Chapter 37 – Bustling “Little Qinhuai”

Tuoba Zhi dismounted and talked ardently with the young man. He then pointed at the carriage Murong Zhining was in and brought the young man over.

Tuoba Zhi pulled open the carriage curtains, helped Murong Zhining dismount and introduced her, “This is Miss Murong from Nanjin. I have been lucky to be able to accompany her on the way to Nanjin.”

The young man in brocade made a greeting gesture. “Greetings, Miss Murong. I am Lian Kun.”

Murong Zhining returned with respect, “Nice to meet you, Mister Lian. I will have to follow Mister Tuoba and trouble you at your house for the next two days.”

Lian Kun responded generously, “It’s my honor to have such a distinguished guest as you, Miss Murong. My house is just right around the corner. Miss Murong, please.”

Tuoba Lan also jumped off the carriage and shouted cheerily, “Now that Big Brother Lian saw Big Sister Murong, you don’t want to bother with Lan’er anymore?”

Lian Kun was full of smiles. “My goodness, you’ve come as well, little sister. Follow me, follow me.”

Lian Kun and Tuoba Zhi led at the front, chatting as they walked. Tuoba Lan pulled Murong Zhining by the hand as she looked around. Soon, the party arrived at a grand yard, above the entrance of which hung a big plaque that said “Violet Lush Garden.” The structure was fancy and imposing: walls built of red bricks and green tiles, vermilion gates with cornice mounted atop and guarded by two stone lions. Two rows of servants stood respectfully before the gates to welcome them into the compound.

The courtyard was spacious with a variety of exotic flowers and plants. A neat and tidy green marble path led into the main hall. A woman wearing coquettish makeup and luxurious clothes came out to greet them. Lian Kun hugged her and introduced, “This is my newly received fifth wife.”

Already informed in advance of their arrival, Fifth Madam made an inviting gesture. “Mister Tuoba, Miss Tuoba, Miss Murong, please come in.”

Tuoba Zhi chuckled teasingly, “And there I was wondering why Brother Lian didn’t want to stay in the lively capital. So you’ve been hiding a beauty in this quiet place.”

The two men looked at each other and laughed loudly.

In the main hall, four octa-treasure chairs were arranged on each of the left and right sides, each chair had a small tea table next to them. Several seasonal fruits and delicate snacks were arranged on the tables. Fifth Madam tactfully withdrew. “Husband, please accompany our distinguished guests to relax. I will go to the kitchen and supervise the cooking, and make sure nothing neglectful of our guests will happen.”

Tuoba Zhi cupped his hands. “Thank you so much, sister-in-law. Please attend to whatever you need to do.”

Tuoba Zhi talked to Lian Kun with zeal, but Lian Kun was absent-minded as his eyes frequently drifted over to Murong Zhining.

Murong Zhining was touring around the hall to look at the calligraphy artwork on the walls. She approached a painting of landscape and stopped to observe it.

Tuoba Lan peeled a tangerine and handed it to Murong Zhining. “What are you looking at, big sister?”

Murong Zhining’s eyes didn’t move away from the painting. “This is the ‘World in New Snow’ by Old Master Yan Liben. I am surprised that Mister Lian’s estate would hold such a great painting.”

Lian Kun walked to the painting, but his eyes lingered on Murong Zhining’s face. “Miss Murong is very knowledgeable. Only that, this painting of mine is a fake. Someone owed me a great deal of money and was unable to pay back; so, he tricked me into believing that this was a genuine work of Yan Liben. And goodness, I had no eyes and believed him!”

Drawing her face close to the painting, Murong Zhining carefully observed the signature and postscript. After nearly half an incense stick of time, she said, “Congratulations, Mister Lian, this painting is a genuine piece by Yan Liben. Come and look.”

