Pan Mei’er strode across the vast banquet hall as if no one else existed. Her bare feet splashed through the shimmering golden water of the canal as she crossed to the other side. With a casual kick, she shoved the maid’s stiffening body aside, then raised her foot to grind her heel into the girl's chest.
"A body like yours isn't even fit to wipe my feet on."
Governor Sun remained seated in his gold-and-silver inlaid chair, watching with cold indifference. Seeing that he had no objections, his subordinates discreetly signaled for the maid’s corpse to be carried away. The hall returned to a state of eerie calm, as if nothing had happened.
Pan Mei’er cast a glance toward Governor Sun from a distance, her eyes filled with a calculated boldness. After that single look, she quickly turned her gaze toward the man in purple, her phoenix-like eyes practically brimming with liquid affection.
"Lord Yan Zi, do you remember me? We have met before."
The man named Yan Zi looked at her. His gaze was no different from the one he had leveled at the maid.
"I do not."
Xiao Nanhui pinched her thigh hard to keep from laughing out loud. To hide her reaction, she hurriedly bent over and served another plate of salted plums to the fat gentleman in front of her.
Pan Mei’er’s expression stiffened for a moment, but she did not lose heart. She simply sat down beside the man and filled the two empty cups on the table. Picking one up, she held it to her lips, lingering over it without drinking as she watched him.
At that moment, Governor Sun, hearing the name Pan Mei’er had uttered, finally seemed to realize the man’s identity. He raised his wine cup in a distant toast. "I have long heard that Lord Bai’s esteemed subordinate, Mr. Yan, is a figure like a banished immortal. Seeing you today, you are indeed extraordinary. I must offer you a toast."
Upon hearing this, Yan Zi picked up the cup with one hand, acknowledged the Governor, and drained the wine in a single gulp without saying a word.
Xiao Nanhui’s heart began to race. Moments ago, she had been content to watch the spectacle, but now that she knew this man belonged to the Bai clan, she couldn't help but think of the day she might have to face him. She didn't know Yan Zi’s true origins, but with such a capable man in their service, the Bai clan would likely be even harder to deal with in the future.
After one round of drinks, Yan Zi’s cheeks flushed crimson, as if he had never touched alcohol before. Governor Sun watched him from the corner of his eye, intent on asserting his dominance.
"Mr. Yan has come from afar; it is only right that I welcome him properly. Chieftain Pan and I have been friends for many years. Why not let her offer you another toast on my behalf, so we may celebrate our future grand plans together?"
Pan Mei’er was quick-witted; she understood his meaning instantly. They intended to get the man drunk to make the upcoming negotiations easier. She also harbored a desire to test him, so she promptly filled his cup to the brim.
"Lord Yan, this is the finest Burning Jade Wine. Do not let it go to waste."
Seeing that Yan Zi still didn't move, Governor Sun added indifferently, "Is Mr. Yan worried about getting drunk? It matters not if you do. You may rest at my estate tonight. My servants are all obedient and clever; they will surely see to your every comfort."
With pressure coming from all sides, they were clearly forcing him to drink.
The other guests settled in to watch the show. After all, no one expected the seemingly invincible Bai clan to send such a young lad to negotiate. It was only natural that he would be given a hard time.
But Xiao Nanhui felt that it wasn't the young man who was about to suffer, but Governor Sun.
Sure enough, the wine Pan Mei’er had poured sat there undisturbed. The man in purple didn't even spare it a glance. He paused in silence for a moment, then suddenly stood up and walked toward Governor Sun at the head of the hall.
Governor Sun had spent a fortune on guards, several of whom were the scimitar-wielding riders who had come for the bride the previous day. Seeing the man approach, they quickly moved to intercept him.
Weapons were forbidden at such a banquet, but the man exuded an aura that suggested he simply disdained the use of them.
Four guards attacked him simultaneously from the left and right. He didn't even bother to dodge. Waiting until the blades were close, he flicked his hand as if shooing away a fly.
