In the painted boat's room, a small playful scuffle broke out. Soon after, two heads bumped together again, peering out the window. As the setting sun cast its glow, Ning Yi's figure could indeed be seen amongst the crowd, albeit faintly. Yuan Jin'er, with her sharp eyes, sighed with regret after a moment: "But his 'yellow-faced wife' seems to be here too... Sister Yunzhu, have you ever seen her before?"

Among the crowd, accompanying Ning Yi was naturally Su Tan'er, followed by three maids. From afar, Nie Yunzhu couldn't quite make out the woman's features, but the image of Su Tan'er and Ning Yi sitting together during their spring outing surfaced in her mind. Smiling, she nodded: "I've seen her. She's not a 'yellow-faced wife' at all. She and Liheng make a good match..."

"Alright, maybe not very yellow, but Sister Yunzhu, the way you speak of your sweetheart... ah..." The loose-tongued Yuan Jin'er once again suffered a painful blow. She pressed her forehead, which had been tapped, against Yunzhu's shoulder, wriggling like a worm, and muttered, "Jin'er knows she was wrong, Yunzhu-gege, don't hit so hard..."

Nie Yunzhu pushed her away good-naturedly, her expression turning serious a moment later: "There's nothing between me and Young Master Ning. Jin'er, don't say such things carelessly. It wouldn't be good if others heard."

"Understood..."

Yuan Jin'er nodded and continued to observe the scene. As the group drew closer, she commented, "She's really not very yellow..." In fact, Su Tan'er was also a beauty, not inferior to her or Nie Yunzhu. The only difference lay in their individual auras. And due to her long involvement in business matters, Su Tan'er possessed a more pronounced air of confidence. As they approached, a group of people came to greet them, and Yuan Jin'er couldn't help but sigh again: "She has a wide circle of acquaintances."

The welcoming group was a collection of figures from the business world. The comment about "a wide circle of acquaintances" was naturally directed at Su Tan'er. Among the group were individuals such as Wu Qihao, Wu Qilong, and Puyang Yi, all major patrons of the courtesan competition. Of course, Puyang Yi, as the richest man in Jiangning, naturally supported his own Qi Lan, but the others were still up for grabs and were therefore the focus of attention for various brothels. For a time, these individuals gathered together, making others envious.

"But she really is amazing." After watching for a while, Yuan Jin'er leaned on Yunzhu's shoulder and sighed, "Sister Yunzhu, look, those big bosses, although they seem to be greeting and talking to that Su Tan'er, their attention on that Ning Liheng isn't low. Puyang Yi keeps trying to get close to him. A live-in son-in-law usually doesn't have this kind of status..."

Having mingled in various social settings, Yuan Jin'er could naturally see things clearly at this point. Su Tan'er and those people were fellow merchants, so it was normal for them to greet and talk to each other. Usually, a live-in son-in-law standing beside them wouldn't have much status. Even if they were given some importance and greeted, it was directed at Su Tan'er's attitude. In other words, as the wife, she was maintaining her husband's image, and the husband would have an image. Otherwise, he would just be an accompaniment. But what was happening now didn't seem quite the same. Ning Yi stood there, not saying much, but his expression was composed, and no one seemed to be ignoring him. Puyang Yi even brought up topics with him several times. This was clearly not just giving Su Tan'er face.

"Jiangning's number one talent... Sister Yunzhu, do you think if he came and sat on our side today, I could win the Flower Queen title?"

Nie Yunzhu smiled and looked at her: "Whether he wants to sit there is something he and his wife need to discuss. I can't help with that... Besides, didn't you say you didn't want the Flower Queen title? What are you thinking about again..."

"Wanting it or not is one thing. Since he's your... uh, your good friend, of course he should come and support me. If he came, I'd have so much face. If he fought with that Cao Guan out of jealousy, I'd have even more face..."

"Vain."

"Hehe..." Yuan Jin'er smiled and glanced over again, suddenly jumping up: "Ah! Ah! Shameless! Sister Yunzhu, look, Qi Lan actually came out! Shameless! She's actually trying to get close to your Ning... cough, your good friend! This is too shameless! No, Sister Yunzhu, let's go out too and mess with her. We absolutely can't let Ning Liheng sit on her side!"

Below, Qi Lan, dressed in white, had already arrived and, with Puyang Yi's introduction, greeted Su Tan'er and Ning Yi, then began talking there. Yuan Jin'er was extremely unhappy about this, jumping around. Seeing that Nie Yunzhu didn't react and didn't want to go out and snatch him away, she went back again: "Look, they're still talking and laughing. Those two women are so fake... Traitors, traitors..."

Nie Yunzhu couldn't help but laugh: "How did they become traitors again?"

"Of course, since he's your good friend, I naturally treat him as one of us. He's talking to the enemy, so of course he's a traitor!"

She continued to fuss beside her for a while, then turned to look at Nie Yunzhu's expression as she looked over there. Although she had a faint smile on her face, her expression was complex. She couldn't help but purse her lips: "Yunzhu-gege, don't be like that. Jin'er will always like Yunzhu-gege..."

Nie Yunzhu smiled and glanced at her, reaching out to hook her chin: "Good, after Jin'er wins the Flower Queen title this time, this young master will redeem you, leaving behind a beautiful tale..."

"Mm-hmm, please have mercy on Jin'er, Yunzhu-gege..."

In the midst of her words, Yuan Jin'er's eyes became enchanting for a moment. The distance between the two slowly closed, paused, and then slowly closed again, and then... their lips met, each feeling a soft touch.

Her eyes widened, turning a few times, and the next moment they suddenly separated. Nie Yunzhu frowned and covered her lips, while Yuan Jin'er spat a few times, her red lips delicate and her gaze confused: "Sister Yunzhu, why didn't you dodge?"

