Beside the Sleeping Dragon River lay Willowmist Lane, where beauties sat amid halls of jade and played their flutes deep into the night.
The Clear Jade Pavilion was one of the newly built pleasure houses Xu Yuan had spotted from the upper floors on his black eagle pavilion.
Unlike its loud and bustling competitors, the Clear Jade Pavilion sold itself on elegance and refinement.
Special lotus-shaped arcane lamps cast a dim blue glow. Wisps of sandalwood incense curled through the air, lending the entire hall an atmosphere that was cool and tranquil, yet still hazy with a certain suggestive intimacy.
Soft strings drifted from the stage, where a young woman in black stockings danced with captivating grace.
Three young masters dressed in expensive finery sat together in a corner of the main hall, discussing affairs of state they had secretly overheard from their families.
One of them, an otherwise unremarkable man with a cloth headband tied around his hair, drained a glass of elaborately brewed craft ale before suddenly asking in a quiet voice, “Little Li, I heard my father say the war in the north hasn’t been going too well?”
The person he called Little Li was remarkably handsome. Beneath the pavilion’s hazy blue light, their delicate features possessed an almost feminine softness. Even their voice was thin, though it sounded as if he had deliberately lowered it.
“Why are you asking me about the war in the north? And stop calling me Little Li!”
The headbanded man ignored the complaint and continued, “The fighting up north is getting fierce. Your old man hasn’t received any transfer orders or anything?”
“Tch. What does the fighting in the north have to do with my old man? My family’s West Gulf Army is responsible for keeping those wolf pups on the desert steppes in line.”
Little Li shot a sidelong glance at the last man at their table, who was listening intently to the music.
The young man in embroidered robes was strikingly handsome. He wore a ring on both the index and middle fingers of his left hand, and his gaze remained fixed upon the graceful dancer sweeping her long sleeves across the stage.
Bathed in blue light, he seemed quiet, relaxed, and entirely at peace with the world.
Seeing this, Little Li snorted. “Isn’t the man involved sitting right here? Two months ago, Duke Xu visited Marquis Wucheng’s estate to propose a marriage. Two months later, this fellow returned to the capital. Add in the travel time, and the timing fits perfectly. Xu Changtian, did Lord Xu strike some sort of bargain with the marquis?”
Xu Yuan slowly turned his eyes away from the dancer and stared strangely at his two disreputable friends. “Gong Yuanzeng, Li Junwu… did the two of you take the wrong medicine today? Since when did either of you care about affairs of state?”
Watching these two discuss the fate of the nation was like watching a sow climb a tree.
The headbanded man’s cheek twitched. He rapped his knuckles against the table and gave a small huff. “Commoner Xu, I’ll have you know that this young master is now a Supervising Secretary of the Personnel Office. Watch your tongue, or tomorrow I’ll submit a memorial to the Emperor impeaching you.”
Xu Yuan broke into a grin. “Understood. First thing tomorrow morning, this humble commoner will wait in my father’s study for your memorial to arrive.”
Gong Yuanzeng fell silent.
Li Junwu shot Xu Yuan a reproachful look, though they were clearly long accustomed to this sort of exchange. “All right, that’s enough from both of you.”
Xu Yuan waved a hand and glanced toward the screen by the entrance to the main hall. “That brat Wang Chengping still isn’t here? I remember he used to be the most enthusiastic whenever we came to places like this.”
Li Junwu leaned lazily against the soft cushions behind them. “His father arranged for him to serve as a battalion commander in the Imperial Guard. Besides, he got married last year.”
“He got married? Whose daughter?” Xu Yuan froze.
“Vice Minister Liu’s daughter from the Ministry of Personnel,” Li Junwu replied.
Xu Yuan thought for a moment, then said, “A mere vice minister’s daughter shouldn’t be able to keep a brat like Wang Chengping under control, should she?”
Li Junwu gave him a thoroughly suggestive smile. “She can’t. But the brat has the desire without the stamina~”
The words fell. Silence reigned for one second. Then all three of them broke into matching lecherous chuckles.
After draining his cup, Li Junwu’s soft, feminine voice took on a teasing edge. “Someone certainly has grander airs after disappearing for two years. You returned to the capital more than two weeks ago, yet the rest of us had to visit your estate and personally invite you out. Was it inconvenient for you to leave?”
“Junwu, there seems to be something hidden in those words.” Xu Yuan swept his gaze across them and smiled.
They were close enough that Li Junwu saw no need to beat around the bush.
“With Marquis Wucheng’s explosive temper, you think anyone would believe he simply let you return to the capital without something going on behind the scenes?”
As he spoke, Li Junwu glanced at Gong Yuanzeng. “Do you believe it?”
“No.”
“Neither do I.”
Xu Yuan sighed, took a sip of wine, and decided not to hide it from them. His voice turned serious. “I have a marriage engagement.”
A moment of silence passed. Then the other two burst out laughing at the same time.
Li Junwu reached over and patted Xu Yuan on the shoulder. “Seriously?”
Xu Yuan’s expression remained calm. “Before I returned to the capital, my father told me about it. I’m engaged to the Commandery Princess of Marquis Wucheng’s estate.”
The other two both froze.
After thinking for a moment, Li Junwu quickly lowered their voice. “I seem to remember the news your eldest brother released two months ago didn’t say you were marrying her. It said you were marrying into her family.”
Xu Yuan seemed entirely unbothered by those words and nodded. “Mnm. I’m marrying into her family.”
At this point, Li Junwu and Gong Yuanzeng both understood that the engagement was most likely part of some private bargain between the Chancellor's Manor and Marquis Wucheng’s estate.
Neither pressed him for details.
Li Junwu’s full red lips curled into a wicked grin. “Changtian, when you marry into their family and they start bullying you, remember to tell us all about it so we can have a good laugh~”
Xu Yuan glanced at the friend who had accompanied him to countless pleasure houses and evenings of music. “Marquis Zhenxi only has one daughter. I imagine he’ll be arranging your marriage soon enough too.”
Li Junwu stretched without the slightest concern for appearances, causing the tightly bound front of her robes to swell slightly. “Whatever. He already knows about me. Besides, no matter what happens, this young lady will still be better off than a live-in son-in-law like you.”
After a brief pause, she glanced at Xu Yuan with her beautiful eyes and said half-jokingly, “Changtian, instead of marrying into Marquis Wucheng’s estate, why not marry into my Marquis Zhenxi estate? It would help me deal with my old man constantly pressuring me to marry. Besides, I’d even allow you to take concubines~”
Xu Yuan rolled his eyes. “I marry into your estate and take concubines for you, right?”
Li Junwu crossed her legs, the corner of her lips curling upward as her eyes narrowed. “Don’t make it sound so unpleasant. Once you marry into the family, we can’t exactly leave you out of everything, can we~?”
Xu Yuan suddenly fell silent. Then he gave her a thumbs-up.
“That’s enough, both of you.” Gong Yuanzeng rubbed his brow and helplessly interrupted, “Changtian, after you marry Commandery Princess Mu, you won’t end up like Wang Chengping, will you?”
Before Xu Yuan could answer, a deep male voice came from nearby. “What do you mean, like me?”