" Yingyu, is this really okay for us?"
Tong Aning looked at Lou Yingyu with a helpless expression.
Lou Yingyu didn't answer her question. Instead, she circled around Tong Aning, who was dressed as a man. She used her folding fan to lift Tong Aning's chin and said with shining eyes, "What a handsome young master! Is he married?"
Tong Aning: "..."
[I feel like I've been teased.]
Hearing this, Lou Yingyu still didn't restrain herself, her expression clearly saying, "So what if I flirted with you?"
Tong Aning was even more helpless.
Lou Yingyu, her face full of infatuation, said, " Aning, how can there be someone like you in this world? You're beautiful as a woman, and you're beautiful as a man. I really want to marry you."
Tong Aning: "???"
Is this correct?
Tong Aning pulled Lou Yingyu's hand away, "Stop fooling around."
Lou Yingyu chuckled and led Tong Aning down from the carriage.
The madam of Spring Breeze House beamed with joy the moment she saw them.
"Gentlemen, do you have a lady you admire?"
The madam's gaze remained fixed on the gold necklace around Lou Yingyu; it seemed that wealth and luxury were indeed alluring.
Lou Yingyu gave Tong Aning a look.
Tong Aning said, "We'll just take a look around."
The madam summoned someone to lead the way, and before they left, she added, "Handsome young men, we also have some here."
Lou Yingyu and Tong Aning felt a chill run down their spines and quickly left.
What do you think she means?
Lou Yingyu got goosebumps whenever she thought about what the madam had just said. Did she think they had homosexual relations?
Tong Aning said, "They probably figured out that we're both women disguised as men."
Lou Yingyu breathed a sigh of relief, "Then it's alright."
Tong Aning: "?"
The two found a place to sit down. On the central round platform, several girls were dancing, and the sounds of string and wind instruments filled the building.
Tong Aning asked, " Yingyu, you still haven't said what you came to Spring Breeze House for?"
"Looking for someone."
"Looking for someone?" Tong Aning was completely confused.
As the dance ended, the madam stood in the center of the round platform and said with a smile, "Thank you all for coming from afar. Now it's time for our Peony."
Lou Yingyu didn't take it to heart. In her opinion, a grown man like the Vice Minister of the Court of State Ceremonial should be indecent even if he were to inexplicably work in a brothel.
This Peony is definitely not her target.
"Finally, I'll get to see the Peony dance!"
"It's not just dancing; I've also heard that after the dance, the Peony will invite a guest to join the ceremony."
Just thinking about it makes me feel like I'm floating on air...
" Brother Zhou, you and Peony went upstairs last month. How did it go?"
The man addressed as Brother Zhou looked on with longing, "Paradise on earth."
Lou Yingyu said with disgust, "Ew..."
What kind of comments are these?
[Pleasure on earth, my foot! I wonder if they'd throw up immediately if they found out Peony was a man in disguise.]
Huh?
So, the Peony is associated with the Vice Minister of the Court of State Ceremonial?
How long has he been working at Spring Breeze House? He's almost become the top courtesan.
Lou Yingyu then looked at the men sitting next to them and saw that they looked troubled, which meant they must have heard Tong Aning's thoughts.
What to do? I suddenly feel a little sorry for her.
"Where are you going, Brother Zhou?"
Brother Zhou covered his mouth and ran out, leaving only a hurried silhouette behind.
[No way, he really threw up? Does he know something?]
Tong Aning was very puzzled.
The circular platform was surrounded by hanging gauze curtains, and the building was quiet; the Peony was about to make its appearance.
As the veil was lifted, a woman dressed in red was revealed. She was in exotic attire, and her face was covered by a veil, the tassels on the veil swaying with her movements.
Everyone watched, completely mesmerized.
But Lou Yingyu was already dumbfounded.
Just as Peony was engrossed in dancing, Brother Zhou, who had gone out to vomit, returned.
His face was pale, and he pointed angrily at the Peony on the round platform, saying, " Peony, how dare you lie to me!"
It seems there really are no secrets that stay hidden forever.
Because of this incident, the musicians stopped playing and all looked at Zhou He.
Peony also looked at him.
The madam said, "Where did this person come from, daring to cause trouble in my Spring Breeze House? Drag him out!"
Zhou He was restrained, and he struggled violently, " Peony, you're clearly a man, why did you lie to me?"
The madam pointed at Zhou He, "How dare you! How could I not know whether Peony is male or female?"
"Hahaha, even if you know more, can you know as much as I do?"
He's the one who shared a passionate encounter with the Peony!
[Didn't you just not know that?]
Zhou He: "..."
Zhou He stormed up to Peony and ripped off Peony veil. Peony's pupils dilated, and he immediately raised his sleeve to cover himself, but it was too late; his appearance had already been seen.
"It really was a man?"
The crowd buzzed with discussion, while a few people in the corner looked shocked.
[I truly pity his wife. He himself is a pervert, liking to wear women's clothing and be with men, yet he feared social disapproval, so he still got married. In the end, he ended up working in a brothel, and his brother-in-law was also with him. What did his wife do wrong to deserve such a scumbag?]
brother in law?
Lou Yingyu's mouth was so big that an egg could fit inside.
Lou Yingyu her hand on the table and stood up. "You shameless scoundrel!"