"You actually leaned in..."

"I thought you would dodge..."

The two were flustered for a moment, and then they both laughed. Yuan Jin'er sat by the bronze mirror to touch up her lipstick, while Nie Yunzhu, dressed as a man, used some tea to wipe off the color, glaring at Yuan Jin'er good-naturedly. Yuan Jin'er smiled sheepishly, then said softly, "Sister Yunzhu, have you ever tried this with anyone else before?"

"No."

"Let me tell you, let me tell you, two years ago, I met a young master who supposedly came from Yangzhou. He looked like a girl, but he definitely wasn't. He was shy and cute. My heart was pounding back then, and I really wanted to 'woo-ah' kiss him... Unfortunately, he only came once. Later, he went to the capital to take the imperial exam and I never saw him again..."

"Did you like him?"

"No, we didn't even say two words. I just felt... it was very interesting. Otherwise, Sister Yunzhu, let's try it again. I didn't feel anything just now..."

"Go away!"

The room was filled with laughter and playful banter, whispered secrets. The setting sun cast its last magnificent afterglow on the sky outside, and people from all over the city were flocking towards this place. When night fell, the final day of the Flower Queen competition would begin.

*********************

Among the four leading courtesans of Jiangning, Yuan Jin'er was lively, Feng Xiaojing was dignified, the newly rising Luo Miaomiao often gave people a colorful impression, and the previously unsuccessful Lu Caicai was often referred to as a faint orchid, playing the pipa very well, sounding like a depressed patient. As for Qi Lan, she gave people more of a scholarly air, was skilled in writing, and had good attainments herself. It was said that in the brothel, she would occasionally entertain guests dressed as a scholar with a feather fan and turban, which was why she was praised.

For half a year, rumors had occasionally spread that Qi Lan was very interested in Ning Yi, and Su Tan'er had teased Ning Yi about it. However, in the eyes of businessmen, whether this was true or not was naturally open to question. Among these wealthy merchants, the closest to the Su family were naturally the Xue and Wu families, but although Xue Jin wanted to humiliate Ning Yi and was ridiculed for it, he wouldn't necessarily become more interested in him because of it. Now, the Puyang family was probably quite interested in Ning Yi. Qi Lan was the top courtesan of the brothel under the Puyang family. Whether the news was intentionally released by the Puyang family to get closer to Ning Yi or Qi Lan's true intention was hard to say.

At this time, with Su Tan'er present, Puyang Yi had Qi Lan come out to pay her respects, which was considered to be a true introduction to Ning Yi. Of course, they wouldn't directly talk about poetry or anything like that. This generous woman expressed her admiration for Ning Yi's talent on the one hand, and on the other hand, she also gave Su Tan'er enough face. Everyone was a master of superficiality, and they seemed to have a pleasant conversation, but there was nothing substantial. Before long, Ning Yi and Su Tan'er took their seats, also choosing a spot in front of the stage where mostly merchants sat.

"There's no surprise, Qi Lan will win the Flower Queen title this time."

The setting sun gradually disappeared, and the lights gradually came on. The surrounding crowds were still entering, and there was a lot of noise. Su Tan'er took a loquat from the table in front of her and peeled it, handing it to Ning Yi as a wife should. Ning Yi took it expressionlessly and took a bite.

"You said it from the beginning, so there's no suspense in watching... It's really boring to sit with you..."

"The Puyang family wanted to promote Qi Lan two years ago, but they have been taking steady steps, afraid that people would say that his family was using money to buy people, so they only let Qi Lan get the top spot and stopped there. Now the momentum is enough, there shouldn't be much suspense, it's time to let Qi Lan go up." Ning Yi's expression was displeased, and what he said might sound excessive to others, but Su Tan'er didn't show any displeasure at all. Instead, she smiled happily and peeled another loquat to hand over. "I just want to show off to others... Apart from showing off to my husband, who else can Tan'er show off to? My husband should praise me."

"Okay, okay, Tan'er, you're the most amazing, the most discerning."

"Hehe... Happy."

Su Tan'er must have been really happy. After a while, other members of the Su family came over to greet Su Tan'er and Ning Yi, such as Wen Ding and Wen Fang, and then left discreetly. Xi Junyi also came, greeted Su Tan'er and Ning Yi, and then sat at a round table diagonally behind them - sitting at a round table and eating in this venue was basically a symbol of having a certain status and position.

Old Qin and his two wives had also arrived, along with Kang Xian and others, sitting among the celebrities. Before long, night had completely fallen, and people had filled the entire venue. As the melodious sound of silk and bamboo music began to play, people began to quiet down. The Qinhuai River nearby rippled with water, the night breeze was pleasant. When the person in charge of the prefectural government, who was responsible for hosting the Flower Queen competition, said some pleasantries and announced the start of the competition, the sound of silk and bamboo music on the stage also gradually stopped.

At the moment of utter silence, a booming sound rang out, music started, and fireworks shot up from under the stage. The newly promoted courtesan Luo Miaomiao, along with several colorful ribbons that suddenly flew out, soared up from under the stage, like a colorful phoenix spreading its wings, opening the curtain of the Flower Queen competition in the most magnificent and grand form in this prosperous city night.

Far away from where Ning Yi and Su Tan'er were, in the area where Luo Miaomiao's supporters were located, everyone applauded enthusiastically. In the enthusiastic atmosphere, a man named Gu Yanzhen was also clapping with a smile, but occasionally he would turn his head, and when no one was paying attention, he would cast his gaze over once. Then he would scan the surroundings, searching for the place where Nie Yunzhu might be in the crowd...

*************

I came out before midnight, asking for monthly tickets ^_^ (To be continued, if you want to know what will happen next, please log in, there are more chapters, support the author, support genuine reading!)

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