The blade that should have struck him suddenly changed direction, slicing the throat of the nearest companion before instantly severing the fingers of the two men beside him.
The fourth man stared in a daze as his scimitar clattered to the floor.
The guest tables, which had been filled with laughter and teasing just a second ago, fell into a deathly silence.
Xiao Nanhui watched, tongue-tied. To possess such power at such a young age was one thing, but his methods were chilling. She wondered which martial sect his techniques originated from. Her knowledge of the martial world was still limited; if Bo Lao were here, he might have been able to recognize it.
Yan Zi climbed the steps one by one until he stood directly before Governor Sun. With an expressionless face, he threw an empty-handed palm strike through the air. The wine pot, cups, and platters of fruit on the Governor's table were swept aside like fallen leaves in a gale.
Having cleared the space, he flexed his wrist, seemingly unaware that his behavior was in any way inappropriate. He pulled out a parchment scroll and placed it on the now-empty table.
"Lord Bai said I am to give this agreement to you. If you approve, sign it here. If you do not, return it as it is."
Governor Sun looked down at the parchment and swallowed hard. "Um, Mr. Yan, you see, the wine has gone to my head. Could you allow me to look at it after I have sobered up...?"
Yan Zi frowned slightly, thinking seriously for a moment before looking at him. "When will you be sober?"
Governor Sun forced a smile, revealing a row of yellow teeth. "Perhaps by tomorrow."
Yan Zi nodded, his expression utterly indifferent. "Then I shall wait for you until tomorrow."
With that, he walked back to his seat as calmly as he had come, as if the mess and the blood on the floor had nothing to do with him.
Pan Mei’er gritted her teeth, staring at the wine she had just poured, and was forced to drink it herself.
After taking a moment to compose himself, Governor Sun decided to find another way to reclaim the face he had just lost. He raised his voice intentionally. "Look at me, I almost forgot the main event. Today is a wedding feast; how can we be without the beautiful bride? Men, bring out the woman sent by the Tian family."
At these words, the guests regained their spirits and burst into laughter. Their voices were filled with suggestive teasing, as if they had long known this was coming.
Before long, Tian Wei’er was led into the hall by two matrons. She was still wearing her red wedding robes, stubbornly clutching a round silk fan to hide her face. In the next instant, one of the matrons snatched the fan away and tossed it aside.
Xiao Nanhui glanced at Wu Xiaoliu, who was standing not far away. He was clearly panicked, unsure of what was happening. An ominous feeling rose in her chest.
Governor Sun looked the young girl over with satisfaction.
"Drinking and listening to music is too dull. They say your Tian ancestors once served in the palace's imperial dance academy. Surely, performing a dance to liven things up won't be difficult for you. Everyone here today is an honored guest; it is your good fortune to be able to please them."
Xiao Nanhui frowned. She had underestimated Governor Sun’s capacity for cruelty.
To call a newlywed bride into the hall on her first day to dance for guests was an unbearable humiliation, even for a concubine—let alone a young lady raised in luxury and refinement.
Tian Wei’er’s face turned pale instantly. Her bright red lips trembled like two wilting rose petals. The beauty looked as though she were about to burst into tears, but the guests only found it more amusing. One could see singing girls anywhere, but a bride in her wedding red was a rare sight. The thrill of trampling over morality and social norms excited everyone.
However, among the faces eager for a show, one man’s expression was clearly off—it was the richly dressed Young Master Jia. Xiao Nanhui noticed that he was gripping his small white jade cup so hard it seemed ready to shatter.
"What dances do you know? Come, tell the musicians."
Governor Sun pressed her, but Tian Wei’er couldn't utter a single word. Her entire body began to shake.
A troublemaker among the guests shouted, "Governor Sun, you haven't been deceived into taking a mute home, have you?"
Having lost face once already, Governor Sun’s expression turned quite ugly.
