Mei Gongqing

Overjoyed, Chen Rong couldn’t help herself from turning her vivid eyes to the doors.

“Why is he here?” asked a scowling Prince of Nan’yang.

One of his advisors leaned over and softly whispered something in his ear.

The prince nodded and waved his hand, ordering: “Tell General Sun I’m busy. Whatever it is, we’ll talk tomorrow.”

And then his voice increased in volume when he next bellowed: “I won’t meet anyone tonight.”

“Aye,” the guard replied him, his footsteps instantaneously distant the moment he finished speaking.

Chen Rong pressed her lips staring at the doors before she turned around to the prince.

Advisor Xu was watching her expression when he said jeeringly, “Pretty one, there’s really no need to look so unhappy. Time is golden; pleasure ought to be taken when you can!” His eyes then clung onto Chen Rong’s chest and legs.

She lowered her gaze and, not waiting for the prince to urge her, strode to the musicians.

“Pretty one, what are you doing?” the prince asked in surprise.

She did not answer him. As she was slowly walking to the group of musicians, a burst of clamor out of the blue gave sound from outside.

“Your Highness,” a voice cried in, “General Sun insists on entering and is forcing his way in!”

“What?” Furious, the prince’s face sank as he screamed: “How dare he?! What does he treat me as? And where does he think my residence is?”

“Could it be that General Sun has come here to assassinate you?” an advisor uneasily supposed.

What a stupid thing to say. Even Chen Rong knew the factor of surprise was key to an assassination. Where was there ever an assassin who insists his way in like this? Besides, the Prince of Nan’yang wasn’t worth assassinating!

Sadly, the prince did not understand such rationality. The color drained from his face as he hastily shouted: “Send him away. Send them all away.”

“Aye!”

Together with these disciplined answers was a series of orderly footsteps leaving the courtyard.

Chen Rong’s face was completely ashen. She bit her lips as she hopelessly thought: It seems nothing can be done now.

After a few interruptions, the prince’s face had soured terribly. Huffing and puffing, he turned around to glare at Chen Rong, thundering as he did: “You woman there, I’ve told you to come over here, why did you go there? One more time and I won’t be playing nice!”

Guards armed with spears promptly encircled the hall amid his thundering. They coldly stared at Chen Rong, one of them lifting his spear, casting an icy beam at her.

Chen Rong’s pallor worsened.

The noisy laughter and music had also quieted.

Even the advisors behind the prince all lowered their heads and made not a sound.

The prince hardened his face. Heaving, he gave his seat a slap and furiously barked: “This world is getting worse by the day. Damnation, even this infantile Sun Yan dares to break into my home? Men!”

“Present!”

He stood up, pointed outside and screamed: “Throw Sun Yan and his...” His voice all of a sudden diminished.

With his finger shaking, the Nan’yang Prince wheezed and turned around inside. His murky, puffy eyes almost popped out of their sockets as they swept across the crowd.

Everybody lowered his head under his glare; some of the women even began to quake.

And then his eyes came upon Chen Rong.

This translation belongs to hamster428.wordpress.com

As he stared at her standing in front of the musicians, gradually, those muddy old eyes revealed a hint of indescribable violence. He gasped for air and hissed: “You’re but an insignificant concubine-born girl. It’s your good fortune that I’ve taken a fancy to you! How dare you disobey me time and time again? Bah! If that’s the case, what use is there to keep you around?”

He waved his hand to stop a panicking Advisor Xu from speaking. “Damnation, you shitheads, all day long telling me to exercise restraint. ‘One should bear in mind social consensus’? Bah, I can’t even have a good time playing with a woman.”

Here, he pointed at Chen Rong, who was herself shaking. “Men, drag this wench away and kill her...”

Another burst of rapid footsteps sounded and, at the same time, a resounding voice cried: “Your Royal Highness, Lang’ya Wang Qi requests an audience.”

“Lang’ya Wang Qi?” the Prince of Nan’yang slowly turned around to ask.

“Aye.”

His hand was still outstretched in the air. He slowly retrieved it and frowningly asked, “What did he come here for?”

“I do not know, Your Highness.”

He slowly went back to his seat and reached for the wine cup, taking slow sips next.

His twisted face markedly eased after he completed these actions. He placed the cup down, his voice softening: “Wang Qi’s quite a fascinating character. If he has come, then let’s see him.”

“Aye.”

At the time the man left with his order, the hall was filled with a burst of heaving.

While the crowd sighed in relief, Chen Rong’s feet went soft, and she almost dropped to the ground. Only now did she discover that the perspiration on her forehead had seeped into her eyes, stinging them immensely.

She looked down and slowly released her right hand from which a few drops of scarlet spilled onto the floor – the hairpin had jabbed her palm because she’d been too nervous.

Footsteps pattered outside.

Almost suddenly, Chen Rong discovered that everyone’s attention had turned to the entrance. The Prince of Nan’yang was repeatedly calling: “Quick, open the door, open the door.”

Seeing that nobody was giving her any notice, Chen Rong quietly retreated to the back where she inadvertently came to stand among the group of women. Unbeknownst to her, Advisor Xu had seen her movement and was nodding his head.

The gate squeaked open to a gleaming halo that filled their eyes.

At the end of the light was a fluttering white robe that was swiftly coming toward them.

Even at this distance, his figure conveyed to everyone a kind of tranquil ease, elegance, and latitude...

The Prince of Nan’yang got to his feet and rushed outside to welcome him. “Is Qilang here? Capital, Capital.” He laughed and then paused to study the snow-white figure awhile before remarking: “Oh? Why is it that you seem to me to be in a hurry, Qilang? Why have you come here so travel-worn?” He sounded both surprised and ironic.