Fortuitous Opportunity

Leaving Zhen Estate, Ding Songyan raised his head and glanced at the still-blazing sun:

Should I go, or not?

That "honored guest" at Zhen Estate claimed to be skilled in the arts of divination. He had calculated that between the beginning of the Hour of the Rooster and its second quarter, I would encounter a stroke of fortune at the Perfume Shop on Hongxiu Street in Beili Ward. Who knew whether it was true...

Going to take a look would not cost me anything. At worst, people would laugh at me tomorrow for actually believing it. My skin is thick; I do not care...

With that mindset, Ding Songyan first went home to inform his younger sister, lest they start looking everywhere for him later, then headed toward Beili Ward.

Though he had never been there, he had heard plenty of people mention it. It was where Dingjiang Prefecture's entertainment districts, singing houses, and courtesan quarters gathered.

Where there were entertainment districts, there would be theaters; within the theaters were all manner of performances—variety plays and operas, puppets and shadow plays, storytelling and ballad singing. Crowds came and went every day. Around the theaters stood countless taverns, eateries, and Gambling Houses, and medicine sellers, barbers, and fortune-tellers could be seen everywhere.

In Ding Songyan's understanding, an entertainment district was a comprehensive commercial district centered around theater performances. Once one tired of playing, there were singing houses, courtesan quarters, and Perfume Shops nearby.

A storyteller whose fame was confined to the area around Dangkang Temple was not qualified to perform at an entertainment district. He could only be called a Wandering Storyteller.

After asking for directions along the way, Ding Songyan arrived at Hongxiu Street. With a casual sweep of his eyes, he saw brilliant purples and vivid reds everywhere, each competing in splendor. Even the street itself seemed steeped in the Qi of rouge and powder.

As he strolled leisurely toward the Perfume Shop at the end of the street, he noticed that many singing houses had huge, intricate structures, six or seven stories tall. From their top floors, one could likely see over the nearby northern wall and gaze upon the river.

Behind such singing houses and courtesan quarters, several courtyards were often laid out, with the faint sounds of winding streams, floating wine cups, and melodious strings and pipes drifting out.

Unfortunately, it was still early. The lanterns of every color had yet to be lit, robbing the place of some of its gaudy Qi and grandeur.

"Nanfeng Tower... The ones standing by the pavilion windows are actually men, and some are even dressed in bright red women's clothing... Women are going in and out, but so are men... The Qi of your Great Zhao is rather open-minded..." Ding Songyan clicked his tongue inwardly and arrived at the street's only Perfume Shop—Ganyue Firm.

A Perfume Shop was a paid bathhouse. The bathwater was blended with different spices and flowers, hence the name.

Ding Songyan stopped in the shadows beside Ganyue Firm and began waiting with nothing to do.

It was still quite some time before the Hour of the Rooster. When standing tired him, he squatted; when squatting tired him, he paced back and forth along the street; and when he grew sick of pacing, he simply headed to a boiled-water stall by the roadside.

Boiled water was plain water steeped with flowers, herbs, spices, and the like—a common folk beverage.

The stall owner had set up a large pot, where water was bubbling furiously.

"Perilla boiled water! Cardamom boiled water! Fragrant flower boiled water for sale!" Seeing Ding Songyan approach, the stall owner hurriedly called out.

Ding Songyan pulled over a long bench and sat down, smiling as he said:

"On such a scorching summer day, why are you not selling ice drinks instead of boiled water?"

"The singing houses, courtesan quarters, and Perfume Shops on Hongxiu Street all have their own iced drinks. How could I compete with them? Look at this face of mine—is it handsome?" The stall owner pointed at his pockmarked, wrinkled face.

"Not handsome." Ding Songyan was remarkably honest.

"Exactly! If I had silver, I would go to Cuiliu Tower to look at beauties and have them serve me iced drinks, rather than look at this old face." The stall owner pointed at Cuiliu Tower across from Ganyue Firm.

It was one of Hongxiu Street's most imposing singing houses, built of wood and stone in tier upon tier, seemingly seven stories high and filled with Qi.

