A fortuitous encounter

After leaving the Zhen Estate, Ding Songyan looked up at the still-blazing sun.

Should I go or not?

That "honored guest" at the Zhen Estate claimed to be skilled in the Art of Numerology. He calculated that I would have a fortuitous encounter at the Perfume Shop on Hongxiu Street in Beili Ward, sometime between the start of the rooster hour and its second quarter. Who knows whether it's true...

There's nothing to lose by taking a look. At worst, he'll laugh at me tomorrow for actually believing him. I have a thick skin. I don't care...

With that attitude, Ding Songyan first went home to tell his younger sister, lest they go searching everywhere for him again, 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 Quarter, singing houses, and pleasure houses clustered.

The Entertainment Quarter invariably had performance enclosures, which offered a hundred varieties of entertainment, from plays and operas to puppetry, shadow plays, storytelling, and singing with instrumental accompaniment. Crowds came and went every day, and numerous taverns, eateries, and gambling houses surrounded the enclosures. Medicine sellers, barbers, and fortune-tellers could be seen everywhere.

As Ding Songyan understood it, the Entertainment Quarter was a commercial complex centered on theatrical performances. Once you tired of the fun, there were singing houses, pleasure houses, and perfume shops nearby.

A storyteller like him, whose fame extended no farther than the area around Dangkang Temple, was not yet qualified to perform at an Entertainment Quarter. He could only be called a "Wandering Storyteller."

Asking directions along the way, Ding Songyan reached Hongxiu Street. A casual glance revealed vivid purples and brilliant reds everywhere, each vying to outshine the others. Even the street itself seemed steeped in the scent of rouge and powder.

As he leisurely made his way toward the Perfume Shop at the end of the street, he noticed that many singing houses were vast, elaborate buildings, a full six or seven stories high. From their top floors, one could probably see over the nearby northern wall to the river.

Behind such singing houses and pleasure houses, there were often several courtyards, from which drifted faint sounds of floating wine cups on winding streams and the lilting music of strings and flutes.

Unfortunately, it was still early, and the colorful lanterns had yet to be lit, leaving them a little short of their usual ostentatious splendor.

Nanfeng Tower... Those standing at the windows are actually men. Some are even wearing bright red women's clothes... There are women going in and out, but men too... Your Great Zhao is pretty open-minded... Ding Songyan inwardly curled his lip and arrived at the street's sole Perfume Shop-Ganyue Firm.

Perfume shops were paid bathhouses, named for the various spices, flowers, and herbs added to their bathwater.

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

It was still well before the rooster hour. When he tired of standing, he squatted; when he tired of squatting, he paced up and down the street. When pacing became tedious, he simply headed toward a stall selling infused water by the roadside.

Infused water was boiled water steeped with flowers, herbs, spices, and the like, one of the common folk's beverages.

The stallholder had set up a large pot, in which water bubbled and boiled.

"Perilla water, cardamom water, fragrant flower water for sale!" Seeing Ding Songyan approach, the stallholder hastily called out several times.

Ding Songyan pulled over a bench, sat down, and asked with a smile:

"Why sell hot infused water instead of ice in this scorching summer weather?"

"The singing houses, pleasure houses, and perfume shops on Hongxiu Street all have their own iced drinks. How could I compete? Look at this face of mine. Is it handsome?" The stallholder pointed to his pitted face, already showing wrinkles.

"No," Ding Songyan answered quite honestly.

"Exactly! If I had money, I'd go to Cuiliu Tower to look at beauties too, and have one serve me an iced drink. I certainly wouldn't stare at this old face." The stallholder pointed at Cuiliu Tower, opposite Ganyue Firm.

It was one of Hongxiu Street's grandest singing houses, a wood-and-stone structure rising tier upon tier, apparently seven stories tall.

"What would you like to drink, sir?" Having finished mocking himself, the stallholder asked with a smile.

Ding Songyan took down his money pouch.

"Stalk-infused water."

It was the cheapest kind of infused water.

The smile gradually vanished from the stallholder's face. He ladled boiling water into a bowl, swished a bundle of rice-stalk pith through it seven or eight times, then added a little coarse brown sugar.

"Four copper coins," he told Ding Songyan.

Ding Songyan said in amusement:

"I only pay two a bowl outside Dangkang Temple."

"This is Hongxiu Street," the stallholder replied calmly.

Having earned quite a bit lately while spending very little, Ding Songyan did not haggle. He paid four copper coins, accepted the bowl of stalk-infused water, and set it before him to let it cool a little.

Meanwhile, he turned slightly to one side and carefully watched what was happening outside Ganyue Firm and Cuiliu Tower.

Time passed slowly. Ding Songyan picked up his stalk-infused water, blew on it a few times, and took a sip.

It had a faint fragrance of rice and a sweet aftertaste. It quenched his thirst but did nothing to dispel the heat.

Halfway through his drink, Ding Songyan noticed a stir at the entrance to Cuiliu Tower.

In the blink of an eye, someone was beaten out of the building, staggered, and fell to the ground.

My fortuitous encounter? He won't try to swindle me, will he? Ding Songyan had no desire to meddle, but remembering the words of the Zhen Estate's "honored guest," he put down his bowl, hurried over, and crouched to help the man up.

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

The man wore a white Lantern-Sleeved Robe, his hair hanging loose. Hissing in pain, he shook his head and said:

"I'm fine, I'm fine."

When he raised his head, Ding Songyan froze for a moment.

It was not because the man was as elegant as a jade tree in the breeze or bore the marks of exceptional promise, but because Ding Songyan had seen him before-at the Zhen Estate!

