"Good song, good words." Fan Ruoruo smiled and sighed. "Miss Sang's singing skills are indeed extraordinary."
Sang Wen was pleased to receive praise from the famous young lady of the Fan family. She blushed slightly as she bowed.
"The scenery of winter and the coldness of spring make this scorching summer a bit more refreshing." Lin Wan 'er nodded in agreement.
Fan Xian had been reborn in the Kingdom of Qing for 16 years, but he still didn't like to listen to songs. He often missed Yang Zongwei's singing from his previous life. Thinking of Yang Zongwei, he thought of He Zongwei, who had often come to Fan Manor to pay his respects. He frowned, and for some reason, he loathed that gifted scholar.
But the line in Sang Wen's song, "Suddenly meeting in a white silk robe," had stirred up something in him. The white silk robe consisted of white silk sleeves and a thin silk undergarment, as plain as a white plum blossom. And when he had first met Wan 'er in front of the incense burner table in the Temple of Qing, hadn't she been wearing a white robe, like a plain plum blossom?
But that winter plum blossom had the smell of a chicken leg. Fan Xian unconsciously looked at Lin Wan 'er, and found that she was also looking at him. When their eyes met, Fan Xian smiled, and Lin Wan' er blushed slightly.
Although Ye Ling 'er had long since acknowledged Fan Xian's abilities, seeing the dark ripples in front of her still made her feel uncomfortable. She coughed. "I don't really like listening to songs."
Fan Xian laughed. "It seems that Miss Ye and I are both coarse people." Calling himself a coarse person was one thing, but his words dragged Ye Ling 'er in as well. The other two girls couldn't help but laugh. Even Sang Wen, who had been in a daze, couldn't help but cover her mouth.
Fan Xian was the only man in the mountain hall. Beside him sat his sister and Wan 'er. Ye Ling' er sat next to Wan 'er, and the atmosphere was filled with the faint scent of a young girl. It made Fan Xian feel very good, and he sighed that his life had not been in vain. As long as Princess Rou Jia wasn't by his side, Fan Xian thought with some fear. Young girls were the most beautiful things in the world, but if they always looked at you as if you were a husband in ten years, then that wasn't good.
At that moment, Sang Wen suddenly gathered her courage and curtsied. "I would like to ask Master Fan to say a few words."
In the capital, artists competed with their extravagance and the level of their fans. It depended on whether the people who listened to their songs were princes or dukes. But in the end, it was still a competition of ability, which was their ability to sing and write songs. Miss Sang had caught the eye of both the princess and the young lady of the Fan family. Naturally, she was an important person, and she thought about her songs and poems day and night. Today, by chance, she had met Master Fan, who was famous in poetry in the capital. She could no longer be reserved, and regardless of the difference in status, she bravely made this somewhat presumptuous request.
Fan Xian was startled, but Lin Wan'er and his sister were already giggling as they allowed him to write. Even Ye Ling'er opened her eyes wide in curiosity, wanting to see what kind of sentence he would come up with.
Fan Xian was annoyed to the point that he had no choice but to go into the inner room and lay out some paper and ink. Ruoruo had long since sat down in front of the desk, brush in hand, and waited. It turned out that Fan Xian was just a page boy. The three girls who followed him into the room couldn't help but laugh when they saw this.
"My sister's handwriting is better." Fan Xian explained a little awkwardly. Although he had practiced calligraphy diligently in Danzhou, it was still not as beautiful as his sister's, so he simply let her do it.
Not long after, Ruoruo had written down a few lines that Fan Xian had recited in small, delicate script. When Sang Wen first heard it, her eyes brightened. She nervously took the piece of paper and read it carefully. She was overjoyed, and bowed to Fan Xian. "Sang Wen thanks Master Fan for the poem. Words cannot express my gratitude."
Lin Wan'er and Ruoruo also nodded repeatedly, believing that Fan Xian's poem was worthy of the word "gratitude." If Sang Wen composed a good song and sang it all over the capital, she would probably have a few more good years ahead of her.
Fan Xian was copying Tang Xianzu's clever line today: "So the beautiful flowers and purples bloom everywhere, but like this they all give way to broken wells and decadent walls. A beautiful scene on a fine day, but heaven forbid it. Whose courtyard is it to delight the heart and delight the heart? Flying in the morning and rolling in the evening, the rosy clouds and green pavilions, the rain and wind, the smoke and waves of the painted boat, the beautiful screen makes people look at this cheap beauty. "
Looking at the intoxicated expressions on the faces of the women, he sighed and shook his head. He thought that the whole story of the Peony Pavilion was a wonderful piece of writing. Although it was beautiful, it lacked the spirit of the story. However, he was busy with dating, business, and dating. Even the outing had to last for two days. How could he have the time to think about it? It seemed that the work of spreading advanced culture was indeed very difficult.
"It's a little too tragic." Ye Ling'er, who had been silent all this time, was a little slow to react. She only now realized the true meaning of the line, and spoke sadly.