"Customer, what would you like to drink?" After poking fun at himself, the stall owner asked with a smile.

Ding Songyan took off his money pouch.

"Straw boiled water."

It was the cheapest kind of boiled water.

The smile on the stall owner's face gradually vanished. He ladled boiling water into a bowl, swished a bundle of rice straw through it seven or eight times, then added a little coarse brown sugar.

"Four coppers," he said to Ding Songyan.

Ding Songyan said with amusement:

"I only paid two coppers a bowl outside Dangkang Temple."

"This is Hongxiu Street," the stall owner replied calmly.

Having recently gained quite a lot while spending very little, Ding Songyan did not haggle. He paid four coppers, took the bowl of straw boiled water, set it before himself, and waited for it to cool.

During this time, he turned slightly and carefully observed the situation before Ganyue Firm and Cuiliu Tower.

Time trickled by slowly. Ding Songyan lifted the straw boiled water, blew on it a few times, and took a sip.

It carried a faint fragrance of rice, with sweetness lingering on the tongue. It quenched thirst but did nothing to cool the heat.

Halfway through drinking it, Ding Songyan noticed some commotion at Cuiliu Tower's entrance.

In the blink of an eye, a figure was thrown out and stumbled to the ground.

My stroke of fortune? They are not going to scam me, are they? Ding Songyan had not wanted to meddle in other people's affairs, but considering the words of Zhen Estate's "honored guest," he set down his bowl and hurried over. Squatting down, he tried to help the man up.

"Are you all right?" he asked as he helped him.

The man wore a white scholar's robe, his hair hanging loose. He sucked in breaths of pain while shaking his head.

"I am fine, I am fine."

The moment he looked up, Ding Songyan froze a little.

It was not because the man stood like a jade tree in the wind or had the bearing of a dragon among men. It was because Ding Songyan had seen him before—at Zhen Estate!

At the time, Zhen Estate's gates had been thrown wide open, and the legitimate son had personally seen this man off. He had worn feathered robes and a tall crown, followed by four beautiful maidservants and four guards. He himself possessed unusual features, with ears slightly large like a dog's. He had cut an immensely imposing figure, making Ding Songyan feel that he must come from an extraordinary background and possess formidable martial arts.

Yet now, he had been thrown out of a pleasure house, his nose bruised, his face swollen, blood at the corner of his mouth. He looked utterly miserable.

After Ding Songyan helped him up, the young master took out a strip of cloth and tied back his hair. The two large tawny dog ears that had been pressed tightly against his head beneath his hair sprang back into place with a snap, trembling slightly.

So it really was him... Ding Songyan had just thought he might have mistaken the man, but now he was completely certain.

The pale, plump young master, his eyelids swollen, glanced at Ding Songyan and frowned in confusion.

"You know me?"

He seemed to think of something, and his expression gradually turned ugly.

Ding Songyan quickly said:

"I saw you at Zhen Estate, Young Master. At the time, you stood so high above that you likely did not notice me. I never expected that you enjoyed dressing as a commoner and traveling incognito."

The young master's expression eased. Wiping away the blood from his mouth, he said:

"You are from Zhen Estate?"

"My cousin on my mother's side is the concubine of Zhen Estate's Second Master." Noticing the change in the other man's expression, Ding Songyan first declared his connection, then asked with feigned curiosity, "Young Master, were you dressed like this and without attendants because you feared the people of Cuiliu Tower might recognize your identity?"

The young master coughed twice.

"Everyone in the world values me for my status and cultivation. Today, I wished to set all that aside and see whether, as an ordinary man, I could win Li the Head Courtesan's favor purely through my own charm and conversation. Who would have thought that they would look down on people like dogs looking at men—they would not even give me a chance to see Li the Head Courtesan!"

Your charm lies in your status and cultivation. Your bearing and conversation are better left unexplored... Do not ever cast aside your identity and strength to test what charm you possess. You will discover that you have none at all... Ding Songyan only dared grumble inwardly. Outwardly, he said:

"Young Master, I can understand traveling incognito, but those people who look down on others have already used their fists and feet. Why did you still tolerate them instead of giving them a small punishment as a warning?"

