Chapter 419: Don

No one else knew, but the young masters downstairs went crazy, even voluntarily forming a Unit; they'd rather queue than slip their cards into someone else's flower basket.

"If you don't dare show your face, you must be ugly and will resort to crooked ways." A girl snorted coldly; she had intended to show her face, but instead two people came out, one dressed in black, the other in white, and both were playing the guqin.

Jiang Yunchu merely raised an eyebrow, looked at that girl, and said nothing.

Talking to such a nobody would lower her status.

"Crooked ways? Those who trade on their looks speak of fairness here—I've never heard such a thing." Jiang Yunchu didn't speak, but…

The icy, fairy‑like girl who had just spoken suddenly opened her mouth.

The corner of her lips twitched slightly, her eyes devoid of any emotion, that calm demeanor made the girl who had just spoken even angrier.

"Lowlife, I wasn't talking about you—why are you jumping out?" Her red robe, lacking the allure from her stage performance, carried a hint of spite; that spite ruined her appearance and beauty, making her look like a petty clown.

The white‑clad girl who had just seemed ethereal gave a light smile, looked puzzled at the speaker, and said, "Dance? Wasn't it you who was just dancing?"

"Your memory's not great—I'm the one who played the zither."

……

Jiang Yunchu couldn't hold back a soft laugh; her clear, cold‑tinged voice held a hint of charm, and as she slightly bowed her head, the light revealed her chin, stirring hearts.

"You…"

When that girl's eyes flared and she was about to strike, Jiang Yunchu reached out and grabbed her outstretched finger.

"Heh—"

That laugh was uncovered, unguarded, open and frank.

"I don't like people pointing at me…"

"... and pointing at my friend!"

She twisted her hand slightly upward; the girl's face, flushed from sharp pain, reddened quickly as she glared at the two, her eyes practically blazing.

Jiang Yunchu pulled her finger, then drew her closer; the red‑clad girl tried to evade but couldn't.

She leaned to the girl's ear, her voice laced with a touch of allure, like a tempting sprite: "Behave, don't make a fuss—if you stir trouble, I'll be fine, but you… you won't get away with it~"

Her icy eyes and that seductive voice formed a contradictory combo that inexplicably made one's heart race.

When her fingers suddenly released, the girl stumbled back a step, steadied herself, and looking at the two, her face turned pale.

Zi Niang watched the farce, shook her head, and thought her disposition lacking.

A head courtesan isn't just about beauty; without skill and scheming, how could she stand firm in Mi Xiang Ju?

I can support her for a day, a year, but not a lifetime.

There are plenty of beauties; losing one more makes no difference.

Jiang Yunchu turned, glanced at the white‑clad girl, and merely nodded as a greeting.

As for getting close, her status forbids intimacy; those who end up close to her never fare well.

People came one by one to deliver cards—normally servants would do it—but today everyone who could enter Mi Xiang Ju was of high rank, yet these young masters came themselves.

It's nothing more than…

What they can't obtain is stirring them; that delicate white foot tantalizes their hearts, yet they never see the woman's true face—how could they resign themselves?

At that moment, a young master, while placing his card, suddenly reached out to pull down the black gauze curtain, but Jiang Yunchu turned and stepped to the rear right, and a soft, teasing laugh came from behind the curtain: "Sir, such haste isn't good~"

That coquettish voice differed from her earlier coolness and from a threatening tone; it carried a hint of willfulness, suggesting you could have her—but not yet—leaving you hopeful even though you couldn't see her face.

The young master clapped his hands and said, "Good."

"I, for my part, am eager to meet you, milady—when might I have the honor?"

"To die beneath peonies, to be a ghost and still be suave!"

Ning Chengyan's eyes were icy; whether peonies were involved he didn't know, but death was certain.

Whether he'd be suave or not is unclear, but becoming a ghost could certainly be arranged for you.

Jiang Yunchu merely smiled faintly, said nothing more, and a breeze somewhere stirred the curtain's sheer gauze, lending a dreamy, mysterious air.

The white‑clad girl's eyes lit up; she seemed not too concerned about how many cards she had received.

……

Everyone in the hall had finished placing their cards—250 people total. Before Jiang Yunchu lay over 210 cards, before the white‑clad girl thirty, and the other girls had scattered singles or none at all.

This outcome was all but settled.

But…

"The upstairs cards count as ten each, so the result isn't final yet, ladies." Zi Niang smiled lightly; those upstairs were of noble status, all in private boxes.

The people downstairs, though unhappy, said nothing, for they could not afford to offend those upstairs.

"Master Jiang, who gets the cards?" The two opposite him looked at the General, feeling a chill in the room despite their many layers.

Ning Chengyan frowned; though disguised, he had no intention of showing himself today, for Xige was still present—if he appeared, leaving enemy territory would be difficult.

It might upset Da Ning's years‑long plan; watching the woman downstairs frolic wildly, he gritted his teeth and said, "Yun Miao Er."

The two opposite him chuckled, "Don't say that, Master Jiang—your taste matches ours."

"Listen to that voice, look at that figure, those pure‑white ankles…"

But before he could finish, a deadly glare shot over from opposite him.

"Master…?"

Before, when they spoke vulgarities, the General never cared; as spies abroad gathering intel, they bore great mental pressure, and as long as they made no mistakes, the General let them be.

What's going on now?

"Don't harbor designs on her." Ning Chengyan merely warned, but he didn't reveal Jiang Yunchu's identity nor give any further instruction.

He still doesn't know what the Young Princess Consort thinks, nor what she intends to do.

He fears outside interference will disrupt her plans.

However, his return to the north looks like it'll be delayed a few days.