Chapter 11: No Laughing!

The young woman wore a long brocade robe of plain white, with dark brown silk threads embroidering intricate and vigorous branches on the fabric.

Peach-red silk threads embroidered blooming plum blossoms, extending from the hem of the skirt all the way to the waist.

A wide, dark purple belt cinched her slender waist, accentuating her graceful figure.

A few hairpins inlaid with emeralds held up the lower layer of her three thousand black silk strands, which cascaded over her shoulders. Her earrings were also inlaid with emeralds.

Around her white, jade-like neck, she wore a necklace of alternating pearls and emeralds, adding much charm to her neck.

On her fair face, her pink, vermilion lips appeared small and cute, adding much grace to her fair complexion.

Lin Xun didn’t look any further, fearing it would be too impolite.

However, the eyes of this top-ranking qingguan of Chunfeng House were fixed on Lin Xun, not leaving him for a long time.

“Miss Jiang?”

Lin Xun spoke up to remind her. The main reason was that the atmosphere in the room was a bit subtle. Even for someone as thick-skinned as Lin Xun, being stared at by a beautiful girl like this made him feel a little embarrassed.

“Nongqin was impolite. Young Master, please be seated. Today, Nongqin plays the zither only for you, Young Master.”

Nongqin curtsied. Her graceful figure, with its perfect curves, appeared even more exaggerated under the curtsy. Lin Xun quickly averted his gaze.

But seriously, that phrase “today, only for you, Young Master” was really too flirtatious! One could only say, as expected of the top courtesan! Every word and phrase carried considerable lethality.

The young woman’s delicate hands poured tea. Lin Xun expressed his thanks and sat down on a carved wooden stool.

She began to gently stroke the zither strings. Her fair, slender fingers danced on the strings, a magnificent sight. The sound of the zither was melodious and婉转 [wǎnzhuǎn, melodious and moving].

Although Lin Xun’s musical attainment could only distinguish between “pleasant” and “unpleasant”…
But watching Nongqin’s technique, Lin Xun felt! As expected of the direct disciple of the Demonic Zither Hall, very nimble!

It was just that for some reason, the sound of the zither carried a hint of sorrow. Within the sorrow, there was also waiting, a痴情 [chīqíng, infatuated] waiting, like the girl of the “Watching for Husband Rock” waiting for her husband’s return.

But as he listened, Lin Xun felt a slight sense of unease…
He had heard this piece before…
This was an introductory piece from the Demonic Zither Hall, and it was also the piece she had played for him when she was nine.

Lin Xun still remembered that he had once just said it sounded nice, and Nongqin, who was only nine at the time, would carry a zither taller than herself and run to his courtyard every day.

At that time, he had actually grown tired of listening to it, but was too embarrassed to say so…
Lin Xun thought of his non-mainstream European [unlucky] bloodline from two lifetimes suddenly erupting, winning the grand prize from buying jewelry. Combined with this zither piece, it was probably not a coincidence, but Nongqin’s deliberate act.

Nongqin suspected that he was Lin Xun… so she planned to use this piece to connect with him.

It had to be said, Nongqin had really guessed correctly.

Unfortunately, he no longer wanted to be the Demon Lord…
Sleeping while holding his soft, smooth wife, wasn’t that much better than fighting and killing?

When the zither piece ended, Lin Xun applauded. The young woman, seeing no reaction from Lin Xun, was a little disappointed, but she still bowed with her zither. “Did Nongqin’s piece satisfy you, Young Master?”

“More than satisfied. Your hand technique, ptooey, I mean your zither-playing technique is simply like a zither immortal descending to the world! The sound of the zither has penetrated deep into my heart and lingers on.”

Lin Xun praised her enthusiastically.

“Thank you for your praise, Young Master. It is Nongqin’s honor that you like it.”

Nongqin had heard such complimentary remarks countless times.

But for some reason, although it was such a generic compliment, hearing it in the young woman’s heart was like ten thousand flowers blooming…
“When did Miss Nongqin enter this red-light district?”

After listening to the zither, Lin Xun felt it was time to talk about serious matters, which was to inquire about Nongqin’s situation.

Lin Xun remembered meeting Nongqin during a trial.

At that time, several demonic hounds had surrounded Nongqin, and he had saved her.

After saving her, there wasn’t much interaction, it was just that he had once praised a piece she played as sounding nice, and she would play the zither in his courtyard every day.

After playing a piece, she was also afraid of disturbing him, so she would run away with her zither after finishing…
Later, when he was ten, he began to go out for training. Every time he returned to the Myriad Demons Sect, he would leave in a hurry, and he never saw her again.

But how did she end up in Chunfeng House… Could it be that something had happened to the Demonic Zither Hall?