Tuoba Zhi also came over with great interest. Murong Zhining pointed at the postscript. “This is the authentic Yan style. Yan Liben employed mostly the Seal script to write postscripts on his artwork, but the characters in this painting are influenced by his own writing habits, very smooth at the finishing touch, and this is a feature many imitators never notice. Here, check out this spot. I once heard a grandmaster connoisseur of art say that Old Master Yan had a strange habit of pressing an ink fingerprint on his art. Of course, the hidden position of this fingerprint differs in each painting.”

Tuoba Zhi and Lian Kun followed Murong Zhining and drew their faces closer to inspect it. Indeed, between the two pine trees, there was an ink mark very similar to a fingerprint pattern. Murong Zhining continued and pointed at a circular seal on the painting. “I’ve seen other authentic works of Old Master Yan, and I remember all the jagged spots on his seal mark. This one is exactly the same.”

Lian Kun’s and Tuoba Zhi’s eyes gleamed at the same time. The two men looked at Murong Zhining as if they were admiring a unique treasure.

Murong Zhining shook her head. “What a pity, the comments written by those ordinary people to add to the postscript are like worthless sequels to a masterpiece, they almost destroy this great painting. While the painting’s value may be discounted due to these comments, it still makes a decent piece for collectors.”

Lian Kun performed a gesture of gratitude towards Murong Zhining. “Your knowledgeability impresses me, Miss Murong. Hadn’t it been for your reminders, I would have kept considering this a fake.”

Murong Zhining still looked at the painting in a daze. “I’m humbled by your praise, Mister Lian.”

Lian Kun pulled Tuoba Zhi to the side. “Brother Tuoba, where did you find such a beautiful miss? And she’s so knowledgeable to boot. Why aren’t I as lucky as you? How about you give her to me?”

Tuoba Zhi shot him a glare. “You think she’s an object you can have just because you want to? She’s not from a common family, don’t set your scheming eyes on her.”

Lian Kun looked to Murong Zhining. “As long as she’s not your woman, how can I not have any ideas about her? I’m also a handsome refined man.”

Tuoba Zhi punched him in the chest. “Don’t even think about it.”

Lian Kun sighed. “Ahhh! You just get to have all the good things.”

Fifth Madam sashayed into the hall. “Husband, I have had people arranged wine and food. Please invite our guests to the left chamber for dinner.”

Lian Kun politely led the three to the left room behind the hall. “Compared to the capital, Xingzhou is but a small place. There are no specialties here except for the tangerines. My house is but simply a remote estate without anything good to entertain you guys. I hope Brother Tuoba and Miss Murong wouldn’t mind.”

Tuoba Lan pursed her lips at him. “Didn’t Xingzhou also give birth to such a beauty like our little sister-in-law?”

Lian Kun smiled awkwardly.

Tuoba Zhi took a glance at the food on the table and sighed. “Brother Lian, this table of food can compare to a national banquet. It seems that I must visit you more frequently.”

The party chatted and laughed as they enjoyed the meal. Fifth Madam was tactful to find an excuse to withdraw. She actually followed the rules very well and knew that concubines weren’t allowed to accompany the guests in a meal.

During the feast, Lian Kun assiduously introduced the dishes, ”Try this, this is the local crab. This season produces the best and richest crabs. Miss Murong, please.” His eyes were glued to Murong Zhining with an obvious reluctance to shift away.

Chewing the food in her mouth, Tuoba Lan rolled her eyes at Lian Kun. “How long has it been since you took in our fifth little sister-in-law?”

Lian Kun smiled ashamedly, “While I introduced her as your sister-in-law, I haven’t formally taken her in yet. She is from a poor background, so I can only keep her here for now.”

Tuoba Zhi growled, “Lan’er, show some respect, won’t you?!”

Luoba Lan pouted. “I was just asking. What’s your problem? He has so many wives already, yet he has been staring at Big Sister Murong the whole time.”

Murong Zhining lightly tugged at her clothes. “Little big sister-in-law is very beautiful, even someone like Mister Lian can become a prisoner of love for her. I don’t see anything wrong with this. Mutual affection is more important than anything else.”