"Someone, teach the Lady Tian how to dance."
As soon as he spoke, a matron dressed in multicolored clothes with vivid paint on her face stepped out from among the dancers. It was the same instructional matron who had led Tian Wei’er in earlier. She wore an exaggerated smile that sent a chill down one's spine.
She stopped ten paces away from Tian Wei’er and slowly drew a golden whip from her sleeve.
Xiao Nanhui had never seen such a long whip. Though long, it was extremely slender, like a delicate willow branch in early spring. But seeing the uncontrollable terror on the faces of the nearby dancing girls, she knew the whip was far from light.
Tian Wei’er looked at the matron helplessly, her breathing becoming ragged.
Suddenly, the golden whip began to move, like a bolt of lightning hidden in the air. As the matron lashed out, the "lightning" struck the ground with a sharp *crack*.
The tip of the whip landed only inches from Tian Wei’er’s toes, scaring her into a stumbling step backward. Before she could react, the next lash followed, landing right behind her heels, forcing her to dodge forward.
With a lash to the left and a lash to the right, Tian Wei’er was forced to skip and jump across the floor. From a distance, it looked like a clumsy person attempting to dance.
She didn't dare stop. If she hesitated for even a moment, the whip would lick her ankles like fire, leaving a piercing pain after the initial numbness. Unknowingly, she jumped faster and faster. Sweat dripped from her forehead, and her carefully styled hair began to unravel. Her pearl hairpins fell to the floor; she nearly tripped when she stepped on one, sending the guests' laughter to a deafening peak.
Xiao Nanhui watched with a heavy heart, trying to think of a way to help her out of this predicament. Suddenly, a crisp sound echoed from the center of the hall.
A white jade wine cup had been hurled to the ground, shattering into powder. The man who had thrown it was gasping for breath, looking at the guests with a face full of rage. It was Young Master Jia.
Governor Sun raised an eyebrow. "Young Master Jia? What is the meaning of this?"
"As the head of a household, how can you allow your newlywed wife to be so humiliated in this hall? And the rest of you—do you have no sense of shame?"
Xiao Nanhui was stunned by this sudden turn of events. She had been suspicious of Young Master Jia’s identity before, but now she only worried if someone who spoke so bluntly could leave this place alive.
Sure enough, after a moment of silence, the banquet erupted into a roar of laughter.
Governor Sun laughed as well, though his smile was more frightening than a scowl.
"Young Master Jia is a man of status; you should know that once this woman entered my doors, she became a woman of the Sun family. You are an outsider, unrelated to her. Do not do something unbecoming of your status over such a trivial matter."
These words left a bit of room for the young man to back down gracefully. However, Young Master Jia refused to let the matter drop.
"The Sun family is a prominent house; you should know that a married woman should not be paraded in public. To treat her like this—how is she any different from a common slave-dancer?"
Governor Sun’s face darkened completely. "What exactly do you want?"
"If Governor Sun only views this woman as a common dancer, I am willing to pay in gold and silver to buy her from you. What do you say?"
Xiao Nanhui finally began to understand. Looking at Tian Wei’er’s tear-filled eyes and her expression of suppressed shame and indignation as she looked at Young Master Jia, she was eighty percent certain of the story.
A young master and a fair lady had pledged their hearts to each other, only for fate to turn against them and break their union. The young master had not given up and had followed her all this way.
She could see it, and so could everyone else present.
But to everyone's surprise, Governor Sun did not refuse immediately.
"I shall have to consider what Young Master Jia has said. Why don't you stay at my estate for a few days along with Mr. Yan? It's only a few days; consider it a chance to enjoy the scenery."
Caught between a rock and a hard place, Young Master Jia had no choice but to agree for the time being.
Tian Wei’er was led away, and the cave soon returned to its boisterous state. The guests' laughter and chatter were the same as before, but new calculations had formed in everyone's hearts—though no one knew what the others were thinking.
***