Back then, the Zhen Estate's main gates had been thrown wide open, and a son of the principal wife had personally escorted him out. He had worn feathered robes and a tall ceremonial cap, with four beautiful maidservants and four guards following behind. He also had an unusual feature: a pair of rather large, doglike ears. His imposing presence had convinced Ding Songyan that he must be of extraordinary birth and highly skilled in martial arts.

Yet now he had been beaten out of a Qin Tower, his face bruised and swollen, blood at the corner of his mouth, looking utterly bedraggled.

Once Ding Songyan helped him up, the young gentleman pulled out a piece of cloth and tied his hair back. Two large, yellowish-brown dog ears, previously concealed beneath his hair and pressed tight against his head, sprang back into place with a snap and quivered.

It really is him... Ding Songyan had thought he might have mistaken the man for someone else, but now he was certain.

The pale, plump young gentleman, whose eyelids were puffy, glanced at Ding Songyan and frowned in puzzlement.

"You know me?"

Something seemed to occur to him, and his expression gradually soured.

Ding Songyan hastily said:

"I saw you at the Zhen Estate, young master. You were so far above everyone then that you probably didn't notice me. I never imagined you had a taste for a white dragon's pastime of taking a fish's guise."

The young gentleman's expression eased. Wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, he asked:

"Are you with the Zhen Estate?"

"My maternal aunt's daughter is a concubine of the Zhen Family's second master." Noticing the change in his expression, Ding Songyan first explained his connection, then asked with feigned curiosity, "Young master, did you dress like this and leave your attendants behind because you feared the people at Cuiliu Tower would recognize you?"

The young gentleman coughed twice.

"Everyone values me for my status and cultivation. Today, I wanted to set those aside and see whether, as an ordinary man, I could win Headliner Li's favor through my bearing and conversation alone. Who knew those dogs would look down their snouts at me and refuse even to let me see her!"

Your charm lies precisely in your status and cultivation. The less said about your bearing and conversation, the better... Never set aside your status and strength to test your charm. You'll discover you haven't any at all... Ding Songyan only dared mutter this inwardly. Out loud, he said:

"Young master, I understand taking a fish's guise as a white dragon, but once those dogs started throwing punches and kicks, why did you still tolerate them instead of giving them a small punishment to teach them a greater lesson?"

The young gentleman fell silent for a moment before replying:

"If I'm going to take a fish's guise as a white dragon, I can't give up halfway through. Wouldn't that be like an actor onstage who couldn't finish his role?"

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

You're certainly dedicated to your role... Ding Songyan's expression stiffened a little.

"Our meeting is fate. Let me buy you a drink." The young gentleman flicked his hand and headed out of the street, making a show of carefree elegance.

Is my fortuitous encounter tied to him? Unable to judge the exact time, Ding Songyan could only follow the young gentleman of extraordinary birth out of Hongxiu Street and into a nearby tavern.

The young gentleman was just about to call to the waiter, "Bring us a table of fine food and wine," when he suddenly remembered his current identity and instead said in a deep voice:

"Get us four dishes to go with wine, and a jar-a jar-just pick a jar of wine for us. Nothing too expensive."

Once they had taken seats by the window, the young gentleman told Ding Songyan quietly:

"I don't know what the ordinary wines here are called, so I could only let them choose."

"I understand." Well practiced at such things, Ding Songyan turned over the teacups and poured water for them both as he asked, "May I ask your name, young master?"

"Ren Youyang." Having spoken, the young gentleman straightened his back, looking as though there could be no one under heaven who did not know him.

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

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

"You haven't heard of me?"

"No." Ding Songyan shook his head.

Ren Youyang offered a hint:

"You've never leafed through the Exalted Orchid Roll? You haven't even read the Orchid Honor Roll, which only lists young experts under thirty?"

All right, you don't need to say any more. I know you're listed on the Orchid Honor Roll, and the Exalted Orchid Roll has ranked you too... But right now, you've been beaten until your face looks like a pig's head... Rather than directly answering "no" again, Ding Songyan assumed a shocked expression.

"Young Master Ren, you're actually listed on the Orchid Honor Roll?"

Ren Youyang smiled.

That tugged at the bruises on his face, drawing another soft cry of pain as his dog ears twitched wildly.

"I was lucky enough to squeeze in, in last place." He picked up his teacup and drank some plain water.

Having heard plenty about the martial world recently, Ding Songyan offered praise without hesitation:

"The Orchid Honor Roll lists only a hundred people. To make it onto the roll at all, Young Master Ren, you must already be a model for young talents throughout the realm, one of the martial world's foremost young heroes."

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

"Enough of all this 'young master' and humble formality. Just call me Brother Ren or Brother Youyang. I'm twenty-four, and you look younger than me, so I'll call you my younger brother.

"What is your name, younger brother?"

Somewhat surprised, Ding Songyan gave his full name.

Isn't he getting familiar a little too quickly?

Noticing his puzzlement, Ren Youyang pointed at himself and said with a smile:

"I've always been like this. If we hit it off, we can meet beneath our carriage canopies and feel like old friends. You happened upon me just now and helped me up-that means we have a connection.

"Life is short. We ought to live as freely as this."

That "honored guest" at the Zhen Estate really did calculate it correctly... Getting to know someone of extraordinary birth like Ren Youyang certainly counts as a fortuitous encounter... Ding Songyan smiled.

"Then I won't stand on ceremony, Brother Youyang."

As they chatted, the dishes began arriving one after another. Ding Songyan took the opportunity to ask:

"Brother Youyang, do you come from the Sects, or are you a scion of a great clan?"

Ren Youyang involuntarily raised his chin a little.

"I'm a true inheritance disciple of the True Spirit Sect."

The True Spirit Sect? One of the six sects among Great Zhao's Six Sects and Four Factions... Ding Songyan's smile became even warmer and friendlier.