhang? With a face as lovely as yours, you can do no wrong."
Compared to her warmth, Liu Xiuzhang was clearly much cooler. She merely said, "I shouldn't have come here in the first place."
Xiang Ling'er turned and sat down beside her, tilting her head to study her exquisite face. "When you say 'here,' do you mean Linzi or the Three-Part Fragrance Pavilion?"
"Neither," Liu Xiuzhang replied.
"No, no, you're wrong on both counts." Xiang Ling'er shook her head again and again. "If you mean Linzi, why shouldn't you come? Does this three-hundred-li city of Linzi belong to the Yan clan? Even if you have enmities or grievances, that's no reason to stay away. We were born into this world; we should make others avoid us, not avoid them."