Published at 5th of October 2018 09:13:40 PM
Chapter 57
Chapter 57: Lament of the Scholar
Chen Rong did not bother about the maids’ increasingly empathic eyes . She only concentrated on making the sky lanterns and releasing them one after another to the sky .
The entire evening was spent by making lanterns and floating them .
By midnight, when Chen Rong had fallen asleep from fatigue, the younger maid gave her companion a push and whispered: “She’s just another pitiful woman, this Ah Rong . ” There was a vague melancholy of youth found in her voice .
The next day swiftly arrived .
Early in the morning, reed music filtered past the windows from the woods . Chen Rong slowly opened her eyes and gazed past the silk screens .
The overcast sky was very dark and looking as though it would rain any minute now .
She propped her arms to sit up, hugged the quilt and looked to the sky in a trance .
At the same time, the younger maid called out to her: “Miss, would you like to wash?” Her voice was noticeably milder compared to yesterday; the eyes she used to look at Chen Rong were also faintly sympathetic .
Chen Rong shook her head without looking at her .
Watching a blank Chen Rong, the young maid suddenly spoke . “Miss, even though His Highness often abandons the old for the new, and has the tendency of giving the old to his subordinates, you ultimately will still be wrapped in silk . ” At this juncture, she suddenly stopped to recall that Ah Rong wasn’t poor; on the contrary, she came from a large clan and had always enjoyed this kind of sheltering .
Ah Rong raised her head .
Without morning grooming, her face remained surprisingly fresh and fair . She looked at the maid and managed to whisper a thank you .
The young maid bowed her head, stammering: “Don’t mention it,” before hurrying outside .
Gradually, a flute joined the floating reed music . When the distant and lingering flute intertwined with the reed, they produced a sentimentality belonging to springtide .
Chen Rong lowered her eyes, muttering all the while: “There’s already reed music so early in the morning . The Prince’s Estate is certainly home to peace and pleasure . ”
She put on her wooden clogs and walked to the screens where the window opened to two beautiful women .
They hastily turned away . By the time they reached a barren peach orchard, Chen Rong had heard one of them say: “His Highness didn’t come to keep the new woman company? That’s rather odd . ”
“I asked,” the other replied . “They said she is a guest . Hah, a visiting beauty . His Highness has only ever used this trick five times . ”
Taking a deep inhale, Chen Rong ordered: “Bring me water . ”
“Aye,” the maids answered her in unison . They came in with a water basin, towel, and some blue salt for washing .
While they quietly helped her wash and comb, Chen Rong asked, “Is there anywhere in the estate I’m not allowed to go?”
The older maid helped put her hair into a cloud-shaped chignon as she answered, “In addition to the main courtyard, you are free to go anywhere within the inner quarters and the east and west wings . ”
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Chen Rong hummed a reply . She noted that this maid’s plaiting technique was rather ingenious . The quivering cloud chignon gave off a languid loveliness . With no ornamental pin on top, it had a most romantic charm .
Chen Rong wrung her sleeves . She had expected just as much and had taken her own hairpin .
When the two finished their work, Chen Rong rose to turn and leave .
The younger maid gave her long skirt and slender waist a look, cocked her head and murmured: “She has a lovely figure . No wonder the prince has to have her . ”
When Chen Rong got to the courtyard, she saw fashionable girls flooding the small path, the pavilions, and everywhere else .
However, her steps halted this time .
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While Chen Rong stood there, a good dozen pairs of eyes stared in her direction . Facing these eyes, Chen Rong suddenly thought: The longer I live in the Nanyang Prince’s estate, the more detrimental it will be to my reputation . Even if I can deal with these women and even if I know what’s going on, the worst will be idle rumors . If they manipulate the things I inadvertently say, then what will I do? Forget it, it’s better for me to return .
Once back, she ordered: “Close the door to the courtyard . ”
The two maids looked at her in puzzlement .
Chen Rong stared at them and repeated her order: “Close the door to the courtyard . Regardless who comes, you can’t open it without my consent . Did I make myself clear?”
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The two maids looked at each other and then complied .
Once the courtyard closed, Chen Rong ordered them to bring the zither and then began to play .
The piece she played was called “Lament of the Scholar”, a song she had overheard one of the scholars play during her marriage to Ran Min in her past life .
“Lament of the Scholar” was lofty and distant, fairly proud and haughty . It was much to her liking due to its melodious and sinuous appeal, and she, therefore, had always remembered it .
The light zither was born and slowly mingled with the reed and flute, gradually weaving into the gloomy clouds .
Each of the present beauties, even if she did not play the instrument, was at least accustomed to listening . Once Chen Rong’s “Lament of the Scholar” sounded, the girls that had been pointing curiously at her closed doors eventually quieted down .
As they listened, they soon found that this song was a new piece they had not heard before, and quite an elegant one .
Gradually, as the zither heightened, the reed and flute came to a halt .
Steadily, the lofty and lonely zither was the only sound that wove through the dark clouds in the west wing .
A handsomely dressed girl closed her eyes as she quietly listened for a moment . “Actually quite noble,” she murmured .
Another girl with features as gentle as water lowered her gaze . She softly said, “Has the prince forced even someone so upright and honorable to come here? Her life is not for long, it seems . ”
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Standing behind them, an enticing woman in her thirties sneered: “So what if she’s noble? So what if she’s upright? That’s because His Highness hasn’t slept with her yet . Wait until she has gone to his bed; she would not be playing these sounds then . ”
What they didn’t know was that Chen Rong was playing this song to let everyone know she was a guest of the estate, that she hadn’t had intimate relations with the Prince of Nan’yang .
Amid the murmuring and drifting zither, night gradually descended .
By suppertime, the racing wind was whipping leaves and branches, and shaking the shingles outside .
Chen Rong placed her chopsticks down and looked out to the sky . “Is it going to rain tonight?” she softly asked .
Hearing disappointment in her question, the younger maid couldn’t help but chuckle . “Do you want to release lanterns again, miss?”
Chen Rong nodded and hummed an answer .
So rare was her mild demeanor that the maid sighingly advised her: “Miss, you should forget him . ”
Chen Rong made no reply .
Just then, the wind subsided outside . Chen Rong placed her utensils down, walked to the courtyard to look up at the gradually dispersing cloud in the sky and said cheerfully: “The stars have come out . ”
She turned around, her eyes vividly bright . “Prepare the materials . I want to float at least ten lanterns tonight . ”