Master Sima, who was dressed in casual clothes and was afraid of being recognized by others, was standing outside Qingqing Garden where the lanterns with the words "Li Chun Yuan" were hung, and sighed secretly.
If it weren't for what my father told me was so important, I really wouldn't want to come to such a rosy place in person.
"Oh, it turns out it's Mr. Sima. I missed him from afar. I'm going to prepare an elegant banquet on the second floor for him."
When Zhang Bolun, who was under Qin Mo, the steward of Lichun Court, saw that the visitor was Sima Shi, he did not dare to neglect him and immediately shouted to welcome him.
Master Sima looked ashamed now. He was afraid that everyone would hear his name, but he didn't expect Zhang Bolun to shout loudly.
A slightly embarrassed Master Sima looked around and found that there were no familiar people he was worried about meeting, so he was relieved. He coughed twice and followed Zhang Bolun to the elegant seats on the second floor.
I am no stranger to this Zhang Bolun.
As early as a year ago, when his father and Chen Changwen were responsible for supervising the construction of the Western Region Commercial Market, he had met him in the secret room of the mansion.
Regarding the secret room at home and his father's various dealings with Luoyang Shops and Markets, only he and his father knew about it.
Not only that, for his own convenience, his father also told him the ins and outs of Qingqing Garden before going south this time.
This Bolun is just a minion of Li Chun Yuan.
Qingqingyuan, formerly known as Lichunyuan.
It just took root in Luoyang a year ago. The owner of this restaurant is a mysterious man named "Uncle" in rumors.
No one knows the name of this uncle, including myself.
Below the uncle is Qin Mo, the second in command of Lichun Court.
He himself had met this Qin Mo once. His father told him that although Qin Mo and his uncle ran the same building, they actually had different personalities.
The identity of the uncle is unknown. I only know that he is probably from the Central Plains.
But Qin Mo is different. He is a Xianbei person from the northern grasslands.
Regarding these two people, because they were closely related, my father only told him so much.
As for the other shrimp soldiers and crab generals, he already knew them clearly.
The number one oiran here, Xiao Xuanxue, is the uncle’s confidant and her important contact person this time.
There are two other people in the courtyard: Li Nie and Liu Yizhen. These two are said to be skilled in martial arts and are the uncle's confidants. They are also the bodyguards of Li Chun Yuan.
As for the other two oiran girls: Qie Fangsheng and You Ling'er, they may have nothing to do with his actions this time, so he doesn't know about them.
"Master Sima, the tea you requested is here."
"Good work."
Sitting in the elegant banquet on the second floor, Master Sima was drinking tea carelessly while observing what was going on downstairs:
"I dare to invite Miss Xiao Xuanxue to come here and talk about it."
"This..." Zhang Bolun looked confused: "Although ordinary people can't see Miss Xiao, Master Sima can certainly do it. It's just that today, Miss Xiao is not feeling well, so it is inconvenient to come."
Master Sima pondered for a while and then nodded.
"In that case, is there anyone in Qingqing Garden who is close to Miss Xiao who can convey the message on your behalf?"
"Yes." Zhang Bolun nodded. As the backbone of Qingqingyuan, he naturally understood that Master Sima did not come here to find flowers and get drunk, but to convey important matters on behalf of Master Sima.
"who?"
"This is Miss Fang Sheng. She has always been in love with Miss Xiao Xuanxue. If the young master has any message, please let her convey it on your behalf."
"Understood." Master Sima nodded: "Then I'd like you to ask Miss Fang Sheng to come."
"Okay." Zhang Bolun just stood up, then turned around and said, "I almost forgot to remind the young master that Miss Fang Sheng does not know any secrets. Therefore, the young master must pay attention to his words when conveying the message."
"Understood, let's go." Master Sima understood that Zhang Bolun meant that when conveying the message, he should not reveal the secrets of the garden.
Master Sima was drinking tea from a cup alone, deep in thought.
Hui'er trusted herself so much. Although she didn't do anything to feel sorry for her, after all, she hid too many things from her.
When he thought of the big thing his father was planning, he couldn't help but shudder.
Downstairs, an unknown singer played the harp and sang a tune.
"Tonight, what evening is coming? The boat is in the middle of the current.
What day will it be that I shall be in the same boat with the prince?
When you are humiliated and treated well, you are not ashamed.
My heart was troubled and I found out about the prince.
There are trees in the mountains, and the trees have branches. Do you know that my heart pleases you?"
After listening to this sentimental Yue song that expressed the sorrow of the people, Master Sima was filled with emotions. If he hadn't been afraid that drinking would ruin things, he would have felt so sad at this moment.
Not long after, Qie Fangsheng, the No. 2 oiran of Qingqingyuan, led by Zhang Bolun, came to where Master Sima was sitting.
"The young lady has met the young master."
Master Sima raised his eyes and glanced at the brothel oiran in front of him, who had a slightly frowned brow, elegantly dressed, neither humble nor overbearing, and nodded.
Sure enough, he is not a common person. The fact that he is like this is enough to prove that Qingqingyuan is not an ordinary place.
"Girl, please tell me these eight words to Miss Xiao Xuanxue: Wu songs are more enjoyable, and they should be played at the right time."
Master Sima was straightforward and did not say much. After leaving these eight words, he raised his head, drank the tea in the cup, and left with a puff of sleeves.
As he left the second floor, Master Sima whispered to Zhang Bolun beside him:
"The matter in the Northern Desert can be done!"