The young master fell silent for a moment before saying:

"If I am going to travel incognito, then I cannot give up halfway through. Would that not be like an actor on stage being unable to continue his performance?"

As he spoke, he tugged at the wound on the corner of his mouth and instinctively hissed.

You are truly dedicated... Even Ding Songyan's expression stiffened somewhat.

"Meeting is fate. I will treat you to wine." The young master flicked his hand and strode toward the street exit with feigned ease.

My stroke of fortune lies with him? Ding Songyan could not determine the exact time, so he could only follow this young master of extraordinary origins out of Hongxiu Street and find a nearby tavern.

Just as the young master was about to call to the waiter, "Bring a table of fine wine and good dishes," he suddenly remembered his current identity and instead said in a deep voice:

"Four drinking dishes, and a jar—a jar—just bring whatever jar of wine you like. Do not make it too expensive."

After taking seats by the window, the young master whispered to Ding Songyan:

"I do not know what ordinary wines here are called, so I could only let them arrange it themselves."

"I understand." Ding Songyan was highly experienced. As he uncovered the teacups and poured water for them both, he asked, "May I ask how I should address you, Young Master?"

"Ren Youyang." After saying this, the young master straightened his back, wearing the air of a man whom no one under heaven could fail to recognize.

This only made his bruised and swollen face stand out more.

Seeing no reaction from Ding Songyan, he asked in astonishment:

"You have not heard of me?"

"I have not." Ding Songyan shook his head.

Ren Youyang asked in a suggestive tone:

"You have never read the Exalted Orchid Roll? Nor seen the Orchid Honor Roll, which lists only young masters under thirty?"

All right, no need to say more. I know that your name is on the Orchid Honor Roll, and the Exalted Orchid Roll has rated you as well... But look at you now, beaten until you resemble a pig's head... Ding Songyan did not directly answer "I have not" again. Instead, he put on an astonished expression.

"Young Master Ren is actually listed on the Orchid Honor Roll?"

Ren Youyang smiled.

This tugged at the bruises on his face, making him let out another low cry while his dog ears twitched wildly.

"I was fortunate enough to squeeze in, in the final position." He lifted his teacup and drank a mouthful of plain water.

Ding Songyan had heard quite a few matters of the martial world recently, and praise slipped readily from his tongue.

"The Orchid Honor Roll lists only one hundred people. For Young Master Ren to have squeezed in, you are already a model among the outstanding youths of the realm, one of the few young heroes in the martial world."

To avoid tugging at the wounds on his face, Ren Youyang only smiled faintly.

"Do not keep calling each other Young Master and speaking so formally. Call me Brother Ren or Brother Youyang. I am twenty-four, and you look younger than I am, so I shall call you worthy younger brother."

"How should I address you, worthy younger brother?"

Ding Songyan gave his full name, somewhat surprised.

We got familiar far too quickly, did we not?

Sensing his confusion, Ren Youyang pointed at himself and smiled.

"That is simply how I am. If I hit it off with someone, we can become old friends the moment our carriage canopies touch. You happened to encounter me and helped me up—that is fate.

"Life is short. One should live as freely and wantonly as this."

That "honored guest" at Zhen Estate had truly calculated correctly... Being able to befriend Ren Youyang, a man of extraordinary origins, did indeed count as a stroke of fortune... Ding Songyan smiled.

"Brother Youyang, then I shall not stand on ceremony."

As the two chatted, the drinking dishes arrived one after another. Ding Songyan took the opportunity to ask:

"Brother Youyang, are you from a sect, or the descendant of a great aristocratic family?"

Ren Youyang involuntarily raised his chin slightly.

"I am a true disciple of the True Spirit Sect."

The True Spirit Sect? One of Great Zhao's Six Sects and Four Schools... Ding Songyan's smile grew ever more warm and amiable.