He rarely listened to the zither and had little interest in musical instruments. Still, with a Grandmaster's hearing, he could easily discern her deft fingering and the clear, elegant quality of her playing.
When the piece ended, Zhou Cheng applauded generously.
"A fine zither, a fine melody, and a fine beauty."
Si Lili offered a few modest words, then left her seat at the zither to pour Zhou Cheng some wine.
As the leading courtesan, she naturally knew how to make conversation. She found a topic and chatted with Zhou Cheng, encouraging him to drink.
Some time passed, and he had already drunk more than a dozen cups.
A system notification suddenly sounded in Zhou Cheng's ears.
[Negative emotions from Si Lili +66!]
Zhou Cheng set down his wine cup and suddenly smiled.
With Si Lili repeatedly urging him to drink, and the notification about her negative emotions, how could he fail to understand her intentions? She meant to get him drunk.
Unfortunately for her, whether in his previous life or this one, he had hardly ever touched alcohol.
The moment the wine entered his throat, he stored it in his system space.
Forget a dozen cups-even a dozen jars would not bring the slightest flush to his face.
His expression remained unchanged, while Si Lili, who had drunk several cups herself, was already blushing.
"Y-you certainly can hold your liquor, young master..."
Si Lili forced a smile. Under the influence of the alcohol, her whole body began to grow warm.
"It seems your tolerance is a little lacking, my lady. If we keep drinking, I fear we'll waste this lovely evening."
Zhou Cheng rose and walked to her side, making as though to pick her up.
Si Lili suddenly caught his wrist.
"Y-young master, I am a courtesan who sells only her arts... not her body."
Her voice trembled slightly. Whether the alcohol had emboldened her or something else, she continued,
"I have always admired learning above all else, and secretly swore that only a man of exceptional literary talent could... If you do not mind, young master, please compose a poem for me."
"Interesting! Very interesting! You must be the second woman who has ever dared refuse me!"
Zhou Cheng smiled as he stroked her slightly feverish cheek. Under her bewildered gaze, he said slowly,
"Do you know what happened to the first woman who refused me?"
Si Lili shuddered and lowered her head.
"I... do not."
Zhou Cheng snorted. Thinking of Li Yunrui, he realized he had not really done anything too excessive to her.
So he dropped that subject and simply said,
"You're quite bold for a little woman. You want a poem, do you? Then I'll give you one."
[Negative emotions from Si Lili +333]
With the notification sounding in his ears, he rose after speaking and paced around the room.
After seven steps, he stopped and looked at Si Lili. She looked back at him in fear.
Meeting her eyes, Zhou Cheng suddenly lost all interest.
Si Lili was not Li Yunrui, nor had she secretly plotted against him.
He was a Grandmaster, a chosen transmigrator, and Qing's third prince. Surely he could afford a little generosity.
He was no poet, and he disliked copying the verses of past masters to show off.
So he sighed and could only admit bluntly, "Forget it. I can't come up with anything..."
"What?" Si Lili was stunned.
In fact, she had already resolved to give herself to him as long as he produced a poem, regardless of its quality. She had never expected this outcome.
"If I can't write one, I can't write one. There's nothing more to say." Zhou Cheng's tone was calm.
"I am Prince Cheng, a prince of royal blood. I'm not so petty as to make life difficult for a woman. You're beautiful, and very much to my taste. Rest assured, I want you, but I'll make you willing to follow me. When that time comes, both you and the forces behind you will serve me."
Si Lili's pupils contracted. Then she saw Zhou Cheng's teasing smile and hurriedly lowered her head.
"Y-you must be joking, young master... I am only a courtesan. What forces could there possibly be behind me..."
Zhou Cheng ignored that and simply said,
"I respected your rules. Since I failed to compose a poem, I won't touch you. But you must respect my rules too. I'll make a wager with you: before long, you will ask me to protect you of your own accord. If you win, I'll have nothing to say. If you lose... you'll have to cooperate with me!"
"I... I..."
Si Lili did not know what he knew. She only felt that beneath Zhou Cheng's gaze, she might as well have been naked, with nowhere for any of her secrets to hide.
Then Zhou Cheng chuckled again.
"Miss Lili, as a descendant of Qing's former imperial family, you might even share some exceedingly distant blood relation with me, if we really traced it back."
Si Lili's expression changed abruptly. Cold sweat poured from her, and she involuntarily retreated two steps, staring at Zhou Cheng in terror.
"How could you know? Impossible! My identity..."
"Don't be afraid." Zhou Cheng's voice was even. "I don't care who you are, or whom you serve. I merely want to borrow the intelligence network behind you."
Seeing her anxious, terrified state, and how even her negative emotion points were nearly off the charts, he stopped frightening her.