*
His affair with the Vice Minister of the Court of State Ceremonial was exposed, his wife wanted a divorce, and he was dismissed from his post.
This is a very satisfying ending.
but...
"Brother, why did several officials start trembling as soon as they saw me today?"
Tong Aning was completely bewildered.
She had no interaction with those adults.
Tong Yibin: "... They went to Spring Breeze House, and happened to be a guest of the Peony brothel."
Tong Aning: "..."
"There's something," Tong Aobai said sternly, standing beside the two, " Aning, you're not allowed to go to Spring Breeze House next time."
Tong Aning chuckled twice, trying to get away with it by feigning ignorance, "Of course, I definitely won't go again."
Tong Aning took Tong Aobai's arm and winked at him.
Tong Aobai couldn't bear to speak harshly to her. "Alright, Dad's not blaming you."
I knew it.
Tong Yibin watched the two of them from behind, a smirk playing on his lips.
*
The Yun Kingdom is about to come to pay tribute.
This is the first time the Yun Kingdom has come to pay tribute, and both the Ministry of Rites and the Court of State Ceremonial attach great importance to it.
Lou Yingyu and Tong Aning were both forced into this situation, and while they tried their best, they wondered to themselves, "When did I become so important?"
Fortunately, Tong Aning had written a plan beforehand, so this kind of thing was just like coming up with a plan, and it didn't stump her.
As for Lou Yingyu, she was in the Court of State Ceremonial, so all she had to do was run the program.
"I've heard that the eldest princess of the Yun Kingdom is very beautiful. Seeing such a beauty will surely relieve my fatigue from these many days."
Tong Aning: "..."
[ Yingyu really hasn't changed her original intentions.]
The two stood in front of the post station, waiting for the arrival of the Yun Kingdom envoy.
Standing in front of them were Lü Er, Ministry of Rites, and Qu Bufan, Minister of the Court of State Ceremonial Ceremonies.
The carriages appeared, a grand procession, with the eldest princess and second prince of the Yun Kingdom leading the way.
The two arrived at the post station and dismounted.
The Great Xia's etiquette was impeccable, but the Yun Kingdom's...
The second prince sized up their welcoming party, seemingly displeased.
Lü Er asked bluntly, "Does the Second Prince feel that we have been negligent in any way?"
The second prince glanced at Lü Er, his face full of arrogance, "No."
"Then please have the Second Prince and the First Princess stay at the inn for now. His Majesty will summon you in three days."
The second prince finally couldn't hold back any longer. He said, "Don't my elder sister and I deserve the hospitality of a prince?"
Isn't this just picking a fight?
Lü Er said, "Everything is in accordance with the specifications; it's the result of discussions between me and Lord Qu."
Qu Bufan stepped forward and echoed, "Exactly."
"You..."
"Your Highness, it was your Yun Kingdom that voluntarily paid tribute to us. At that time, the document of your Yun Kingdom's tribute was handed to our Crown Prince. Now that you have come to pay tribute, our Great Xia welcomes you with the utmost hospitality. We have spent half a month preparing. Your Highness, is there anything amiss?"
The second prince met Lou Yingyu's eyes.
These are eyes that shine as brightly as stars.
However, the Second Prince did not fail to understand what the other party was saying.
The documents from the King of the Yun Kingdom were all addressed to the Crown Prince of Great Xia. Now that these princes and princesses have come to pay homage, the reception entourage is already quite impressive.
Hopefully, they won't be ungrateful.
The second prince flicked his sleeve and went inside.
Tong Aning quietly gave Lou Yingyu a thumbs up.
Lou Yingyu looked at Qu Bufan with a conflicted expression.
Qu Bufan looked satisfied. "Well done. This is how the Court of State Ceremonial should be—neither humble nor arrogant."
Qu Bufan asked the emperor to bring Lou Yingyu to the Court of State Ceremonial because he valued this aspect of Lou Yingyu.
Everyone says Lou Yingyu is arrogant and domineering, but if that arrogance is used in the right place, it can be a sharp blade.
Lou Yingyu was somewhat smug and gestured with her chin towards Tong Aning.
Tong Aning praised, " Yingyu is amazing."
Lou Yingyu's tail was practically sticking up to the sky.
*
Three days later, the emperor summoned the envoy from the Yun Kingdom.
The treasures offered by the Yun Kingdom were all rare and precious items, which broadened the horizons of the Yun Kingdom officials and gave them a feast for the eyes.
"Your Majesty, I have another box here, containing the most precious treasure of my Yun Kingdom. However, my Yun Kingdom is incompetent and cannot open this box. If someone close to Your Majesty can open it, this treasure will naturally belong to Your Majesty."
Eunuch Wang presented the box to the emperor.
The emperor looked at it, then ordered the box to be taken down so that his court officials could examine it one by one.
[I smell something unusual. If we can't open it, won't the envoy from the Yun Kingdom laugh at us?]
Several senior officials realized Yun Kingdom's intentions.
But the box was exquisitely designed; even if it had a mechanism, they couldn't find the entrance, let alone open it.
[Actually, it's not difficult.]
It's not difficult...
Does Tong Aning have a solution?
[Just smash the box. I refuse to believe that one blow will restore it to its original state.]
courtier. "?"
Is such violence really okay?