Regardless, to meet was fate, let alone meeting twice. If he could help, Lin Xun felt he should.

“To be honest with you, Young Master, Nongqin voluntarily entered this red-light district three years ago.”

“Voluntarily?” This time, Lin Xun was truly stunned. She really chose to ‘go out to sea’?
“Young Master does not know.”

Jiang Nongqin’s peach-blossom eyes looked gently at Lin Xun, paying attention to every change in his expression.

“Nongqin is here voluntarily, for a person.”

“A person?”

“Yes, a person who saved Nongqin.” Nongqin looked directly into Lin Xun’s eyes. “Nongqin wants to be by his side.”

Lin Xun’s heart trembled upon hearing this, but his expression remained as steady as an old dog.

The young woman continued, “But Nongqin knows that Nongqin is not good enough, and is not qualified to stay by his side. So Nongqin is tempering herself in the mortal world, hoping that one day, with improved strength, she can serve by her lord’s side.”

Looking into the young woman’s eyes, Lin Xun’s back was already slightly breaking out in a sweat…
“Hahaha… Miss Nongqin really knows how to joke.”

Just as the atmosphere in the room grew more and more tense, Lin Xun laughed, breaking the atmosphere in the room.

“What ‘tempering’ and all that, it makes Miss Nongqin sound like a legendary cultivator.”

“And Miss Nongqin, please don’t joke about ‘only for one person’ and ‘being able to serve by my lord’s side’ anymore. If you do, I don’t know how many men in the city will be heartbroken!”

Hearing Lin Xun’s words, Nongqin was stunned for a moment, then she smiled, as if nothing had happened. “It seems Nongqin’s joke did not deceive you, Young Master.”

“Hahaha… almost, almost…” Lin Xun quickly stood up and bowed. “Now that I’ve heard the piece, I won’t disturb you any longer. Please rest well, miss.”

“Take care, Young Master.”

Nongqin did not try to keep him. It was just that, looking at Lin Xun’s back, the young woman’s eyes flickered slightly, like shimmering gems.

Until the door closed, the young woman still gazed in the direction he had left, her graceful figure like undulating mountain ranges, breathtakingly beautiful.

“Are you really not His Highness?”

The young woman murmured to herself, a strand of hair brushing past her temple and gently falling.

The young woman’s thoughts couldn’t help but drift, recalling every time His Highness returned to the demonic sect and then left in a hurry, she would watch his departing back from a distance, until he was far away…
“But your back, how could I ever mistake it…”

Walking on the street, Lin Xun recalled Nongqin’s words from just now, and felt quite guilty in his heart…
But no matter what, it was good that Nongqin was safe. The reason she was a qingguan was just for tempering herself in the mortal world, which was very normal.

As for Nongqin’s obsession with him, Lin Xun believed that Nongqin’s feelings for him were just “feelings of gratitude.” When she couldn’t find him no matter what, Nongqin would also give up.

It was also fortunate that his acting skills were decent; she didn’t discover his identity.

Organizing his thoughts, without realizing it, Lin Xun returned to the courtyard. He gently pushed open the door. In the courtyard, a slender and delicate young woman in a butterfly dress was dancing gracefully.

“Like this, then like this, and then jump like this.”

So engrossed in her dancing, she didn’t notice her husband’s return.

And Lin Xun watched with a smile, his wife’s slightly clumsy, yet extremely cute and beautiful dance.

“Finally, like this…”

The young woman tapped her toes, spun gracefully, her butterfly dress blooming like a flower, bringing with it a faint, fresh fragrance, better than the most beautiful flower in the world.

But when the young woman stopped after a few turns and happened to see her husband at the door, her dance paused, her skirt gathered, like a narcissus bud.

“No laughing!” his wife’s cheeks flushed red.

“I’m not laughing!” The corners of Lin Xun’s mouth hooked up slightly.

“You’re clearly laughing.”

“Where? You saw wrong.”

“Husband!”

“Sorry, sorry…” Lin Xun walked forward and gently pulled his wife into his arms. “Because I’m very happy.”

“Hmph… what are you happy about?” Leaning against her husband’s chest, his wife pouted her pink little cheeks.

“Because I saw the most beautiful person in the world, dancing the most beautiful dance.”

“Is it just because of that?” Jiang Qingshang raised her beautiful, black-jade-like eyes and asked.

“Uh…” Lin Xun scratched his head for a moment. Could it be that his praise wasn’t good enough?

“Fool…”

Just as Lin Xun was thinking about how to praise his wife more, Jiang Qingshang rested her forehead gently on Lin Xun’s chest, her cherry lips hooking up slightly, as picturesque as an immortal.

Do you know, this dance, which is clearly clumsy, yet you say is the most beautiful, I dance only for you…

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(End of this chapter)