Chapter 92: Chapter Thirty-Nine [Ring-colored Pavilion] (Part I)

Don't look at Liang Da Zhuang being tall and sturdy, but this guy's courage is no bigger than a mustard seed; seeing so many people pouring out from the Ring-colored Pavilion, he was frightened, grabbed Hu Xiaotian's arm, hid behind him, and pleaded: "Young master, they forcibly dragged me in; I had no idea I'd encounter this."

Hu Xiaotian glared at him; now he knows how to play innocent—from Pengyin Mountain to Xiezhou, I bet my silver has been completely squandered by you, this slave. There's no time to settle accounts with Liang Da Zhuang right now; better to wait until things are over.

Liang Da Zhuang again said: "Young master, all our luggage has been snatched by them; the official seal and documents are inside."

Hu Xiaotian nodded, smiling narrowly: "Madam, with your looks that put the moon to shame and make fish sink, you should be broad-minded and kind-hearted; how could your words be so vicious?"

Murong Feiyan came to Hu Xiaotian's side, whispered: "Don't waste words with her; she's no good." She had already seen that these people are the madam and guards of the Ring-colored Pavilion.

Murong Feiyan can see it, and Hu Xiaotian certainly can too, but the situation is still somewhat complex; if it came to a real fight, having Murong Feiyan on our side would likely guarantee victory, but the urgent priority is to retrieve our official seal and documents.

The madam's small eyes flicked over Hu Xiaotian's face; her kind of role excels at reading people's physiognomy—from appearance, demeanor, speech and conduct she can gauge how much silver someone carries; as for Liang Da Zhuang, that was her subordinate's mistake and has nothing to do with her.

The madam laughed with a gege sound, her voice like a broody hen; Hu Xiaotian couldn't help sighing inwardly, the Ring-colored Pavilion is famously marked on that ** picture given to me by Shi Xuedong—circled, it should be the top-tier establishment among such venues, yet judging from this madam, aka the mama-san, she's nothing special! How could a mama-san like her have top-notch goods under her? It seems the outside rumors aren't all true, or perhaps Shi Xuedong, that dog day, deliberately set me up and misled me? Well, when I someday return to the capital, I'll settle the score with you.

The madam still pinched her voice and said: "This young master, at a glance, is a ** figure—handsome, suave, tall and mighty, like a jade tree in the wind, extraordinary in bearing; compared to that lewd, lowly dead fatty, it's heaven and earth."

Hu Xiaotian smiled: "Madam, you really have an eye for talent; that dead fatty you mentioned is my attendant—may I ask what wrong he did to provoke you all to gang up on him and beat him black and blue like a pig's head?"

The madam laughed gege, the handkerchief in her hand flirtatiously swayed forward; if she hadn't made that gesture, it would've been fine, but as soon as she did, it nearly made the onlookers vomit their leftovers: "Young master, you keep calling me 'madam,' really making me blush; actually I'm only twenty-seven this year, I'm Xiang Qin—if you feel we get along, just call me Sister Qin."

Hu Xiaotian laughed heartily: "How marvelous, how marvelous—I just called you 'madam' as a term of respect; really, what madam in this world could look as plump and prosperous as Sister Qin, with those four words 'pearls round and jade smooth' fitting you perfectly."

Xiang Qin's chubby hands fidgeted nervously with her handkerchief, then she exaggeratedly clutched it to her even more exaggerated bosom, cooing: "Young master, you really know how to speak—you make my little heart go thump-thump nonstop; may I ask your exalted surname and name?"

Hu Xiaotian smiled: "Sister Qin, you're as sharp as ice and snow—I'm Gao Ming, and you guessed it right away."

"Really?" Xiang Qin exclaimed in astonishment, then she and Hu Xiaotian laughed together; they chatted animatedly, utterly ignoring everyone around them. Both sides' forces were somewhat bewildered, not knowing what medicine these two gourds were selling; even the onlookers found it dull, having expected a bloody clash like Mars hitting Earth, but suddenly the two sides turned swords into jade and silk, and peace talks seemed imminent.

Xiang Qin said: "I say, Young Master Gao, we really hit it off; as the saying goes, when beating a dog you look at its owner—we beat him up like this only because we were in the wrong."