Lian Kun smiled in embarrassment. “Miss Murong is an empathetic person.”

After dinner, Lian Kun suggested, “Since it's a rare occasion for Brother Tuoba and Miss Murong to come by this place, how about I bring you out to have some fun tonight?”

Tuoba Zhi quickly glanced at Murong Zhining. “As long as it doesn’t pose any threat to Miss Murong and she is willing to, it’s fine by me.”

Murong Zhining smiled beautifully. “Of course. How can I spoil the two gentlemen’s fun?”

Tuoba Lan pouted. “Hey! Why are you two big men acting like I don’t exist? You won’t ask for my opinion?”

Lian Kun smiled, “My most treasured little sister Lan’er, I was just about to ask you.”

Tuoba Lan glared at him. “Then, where are you planning to take us?”

Lian Kun put on a bad-guy smile, “To play something that you’ve never played before.” He then whispered something to Tuoba Zhi. The latter revealed a difficult expression. Lian Kun gave him a push. “I’ll just tell Miss Murong directly. Xingzhou is famous as ‘Little Qinhuai’ with numerous taverns and music houses. I’ve received news that the most famous Gorgeous Scent House recently acquired a group of Persian dancers, as well as several ladies very skilled at music instruments. I’ve wanted to check it out for a while now, but it’s too uninteresting going alone. Now that we have more people, Miss Murong and lil’ sis can disguise yourselves so we can all go and enjoy the bustle, how about it?”

Tuoba Lan loved excitement, so she immediately cheered and agreed. Murong Zhining said, “If everyone is interested, I can’t spoil it for you.”

Tuoba Zhi instructed Lian Kun, “Call for more manservants to follow us. We must ensure Miss Murong’s safety.”

At the entrance of the Gorgeous Scent House arrived four young, elegant gentlemen. A well-dressed middle-aged woman welcomed them into the compound with a face full of smiles and shouted, “Ladies, we have guests!”

The middle-aged woman looked at Lian Kun smilingly, “It’s been a long time since Mister Lian last visited our Gorgeous Scent House. Since you married our Jiao Lan, she must have been keeping you on a tight leash?”

Lian Kun responded with a forthright smile. “Mother Wu, you’re laughing at me again. Quickly arrange a good position for me, my guests want to watch the musical show.”

Mother Wu had people lead them to a room with a terrace upstairs, under the terrace was a spiral structure, allowing the scenery downstairs to be seen fully without obstruction.

Tuoba Lan was outspoken. “So my sister-in-law came from here. No wonder… Brother Lian doesn’t dare to bring her back to the capital.”

Murong Zhining pinched Tuoba Lan’s leg, hard. Tuoba Lan yelped in pain. Lian Kun rubbed the back of his head and smiled. “It’s fine, just let her speak. Our little sister is still a child.”

Touba Zhi also shot her a glare.

From downstairs, the distinctive music of the Western Regions echoed. The four came out to the terrace and sat down. In the middle of the terrace was a round table with melon seeds and cool fruits as well as tea, wine and pastry. On the round stage below were four Persian dancers with black curly hair, high nose bridges, and big eyes. With their faces covered by transparent veils and wearing corsets decorated with gold leaves that exposed their thin waists, the dancers slowly shook their bellies.

The bells sewn to their skirts jingled along to the shaking of their bodies, driving the room full of men to exclaim. Tuoba Lan shook her head with a long sigh. “I don’t understand how these dancers grow up to be so daring. How can they bear to wear so little in front of people? If my father saw this, he’d definitely swear at them for being shameless.”

Tuoba Zhi covered his mouth to hide his smile.

Murong Zhining enjoyed the fragrant tea and gracefully commented, “I’ve only heard of this but had never seen before. Today is an eye-opener for me. I heard that in their country, dressing like that is very normal. The customs are different from place to place, I can accept them. They’re very beautiful.”

Tuoba Zhi cast a meaningful glance at Murong Zhining. He truly appreciated her open-minded character.