Downstairs, hundreds of round lanterns with the word "dragon" painted on them emitted a bright golden light, forming hundreds of light spots that surrounded a crimson dragon.
The dragon dashed left and right, trying to break out of the lanterns' encirclement. The light spots and the dragon continued to fight, forming an unusually beautiful and lively dragon gathering.
Balls of gold, red, and yellow fireworks shot up from the sky, dyeing the entire scene in a brilliant golden hue.
Taking advantage of the excitement, the crowd watched Long Wu for a while before returning to the table to eat and drink. Everyone present was the son of a merchant, and none of them came from a noble family. Their cultured qualities immediately showed. Now that they were in high spirits, they completely lost their pretense of elegance and let loose, slapping the table with laughter.
"Is the tenth floor a place where just anyone can enter?"
Suddenly, an impatient voice came from a table to the side.
Everyone's laughter stopped and they quickly looked over.
At the neighboring table, three young scholars with refined temperaments were looking over coldly.
The one who spoke was a fair-skinned scholar with a long, thin face.
"Such an elegant place actually allows such vulgar people to enter. Looks like this Yang-Seeking Tower is getting worse and worse," the scholar said coldly.
Unexpectedly, the usually unforgiving Song Zhenguo, after seeing the person who spoke, did not make a sound. He only lowered his head and drank silently, not saying a word.
Most of the others also lowered their heads and did not speak. Their voices also quickly quieted down. Even Chen Yunxi bit her lip and did not make a sound. Among this group, her family background was the best. She did not dare to talk back, so it was obvious that the three people had powerful backgrounds.
"Isn't this Miss Chen Yunxi? As expected of the daughter of a merchant. Even the people she usually befriends are people who don't know manners. Last time, your brother put in a lot of good words in front of me, smiling obsequiously and saying that he would betroth you to me as a concubine. I was a little tempted then, but now it seems that I made the right choice not to agree. "Another young master played with a string of prayer beads in his hand and shook his head with a smile.
When Chen Yunxi heard this, she quickly looked at Lu Sheng as if she had been electrocuted and immediately lowered her head. Her entire face and neck were red. Even her body was trembling.
But even so, none of the eight or nine people at the table dared to make a sound.
Lu Sheng shook his head. Looking at Song Zhenguo, he was clenching his fists tightly and the veins on his neck were bulging. It was obvious that he was furious to the extreme.
"A bunch of cowards." The thin-faced scholar spat softly.
"Didn't your mother teach you manners? Do you need this Young Master to teach you what manners are? "
Suddenly, a calm voice sounded beside Chen Yunxi.
The thin-faced scholar had originally planned to ignore this group of people and was about to continue drinking his wine. He didn't expect to suddenly hear this sentence. His eyes immediately widened as he looked at Chen Yunxi.
The other two people at that table were also surprised and looked at Chen Yunxi.
Song Zhenguo suddenly grabbed Lu Sheng's hand and winked at him. He slowly stood up and cupped his fists towards the three people, about to apologize.
Lu Sheng smiled and stood up. "It's our fault for disturbing others with our ruckus. But to maliciously attack a girl, a young girl who had just reached marriageable age. Looks like the three of you aren't good people either. "
Marriageable age referred to the age of marriage. The marriageable age here was 16 years old. Chen Yunxi was only 16 years old. She was a full three years younger than Lu Sheng.
"How dare you!" The thin-faced scholar stood up and glared coldly at Lu Sheng. "To think that Mountain-Edge City would actually …"
"Alright, Su De." The only Young Master among the three who hadn't spoken suddenly spoke up.
The moment he spoke, the other two suppressed their indignant expressions. Their faces were filled with schadenfreude. It was obvious that the one who spoke had a greater background.
"It's just a small matter. Let's leave it at that. It's time for us to leave. " The Young Master's features were regular and he had a calm demeanor. He spoke with an air of magnanimity, as though the quarrel between the few of them was child's play in his eyes.
"Alright … since Young Master Rong has spoken! Hmph! "The thin-faced scholar snorted coldly and glared fiercely at Lu Sheng.
Lu Sheng had already made up his mind to teach the three of them a lesson. He had also noticed a few sharp gazes directed at him from not too far away from the three of them. However, they were merely at the level of Strength Proficiency. To him, it was just a matter of a few more palm strikes.
There were differences in Strength Proficiency levels too. For example, a peak Strength Proficiency expert like Uncle Zhao could handle two ordinary Strength Proficiency experts alone. It was just like the same set of martial arts. Different people would have different levels of mastery in it.
Moreover, he, Lu Sheng, was now an inner force expert. His Black Fury Qi cultivation was effective even against Demonic Ghosts. If it hit an ordinary person, it would probably be even more terrifying.
Although he hadn't really faced one before, three to five Strength Proficiency experts were nothing in his eyes. Even the higher Intent Proficiency level was at most equivalent to three Strength Proficiency experts. There was nothing to fear.
The three of them stood up and left slowly. The conflict was resolved just like that. Song Zhenguo heaved a sigh of relief.
Once the three of them left, Chen Yunxi couldn't stay any longer. With tears in her eyes, she stood up and bade farewell. Lu Sheng wanted to send her off, but was tactfully declined. Then, she left in a hurry.
The others lost interest in admiring Long Wu. After sending off his female companion, Song Zhenguo pulled Lu Sheng and Wang Ziquan towards the riverside.