"You may leave. The leading courtesan of the Drunken Immortal Residence has refused Prince Cheng. After today, your fame will rise even further. I won't touch you, nor will I secretly make trouble for you. As for our wager, I'll wait for the outcome."
"But... but..."
Si Lili could not believe that Qing's Prince Cheng would let her, a Northern Qi spy, go so easily.
"Once you're outside, bring me every courtesan here who is skilled at the pipa. I'm Prince Cheng, yet I can't even have a woman without all this fuss? I refuse to believe it!"
With that, Zhou Cheng waved his hand.
Si Lili left the Heaven Suite in a daze.
Outside the door, Chen Quan turned a deaf ear to everything within and kept his gaze fixed straight ahead throughout.
Chapter 9: Sang Wen Enters the Prince's Residence (Please bookmark, keep reading, and vote)
The door was gently pushed open with a creak.
Manager Hong entered first, her face wreathed in smiles. Behind her followed a line of six or seven young women, each carrying a pipa.
They all wore gauzy ruqun dresses in different colors, their sleeves fluttering as they filed into the Heaven Suite.
Manager Hong took two steps forward and stopped three paces from the table. She bowed deeply, her voice full of apprehension and flattery.
"Please forgive us, Your Highness... Your person is beyond price, and your generosity is as vast as the sea. That Si Lili has neither fortune nor sense. You must not let her spoil your enjoyment.
"You wished to hear the pipa, so I have summoned every girl in the house skilled at playing it. They all sell only their arts, and each is an accomplished performer.
"If any catches your eye, please take her with you. Consider it... consider it an apology from the Drunken Immortal Residence!"
Zhou Cheng lounged in a sandalwood chair cushioned with soft brocade, idly playing with a white jade cup. At her words, he merely raised his eyes and gave Manager Hong an indifferent glance before looking past her at the row of women standing behind her with their heads bowed.
Holding their pipas, they stood as still as a painting. Their clothes were pale yellow, watery green, or light purple, and their looks and bearing were all above average.
The candlelight filtered through gauze shades, casting a soft glow and stretching their shadows across the carpeted floor.
The most striking among them was the young woman on the far right, dressed in pale pink.
Unlike the others, she did not gaze at him eagerly. She simply stood quietly at the edge of light and shadow, her slender profile like a peach blossom newly opened in the morning mist, with a delicate timidity beneath her fresh beauty.
As though sensing his gaze, she looked up with great caution. After a single glance, she quickly lowered her head again.
Zhou Cheng withdrew his gaze without acknowledging Manager Hong at all. He merely said coolly to the row of young women, "Give me your names, one at a time."
At his words, the women gathered their skirts and curtsied in turn, their voices either bright and clear or soft and gentle.
"I am Yinghong."
"I am Qinlan."
"I am Ziqing."
When it was finally the pink-clad young woman's turn, she bent her knees slightly and spoke in a light, steady voice. "I am Sang Wen."
Zhou Cheng showed no particular expression upon hearing this. He merely set down his white jade cup, gave a slight nod, and pointed casually.
"Sang Wen stays. Everyone else, leave."
At these words, Sang Wen visibly froze, while the other young women could not hide their disappointment.
They had already noticed Manager Hong's anxious caution, and the title "Your Highness" made the young master's distinguished background all the more apparent.
If they could win the favor of someone like him, even if it did not instantly elevate them to wealth and rank, simply escaping this pleasure house would be an immense blessing.
Unfortunately, he had no interest in them.
The women did not dare linger. They bowed as instructed and, carrying their pipas, gracefully left the private room one after another with small steps, leaving only a faint scent of powder and perfume.
Seeing that Zhou Cheng had kept only Sang Wen, Manager Hong's smile brightened. She was about to step forward and offer a few more flattering words of introduction, but Zhou Cheng had already waved his hand and pointed at the door. "You too. Leave."
Manager Hong's smile stiffened, but she did not dare disobey in the slightest. She hastily bowed and answered, "Yes," then backed toward the door.
As she passed Sang Wen, she paused briefly and hurriedly instructed her in a near whisper, "Serve His Highness well. Be very careful!"
Sang Wen held her pipa, her body tensing slightly, and gave an almost imperceptible nod.
Even without the reminder, she knew what she had to do.
Before a true member of the imperial family, a mere courtesan like her was no more than drifting duckweed or an ant. What choice did she have but to obey and please him?
Manager Hong gently closed the carved wooden door. With a soft sound, it shut out the faint music from outside.
The private room suddenly fell quiet, leaving only the candle flames flickering along with their faint shadows.
Zhou Cheng settled back into his chair, his gaze resting openly on Sang Wen.
The girl's appearance gradually overlapped with Sang Wen's image in the drama, only younger and more delicately beautiful.
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