Hu Xiaotian laughed: "Ignorance is no crime; besides, we hadn't even met just now. Sister Qin, there are many ways to solve a problem—we don't need to resort to violence, don't you agree?"

Xiang Qin smiled: "Young Master Gao..."

"Just call me Brother Gao!"

Xiang Qin smiled until her tiny eyes narrowed to a slit: "Young Brother Gao, I actually despise fighting and killing as much as any woman does wielding blades and spears—but that dog of yours is really over the top."

Liang Da Zhuang drooped his head, hunched his shoulders—not that he had no opinion, but he dared not voice even a hint of it.

Hu Xiaotian said: "Sister Qin, although he's my attendant, he's still a person—people make mistakes, have self-respect; please show him some face, Sister Qin, and if he's done anything wrong, I'll take responsibility."

Xiang Qin laughed even happier, her plump left hand flung backward; immediately a guard shoved a wooden stick at her, she rolled her eyes and spat: "Pah! Is your head full of shit? I want the abacus!"

Immediately another person handed her the abacus—what is the abacus? It's an abacus. Xiang Qin, abacus in hand, clacked away: "Here I've had a meal: six cold dishes, eight hot, four desserts, two soups, fifty-eight taels of silver; opened a jar of thirty-year-old daughter red wine, sixty-eight taels; two jars of top-grade pre-Qingming Longjing tea, thirty-three taels; four maidens attending left and right, all top-tier beauties of my Ring-colored Pavilion, each two hundred taels, still a friend's price; plus the tables and chairs you just broke, I'll count that as sixty taels of silver—altogether one thousand and nineteen taels." Don't look at her short, stubby fingers, but when she works the abacus she's no slouch—clack-clack, her fingers nimble as wind. After calculating, Xiang Qin narrowed her small eyes into two slits at Hu Xiaotian: "Today Brother Gao came in person, and we get along so well—I can't possibly refuse this favor; I'll waive those nineteen taels, making it a flat one thousand taels. Take this money, and the matter of that fatty is settled."

Hu Xiaotian cursed inwardly: "You damn thing, better go rob money—do you think I'm easy to bully? Scamming outsiders? Two hundred taels each?" Hu Xiaotian glanced at Liang Da Zhuang; this guy really is **, actually calling for four of them at once.

Liang Da Zhuang wore a bitter face: "Young... young master... I didn't do anything... just touched her hands twice..."

From the gate came several angry shouts: "Not only that, you even kissed her face..."

Hu Xiaotian followed the sound and saw four heavily made-up women standing at the gate, each looking like Zhu Bajie's second aunt—Liang Da Zhuang's taste is truly heavy; facing such goods, how could he bear to put his mouth on them?

Murong Feiyan gave a cold snort; although she stood on Hu Xiaotian's side, she likewise looked down on Liang Da Zhuang's conduct, deeming such people unworthy of sympathy, and threw out the saying: "If the beam is not straight, the rafters will be crooked!"—which amounted to also cursing Hu Xiaotian.

Xiang Qin's hearing was extremely sharp; she actually caught Murong Feiyan's remark crystal clear, yet still managed a flirtatious, alluring smile: "I can't agree with that sister's remark—what kind of figure is my Brother Gao, how could he be compared to that dead fatty?"

Hu Xiaotian laughed: "Exactly right—what the Liang family does is none of my business. A thousand taels is neither much nor little; Sister Qin, let's set the money matter aside for now, but I don't know where my luggage is now."

Xiang Qin blinked: "Luggage? Where would luggage come from? That dead fatty has no shackles, came empty-handed, empty-handed and wants to slip away—what luggage could there be?"

Liang Da Zhuang said: "I clearly brought a bundle in; you lot forcibly snatched it away."

Xiang Qin laughed gege: "Dead fatty, robbery? Robbery is a serious crime—you can't just spout nonsense. Our Ring-colored Pavilion, since opening, has always operated lawfully and properly; we've never done anything illegal, otherwise how could we have thrived for thirty years till today? You don't even inquire—our daily income is over ten thousand taels of silver; even if priceless jewels were placed before our maidens, they wouldn't budge; a mere bundle—who would care about it?"

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