The Cypress Pine River was calm at night. Pleasure boats with red lights on slowly glided on the river's surface.
Song Zhenguo pulled the two of them onto a larger pleasure boat with ease. The attractive boat mistress came forward to welcome them.
"Young Master Song, long time no see. Jun 'er has been talking about you all the time."
The way the boat mistress spoke was completely devoid of any worldly air. Lu Sheng clicked his tongue in wonder.
"Is Jun 'er free now?" Song Zhenguo smiled as he led the way inside.
"Of course. I'm just waiting for Young Master Song to come," the boat mistress replied with a smile. "As for the other two Young Masters, if there's a lady you like, please let me know."
The three of them were led into a small private room. The room was decorated in an unusually elegant manner.
Then, a row of about ten women wearing thin veils entered. Each of them had a delicate and alluring figure and an air of elegance, just like the ladies of a noble family. Each of them had their own merits.
"Greetings to the three Young Masters." The group of women bowed respectfully.
"Brothers, please pick one. It's my treat today," Song Zhenguo said casually as he hugged a woman who came in later.
Wang Ziquan's eyes were staring blankly. His face was so red that he didn't know which one to choose.
Lu Sheng, on the other hand, looked calm. He casually pointed at a seemingly gentle and quiet person and asked him to sit beside him.
After the three of them had ordered, some nourishing scented tea was served. Girls in sexy dresses also came up to play music and dance.
"Today's incident … is really …" Song Zhenguo's face flushed red at the mention of the incident at Yang-Seeking Tower.
"Brother Song, there's no need to say such depressing things with such beautiful scenery and beauties by your side. Come, let's drink!" Wang Ziquan's hands started to get restless. He kept groping the bodies of the girls beside him. He couldn't wait any longer.
The three girls comforted Song Zhenguo with coquettish smiles. Lu Sheng also tried to comfort him. Song Zhenguo's mood improved slightly.
"If I'm not wrong, one of the three who mocked us today is the son of Mountain-Edge City's Deputy Army Superintendent, Wang Shunyong. If it were anyone else, it would be fine. But this Wang Shunyong is different … "
"And that Young Master Rong … he must have an even greater background," Wang Ziquan added.
Lu Sheng shook his head without a word. After seeing the bigger world, these so-called Young Masters were no longer worthy of his attention.
"Why are you saying these dampening things? Keep drinking! Let's not go home until we're drunk tonight! "Wang Ziquan shouted.
Song Zhenguo cast aside his worries and drank in big mouthfuls.
Actually, Lu Sheng didn't really like such occasions. But seeing that Song Zhenguo was in a bad mood, he accompanied him and drank until late into the night.
Painting boats was for entertainment, not for sale. By the time the three of them finished drinking, it was already midnight. That was around two to three in the morning.
After separating from the two, Lu Sheng felt a little emotional. Rich young masters and young mistresses like Song Zhenguo and Chen Yunxi didn't even dare to say a word when they met the sons of officials. It seemed like the status of merchants in this world wasn't high.
He drank too much. Although he wasn't drunk, his mind was much clearer and he didn't feel sleepy at all. After leaving Cypress Pine Riverside, he hurried back to his residence. Along the way, he flagged down a few carriages, but there were no empty seats.
It was too late. There weren't many carriage drivers, most of whom had gone back to rest. Hence, he could only hurry back step by step.
The streets of the city were deserted in the middle of the night. Only a few drunkards were scattered about, babbling nonsense.
The houses on both sides were pitch-black. Only the occasional lantern in front of a rich family's door swayed in the wind, emitting a faint red glow.
The wind whistled, and it was slightly chilly.
Lu Sheng sped up. When he was halfway there, he suddenly realized that his waist pouch had disappeared.
He searched his body and couldn't find it anywhere.
"I must have left it on the pleasure boat." Lu Sheng recalled that Duanmu Wan's note was still in his waist pouch. The key to his room was also in there. He couldn't lose it. He turned and hurried in the direction of the pleasure boat.
Walking quickly, Lu Sheng retraced his steps and returned to Cypress Pine Riverside. At this time, most of the pleasure boats by the riverside had finished their work. They had let go of their hanging streamers. The riverside was rather deserted.
He made his way back and quickly found the pleasure boat from which he had alighted.
The pleasure boat had already docked. The boat was deserted and there wasn't a soul in sight. The yellow lanterns on the deck swayed slightly with the river breeze.
"It's time to call it a day. The ladies have all gone home to rest. It should be cleaning time now," Lu Sheng thought as he stepped onto the pleasure boat along the pier.
"Is anyone there?" Lu Sheng called out. He walked along the deck and into the boat.
The interior of the pleasure boat was empty. The floor was unusually clean, and the slightly worn wooden planks still reflected the light from the varnish.
Lu Sheng walked along the entrance of the boat. Inside was a rather narrow intestine. After walking out of the intestine, he arrived at a hall. On both sides of the hall were the rows of rooms of the three-story ship.
A small, swaying lantern hung at the door of each room. A faint red glow shone from the lanterns. The color of the red flames seemed even more chilly in this late night.
"Is anyone there?" Lu Sheng looked around. He couldn't see a single soul in the entire ship.
"I remember there weren't so many red lanterns when I came here just now …" His eyes narrowed slightly, and his heart tightened.
The ship had three floors, and each floor had five rooms. There were fifteen rooms in total, and red lanterns hung at the door of each room. The faint red glow dyed the entire interior of the ship red. It was silent.
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