Zhang Bolun understood.
Master Sima went down to the attic, and when he passed by a seat on the first floor, a sarcastic voice came into Master Sima's ears like a bolt from the blue:
"I didn't expect that Mr. Sima would come to this land of fireworks to have fun just after we got married. He is so romantic and suave, hahahaha!"
That person was Xun Can who came here to drink.
After hearing this, Master Sima's face turned blue and red. He didn't know how to answer. He snorted, rolled up his sleeves and left Qingqingyuan.
————
"You said brother-in-law!"
When Xia Houxuan heard from Xun Can that Master Sima had appeared in Lichun Courtyard, he was immediately furious.
Hui'er liked Sima Shi so much that even Xi Di, who had been playing with him since childhood, was heartbroken. However, she didn't expect that Sima Shi would be such a bully. She just got married to Hui'er less than a year ago and got married.
Fireworks at the Red Mansion Chu Pavilion!
What's more, Hui'er is already pregnant!
"This is really unreasonable!"
Xia Houxuan, who rarely got angry, slapped his palm on the sandalwood table. The shock from the strong sandalwood table made his palm hurt.
"Axuan, there is no need to be angry." Xuncan smiled and patted Xia Houxuan on the shoulder: "In my opinion, Master Sima went to Qingqingyuan not to have fun."
"What Brother Xun means is..."
Xia Houxuan turned from anger to suspicion and did not understand what Xun Can was referring to.
"Sima's family tradition is very strict. If he didn't get Sima Yi's approval, how could Master Sima dare to be so blatant even if he had the heart to look for flowers? What's more, from my perspective, Master Sima is not such a romantic person."
After hearing this, Xia Houxuan calmed down completely.
He pondered for a long time and understood that what Xun Can said was true.
"No matter what, I will always go to Sima's mansion to find out!"
After Xia Houxuan finished speaking, he stood up, flicked his sleeves and strode towards Sima's mansion.
————
"elder brother!"
After hearing the report from the servants, the pregnant young lady Xia Houhui immediately came to the main hall with the support of the maid Nu Jin.
Seeing his sister who was pregnant with Liujia and looking happy, Xia Houxuan became even more angry, but he would not show all this in front of his sister.
Xia Houxuan smiled slightly and said:
"Hui'er, besides coming to see you today, my brother mainly wants to catch up with his brother-in-law and catch up on old times. By the way, my brother bought these supplements specifically for you in Nanshi. If you have nothing to do, remember to take them."
"I know, brother."
Xia Houhui smiled warmly:
"Husband, he is in the study. He will be here soon. Has my brother had dinner? If not, I will ask my servants to prepare it."
Xia Houxuan couldn't help but feel in a trance. He didn't know when his sister, who had always been lively and naughty, had turned into a good wife and mother.
"I haven't eaten before. My brother has always wanted to eat the honey cakes you made recently. I wonder if Hui'er can ask the servants to prepare some?"
After Xia Houhui heard this, he couldn't help but chuckled: "It turns out that my brother didn't miss Hui'er, but came to the house because he was greedy. It's just that Hui'er is inconvenient now and can't cook in person, so he can only show up to teach his son.
I'm going to do it, it may take an hour or two, can brother wait?"
Xia Houxuan smiled and said:
"Of course you can wait, but you only need to teach Zijin orally, and you must not dare to make any moves yourself, as you may be careful of the unborn baby in your belly."
In fact, Xia Houxuan had already had dinner. His original intention was just to send his sister away so that he could question Master Sima about what happened today.
"Got it!"
Xia Houhui smiled and walked to the kitchen with Zijin's support.
Not long after, Master Sima came to the main hall. He bowed slightly to Xia Houxuan and said with a smile: "Brother Xuan, you are coming to the mansion. Why didn't you tell me earlier? I can ask someone to prepare some refreshments in advance."
"Brother-in-law, there is no need to be polite!"
Xia Houxuan's tone was cold.
Master Sima naturally noticed it. He sighed deeply, sat on the side seat, and said to Xia Houxuan:
"Brother Xuan, it seems that you already know what happened today."
Xia Houxuan didn't say anything, but looked at Master Sima coldly. Since he didn't pretend to be stupid, he didn't need to question him anymore.
He wanted to hear how Master Sima gave him an explanation.
"Brother Xuan doesn't know. Master went to that pavilion today not to buy wine and have fun."
Xia Houxuan sneered:
"Why go to the butcher's market if you don't want to sell meat?"
Master Sima heard the irony in Xiahou Xuan's words and couldn't help but smile bitterly:
"To be honest, today's trip is my father's order."
Xia Houxuan was stunned for a moment.
Master Sima saw that Xia Houxuan was no longer angry, so he continued:
"When my father was building the new city of Luoyang, he discovered that this pavilion contained the enemy's masterpieces!"
After hearing this, Xia Houxuan's eyebrows twitched slightly.
"who?"
Xia Houxuan understood that Qingqingyuan, also known as Lichunyuan, was a big place in Luoyang City, so it was impossible to uproot it, which would damage Luoyang's prosperity and people's hearts. Therefore, he only needed to find out what was going on.
Who is it and then wait for an opportunity to get rid of it? This is the best strategy.
Master Sima looked calm. He remembered what his father had said:
You can tell the truth when necessary, but you can't tell everything.
He said to Xia Houxuan word for word:
"This person is none other than Xiao Xuanxue, the oiran of Qingqingyuan."