Suddenly, Ruoruo's expression changed. She thought of the line, "A beautiful scene on a fine day, but heaven forbid it." It had already appeared in Story of the Stone, where Lin Daiyu played the drinking game. If Sang Wen sang this line all over the capital, wouldn't people immediately know that Story of the Stone had been written by her brother? But seeing that Fan Xian seemed to have forgotten about it, and that deep in her heart, she also wanted her brother to make a name for himself. She couldn't help but smile, and she didn't mention it again.
— — —
The outing ended satisfactorily. Everyone got what they wanted before they came. Ye Ling'er got some "tricks," Sang Wen got Fan Xian's poem, Fan Sizhe got a belly full of roasted fish and meat, and Da Bao got a horse back to the Prime Minister's manor. Fan Ruoruo got two days of elegant scenery to clear her mind, and Lin Wan'er got the chance to get close to her brother. Fan Xian got the most, but he couldn't say it.
If it ended like this, everyone would be happy. But when Fan Xian heard Wang Qinian's report, he frowned. He really hadn't expected things to be so coincidental.
The Crown Prince was coming!
…
…
"Retreat!"
Hearing that the Crown Prince was coming to the summer residence that day, Fan Xian didn't say anything else. He ordered Wang Qinian to arrange for his group to retreat back to the capital. What a joke. If the Crown Prince was coming to spend the summer, would he dare fight for territory with him? Furthermore, the Fan family had always been considered part of the Second Prince's faction. The Prime Minister had broken off relations with the Eastern Palace, and the Overwatch Council was clinging to the Emperor. Although the power behind Fan Xian was great, they were all the Crown Prince's most hated targets. If the two sides really did meet, even if Fan Xian had a "fake princess" at his side and the young ladies of the Ye and Fan families, if the Crown Prince really wanted to humiliate him, Fan Xian would have no one to go to.
The Emperor had said at the Green Bamboo Teahouse by the Liujing River that Fan Xian should be able to live comfortably in the capital. But the Crown Prince probably didn't like Fan Xian being comfortable. If there was a difference of opinion between father and son, Fan Xian didn't have the arrogance to think that the Emperor would deal with his own son for the sake of a mere official's son.
So he had to retreat, cleanly and efficiently. He didn't want to give the Crown Prince a chance to see him or humiliate him. At the same time, he didn't want to give himself a chance to be humiliated and beat the Crown Prince after he was humiliated, committing a heaven-defying crime.
He had come confidently, but now he had to retreat in fear. Fan Xian didn't feel good about it. Lin Wan'er frowned unhappily. Brother Chengqian wasn't a tiger, so why was her husband so afraid? Ye Ling'er also looked down on Fan Xian, who was afraid of the nobility. So what if he was the Crown Prince? When he was young, the Emperor had sent him to the Ye family to learn martial arts. She had beaten him up too.
After all, Fan Xian was only an eighth-level functionary, a mere illegitimate son of Count Sinan. He wasn't like these two girls, who had been in and out of the palace since they were young, and were used to seeing the world's top figures. Furthermore, his thoughts were much more mature than these girls', and he knew that this matter was a bit sensitive.
Because he had arranged things quickly, by the time the Crown Prince's entourage was about to arrive at the summer estate, Fan Xian's entourage was already on the official road. The two sides brushed past each other.
At that moment, a gong rang out, as if a performance was about to begin. The Crown Prince's entourage stopped, and a palace guard called for Fan Xian's entourage to stop as well. Fan Xian lifted the curtain of the carriage and looked out expressionlessly. In the bright yellow carriage, the Crown Prince's entourage — the future most powerful man in the world — was weakly talking to the carriage behind him.
The Crown Prince, Li Chengqian, had handsome features, but he didn't look well. His face was a bit pale, and the corners of his lips were a bit black. He had come to the mountain resort to spend the summer. He hadn't expected to see Wan'er and the girl from the Ye family on the road. They had grown up together, so he had stopped to chat.
Knowing that Wan'er had spent the night at the summer estate, Li Chengqian's heart ached. "Why don't you take care of your body?" he said. "The imperial doctor said that you are most afraid of cold."
Ye Ling'er laughed and interjected. "Sister Lin, you don't have to worry about that. You have a famous doctor by your side." Lin Wan'er frowned and looked at Ye Ling'er. "It's already summer," she explained with a smile. "How could I catch a cold?"
But he didn't change the subject. The Crown Prince was very curious about what Ye Ling'er was talking about, and asked for more details. Only then did he learn that the person in the carriage in front of them was Wan'er's future husband. He was very surprised. "The Fan family's underground fighter? He has become famous recently. Quickly have him come and let me take a look. "
"Forget it, Your Highness. Don't scare him," said Lin Wan'er awkwardly.
The Crown Prince frowned. "The Emperor's family has a few poor relatives. In the future, when you are married, he will be my brother-in-law. What is there to be afraid of? Besides, in a few days, father will summon him to the palace to pay his respects to the concubines. " He paused for a moment, then continued, "Moreover, the Imperial Court is about to give him a position. Could it be that he still wants to hide?"
These words were extremely heavy, and the two carriages immediately quietened down.
"Greetings, Your Highness." A voice broke the silence. At some point, Fan Xian had arrived in front of the Crown Prince's carriage. He smiled and bowed.
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